REGION
Thursday, June 9, 2016
East Oregonian
HERMISTON
Page 3A
IRRIGON
Wyden praises HHS to Senate Victim’s report
leads to arrest
of man for rape
By JADE MCDOWELL
East Oregonian
Hermiston High School got eight
minutes of fame Wednesday when Sen.
Ron Wyden spoke about the school’s
career technical education programs on
the loor of the Senate.
Wyden visited the school last week,
and told his colleagues in Washington,
D.C., that he saw some “terriic”
programs.
“I got a chance to watch some very
impressive students in action,” he said.
One of those students he mentioned
was Elizabeth Herrera, a graduating
senior at HHS who showed him around
the latest student-built house that the
Columbia Basin Student Homebuilding
Program has placed on the market.
“I thought the student homebuilding
program could be a model not just for
my state, but for the nation,” he said.
Wyden said he believed the types
of career technical education programs
found at Hermiston High School could
help raise graduation rates by making
students more interested in their educa-
tion. He said that Hermiston students
told him the homebuilding program and
other classes like it made them want to
go to school each day.
“I am committed to raising grad-
uation rates in Oregon and across the
country, and I think one of the best ways
to do it is to support programs like the
one in Hermiston, because I think it is
By PHIL WRIGHT
East Oregonian
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Sen. Ron Wyden listens to Hermiston senior Hannah Reese, second from
left, talk about her project on hospitality and recreation Wednesday,
June 1 at Hermiston High School.
tailor-made to achieve this goal,” he
said.
Wyden said federal funding for those
types of programs has been declining,
however, and urged his colleagues to
move away from “over-tested bubble
kids” to more well-rounded students and
make a bipartisan effort to re-authorize
the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical
Education Act, which helps fund career
technical education programs.
He said watching a rural community
in Eastern Oregon create such programs
was a special experience and he enjoyed
his visit to Hermiston.
“I’m going to do everything I can to
take the student homebuilder program
that I saw last week and spread the word
about what the potential is here,” he
said.
———
Contact Jade McDowell at
jmcdowell@eastoregonian.com
or
541-564-4536.
Speed limit to be reduced on some rural highways
East Oregonian
Just three months after
the speed limits were raised
on 1,500 miles of central and
Eastern Oregon highways,
the Oregon Department of
Transportation has decided
to reduce speeds on certain
stretches due to safety
concerns.
Paul
Mather,
the
ODOT deputy director
for highways, announced
Tuesday that segments of
highways 97 and 20 will
return to 55 mph as soon as
new signs are installed in
the next 2-3 weeks.
The change was ordered
after ODOT engineers
analyzed how the higher 65
mph limit affected driver
behavior and speciically
crashes. The lower limit
will be in place for one year
as ODOT further evaluates
the data and discusses its
analysis with the state speed
zone review panel to decide
if the change should be
made permanent.
The four segments where
ODOT is reducing the speed
limit from 65 to 55 mph are:
Highway
97
from
Madras to Terrebonne
(about 16.5 miles) and at
the La Pine south city limit
(1 mile), and Highway 20
from the Bend east city
limit to Dodds Road (6
miles) and from Vale to
Cairo Junction (about 11.5
miles).
The
limits
were
increased March 1 on about
300 miles of Interstate 84
and about 1,200 miles of
highways, following a new
state law passed in the 2015
legislative session.
BRIEFLY
Umatilla County
buildings get upgrades
SAGE Saturday
sprouts this weekend
PENDLETON — Two county
buildings will receive upgrades. The
Stafford Hansell Government Center
in Hermiston will get improved
communication systems and the county
justice center in Pendleton will get
better lights.
The Umatilla County Board
of Commissioners approved the
improvements on votes of 3-0 at a
meeting Monday morning in Pendleton.
The Stafford Hansell building
houses county ofices, public meeting
rooms and two circuit courtrooms.
Heavy rains, snow and wind, though,
can knock out the internet connection
to the building, according to Dan
Lonai, head of county administrative
services.
Local company Eastern Oregon
Telecom submitted the least expensive
solution — installing iber optic cable
for $7,750 plus a monthly charge of
$378.95.
The justice center is home to the
sheriff’s ofice, dispatch and jail. Six
exterior lighting ballasts at the center
are burnt out.
The county will use Pendleton
Electric to replace the old lights with
LEDs, which can last years and use less
energy. The project cost is $25,503, but
Oregon Energy Trust incentives cover
$7,872.
Lonai also calculated the new lights
would save $4,188 a year in electricity,
and the project would pay for itself in
three years.
BOARDMAN — Free admission
and activities are featured during
SAGE Saturday.
The event is Saturday from 10 a.m.
to 1 p.m. at the SAGE Center, 101
Olson Road, Boardman. The featured
activity is making a sprout house,
which uses sponges to grow items
from seed.
