TUESDAY, AUGUST 16, 2022
REGION
THE OBSERVER — A3
John Day looking to build homes to foster growth
The Ridge and
Holmstrom Heights
John Day invests
$1.9M to jumpstart
development of 100
new homes
By JUSTIN DAVIS
Blue Mountain Eagle
JOHN DAY — Three
new housing developments
are underway in John Day
that could add 100 new
homes to the local housing
supply over the next few
years.
The city’s urban renewal
agency is providing funding
to jumpstart the projects as
part of an eff ort to rebuild
declining population, shore
up the local tax base and
address the city’s housing
shortage.
Constructing Oregon’s
fi rst 3D-printed home also
is a part of the plans for the
three developments, known
as The Ridge, Ironwood
Estates and Holmstrom
Heights.
John Day City Manager
Corum Ketchum said the
housing developments are
part of a strategy to reverse
the city’s population loss of
the past few decades.
“If we’d have kept up
with the .5% growth we had
in the ‘90s, our population
would be at 2,200 or 2,300
people right now,” he said.
John Day established an
urban renewal agency and
created an urban renewal
plan in June 2018. The
agency overseeing urban
renewal took out a loan of
more than $1.8 million from
Business Oregon to assist
in the development of resi-
dential lots at the develop-
ments. The loan’s interest
Justin Davis/Blue Mountain Eagle
Josh Walker (in white) and partner Russ Comer (in yellow) walk a road at The Ridge on Monday, Aug. 8, 2022.
rate is 2.41% over a 20-year
term.
The plan is to pay off
the loan over time using
tax increment fi nancing,
Ketchum said. Tax incre-
ment fi nancing captures any
increase in assessed prop-
erty value within an urban
renewal district, with the
additional revenues being
directed toward the dis-
trict’s stated purpose —
in this case, residential
development.
Ironwood Estates
Ironwood Estates, along
Valley View Drive on the
north side of John Day,
is the largest of the three
developments. It will add 73
new homes to the city once
completed.
Ironwood is part of a
subdivision that was con-
ceived 30 years ago,
according to developer Russ
Young.
“There was already a
template and proved con-
cept of the subdivision up
there,” he said.
The development is in its
second phase, with Phase 1
having provided sewer ser-
vice, water and power to the
property. The second phase
includes the expansion of
streets and utilities for the
development of approxi-
mately 15.2 acres into 17
single-family residential
lots.
Phase 2 of construc-
tion also includes 1,750
linear feet of new pave-
ment through the addition
of two new cul-de-sacs
and all the associated utili-
ties for development. Fiber
optic internet cable also
will be extended to existing
lots in the development and
will be added to new lots
via a grant from Business
Oregon, the state’s eco-
nomic development agency.
The estimated cost of
this project is just more
than $940,000. The URA
will provide up to $750,000
in cash and in-kind support
— primarily in the form of
building materials — for
the project. The balance of
the cost will be funded by
the developer.
Young said work on the
project is on hold while he
awaits a revised plat and
signed agreement from the
city.
“We’re close,” Young
said, adding that once the
work begins, it should all be
completed within three or
four months.
“It’ll go fast because it’s
already a part of an existing
subdivision,” he said. “We
just don’t have a fi nished
plat because we’re doing
some redesigning of sewer
and water.”
Later phases of Iron-
wood Estates, Young added,
will come in bigger chunks.
“The next phase is when
you start to get into the 30
or 40 lot confi gurations,”
he said.
The Ridge is above The
Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints in John
Day, just south of Highway
26 on the east end of town.
It is the second-largest of
the three developments and
will add 23 new dwelling
units to the city once
completed.
Approximately 23 acres
comprising 12 multi- and
single-family residen-
tial lots will be developed
during the fi rst phase of
development.
Lot No. 1 of the devel-
opment will be used for
Oregon’s fi rst 3D-printed
concrete housing. The
3D-printed dwelling
is expected to be com-
pleted this summer. It
is unknown how many
3D-printed housing units
will ultimately wind up in
the development.
The project is expected
to be completed by Oct.
31. The estimated cost of
development is $1.4 mil-
lion. The URA will pro-
vide up to $750,000 in
cash and in-kind support,
and the balance of the cost
will be contributed by
the developer, Mahogany
Ridge Properties.
Mahogany Ridge also
plans to build the homes
on the developed lots.
Approximately 60% of
the phase one lots are going
to be multifamily units.
The last and smallest of
the three housing devel-
opments is Holmstrom
Heights at the east end of
Charolais Heights on the
north side of John Day.
Holmstrom Heights will
add four new homes to the
city.
Hermiston police seize more dogs in wake of recent raid
By ANTONIO ARREDONDO
Hermiston Herald
HERMISTON — The
latest domino in the York-
shire Terrier puppy mill
saga has fallen.
Hermiston Police Chief
Jason Edmiston confi rmed
17 more dogs have been
turned over to the police.
This makes 29 total terriers
that have been recovered.
Robin Barker, vice pres-
ident of Fuzz Balls Animal
Rescue, said the dogs once
again arrived in their care
in tough conditions.
“They’re all matted
masses, just disgusting,”
Barker said. “They’ve been
living in hell.”
The 17 terriers appeared
to be living in three small
crates, and did not have a
consistent source of water.
Patience McCoy, a Herm-
iston resident that took the
dogs in for the fi rst night,
told Barker the terriers
drank 1 gallon of water in
the fi rst hour.
Once again, the dogs
were sent off to Mikey’s
Chance Canine Rescue for
canine parvovirus treat-
ment. Despite some dogs
coming in rough shape —
including one recovered in
the fi rst raid that weighed
less than a pound — all
dogs have survived so far.
