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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (April 5, 2017)
Page 8A OFF PAGE ONE East Oregonian Border agency fields pitches for Trump’s wall with Mexico SAN DIEGO (AP) — One bidder wants to cover President Donald Trump’s border wall with solar panels. Another suggests building a wall large enough for a deck that would offer tourists scenic views of the desert. In the competition to build the wall, traditional bids are interspersed with more whimsical ideas. As Tuesday’s deadline for bids passed, U.S. Customs and Border Protection declined to identify bidders or say how many there were, which is standard practice in government contracting. The federal government expects to announce around June 1 which companies will be hired to build prototypes. Designs must be able to repel pickaxes and sledge- hammers for at least an hour and be aesthetically pleasing from the north side. Trump’s multibil- lion-dollar plan promises potentially big profits but also risks inviting a backlash from people who oppose the project. The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Mexico said last week that Mexican companies expressing interest were betraying their country. “This isn’t the kind of project that you’d want to put in your portfolio, said Gene Grabowski, a partner in kglobal, a Washington public-relations firm. “Unlike a dam or bridge, this is one where the risk of being associated with the political philosophy of the adminis- tration can be damaging to current and future business.” That did not stop some companies from releasing their plans — some tradi- tional, some more imagina- Gleason Partners via AP This undated rendering provided by Gleason Partners LLC shows sections South Side (Mexico) connected like a snake along the border. Solar panels would cov- er sections of the wall proposed by Las Vegas-based Gleason Partners LLC so it could generate power. The wall’s solar panel system would generate 2.0 mega- watts of electricity per hour, according to the compa- ny’s proposal. tive. Concrete Contractors Interstate proposed a polished concrete wall augmented with stones and artifacts that are tailored to different sections of the 2,000-mile border. “The idea is to make the wall a piece of art,” said Russ Baumgartner, chief executive officer of the San Diego- based company. Gleason Partners LLC of Las Vegas said its solar panels would generate 2 megawatts of electricity an hour. Both proposals were first reported by The San Diego Union-Tri- bune. “For the younger gener- ation, they say if there is going to be a wall, let’s have it be green,” said Gleason Managing Partner Thomas Gleason. The other specifications, like preventing people from digging tunnels beneath the wall, will eliminate some designs immediately. Winners must also have done border security or similar projects worth $25 million or more in the past five years. A U.S. official with knowl- edge of the plans who spoke on condition of anonymity because the details have not been made public said four to 10 bidders are expected to be chosen to build prototypes for $200,000 to $500,000 each. The prototypes will be constructed on a quarter-mile strip of federally owned land in San Diego within 120 feet of the border, though a final decision has not been made on the precise spot, the official said. The Border Patrol and local police would establish a buffer zone around the construction site if necessary, the U.S. official said. The San Diego police and sheriff’s departments said they will respect constitutional rights to free speech and assembly for law-abiding protesters. Bidders are also asked to submit security plans and demonstrate experience “executing high-profile, high-visibility and politically contentious” projects. SCHOOL: 100 fewer students this year Continued from 1A be ambiguous,” said superin- tendent Andy Kovach. “The state Legislature is wrestling with a gap between revenue and needed services that will certainly impact funding for schools as well as funding through Measure 98.” Bleak state budget projec- tions worry both McBee and Kovach as the district has already done some painful belt tightening. Director of business services Michelle Jones has run scenarios for different levels of state funding; the results range from unpleasant to grim. “With this lack of clarity, I have asked the PSD admin- istrative team to prepare the district’s budget with contin- gencies that allow us to adjust for a range of revenue levels,” Kovach said. “Additionally, I have asked that as a district with declining enrollment we need to examine and adjust how our organization meets this reality.” “Our schools have been inadequately funded in Oregon for years, especially with the addition of mandated programs such as all-day kindergarten that come with no state funding attached,” McBee said. “On top of that, we have upcoming cuts in federal funding such as the Title IIA program, PERS increases and declining enrollment in Pendleton School District.” Pendleton has 100 fewer students this year and the drop means a corresponding loss of $750,000. The board previously authorized the use up to $1 million of the district’s $1.75 million contingency fund as a way to minimize the impact of budget shortfalls. “There is no other spare pot of money for us to go to,” McBee said. “Unfortunately that will not be enough, so our admin team will continue this process now to determine what else we need to do to have a balanced budget.” Monday night, the board approved a strategy that potentially could include all or any of the following: reduction in force, reduction by attrition, program changes and the use of contingency funds. “The administrative team will first be looking at all programs and other areas of the budget that can be tight- ened or eliminated,” Kovach said. “We truly do not want to lose any staff on any level, nor do we want a mass exodus because of a budget situation that is affecting our district and almost all other districts,” she said. “We ask our staff to be patient in this process, to know that we are being as responsible and thoughtful as we can be and we understand the stress that this decision brings to everyone.” She urged people to contact Oregon legislators to push for more education dollars. “These cuts are painful and the state needs to step up with adequate funding,” McBee said. “Well-educated students mean a better citi- zenship and economy.” ——— Contact Kathy Aney at kaney@eastoregonian.com or call 541-966-0810. STREETS: Public works can afford to dedicate only two employees to pot hole patching Continued from 1A Before the city instituted a $5 street utility fee at the end of 2015, officials esti- mated that Pendleton had a $16 million backlog in road repairs. But even with $481,000 in additional revenue, staff said it would merely slow the decline of Pendleton’s street