International Exhibit
‘Women in
Motion’
in Cascade
Locks – A2
blossom
time
Map and events, A12
W EEKEND E DITION
Vol. 109, No. 31
HOOD RIVER, OREGON
Official Newspaper, City of Hood River and Hood River County
■
SATURDAY, APRIL 18, 2015
75 cents
2 Sections, 18 Pages
www.hoodrivernews.com
CGCC increases tuition
Cost per credit rises by
$2, general fees by $3
By MARK GIBSON
The Dalles Chronicle
The Columbia Gorge Communi-
ty College Board of Education
unanimously approved a $2 per
credit tuition increase, coupled
with a $3 per credit increase in gen-
eral fees, during their regular
board meeting Tuesday, April 14.
Tuition and fees were last raised in
2012.
The college adopted the fees
prior to considering the full budget
proposed for the 2015-16 academic
year budget because students ap-
plying for summer and fall courses
could not be processed for financial
aid without the adoption of a tu-
ition and fee schedule, according to
CGCC staff.
“It gives me a cold sweat to think
about raising tuition and fees,”
said board vice chair Charlotte
Arnold during discussions regard-
ing the increase. “I don’t want to do
this, but I might have to do the hard
thing and vote for it.”
Other board members agreed,
noting that the college was “be-
tween a rock and a hard place” and
would have to do something to ad-
dress the projected $2.4 million
budget gap projected in the coming
year.
“We’ve toed the line for three
years (with no increase in tuition
or fees),” said board member
Charleen Cobb. “When we have to,
we have to. We have to have a bal-
anced budget.”
Tuition and fees constitute ap-
proximately 35 percent of the an-
nual operating revenue for CGCC.
Tuition and fees were last raised
for the 2012-13 academic year, ac-
cording to a tuition and fee report
generated by CGCC. The rate in-
creases are expected to generate
$174,000 in the coming fiscal year.
The adopted tuition and fee
schedule is equal to the current
year state-wide average for all
other Oregon community colleges
at $91 per credit tuition and $15 per
credit general fees, the report stat-
ed.
Additional fee increases include
a $200 increase to the nursing pro-
See CGCC, Page A11
Hood River man
charged with
kidnap, rape
By PATRICK MULVIHILL
News staff writer
SAVING ‘SPEED DEMONS’
Photo by Trisha Walker
RACHEL, LEIF and Lila Mortenson “sweep” Coho fry towards waiting nets on Rock Creek. Volunteers gathered Thursday and Friday morning
to help the fish continue their run to the Columbia.
Mosier residents do impromptu salmon rescue
S p o t l i g h t
By TRISHA WALKER
News staff writer
About 16 or so volunteers gathered at
Rock Creek in Mosier to help Coho
salmon fry reach the Columbia River on
Thursday morning.
Mike Igo, Mosier’s “Unofficial Official
Town Naturalist,” quickly organized the
event on Monday after observing the low
water levels at Rock Creek.
The fry are unable to make it to the Co-
lumbia without some human help — vol-
unteers used nets to capture the fry, plac-
ing them in buckets for a ride to deeper
a
t
u
r
d
a
y
waters. Community members gather
yearly, when water levels are low, to help
the fish continue their run to the Colum-
bia, said Igo.
Austin Dillon, of Oregon Fish and
Wildlife, was present to help volunteers
A Hood River man is facing eight different felony
charges, including rape and kidnap.
Michael Scott Linden, 52, was charged with two
counts of burglary, two counts of kidnapping, rape,
sodomy, sexual abuse, assault fourth degree, stran-
gulation and two counts of
unlawful use of weapon—
all of which are felonies.
Linden was also charged
with assault and menac-
ing, which are misde-
meanors.
Linden could face up-
wards of 40 years in
prison for the most severe
charges levied against
him, which are subject to
mandatory minimum sen-
tences by Oregon Ballot
Michael Scott Linden
Measure 11.
According to a case file
obtained from the Circuit Court, Linden was ac-
cused of “unlawfully and knowingly” invading Jes-
sica Michelle Linden’s residence on Culbertson
Drive in Parkdale and committing numerous crimes.
Linden was allegedly armed with a gun and a knife.
Sgt. Ricardo Casteneda of the Hood River Sheriff ’s
Department arrested Linden Tuesday night at the In-
dian Creek Golf Course parking lot after stopping a
vehicle there, said Hood River County Sheriff Matt
English. Linden was booked in Northern Oregon Re-
See LINDEN, Page A11
A weekly series about a day in the life ...
See SALMON, Page A2
Divide and culture: Jackie Shaw leads club plant sale
BY TRISHA WALKER
News staff writer
Photos by Trisha Walker
JACKIE SHAW has been in charge of the Odell
Garden Club’s annual Blossom Fest plant sale for
the past 10 years. Here, she tends some of the many
plants, shrubs and berries on her property in preparation
for the April 18 fundraiser.
No one is quite sure how long the Odell Garden Club has
been putting on their annual Blossom Fest plant sale — it’s
estimated at around 20 or 30 years — but whatever the tally,
it’s the club’s largest fundraiser.
Jackie Shaw, the club’s vice president, has been in charge
of the event for the past 10 years, taking it over from former
president Jenny Vann. She “doesn’t do much” to get ready
for the sale; she simply tends, digs, cuts, grows, waters, fer-
tilizes and eventually sets up and labels the plants for the
one-day event, held in the Community Building at the fair-
grounds — this year, on April 18.
“I just do a lot of digging of my plants; I do a lot of divid-
ing,” she said of the undertaking. “It’s fun and I love doing
it. I like starting stuff.”
She took over the sale “to be nice. I’m vice president, and
I took over because they wanted me to because I was the one
who brought the most plants,” she said. “I can’t remember
how I got voted into that job, but I could get voted out pretty
fast.”
See JACKIE, Page A11
Four To Go
Oregon Trail Rally
scheduled April 24-26
Mosier School
has three board posts open
Oregon Trail Rally happens April 24-26, in
Dufur most of April 25, then at Double Moun-
tain Brewery Saturday at 7:30 p.m. for a street
party with the rally cars on display Racing on
the logging roads around Hood River on April
26. The event service park will be at the Port’s
Lot 1 all day Sunday, where spectators can
check out the cars and visit with the teams.
However, to see racing, spectators will have to
either go to Portland Raceway April 24, or to
Dufur on
April 25.
The Unified Board of Directors for
Mosier Community School and Mosier Mid-
dle School currently has three vacancies
due to terms expiring. The open positions
will be filled by election.
Voters must be part of the Membership
Foundation. Those who wish to apply
and/or vote should an application from
www.mosierschool.com.
Applications are due by April 24, and can-
didates are encouraged to attend a public
forum on May 6 at 5:15 p.m. at the school.
For details contact board co-chair Robert
Teskey at teskeyr@nwasco.k12.or.us.
7
05105 97630
3
Pie with the
mayor on
Monday
Mayor Paul
Blackburn will
host office hours
at Shari’s Restau-
rant on the
Heights on April
20 from noon to 1
p.m. Come enjoy a
slice of pie and
meet your Mayor.
Plant stewardship
classes held this spring
Mayor Paul Blackburn
Columbia Gorge Community
College, in partnership with the
Discovery Center, will offer a se-
ries of plant stewardship class
this spring. A group of three
workshops, each including a pre-
sentation and field trip, can be
taken as a series or individually.
The first is Wildflower Steward-
ship, April 30.
Register online or by calling 541-
5066011. Cost of the series is $69,
or $29 each.