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About The Baker County press. (Baker City, Ore.) 2014-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 6, 2015)
THE BAKER COUNTY PRESS — 3 FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 2015 Business & Ag Potato predicament Continued from Page 1 In June of 2013, an in- vestment consortium com- posed of the companies Berkshire Hathaway and 3G Capital acquired Heinz, which owns the Ore-Ida brand. At the meeting last month, according to Ward, it was announced that Heinz would be changing its business model, and would be going with a single source supplier, the Oregon Potato Company (OPC). Headquartered in Pasco, Washington, OPC has plant locations in Boardman, Oregon, Pasco and Warden, Washington, and Eagle and Heyburn, Idaho. Ward said there is a meeting scheduled for February 11 with represen- tatives from J.R. Simplot, and it’s expected that that contract will be renewed for the 800 acres. With the announcement from Heinz, he said there would be no direct contract with the company for the 3,000 acres, however, it is pos- sible a contract between local producers and OPC or other processors could be made. “That’s to be determined within the next 30 to 60 days,” Ward said, and, “Nothing’s guaran- teed.” Ward said that valley producers sell potatoes by the sack (100 pounds), and the production has normally been about 1.8 million sacks, broken down as about 1.5 million sacks purchased by Heinz, and about 300,000 sacks purchased by J.R. Simplot. At an average of around $8 per sack, that’s $12 million in total. The timing of the an- nouncement by Heinz is a major issue for the eight valley producers, Ward said, largely because most of them begin preparations with signifi cant invest- ments for the growing sea- son 18 months in advance. Ward said, “Heinz has been good to us for many years,” despite the surprise decision, but the status of the 3,000 acres is unclear at this point, and, “We’re entering uncharted terri- tory.” Jess Blatchford, of Blatchford Farms, Inc., a local producer in the Haines area, noted the signifi cant investments in equipment and prepara- tions he and others have made, and said, “I fertil- ized the soil and fumigated in October, and I already have about $200 to $250 per acre invested.” His seed suppliers last year grew what he would need for this year, and they’re attempting to plan for future years, but with the uncertainty concerning contracts with processors, it’s diffi cult for them to know what the demand will be. “A little heads up would have been great,” he said. He is actually optimistic about the future, and thinks that in the end, things will work out, but he pointed out another issue, which is the possibility that he and other producers would necessarily have to look into growing crops other than potatoes if they failed — Weekly Hay Report — Friday, January 30, 2015 — Eastern Oregon to fi nd a processor (or processors) to negotiate a contract with. “There aren’t a lot of options,” he said, speaking about the variety of crops which could be grown in place of potatoes in this area, because of the climate. Blatchford also grows wheat, and most likely, wheat or alfalfa would be the choice for the producers as a replacement crop. He could try the on- ion route, but he said one of the big issues is stor- age—there isn’t enough air fl ow for onion storage with his current set up, since it’s structured for potatoes. Blatchford said that the quality of the potatoes grown in the valley is well-known, a fact that helps him to keep a posi- tive view looking into the future. “You don’t want to throw in the towel just yet,” he said. “I’m hanging on, and we’ll see which way the wind blows.” The only certainty is that there is no current contract with Heinz, he said. Columbia Basin Helicopter owner talks about legal battle with County By Brian Addison Brian@TheBakerCountyPress.com A three-year legal battle between Baker County and Columbia Basin Helicop- ter, Inc., has fi nally played out in court and the two sides now await a decision on whether or not David McCarty may continue operating the agricultural helicopter business on his property near Ben-Dier Lane. Umatilla County Circuit Court Judge Ronald Pahl is expected