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About The Hood River news. (Hood River, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (May 2, 2015)
www.hoodrivernews.com Hood River News, Saturday, May 2, 2015 A11 Wasco Sheriff confirms NORCOR death suicide Wasco County Sherif f Rick Eiesland has ruled the death of an inmate from Hood River last Wednesday at Northern Oregon Region- al Corrections Facility in the The Dalles was a suicide. Eiesland said Thursday his office had not yet re- ceived results of the autopsy from the state medical exam- iner’s office, but the cause of death was confirmed as sui- cide. Michael Scott Linden, 52, was found dead in his cell at NORCOR at about 10:58 a.m. Wednesday, April 22. NOR- COR administrator Jim Weed said jail personnel were tipped off to Linden’s death by another inmate. Of- ficials found Linden dead in his cell. Linden was accused of eight separate felonies in- cluding rape. He was facing more than 40 years in prison if convicted of the most se- vere charges stacked against him. His bail was set at $100,000. The final results of the in- vestigation of Linden’s death are still pending. ■ A memorial for Scott Lin- den will be held Tuesday at Divots Restaurant at Indian Creek Golf Course in Hood River. The time could not be confirmed as of press time. Photo by Kirby Neumann-Rea CGCC President Dr. Frank Toda, left, at a 2014 meeting with board president M.D. Van Valkenburgh. D OUG Continued from Page A1 of 1.2 million gallons per day. But explaining this to peo- ple? “You want to kill a conver- sation? When people ask what I do for a living, and I tell them, I either get a deer in the headlights look, or they say, ‘that’s interesting,’ and that’s the end of it,” he laughed. Nichols’ mornings begin with a staff meeting, where workers discuss “any process or control equip- ment problems, provide scheduled training, and al- ways include a safety topic — safety is always the number one priority,” he said (the plant safety record is cur- rently at over 4,700 days without a lost time accident). The rest of his day is spent managing four Gorge-area wastewater treatment plants —Hood River, Parkdale, Cas- cade Locks and Stevenson — which includes everything from “managing budgets to regulatory reporting, lab and plant data analysis, client re- ports, etc. “In this position, you wear many hats,” he said. And it’s a position he en- joys. “Wastewater treatment is a highly regulated and de- manding profession,” he said. “However, there is a great deal of satisfaction in knowing that we make a dif- ference each and every day for the environment, and that we’re protecting the wa- terways of Oregon and pub- lic health. Water is a pre- cious commodity. “We like to think of our- selves as the original envi- ronmentalists,” he said. “Wastewater has been around a long time.” He also enjoys “educating the public about wastewater treatment and how a plant operates,” Nichols said. “We provide a lot of plant tours to school groups of all ages, from preschool to college level students.” There are eight associates at the Hood River WWTP, five of whom are State of Oregon certified wastewater opera- tors: Louie Hooks, Gary Duree, Brent Tillett, Sean Desmond and Nichols. The other three: Bobby Green, mechanic; Kelby Johnson, biosolids coordinator and equipment operator; and Sara Hor ne, operator in training. “These guys are the nuts and bolts of the operation,” Nichols said. “… All of our associates are highly trained professionals dedicated to maintaining plant opera- tions that consistently pro- duces a quality effluent (dis- charge) that meets estab- lished discharge permit lim- its set by the Oregon Depart- ment of Environmental Quality,” he added. “The State of Oregon has the most stringent water quality stan- dards in the nation.” The Parkdale, Cascade Locks and Stevenson facili- ties are considered satellite projects and are not staffed all day, Nichols said — in- stead, Desmond and Duree travel back and forth be- tween the sites for a few hours at a time. Nichols was bor n and raised in Baker City. He grad- uated in 1978 with a two-year associate degree in Water and Wastewater Technology at Linn Benton Community College, and began his ca- reer as a wastewater opera- tor at the Gresham WWTP in 1979. He moved to Roseburg in 1984, holding the same po- sition. In 1985, he began working for CH2M in contract opera- tions, “which has included 10 years at the Gresham WWTP, in maintenance while train- ing to be a project manager, three years as project man- ager at a WWTP at Keahou, Kona, on the Big Island of Hawaii, and the last 18 years as project manager at the WWTP here in Hood River.” Nichols and his wife of 44 years, Marilyn, live in Hood River. CH2M is a contract ser- vices provider, and has “en- joyed a great partnership with the City of Hood River since 1983,” said Nichols. Hood River WWTP is the company’s second-oldest tenured client. Those services include “operating and maintaining the wastewater plant and six lift stations, application of biosolids on DEQ-approved land application sites, grease trap inspections, and man- agement of a local pretreat- ment program that involves regulating the discharge of local significant industrial users.” Many small towns con- tract