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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 17, 2017)
REGION Friday, February 17, 2017 Gilliam County picks new commissioner going on and help as best I can.” Wetherell described A new commissioner Gronquist as a father has been appointed to the figure to her, and talked about growing up friends Gilliam County Court. Leslie Wetherell, of with Gronquist’s daughter, Arlington, was chosen Megan. Later in life, Wetherell said Wednesday to fill she continued to the seat of Dennis lean on Gronquist Gronquist, who for advice and died Jan. 23 after really respected suffering a stroke his opinions. six months prior. “ W h e n We t h e r e l l commissioner was one of Gronquist passed three candidates away, I just nominated by the kept thinking I newly restruc- wanted to help,” tured Demo- Wetherell Wetherell said. cratic Central Committee of Gilliam “I thought if I could fill his County. Her first court term, I would be very proud meeting will be Wednesday, and honored to do so.” Gronquist, a Demo- March 1. “I was just excited and crat, was re-elected last happy,” Wetherell said. November, before his death. “This is something that I’ve Gilliam County Democrats always thought I wanted to formed a new central committee to come up with do.” Wetherell, 47, works as candidates for Gronquist’s the operations and finance replacement, and the court manager for the Maryhill chose Wetherell during a Museum of Art in Golden- special session Wednesday dale, Washington, though afternoon. Commissioners typi- she continues to live in Arlington. She previously cally serve four-year terms, spent six years as city though in this case the seat recorder and said she will will be up for election in bring a fresh perspective to 2018 and again in 2020. ——— the county court. Contact George Plaven “I didn’t come in with an agenda,” she said. “I just at gplaven@eastoregonian. want to see what things are com or 541-966-0825. By GEORGE PLAVEN East Oregonian BRIEFLY Brief lockdown at Agriculture and Pendleton schools Energy Job Fair PENDLETON — A coming March 1 false alarm trigged a lockdown for nearly an hour at Pendleton High School Thursday morning. A Pendleton School District press release states that the lockdown was inadvertently triggered from inside the building, causing the school to start a lockdown around 9:40 a.m. After police swept the high school and deter- mined that there was no threat, the school lifted the lockdown at 10:30 a.m. In accordance with the district’s safety protocol, the district’s other schools were put on lockout as a precaution. Unlike the high school’s lockdown, where students and staff are confined to classrooms as authorities deal with the potential threat, a “lockout” seals the outside entryways while school activities go uninterrupted. Pendleton Police Chief Stuart Roberts said law enforcement officers had their firearms out when securing the campus, in accordance with police protocol for lockdown situations. According to the press release, law enforcement and district staff are reviewing the incident to see if the best procedures were used. Pendleton woman struck by pickup PENDLETON — A Pendleton woman is in a Washington hospital after she was hit by a pickup Wednesday. Pendleton police and emergency services at about 2:30 p.m. responded to the front of the U.S. Post Office, 104 S.W. Dorion Ave., on a report of a vehicle striking a pedestrian. Pendleton Fire Chief Mike Ciraulo said an ambulance transported one woman with head trauma to St. Anthony Hospital, Pendleton. Pendleton Police Chief Stuart Roberts identified the woman as Haley Flemmer, 32, of Pendleton. Hospital spokesman Larry Blanc said medical staff stabilized her and sent her to Kadlec Regional Medical Center, Richland, Washington. The East Oregonian has been unable to confirm her condition. Roberts said Jonathan Quinlin, 21, of Pendleton, drove a 2015 Nissan Frontier pickup that hit Flemmer, and police cited Quinlin for failing to yield to a pedestrian. BOARDMAN — The fourth annual Agriculture and Energy Job Fair is coming Wednesday, March 1 to the SAGE Center. Students and job seekers are invited to visit and network with local food processors, utilities, data centers, farms and colleges to learn more about career opportunities. “This event gives people the opportunity to connect with the region’s leading agriculture and energy industries to discover rewarding careers,” said Kalie Davis, SAGE Center manager. Blue Mountain Community College, Walla Walla Community College, Perry Technical Institute, Oregon State University and Eastern Oregon University will also be on hand to provide informa- tion about educational programs for students. The SAGE Center is located at 101 Olson Road in Boardman. For more information, call 541-481- 7243. Goal setting workshop set for March 4 BOARDMAN — Boardman city officials will discuss setting goals and direction for the coming year during an annual workshop sched- uled for Saturday, March 4. City councilors and department heads will meet at 7:30 a.m. at the Boardman Senior Center for a community breakfast, then