The latest seizure of
dogs took place after Herm-
iston police responded to
a call late Sunday, Aug.
7, reporting a woman was
sitting in a chair in her
mother’s backyard on the
80 block of West Cherry
Avenue, Hermiston, and
there was a cage with sev-
eral dogs inside.
The caller questioned if
this would be related to the
press release from the Uma-
tilla County Sheriff ’s Offi ce
regarding a Yorkshire Ter-
rier breeder.
The case began July 30,
when area animal rescue
operations hustled to save
several Yorkshire terriers
following a raid on the 2300
block of North First Place,
Hermiston, after receiving
a report of a possible puppy
mill.
A deputy contacted a
70-year-old woman living
in a travel trailer at the
location, and she stated
she bred Yorkshire ter-
riers, according to the sher-
iff ’s offi ce. There were sev-
eral adult dogs — possible
Yorkshire terriers — in
cages inside the trailer with
puppies of various ages.
The woman initially volun-
teered to surrender some of
the dogs to a local animal
rescue facility.
She ended up giving over
12 dogs. When a deputy
returned to the location
Aug. 4, however, according
to the sheriff s offi ce, the
woman and her trailer were
gone.
The sheriff ’s offi ce on
Aug. 5 reported it turned
over its investigation to
the Umatilla County Dis-
trict Attorney’s Offi ce for
possible prosecution in an
animal neglect case.
The Umatilla County
Sheriff ’s Offi ce also did not
identify the woman. Sher-
iff ’s Capt. Sterrin Ward
explained the investiga-
tion remains active, and the
district attorney’s offi ce is
looking over the case for
La GRANDE AUTO REPAIR
Morrow County remembers Terry Tallman
Former mayor,
county judge passes
away at age 76
By DAKOTA CASTETS-DIDIER
East Oregonian
BOARDMAN — Terry
Tallman, beloved former
Morrow County judge and
once mayor of Boardman,
died July 30 at his home in
Boardman. He was 76 years
old.
“His legacy
is exemplary
involvement
in the county,”
Morrow
County
Sheriff Ken
Tallman
Matlack,
said. “(He cared) about
people, and was just one
of those people that is very
valuable.”
Tallman was born March
31, 1946, in Nyssa but grew
up on his family farm in
Adrian, where he would
work until he joined the
Navy in 1969. While in the
Navy, he served aboard the
USS Kitty Hawk during the
Vietnam War as an aircraft
maintainer and as a techni-
cian up-keeping the ship’s
ultrasound systems. During
his time as a member of the
ship’s company, the Kitty
Hawk was awarded the Navy
Unit Meritorious Commen-
dation for exceptional meri-
torious service, adding to the
ship’s many accolades.
He would meet his wife
of 48 years, Cheryl, through
the Navy. They married in
1974.
Upon his return to
Oregon after the conclu-
sion of his service in 1974,
Tallman attended Oregon
State University and the
University of Oregon before
returning to his family farm
in Adrian with his wife.
They soon found them-
selves in Boardman, where
Tallman would begin a life-
long career in community
service. There he ran for
and won his seat as mayor
and served fi ve years.
“He was so adept at
being even-handed and
seeing the best picture,”
recalled Burke O’Brien,
former public works
director of Morrow County,
where Tallman later served
as county judge. “I never
saw another person that
was able to deal with pol-
itics like he could. He was
above it.”
Tallman became Morrow
County judge in 1999, a
position he would occupy
for 18 years, becoming the
longest serving Morrow
County judge in history.
“Terry was always so
supportive of the commu-
nity,” O’Brien said. “He
could see out into the future
where other people couldn’t.
Terry was the best county
judge they ever had.”
Tallman’s dedication to
community service saw him
working with all manner of
people across his commu-
nity, winning the hearts of
Morrow County and its pop-
ulace through his diligence
and devotion.
“He was very concerned
about people, and knew
lots of people,” Matlack
recalled.
Together with his wife,
Tallman built a great rep-
utation for being a helper
who would seek to assist
others in all matters of life.
Matlack recalled one of
his favorite memories of
Tallman, whose wife was a
nurse.
“My father-in-law was
sick, he had to have sur-
gery,” Matlack said. “We
were trying to determine
how I could help him, so I
called Terry.”
Tallman then directed
Matlack to his wife, Cheryl.
“Lo and behold, she was
very, very good, she got
together with me and taught
me how to give him injec-
tions so I could give him
some shots and help,” Mat-
lack said.
When Tallman retired
from his position as Morrow
County judge, he focused
on spending time with his
family, enjoying his pas-
sions for fi shing and taking
road trips to visit friends.
He would also return to his
beloved pastime of growing
and tending to fl owers,
fruits and vegetables.
In 2019, Tallman and his
wife opened a coff ee shop,
The Farmer’s Cup, on the
possible prosecution.
While the sheriff ’s offi ce
knows who she is, Ward
said it’s not prudent at this
time to identify her to the
public.
Ward on Aug. 8 con-
fi rmed another raid
occurred, but referred
all other questions to
Edmiston.
Edmiston confi rmed the
USCO was not looking for
the woman responsible for
the mill. Barker, though, said
she will not stop pursuing
the case anytime soon.
“We’re not going to stop
until we make sure she
doesn’t get to do it again,”
she said.
975-2000
family farm in Boardman.
Through The Farmer’s
Cup, Tallman continued his
love of interacting with the
community by creating a
place for the community to
meet, converse and enjoy
fresh produce as well as his
beloved gardens.
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