their WWTP services with companies like CH2M because “they either don’t want to be bothered with it, or they’re having problems operating their plant and they call us to help out.” Many times, “helping out” turns into a long-term part- nership. “It’s been a good career — and you talk about job secu- rity,” he said. “I feel like I’ve been very blessed — it’s been a good profession.” May 19 ballots are in the mail The Hood River County Elections office put ballots in the mail Friday for the May 19 Special Districts Election. Voters have until May 19 to return their ballots via mail or to voting locations at the County Administration Building, Sixth and State, or Cascade Locks City Hall. Voters are reminded to sign their ballot envelopes, but to sign only their own, to ensure ballot validity. If you do not receive your ballot in the mail by May 3, call County Elections at 541- 386-1442. The elevator at the county building, where Elections is located, is currently out of order and will be for another week or so. Anyone with mo- bility limitations should park in the county lot on the west side of the building and take the ramp that leads to the third floor. Ballots must be in the hands of the Elec- tions office by 8 p.m. May 19; postmarks to do not count. The ballot includes seats on every special election dis- trict in the county, and fea- tures contested races for the Gas Appliances Electrical Repair Get your RV road ready! RV Doc — Bruce Henderson Mobile Service & Repair State Fire Marshal Certification #001242-08 Service & Repair. I come to you! B RUCE H ENDERSON 541-993-5982 L ICENSED & C ERTIFIED T ODA Continued from Page A1 to get on an even keel we need a new president,” Schell said of Toda, who has served since 2001. Of approximately 90 facul- ty members, 72 voted on the following statement: “In addition to the faculty vote of no confidence in CGCC President Frank Toda in September 2013, CGCC Faculty now censure Presi- dent Toda due to his budget mismanagement; his inabili- ty to include faculty and staff in a process to address the current budgetary crisis; his proposal to close the Hood River Indian Creek Campus resulting in the community’s lack of confidence in Toda; and his dismissal of key em- ployees resulting in the Col- lege being understaffed to the point where servicing students has become a dire problem. Because President Toda’s actions collectively constitute a threat to the via- bility of CGCC, the faculty asks that the president re- sign immediately and that the College initiate a nation- al search for a new presi- dent.” When asked to respond to the contents of the letter, the President’s office responded that “Columbia Gorge Com- munity College has not offi- cially been presented as a re- cipient of the above letter and as a result the College will not be able to submit a for mal comment at this time.” In the fall of 2013, a vote of “no confidence” in Toda was taken in which 40 faculty voted no confidence, eight voting against no confidence, and 24 abstained. Schell cited Toda’s actions in November 2014, announc- ing plans to close the Hood River campus. Toda did so without consulting the board, and later said he came out with the closure idea to bring CTCC’s budget short- age to the attention of State legislators. The CGCC board declared in December that it would not consider closing the campus. “That was such an ill- wrought thing to do. We don’t think the college can go on with (Toda). Its whole rep- utation is now at stake,” Schell said. rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr Skamania Lodge Golf Course Gorge Resident * Open House May 29th - 31st Come play your challenging neighborhood course FREE during this special event designed just for you. Carts are only $15.** Complimentary hot dog, chips and soda also included! Advance tee times required - reference “Open House Event.” Reservations begin May 15th at 800.293.0418. We look forward to hosting your best game of the season! ! K O O L This size ad in the HRN 9 times for only $175 50 ! Call Liana at 541-386-1234 *Must be a resident of Skamania, Klickitat, Hood River or Wasco County. **Green fee is complimentary and does not include a cart fee of $15 per player. Golf cart is required to ensure pace of play. 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Our team live lives es and works in the Hood River community - We W e know the local loca al market. Before Befor e you u call anyone else, call your neighbors for great gr eat rates and d the best service anywhere! s anywher e! If you have an hour a week or an hour a month, you can be someone’s “good neighbor.” Volunteer tasks might be taking someone to the doctor, picking up a prescription, friendly visits, grocery shopping and or other assistance. JEFF SA SACRE C RE Call to register or find out more, call 541-387-6150 or email clare.black@providence.org Sr. Sr r. Mortgage Specialist Sr. Sr r . Mortgage Specialist STEVE STE VE WOLF MIKE M IKE ELLSWOR ELLSWORTH TH NMLS-140302, MLO-140302 OR NMLS-114305; W WA A MLO-114305 OR NMLS-114033; W WA A MLO-114033 541.806.1556 541.490.2897 jsacre@directorsmortgage.net jsacr e@dir ectorsmortgage.net swolf@directorsmortgage.net swolf@dir ectorsmortgage.net Sr. Sr r. 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