Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (March 27, 2018)
REGION Tuesday, March 27, 2018 East Oregonian HERMISTON BRIEFLY Speed reduced on Westland during Lamb Weston construction By PHIL WRIGHT East Oregonian Lamb Weston’s $250 million expansion along Westland Road, Hermiston, is bringing tempo- rary speed reductions through the construction zone. The project will take more than a year to complete and employ as many as 500 construction workers. Tom Fellows, director of Umatilla County Public Works Depart- ment, told the county board of commissioners last Wednesday that Lamb Weston is seeking temporary speed reductions for the safety of workers and the driving public. PBS Engineering and Environmental of Vancouver, Washington, conducted a traffic study on the area and came up with three safety suggestions, which Fellows presented to the county board: • a temporary traffic signal at the intersection of Westland and Cottonwood Bend roads for the duration of the construction project, which ends no later than March 31, 2019; • reducing the speed in the construction zone from 55 mph to 45 mph until April 1, 2019; • and widening to add a second turn lane on Cottonwood Bend Road at Westwood Road. The traffic study estimated 520 vehicles on Cottonwood Bend at peak times during construction and 940 vehicles per hour. Those numbers meet the criteria for a traffic light according to “The Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices,” the Federal Highway Administration’s publication that sets standards for traffic lights and more. The county uses the manual in making road safety decisions. Fellows said the contractors would like the light in place as soon as possible, and the tempo- rary reduction in speed requires board approval. The board approved the slower speed. Commissioner Larry Givens said he has been on Westland and had drivers “blow by me.” Commissioner Bill Elfering said a number of constituents would like to see Westland Road permanently cut back to 45 mph. Fellows said the county can ask the Oregon Department of Transportation to study the matter. He said the county board may have the authority to make a permanent speed zone, but that could open the county to certain liabilities. County counsel Doug Olsen told commissioners that going through the state removes that liability. HERMISTON By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN East Oregonian Contributed photo The Highland Hills Battle of the Books team won first place at the regional com- petition, and will go to State in Salem next month. The team includes fifth-graders Alea Garrett, Reagan Stanek, Avena Garrett and Hailey Magallanes. “All five of the Hermiston teams scored really well in pool play,” she said. Middle and high school teams Livestock district near Hermiston goes to vote HERMISTON — More than 160 residents near Hermiston will get to vote on forming a new livestock district. The Umatilla County Board of Commissioners last Wednesday approved putting the matter to a vote of the public, according to county records. Several residents in the area petitioned the county to create the district to keep open range cattle from coming onto their property. Commissioners George Murdock and Larry Givens said they visited the 2,000-acre site for the district north of Hermiston on the Columbia River, which also includes portions of Hat Rock State Park. Commissioner Bill Elfering said he was familiar with the area, and he was inclined to let the people decide the matter. He moved to put it on a ballot, and Givens gave the second. All three voted in favor. County counsel Doug Olsen said the elections division reported any Tuesday in April is available for the election, with April 17 offering probably adequate time. He also said the elections department will mail ballots to the 166 active voters in the district. Local schools score with Trail Blazer grants Highland Hills team wins Battle of the Books competition Knowledge is power, and Hermiston students will wield that power next month at the statewide Battle of the Books competition in Salem. After competing against several other schools at a regional competi- tion last weekend, Hermiston’s Highland Hills Elementary School team came out victorious, taking first place from a pool of 18 schools throughout Eastern Oregon. Rocky Heights’ team placed second. Kristi Smalley, the Hermiston School District elementary schools librarian, said the top two Hermiston teams faced each other in the finals at Hermiston High School last Saturday, but only the first-place team will go to state. Last year, she said, the Rocky Heights team finished