REGION
Wednesday, March 29, 2017
East Oregonian
Page 3A
HERMISTON
PENDLETON
New butcher shop, grocery to open soon
Thurman eyes new spot
for marijuana store
Carniceria Julissa
will sell meat,
fresh produce
By PHIL WRIGHT
East Oregonian
By JAYATI
RAMAKRISHNAN
East Oregonian
Carniceria Julissa is a new
addition to Hermiston, but
for owners Jose and Alicia
Valle, it’s another expansion
of their business.
“I have a couple in the
Tri-Cities by the same
name,” Jose said. The Valles
are busy preparing to open
up the butcher’s shop on 292
W. Hermiston Ave. which,
in addition to meat will sell
fresh produce, deli products,
hot food and beverages.
Alicia’s brother, Roman
Orozco, will serve as the
manager. The family does
not have an official opening
day yet, but hopes to be open
to the public sometime in the
next couple of weeks.
In addition to groceries,
the store will sell some medi-
cine, other general items,
and provide services to send
money to family members in
different parts of the world.
The store will provide
some services to a part of
town that doesn’t currently
have a grocery store. Many
parts of Hermiston are
considered “food deserts” —
which is a USDA definition
based on the ratio of grocery
stores to residents.
While the Valles and
Orozco put up shelves,
cleaned and prepared the
inside of the store, Gabriel
Villasenor was busy on
the outside of the building,
painting a colorful mural.
The murals span four walls,
and depict farm animals,
the cast of Spanish cartoon
“El Chavo Animado,” pigs
dressed in mariachi outfits,
and a watermelon — with
the word “Hermiston”
painted above it.
“With the weather, it
takes me about a month,”
Villasenor said, “because I
have to wait when it rains
sometimes.”
On a Monday afternoon,
Villasenor had about half
an hour’s work left on the
Staff photo by Daniel Wattenburger
Gabriel Villasenor paints the final of four murals Saturday on the side of Carniceria
Julissa on Hermiston Avenue.
Staff photo by Daniel Wattenburger
One of four murals on the side of the
Carniceria Julissa on Hermiston Avenue.
BRIEFLY
Staff photo by Jayati Ramakrishnan
Jose Valle, Alicia Valle and Ramon Orozco
are busy preparing the store on West Herm-
iston Avenue for opening in the next few
weeks. The Valles own two other stores in
the Tri-Cities, and Orozco will serve as the
manager of the Hermiston store.
painting. He stood on a
ladder in the sun with a small
brush and carefully painted
shadows on the letters of the
word “Hermiston.” Below,
his wife used a roller with
bright green paint to touch
up the grass behind the
watermelon painting.
Staff photo by Daniel Wattenburger
One of four murals on the side of the
Carniceria Julissa on Hermiston Avenue.
Villasenor owns Three
Brothers Signs, and has
painted murals for several
businesses in the Tri-Cities
and Yakima.
The Valles have been
in the Tri-Cities for about
7 years, having previously
lived in Yakima and other
towns around Washington.
They moved to the United
States from Mexico in 1998.
———
Contact
Jayati
Ramakrishnan
at
jramakrishnan@hermis-
tonherald.com or 541-564-
4534.
Hemp bills would move crop into mainstream
By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI
Capital Bureau
SALEM — Hemp would be brought
further into the mainstream of Oregon
agriculture under two bills that create
a commodity commission and seed
certification process for the crop.
“Industrial hemp has a huge potential
in Oregon, we just need a few tweaks to
help move it forward,” said Matt Cyrus,
who grows hemp in Deschutes County,
during a March 28 legislative hearing.
Under House Bill 2372, Oregon’s
hemp industry would join 23 other crop,
livestock and seafood sectors to have a
state commission aimed at promoting
and researching a commodity through
fees raised from producers.
Breeders of new hemp varieties could
also get the purity of their seeds certified
under House Bill 2371, similarly to
other crop species, through a system
overseen by Oregon State University.
“It’s truly about a certified seed, one
we know Oregon can count on,” said
Jerry Norton, a hemp grower.
To comply with federal provisions
in the 2014 Farm Bill that allow hemp
research, HB 2371 would also create
a hemp pilot program at OSU, among
other changes to Oregon hemp statutes.
Commercial hemp production is
illegal under federal drug laws that lump
hemp, a form of cannabis, in the same
category as its psychoactive cousin,
marijuana.
Aligning Oregon’s hemp laws with
the 2014 Farm Bill provisions will
likely ease financial transactions for
hemp growers, since many banks are
otherwise leery of dealing with the crop,
Cyrus said.
