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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (June 11, 2016)
REGION Saturday, June 11, 2016 East Oregonian Page 3A HERMISTON Council to consider electric rate increase, budget By JADE MCDOWELL East Oregonian Citizens who want to give input on a proposed electric rate increase and the 2016-2017 budget for the city of Hermiston will have their opportunity Monday. The council will hold a public budget hearing at 7 p.m. at city hall, 180 N.E. Second St., on Monday before considering the budget for adoption. The proposed budget includes construction of the Harkenrider Center downtown to replace the current senior center and $130,000 for the West Highland Trail project, which will create a paved pedes- trian/bicycle trail from Riverfront Park to 11th Street parallel to Highland Avenue. It also includes money to repaint the water tower with the city’s new “Where Life is Sweet” brand and $70,000 to purchase a bus and begin a Dial- a-Ride program sponsored by the city. Under the proposed budget, staff would gain a 2.25 percent cost of living raise. After the public hearing the council will consider a series of resolutions that must be passed in connection to the budget, including adoption of a compensation plan and establishment of the reserve accounts. On Monday the council will also consider approval of a rate increase for Hermiston Energy Services, which is facing increased costs for capital improvement and for wholesale power from Bonneville Power Administration. The changes to the various customer classes, which average to a 2.59 percent increase overall, would result in an additional $3.50 for the average residential customer. The increase would stop Hermiston Energy Services from continuing to deplete its reserves to subsidize signiicant increases in the cost of wholesale power from BPA. The resolution before the BOARDMAN Love’s adds third location in Oregon East Oregonian Road warriors crossing Eastern Oregon on Interstate 84 have a new place to stop and ill up their tanks. Love’s Travel Stops oficially opened its newest location Thursday morning on Tower Road west of Boardman. The center includes a 24-hour conve- nience store, fuel pumps, tire repair shop and Carl’s Jr. restaurant. “We are very excited to expand our presence in Oregon and especially thrilled to become a member of the Boardman community,” said company founder and executive chairman Tom Love. “This location gives us a great opportunity to serve members of the community, travelers and professional drivers.” Based in Oklahoma, Love’s Travel Stops has more than 380 stores in 40 states nationwide. The chain PENDLETON — The Pendleton Fire Department will be conducting a practice burn in the launch area for the annual Fourth of July irework show west of Wal-Mart Monday, according to a department press release. The department is using the burn as both a training opportunity and a chance to clear lammable vegetation from the launch area. For questions, please call Capt. Dave Baty at 541-276- 1442. BMCC renews Preus’ contract PENDLETON — The Blue Mountain Community College Board of Education renewed President Cam Preus’ contract for three more years at a board meeting Wednesday. According to a press release, the members of the board praised Preus for her professionalism and her ability to develop relationships. Preus attributed her success to the people who work under her. “We could not have passed a bond, or have been so successful with our student success initiatives, or have improved relationships across campus without those who work with me and throughout the College,” she said in a statement. “I’m also fortunate to have a Board that trusts and supports me.” Originally hired in 2013, Preus is now under contract through June 30, 2019. Outing features historic Maxville WALLOWA — Participants will have an opportunity to learn about the historic community of Maxville through Wallowa Land Trust’s Into The Wallowa Outings & Lectures program. Maxville, an old railroad logging town near Wallowa, was home to the only segregated school in Oregon. Gwen Trice of the Maxville Heritage Interpretive Center and local forester Bruce Dunn will share about the multicultural logging community that operated until the early 1930s. Maxville: A Natural History of Place is Saturday, MILTON-FREEWATER Death of 5-month-old under investigation By STEPHANIE TSHAPPAT Walla Walla Union-Bulletin The Umatilla County Major Crime Team is investigating the Wednesday death of a Milton-Freewater baby, oficials said in a news release Friday. Walla Walla County Coroner Richard Green- wood said the 5-month-old boy died at Providence St. Mary Medical Center, Walla Walla, at 6:23 p.m. An autopsy is scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday. Milton-Freewater police Staff photo by Gary West Love’s Travel Stops oficially opened its Boardman location on Thursday. has two other locations along I-84 in Oregon, in Ontario and Troutdale. The 11,000-square-foot Boardman center has 16 fuel pumps, 95 truck parking spaces and seven showers available for professional drivers. Spokeswoman Kealey Dorian said the facility cost roughly $11 million, and has hired a staff of approximately 40 employees. A ribbon cutting cere- mony will be held at 10 a.m. Wednesday, June 15. Love’s will also donate $2,000 to the Boardman Community Development Association. BRIEFLY Fire Department to hold practice burn Monday city council would also approve restructure of the bond that paid for creation of Hermiston Energy Services, saving money on interest but also adding $4.5 million in prin- cipal. The additional money will be used to improve Hermiston’s power grid and reduce outages, starting with a new substation to cover territory east of Highway 395. ——— Contact Jade McDowell at jmcdowell@eastoregonian.com or 541-564-4536. June 18 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Transportation will be provided from Wallowa (register to obtain speciic details). The event is free, but donations are appreciated. For more information about upcoming programs or to register for Maxville, contact info@ wallowalandtrust.org, 541-426-2042 or visit www. wallowalandtrust.org. Historical society plans road trip WALLA WALLA — A tour bus will take a group of people to the Saint-Jean Baptiste Day Celebration in Walla Walla. The Morrow County Historical Society is coordinating the