first and went to state. After competing at in-school competitions for the first half of the year, each Hermiston school sent a team to the regional competition to face off against teams from as far away as Jordan Valley and Vale, Smalley said. Page 3A competed at the tournament, too, but Smalley said no Hermiston teams placed at those levels. Melissa Garrett, the Highland Hills coach and mother of two of the four students on the winning team, said third- through fifth- grade students across the state are assigned 16 books at the beginning of the year. Those books vary in subject, spanning fiction and nonfiction genres. “They make teams from each school, and are asked questions about different things,” she said. “Each school has a competition, and from each school, teams go to regionals.” Garrett said all of Hermiston’s elementary schools had teams at the regional competition. The first-place team included four fifth-graders from Highland Hills: Alea and Avena Garrett, Hailey Magallanes and Reagan Stanek. Garrett said the students are quizzed on the same books at all levels of competition. “The questions they ask just get harder,” she said. The team will travel to Salem on April 7 for the state competi- tion, and face 23 other schools. PORTLAND — Schools in Condon, Elgin, Hermiston and Monument received grants for thousands of dollars each from the Take It To the Court for Education program. Condon Grade School received $7,000 to purchase laptops and printers for fifth through eighth grade classrooms. Elgin High School received $5,000 to replace the gym bleachers. Armand Larive Middle School, Hermiston, received $4,600 to purchase technology and equipment for the visual arts/ journalism program. And Monument School received $2,000 to pay for a week-long residency of theatre educators, which will result in a student production open to members of the community to attend. The Trail Blazers Foundation and Wells Fargo awarded the grants March 17 at the Moda Center arena, Portland, according to a news release from Wells Fargo, The grants in all totaled $110,000 and benefited 24 schools in Oregon and southwest Washington. Heppner man to change pleas in four theft and fraud cases HEPPNER — Kyler Douglas Dial of Heppner goes to court this week to change his plea on multiple cases of theft and fraud. The Morrow County District Attorney’s Office charged Dial, 28, in three separate cases, according to court records. The state alleges Dial in 2017 in one case committed eight counts each of identity theft and second-degree forgery and one charge of second-degree theft. In the second case, the state charged Dial with 15 counts of negotiating a bad check and two counts of first-degree theft for stealing $1,000 or more from Devin Oil and/or the Heppner Shell Station and at least another $1,000 from the Bank of Eastern Oregon. And in the last case, the state charges Dial with a lone count of second-degree theft for stealing a chainsaw in June 2017. Dial’s hearing to change his not guilty pleas in each case is Thursday morning in circuit court in Heppner. Then Friday afternoon in circuit court in Pendleton, Dial has a hearing to change his plea on first-degree theft and two counts of negotiating a bad check. Court records show the Umatilla County District Attorney’s Office accused Dial of committing the crimes in December 2016. Stanfield taking applications for council vacancy STANFIELD — The Stanfield City Council has a vacancy. The city will take applications until April 13 for appointment to the city council seat formerly held by Pam McSpadden, who died Feb. 28. To apply, send a letter of interest to Stanfield City Hall by April 13. Candidates are also asked to attend the April 17 city council meeting, where the council plans to appoint someone to fill the remainder of McSpadden’s term. Applicants must have resided in Stanfield for at least two years and be a registered voter. McSpadden was a city councilor for over a decade and volunteered at the Stanfield Senior Center and the Food Basket, Stanfield’s food bank for those in need. Schedule changed for April 11 candidate forum HERMISTON — The schedule for the April 11 candidate forum hosted by the Greater Hermiston Area Chamber of Commerce and KOHU & The Q has been changed. The forum is Wednesday, April 11 at Armand Larive Middle School, 1497 S.W. Ninth St., Hermiston and will begin at 5:30 p.m. with refreshments and a chance to mingle with candidates for the Hermiston City Council and Umatilla County Board of Commissioners. Board of commissioner candidates are now scheduled to speak first, at 6 p.m., followed by a short break