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About The Record-courier. (Haines, Baker County, Oregon) 1932-2016 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 25, 2016)
5*1 ************ eqr |_ qt 0074A**C007 BAKER COUNTY LIBRARY 2400 RESORT ST BAKER CITY OR 97814-2721 lx5 years in Baker Coun Exp 05/07/2016 Positively Baker County RESSQUi ............................................. I hursday, February 25, 2016 Est. Haines 1901 ~ Haines, Baker County, Oregon Rally Concerns Everyone who spoke at Tuesday night's Baker City Council meeting regarding the Hells Canyon Motor cycle Rally said it was a positive, worthwhile event for the community. Some however, want changes they believe will make it more beneficial to downtown busi nesses and property owners. Others contend those changes threaten the event and worry about potentially losing it altogether. Two areas seem to be of most concern to the group which said repeatedly, they do support the rally, but want Main Street to be closed for a shorter duration of time and suggest out of area vendors be relocated off of Main Street to Central Park. Police Chief Wyn Lohner began the discussion saying that he had heard from a number of people who had concerns following last year's rally. He said that he wanted to clarify why the Police Chief was in the center of discussion about an event, noting that his concern was safety and his intention has always been to keep the event from being the "most danger ous three days in the county." Lohner's presentation included feedback from a July 2015 meeting following the event. In part it included: • ODOT reported they had received no complaints about the event. • Economic Development reported they had received nothing but positive comments. • HBC emphasized the need to keep the sidewalks open. • The Public Works Department expressed concerns about using Second Street as a detour, but felt it was functional. • Several business owners from downtown had con cerns about the positioning of the vendors. • A concern about a fire danger brought up by a busi ness owner was mitigated by the Fire Chief who said he did not think the vendors or structure of the event caused a fire concern downtown. Volume 115, Number 8 • 8 Pages • $1 Story / photo by Gina Perkins • A downtown business owner stated she felt the lo cation of the vendors not only detracted from local businesses but that it hindered the "artistic display of the motorcycles." Kurt Miller, organizer of the event was asked about moving the vendors north on Main Street "away from the concentration of small businesses." Miller followed the recommendation and has proposed moving the entire event North on Main, putting the center of the event at the Broadway intersection. "I've never had a single business owner tell me the event needs to go away," stated Lohner. Lohner went on to ask the City Council how long any street should be closed and when asked about attendance numbers, Lohner stated that he has heard projections every year and they've never been accurate. Beverly Calder, owner of BÈLLA and part of the Transient Lodging Board said, "We love this event....however, for three days you can't get to the "crown jewel," (referring to the extended closure of Main Street). Calder's three concerns included the length of the closure, belief the event needs to have a "smaller footprint," and that Main Street is a good place to park the bikes but not a good place for the vendors. Linda Haynes, who resides with her husband in their Main Street building and rides motorcycles, said that she believes Central Park would be a great place for the vendors. Jerry Shaw a bartender with the VFW disagreed with the notion that not all in the community benefit. He said that he, like many, spends the extra money he makes during the rally locally the week following the event. He says Resort Street is not wide enough and other investments need to be made into Central Park before it would be a realistic option. "It's not like Sturgis and I would really hate to see Elkhorn Big Game Banquet Celebrating 20th Anniversary Story /photo by Gina Perkins "Last year's banquet was one of the very best," says Rick Holden, Chairman of the Elkhorn Chapter of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation. The event raised $60,000 before expenses and funds are used primarily for elk habitat preservation and improvement in Ore gon. They served 220 dinners with an addi tional 10-20 in attendance at the 2015 banquet. This year's event will be held on Saturday, March 5 at the Elk's Club in Baker City. Doors open at 5 p.m. and the event is expected to last well into the evening. Memberships start at $35 annually and prime rib dinner tickets are $25. A special menu for kids 16 and under will be available for $13. Holden pointed to two habitat preservation projects in the region including one called Glass Hill near Ladd Marsh in the Grande Ronde Valley. Mark Penninger, Wildlife Program Manager says, "The Glass Hill Land Acquisition was pur chased by Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation (RMEF) and the deed transferred to Oregon Dept of Fish and Wildlife. This 850 acre parcel provides an important link connecting Ladd Marsh Wildlife Area to upland forests on private and National Forest System lands. The link provides a corridor for elk and other wildlife that move seasonally between higher elevation summer range and lower elevation winter range and marsh lands in the Grande Ronde — — Valley bottom." The other, much larger at 13,000 acres, was once owned by D.R. John son who when he passed away, de sired for it to be used for elk habitat and be open to the public. "The US Forest Service holds deed to this property and will management it for wildlife, recre Rick Holden ation, clean water, etc., (multiple uses typical of National Forests), says Penninger. Holden says he considers the Forest Service a good partner of the RMEF and likes that dol lars raised are kept in Oregon for Oregon con servation projects. Assistant Road Master for Baker County who retired after 35 years in 2009, Holden was born and raised in Baker County. He says he is al ways surprised by the amount of support received for the banquet including from those completely out of the area who have a fond ness for the Elkhorn Chapter See RMEF on page 2 this rally go somewhere else," said Greg Maddox who spoke in support of the vendors remaining on Main Street. He pointed out the rally raises a considerable .amount of money and that outlying communities