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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (March 2, 2016)
57/42 CLINTON, TRUMP DOMINATE SUPER TUESDAY SAM COLBRAY TO PURSUE MEDICAL DEGREE NATION/7A SPORTS/1B WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2, 2016 WK<HDU1R WINNER OF THE 2015 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD One dollar PILOT ROCK PENDLETON Caldera poised to become chief Council supports Seaport, despite bankruptcy By PHIL WRIGHT East Oregonian Pilot Rock residents will have to wait a couple more weeks before their new police FKLHILVRI¿FLDO The city council Tuesday night held off approving a contract with Bill Caldera, pending the outcome of a background check. Boardman police is handling that job and should deliver the report next week. Caldera should become WKH ¿UVW IXOOWLPH FKLHI VLQFH 2014 for the town of 1,505 south of Pendleton. The Pilot Rock City Council plans to vote on the contract at its next meeting, March 15. Caldera is retiring from the Pendleton Police Department in April after 29 years of service, where he has been the lieutenant and second-in-command for the last six years. Caldera already has taken on some duties, including assessing needs and upgrades for the police department. Pilot Rock is the smallest in Umatilla and Morrow counties with a police force, consisting of the chief and two RI¿FHUV :KLOH WKH FRXQFLO has not released details of the contract, Caldera’s move will come with a pay cut. &DOGHUD PDGH LQ 2015, according to the city of Pendleton. That made him one of the top paid local police administrators in Umatilla and Morrow counties. He also worked for the area’s top paid police administrator in 2015 — Pendleton police Chief Stuart Roberts, who made See POLICE/8A Police pay in Eastern Oregon Pilot Rock hired Bill Caldera as its new police chief Tuesday. The Pilot Rock Police Department has a budget of DERXWSHUFHQWRIWKHJHQHUDOIXQGEXWKDGQRFKLHILQDQGQRRI¿FHURQVWDIIIRUWKHIXOOFDOHQGDU \HDU+HUH¶VDORRNDWRWKHUORFDOSROLFHGHSDUWPHQWVKRZPXFKWKHLUFKLHIVDQGRI¿FHUVPDGHLQDQGKRZPXFKRI the city budget they make up: Pendleton Hermiston Chief: Stuart Roberts Pay: $112,812 Chief: Jason Edmiston Pay: $107,927 Chief: Doug Boedigheimer Pay: $107,430 Population: 16,845 Sworn Ofi cers: 24 Population: 17,520 Sworn Ofi cers: 26 Population: 7,070 Sworn Ofi cers: 11 Top paid ofi cer: Sgt. Roger Youncs Pay: $86,693 Top paid ofi cer: Jeremy Clark Pay: $90,561* Top paid ofi cer: Cpl. Joseph Shurtz Pay: $70,460* Budget: $4.3M, 28% of general fund Budget: $4.2M, 33% of general fund Budget: $1.23M, 22% of general fund Boardman Stanfi eld** Umatilla Chief: Rick Stokoe Pay: $85,660 Chief: Darla Huxel Pay: $83,818 Chief: Bryon Zumwalt Pay: $57,696 Population: 3,505 Sworn Ofi cers: 10 Population: 7,060 Sworn Ofi cers: 11 Population: 2,830 Sworn Ofi cers: 4 Top paid ofi cer: Jeremy Fye Pay: $75,850 Top paid ofi cer: Bill Wright Pay: $70,898 Top paid ofi cer: Daniel Poffenberger Pay: $41,410 Budget: $1.56M, 35% of general fund Budget: $1.37M, 34% of general fund By GEORGE PLAVEN East Oregonian Poachers shot and killed three wolves last year in Eastern Oregon. In one of those cases, a Baker City man turned himself in and pleaded guilty. The other two incidents, however, remain unsolved. What’s more, they weren’t mentioned by the Oregon Department of Fish & Wild- life or Oregon State Police until after ODFW published its 2015 wolf report on Monday. Budget: $500K, 52% of general fund *Income includes payouts for vacation time, other days and/or overtime time (police chiefs do not receive overtime) **Stani eld’s police budget includes $64,010 from the city’s public safety fee and $56,710 from the contract Echo has for police services. Pendleton puts more cops on streets than ever before Police Chief Stuart Roberts said the Pendleton City Police Association negotiated the position in lieu of pay raises for two years. “Before the addition of the 24th The Pendleton Police Department KDV PRUH RI¿FHUV WKDQ HYHU EHIRUH LQ SRVLWLRQ WKH VWDI¿QJ OHYHO KDG QRW changed since the late 1960s,” Roberts the city’s history. 3HQGOHWRQDGGHGLWVWKRI¿FHULQ said in an email. “We have discussed November, and the new cop has been many scenarios involving the new at Oregon’s Public Safety Academy position, but have not decided exactly in Salem undergoing police training. how it will be used.” By PHIL WRIGHT East Oregonian The news riled some conservationists, including Steve Pedery, conservation director with Oregon Wild, who said it appeared ODFW was trying to tamp down the controversy. “It really adds to the cynicism of a lot of folks in the conservation community who feel ODFW is hell- bent on getting out of their responsibility to protect these animals,” Pedery said. Russ Morgan, ODFW wolf coordinator, said the department is following up on the shot wolves, but state police are in charge of handling those investigations. “It’s just the way they’re being investigated,” Morgan said. “It’s not out of any attempt to not be forth- coming.” 