LOCAL: Sno cones prove popular for
Sheriff’s Office. PAGE 10
LOCAL: Elkhorn Grange serves Cowboy
Breakfast to 400. PAGE 8
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Friday, July 8, 2016 • Volume 3, Issue 28
‘Gold Rush’ hits Haines,
prepares for Jubilee
Traffic stop
leads to drug-
related arrests
BY KERRY McQUISTEN
(with press release text by
Chief Wyn Lohner)
News@TheBakerCountyPress.com
Wednesday was a hectic
day from start to fi nish
for the Baker City Police
Department (BCPD) when
a traffi c stop led to multiple
drug-related arrests.
Kerry McQuisten /
Police Chief Wyn Lohner
The Baker County Press
said in an interview
Baker City Police Chief
Wednesday, “This case is
Wyn Lohner.
an example of how two
patrol offi cers took a little
bit of information and utilized it well.”
Just after 8 a.m., Offi cers Shannon Regan and Blake
Hawkins, both of whom had been working the night
shift, initiated a “high risk” traffi c stop on a green 1997
Ford F150 pickup on Church Street between 2nd and 3rd
Streets in Baker City.
SEE ARRESTS PAGE 5
Kerry McQuisten / The Baker County Press
The ‘Gold Rush’ cast, crew and family members attended the Haines Stampede Rodeo in Haines Sunday.
How many familiar faces can you fi nd in this photo?
BY KERRY McQUISTEN
News@TheBakerCountyPress.com
Todd Hoffman, Jack
Hoffman, Andy Spinks,
Dave Turin, Jim Thurber,
and several other cast
and crew members from
the Discovery Channel’s
“Gold Rush” brought their
families to Haines last
Sunday for the town’s 4th
of July celebration.
Taking a weekend break
from fi lming, the group
attended the Haines Stam-
pede Rodeo and ended
with dinner at the Haines
Steak House.
The effects of “Gold
Rush” were also seen in
the evening fi reworks
display, which was a bit
bigger this year thanks to
donations in the name of
Harvest Christian Acad-
emy and Harvest Christian
Church by mine owner
Phillip Wirth and the Hoff-
man family.
Wirth has orchestrated
fi reworks shows a number
of times in the past, and
that experience triggered
the concept of contribut-
ing somehow to a local
celebration within Baker
County.
After tossing around the
idea of other venues—
including the local golf
course at one point— and
beginning the licensing
process and the associated
practice rounds with the
State of Oregon, Wirth and
Hoffman landed on the
idea of simply adding to
the popular Haines display.
Meanwhile during the
work week, “Gold Rush”
continues to fi lm in the
southern part of Baker
County. Filming has taken
a shift at present from
its fi rst location in the
Hereford area to a second
location about a half hour
down the road—a loca-
tion the crew would prefer
not to have specifi cally
publicized.
The next season, featur-
ing those Baker County
locations, is scheduled to
air sometime in October.
This summer, how-
ever, residents can look
for Hoffman and sev-
eral other members of the
“Gold Rush” cast and crew
during Miners Jubilee on
the Baker County Re-
publican parade fl oat on
Saturday the 16th, along
with Congressman Greg
Walden, Secretary of State
candidate Dennis Richard-
Huntington
holds
celebration
• 4TH OF JULY TURNOUT HIGH THIS
YEAR FOR PARADE, FESTIVITIES
BY EILEEN DRIVER
Eileen@TheBakerCountyPress.com
Submitted Photo.
Two members of the
camera crew get into
the rodeo spirit.
son and local grassroots
Republicans.
The “Gold Rush” gang
will then be available at
the Republican booth in
the Geiser-Pollman Park
off and on following the
parade.
This year the 4th of July dawned clear, breezy and
warm in Huntington with numerous groups of people
working hard to put the fi nishing touches on their fl oats
for the Independence Day Parade sponsored by the Hun-
tington Lion’s Club. The parade kicked of the festivities.
At noon the parade wound its way down Washington
Street to Lion’s Park with the streets lined with an above
average number of spectators of all ages. The people in
the crowd were sporting their spirit in just as colorful red,
white and blue outfi ts as the fl oats passed.
Huntington was honored with a special appearance by
Uncle Sam and Lady Liberty on the Chamber of
Commerce fl oat this year.
SEE HUNTINGTON PAGE 10
Regional theater gets new building, stage
• NEW BUILDING
COURTESY OF
LARGE DONATION
BY SAMANTHA
O’CONNER
Samantha@TheBakerCountyPress.com
The Eastern Oregon
Regional Theater, EORT,
announced its soon-to-be
new location in the historic
Orpheum Theater on Main
Street.
The theater is cur-
rently located upstairs in
the Basche Sage mall on
Broadway.
“Nobody knows where
we’re at where we are
Friday
now,” stated Scot Violette,
the Artistic Director for
EORT. “And this was
originally, in the 1920s,
this was a live theater.
We want to bring parts of
Baker City History back,
and bring live performance
back.”
Currently, board mem-
bers Aletha Bonebrake
and Kelly Birckman have
written a grant to have
the feasibility study done
by the architect and the
contractor.
“We can get a sense of
how much renovation has
to be done, how much has
to be demolished, how
much has to be restored,
how it will be restored,”
Partly sunny with the chance for showers. Highs
in the lower 70s. Chance of precipitation is 40%
Saturday
Partly sunny with sporadic rain showers. Highs
in the upper 60s. Chance of precipitation is
70%.
Sunday
Mostly cloudy with a few showers possible.
Highs in the mid 60s. Chance of precipitation
is 30%.
stated Bonebrake. “Just
so we have a plan going
forward.”
Once they have the fea-
sibility study made, they
will determine the phases
of construction needed for
the theater. They do things
in phases so they can do
pieces in order and have
grants written for each
phase.
“The whole job is done
over a period of time and
you don’t get funders to
just fund everything on
the thumb all at once, they
have to see progress and
investment and local sup-
port,” explained Bone-
brake. “So the whole thing
is a progressive develop-
Samantha O’Conner/ The Baker County Press
The Eastern Oregon Regional Theater has revealed a model of its planned new
stage in the soon-to-be new location.
ment. But the feasibility
study is so that we know
exactly where we’re going,
the order in which we’re
going, and how much each
part will cost.”
Your weekend weather forecast for Baker County.
Our forecast made possible by this
generous sponsor:
Offi cial weather provider for
The Baker County Press.
The theater received the
$160,000 donation for the
new building from David
Burris, a local man who
wants to see theater return
to Baker City, which al-
lowed them to buy the Or-
pheum building. $30,000
remains from that donation
after the purchase.
SEE THEATER PAGE 5
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
County Commissioners coverage
Opinion: ODOT’s fi scal cliff
Recipes for camping
Noxious weed reminders
The Outdoor Column
BCPD missing/found property list
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