Page 12A
OFF PAGE ONE
East Oregonian
Saturday, May 20, 2017
ECHO: Madisons will not
buy the 132-acres until they
have the support of the city
Continued from 1A
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Fermore Craig Sr. carries the eagle staff in the honor
guard during the flag day ceremony for the CTUIR.
Oregon State Treasurer Tobias Read addresses the
crowd gathered in Mission.
MEDAL: More than 650 veterans have come from the CTUIR
Continued from 1A
tribal chief Jim White,
and learned to speak the
Umatilla language fluently.
“I think he just really
enjoyed this area,” Close
said.
The Bronze Star, which
had been kept in a safe
deposit box, was discov-
ered and turned over to
the Oregon Department of
State Lands as unclaimed
property. As a member of
the State Land Board, Read
— who was elected state
treasurer last November
— learned about the medal
following a meeting with
department staff.
Along with the decora-
tion itself, Read discovered
the same yellowed news-
paper article from Michigan
describing Nanegos’ feats
and bravery in service. After
some research, Read was
able to trace the family back
to the Umatilla reservation
and reached out to the tribes.
The medal was thus
returned Friday as part of
the CTUIR Flag Day cele-
bration outside the Nixy-
aawii Governance Center,
where Thomas Morning
Owl presided as the master
of ceremonies.
“To have it brought home
in an honorable way is truly
a blessing that we have all
been able to witness today,”
Morning Owl said.
Flag Day is officially
observed May 20 by the
tribes. The CTUIR flag was
adopted by the Board of
Trustees on May 20, 2002,
and features three horses
that represent each of the
three confederated tribes:
the Umatilla, Cayuse and
Walla Walla. The color red
symbolizes sacrifice, blood-
shed and courage.
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Tribal drummers perform a traditional song as an color guard brings in the flags
during the flag day ceremony Friday in Mission.
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
CTUIR general council chairman Alan Crawford
addresses the crowd during the flag day ceremony
Friday in Mission.
Vincent
Sheoships,
CTUIR Youth Council
chairman, said the flag
is a symbol of the tribes’
strength and resilience.
“We have endured to
remain on our homelands,”
Sheoships said. “This is our
home and our flag represents
just that.”
More than 650 enrolled
CTUIR members have
served in the U.S. military.
Alanna Nanegos said the
family was happy to honor
Willard’s memory on Flag
Day, along with all others
who served their country.
“As people are lifting up
his name today ... we can
rejoice and share that with
all the veterans who have
come home,” she said.
Alanna added that the
family will continue to track
down the rest of Willard’s
lost medals. Past efforts
have come up empty.
“We don’t know where
they were, how he received
them or where he stored
them,” she said. “Maybe
this will reinvigorate our
search.”
———
Contact George Plaven
at 541-966-0825.
would drill, could be used
to irrigate the RV park and
surrounding green space.
“We would do the
legwork, we would drill the
well, create the new sewer
structure, and then we
would hand it over to the
city. They would all become
city assets,” he said.
The city would have to
take on the responsibility
of maintenance, he said, but
would also double its sewer
and water revenue once the
project was finished.
The Madisons do not
currently own the 132-acre
dryland wheat parcel in
question, but it is for sale.
They said if Echo supports
their vision, they are willing
to buy the whole tract,
develop the RV park and
start recruiting a hotel and
other companies to develop
the rest. But the Madisons
won’t buy the property until
they’re sure the project,
including sewer and water
improvements, will pencil
out financially and have the
support of the city.
“If the public of Echo is
adamantly opposed to it, we
have better things to do,”
Madison said. “We don’t
want to fight you all the
way.”
He said the project
would
need
annexed
into the city. He has also
been discussing with the
Oregon Department of
Transportation the need to
turn Thielsen Road into a
three-lane highway with a
frontage road to handle the
increased traffic.
Members of the public
who came to hear Madi-
son’s presentation had
concerns and questions
about the development’s
impact on Echo’s quality of
life and on property values.
Craig Cooley, a resident
of Echo Heights near the
proposed
development,
said he and his wife had
concerns about noise from
the amphitheater and about
0 %
APR
for 60 mo.
TRANSPORTATION: Plan would
raise title and registrations fees by $40
Continued from 1A
Highland Avenue to Geer
Road, creating an alternative
to Highway 395 and placing
traffic signals at First Place’s
intersection with Highland
and with Orchard avenues.
The Orchard intersection in
particular creates a major
bottleneck blocking the fire
station and police department
when school is getting out in
the afternoons.
“That’s going to take
a lot of design work and
creativity,” Morgan said.
He said it was a “really
demoralizing defeat” for the
city to be told in the past that
there weren’t enough Oregon
Department of Transportation
funds available for Region
5 (covering most of Eastern
Oregon) to fund even a
portion of the project.
