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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (March 2, 2017)
REGION Thursday, March 2, 2017 PENDLETON Eighth Street Bridge project delayed by state East Oregonian The project to replace the aging Eighth Street Bridge in Pendleton has been delayed as the fate of the historic structure is determined. Pendleton public works director Bob Patterson said that because the bridge is eligible for the National Register of Historic Places, the city must preserve the bridge and make it available to potential buyers looking to repurpose it. Patterson said Project Exploration, a group of local government agencies and nonprofits dedicated to sparking new civic projects, expressed interest in using the bridge as a decorative feature of a downtown plaza. Patterson said the Oregon State Historic Preservation Office wants a more concrete proposal from Project Explo- ration on how they’ll use the bridge. The state office doesn’t want to proceed until that a proposal is submitted or the project decides against using the bridge. While Patterson works with the state and Project Discovery to find a reso- lution, the timeline on the Eighth Street project has been extended. With the city previously expecting to receive a memorandum of agreement from the Federal Highway Administration by the end of January, Patterson now expects approval by April. Paired with approval from the Army Corps of Engi- neers, Patterson estimates the bid will be awarded by the late summer. Patterson said these changes will add 2.5 percent to 5 percent to the total cost of the bridge and move the start of construction to 2018. Besides replacing the 108-year-old bridge, city officials have undertaken the $7.42 million project with hopes that it will spur development and expansion to the north. Much of the project is funded through a federal grant and is expected to be completed in 2019. BRIEFLY Sheriff’s deputies working to feed skinny horses HERMISTON — The Umatilla County Sheriff’s Office is helping provide food and water to five reportedly neglected horses on a pasture in Hermiston. Undersheriff Jim Littlefield said they are working with the horses’ owner, Jaime Haines of Irrigon, after fielding reports about the animals in early January. Littlefield said two of the older horses are “very thin,” and it may take some time before they are able to regain their weight. In the meantime, deputies will continue to work with Haines before they consider any further action. The horses have not been confiscated, and remain in their pasture at 80361 Banks Lane. Littlefield said it is possible Haines, 37, will be cited with animal neglect, though that decision has not been made yet. Right now, Littlefield said the case is ongoing and they are simply working on getting the animals back to a healthy weight. School district seeks public input on strategic plan PENDLETON — The Pendleton School District is putting together a strategic plan that will help determine the future direction of the school system, and they want the public to give its input. The district is holding a community input session for the strategic plan at the Pendleton Early Learning Center on Tuesday, March 21 at 7 p.m. The district will provide an online opportunity for people who can’t make the meeting but still wish to comment on the plan. community members interested in nominating someone for these awards have until April 1 to submit their nominations. Nomination forms for the Crystal Apple and Doug Flatt awards are available on the IMESD website at www. imesd.k12.or.us/crystalapple/ home. For questions, call IMESD spokeswoman Michele Madril at 541-966- 3115. Ask our reporter anything about Cascadia on Friday East Oregonian reporter Jade McDowell will be taking questions Friday afternoon in a Reddit AMA — short for “Ask Me Anything” — about her recent Cascadia Aftermath series in the East Oregonian. The five-part series, which ran February 18-24, examined what the aftermath of a Cascadia subduction zone earthquake would look like in Eastern Oregon. It was accompanied by an Eastern Oregon Forum on Cascadia at Blue Mountain Community College. The AMA can be accessed by visiting www.reddit. com and searching for the /r/ IAMA subreddit. A link will also be available on the /r/ CascadianPreppers subreddit, dedicated to discussing emergency preparedness in the Pacific Northwest. It will be hosted under the username jmcdowellEO, and anyone with a Reddit account can submit questions starting about noon on Friday. McDowell covers government, economic development and features for the East Oregonian and Hermiston Herald. ——— Briefs are compiled from staff and wire reports, and press releases. Email press releases to news@ eastoregonian.com IMESD opens nominations for Crystal Apple awards The InterMountain Education Service District is now accepting applications for the 2017 “Excellence in Education” Crystal Apple Awards. Each year, the Crystal Apples recognize dozens principals, assistant principals, teachers, paraeducators, office staff, maintenance staff and other district staff across the IMESD’s 18 component districts for their dedication and success. Nominations are also being accepted for the 2017 Doug Flatt Memorial Award, an honor sponsored by Mid Columbia Bus Co. that spotlights an administrator that exemplifies leadership, attention to detail, community service, interpersonal skills and customer service. Staff, parents or East Oregonian BOARDMAN SAGE center hosts annual agriculture, energy job fair By GEORGE PLAVEN East Oregonian Local farms, factories and utilities met face-to-face with prospective employees Wednesday during the fourth annual Agriculture and Energy Job Fair, hosted by the SAGE Center. This year’s event featured 38 booths and a full lineup of presentations in the museum auditorium, covering a range of topics