Page 8A
OFF PAGE ONE
East Oregonian
Friday, July 6, 2018
Fireworks return to Pendleton
Staff photo by E.J. Harris
Rigo Garcia, owner of Tacos Garcia, serves customers
at his food truck Thursday in Hermiston.
TRUCKS: Most closed
due to onerous regulations
Continued from 1A
Staff photo by Kathy Aney
Fireworks lit up the sky Wednesday night in Pendleton.
Criss, Carrie
and Jordan
Jenkins set
up their
lawn chairs
on a prime
piece of lawn
almost two
hours before
the Pendle-
ton fireworks
show began.
The Jenkins
were visiting
from Meridi-
an, Idaho.
Staff photo by
Kathy Aney
GLARE: ODOT, FAA signed off on project
Continued from 1A
the reflectivity of residen-
tial and commercial reflec-
tive surfaces. We are cur-
rently working with a third
party consulting partner to
further analyze the project’s
reflective light and take the
appropriate mitigation mea-
sures if necessary. Cypress
Creek is 100 percent com-
mitted to ensuring we follow
any and all safety measures
on our projects. It’s our top
priority.”
McKay’s
comments
about photovoltaic panels
are echoed by a 2014 study
on solar panels commis-
sioned by the U.S. Depart-
ment of Energy.
The study states that it’s
“a common misconception”
that solar panels are a safety
risk or nuisance to air pilots
and citizens.
While the study con-
cedes that “certain situa-
tions” might produce glint
or glare, photovoltaic panels
are designed to reflect ”as lit-
tle as two percent of incom-
ing sunlight.”
Chrisman said the Federal
Aviation Administration and
the Oregon Department of
Transportation signed off on
the project when it started.
Through its subsidiary
NorWest 9, Cypress Creek
Renewables started build-
ing the 6-megawatt, 58-acre
solar farm in May.
In development since
2014, the power generated
by the solar farm will be sold
to Pacific Power.
The Santa Monica, Cali-
fornia-based company oper-
ates 70 solar arrays across
seven states, including Ore-
gon, Idaho, North Caro-
lina, South Carolina, Geor-
gia, Indiana and Minnesota,
according to the Cypress
Creek website.
Not including the in-prog-
ress Pendleton facility, the
company’s Oregon arrays
generate more than 78 mega-
watts across seven facilities
in Bend, Nyssa, Ontario and
Vale.
———
Contact Antonio Sierra at
asierra@eastoregonian.com
or 541-966-0836.
SWEETNESS: Typical growing season this year
Continued from 1A
Watermelons absorb heat
during the day, which the
plants metabolize into sugar
for energy.
Once they cool off at
night, the respiration pro-
cess slows down and all
that sugar gets stored in the
fruit, hence their exception-
ally sweet flavor.
Walchli said this year has
been a mostly typical grow-
ing season, compared to last
year when planting got off
to a slow start.
“Last season, we had a
colder start and this year we
had a more favorable May
and end of April,” he said.
“It’s hard to predict. Mel-
ons are very reactive to the
weather, more so than some
of the other crops.”
Scott Lukas, assistant
professor of horticulture
for Oregon State Univer-
sity, recently started a new
research program at OSU’s
Hermiston
Agricultural
Research and Extension
Center with a partial focus
on watermelons. He said
growers have reported few
issues with disease pres-
sure, and for the most part
the vines have been grow-
ing well.
“This has been a good
season so far,” Lukas said.
“I’ve heard the plants are
looking good, and they are
growing as they should.”
Hired by HAREC in
2016, Lukas has spent the
last couple of years study-
ing treatments for soil-
borne fusarium and ver-
ticillium wilt diseases in
watermelons.
He plans to expand
his program next year to
include more irrigation tri-
als using remote sensors
to monitor soil moisture,
and help farmers conserve
water.
Precision agriculture and
modern technology have led
to increased yields which in
turn has helped to expand
markets for Hermiston
watermelons throughout the
region, said Chris McNa-
mee, a sales representative
for Botsford & Goodfellow.
Based in Clackamas
with a field office in Herm-
iston, Botsford & Goodfel-
low handles all marketing
for Hermiston watermel-
ons. McNamee said water-
melon sales have increased
every year for the last five
years, and the Hermiston
brand has become firmly
established in major metro
areas including Portland
and Seattle.
“They’ve supported us
really well,” McNamee
said. “It’s allowed us to
grow, which is great.”
In 2012, Florida, Geor-
gia, California and Texas
accounted for two-thirds
of all watermelon produc-
tion across the country.
Though Hermiston may
account for just a blip on the
national watermelon radar,
McNamee said they are
undeniably popular in the
Northwest.
“They get the sugar right,
and they get them picked at
the right time,” he said. “It
stands out compared to the
competition.”
Jack Bellinger, with
Bellinger Farms, said he
has already cut about a
dozen watermelons off the
vine and is excited about
this year’s quality, which
he attributes to a consistent
growing season.
“People are getting
excited to see them on
their plates. And we are
excited too,” Bellinger
said. “The quality this year
I think is going to be really
exceptional.”
In recent years food
trucks have gained in pop-
ularity nationwide, and the
city has decided to recon-
sider its mobile food vend-
ing ordinance, particularly
in regards to the three-li-
cense limit. A survey about
food trucks is available on
the city’s website until July
15.
Garcia said people may
have pushed for an ordi-
nance because there is a
stereotype that food trucks
are dirty and unsafe, but he
buys high-quality ingredi-
ents and follows the same
food-handling guidelines as
restaurants.