EO Media Group
Hemp grows in a field in Oregon in this 2016 file photo. Under House
Bill 2372, Oregon’s hemp industry would join 23 other crop, livestock and
seafood sectors to have a state commission aimed at promoting and re-
searching a commodity through fees raised from producers.
“The banks are looking for specific
language in statute,” he said.
If there’s ever a change in federal
law regarding cannabis, Oregon’s seed
certification process would let hemp
breeders patent their varieties, said Jay
Noller, head of OSU’s crop and soil
science department.
Because cannabis is illegal under
federal law hemp varieties can’t be
protected, he said.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Admin-
istration has authorized Noller to import
high-quality hemp seeds from Canada
and elsewhere.
At this point, though, foreign compa-
nies are reluctant to export hemp seed
into Oregon due to a provision in state
law allowing growers to save and plant
it, he said.
Under HB 2371, that provision would
be struck from Oregon law, hopefully
opening the way for new hemp genetics
to enter the state, Noller said.
Oregon’s hemp statutes are already
setting an example for other states and
the proposed changes will let growers
“get off the airstrip and into the air,” said
Norton.
“We feel that hemp in Oregon is
going to be the new crop of the decade,
if not the century,” he said.
COMMUNITY CALENDAR
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 29
WILLOW
RUN
LADIES
GOLF CLUB, 8 a.m., Willow Run
Golf Course, 78873 Toms Camp
Road, Boardman. Rain or shine.
Need not be a member to play.
(541-481-4381)
CAY-UMA-WA TOASTMAS-
TERS, 12-1 p.m., Wildhorse Re-
sort & Casino, 46510 Wildhorse
Blvd, Pendleton. Everyone wel-
come. (Jeannette Taylor 541-276-
9492)
ALTRUSA INTERNATION-
AL OF PENDLETON, 12 p.m.,
Red Lion Inn, 304 S.E. Nye Ave.,
Pendleton.
HERMISTON ELKS DIN-
NER, 5:30-8 p.m., Hermiston Elks
Lodge, 480 E. Main St., Hermis-
ton. (541-567-6923)
OREGON GRASS ROOTS
Bryson
Thurman
indicated he could with-
draw his application for a
conditional use permit to
operate a marijuana store
at 1292 S.W. Tutuilla Road,
Pendleton.
The Pendleton Planning
Commission
approved
the permit, but the city on
Friday received an appeal,
which sends the matter to
the city council. Thurman in
an email Tuesday morning
said he now is looking at
another site for the business.
“We have a new property
we applied for on Monday,”
Thurman said in an email.
“We are most likely going
to withdraw our application
at the 1292 S.W. Tutuilla
address, but I will need to
talk to my attorney further
on the subject.”
Thurman filed a copy
of a land use compatibility
statement with the city
on Monday for 1616 S.E.
Court Ave. as the new site.
The lot is near the old St.
Anthony Hospital location.
Julie Chase, city permit
technician, said Thurman
has to submit the statement
to the Oregon Liquor
Control Commission for
review and approval before
the city takes action on a
new conditional use permit.
Cindy and Richard
Jennings
and
Roger
Easling, all of Pendleton,
filed the previous appeal.
The Jennings own and
operate Creative Signs,
CRIBBAGE CLUB NO. 2, 6:30
p.m., Desert Lanes Bowling Alley,
1545 N. First St., Hermiston. All
levels of players welcome. (541-
567-6594)
THURSDAY, MARCH 30
TUMBLEWEED
TOAST-
MASTERS, 6:30 a.m., Eastern
Oregon Higher Education Center,
980 S.E. Columbia Drive, Herm-
iston. Visitors welcome. (541-567-
3360)
ARTS AND CRAFTS FROM
THE DRY SIDE, 9 a.m.-2 p.m.,
Hermiston Assembly of God
Church, 730 E. Hurlburt Ave.,
Hermiston. Use Seventh Street
entrance. Monthly business meet-
ing at noon. (541-567-4446)
ALTRUSA INTERNATIONAL
OF HERMISTON, 12 p.m., ARC
1280 S.W. Tutuilla Road,
which would be next door
to Thur’s Smoke Shop, and
Easling listed his address on
the appeal as a few blocks
away.
Richard Jennings said
their primary objection was
having the marijuana shop
operate in an area that has
so many children. The other
three marijuana businesses
in Pendleton have locations
without that concern, he
said.
Jennings also ques-
tioned whether Thurman’s
proposal would even fit on
the lot in question. The site
plans lacked any detail, he
said, such as the size of the
parking lot. While Thurman
did as the city wanted,
Jennings said, the planning
commission should have
demanded more informa-
tion.
Jennings also said he
heard Thurman proposed
the new site, and he did not
plan to object to that.