to enter a decision within fi ve weeks. While the offi cial court fi ling submitted by Baker County began in October 2011, this has been an ongoing issue since shortly after McCarty purchased the property in 1994. “Since 1995, we have had an ongoing land use battle with Mr. McCarty on Ben-Dier road specifi cally his use of his parcel as an airport. We have spent a lot of money on attorney and staff fees,” stated Baker County Commissioner Mark Bennett during an Executive Session on Jan. 2, 2008. While not usually available to the public, the notes from the Executive Session became avail- able to the public record through use in the court proceedings. “I believe it’s time to explore our options and do something. I would like Planning to contact county counsel and fi gure out the costs and schedule a meeting,” then County Commission chair Fred Warner Jr. said during the Executive Session. At issue is whether or not McCarty may operate his agricultural helicopter ac- tivities out of his property zoned as Rural Residential under the Baker County zoning ordinance. McCarty believes that his business, devoted to aerial agricultural services such as spraying, seeding, and fertilizing, operates as an acceptable agricultural practice. County legal counsel Dan Van Thiel, Bennett in his previous position as director of Baker County Planning Department, and two past county commis- sioners Fred Warner Jr. and Carl Stiff disagree with McCarty and argue that the business does not fi t the criteria for operating in the Rural Residential zone. Van Thiel fi led an injunction in October of 2011 on behalf of the County, seeking to stop McCarty from operating business on property about 10 miles northwest of Bak- er City. At the time of the original fi ling, Warner Jr. was the chair of the Baker County Board of Commis- sioners and together with commissioner Stiff voted to proceed with fi ling the injunction. Commissioner Tim Kerns abstained from the vote. McCarty and com- pany representative Jolene Linstrom spoke about the case during interviews on February 3 and 4. “This is an economic issue. The county commis- sioners are always talking about ways to get jobs in the community but here they are shutting us down. David’s business has pro- vided jobs in an area where jobs are needed. And he gives back to the commu- nity,” said Linstrom. With- in court documents, Baker County acknowledges the jobs provided and the fact that McCarty supports youth activities including the Baker County Fair. Both Stiff and Van Thiel live close to the McCarty property—a fact that is not lost on McCarty as he mentioned a residential development project in the area begun by Stiff and Joe Rudi. He and Linstrom believe the county’s inves- tigation process held bias and directly benefi ted Van Thiel and Stiff. “All the complaints went directly to Van Thiel. And, out of those complaints only two still live in the area,” McCarty began. “They hired an investiga- tor who went around and got hand-picked com- plaints. They didn’t talk to everyone,” he said. “They only talked to one neighbor with adjoining property and it was the one who complained. They didn‘t talk to the other four neigh- bors who supported us. We only had about 15 fl ights Prices trended generally steady compared to the same quality last week. Trade activity and de- mand were slow compared to last week. The good weather in several areas of Oregon has slowed down demand, as the pasture grasses are already starting to grow and end users are being able to turn animals out on pasture rather than purchase and feed additional hay. Fewer containers available at the shipping ports has slowed down the ability to export hay overseas. Several producers have sold all that they plan to sell for this season. Eastern Oregon sales reported: Tons Price Range Wtd Avg Alfalfa - Large Square Premium 50 220.00-220.00 220.00 USDA Market News Service—AMS.USDA.gov — Cattle Market Report — Wednesday, January 28, 2015 Vale, Oregon Cattle sold through the auction: 902 Steer Calves 300-400# Bulk 289.00 - 329.00 Top 360.00 400-500# Bulk 239.00 - 290.00 Top 301.00 500-600# Bulk 226.00 - 282.50 Top 286.00 Heifer Calves 300-400# Bulk 249.00 - 278.00 Top 290.00 400-500# Bulk 228.00 - 271.50 Top 275.00 500-600# Bulk 