‘Album of the Almost’
Unseen
in ‘19
HOOD RIVER, OREGON • Wednesday, January 1, 2020
Off icial Newspaper, City of Hood River and Hood River County
www.hoodrivernews.com
Retired PE teacher takes home a
piece of a beloved gym fl oor
‘Locals Downtown’
event debuts Jan. 1
The first day of the new year
brings a new event to Hood River:
Locals Wednesday Downtown, run-
ning 3-6 p.m. Jan. 1.
Approved by Hood River City
Council last month, “Locals” is de-
signed to bring residents to down-
town to shop, gather, and enjoy
activities.
Chamber of Commerce and the
Downtown Business Association
sponsors the event each Wednes-
day, with a rotating selection of
sales and events offered by mer-
chants and downtown entities.
Parking will be free after 3 p.m.
on Wednesdays. Chamber and
Business Association members told
council in its request that without
free parking, “Locals” would not
succeed.
“Consistency is realy imporant to
create a lasting tradition that is to
Page B1
MIDWEEK EDITION $1.00
Vol. 114, No. 1
2 Sections, 20 Pages
be supported,” Chamber President
Kate Schroeder said. “We want
locals to get int the habit of ‘LWD.’
“We want locals to feel welcome
by offering them something im-
portant to them: Free parking,”
she said.
Hood River City Council ap-
proved LWD on a pilot basis,
which will not run June through
August.
The first LWD event features ac-
tivities at the Makerspace at Hood
River Library, and special deals at
merchants including 64 Oz. tap-
room, Gorge Greenery and others.
FREE PARKING
3-6 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 1
By KIRBY NEUMANN-REA
News editor
Larry Madsen loaded a piece of
history into another piece of history
last week.
A section of the old May Street
gym fl oor went into the back seat
of the single-owner 1947 Chrysler
sedan Madsen keeps running.
Principal Kelly Beard presented
Madsen, the long-time Physical
Education teacher at May Street,
with a two-by-fi ve-foot section of
the fi r gym fl oor, salvaged from the
July 2019 demolition of the building,
thanks to Mike Carter, supervisor
on the demolition and construction
Photo by Kirby Neumann-Rea
project for Kirby Nagelhout Con-
struction.
GYM FLOOR: Larry Madsen, right, with May Street Principal Kelly Beard in front
Carter and Beard were fulfi lling of the portrait of gym namesake Teddy Webber. Visible on the gym wall are re-
purposed and resurfaced bleacher seats from the old gym, demolished in 2019.
See FLOOR, page A8
2019: Th e Year In Review, Part 2
Th e second half of
2019 saw businesses
and clubs
reach milestone
anniversaries,
leadership changes
at the city and
county level,
including the
appointment of
Gladys Rivera,
the fi rst Hispanic
woman to serve on
the city council.
Part 1 of Hood River News’ look
back at 2019 ran in the Dec. 28 edition.
Photo by Emily Fitzgerald
MEASURE 14-67 co-petitioner Tracey Tamashpol gathers signatures at a sum-
John Logan started his new role mer event for the charter amendment approved by voters in November.
July
Photo by Kirby Neumann-Rea
MAY STREET Elementary underwent many changes during the year — the
building of the new school and the tearing down of the original structure
(above, in August).
Photo by Kirby Neumann-Rea
GLADYS RIVERA took the oath of off ice with her son, Alessandro, 10, at her side
on Dec. 9 as the newest member of Hood River City Council. Municipal Judge
Ruben Cleaveland administered the oath. Rivera is the first Hispanic woman
to serve on council and will finish the term vacated by Mayor Kate McBride.
booths. “Our main message is that
we are part of the community,” said
Martha Verduzco of the Hood River
Latino Network, which organized
the event. It was co-sponsored by
Oregon Human Development Cor-
poration.
Dr. Kristen Dillon of Hood River
has been named to a one-year
fellowship and will serve in Wash-
ington, D.C., starting in September.
