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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (June 27, 2015)
Page 14A OFF PAGE ONE East Oregonian PENDLETON The four-time wiener 0LVV)DWW\3DWW\ dominates races another year East Oregonian )ULGD\ DIWHUQRRQ DQG WKH contestants in the Wiener Dog Races downtown shared three qualities: they were long, hot and in desperate need of precipitation. Anticipating the scorching temperatures, organizers for the Children’s Museum of Eastern Oregon fundraiser installed misters and kiddie pools to help spare the competitors too many Oscar Mayer jokes. Organizer Adam Woodiwiss said a last- minute issue almost denied the race its water supply until the city of Pendleton came WKURXJKDQGRSHQHGXSD¿UH hydrant for the event. Many dogs, wiener and non-wiener alike, utilized the water to cool down from Staff photo by E.J. Harris Four-time wiener dog races winner Miss Fatty Patty. the triple digit temperatures. 7KLV LQFOXGHG :KLIÀH D two-year-old dachshund owned by Kerri Porter of Walla Walla. Porter said she saw an ad for the race online and GHFLGHG WR HQWHU :KLIÀH who can reach high speeds when properly motivated. “If there’s a treat at the end, he will be (fast),” she said. David Scott preferred to Staff photo by E.J. Harris Yoshi, a two-year-old pug, and Blake Self, 7, are both dressed like the Pokemon character Pikachu for the look alike contest before the start of the wiener dog races on Friday in Pendleton. use an empty plastic water bottle as his tool to try to urge his dog, Sinbad, across WKH¿QLVKOLQH Scott said his canine was also a capable runner as long as he didn’t get distracted by other dogs. %RWK:KLIÀH DQG 6LQEDG started out strong only to HYHQWXDOO\IDOOLQWKHVHPL¿- nals. In the end, the last dog panting was a familiar one ²0LVV)DWW\3DWW\ 0LVV )DWW\ 3DWW\ KDV established a veritable G\QDVW\ ZLQQLQJ IRXU ¿UVW SUL]H¿QLVKHVLQ¿YH\HDUV Owner Candis McClure said she almost considered retiring the 10-year-old Patty, only to change her mind and take another shot at a trophy. )UHVK RII DQRWKHU ZLQ McClure said she’ll continue to enter the venerable cham- pion as long as she can. After years of success, McClure didn’t play coy ZLWKWKHVHFUHWWR0LVV)DWW\ Patty’s success. “Pepperoni,” she said. “Hot dogs.” RELAY: 9LGHRFODVV¿OPVVFKRRO¶VUHJXODUQHZVFDVWV Continued from 1A be ready right at 6 p.m. but people should keep checking back. Most of the evening would be a simple live stream of the event, but at the top of every hour students planned to do a 10 to 15 minute newscast with interviews and update on fundraising. Doherty said he thought producing the video feed would be a good experience for his students, not only in terms of video production skills but also in meeting cancer survivors and hearing about the things they have overcome. “This is going to be a fun event but it’s also going to be a serious event for a good cause,” he said. Doherty said when he began looking for volunteers to keep the video footage coming during the 16 hour event a few students he contacted were going to be out of town, but the rest were more than willing to come work for a good cause during what was supposed to be their summer vacation. “I think that says a lot about the kids,” he said. Kylee Heppner, who was wait-listed for the video productions class last year but has a spot in it for her eighth grade year, said she studied up and passed the necessary quizzes to be qual- L¿HG WR KHOS ZLWK )ULGD\¶V production. “I don’t really think of it as school stuff,” she said. “I think of it as getting to learn stuff most kids don’t know how to do.” She said two of her aunts are cancer survivors and they planned to watch part of the live stream from their homes in Salem and California. Heidi Zuniga, who took video production last year as an eighth grader, said she planned to stay the entire 16 hours, although she would probably sneak in a nap between interviews. She and Jahayra Garcia both said they came back to their old middle school to participate because they missed the environment in the press box. “I wanted to live the whole experience again,” Heidi said. The school’s video production class gets plenty of hands-on experience HYHU\\HDULQFOXGLQJ¿OPLQJ the morning announcements, regular newscasts and acting as producers and announcers at sporting events. Next year a similar class will be added to Hermiston High School, and an AV Club of sorts will bring students interested in video production together across grade levels. +HDWKHU)DUQZRUWKRIWKH American Cancer Society said none of the other 20 5HOD\ IRU /LIH HYHQWV KHU RI¿FH VXSSRUWV KDYH HYHU done a live-streamed video of their event online and she hasn’t heard of one anywhere else either. “It’s kind of interesting,” she said. “It’s a fun thing and I’m excited about it.” The idea came from local 5HOD\IRU/LIHRUJDQL]HUV )DUQZRUWK VDLG WKH YLGHR feed would be a helpful service for people who wanted to attend the Relay but couldn’t, and it could also be a good opportunity for people who don’t know PXFKDERXW5HOD\IRU/LIHWR check it out. The live feed