Thurman said he was
born and raised in Pend-
leton, and his family’s
roots here go back to when
his
great-grandparents
homesteaded out in Juniper
Canyon.
“I plan on being in
Pendleton a long time,”
he stated. “This is a small
community and we want to
work with our city and the
people of the Pendleton, not
against.”
———
Contact Phil Wright at
pwright@eastoregonian.
com or 541-966-0833.
Umatilla County, 215 W. Orchard
Ave., Hermiston.
HERMISTON HORSESHOE
CLUB, 5 p.m., Hermiston High
School Weber Field, 600 S. First
St., Hermiston. (Rick Rebman
541-720-6402)
PENDLETON
EAGLES
BURGERS AND KARAOKE, 6
p.m., Pendleton Eagles Lodge,
428 S. Main St., Pendleton. Mem-
bers and guests welcome. (541-
278-2828)
INLAND NORTHWEST OR-
CHESTRA REHEARSAL, 6:30
p.m., Harris Jr. Academy gym-
nasium, 3121 S.W. Hailey Ave.,
Pendleton. (RaNiel Dunn 541-
289-4696)
MOVE ON, 7 p.m., Great Pa-
cific Wine & Coffee Co., 403 S.
Main St., Pendleton.
HERMISTON ELKS LODGE
NO. 1845, 7 p.m., Hermiston Elks
Lodge, 480 E. Main St., Hermis-
ton. (541-567-6923)
FRIDAY, MARCH 31
PENDLETON
MASTERS
SWIM CLUB, 5-6 p.m., Roundup
Athletic Club pool, 1415 South-
gate, Pendleton. $5 per session
coaching fee; non-RAC members
pay $8 pool fee per session. (Ta-
nia Wildbill 541-310-9102)
PENDLETON EAGLES LA-
DIES AUXILIARY KITCHEN, 6-8
p.m., Pendleton Eagles Lodge,
428 S. Main St., Pendleton. St.
Patrick’s Day feast includes
corned beef, cabbage, sides and
dessert for $10 per person.Mem-
bers and guests welcome. (541-
278-2828)
Five taken to
hospital in
head-on crash
HERMISTON —
Two adults and three
children suffered injuries
in a head-on crash Monday
night just outside Herm-
iston.
Oregon State Police
reported the driver of a
mid-size Jeep SUV was
northbound on Highway
395 near the Punkin Center
intersection when she
looked away from the road
and nearly struck a vehicle
in front of her. To avoid
the collision, she swerved
into the opposite lane and
struck a Honda CR-V
head-on.
Ambulances took the
drivers of both vehicles
to the hospital, as well as
three children who were in
the Honda. A spokesperson
for Oregon State Police
said Tuesday morning
she did not know the
conditions of any of the
people involved and did
not release their names.
J.W. Roberts of
Umatilla County Fire
District 1 said the fire
department used hydraulic
tools to free one of the
passengers, but he didn’t
know the extent of the
injuries of any of the
passengers.
Roberts said everyone
involved was hurt and went
to the hospital, but all were
conscious at the scene.
Prescribed
burns to begin
on Wallowa-
Whitman forest
Prescribed fire is
coming to the Wallowa-
Whitman National Forest.
As the snow melts and
drier weather sets in, the
forest service plans to
start prescribed burning
to reduce dead and down
fuels, selectively thin
densely forested stands and
improve resiliency of the
landscape.
Fire managers will work
closely with the Oregon
State Smoke Forecast
Center to determine when,
where and how much is
burned on a daily basis.
If the forecast shows
that a burn may produce
smoke that would affect
neighboring communities,
it will be rescheduled.
The Wallowa-Whitman
forest plans to burn
roughly 8,000 acres during
spring, though the actual
acreage is subject to
change based on weather.
For more information,
contact Steve Hawkins
at 541-523-1262. A map
of scheduled burns is
also available online at
www.fs.usda.gov/goto/
Fire-Aviation.
Recreational
sturgeon fishing
closed downstream
of McNary Dam
Recreational sturgeon
season will come to a close
Thursday on the Columbia
River downstream of
McNary Dam.
Fishery managers in
Oregon and Washington
anticipate anglers will
reach the 105-sturgeon
retention limit by
Thursday, bringing an end
to the season. Catch-and-
release for sturgeon will
still be allowed, except
in spawning sanctuaries
defined in the 2017 Oregon
Sport Fishing Regulations.
Sturgeon retention is
also closed on the Willa-
mette River downstream of
Willamette Falls.
———
Briefs are compiled
from staff and wire reports,
and press releases. Email
press releases to news@
eastoregonian.com
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211 SE Byers Ave.
Pendleton
or call:
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1-800-522-0255