The National Academy of Medicine
INSIDE
BRIEFS
B6
A6
A3
B4
A2
B3
B1
Legal Notices
Opinion
Sports
Yesteryears
B5
A4
A7
B2
“This will be an important tool,
especially for organic growers.”
— Ashley Thompson, A2
HRVHS Cheer fundraiser
City accepts trees
HR Hobbies Magic Club
HRVHS Cheer will collect re-
deemable cans and bottles to
pay for uniforms and choreog-
raphy on Jan. 4 at the Leo’s drop
off location at Rosauers, or call
541-490-0338 for pick up.
City residents may drop off
Christmas trees at Public Works
Monday through Friday, 8 a.m.
to 4:30 p.m. Remove non-com-
postable materials. Public
Works yard is at 1200 18th St.
Hood River Hobbies hosts a
Magic Club from 4-5 p.m. on
Fridays. at Hood River Hobbies
for kids ages 10-15. Bring Magic
the Gathering cards. More at
www.hoodriverhobbies.com.
05105 97630
Classifieds
Death Notices
Entertainment
Gatherings
Greater Gorge
Happenings
Kaleidoscope
cade Locks, with the 469 swimmers
emerging in front of hundreds of
spectators at the crescent swim-
ming marina beach.
The new Jim’s Market food cart
was back in business Sept. 11,
much to the relief of patrons and
owners Paco and Sylvia Magaña.
Jim’s Market, a market, deli and gas
station, and Paco’s Tacos, a food
cart, located on the same premises
two miles north of Parkdale, were a
total loss after a fire March 29. The
Magañas have been working to re-
build and reopen ever since.
September
City Councilor Kate McBride was
The Labor Day Roy Webster appointed to the mayor position on
Cross Channel Swim returned in Sept. 23. McBride was interviewed
a new location after a two-year
absence — from Hood River to Cas-
See REVIEW, page A10
3
ternoon of softball, live music and
birthday cake. Hood River Art Club
celebrated its 70th anniversary, and
Don Numanaker Realtors, celebrat-
ed its 50th. And the new May Street
Elementary School building was all
but finished by the end of August,
just in time for students to arrive
Sept. 3.
August
The third annual Latino Festival
Milestones: Oak Grove Park cele returned to Jackson Park, featur
brated its 45th birthday with an af- ing food, music and information
(NAM) and Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation (RWJF) named Dillon
and five other professionals to the
2019-2020 class of RWJF Health
Policy Fellows. Dillon will be work-
ing on health-related legislative
and regulatory issues with mem-
bers of Congress and the executive
branch.
Dillon’s husband, Mayor Paul
Blackburn, announced his resigna-
tion as mayor, effective Sept. 1, in
May; his last city council meeting
was Aug. 26.
7
leading the Cascade Locks Fire and
EMS Department July 4, as report-
ed in an October News article. It
was a fitting date for such a begin-
ning, because it was the Fourth of
July some 28 years ago that Logan
formed his desire to become a
firefighter. He is now captain of the
department. The Hood River Valley
native has been a volunteer for the
past 17 years with West Side Fire
District.
While Mt. Hood Railroad and
Wildwood Academy have been
attempting to negotiate a parking
deal for a little over a year, negoti-
ations were closed on July 9, when
Iowa Pacific Holdings, the company
that owns Mt. Hood Railroad, ter-
minated the easement agreement
between the two businesses. By the
morning of July 10, Mt. Hood Rail-
road had blockaded the parking lot
with a parked van and a backhoe.
Hood River County Fair achieved
an odd sort of balance at this year’s
fair: The smallest Thursday atten-
dance in memory was followed
by a record turnout on Friday, ac-
cording to Fair Manager Clara Rice.
Rice said she believes the Thursday
impact was partly due to Hispanic
residents staying away from fair-
grounds after rumors — unfounded
— emerged that Immigration and
Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents
were at the Odell fair site.