trip Saturday, June 25, departing from Boardman at 8 a.m. and returning about 3 p.m. Transportation is provided and there is no charge. Participants are encouraged to bring some money, as the Frenchtown Historic Foundation will offer a potato bar lunch. In its fourth year, the event is held at the Frenchtown Historic Site at 8364 Old Highway 12, Walla Walla. It includes tours, a presentation about further restoration projects, music and entertainment. For more information or to reserve a spot of the bus, call Dave DeMayo at 541-676-8017. Beep Baseball goes to bat for vision center PASCO — Instead of asking if the umpire is blind, the baseball players will be. The Seattle South King Sluggers, a visually impaired and blind team, will take on the Tri-Cities Dust Devils. An afiliate of the San Diego Padres, the Class A team will be blindfolded as they play Beep Baseball against the visually impaired team. A modiied game, an oversized softball beeps and the base posts buzz. Players will have spotters to help direct where the ball is. The purpose of the event is to educate the community about adaptive sports for the blind and visually impaired. A fundraiser for the Edith Bishel Center, the event is Saturday, July 2 at 6:15 p.m. at GESA Stadium, Pasco. Tickets are $25 for adults and $20 for kids. The ticket includes the Beep Baseball game, dinner and upper box seating for the regular Dust Devils game against the Everett AquaSox that follows at 7:15 p.m. Located at 628 N. Arthur St., Kennewick, the Edith Bishel Center serves the blind and visually impaired in southeastern Washington and northeastern Oregon. It offers training, education, products and resources for the visually impaired community. For more information or to purchase tickets, contact 509-735 0699, daniel@ edithbishelcenter.org or visit www.edithbishelcenter.org. Park rounds up yard sale PENDLETON — One-stop shopping for people looking for treasures in planned in Pendleton. A Community Yard Sale is set for Saturday, July 2 from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Roy Raley Park, 1205 S.W. Court Ave., Pendleton. Booth registration, which is $20, is due by noon Thursday, June 30. To register, visit www. pendletonparksandrec.com or stop by the parks ofice, 865 Tutuilla Road. For more information, call 541-276- 8100. ——— Submit information to community@eastoregonian. com or drop off to the attention of Tammy Malgesini at 333 E. Main St., Hermiston or Renee Struthers at 211 S.E. Byers Ave., Pendleton. Call 541-564-4539 or 541-966- 0818 with questions. oficials said the Umatilla County Major Crime Team was activated to inves- tigate the death. Neither Milton-Freewater City Manager Linda Hall nor Umatilla County District Attorney Dan Primus, the designated spokesman for the team, returned a request for comment as of press time. According to Green- wood, the baby was taken to St. Mary from an Elizabeth Street address by Milton-Freewater Rural Fire Department at 5:30 p.m. PENDLETON BMCC to break ground on new agriculture facility East Oregonian Blue Mountain Community College will break ground Monday on the third of three major construction projects approved by voters in its May 2015 bond measure. The groundbreaking for the Facility for Agricul- tural Resource Manage- ment (FARM) is scheduled for 2 p.m., Monday, at the facility’s future site next to the current agriculture center on the north side of the Pendleton campus. The public is invited to attend. The FARM will house BMCC’s agriculture programs, including agri- culture production, crops and livestock, agriculture business, pest manage- ment, beef production, meat science, greenhouse production and veterinary assisting programs. The project is expected to be completed late next spring BMCC broke ground on its two other major bond construction projects earlier this spring — the Precision Irrigated Agriculture Center in Hermiston in April and the Workforce Training Center in Boardman in May. The Hermiston project has a projected spring 2017 completion, while the Boardman project is expected to be complete by winter 2017. BMCC will also begin work on upgrades to electrical and HVAC systems, as well as natural gas line repairs, this summer. BMCC’s $23 million capital construction bond approved by voters included all of these projects, as well as addi- tional safety, security and technology improvements, and improvements to the Milton-Freewater center. Join us for a 90th Birthday CELEBRATION ~ honoring ~ MARY ANN RYDER Saturday June 18, 2016 2:00 to 4:00 PM Roger’s Fellowship Room First Presbyterian Church 201 SW Dorian Ave • Pendleton Oregon NO GIFTS PLEASE Thanking Our Sponsors 4th Annual Our annual Old Iron Show is a vital regional and com- munity event, free to all. The Umatilla County Historical Society thanks our 2016 sponsors, whose support carries on the tradition. Golf Classic Lead Sponsor Les Schwab Tire Center Major Sponsors Olsen’s Auto Parts LLC RDO Equipment Co. Umatilla Electric Cooperative Supporting Sponsors David and Shari Dallas Doherty Recycling LLC Doherty Welding LLC Hodgen Distributing Inland Auto Electric, Inc. J & B Automotive P J Rohde Ranch Patrick & Kim Straughan Premium Tire and Lube Wayne and Corinne Swearingen Western Antique Iron Trader Winn Farming LLC Matt and Cindy Wood We also thank the hard-working volunteers, who make this show possible. A HUGE thank you to everyone that gave their time, energy and dollars to the Kick’n Cancer New Beginnings (KCNB) Fourth Annual Golf Classic. All proceeds stay here in the Pendleton area and will beneit the KCNB Spirit Program. Because of your generous support and participation, we are able to offer a program where survivors of cancer can heal both physically and mentally and begin to resume their normal lives. Thank you to all the generous sponsors, donors, the Pendleton Country Club, golf participants, volunteers and media. WE GIVE A SPECIAL THANKS TO: Gold Sponsor: Tom Denchel ‘s FORDCOUNTRY.COM ISU - The Stratton Agency Honoring Elise Cooke & Gwen Lewis Silver Sponsors: 92.1 Party FM • Terry Atchison DA Davidson • Justin & Tamara Voelker Walla Walla Country Club • East Oregonian And our 43 Hole Sponsors: The Golf Tournament was a huge success and we thank you all! If you know someone recently surviving cancer please refer them to our “Spirit Program”. Please contact Deb Shampine at 541-276-0880 at the Roundup Athletic Club for more information.
