12 — THE BAKER COUNTY PRESS
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2015
Local
County: reservoirs higher than last year,
new technology server room in the works
By Todd Arriola
Todd@TheBakerCountyPress.com
The Baker County
Board of Commissioners
held its bi-monthly session
on Wednesday, February
18, 2015, at 9 a.m.
Present were Bill Harvey,
Commission Chair, Mark
Bennett, Commissioner,
and Tim Kerns, Commis-
sioner. Standing in for
Executive Assistant Heidi
Martin was Karlynn Dolby,
Baker County Payroll
Administration Benefits
Coordinator.
Also present were Jason
Yencopal and Gary Timm,
Baker County Emergency
Management, Dan Mc-
Quisten, Baker County Fa-
cilities Maintenance Fore-
man, Mitch Southwick,
Baker County Sheriff, Jeff
Nelson, Baker County
Chamber of Commerce,
Beverly Beach and Dennis
Spence, Blue Mountain
Translator District, Bob-
bie Danser and Ed Hardt,
Eastern Oregon Mining
Association (EOMA),
Steve Bogart representing
Kathleen Martin, Baker
County Museum Commis-
sion, Arthur Sappington,
Jefferson County Mining
District Coordinating Of-
fice , Suzette Sappington,
and Cynthia Long, Bureau
of Land Management
(BLM), retired.
The first order of bus -
ness was Citizen Participa-
tion, and Sappington was
given the floo . He talked
about coordination issues
concerning Josephine
County and the BLM, and
mentioned some informa-
tion he was sending the
Board via email. He also
mentioned that Jefferson
Mining District discussed
mining issues with Repre-
sentative Bentz.
Long discussed with the
Board her thoughts about
the Blue Mountain Forest
Plan with the Board. She
said that she attended a
meeting last week with
individuals representing
Forest Access For All
(FAFA), the United States
Forest Service (USFS),
County Commissioners,
and others interested par-
ties, and the consensus for
future meetings concerning
the plan and the associated
Memorandum of Under-
standing (MOU) is to have
interested parties contact
government agencies
involved with a date, time
and place for hosting the
meetings. She suggested
Anthony Lakes Ski Resort
as a possible meeting loca-
tion.
Bennett emphasized
the negative aspects of the
MOU as written, and the
efforts to communicate
effectively, largely unheard
by the involved govern-
ment agencies. He said
he’s not opposed to talking
with the USFS, but the
MOU would not be signed
as written, and something
different needs to happen
in order to have progress.
Nelson discussed mari-
juana dispensary issues
with the Board, specifi-
cally, concerning business
licenses, and mentioned
the City Council meeting
Tuesday night. Nelson
asked the Board whether
the licenses would be is-
sued city-wide or county-
wide, and Harvey respond-
ed that he was opposed to
issuing them county-wide.
He listed some problems
he sees with dispensaries
to Nelson, including safety,
law enforcement issues,
issues with neighbors,
and contradiction with
federal law. Harvey said
further discussion would
be needed. Bennett also
mentioned the contradic-
tion with federal law.
Nelson, who’s also a
Board Member of Historic
Baker City (HBC), said
activities are getting under-
way for the year.
The minutes from the
February 4, 2015 Com-
mission session were
approved.
Yencopal and Timm
gave the Board an Emer-
gency Management update,
with Yencopal speaking
first. Yencopal discussed
the Emergency Manage-
ment Performance Grant
(EMPG), and talked about
the training and exercise
requirements to retain that
grant. He said the training
requirement was met in
December, and the exercise
requirement has also been
met, including the acti-
vated alarms at Brooklyn
Elementary as drills.
He said the Emergency
Operations Plan is being
reviewed and updated, and
two hazard mitigation plan
meetings are required this
year, both of which are
currently planned. Yenco-
pal mentioned the Pre-
paredness Fair, scheduled
Thrivent
Financial
holds open
house
Todd Arriola / The Baker County Press
At left, Jason Yencopal and Gary Timm discuss
wildfire strategies and a preparedness fai .
for May 16, 2015, and he
gave a drought update to
the Board.
He said that Phillips Res-
ervoir is at 28 % capacity,
and at this time last year,
it was 16 % of capacity;
Unity Reservoir is at 62
% of capacity, and it was
at 29 % capacity last year
at this time; Thief Valley
Reservoir is at 100 %, and
it was the same at this time
last year. He said that east-
ern Oregon ranges from a
moderate drought in the
north, to severe drought
in the central region, to
extreme drought conditions
in the southern region.
Timm discussed the
Cohesive Wildfire Stra -
egy, which is one of three
national pilot projects,
involving a collaborative
effort between federal,
state and local agencies,
in northeast Oregon and
southwest Washington, to
address the issues of cata-
strophic wildfires. He said
that his focus is improving
wildfire response, on both
government and private
lands, including reducing
fuels (trees, brush, etc.).
The plan locally includes
the east face of the Elkhorn
Mountains, and includes a
variety of lands, including
high-risk, government, and
private. The project allows
fire prevention agencies to
interact more thoroughly
with residents, which is
one of many benefits,
Timm said.
McQuisten spoke to the
Board about a bid pro-
posal for new equipment
in the Technology Server
Room at the Baker County
Courthouse. The bid total
amount is $5,884, from
Baker County Heating
& Cooling, LLC, and in-
cludes a Mitsubishi 24,000
BTU Commercial Grade P
series air conditioner. The
proposal was approved.
