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About Vernonia's voice. (Vernonia, OR) 2007-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 3, 2017)
august3 2017 VERNONIA’S volume11 issue15 www.vernoniasvoice.com reflecting the spirit of our community Hampton Lumber Mill in Banks Opens Doors for Tour The Banks Mill has re-opened under new ownership By Scott Laird The Banks Mill has been re-opened under the new owner- ship of Hampton Lum- ber and is once again operating, providing lo- cal jobs, and contribut- ing to the community. On Friday, July 21, 2017 Hampton Lumber opened the mill to a select group of visi- tors for a tour of their facility and let visitors see just how lumber is processed and turned from raw logs into neat- ly stacked two-by-fours and other dimensional lumber. Included in the group of visitors was U.S. Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici, along with several Washington County Com- missioners. Banks Mayor Pete Edison warmly welcomed the visitors, along with the several Hampton Lumber executives who were on hand, including Hampton CEO Steve Zika and Hampton Lumber owner David Hampton. Hampton Lumber is a third genera- tion family-owned company that owns nine sawmills in Oregon, Washington and British Columbia, Canada. “Coming into these small, rural communities, we can make a big impact,” said David Hampton. “Our corporate responsibility is really important to us, and so we try to do these things and do them well. That’s what we’re about—trying to give people good paying jobs.” CEO Zika told the visitors that the Banks Mill was purchased in August 201, inside free and, following a multi-million dollar retrofit and upgrade, reopened in the early spring of 2017. Zika said the Mill currently employees over 50 people working on one shift a day producing 2x4s and 2x6s for framing lumber in lengths from six to 20 feet. The Banks State Legislature Ends Session with Big Progress on Health Care Issues Legislature passes numerous bills to safeguard coverage for all Oregonians By Scott Laird Mill strictly processes Douglas fir and has the capacity to produce 72 million board feet annually. “Congratulations to Banks and to Hampton Lumber on the reopening of the mill,” said Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici in her remarks prior to the tour which was led by Banks Mill Manager Dave Kyser. “Timber is part of Oregon’s history and our future, and wood products manufacturing plays an important role in rural communities. I’m working to make sure we’re preparing our workforce for good jobs so that everyone has the opportunity to succeed, regardless of where they live. Part of the solution is strengthening career and technical education in high school and college. I’m proud that the House recently passed a bill to increase funding for career and technical education, support innovation, and better align programs with industry needs.” continued on page 7 The Oregon Legislature ended its session last month after making great progress on numerous health care issues that are important to their citizens. Both the State House and Senate worked, often across party lines, to protect current health care regulations at the state level, while also introducing new legislation to help Oregonians. “There are a couple of these bills that are very, very complicated,” said Oregon State Senator Betsy Johnson (D - District 16) in a recent interview with Vernonia’s Voice. “With what is happening at the federal level in regards to health care, there were a lot of concerns about any changes and how they would affect Oregonians,” said Vernonia resident Heather Lewis, who serves on The Public Health Foundation of Columbia County Board of Directors, as well as the Governor’s Rural Health Coordinating Council. Lewis is a massage therapist with a practice in Vernonia. “There was a lot of concern throughout the health care field about what would happen if the Medicaid expansion went away at the federal level,” said Lewis. “The passage of several of these bills really showed that health care is an important issue to our state legislators. It showed that they are following what is happening at the federal level and doing their best to make sure safeguards are in place, so that if things change Oregonians will still have access to health care.” The Oregon Legislature entertained at least 74 separate bills and amendments concerning different health care issues, many of them pertaining specifically to rural health care concerns, according to the Lobby Oregon 2017 End-of Session Report Card that was prepared for the Oregon Rural Health Association (ORHA). The ORHA was founded in 1992 to build a stronger voice for rural practitioners in Salem. Today the ORHA is composed of individuals and organizations that provide leadership on rural health issues through advocacy, communication and education. While the Legislature did pass numerous bills, several bills failed to receive enough support to become law. Included in those bills that failed to pass were several bills that attempted to address pharmaceuticals and the skyrocketing costs of prescription drugs. Among the bills that did pass, both Senator Johnson and Lewis concurred on several that were significant in protecting health care for Oregon citizens, including House Bill (HB) 2391, HB 3261, Senate Bill (SB) 558, SB 860, and HB 331. HB 2391, titled Medicaid Provider Tax, helped Oregon fill a huge deficit in their budget for the upcoming two year fiscal cycle, estimated to be close to $1.8 billion continued on page 6 Farmwoman’s Nursery: Homegrown History Lorna Poetter’s love for her historic barn and the plants she sells grows more each day By Scott Laird 3 bonamici bulletin 9 inside our films 10 go on safariLIVE 12 in memory of... The big red barn is certainly eye catching. It’s hard to miss as you head north out of Vernonia on Highway 47. It has been there for a long time, built by one of the original pioneer families in the Upper Nehalem Valley, and it is still in beautiful shape, both inside and out. It stands up straight and tall and sturdy, thanks to the loving care of its owner, the Farmwoman. The Farmwoman is Lorna Poetter, and the big red barn, with its metal roof and cupola, is the centerpiece of her business, the Farmwoman’s Nursery, located at 2121 North Mist Drive. The barn was originally part of the Malmsten homestead, early settlers in the Vernonia region. Poetter has been selling plants and trees from the site, and tending to the care of the 117 year old barn, since 2005, although the flood in December continued on page 8