system rather than reverse the trend, and now the backlog grows a little bigger because of the winter damage. Patterson said the city is currently addressing the potholes, but due to the extent of the damage it may take a while. “Potholes are numerous, with the worst appearing on Emigrant and Frazer avenues, both ODOT facilities,” he wrote. “Street crew has been working on pothole patching and will continue until we get them addressed. This ... will take more resources and longer than our usual time frame to address.” Patterson told the council that the public works depart- ment can afford to dedicate only two employees to pothole patching and is still waiting for the hot asphalt plant to re-open to provide the patching material. In the meantime, city staff has run through most of the special “cold patch” material to fill the holes, having ordered 4.5 tons instead of the usual half-ton needed in the asphalt off-season. City crews are also still cleaning the gravel, a process that will take longer than the usual six to eight weeks to complete. The city laid down 1,600 tons of gravel this winter to provide traction for local motorists, significantly more than the 400 tons it uses in an average winter and the 100 tons it used last winter. Although gravel pick-up started March 6, Patterson said the clean-up effort has been complicated by the fact that the mechanical sweeper the city rented is still being used by the city of Portland. The city has been able to borrow a sweeper from Pioneer Construction in the meantime, but it’s been occasionally plagued with mechanical issues, further slowing the efforts. The water system was also hit hard by the winter conditions, with city crews responding to 160 customer repair calls and 10 water main breaks. Patterson said his staff is working on providing better extreme weather notifica- tions to customers so they can leave water dripping through their pipes, which prevents them from freezing over. Although the council took no action after Patterson’s report, they did take an action on providing a grant and local match for street improvements near Hill Meat Co. Partnering with the state Immediate Opportunity Fund, the city budgeted $250,000 for the project but expects to spend no more than $118,425. The council unanimously approved the agreement, which was created to accom- modate an expansion at Hill Meat’s processing plant. ——— Contact Antonio Sierra at asierra@eastoregonian.com or 541-966-0836. Wednesday, April 5, 2017 FARMLAND: Two-thirds of Oregon’s farmland expected to change ownership in the next decade Continued from 1A amount of state dollars to it. Kelley Beamer, execu- tive director of the Coalition of Oregon Land Trusts, said the new fund is needed because roughly two-thirds of Oregon’s farmland is expected to change owner- ship in the next decade, but about 80 percent of the landowners don’t have a plan for the transition. “We do see conversion and fragmentation as a real threat to those values we have as a state,” she said during an April 4 legislative hearing. However, critics argue that Oregon’s projected $1.6 billion budget deficit in the 2017-2019 biennium precludes a new program aimed at helping agricul- ture, which already receives much government support. Farmers already benefit from property tax breaks, inheritance tax exemptions and other programs that will add up to about $550 million in the next bien- nium, said Gerritt Rosenthal of Tax Fairness Oregon, a group that seeks to preserve government revenues from tax breaks. “In this time of budget shortfall, it’s not the time to create new programs “While there may be positive as- pects to the bill, it isn’t ready for prime time yet.” — Jim Myron, a natural resources consultant testi- fying on behalf of several environmental groups that may cost significant amounts of money,” he said. The fund would primarily serve farming interests by spending public dollars, even though Oregon’s protections for agricultural water quality are insufficient, said Jim Myron, a natural resources consultant testifying on behalf of several environ- mental groups. “While there may be positive aspects to the bill, it isn’t ready for prime time yet,” Myron said. Proponents of HB 3249 claim the fund is a wise investment because state dollars will be matched by contributions from the federal government, conservation groups and the farmers themselves. It’s likely that as much private money would be used to buy easements as public money, said Doug Krahmer, a farmer from St. Paul, Ore., who helped devise the program. “This particular proposal is part of a piece of a puzzle,” he said. Farmland would be preserved in perpetuity while the state would pay for only a fraction of its appraised value, said Woody Wolfe, a Wallowa County farmer and rancher who sold an easement on his property. Conservation groups would be more willing to invest in further restoration efforts if they know the land is permanently protected from development, he said. “I would ask what the cost would be if those lands become concrete or devel- oped,” Wolfe said. A limited amount of funds dedicated to the program would be awarded to easements and other projects after careful delib- eration by the commission, he said. “You’re concentrating your efforts on the most valuable property,” Wolfe said. ——— The Capital Bureau is a collaboration between EO Media Group and Pamplin Media Group. LYBRAND: Can not use, sell or grow marijuana Continued from 1A suspended and will have his truck returned to him. Breiling argued that “taking his show on the road” was a significant part of Lybrand’s business, Wicked Kitty Tattoo & Piercing, which required he travel around the state to ink tattoos at various events. Before he was sentenced, Lybrand told Lieuallen that he was trying to keep the Wicked Kitty’s doors open. “The business has been decimated by this,” Lybrand said. “We’ve been just trying to keep our head above water.” Law enforcement began investigating Lybrand in September, while he was incarcerated for violating a no contact order with his wife. While still in jail, Lybrand asked his mother to complete the purchase of five pounds of marijuana. After Lybrand’s mother declined, the Blue Moun- tain Enforcement Narcotics Team obtained a search warrant for Lybrand’s vehicle, where law enforce- ment found 11.7 grams of methamphetamine and 10.3 pounds of marijuana in addition to the steroids. BENT arrested Lybrand in October. At the time of the arrest, Pendleton police chief Stuart Roberts said people from the local drug scene told investigators that Lybrand had a reputation as a “one stop shop” for illegal substances. As a part of Lybrand’s probation, Lybrand will be required to undertake drug treatment, perform 80 hours of community service, and write the letter to his mother. Lybrand will be prohibited from using, selling or growing marijuana or possessing a firearm.
