FRIDAY, JULY 1, 2016
THE BAKER COUNTY PRESS — 5
Local
County: Windfarm, sewer Two Safeways
issues in Richland discussed
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3
• SPECIAL SESSION
HELD LAST WEEK
BY TODD ARRIOLA
Todd@TheBakerCountyPress.com
The Baker County Board
of Commissioners held a
special session on Wednes-
day, June 23, 2016, 9
a.m., in order to approve
a Letter of Credit for Wil-
low Springs Windfarm,
LLC, and three Resolu-
tions regarding transfers of
County funds, two to ad-
dress major sewer issues in
Hewitt Park, in Richland.
Present from the Board
were Chair Bill Harvey,
Commissioners Mark
Bennett and Tim Kerns,
and Executive Assistant
Heidi Martin. Other at-
tendance included Baker
County Planning Director
Holly Kerns, Baker County
Administrative Services
Director Christena Cook,
and Willow Springs
Windfarm Project Manager
Ryan Markham.
The session was called
to order, and the optional
Invocation, and the Pledge
of Allegiance were recited,
both led by Harvey. The
agenda was adopted, with
a motion from Bennett,
and a second from Kerns,
with the noted additions
of Resolutions 2016-1032,
2016-1033, and 2016-
1034, to be included as
Documents to be Signed.
No comments were
provided for Citizen
Participation, as there was
no attendance noted, other
than the aforementioned
individuals.
Holly spoke with the
Board about the Letter of
Credit, included in the list
of conditions attached to
a Conditional Use Permit
(CUP), approved by the
Baker County Planning
Commission, for the wind-
farm, in 2014.
The condition states,
“The applicant is re-
quired to comply with the
Decommissioning Plan as
submitted and shall pro-
vide a bond or irrevocable
letter of credit, of suffi cient
value to cover expenses
of removal of the project,
which is deemed accept-
able by the Baker County
Board of Commissioners.”
In the event the project,
located near Huntington,
which consists of four to
six wind turbine genera-
tors, were to be abandoned,
the Letter of Credit, in
the amount of $267,400,
issued by KeyBank, would
be used as the County’s fi -
Todd Arriola / The Baker County Press
Ryan Markham, Windfarm project manager with Holly Kerns in the background.
nancial assurance, to cover
removal expenses.
Holly had spoken with
Cook, and with staff of
the Oregon Department
of Energy, to discuss any
potential issues. While
the windfarm’s projected
life span is 20 to 30 years,
her research indicates
that a Letter of Credit is
generally not available
for that length of time
(they’re usually issued
for a one-year period, she
said), however, per her
request, an amended Letter
of Credit has been issued
for a 10-year period, after
which, another acceptable
Letter of Credit could be
reissued.
Markham said that Wil-
low Springs Windfarm
has a 20-year agreement
with Idaho Power, and as
such, the operational goal
is at least 20 years, with
an investment not solely in
the windfarm, but also in
the City, and the County,
as well.
The Letter of Credit was
approved, with a motion
from Bennett, and a second
from Kerns.
Cook began discussions
with the Board regarding
the Resolutions, explaining
each one prior to its ap-
proval. The fi rst two Reso-
lutions, No. 2016-1032,
Appropriation Transfer
Within The Non-Depart-
mental Department Of The
County General Fund, and
No. 2016-1033, Appro-
priation Of Unanticipated
Funds To Be Expended
In The Non-Departmental
Department Of The Parks
Fund, in the amount of
$30,000, is for the purpose
of addressing major sewer
issues in Hewitt Park.
Cook said Baker County
Parks and Recreation
Director Karen Spencer,
who was addressing issues
at the park and could not
attend the session, and
others were attempting to
keep the pumps which lead
to the drain fi eld opera-
tional, an effort which has
involved numerous con-
tractors, including Idaho
Power personnel, she said.
Cook said the is-
sues were thought to be
resolved several times,
however, they had con-
tinued, and the pumps
were rewired, and mal-
functioned again the night
before the session, neces-
sitating Spencer’s presence
at the park. Harvey said
that pump motors were
replaced, and the tanks
pumped, among other
issues addressed, every
effort was being made
to remedy the situation
as soon as possible, and
the transfer of funds is to
cover associated bills with
the work.
Though the transfer still
leaves $318,017 in the
Contingency fund, Ben-
nett expressed concern
over the transfer, which
leaves less overall in the
County’s General fund,
shortly before the begin-
ning of the next fi scal
year. He suggested, while
noting that the transfer and
expenditure is certainly
appropriate, it would be
a good idea to limit other
General fund expenditures
early during the next fi scal
year, in order to compen-
sate for having to address
the sewer issue.
Cook said, while she
thinks the cost of ad-
dressing the issue so far,
$30,000, doesn’t appear
to be a major drain to the
budget, she can emphasize
to the different County de-
partment staff that requests
from the departments for
purchases for equipment,
etc. could be made later in
the next fi scal year.
Resolution No. 2016-
1032, and Resolution No.
2016-1033 were approved,
with a motion from Ben-
nett, and a second from
Kerns.
Cook discussed with
the Board Resolution
No. 2016-1034, Appro-
priation Transfer Within
The Non-Departmental
Department Of The County
Health Fund, in the amount
of $15,000, from EHR
(Electronic Health Re-
cords) Software, to Public
Health Administration
Fee, giving Public Health
Admin a new balance
of $30,000, while EHR
Software remains now at
$39,698. Cook said this
was a routine transfer,
and Public Health Admin
needed some additional
funds. The resolution was
approved, with a motion
from Bennett, and a second
from Kerns.