also benefit. Alan Mendenhall from the Suriridge Inn said that they begin taking a list for reservations during the rally and "they could,fill the Sunridge six times" just based off that list. He also pointed to significant monetary donations made to the community including the Baker City Police Department. Mendenhall said that the rally raised $30,000 to purchase Baker City's first drug dog "Turbo" and last year gave another $15,000 to help pay for Turbo's replacement: He added that the rally has also purchased two off road motorcycles for law enforcement. "We helped fund the purchase of bicycle helmets for Baker City kids and we stepped up and purchased electrical equipment necessary for the rally and Miners Jubilee," Mendenhall said. "The rally paid Baker High School $10,000 for those who camped at the school." "The VFW makes more money during this event than any other time...the money goes to support our veterans," Mendenhall said. "I don't understand why we want to move it. I hope we can continue." Bob Haynes then spoke saying, "I live in the middle of the rally. I walk on Main Street every day and I talk to people on Main Street every day. Everyone on Main Street is for the rally." "Why change something that works?" asked Larry Christian. He then went on to compare the motorcycle rally to the bicycle race. "They [the bicycle racersj stay at the high school, bring their own showers...they don't eat the same food." Calder replied that it was hard to hear the bicycle event be attacked and pointed out this event also raises thousands of dollars. "It's not a competition," said Calder and pointed out that many events which happen throughout the year fill motel rooms and generate significant dollars for the community. See RALLY on page 4 Nelson Joins Race Jeff Nelson has filed as a Re publican for County Commis sioner Position #1 running against Kody Justus and Bruce Nichols, CPA. Nelson is a for mer clothing retail business owner, the downtown manager for Historic Baker City, Inc., and was the assistant manager and buyer for Big V. He now is a business advisor with Blue Mountain Community College Small Business Development Center. Nelson obtained a B.S. in Business from Lewis-Clark State College in Lewiston, Idaho and an A.S. in Business from Idaho State University. Nelson is active in the com munity and serves as the vice president of the Baker County Chamber of Commerce with Cheryl Martin of Union County who is the President, is a board member of the Baker County Ljons Club, vice chairman of the Baker City Parks Board and served as co-chairman of the Ford Family Leadership Cohort Four. "As Commissioner I will con tinue in my pursuit of economic development, ensuring we bring family wage jobs to Baker County who support our small town community way of life. I will continue to promote local Baker / Powder Valley Wrestlers Win First Regional Championship By Brandon Young Baker/Powder Valley wrestlers won the first regional wrestling championship in the history of the program at Baker High School which is about 40 years. 13 out of 13 wrestlers qualified for State, and this sets the new school record for most kids ever to qualify for the state meet. Along with these team records, Korey Grende has set two school records with 39 wins and 28 falls. Both are the most in the history of the program. But, Grende's records are not set in stone yet. He still has to battle with Marco Vela who has 37 wins and 26 falls, as well as Jace Hays who has 37 wins, and Clay Keller who has 27 falls. These school records will come down to the state wrestling tournament. Also, Jace Hays has the highest win percentage dating back to 2006 with a record of 37-6, which is 88.10 percent. At the beginning of the season we talked about what it would take to win the Regional tournament this year with only 14 guys. We told the team it would take at least 10 in finals to make it hap pen. After losing our stud Heavy Weight Will Goodwin to a torn meniscus, it was almost mathematically impossible, as it dropped our numbers to 13. We knew we were still in the hunt, but we were definitely the underdogs as Mac-Hi had 20 wrestlers in the tournament. As it would turn out, it actually took 11 guys in the fi nals, with six Regionals Champions, five Runner-ups, and two guys who took third to win the Regional Tournament! This group of young men are exceptional in every way. On the mat/off the mat, in the classroom, you name it. They are also very fortunate to have a great support system at home. We still have several guys in the running for the Iron Man Award. This award was started by Assistant Coach Torrey Roberts. The wrestlers can miss only one day of practice all season. If they accomplish this they get a trophy at the end of the season. Right now these guys are in the running for the Iron Man still: Colton Anderson, Alex Duran, Jace Hays, James AhHee, Marco Vela, Clay Keller, Dylan Feldmeier, and G'ovi Quezada. Baker also has an extremely dedicated coaching staff and I am thankful to have all of them. See WRESTLERS on page 2 Night at Old Auburn at Heritage Museum Saturday, Feb. 27 6-10 p.m. economic prosperity and growth in small business and tourism. I am committed to protecting our rural way of life and I will fight to capitalize on our local sustainable resources to revitalize industry for Baker County. I am committed to pur suing every avenue to ensure business owners thrive," said Nelson. "I am committed to keeping public lands open for the pub lic. I am determined to fight for less government microman agement of public lands and less land use restrictions," he added. Nelson said, "I am adamant about the safety and protection of our community and promot ing positive public safety awareness. I will pursue inno vative and attainable avenues to ensure our public safety di visions have the resources they need to protect our com munity." "As Commissioner, I pledge to bring growth and prosperity back to our community. I pledge to use a well rounded approach to the priorities of our community and maintain fiscal responsibility. As Commis sioner, I will fight for Baker County," said Nelson. In conclusion Nelson added,: "I believe in preserving our quality of life for generations to come. I believe in community reinvestment. I believe in eco nomic development and the opportunity of our local re sources. I believe in Baker County." Alphonsus Blood Draw March 17,18,19 Ï ,7 - 9:30 a.rri r jestions? 541-523-8102 4005 23rd Street • PO Box 226 Baker City, OR 97814 (541) 523-3616
