Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The Hood River news. (Hood River, Or.) 1909-current | View Entire Issue (July 15, 2015)
FIRE UPDATE PARENTS WHO HOST Mt. Adams Complex partially controlled – A2 Keeping your kids safe – B6 M IDWEEK E DITION Vol. 109, No. 56 HOOD RIVER, OREGON Official Newspaper, City of Hood River and Hood River County ■ WEDNESDAY, JULY 15, 2015 75 cents 2 Sections, 22 Pages www.hoodrivernews.com Governor here Friday for first visit to Hood River Kate Brown will sign affordable college bill at CGCC, tour pFriem By PATRICK MULVIHILL News staff writer Oregon Governor Kate Brown will pay Hood River a visit Friday. The trip, which marks Brown’s first stop in Hood River as gover- nor, will give her a brief survey of Kate Brown local strides in education and busi- ness. First, Brown will hit CGCC’s In- dian Creek Campus in Hood River, where she will sign the affordable community college bill, Oregon Promise, which just cleared the Oregon House and Senate. The signing is slated for 9:30 a.m. and is open to the public. Oregon Promise, SB 81 is a bill sponsored by Sen. Mark Hass (D- Beaverton) and co-sponsored by local representative Rep. Mark Johnson (R-Hood River). The bill allows Oregon high school gradu- ates with at least 2.5 GPA who en- roll in community college to get free tuition, paid by the state. John- son said the goal is “to make com- munity college affordable for all Oregon students.” (See page A4 for Johnson’s comments on the bill.) At Indian Creek, Brown will also meet with local school faculty and administrators in a roundtable set- ting, discussing career and techni- cal education. After the college stop, Brown will speak at the Leaders for Tomorrow (LFT) brunch at the Best Western Plus Hood River Inn. The organiza- tion is celebrating its 20th anniver- sary with a lineup of alumni speak- ers. The brunch starts at 10 a.m., with Brown expected to speak dur- ing the middle of the event, around 11:15 a.m. (Due to space limitations, the event is not open to the general public.) Kristin Reece, program coordi- nator, said she was “surprised” and excited to have Brown speak at the See VISIT, Page A9 Is 3rd time the charm? LUBA again upholds City’s right to deny Walmart expansion By KIRBY NEUMANN-REA News editor Photo by Ben Mitchell KB4C PARADE OF KITES Kiteboarders take to the Columbia River during Saturday’s kite derby, part of the many activities that composed this weekend’s 9th Annual Kiteboarding 4 Cancer (KB4C) event. The derby, which lasted six hours, saw great wind and drew 225 kiteboarders — the most in the event’s history. As of press time, fundraising totals neared $115,000 — surpassing last year’s final tally of $112,000. All proceeds from KB4C go to Athletes 4 Cancer: a nonprofit that funds adventure camps for can- cer survivors age 18-40. For more information on the event, turn to Sports on page A7. Walmart, round 3, goes to the City of Hood River. Oregon Land Use Board of Ap- peals (LUBA) ruled Friday in the city’s favor on Walmart corpora- tion’s latest appeal of the city’s determination that the company does not have the right to expand its West Cascade store. City attorney Dan Kearns in- formed City Council of the deci- sion Monday. Kearns said that he is certain Walmart will appeal the LUBA ruling; the company has 21 days to do so, according to See LUBA, Page A9 Hood River Art Club celebrates 66 years BY TRISHA WALKER IN THE BEGINNING News staff writer The Hood River Art Club — start- ed in 1949 by a group of local artists — is celebrating its 66th anniver- sary with an art show July 10-18 at the History Museum of Hood River County. The show, which will be open daily from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. (closed Sunday) in the upstairs balcony, will feature special works from each of the club’s current mem- bers, some of which will be for sale. On the lower level will be paint- ings from some of the founding members, including Norman Tuck- er and Gilbert Clarke. To conclude the celebration, an artists’ reception will be held July 18 from 1-4 p.m., with refreshments and exhibits. Around 2:30 p.m., Marilyn Avolio, granddaughter of Percy Manser, will give a short talk about Manser, and at 3 p.m., artist Gayle Weisfield will relate stories about the classes she took with Phil Tyler. In 1949, a group of local artists put out the word that they would be meeting in the upper floor of Nor- man Tucker’s father’s feed store (now Discover Bicycles) in hopes of starting an art club. More than 100 people showed up — both artists and those apprecia- tive of the arts — and the Hood River Art Club was born. Other founding members includ- ed a number of locally (and some- times nationally) renowned artists such as Lois Talbot, Phil Tyler, Betty Dobson, Aatto (Otto) Annala, Percy Manser and Gilbert Clark. They held “spring and summer paint-outs,” art shows and classes, and membership steadily grew. Annala was a noted sculptor; Tyler, for his landscapes and West- ern scenes; Tucker, for his country- living and historical buildings; Manser, for his watercolors; and Clarke, for his colorful landscapes. See ART, Page A10 Photo by Patrick Mulvihill THE HISTORY MUSEUM is hosting an art exhibit through July 18. Art Club member Joyce Uczen hangs works in the mez- zanine of the museum, located on Portway Avenue next to the marina. An artist’s reception takes place Saturday. Diverse Hood River Art Club works are on display including “Daisies” by Aileen Hopkins. Turn to page A10 for more photos Four To Go GTA kicks off Hardham Scholarship drive Gorge Technology Alliance (GTA) is about to launch another ini- tiative to positively impact STEM education in the Gorge. Ten years ago, Mid-Columbia Economic Development District brought together the tech businesses in the five- county region to work on a plan to help them grow. A new scholarship is being hosted with the Gorge Community Foundation and named the Corwin Hard- ham Memorial Scholarship. Fundraising for the scholarship is kick- ing off on July 31, 6 p.m. at the Columbia Gorge Hotel with a dinner and auction event sponsored by Insitu. In addition to hands-on demos from high school students and businesses there will be music, food and auction items including quadcopters and sailing trips. Tickets must be purchased in advance and are on sale now ($55 each) at crgta.org/robot-rendezvous or by calling 541-296-2266. 7 05105 97630 3 HR Transportation District has opening CL Action Team meets Thursday Hood River County Transporta - tion District is seeking interested persons in Hood River County to fill a vacancy on its Board of Di- rectors. One opening extends to June 30, 2017. To apply for ap- pointment send a letter of inter- est and a resume and/or a short biographical statement by Aug. 7 to: Dan Schwanz, Executive Direc- tor, Hood River County Trans- portation District, Columbia Area Transit, P.O. Box 1147, Hood River, OR 97031. The Cascade Locks Action Team gathers every month for a no-host lunch in a local business to share updates on current projects, progress, and problems impacting our community. The meeting hap- pens on the third Thursday of each month at noon, with the next meeting on July 16 in the back room of the Cascade Locks Ale House. All are welcome. Relay for Life is Saturday Relay for Life Columbia River starts at 8:30 a.m. Saturday with the Survivor Breakfast, registration at 9 a.m. and opening ceremonies at 10. The fundraiser for the American Cancer Society moves to Hood River Fairgrounds this year. The communi- ty is welcome to support the 20 teams and dozens of walkers, and partici- pate in events including silent auc- tions at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., White Salmon Jazz Band performs at 11 a.m. and benefit lunch starts at 11:30 a.m. The event concludes at mid- night.