The next, regular session
is scheduled for Wednes-
day, July 6, 2016, 9 a.m.,
in the Commission Cham-
bers of the Baker County
Courthouse.
SEE SAFEWAY
PAGE 9
Filmmaker visits Baker City
Curtis Bowers, a former
math teacher and Idaho
State Reprepresentative,
was in Baker City Saturday
for a showing of his sec-
ond documentary, “Agenda
2 - Masters of Deceit.”
About 30 people attended
the event held at the Baker
County Library.
Bowers’ fi rst “Agenda”
documentary won a nation-
al award and the $101,000
Grand Prize for "Best of
Festival” by SAICFF—the
San Antonio Independent
Film Festival.
Curtis has traveled all 50
states showing his fi lms,
he said. He now lives in
Tennessee.
The fi rst 90-minute
“Agenda” documentary
took two years of research
and was a home school
project for his family.
The second “Agenda”
installment took four years
to complete.
Curtis said it is his fam-
ily’s mission to show the
real history of the U.S.
and what is happening in
today’s society.
He encourages everyone
to get involved in grass-
roots politics, become a
Precinct Committee Person
and spend some time vol-
unteering for local political
efforts.
For more information,
visit www.agendadocu-
mentary.com.
“Then, about two weeks, to two and a half weeks ago,
I received a phone call from Albertsons, and they shared
with me that, ‘We’re getting ready for our ribbon cut-
ting, could you tell me who to contact at the Chamber
(of Commerce), who do I talk to at City Council, who do
I talk to with the County,’ and I went through, and gave
them names and suggestions, on how to get a big bang for
the buck, to show that they’re going to be a good neigh-
bor.
“Then, about a week later, I get a phone call again from
them, and they say—and this time, they left me a mes-
sage, I didn’t talk to them personally— ’We just received
word that we’re not going to open up an Albertsons, but
rather, we’re going to have two Safeway stores, and we’re
going to try and operate both of them.’ I left them a mes-
sage back, saying, ‘You know, I’m extremely concerned
by this decision. I think folks in Baker County are going
to scratch their heads, and speculate...’ And, I said, ‘You
probably need to spend a little time talking to our local
press.’ I mentioned your paper, along with the two others.
‘You may want to have a conversation with them, and
explain how two Safeway stores are going to operate suc-
cessfully, in the community.’ And, I left that message with
them. Since then, I haven’t heard a thing back.”
Smith said that the decision to operate two Safeways
would leave himself, and others in the County, to specu-
late about the future of the company, and that, should
Albertsons decide to only have a single Safeway, then, he
hopes the company would “...do the right thing, and open
up a secondary location...I’m extremely concerned with
their decision, and, I hope, when it’s all said and done,
they choose to be a good neighbor, and that means, either
operate both stores—you know, I’m highly skeptical
of—or, if they choose to operate only one store, I hope
they choose to close out their lease, on whichever space
they’re going to vacate, and allow the owner of that build-
ing to actively recruit another business in there.
“I still have two other grocery stores that have ex-
pressed strong interest, but, until the dust settles, and,
until they know what the market place is going to look
like, and what buildings are available, they’re not going
to proceed forward, and, rightfully so. I understand why
they wouldn’t,” he said.
Smith said there is a bit of detail he thinks the FTC was
missing, when it released the statement that if there was
no one else who will buy a supermarket, it’s better to
have Albertsons own it, than to have it closed, regarding
Albertsons’ purchase of its former location, after Haggen
declared bankruptcy.
Smith said, “There are a lot of small, mom-and-pop
franchises, folks who own small grocery stores, indepen-
dently. Let me give you an example: Red Apple. Red
Apple, they go, and they buy the franchise, but, it’s just
a mom and pop, who usually own those grocery stores.
Red Apple would be a perfect fi t for Baker City. You
know, they’re a small-town, community-oriented grocery
store, and it would provide an alternative to a national
chain, such as Safeway, or Albertsons. It’s the same with
IGA—a lot of those are independently owned, mom-and-
pop, and I seriously doubt the FTC went out, and reached
out to every small, mom-and-pop, when they made that
statement.”
At the time of the announcement that there would be
both an Albertsons and a Safeway store, Smith thought
everything would be as before, when the two stores were
in operation. Now that the plan has changed, he said he
needs to see how everything plays out. “I’ve got to fi nd
out what was the true intention of Albertsons...” he said.
Smith said that Economic Development has attempted
numerous times to market the 10th Street business area,
as a location, to potential new grocers, citing the often
overlooked, signifi cant traffi c that comes into town, from
the direction of Haines, but the usual response was that
the preferred location would be Campbell Street. In ad-
dition, none of the potential grocers expressed the desire
to be the fi rst, name brand, national brand company, to
locate on the East side of the freeway. “With that said,
we’re working with a major developer, who owns major
real estate in Baker City, who’s looking at developing
the East side of the freeway, and putting in a signifi cant
recreational facility...If that happens, that’s going to break
loose a lot of economic development...That, in my view,
will be a great spur, for additional opportunities. But, that
opportunity is not here today, so, I’ve got to deal with the
spaces we do have,” he said.
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Submitted Photo.
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