OH GOD,
HAGFISH
EVERYWHERE
NORTHWEST/2A
OH NO,
CRICKETS
TOO
NATION/10A
FRIDAY, JULY 14, 2017
141st Year, No. 194
Your Weekend
•
•
National Ice Cream Day
Event at SAGE Center
Solar eclipses lecture
at the Prodigal Son
WINNER OF THE 2016 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD
One dollar
ONE MORE NIGHT
Pendleton prepares for whisky music fest weekend
For times and places
see Coming Events, 3A
Weekend Weather
Fri
Sat
Sun
96/63
95/59
85/51
Wind
farm to
change
hands
Wheatridge rights sold
to Florida company
By GEORGE PLAVEN
East Oregonian
On the brink of construc-
tion, a 292-turbine wind
farm slated for Umatilla and
Morrow counties is changing
hands.
NextEra Energy, based
in Juno Beach, Florida, has
purchased the development
rights for the Wheatridge
Wind Energy Facility and
is now working to transfer
the project’s site certifi cate
through the Oregon Depart-
ment of Energy.
Wheatridge
was
pioneered by Ione farmer
Jerry Rietmann before the
facility sold to NextEra
in April, according to
documents. One month
later, the Energy Facility
Siting Council issued its
site certifi cate for the wind
farm, giving developers the
go-ahead to start building.
A request to transfer the
certifi cate from Swaggart
Wind Power LLC to NextEra
Energy was fi led June 14.
But fi rst, an informational
hearing will be held before
the council Thursday, July
27 at the Best Western Plus
Inn in Hood River.
Rietmann
did
not
return calls for comment.
A spokesman for NextEra
See WIND/10A
Staff photo by Kathy Aney
Crews transform a semi-truck into a sound stage on Thursday morning at the Round-Up Grounds in preparation for Saturday’s Pendleton
Whisky Music Fest. The process took several hours.
Large crowds expected for sold out Maroon 5 performance
“You need to have
some connections in
this industry to get
the big acts.”
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
Bob Romeo wanted Doug Corey
to meet someone.
Corey was in Cheyenne,
Wyoming, with the Round-Up Court
for Frontier Days, and the promoter
wanted to introduce the Eastern
Oregon contingent to a musical act
he booked for the rodeo.
This was as the young musician
was becoming the best-selling solo
album artist in the United States,
going from a bar singer in Oklahoma
to one of the biggest names in country
music — Garth Brooks.
Corey and Romeo formed a
working relationship after that, with
the Romeo Entertainment Group
eventually booking acts for the
Round-Up kickoff concert.
When Corey and business owner
Andy McAnally decided to start the
Pendleton Whisky Music Fest, they
turned to the promotion agency to
help them book the talent.
Corey’s connection to Romeo is
paying especially big dividends for
the second annual whisky fest, which
is attracting an audience to match the
city of Pendleton’s population to see
— Doug Corey, co-creator of
the Pendleton Whisky Music Fest
Staff photo by Kathy Aney
Crew members set up the sound stage Thursday morning at the
Round-Up Grounds in preparation for Saturday’s Pendleton Whisky
Music Fest.
headliners Maroon 5.
“You need to have some connec-
tions in this industry to get the big
acts,” Corey said.
McAnally announced Wednesday
that Whisky Fest was offi cially sold
out and had sold 30 percent more
tickets than it had the year before
for the Zac Brown Band-headlined
concert.
With the talent booked and ready
to go, Corey and McAnally will rely
on another hired hand to handle the
production.
Production manager Johnny
Setser traveled from Pueblo, Colo-
rado, to coordinate the set-up and
tear-down of the show. A longtime
member of the industry, Setser said
he oversees productions around the
country, including the Academy of
Country Music Awards.
Looking out onto the verdant
grass of the Round-Up Arena, Setser
said the venue shouldn’t pose any
major challenges to staging a large-
scale concert.
See MUSIC/10A
Free summer meals program keep children fed, active
Averaging 55 lunches
per day all summer long
By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN
East Oregonian
Staff photo by Jayati Ramakrishnan
Alfredo Mendez, 4, enjoys some carrots at the Umatilla-Morrow
County Head Start summer lunch program.
School doesn’t start up again for
more than a month, but students and
families still can access free meals
and activities around Umatilla and
Morrow counties, thanks to several
summer meals programs throughout
the area.
Umatilla-Morrow County Head
Start offers meals Monday through
Friday, serving an average of 55
lunches per day to students all
summer long.
Four-year-old Alfredo Mendez
was enjoying carrots and a banana
at lunch on Thursday, but said he
was most excited about something
else.
“I’m coming to get a toy,” he
said, beaming.
The students get a punch card
and receive a toy if they return for
fi ve meals.
People come to the free meals
for lots of reasons: to get a balanced
meal, to give their kids a chance
to socialize, or to do the activities
many of the free lunch venues
provide.
“This year, we added a new side,
having activities with the meals,”
said Rikkilyn Larsen, the child
nutrition director for the Umatilla
School District. Four locations in
Umatilla offer meals throughout
the week and one, McNary Heights
See MEALS/10A