move over to city hall at 8:15 a.m. to begin their meeting. The public is invited to attend, however, there may not be opportu- nity for public comment. No specific delibera- tions or decisions will be made during the session. For more information, call 541-481-9252. East Oregonian Page 3A HERMISTON Semi truck falls 120 feet into canal Driver safe after jumping out of passenger door East Oregonian A semi-truck loaded with empty propane tanks crashed over an embank- ment and slid 120 feet down into South Cold Springs Creek Wednesday morning on Highway 37 northeast of Hermiston. The wreck happened at milepost 10 at about 8 a.m., according to Umatilla County Fire District 1 chief Scott Stanton, though it wasn’t reported until 9:15 and responders didn’t know about a potential hazardous material leak until 9:45. No one was hurt, though Oregon State Police reported the truck driver jumped out of the passenger door just before the tractor slid down the steep embankment. Mike Renz, on-scene spills coor- dinator for the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, said an estimated 10 gallons of motor oil leaked from the truck into the creek. A hazmat team from Hermiston responded and began setting up booms of absorbent pads downstream to collect any spillage. “They saw no sheen more than a quarter mile downstream,” Renz said. Photo contributed by Umatilla County Fire District 1 A hazardous materials crew from Umatilla County Fire District 1 responds to a semi truck crash Wednesday morning on Highway 37 northeast of Hermiston. The team also began pumping diesel from the truck’s fuel tank into drums, removing about 125 gallons from the lower tank. The upper fuel tank was empty, Renz said. Stanton said his department did not make contact with the driver, who was in Pasco by the time they arrived. The truck remained at the site as of Thursday morning and will be difficult to remove, Stanton said. The crash was caused by icy road surfaces Wednesday morning. The fire department has since turned the incident over to the Oregon Department of Transportation. PENDLETON Boutique boasts strong numbers out of the gate By ANTONIO SIERRA East Oregonian The skies haven’t always been clear for take off, but that hasn’t stopped Boutique Air from taking off with Pend- leton customers. In January, the first full month Boutique has operated direct flights to Portland, the San Francisco-based company boarded 469 people even though there were 13 weather-related flight cancellations. That’s the most in a month since 2008, which has excited officials from the city and Boutique. “It’s certainly been a warm welcome,” said Michelle McNulty, Boutique’s marketing and community manager. One significant reason Pendletonians are flocking to Boutique so early in its tenure is it’s ticket prices. With an introductory price of $49 for some one-way tickets, the cost of airfare isn’t that much more expensive than the gas it would take to drive to Portland. In new markets, McNulty said Boutique typically keeps the $49 fare in place for the first few months before raising the price. According to its bid presentation, Boutique eventually expects the average ticket price will be $99. McNulty said Boutique expects to maintain momentum after ticket prices rise by focusing on customer service and stepping up its marketing efforts in Pendleton, Portland and surrounding communities like Walla Walla. Boarding numbers are important to Pendleton in multiple ways. If Pendleton’s air service has too few boardings, the U.S. Department of Transportation can strip the airport of its subsidy, something the DOT threatened to do last year when the now-defunct SeaPort Airlines was in charge of service. On the opposite end of the spectrum, if the Pendleton airport can exceed 10,000 boardings, it would automati- cally receive a $1 million grant from the DOT. If Boutique maintains its current pace, Pendleton would finish the year with 5,628 boardings, which would be better than any full year in SeaPort’s seven-year tenure, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. But Boutique still has a ways to go if it wants to beat the 2008 mark, when SeaPort and Horizon combined to trans- port 7,217 passengers. Getting to 10,000 boardings would be an even steeper climb still — Pendleton hasn’t hit that threshold since 2002. While reaching 10,000 boardings with an eight-seat plane that goes to Portland three times a day might be a tall task, Boutique officials have said that a sustained level of high demand could bring more flights or larger airplanes to Pendleton. ——— Contact Antonio Sierra at asierra@ eastoregonian.com or 541-966-0836. COMING EVENTS FRIDAY, FEB. 17 ADULT OPEN GYM, 6 a.m., Pendleton Recreation Center, 510 S.W. Dorion Ave., Pendleton. Half- court basketball. Adults only. WALKING FOR WELLNESS, 8:30-9:30 a.m., Pendleton Recre- ation Center, 510 S.W. Dorion Ave., Pendleton. (541-276-8100) HEALTHY FRIDAYS, 9:30- 11:30 a.m., Good Shepherd Med- ical Center conference room 7, 610 N.W. 11th St., Hermiston. Free health screenings including choles- terol, blood sugar, BMI, blood pres- sure checks, weigh-ins and