The SAGE Center is an interactive
visitor center that highlights
sustainable agriculture and energy. It
provides an opportunity for people
of all ages to have fun and learn at
the same time. The hours are Sunday
through Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 5
p.m. and Friday and Saturdays from
10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Regular admission
is $5 for adults, $3 for seniors/
students and free for ages 5 and
under. There is a $20 maximum per
family.
For more information, contact
541-481-7243, sagecenter@
portofmorrow.com or visit www.
visitsage.com.
Canal Road off limits
to through-trucks
HERMISTON — Freight haulers
from out of the area can no longer
use Canal Road in the Hermiston
area. The Umatilla County Board
of Commissioners banned through-
trucks from the road on a vote of 3-0
at a meeting Monday morning in
Pendleton.
Tom Fellows, public works director,
told commissioners complaints came
in after the start of the year about
freight haulers using the road, and in
April the sheriff’s ofice also received
complaints. The road department set up
trafic counters on the road and found a
few big rigs were using it.
He said he suspected they started
using Canal Road to avoid construction
on Highway 395 through Hermiston,
but there is no reason for those haulers
to use Canal, which local farmers
already use. And while Canal’s
structure could handle the loads, he
said, there is one steep hill that causes
some trucks to spin out and require a
wrecker. Locals in the area, he said,
were not happy about that.
Fellows also said Baxter Road in the
Hermiston area has a no through-truck
sign as well, but staff cannot ind the
documentation approving it. So he
asked the board to rectify that, and it
did with a vote of 3-0.
Hermiston Elks
salute Flag Day
HERMISTON — A display of
United States lags, special music
and a history of the lag are featured
during a Flag Day ceremony at the
Hermiston Elks Lodge.
The event, which is open to the
public, is Sunday at 3 p.m. at 480 E.
Main St., Hermiston. Hamburgers,
hot dogs and beverages will be
available for purchase after the
ceremony. Heather Baumgartner of
Boardman will sing a trio of patriotic
songs during the event.
Hermiston Elks trustee Dennis
Coykendall said the lag represents
our country’s heritage and is a symbol
of the freedoms we have.
While the Fourth of July honors
the birth of our country, Flag
Day celebrates the symbol of our
country. In accordance with the
Flag Resolution of 1777, June 14
was oficially established as Flag
Day in 1916 by President Woodrow
Wilson. In 1949, it was designated as
a national observance by President
Harry Truman. According to a history
of the Elks, Truman was moved
to take the action as a result of his
participation with the Elks Lodge in
Independence, Missouri.
For more information about
the ceremony, call Coykendall
at 541-571-2925 or the lodge at
541-567-6923.
Douglas Co. oficial to
discuss Umpqua tragedy
PENDLETON — Tim Freeman,
a Douglas County commissioner,
will discuss the tragic shooting that
occurred at Umpqua Community
College this past fall at the upcoming
Round Up Republican Women’s
meeting.
The group is inviting the public,
including representatives from Blue
Mountain Community College, to
learn what people are doing to help
prevent such a tragedy from occurring
locally.
The no-host luncheon is Tuesday,
June 14 at 11:45 a.m. at the Red Lion,
304 S.E. Nye Ave., Pendleton. The
cost is $11.
Those who plan to attend
are asked to make a reservation
by Monday morning. For more
information or to RSVP, contact
rounduprepubicanwomen@hushmail.
com or 541-276-1206.
Recreation department
offers boredom busters
PENDLETON — All types
of activities are planned during
Pendleton Parks & Recreation’s
Summer Parks Adventure Camp.
Open to ages 7-12, kids can
attend one week or all six. The camp
begins Monday, June 20 and the
inal week starts Monday, July, 25.
It runs Monday through Thursdays
from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Pioneer
and Community parks in Pendleton.
The fee is $17 per week and
includes lunch by Sodexo through
the Pendleton School District meal
program. An afternoon snack will be
provided by recreation staff.
Morning activities feature active
games like tag, Frisbee and whifle
ball. Participants will stay cool in the
afternoons with board games or craft
and science projects in the shade.
On Tuesdays, Pioneer Park
participants will go to the aquatic
center and Community Park attendees
will visit the library and gym. On
Thursdays, the schedule is reversed
so all participants visit the aquatic
center, gym and library each week.
For more information about the
programs or to register, visit www.
pendletonparksandrec.com or stop by
the parks ofice, 865 Tutuilla Road.
For more information, call 541-276-
8100.
Photo club focuses
on park stroll
HERMISTON — An upcoming
photo walk is planned by the
Hermiston Public Library
Photography Club.
The group invites anyone
interested it photography to join them
for the ield trip meeting. The event
is Tuesday, June 14 at 5:30 p.m. at
Riverfront Park, located off Orchard
Extension Loop at Southwest 23rd
St., Hermiston.