As legislators craft the
transportation package they
hope to pass before the end
of the 2017 session, they are
working off of a $5 billion
wish list compiled from cities,
counties and state agencies.
The list includes pavement
and bridge repairs, widening
existing roads and bridges,
new streets and seismic
upgrades.
The three biggest traffic
congestion-relief
projects
the Joint Committee on
Transportation Preservation
and Modernization is looking
to fund are $450 million for
an overhaul for I-5 near the
Rose Quarter, $450 million
to widen I-205 in Clackamas
County and $98 million for
Highway 217.
Portlanders will see the
biggest effects from those
projects, but the city will be
expected to front half the
cost, and residents will also
contribute more toward the
transportation package via a
series of tolls the state plans
to implement around the
metro area as one of pack-
age’s revenue streams.
And, as Rep. Greg Smith
(R-Heppner) pointed out in
a committee work session
Wednesday, getting freight
trucks through the Portland
area faster does benefit
Eastern Oregon too.
“If we can clear out that
bottleneck at I-5, you help the
Port of Morrow and Port of
Umatilla boom,” he told the
group.
In addition to Port-
land-area tolls and raising
the gas tax, the plan being
compiled by the committee
would also add a 0.1 percent
payroll tax, increase title fees
by $40, increase registration
fees by $40, add a 5 percent
tax on new bicycle sales and a
1 percent tax on new vehicle
sales.
A report put out by the
Association of Oregon
Counties estimates the new
transportation package would
result in Umatilla County
receiving about $19.4 million
in new revenue over the
course of five years, assuming
the state continues to send 20
percent of the gas tax revenue
to counties. According to
what the county provided to
AOC, about $12 million of
that would likely go toward
pavement
preservation.
The rest would go toward
repairing the county’s 20
bridges deemed “structurally
deficient,” maintaining the
county’s 904 miles of gravel
roads and repairing storm
damage.
The Joint Committee on
Transportation Preservation
and Modernization plans to
examine a draft of the trans-
portation package put together
by legislative council during
a May 31 work session, with
the legislature voting on the
bill sometime in June.
———
Contact Jade McDowell at
jmcdowell@eastoregonian.
com or 541-564-4536.
LET US MEAT
YOUR NEEDS
the new well’s impact on
their own water supply.
Others echoed that concern
and added their own worries
about parking, traffic and
that a light industrial project
could bring nuisances along
with it.
“How much collateral
damage will there be?”
Cooley asked.
Madison said there could
be noise ordinances put into
place to make sure sound
from the amphitheater
wasn’t overly burdensome
on neighbors. He said the
well, at 1,500 feet, would
be deep enough that it
“theoretically wouldn’t be
touching your aquifer.”
City Manager Diane
Berry said the city would
have control over issuing
conditional use permits for
any light industrial projects.
After residents ques-
tioned the need for an RV
park and hotel in the small
city, Laura Madison said
the park would not include
long-term
leases
and
permanent residents, but
would instead provide 80 to
100 pull-through spaces for
people traveling with RVs
or multiple vehicles.
“There really is a need
for large RV spaces,” she
said.
During the meeting’s
public comments section
Jason Sperr, a city councilor
for neighboring Stanfield,
said the project sounded
like it could be a “great
opportunity” for the area.
He said Stanfield city
leaders had been discussing
Echo’s sewer issue and the
possible
condemnation
of the Yunker property,
and said Stanfield has the
capacity to take in Echo’s
recycled water. He said
the city would be willing
to start conversations with
Echo about the feasibility,
and would likely be able to
offer a reduced rate.
“It’s something we’ve
considered, and we do feel
like we could help out,” he
said.
on 13 different
2017 models
2017 Prius
rius
ck
Liftback
2017 Corolla
2017 RAV4
also incl
includes
udes
d
2017 Corolla iM
2017 Camry
2017 Camry Hybrid
2017 Prius c
2017 Prius v
2017 Avalon
2017 Avalon Hybrid
2017 Yaris iA
2017 Sienna
2017 RAV4 Hybrid
Or take advantage of special leases
on nearly every model!
2017 Camry SE
/mo
$ 179
$ 159 /mo
2017 Corolla LE
for 36 mos.
for 36 mos.
$ 19
199 /mo
2017 RAV4 LE
f for 36 mos.
BBQ season in fast approaching. Call today
to order your X-tra thick steaks for grilling!
If you order in time you can even have them
for the weekends!
541.567.2011
253 W. Hermiston Ave.
Hermiston
Every new Toyota comes with
(541) 567-6461 or 800-522-2308
ToyotaOfHermiston.com
All financing on approved credit through TFS. All vehicles subject to prior sale.
All prices plus tax and title. $75 dealer doc fee. Offers end 5/31/17.
For more details call 1-888-21-TOYOTA.
Mon - Fri 8:30a - 7:00p
Saturday 8:30a - 7:00p
Sunday 10:00a - 5:00p