217.00 - 256.00 Top 256.50 Yearling Steers 600-700# Bulk 198.00 - 242.00 Top 248.00 700-800# Bulk 180.00 - 201.00 Top 203.50 800-900# Bulk N/A Top N/A 900-1,000# Bulk N/A Top N/A 600-700# 700-800# 800-900# 900-1,000# Submitted Photo. One of the company’s helicopters equipped for spraying. from there per year.” Linstrom added, “Un- der Oregon you can’t fi le a nuisance complaint against farming and forest practices. But, the county is unwilling to look at a helicopter as a piece of agricultural equipment.” “They dropped the ball,” Linstrom said of Baker County. “We applied for a Conditional Use Permit to operate the business and the county never followed through with the appli- cation. And, they never refunded the money David spent to fi le the Condition- al Use Permit application.” Besides a property rights issue, both Linstrom and McCarty see the case as an economic issue and as a case of ill-spent county funds. “It’s pretty bad when the county takes your tax dol- lars and then spends them to get you out,” said Mc- Carty. “In these economic times it’s pretty sad when you think of all the money the county spent on legal fees.” Baker County, through 2013, had spent $22,033 on legal fees and for an investigator provided by the Baker County District Attorney’s offi ce. McCarty said he’s incurred further economic loss related to the county’s legal action against his business. “Just before this all began I got approval to construct an 8,000 square- foot shop on the property to store seed, livestock, helicopters and other agri- cultural equipment. I spent $300,000 to build it, then a week after it was built and passed inspection the county fi led their lawsuit,” he said. “I’ve also spent a lot of money on legal fees to defend this.” Columbia Basin Heli- copters employs up to 10 people depending on the season. McCarty pays a fairly competitive wage for this area at about $40,000 to $50,000 plus benefi ts per employee. “We provide jobs for 10 people who support 10 families. I have three adult children who work for the business. Since we can’t use the shop to store and work on the helicopters some of my employees have sold their homes and moved out of Baker County,” said McCarty. McCarty mentioned the economic hit the loss means to the local busi- nesses, “The wages earned and the money the business spent generated between $1 million and two-and- a-half million dollars a year in the local com- munity. When this case was fi rst heard we had a lot of people who came to support us. Many of those people closed their busi- nesses for the day to come support us.” After the start of the problems between Colum- bia Basin Helicopters and Baker County, McCarty tried to move his operation to the Baker City Airport. “We tried to move to the Baker City Airport but couldn’t because Troy Woydziak (Baker Aircraft) has a no-compete contract with the city airport,” he explained. McCarty has moved the repair facility and storage of his commercial spray- ing operation out of Baker County and now centers those operations in La Grande and Echo, Oregon. When given the op- portunity for comment on this report, County legal counsel Van Thiel declined comment. Yearling Heifers Bulk 202.00 - 221.00 Top 226.50 Bulk 176.00 - 195.50 Top 196.00 Bulk 164.00 - 176.00 Top 179.00 Bulk 158.00 - 169.00 Top 172.00 Thin Shelly Cows 68.00 - 88.00 Butcher Cows 94.00 - 104.00 Butcher Bulls 91.00 - 109.00 Stock Cows 1400.00 - 1750.00 ProducersLivestock.com — Log Price Report — Price per 1,000 board feet: Northeast Oregon Delivered to Elgin Doug Fir / Larch 6”+ $370/m White Fir/Sp 6”+ $380/m LPP 6”+ $350/m Delivered to La Grande P. Pine 6-11” $290/m 12-17” $340/m 18-23” $390/m 24’+ $420/m Delivered to Pilot Rock 12-17” $390/m 18-23” $440/m 24’+ $480/m Delivered pulp $28/ton to Elgin $28/ton to La Grande Courtesy of Arvid Andersen, Andersen Forestry Consulting — Precious Metals Report — Price per ounce, USD Gold: $1,263.60 Silver: $17.37 Platinum: $1,234.88 Palladium: $786.75 Bloomberg.com — Ag Commodities — Corn: $385.75/bu/USD Wheat: $513.75/bu/USD Soybeans: $987.00/bu/USD Oats: $280.00/bu/USD Rough Rice: $10.39/cwt/USD Canola: $457.30 CAD/mwt Live Cattle: $150.50/lb./USD Feeder Cattle: $199.73/lb./USD Lean Hogs: $70.80/lb./USD Bloomberg.com
