FRIDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2016
THE BAKER COUNTY PRESS — 7
Outdoor Rec / Local
Preparing for Old Man Winter
ing, as a
welder had
explained at
one point.
And for
some, winter
feels like
Purgatory,
with Hell
soon to fol-
low.
For
those of the
population
who enjoy
THE OUTDOOR COLUMN
the season,
and who also
By Todd Arriola
have devel-
The forthcoming deer
oped a sense
and elk rifl e hunting
of love for the area, there
seasons inspire visions of
isn’t a diffi cult formula to
freezers fi lled to capacity
work through, in order to
with big game meat, and
come to the conclusion that
of walls, sheds and barns
they appear to be happy
full of antlers, all of which
Utopians, whether some of
will, with any luck, help
the fundamental issues—
to brighten moods and to
a working heater, for
thwart the depressive ef-
example—have been given
forts of Old Man Winter, as serious consideration.
he sits ready, once again,
Everything takes time,
to leap at the Valley’s neck, and recent returnees to the
like an unbound cougar.
Valley, electing to believe
He’s ready, but, are we?
that this or that issue will
For some, winter means
most likely be resolved in
a magical time, fi lled with
a matter of weeks, pre-
days of never-ending fun,
winter, have developed a
out on the slopes, at the
clear case of amnesia while
lodge, or at home, retelling absent, as progress here
the stories of conquering
is sometimes measured in
the slopes and the lodge.
months—or even years.
On a more practical
The middle ground
level, for some, it means
includes those who may
less diffi culty with breath-
display some form of
fondness for either the
season or the locale, or
maybe, neither one, and
they may or may not be
more prepared than die-
hard locals in the afore-
mentioned group. After
possibly enduring many
moons of northeast Oregon
winters, the Quasi-Neutrals
interestingly seem quite
tolerant, neither complain-
ing too much, nor praising
too much.
At the extreme other end
of the spectrum are the
Purgatoryans, who may
have experienced and fully
understand the seasonal
change, but who nonethe-
less dread the idea of it,
like an impending plague.
Receiving the majority of
votes in the “Least Likely
to be hired to Represent
Baker County Tourism”
category, they just might
possibly be the most pre-
pared, whether out of fear
of cold wind and snow, or
a dip in the temperature,
below 70 degrees.
Whatever the scenario,
most of these people aren’t
immune from the ef-
fects of the unpredictable
winter season, unless they
happen to live in a toasty
blanket for months. In a
lot of cases, preparation
for, and protection against,
the colder weather comes
down to one major thing:
how much money can be
allocated to address the
problem.
It’s diffi cult to think
about the issues caused by
winter, during the warm
summer months, when
less gas and electricity
are consumed (generally
speaking), winter clothing
sales aren’t uncommon,
and the weather causes
less of a headache (again,
generally speaking), be-
cause we’ve evolved to the
point to where we basically
don’t want to think about
problems, unless we’re
forced to address them
immediately. To err is
human; to procrastinate is
also human.
In my own case, any
procrastination caused by
the disarming, tolerable
weather of summer has
been limited, and prepara-
tion is progressing, includ-
ing the installation of
better wall insulation, and
a less frustrating plumbing
system.
A return home from the
Great Outdoors is much
more enjoyable when
water still fl ows, the house
is fl ood-free, and there is
something between the
interior walls, and the un-
forgiving wrath of Mother
Nature ...
Rail Fire timber salvage planned
The Rail Fire started
July 31 approximately fi ve
miles west of Unity. As of
September 26, 2016 it is an
estimated 95% contained
and has burned 41,708
acres primarily on lands
managed by the Wallowa
Whitman National Forest
and Malheur National For-
est, with a small amount
on private lands. The fi re
on the Whitman District
of the Wallowa Whitman
National Forest has been
contained, approximately
27,115 acres.
The Whitman Ranger
District was in the process
of preparing an environ-
mental analysis to record
and disclose the environ-
mental effects of the Rail
Project in this area. The
area being evaluated was
approximately 29,688
acres that are now mostly
within the boundary of the
Rail Fire. The Rail Project
was designed in response
to Forest Plan goals for
maintaining historic plant
communities and main-
taining ecosystem func-
tion, minimize insects and
disease damage; minimize
the risk of fi re damage,
and timber management
consistent with resource
objectives, environmental
requirements and effi cien-
cy. The action would have
resulted in the reduction
of hazardous fuels and im-
proved forest health while
also improving public
and fi re fi ghter safety and
providing wood products
to local economies.
As a result of the Rail
Fire, the Rail Project as it
was being designed has
been cancelled. Currently,
the Whitman District is
assessing options for this
area, including opportu-
nities for salvage of fi re
killed trees. The fi res
impacted the Forest Road
system, resulting in numer-
ous dead trees immediately
adjacent to roads and areas
of concentrated public use.
These danger trees have
the possibility of reach-
ing the road right-of way
and are a potential hazard
to Forest users and Forest
Service personnel. The
Whitman District is pro-
posing the following:
1) Danger trees would
be removed along open
Forest roads, considered
primary routes for public
and administrative access
in the fi re area;
2) Danger trees would
be removed along ATV
trails on old roads for pub-
lic safety;
3) 250 acres of burned
timber would be salvaged,
allowing economic recov-
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ery of fi re killed timber.
At this time it is antici-
pated that these projects
can be categorically
excluded from documenta-
tion in an environmental
assessment or environ-
mental impact statement.
A project fi le will be
prepared to document the
environmental effects of
these projects. Submitting
written comments during
this scoping period would
establish eligibility to ob-
ject to these projects under
36 CFR 218.5, should an
environmental assessment
or environmental impact
statement be prepared.
