INSIDE BOGGANS OASIS RESTAURANT GETTING NEW LOOK INSIDE, BUT STAYING THE SAME | BUSINESS & AGLIFE, B1 rns Leigh retu Jessie nty Grant Cou to the on perform Fair to Aug. 12. Friday, ger Tanni Wen / aphy to Photogr ted Pho Contribu August 11, 2022 INSIDE AUG UST 10-1 7, 2022 WW W.G OEA STE RNO REG ON.C OM lagrandeobserver.com | $1.50 THURSDAY EDITION Fai s r day FAIR SEASON IN FULL SWING FOR SUMMER AR KS FA IR M GE 8 PA CO UN TY GR AN T S AU G. 10 -1 3, AR 11 3 YE EOU board postpones appointing interim president PA GE 3 Trustees will gather more input, continue discussions during special session The Observer BOARDMAN — The Eastern Oregon University board of trustees declined to move for- ward with a resolution to name PA GE 9 PA GE 13 an interim president during its annual retreat in Boardman. The board dis- cussed the possi- bility of naming an interim president Insko during the retreat on Tuesday, Aug. 9. Outgoing Presi- dent Tom Insko recommended an interim co-presidency consisting of Vice President of Finance Lara Moore and board chair Richard Chaves. “We need to be thoughtful about the transition, and fortu- nately, we are fi nan- cially stable and have a strategic plan Chaves that gives us pur- pose and focus,” Insko said. “We have momentum and are doing great things for our students and community. My recommendation is about ensuring our progress continues, moving us forward as a university.” After a lengthy discussion, the board elected not to move in that direction. “We want to be speedy but not hasty,” vice board chair Cheryl Martin said. “The process for naming an interim president is very important. We would like more input and feedback from the university community before we make a decision.” The board plans to gather more input from the EOU community about naming an interim president in the coming weeks. They will continue discussions during a spe- cial session later in August. Insko, who announced Aug. 1 that he is leaving his post at the end of September, has been named president and chief exec- utive offi cer at Collins, a wood See, EOU/Page A3 County fair draws biggest crowd in six years More than 18,000 attended the Union County Fair By SHANNON GOLDEN The Observer Shannon Golden/The Observer LA GRANDE — The Union County Fair celebrated its 150th anniversary last week, and rounded out this year’s fair with a win, drawing in more than 18,000 attendees throughout the four-day event — the highest total attendance record it’s seen in the last six years. “We were exceptionally happy with the attendance this year,” said Kathy Gov- er-Shaw, the fair manager. This year’s total outpaced 2021’s four-day attendance of 13,893. This was Gover-Shaw’s second year at the helm of the community event, and she said that Thursday, Aug. 4, and Friday, Aug. 5, were the busiest days. Gover-Shaw and the fair board’s six- person team plan the yearly fair months ahead of time, in collaboration with com- munity partners like FFA and 4-H. Gov- er-Shaw credited the fair’s entertainment, FFA and 4-H programs for getting com- munity members out to the fairgrounds this year, as well as the free senior break- fast sponsored by Grocery Outlet and The Observer. 4-H and FFA participation “Our 4-H and FFA programs are so strong and just everybody wants to come out and support those,” she said. “It’s just wonderful.” A bright blue sign tells guests where to park outside of an Airbnb in La Grande on Aug. 9, 2022. Pushing pause La Grande planning commission, council members discuss pause on new short-term rentals in La Grande housing needs and how we’re going to address our housing needs.” By SHANNON GOLDEN Boquist and members of the plan- ning commission posited during the meeting that the infl ux of short-term rental applications is in direct con- fl ict with the city’s recently adopted Housing Needs Analysis and Housing Production Strategy. According to the needs analysis cre- ated in 2019, La Grande needs 800 new units within the next 20 years to accom- modate a projected growth of 1,392 new residents — approximately 40 new units every year to meet the prediction. These dwellings range from single and multi family homes to townhome and duplexes. The proposed moratorium would The Observer L A GRANDE — For those vis- iting La Grande, renting an Airbnb or vacation rental may sound like the optimal option for a brief stay. For city residents, however, these short-term rentals might be coun- tering eff orts to deal with La Grande’s housing shortage. The La Grande City Council and the city’s planning commission had a joint work session on Monday, Aug. 8, to discuss the possibility of pursuing a temporary moratorium preventing residential property owners from con- verting full-time dwellings into what the commission calls BnBs — short- term rentals, Airbnbs, VRBOs and vacation homes. Recently, the city’s planning division received calls from real estate agents and an investor — who don’t live in the area — looking for residential prop- erty to buy and convert to short-term rentals. City offi cials have also heard that local real estate agents were encour- aging owners to convert rental prop- erties into Airbnbs. This increased interest in new short-term rentals in La Grande’s residential areas prompted the Aug. 8 meeting. “That’s just kind of raised some red fl ags for us,” said Michael Boquist, the city’s community development director. “We’re still trying to fi gure out our Initial concerns See, Rentals/Page A7 See, Fair/Page A3 Community loses a longtime youth leader Robin Wortman, leader of Union County Safe Communities Coalition, passes away By DICK MASON The Observer WALLOWA — North- east Oregon lost a youth leader of vision, who could see in young people what they could not see in themselves. Robin Wortman, of Wal- lowa, a former 4-H leader and a former director of the Union County Safe Com- munities Coalition, passed away Tuesday, Aug. 2, of natural causes at hospital in White Salmon, Wash- ington, at the age of 59. “Robin pushed people in the right direction. She was able to get kids to see their potential, to get them to realize they had abili- ties they did not know they had,” said DeAnne Mans- veld, a member of the Union County Safe Com- munities Coalition’s execu- tive committee. Wortman directed the See, Wortman/Page A3 WEATHER INDEX Business ........B1 Classified ......B2 Comics ...........B5 Crossword ....B2 Union County Safe Com- munities Coalition from 2011 through October 2019. As its director, she helped the organization implement a number of community events, such as October’s Red Ribbon month and an annual multimedia confer- ence for seventh graders to teach them about online safety and the dangers of substance abuse. She was also a member of the UCSCC’s Youth Council and worked with various community organizations Dear Abby ....B6 Horoscope ....B2 Lottery ...........A2 Obituaries .....A5 Opinion .........A4 Spiritual ........A6 Sudoku ..........B5 Weather ........B6 Contributed Photo Robin Wortman is shown with a prize fi sh she landed. Wortman, of Wallowa, a former 4-H leader and a former director of the Union County Safe Communities Coalition, died last week of natural causes at the age of 59. Full forecast on the back of B section Tonight Friday 57 LOW 95/55 A moonlit sky Partly sunny; hot CONTACT US 541-963-3161 Issue 96 3 sections, 38 pages La Grande, Oregon Email story ideas to news@lagrande observer.com. More contact info on Page A4.