from résumé writing to college financial planning. Kalie Davis, SAGE Center manager, said the job fair is one way for people to learn about the diversity of positions available within the agriculture and energy industries, while high- lighting many of the compa- nies located in Umatilla and Morrow counties. “They have high-paying jobs in this area,” Davis said. A number of the busi- nesses that were on hand operate facilities just down the road at the Port of Morrow’s East Beach Indus- trial Park. Lamb Weston has two potato processing plants at the port, one of which will soon be adding a new line for making french fries. More production means hiring more employees, said Jeffrey Otte, human resources manager for Lamb Weston. The job fair is one way they are able to get those jobs filled, he added. “We’re growing leaps and bounds every year,” Otte said. Threemile Canyon Farms, which grows a variety of conventional and organic crops and runs the state’s largest dairy west of Boardman, also arrived Staff photo by George Plaven Shane Clayson, research manager for DuPont Pioneer, speaks with Andrea Islas, of Hermiston, about job opportunities during the fourth annual Agriculture and Energy Job Fair at the SAGE Center. “They have high-paying jobs in this area.” — Kalie Davis, SAGE Center manager, Wednesday with about seven open positions, said Candice Fertterer, human resources specialist. The farm also provides student internships in its irrigation department, farm and dairy. Because Threemile Canyon is hidden away in a rural part of the county, Fertterer said the job fair helps them to get their name out to job hunters. “Its been a great experi- ence for us,” she said. Shane Clayson, research manager for DuPont Pioneer in Hermiston, said the company has expanded its research into new hybrid corn seed, and needs contract workers to help with testing before the products are ready to hit the market. With an array of new technology in all different agricultural sectors, Clayson said people may not be fully aware of all the different jobs companies have avail- able. “We’ve got everything from mechanics to auto- mation to maintenance and agronomy,” he said. “There’s just a lot of different technology and opportunities out there.” Trade work is also part of the equation, said Jane DeSimone, human resources specialist with Portland General Electric. PGE especially needs equipment operators, elec- First section of bike trail open to public East Oregonian It’s still a work in progress, but hikers, bikers and runners can now access the Pendleton Adventure Trails Recreation Area. On Feb. 21, Echo Bike & Board declared the 4.7-mile trail developed on 290 acres of sparsely used land west of the Eastern Oregon Regional Airport officially open. Although much of the trail is still unusable because of weather condi- tions, the first section is ready for public use. The Pendleton City Council approved the recreation area in March 2016 with an agreement that local bike organizations would maintain the course. Former city councilor Chuck Wood voted to institute the bike park and is a member of Pendleton on Wheels, one of the organizations that sponsors the area. Shayne Myers of Echo Bike & Board, another sponsor of the Pend- leton trail and the main sponsors of Red 2 Red Cross Country Mountain Bike Race in Echo, built the course over the winter when the ground is malleable enough to create a trail. Perhaps fitting of an off-road course, finding the trail requires going slightly Photo contributed by Seth Myers In this undated photo, Shayne Myers rides his bike at the Pendleton Adventure Trails Recreation Area. off the beaten path. From Westgate, drivers must go north on Airport Road before making a left on an unmarked road between Western States Caterpillar and Farm Equipment headquarters. After trav- eling up a hill, drivers must stay left at the farm equipment building and park in the lot. The entrance to the trail doesn’t East Oregonian has an opening for multi-media sales. No multi-media experience? That’s fine, as long as you understand the importance of customer service, working hard and a desire to enjoy your job. Could this be you? PO Box 2048 Salem, OR 97308-2048 by fax to 503-371-2935 or e-mail hr@eomediagroup.com Base wage plus commissions, benefits and mileage reimbursement. Benefits include Paid Time Off (PTO), insurances and a 401(k)/Roth 401(k) retirement plan. have proper signs yet, although Wood expects that to come this summer when the next phase of the trail is complete. Wood expects the trail to grow each year as Echo Bike & Board continues to work on the area. Sponsors and city officials have expressed interest in the recreation area eventually hosting a bike race similar to the Red 2 Red in Echo. LENT Great work environment. Super awesome team. Good pay. Retirement plan. Weekends off. Interested? EO Media Group tricians and mechanics to work in their power plants. “For a lot of high school students, they don’t really consider the trades as on option,” DeSimone said. “It’s good for them to get that information and know there are other ways of working.” The Boardman Coal Plant has recurrent open- ings, she said, and now the Carty gas plant is in full operation just next door. Davis said she spoke with a few people who visited the job fair, and left with interviews already scheduled. “That to me is the ulti- mate success story,” she said. ——— Contact George Plaven at gplaven@eastoregonian. com or 541-966-0825. PENDLETON MULTI-MEDIA SALES Send resume and letter of interest to Page 3A March 3rd from 5 to 7:00 p.m. @ the St. Anthony Hospital Blue Mountain Cafe Cedar Wrapped Salmon - $7.50/Adults - $7.00/Children & Seniors with Rice Pilaf & Buttered Green Beans Baked Potato Bar - $4.00/with toppings All you can eat. Salmon/Potato Bar Combo - $11.50 Clam Chowder Bread Bowl - $4.25 Single Cup $1.25