You are invited to com-
ment on the proposed ac-
tions. Your comments will
help identify issues to be
considered in the environ-
mental review. Please sub-
mit your written comments
by within 30 days of this
publication. Comments
will be placed in the proj-
ect fi le and shall become a
matter of the public record
(36 CFR 215.6 (b) (2)).
Please submit your
comments to: Jeff Tomac,
Whitman District Ranger,
1550 Dewey Ave, Suite A,
Baker City, OR 97814, Ph:
541-523-1327, Fax:541-
523-6394. Those submit-
ting hand-delivered com-
ments may do so during
the regular offi ce hours
of 7:45 to 4:30 Monday
through Friday except
legal holidays. Please be
sure to include Rail Fire
Danger Tree Removal and
Salvage as the subject for
your written comments.
Electronic comments must
be submitted in a format
such as an email message,
rich text format (.rtf),
Adobe Portable Document
Format (pdf) or Microsoft
Word to comments-pacifi c-
northwest-wallowa-whit-
man- whitmanunit@fs.fed.
us. Comments received,
including the names and
addresses of those who
comment, will be con-
sidered part of the public
record for this proposal
and will be available for
public inspection.
HELP WANTED
Baker School District is currently looking for
CLASSIFIED SUBSTITUTES for the 2016-2017 school
year. For a complete description of the position and the
application process go to www.baker.k12.or.us, or please
contact Cathy Martin at 541-524-2261 or email cathy.
martin@bakersd.org for information and complete details
to apply. 10.14
Do you have a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Science
degree or higher, and love to work and teach students?
Baker School District is currently looking for CERTIFIED
SUBSTITUTE TEACHERS for the 2016-2017 school
year. A teaching degree is not necessary to apply. For a
complete description of the position and the application
process go to www.baker.k12.or.us, or contact Cathy Mar-
tin at 541-524-2261 or email cathy.martin@bakersd.org
for information and complete details to apply. The current
salary for a substitute teacher is $197.46 per day. 10.14
Ladies golf and
bridge scores
Following are the Quail Ridge Ladies golf and bridge
scores for September 28:
Golf Winners: Circle 9
1st Flight Linda Taylor; 2nd Flight Karen Wollard;
3rd Flight Carol Irvine; Birdies Jennifer Godwin.
Bridge Winners:
1st Lavelle Raley; 2nd tie Glenda Cole, Sandy Grover;
3rd Margo Kenworthy.
City Planning
to hear tennis
court issue
The Baker City Planning Commission will hold a
public hearing at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday, October 19th,
2016, in the Council Chambers at the Baker City Hall,
1655 1st Street, Baker City, Oregon, to discuss two mat-
ters:
A. An alleged violation of Conditional Use Permit
CUP-04-002, which originally approved the use of four
grass tennis courts for tournament play in the Medium-
Density Residential (R-MD) Zone. The original CUP-04-
002 approval was contingent on four conditions of ap-
proval. In 2012, one condition of approval was modifi ed
by City Council to read:
1. Use of the tennis court lights shall be restricted to
only tournament nights; shall be turned off by 10:00 p.m.
on the ten (10) selected Friday and Saturday nights; and
shall be turned off by 9:00 p.m. on all other tournament
nights;
a. All “fl ood” style lights shall be replaced with “shoe-
box” style lights;
b. Cut-off shields shall be added to the lights so that
light shall not extend over the property line;
On September 22nd, 2016, the Baker City-County Plan-
ning Department received a complaint and photographs
asserting a violation of the condition listed above.
The Baker City Development Code (BCDC) requires a
violation of a Conditional Use Permit to be heard before
the Planning Commission, who makes a decision on the
matter.
B. The appeal of the Planning Director’s decision on
a complaint regarding modifi cations made to a shop at
3060 College Street. The appellant, Larry W. Pearson,
has appealed the Director’s decision to the Baker City
Planning Commission.
Diane M. Woffard owns property at 3060 College
Street. Modifi cations to an existing shop were made
during the fall and winter of 2015. A complaint was fi led
with the Planning Department on December 31st, 2015,
stating that the shop at 3060 College Street had been
remodeled and did not meet the required setback from
the rear property line. The Planning Department inves-
tigated the complaint, and the Director issued a decision
on September 8th, 2016, concluding that the shop was
originally constructed at a time when the Development
Code required lesser setbacks, qualifying the structure
as a pre-existing, non-conforming development. As a
pre-existing, non-conforming development, the Planning
Director determined that the shop was allowed to remain
on the property, but the modifi cations made during the
fall and winter of 2015 had to be removed and the shop
returned to the size it was prior to the modifi cations. An
appeal was fi led on September 22nd, 2016/
The Baker City Development Code (BCDC) Section
1.5.400 (B) states that the Planning Director is respon-
sible for recording, investigating and taking action on
complaints. Normally, decisions on complaints are not
eligible for appeal, but due to the circumstances associ-
ated with the case, the Planning Director’s determination
included an option for an appeal to the Planning Com-
mission. The hearing will be “de novo,” meaning the
appeal will be considered as a new application which
allows additional evidence, testimony or argument
concerning any relevant standard, criterion, condition, or
issue to be considered.
The public is invited to attend this hearing and to sub-
mit comments. Testimony and relevant evidence, both in
support of or in opposition to the proposal, must be based
on the applicable review criteria and submitted to the
Planning Department by 5:00 p.m., on the hearing date,
Wednesday, October 19th, 2016, or in person during the
hearing. Both staff reports will be available for inspection
on or before October 12th, 2016 at the County Court-
house. Please contact the Planning Department for more
information at 541-523-8219. The meeting will be held in
Council Chambers at Baker City Hall, 1655 First Street.