“Some people think the
taco trucks are dirty, but
I’m very clean, person-
ally,” he said. “I cook fresh
meat every day. I clean the
grill every day. I love my
customers.”
Not everyone is unhappy
with the current rules. Tacos
Paricutin, often parked
behind Cottage Flowers, is
one of the trucks that chose
to remain open after the
2013 regulations were put
in place. Maricela Medrano,
who was serving up tacos
to customers on Thursday
afternoon, said her parents
have run the business for
24 years and didn’t have an
issue applying for a license
and complying with city
regulations.
They hadn’t had to make
many changes, and hadn’t
been interested in providing
seating anyway.
“Everything’s good,” she
said, shrugging.
Hermiston’s
current
mobile food vendors are
all taco trucks, but that
wasn’t always the case. Pat-
rick Hunt, who operates the
Southern Twain BBQ truck
in Pendleton, said he would
love to bring some more
diversity back to Hermis-
ton’s food truck scene.
Hunt, who lives in Herm-
iston, said he applied for
a license at city hall a cou-
ple of years ago but was told
that all of the licenses were
taken. So he started his busi-
ness in Pendleton instead.
“I didn’t really want to
leave Hermiston, because
that’s where I’m at and peo-
ple know me, but I was kind
of forced to,” he said.
Originally from North
Carolina, Hunt brings his
East Coast roots to his bar-
becuing, and his brisket
reflects time he spent in
Texas. He moved to Oregon
to work on wind turbines
and began sharing his cook-
ing with coworkers, which
he eventually decided to turn
into a career.
“I was raised to cook
BBQ as a celebratory thing,”
he said. “I like to see people
happy. I’m not going to be a
millionaire off a food truck,
but you get people together
and help them be happy.”
Hunt said he would love
to see Hermiston change its
rules, and would be inter-
ested in starting a second
location there.
“I don’t think it would be
right, just because Hermis-
ton changed its rules, to take
this food away from Pendle-
ton. I’m not that kind of per-
son,” he said. “But I would
be looking for a second
unit.”
He said he believes
Hermiston should start a
food truck “pod” where sev-
eral trucks could park at
once (something one of the
city’s survey questions asks
about) or a regular “food
truck night” that could bring
in vendors from around the
region. Walla Walla already
has a food truck night, he
said, and other nearby cities
are considering food truck
pods.
“I want to make sure
Hermiston knows if they
don’t jump on the wagon,
other towns will,” he said.
When most of Hermis-
ton’s food trucks closed up
shop or moved their busi-
ness elsewhere in 2013,
Tacos Xavi owners Gabri-
ela Rodriguez and Luis Diaz
were one of the few that did
apply for a license.
Rodriguez said they had
to make some adjustments to
their truck and their business
after the city adopted regula-
tions, but they had decided it
was worth it to do what they
needed to continue operat-
ing in Hermiston.
“We live from that,” she
said of the business. “It’s our
income.”
They have operated since
2010, first as a trailer on
Main Street and then as a
truck behind Payless Shoes.
Diaz said they have grown
during that time, adding two
employees and expanding
their offerings from three
meats to eight. They also
serve food at local events
like Cinco de Mayo, Funfest
and the Fourth of July cele-
bration at Butte Park.
He said they had looked
into setting up a sit-down
restaurant, but their custom-
ers tend to be people who
have 30 minutes for lunch
and are looking to grab
something quickly and be
on their way. A food truck is
more conducive to that.
“People want their food
fast,” he said.
———
Contact Jade McDowell
at jmcdowell@eastorego-
nian.com or 541-564-4536.
Food truck survey online
The city of Hermiston is considering changes to
its mobile food vendor ordinance and is conducting a
survey.
The survey is available in English and Spanish on
the city’s website at hermiston.or.us until July 15.
Residents can give feedback on the number of
licenses for food vendors, the idea of a food truck pod,
whether smaller food carts like hot dog stands should
be allowed and whether the city should issue tempo-
rary licenses.
EPA: Former coal industry lobbyist Andrew Wheeler to be new agency head
Continued from 1A
for Pruitt’s resignation.
“Scott is a terrific guy,”
Trump said. “He came to me
and said I have such great
confidence in the adminis-
tration I don’t want to be a
distraction. ... He’ll go and
do great things and have a
wonderful life, I hope.”
In his resignation let-
ter to Trump, obtained by
The Associated Press, Pruitt
expressed no regrets.
“It is extremely diffi-
cult for me to cease serving
you in this role first because
I count it a blessing to be
serving you in any capac-
ity, but also, because of the
transformative work that is
occurring,” Pruitt wrote.
Pruitt, a Republican,
had appeared Wednesday
at a White House picnic for
Independence Day, wearing
a red-checked shirt and loaf-
ers with gold trim. Trump
gave him and other officials
a brief shout-out, offering
no sign of any immediate
change in his job.
EPA Deputy Administra-
tor Andrew Wheeler, a for-
mer coal lobbyist, will take
the helm as acting adminis-
trator starting Monday.
Pruitt’s resignation came
days after two of his clos-
est advisers spoke to House
oversight committee inves-
tigators and revealed new,
embarrassing details in eth-
ics scandals involving Pruitt.
Samantha Dravis, who
recently resigned as Pruitt’s
policy chief, told investiga-
tors last week that Pruitt had
made clear to her before and
after he became EPA admin-
istrator that he would like
the attorney general’s job,
held then and now by Jeff
Sessions.
Pruitt “had hinted at that
(sic) some sort of conversa-
tion had taken place between
he and the president,” Dra-
vis told investigators.