from the +HUPLVWRQ 5HOD\ IRU /LIH can be accessed at http://bit. ly/1Hl2mju. The event runs IURPSP)ULGD\WRDP 6DWXUGD\ DW $UPDQG /DULYH Middle School. Saturday, June 27, 2015 CREDITS: ZeaChem sold $10M in credits who continue to run tests. Joe Regnery, ZeaChem’s of a project that has not yet FKLHIFRPPHUFLDORI¿FHUVDLG lived up to its promise, but in an interview Monday the has provided a healthy return plant was always supposed for investors who bought the to be a testing facility, despite tax credits given the project a 2012 U.S. Department of by the state. Energy document that stated ZeaChem told the state ³WKHELRUH¿QHU\ZLOOFRQYHUW in 2009 that the plant would 10 bone-dry tons per day employ 20 people, and the of cellulosic feedstock into Oregon Employment Depart- ethanol.” ment estimated that could fuel “The demonstration plant the creation of an additional does not generate income,” 154 jobs in Oregon, said state Regnery said. “It’s not a employment economist Nick production asset. ... Selling Beleiciks. (the tax credit) was a better In late 2013, ZeaChem ¿QDQFLDORXWFRPHWKDQXVLQJ had a problem. it against taxes because we 7KH VWDWH KDG FHUWL¿HG were not paying taxes in the a $10 million credit for state at the time.” ZeaChem’s cellulosic The sale of those credits ethanol demonstration was facilitated by the Energy plant in Boardman, which Department and followed was built to produce up to rules that allowed for a 250,000 gallons of cellulosic discount of up to 33.5 percent. ethanol per year from wood ZeaChem split up the waste and other materials. $10 million Oregon business But the company laid off energy tax credit and sold employees in 2013 due to a pieces of various sized to cash shortage and has since a handful of investors — operated with a staff of Portland industrialist and approximately 15 employees developer Jay Zidell, Union Continued from 1A 3DFL¿FUDLOURDGDQG/HHDQG Becky Holzman — for $6.7 million. Zidell, whose family plans to develop its former Portland shipyard property on the south waterfront, purchased $500,000 worth of the ZeaChem tax credit for $335,000, according to state data. In all, Zidell has bought nearly $2 million in renewable energy credits for $1.4 million. The credits have also attracted much larger inves- tors. U.S. Bank has spent $30.7 million to purchase tax credits that will allow the bank to cut its Oregon tax bill by approximately $44.7 million. Wal-Mart paid $30.2 million for credits that will reduce its state taxes by $43.1 million. Other major investors who are using the non-refundable BETC to save millions on their Oregon taxes include Costco, Comcast, Trader -RH¶V/HV6FKZDEDQGDORQJ list of other corporations and wealthy individuals. GAS: Committee members approved $5 utility fee November ballot, preferring to take more time to mount a ³, WKLQN LWV ¿VFDOO\ LUUH- successful campaign. sponsible to go to (voters) “We’ve got some very and say, ‘We’re going to VSHFL¿F HYLGHQFH WR SRLQW have this tax for this long to how steep this climb is,” and then it sunsets,’” she she said. “If you look at the said. “Because we’re saying (Blue Mountain Community WR WKHP µ:H¶OO ¿[ \RXU College) bond, both times it roads but then we’ll let them was run, it was a hard sell. go to pot again.’” And BMCC is popular. ... The committee also It does not have the same discussed lowering the perception that city council gas tax to 4 cents if the does.” state increased its own gas While her opposition tax by 4 cents as a part of wasn’t enough to sway a transportation funding support for the gas tax, it SDFNDJH %XW VWDWH RI¿FLDOV did resonate with enough announced Thursday that committee members to the transportation package affect opinion on the bond was dead. proposals. Committee members Despite lengthy debate, also approved a $5 utility each time City Manager fee, which can be imposed Robb Corbett polled the by the council without voter committee, the bonds approval. The fee will rise couldn’t muster a majority. HYHU\ \HDU EDVHG RQ LQÀD- Without the requisite tion. support from the committee, Councilwoman Jane the bond proposals were left Hill was uncomfortable RQ WKH FXWWLQJ URRP ÀRRU with putting either the gas and won’t be recommended tax or the bonds on the to the full city council. Continued from 1A The bond proposals rankled the councilors who wanted to seek the bonds as soon as possible. “I want to know where this money is going to come IURP WR ¿[ WKHVH WKLQJV´ said councilman Al Plute. “Otherwise, it’s a waste for me to go to go to another budget meeting. I can go to budget meetings and move around chairs on the Titanic but I’m not for that. If we’re not going to try to at least save ourselves, why am I beating my head against the wall?” Councilwoman Becky Marks was in disbelief. “I cannot believe that we’re doing this again,” she said. “I cannot believe that we are not stepping up and saying, ‘This is what we need to do for this commu- nity’ and standing by it.” The council will vote to add the gas tax to the November ballot at its next meeting, which is scheduled for July 7.