and then speeches from council candidates. State appeals ruling that blocked sentencing reform By PARIS ACHEN Capital Bureau SALEM — The state’s appeal of a Clackamas County Circuit Court deci- sion to block sentencing reforms passed in 2017 could soon be headed to the Oregon Supreme Court. Clackamas County District Attorney John Foote and two crime victims from Oregon City and Sandy sued the state in November to stop enforcement of House Bill 3078. The bill reduced sentences for identity theft and first-de- gree theft and intended to help reduce the number of women sent to prison and avoid the expense of opening a second women’s prison. A panel of Clackamas Circuit Court judges on Feb. 22 ruled that the legislation was unconstitutional because it was passed with only a simple majority vote. The mandatory sentences for those crimes were approved by voters in 2008 via Measure 57. The Oregon Constitution requires at least a two-thirds majority vote by each chamber of the Legisla- tive Assembly to change the voter-approved sentences, the court ruled. The Oregon Department of Justice filed a notice of its intent to appeal the ruling March 15. During the 2018 legis- lative session, lawmakers passed another bill, Senate bill 1543, that was intended to hasten the case to the Oregon Supreme Court. Lawmakers said they wanted a quick ruling on the case so they could ensure sentencing uniformity between counties and to prepare for any increase or decrease in the prison population as a result of the court’s decision. Foote and the other plaintiffs filed a {obj:30168} March 16 in the Court of Appeals to certify the case to the Oregon Supreme Court. “(T)he judgment is of concern to a great many people — not just people charged with identity theft and theft I, but also their lawyers and prosecutors, and the judges hearing their cases,” wrote Thomas Christ, the plaintiffs’ attorney. “Taxpayers, too, are concerned, because the sentencing reductions in (House Bill) 3078 were intended to reduce incarcera- tions and thus save the state from the cost of building a new women’s prison.” The Department of Justice “does not object to that request because the challenges to the constitutionality of (House Bill) 3078 have created a situation where criminal sentences may be different from county to county,” said DOJ spokesman Kristina Edmunson. A defendant in Clackamas County and other counties may receive a longer sentence than they likely would in counties that have not found the legislation to be unconsti- tutional, Edmunson said. “This creates a system of justice where the duration of a criminal sentence will depend not on the severity of the criminal conduct but on the judge’s perception of the constitutionality of the underlying statute,” she said. “This exceptional situation warrants immediate review by our highest court to avoid the unfairness of any uncer- tainty around the appropriate sentence.” Senate Bill 1543 provides 3/23-27 Cineplex Show Times $5 Classic Movie • 3/28 • 12:00 PM Outsmart Mother Nature With: PaƟo Covers · Pergolas · PaƟo & Sunrooms Awnings · Screen Rooms Sun/Solar Shades · Screens & More! 10 % OFF Beat The Rush Sale! Expires 3/31/18 541-720-0772 FREE No Obligation Estimates! www.mybackyardbydesign.com My Neighbor Totoro Pacific Rim: Uprising (PG13) 11:50* 2:20* 7:20 • 3D: 4:50 9:50 Sherlock Gnomes (PG) 12:00* 4:30 6:40 • 3D 2:00* 9:20 * Matinee Pricing Pendleton, OR I-84 - Exit 216 description. In fact, it’s the only one that does, and prob- ably ever will,” Christ wrote. That bill still needs Gov. Kate Brown’s signature to become law. Heart Hap y KINDNESS • JOY • HEALTH • LAUGHTER • MUSIC Paint & Sip Friday, March 30 at 5:30 p.m. Come join us at McKay Creek Estates for our monthly Paint & Sip activity. We provide all the materials you need to paint a fun painting. There will light refreshments, including wine and beer, as well as a variety of sodas and bottled water. Cost: $20 for non-residents. FREE for residents. Please call (541) 276-1987 for more information or to RSVP. Spots are limited. A Wrinkle In Time (PG) 11:40* 2:10* 4:40 7:10 9:40 Black Panther (PG13) 1:00* 4:00 7:00 10:00 provision of the Oregon Constitution. The court “shall, to the extent practi- cable, expedite its disposition of” such appeals. “This case meets that MCKAY CREEK ESTATES Tomb Raider (PG13) 1:30* 4:10 6:50 9:30 wildhorseresort.com • 541-966-1850 License #188965 that the Supreme Court has jurisdiction to decide in any civil appeal filed between Jan. 1 and April 1 whether the sentencing reforms in House Bill 3078 violate any McKay Creek Estates 1601 Southgate Place Pendleton, OR 97801