7KH¿UVWFDVHRISRDFKLQJ came on Sept. 7, 2015, two months before the Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commis- sion voted to remove gray wolves from the state endan- gered species list. OR-34, a wolf from the Walla Walla pack, was shot on private property within the pack’s home range. One month later, Brennon Witty of Baker City shot OR-22 in Grant County after he said he confused the wolf with a coyote. OR-22 had previously wandered into the area after dispersing from the Umatilla River pack. Witty ZDV¿QHGRUGHUHGWR pay restitution and forfeited KLVULÀHWRWKHVWDWH Finally, on Dec. 23, OR-31 See WOLF/2A Pendleton has never deployed 24 RI¿FHUVKHVDLGEXWWKHGHSDUWPHQWKDV needs in patrol, investigations and other areas. And the upcoming retirements RIVFKRROUHVRXUFHRI¿FHU*OHQ+DPE\ and Lt. Bill Caldera, who is taking a job as the police chief of nearby Pilot Rock, will have implications that may affect the decision. See PENDLETON/8A PENDLETON Two new wolf poaching cases in OSP’s scope New pack found near Battle Mountain Milton-Freewater Andy Kovach Tricia Mooney Wade Smith Superintendent candidates make their public pitch By ANTONIO SIERRA East Oregonian tendent, Smith said he would work with staff and administrators to form a Having already made it vision for the district’s WRWKH¿QDOURXQGWKHWKUHH future. “An organization candidates for the Pend- leton superintendent posi- without a vision is just tion were given another turning its wheels,” he said. challenge Tuesday. Smith, a Hillsboro The candidates were all summoned to Pendleton native and a longtime High School, where they administrator with the ¿HOGHG TXHVWLRQV IURP Hermiston and Morrow administrators, teachers, County school districts, staff and the public before praised the district’s they underwent a second work in expanding its round of interviews with career technical education the school board behind program, a common refer- ence for all the candidates. closed doors. Smith said he was The candidates spoke to each group in a round- familiar with a CTE URELQ VW\OH 7KH ¿UVW WR curriculum, having helped speak with the public was start the Columbia Basin Homebuilder Hermiston School District Student Deputy Superintendent Program in Hermiston, which he said has already Wade Smith. If chosen as superin- KHOSHGVRPHVWXGHQWV¿QG East Oregonian Although it didn’t take an RI¿FLDODFWLRQWKH3HQGOHWRQ City Council gave Seaport $LUOLQHVDYRWHRIFRQ¿GHQFH at a meeting Tuesday. Seaport President Tim Sieber spoke in front of the council, explaining that even though the Portland-based airline declared bankruptcy and dramatically downsized its operation, the moves allow Seaport to focus more on Pendleton. Sieber said a national pilot shortage hit the company hard, reducing its operations from 20 cities across nine VWDWHVDQG0H[LFRWRMXVW¿YH airplanes serving three states. Sieber said that after it shutters its North Bend route March 21, it will dedicate more planes and resources to the Pendleton-Portland route. Despite the recent shortage, Sieber said Seaport is actually overstaffed with pilots at the moment, which should keep the route stable. Additionally, Sieber said he and Seaport Marketing Director Clare James will meet with Pendleton Airport Director Steve Chrisman and Travel Pendleton event coor- dinator Pat Beard to brain- storm increased marketing opportunities. “I’ve always said that we’re a marketing business WKDW MXVW KDSSHQV WR À\ airplanes,” he said. “We have to get back to our roots.” Several Pendleton city councilors expressed empathy with Sieber over his company’s plight and supported his efforts to work harder on advertising Pend- leton aviation. “We want you to succeed,” Councilor Neil Brown said. “We need you to succeed for WKHEHQH¿WRI3HQGOHWRQ´ Dueling renewable bills go to Senate By HILLARY BORRUD Capital Bureau high-paying jobs. $OVR D ¿QDOLVW IRU WKH Walla Walla Public School superintendent position, Smith said applying to both jobs was a necessity because of his desire to stay in a region where superintendent positions are scarce. Next on the docket was Ontario High School Principal Andy Kovach, the only candidate to not VSHQG D VLJQL¿FDQW SDUW of his career in Umatilla County. Kovach told his life story, rising from poverty in Salem and a failed stint in the Naval Academy to building an education career in the Harney County and Ontario areas. Kovach said that over SALEM — A bill to double Oregon’s renewable energy mandate is on track WRJHWD¿QDOYRWHLQWKHVWDWH Senate Wednesday, after lawmakers in the House voted WR SDVV WKH OHJLVODWLRQ on Tuesday. Under the bill, Senate Bill 1547, the state’s two inves- tor-owned utilities w o u l d h a v e to use sources such as solar and wind to serve 50 percent of their customers’ energy demand by 2040. It would DOVR UHTXLUH XWLOLWLHV WR VWRS paying for coal power to serve Oregon customers, something at least one of the utilities is already on track to do. See SCHOOL/8A See ENERGY/2A