health information. For cholesterol and glucose tests, fast 10-12 hours prior to blood draw. Open to all commu- nity members. (541-667-3509) STORY TIME, 10:15 a.m., Hermiston Public Library, 235 E. Gladys Ave., Hermiston. (541-567- 2882) TODDLER STORY TIME, 10:15-11 a.m., Pendleton Public Li- brary, 502 S.W. Dorion Ave., Pend- leton. (541-966-0380) TILLAMOOK CHEESE DAYS, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., SAGE Center, 101 Olson Road, Boardman. Enjoy a hearty plate of lasagne with Cae- sar salad, bread, cookie and drink. Squeaky cheese curds and spe- cialty cheeses will be available for purchase. $5 per person includes center admission. (541-481-7243) WILLOW CREEK VALLEY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT GROUP ANNUAL LUNCHEON, 12-1 p.m., St. Patrick’s Senior Cen- ter dining room, 190 N. Main St., Heppner. Annual luncheon features guest speaker Rep. Greg Smith, who will give a legislative update. Catered lunch is free, but RSVP is requested. (Sheryll Bates 541-676- 5536) STORY AND CRAFT TIME, 2 p.m., Echo Public Library, 20 S. Bo- nanza, Echo. (541-376-8411) NIGHT AT THE CHILDREN’S MUSEUM, 5-8:30 p.m., Children’s Museum of Eastern Oregon, 400 S. Main St., Pendleton. In- cludes dinner, games, crafts and a movie. Costs $20 members/$25 non-members, $10 for each ad- ditional child. Preregistration re- quired. (541-276-1066) VFW BINGO, 6 p.m., Hermis- ton VFW, 45 W. Cherry St., Herm- iston. Doors open at 6 p.m., games begin at 7 p.m. Everyone welcome. (541-567-6219) SAGE CENTER MOVIE EVENT, 7:15 p.m., SAGE Center, 101 Olson Road, Boardman. Enjoy a family-friendly movie and a bag of popcorn. $5 admission. Bottled water and concessions available for cash purchase. (541-481-7243) SATURDAY, FEB. 18 INDOOR YARD SALE, 9 a.m., 215 W Orchard Ave, 215 W. Or- chard Ave., Hermiston. Stay out of the winter weather and find trea- sures. Tables are $10 each. Free admission. (ARC office or Jan 541- 567-7615 or 541-567-6172) FREE FOR ALL, 9:30-10:15 a.m., Pendleton Center for the Arts, 214 N. Main St., Pendleton. Free art classes for children up to age 12. Children under 8 should be accompanied by an adult. (Roberta Lavadour 541-278-9201) SATURDAY CRAFT TIME, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., Hermiston Public Library, 235 E. Gladys Ave., Herm- iston. Free craft projects for children in 5th grade and younger. (541- 567-2882) HIP & HANDMADE, 11 a.m.-12 p.m., Pendleton Center for the Arts, 214 N. Main St., Pendleton. Free drop-in project class for adults. (Ro- berta Lavadour 541-278-9201) TILLAMOOK CHEESE DAYS, 11 a.m.-2 p.m., SAGE Center, 101 Olson Road, Boardman. Enjoy a hearty plate of lasagne with Cae- sar salad, bread, cookie and drink. Squeaky cheese curds and spe- cialty cheeses will be available for purchase. $5 per person includes center admission. (541-481-7243) ARTWORKZ 2017 ARTISTS RECEPTION, 1 p.m., Tamastslikt Cultural Institute, 47106 Wildhorse Blvd., Pendleton. The winners of the annual young artist competition will be honored, including grand prizes, awards of excellence and merit, honorable mentions and Best Emerging Artist. Public welcome. (Randall Melton 541-429-7720) STRAIGHT TALK WITH BECKY MARKS, 2-4 p.m., The Saddle Restaurant, 2220 S.E. Court Ave., Pendleton. Share thoughts with Ward I councilwom- an. (541-276-9147) SAGE CENTER MOVIE EVENT, 2:15 p.m., SAGE Center, 101 Olson Road, Boardman. Enjoy a family-friendly movie and a bag of popcorn. $5 admission. Bottled water and concessions available for cash purchase. (541-481-7243) SUNDAY, FEB. 19 PAUL GORHAM MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP BREAKFAST, 8 a.m.-12 p.m., Pendleton Masonic Lodge, 1350 N.W. Carden Ave., Pendleton. Cost is $6 for adults and $4 for ages 6-12. Call-in orders wel- come. (541-276-3760) FAMILY BREAKFAST, 8:30- 9:15 a.m., First Christian Church, 516 S. Main St., Milton-Freewater. PART-TIME DRIVER CONCEALED CARRY PERMIT CLASS Multi-State 35-States / Oregon HERMISTON Pick up an application at Best Western: 2255 Highway 395 South February 21 st • 1:00 pm & 6:00 pm 211 SE Byers, Pendleton or e-mail resume and cover letter to hr@eomediagroup.com Walk-Ins Welcome! Mult i - State: $80.00 or Oregon only: $45.00 www.FirearmTrainingNW.com • FirearmTrainingNW@gmail.com 360-921-2071 Cost is by donation. Everyone wel- come. (541-938-3854) SPECIAL NEEDS OPEN GYM, 12-1:30 p.m., Pendleton Recreation Center, 510 S.W. Dorion Ave., Pendleton. Free for special needs children and families. (541-276-8100) “TIL DEATH DO US PART... AND WE PART TONIGHT”, 2 p.m., Agape House, 500 Harper Road, Hermiston. A Valentine’s Day theme murder mystery fundraiser for Agape House. Enjoy several desserts and try to figure out who- dunnit. (Dave Hughes 541-567- 8774) Part-time driver needed to deliver East Oregonian publications throughout Eastern Oregon. Must be able to lift up to 50 pounds, have a valid driver’s license and a good driving record. Shifts vary but will regularly include Tuesday nights. Duties may include non- driving work if extra hours are desired. Drug test, driving record and criminal background checks will be completed before hire.