For more information, call
541-567-2882 or visit www.
hermistonlibrary.us.
———
Briefs are compiled from staff
and wire reports, and press releases.
Email press releases to news@
eastoregonian.com
An Irrigon man is in jail
on a charge of irst-degree
rape.
The scenario Morrow
County
Sheriff
Ken
Matlack recounted that
led to Tuesday’s arrest of
Ruben Macias,
47, has become
commonplace in
sex crimes.
Matlack said
Macias and a
29-year-old
woman who was
a family friend
were at the Sub
Zero Restaurant Macias
& Lounge, 100
West Highway 730, Irrigon,
the night of May 4 or early
May 5. There “was alcohol
involved,” the sheriff said,
and Macias offered to give
her a ride to her mother’s
house, also in Irrigon, and
the mother left them alone.
Macias then engaged in
sexual intercourse without
the woman’s permission,
Matlack said, and she told
Macias “stop.”
The victim waited
until May 6 to report what
happened. Matlack said
victims of sex crimes often
hesitate to report right
away — or at all — for
multiple reasons, including
uncertainty of what to do.
In this case, he said, the
woman called the sheriff’s
ofice and told a deputy,
which started the investiga-
tion. She also went to Good
Shepherd Medical Center,
Hermiston, for a sexual
assault examination.
Deputies interviewed
Macias Tuesday,
Matlack
said,
and when that
was done they
put him in cuffs
and booked him
into the Umatilla
County
Jail,
Pendleton,
for
irst-degree rape.
The crime in
Oregon applies
when an offender forces
the victim to have sex, or
when the victim is younger
than 12, or if the victim is
younger than 16 and is a
sibling or child of the rapist.
First-degree rape also
applies when the victim is
incapacitated and incapable
of giving consent.
The crime falls under
Oregon
mandatory
minimum
sentencing
law and carries a prison
sentence of at least 8 years,
4 months.
———
Contact Phil Wright at
pwright@eastoregonian.
com or 541-966-0833.
Umatilla County delays
allowing ATVS on roads
By PHIL WRIGHT
East Oregonian
ATV riders will have
to wait a while longer
before getting to cruise on
Umatilla County roads.
The county board of
commissioners split on a
vote Monday in Pendleton
and will postpone deciding
the matter.
The new county law
would allow ATV use
on roads in the county’s
northern area, from Adams
to the Washington border.
ATV user Jessie Shaw of
Milton-Freewater spoke
in favor of the proposal at
a public hearing Monday,
according
to
county
records. He said nearby
counties in Walla Walla
already allow the use, and
Umatilla County should
get on board with that.
Rancher Cliff Bracher
of Pendleton opposed the
proposal. He owns prop-
erty on Upper Pine Creek
and Wildhorse roads, he
said, and having ATVs
ride through could lead to
increases in vandalism and
ire. He also said the roads
cut through open range,
and he and other ranchers
haul livestock through the
area in the spring and fall,
both of which would be a
safety concern.
Commissioner Larry
Givens made it clear where
he stood: “There’s no way I
can support this ordinance,
not at all.”
Opening the land to
ATV use is bad policy,
he said, and ATV riders
policing themselves will
not work. Trespassing is
a signiicant problem, he
went on, and this new local
law would make that worse
and open up a slew of other
problems from vandalism
to water concerns to smoke
management.
Commissioner
Bill
Elfering said the citizens of
the county own the roads,
and motorcycle riders
already can use them, and
the county’s law requires
more of the ATV riders
than of motorcycle riders.
“It is being proposed as
a trial, a one-year period,”
he said. “This ordinance
expires in June next year. If
there are problems I would
never consider renewing
it.”
And that, he said, puts
the burden on the people
who want it to make it
work.
Board
chairman
George Murdock said he
would have “massive”
but personal concerns
if this experiment was
in the south end of the
county, where he has seen
vandalism and increased
ire danger.
Elfering moved to
adopt the law, and Givens
moved to reject it, and both
motions died for lack of a
second.
Murdock
proposed
delaying the vote until
the board could see a map
of the roads in question.
Elfering seconded, and
he and Murdock voted to
postpone. Givens voted
against. The board did not
set a date to continue the
matter.
Elfering said he sees
both sides of the issue and
recalled similar situations
with walking trails. Some
people opposed those, but
later changed their minds
when they saw they added
value to their property.
Agritourism Workshop
Have you considered adding a farm stand,
farm tour or lodging to your farm or ranch?
Get inspired and discover how to plan your
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at the Agritourism Workshop, June 21 & 22.
The FREE workshop will be useful for people
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Industry.traveloregon.com/ruggedcountryATS
Tuesday, June 21 | 1-5
Wednesday, June 22 | 8-4:30
Boardman and Hermiston
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Janet Dodson, 541-786-8006 or janetd@eoni.com