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April 28, 2022
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THURSDAY EDITION
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EXPLORE OREGON’S REVITALIZED THEATERS IN
PA G E 8
MAY 17 PRIMARY ELECTION
Hill to challenge Anderes for commission seat
Paul Anderes wants to finish
projects delayed by COVID-19
By DICK MASON
The Observer
LA GRANDE — Paul Anderes has
found his fi rst term as a Union County
Commissioner to be fulfi lling.
“I absolutely love it. I love being
an advocate for the county,” Anderes
said.
Still, he feels a bit frus-
trated. He explained that a
number of projects he began
have not been completed
because of the COVID-19
pandemic. He cites this as
a big reason he is seeking
Anderes
reelection.
“Some of my projects were delayed by
COVID-19. I want to fi nish what I started,”
said Anderes, who lives in La Grande.
See, Anderes/Page A7
Wyden:
Housing
needs
linger in
Oregon
Lisa Hill believes there is a need
for community members to lead
By DICK MASON
The Observer
LA GRANDE — Lisa Hill believes
she has a good fi rsthand understanding of
the challenges local business owners face,
a grasp, she said, that would serve her
well if elected to a position on the Union
County Board of Commissioners.
Hill has owned and oper-
ated a commercial offi ce
building in La Grande since
1994, one with fi ve tenants
who are all women entre-
preneurs in the health care
fi eld. She credits this expe-
Hill
rience with giving her an
understanding of the challenges faced by
local property and business owners. Hill is
eager to put what she has learned from this
See, Hill/Page A7
SHIFTING GEARS
By DAVIS CARBAUGH
The Observer
LA GRANDE — Oregon
Sen. Ron Wyden said the
lack of aff ordable housing
and homelessness continue
to be issues that linger in all
corners of the state.
“There’s not a nook or
cranny in the state from
Portland to
the valley or
throughout the
rural part of
the state where
people aren’t
asking about
housing,”
Wyden
Wyden said
during a Wednesday, April
20, town hall for Union
County residents.
Following the town hall,
Wyden further discussed
several elements of current
plans for lower-income res-
idents in need of housing
and how the plans can be
expanded to assist mid-
dle-income families and
fi rst-time home buyers as
well.
Wyden detailed the
expansion of low-income
housing tax credit (LIHTC),
legislation that opens doors
for low- and moderate-in-
come tenants to acquire
aff ordable rental units. With
the rental burden aff ecting
various income levels, he
See, Wyden/Page A7
Davis Carbaugh/The Observer
Union County’s law enforcement building, La Grande, shown on Tuesday, April 26, 2022, houses the La Grande Police Department, the Union County Sheriff ’s
Offi ce and the Union County Jail.
Design fi rm may be brought in to evaluate La Grande
public safety building, determine if it can be expanded
By DICK MASON • The Observer
L
A GRANDE — The drive
for a new public safety
building in Union County
is shifting into neutral.
Union County Sheriff Cody Bowen,
the leader of an eff ort to get a new public
safety building constructed to reduce
overcrowding and address building main-
tenance issues in the cur-
rent structure, said he
wants to reevaluate and see
if other options should be
considered.
“I am pulling back,”
Bowen said.
The sheriff had earlier
Bowen
proposed hiring a design
fi rm to develop a conceptual plan for a
new public safety building. The Union
County Board of Commissioners gave
Bowen the green light last August for
moving forward with that plan.
Bowen’s proposal encompassed a
public safety center that would house the
Union County Sheriff ’s Offi ce, La Grande
Police Department, Union County Jail,
Union County Parole and Probation and a
center where people experiencing mental
health issues could be helped.
This plan is now at least temporarily
off the table. Bowen said he believes it is
not a good time to pursue constructing a
new building because of the fragile status
of the economy, which is being rocked by
infl ation.
WEATHER
INDEX
Business ........B1
Classified ......B2
Comics ...........B5
Crossword ....B2
Davis Carbaugh/The Observer
The sign outside Union County’s law enforcement building at the corner of K Avenue and Sixth Street, La
Grande, on Tuesday, April 26, 2022, points out the structure’s many uses.
Dear Abby ....B6
Horoscope ....B3
Lottery ...........A2
Obituaries .....A5
Opinion .........A4
Spiritual ........A6
Sudoku ..........B5
Weather ........B6
Instead, Bowen, in his second year as
sheriff , wants to take a closer look at the
current public safety building and see if
steps could be taken to address issues like
overcrowding and deteriorating condi-
tions by renovating or making additions
Full forecast on the back of B section
Tonight
Friday
37 LOW
56/38
Rain and drizzle
Warmer
See, Building/Page A7
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541-963-3161
Issue 51
3 sections, 30 pages
La Grande, Oregon
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