Bogart discussed the
Professional Services
Agreement between Baker
County and Kathleen
Martin, in the capacity of
Baker Heritage Museum
Store and Volunteer Coor-
dination Contractor. This
is the third year for Martin,
and the agreement’s term
is March 2015 through
October 2015. The agree-
ment was approved, with a
motion from Kerns, and a
second from Bennett.
Beach and Spence dis-
cussed with the Board the
issues and costs associated
with providing service
from the three Transla-
tor District sites: Mount
Fanny, located above
Cove, the most important
site, said Beach, which
serves both Union and
Baker Counties; Beaver
Mountain, located south of
Baker City, which serves
Baker County; and Mount
Harris, located east of Im-
bler, which serves Union
County.
Beach said that members
(3,100) within the dis-
trict boundaries receiving
signals from the translators
are sent a notice each year,
because they’re actually li-
able for a $100 fee per fi -
cal year (June 1-May 31),
if they use an antenna to
receive them, as opposed
to using satellite or cable,
for example. There is an
opt-out option if an anten-
na isn’t used to receive the
signals, but she said that a
major issue is that people
within city limits also use
the signals at an increas-
ing rate, but the Translator
District isn’t compensated
for this usage.
The Translator Dis-
trict depends heavily on
financial support from
members, and without
it, within two years, the
operations would be shut
down completely, Beach
said. She handed the Board
and attendees copies of
historical data for revenue
and expenses, stressing
that cuts are being made
where possible to keep the
translators operational.
The Board discussed
with Beach and Spence
the idea of a flat fee of
$5 or $8 a year from area
residents, including those
within city limits, in order
to pay for translator opera-
tions, but that would be a
process that would take
some time, though it is a
possibility, with voter ap-
proval, they said.
Resolution No. 2015-
1001, Authorizing An
Interfund Loan From The
General Fund To The Fair
Board Improvement Fund,
was approved, with a mo-
tion from Bennett, and a
second from Kerns. This
resolution involves a loan
in an amount not to exceed
$50,000, authorized from
the Baker County General
Fund to the Fair Board
Improvement Fund.
The next Commission
session is scheduled for
Wednesday, March 4.
Meghan Andersch / The Baker County Press
Paul Turk stands outside his office doo .
By Meghan Andersch
Meghan@TheBakerCountyPress.com
Paul Turk of Thrivent Financial hosted a First Friday
Open House event this month. The event featured the
photo artwork of Slade Elbert and included a silent auc-
tion to benefit CAS (Court Appointed Special Advo-
cates who advocate for children in foster care). The event
raised about $500 for CASA.
Thriven Financial is a member-owned Fortune 500
financial services nonprofit ganization and offers such
services as life insurance, investments, and retirement ac-
counts. As a fraternal organization, membership is open
to Christians seeking to live out their faith.
Turk opened his office the beginning of last September
and is the only Thrivent Financial representative in east-
ern Oregon. As such, Turk said he covers the area from
Joseph to Jordan Valley.
Turk said the service most clients take advantage of
is retirement planning, including planning for what the
future will look like, investment products, and distribu-
tion of legacies. He said though he is happy to answer
product-specific questions, this is not the type of o gani-
zation where you would come in a buy a product off the
shelf. Instead, representatives work with members on
developing a holistic view of how to reach their goals and
dreams.
Turk explained the mission of Thrivent Financial as
helping take members from a place of striving to a place
of surplus so that they can live generously in their com-
munities.
The company itself, as a nonprofit, directs a la ge
amount of funds back into the community, including
supporting organizations such as Habitat for Humanity or
providing support for member charitable endeavors.
Formerly employed in customer service positions at
Bi-Mart, Ace Hardware, and as a pastor, Turk said the
best part of his job is serving people in the community.
He enjoys the opportunity to meet needs in the lives of
members by helping find solutions beneficial to them.
Turk said he is blessed to be working with people in a
beautiful area he loves.
Turk’s office is located at 2101 Main Street on the
second floor of the Basche-Sage Mall, Suite 204. His
regular office hours are 9-5, Monday to Frida , though
he is flexible to accommodate the needs of members. He
can be reached at 541-519-2178.
Masquerade ball
set for Halloween
The Baker County Press and the Geiser Grand hotel
are teaming up in an exclusive partnership to bring Baker
County the event to beat all events on Halloween night
2015. With this gorgeous historic hotel as the venue, the
two businesses are throwing a masquerade ball inspired
by the Anne Rice ball thrown annually in New Orleans.
The event will be an alternative to the typical party scene.
Only 200 tickets will be sold. Expect music, carriage
rides, portrait photography, a book signing, celebrity
appearances and some other surprises. More information
will be available in a few weeks when tickets go on sale.
BEEF MONTH DRAWING!
We're busy celebrating Beef Month here at
The Baker County Press. Did you know that
between our editorial board, sales staff and
reporters, we have three generations of cattle
ranchers involved in putting out this paper
every week? If you renewed or took out a new
subscription this month, you've already been
entered into a drawing for a free package of
our own tender, juicy, home-grown-in-Baker-
County steak!
Subscribe
between now
and the end of
the month to
be entered!