CONGRATULATIONS
CLASS OF 2017
SPECIAL SECTION INSIDE
67/45
WEDNESDAY, MAY 24, 2017
141st Year, No. 157
One dollar
WINNER OF THE 2016 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD
Water project crumbles for Westland
Irrigation district drains
years of work due to suit
By GEORGE PLAVEN
East Oregonian
The Westland Irrigation
District is abandoning years
of work to secure additional
water from the Columbia
River in order to defend
a lawsuit filed by patrons
alleging “massive misap-
propriation” of senior water
rights.
Farmers reacted with
surprise and disappointment
Monday during a special
district board meeting, where
members voted unanimously
to back out of the Central
Project — one of three
proposals to pump mitigated
Columbia River irrigation
water in Umatilla and
Morrow counties.
Unlike the neighboring
Stanfield and Hermiston
irrigation districts, Westland
does not have the ability to
switch over to Columbia
River water when flows
from the Umatilla River
drop below a certain point
in the summer. That means
the district depends entirely
on Mother Nature, as well
as stored water in McKay
Reservoir.
Riding the momentum
of a regional effort led by
the Northeast Oregon Water
Association, or NOWA,
Westland had sought to
tap into the Columbia and
guarantee a full irrigation
season for producers. It even
appeared the district was on
the verge of a deal, holding
weekly meetings with patrons
to iron out legal and logistical
details moving forward.
Instead,
the
Central
Project fell apart over a
lawsuit accusing Westland of
systematically cheating small
farmers out of their senior
water rights for the benefit
of a few larger farms with
junior rights. The case, which
was originally tossed from
federal court, will proceed
in Umatilla County Circuit
Court after Judge Michael
Gillespie denied the district’s
motion to dismiss last week.
A trial will likely be sched-
uled in the next six to nine
months, according to West-
land board chairman Bob
Levy. And though Levy said
he is confident the district will
prevail, he felt it was unfair
See WATER/10A
BMCC pool
could close
for good on
June 2
By East Oregonian
A large leak in Blue
Mountain
Community
College’s swimming pool
may force the college to
permanently close the pool
a year early.
The college considered
closing the ailing pool in
the spring 2016, but after
gathering public input and
working with local swim
teams agreed to keep it
open through 2018. But
vice president of commu-
nications Casey White-
Zollman said a “significant
leak” has been discovered
that could be too costly to
repair.
The college drains the
pool for maintenance each
summer after the high
schools and the Pendleton
Swim Association finish
their season. This year’s
closure is set for June 2.
White-Zollman said at that
point a contractor will be
able to fully assess the leak
and give the college an
estimate on repairs.
The agreement between
BMCC, Hermiston High
School, Pendleton High
School and Pendleton
Swim Association included
$25,000 from the college
and $25,000 split between
the other swim teams for
maintenance over the two
extra years of operation.
But White-Zollman said
a clause in the agreement
would allow the college
to close the pool early if
needed repairs exceed that
amount.
She said BMCC has
kept all three swim teams
apprised of the latest
development and they will
know more after the pool is
drained June 2. The college
is not currently scheduling
swim classes for the fall.
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Ken and Stacey Jacobs of Pendleton portray the letters Q and U in a marriage ceremony on Tuesday at the Pendleton Early
Learning Center. The learning center hosted the wedding to teach students the spelling rule involving the two letters.
Students hold quaint wedding ceremony
for two letters that love to couple up
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
It was a love for the ages.
Having known each other for
millennia, the letters Q and U have
been frequent partners since they
were incorporated into the English
alphabet during the Middle Ages.
But it took the work of the
Pendleton Early Learning Center to
bring them together in wedded bliss
Tuesday morning.
Jan Levy, one of the wedding
planners and a kindergarten teacher,
said she and a few colleagues got
the idea to hold nuptials for Q and
U from a kindergarten blog they
frequented.
They held a small ceremony for
the letters in their classrooms last
year before deciding this year to
make it a school-wide event, part of
an alphabetic countdown to the last
day of school.
Q — portrayed by Ken Jacobs
— wore a blue shirt, slacks, and
sneakers. U — portrayed by Ken’s
See WEDDING/10A
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Ken and Stacey Jacobs do the “Chicken Dance” with
kindergartners on Tuesday at the Pendleton Early
Learning Center.
Inking out a plan
Students celebrate
higher education
with signing day
By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN
East Oregonian
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Umatilla senior Steven Ebker holds up a sign declaring his
intentions to attend Oregon State University, during a signing day
ceremony for all seniors attending post-high school education on
Tuesday at Umatilla High School.
Students from Umatilla High
School got a glimpse of what
the future can look like during
the second annual “signing day,”
honoring its graduating seniors who
will pursue higher education.
All of Umatilla’s seniors who
will attend college, trade school
or the enlist in the military were
acknowledged, with each intro-
ducing themselves and telling the
school what their plans were for
next year.
As they did, the rest of the
student body as well as seventh and
eighth graders listened, and were
encouraged to think about what they
will say to the school when their
turn comes.
“This is the culmination of the
long-term approach to student
success post-high school,” said
Umatilla Superintendent Heidi Sipe.
Sipe said last year 41 percent of
Umatilla’s graduates pursued higher
education, and the previous few
years saw numbers in the low 40s
as well.
“This is a tremendous group,”
See SCHOOL/10A