Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (July 20, 2018)
REGION Friday, July 20, 2018 California man sentenced to prison for Umatilla Indian Reservation shooting East Oregonian A California man was sentenced Thursday for a March 2016 fatal shoot- ing on the Umatilla Indian Reservation. Victor Joseph Contreras, 23, will serve 150 months in federal prison. In July 2017 he pleaded guilty to one count of assault resulting in serious bodily injury and one count of pos- on people leav- ing a party after session of a firearm they were asked in furtherance of a to leave. Simpson crime. shot a victim in the According to a back of the head, news release from who later died the Department of from his injuries. Justice, which cites Contreras fired court documents, 20 rounds into a Contreras along crowd that was with his co-defen- Contreras dant Julian Darryl leaving the party, James Simpson opened fire one of which hit a victim in East Oregonian Page 3A HERMISTON the ankle. Contreras then fled the scene and was arrested shortly after, while Simpson was arrested a week later in Lewiston, Idaho. Simpson pleaded guilty to second degree murder in October 2017 and was sen- tenced to 25 years in prison. Upon completion of their respective sentences, they will both serve 5-year super- vised releases. Staff photo by Jade McDowell TRCI food services manager Matt Vester, left, and superintendent Troy Bowser present a check to (left to right) Debbie Pedro, Fran Rice, Brad Wayland and Briana Cortaberria of Leadership Hermiston. Toadally cool dude TRCI inmates donate more than $4,000 to Leadership Hermiston By JADE MCDOWELL East Oregonian Staff photo by E.J. Harris A toad tries to blend in near the banks of the Umatilla River on Wednesday in Pendleton. Convention Center hires new caterers By JAYATI RAMAKRISHNAN East Oregonian The Pendleton Conven- tion Center will have a new chef in the kitchen soon. OutWest Catering, the company that provided food for events at the convention center, will no longer be the catering service. After put- ting the catering contract up for bid in January, a selec- tion committee chose CG Public House and Catering, from Kennewick. They will take over on Aug. 1. Pendleton Convention Center Manager Pat Beard said the business will have an office in Pendleton, and all their Oregon events will be coordinated out of that space. OutWest owner Patti Fairbank said she had been catering out of the conven- tion center kitchen for 15 years. Fairbank said for larger events she would employ between 15 and 20 people and for smaller events, about six. She said none of those employees will be moving on to the new company. She said she decided to resign and close her business shortly after the announce- ment that the center would put the catering spot up for bid. She said she knew of a few applicants for the posi- tion, including her daugh- ter-in-law, who had worked with her for 14 years. Fairbank said she has already resigned and moved to Illinois, but some of her former employees are down at the convention center this week, preparing for Pendle- ton Bike Week, OutWest’s last event. She was surprised the committee decided to select an out-of-town business to take on the role. “It would have been won- derful if it had stayed in Pendleton,” she said. Beard said the Conven- tion Center has three-year contracts with catering com- panies and that when Fair- bank retired, they began looking for another com- pany to take over. Beard said the process included a request for pro- posal, and the position had to be advertised for three months. He said they received bids from three companies, but one opted not to come for an interview. A committee of 10 people, including convention cen- ter board members, custom- ers, local business people and city employees inter- viewed the remaining two candidates. A subcommittee of three did some further vetting, and Beard said the committee unanimously recommended CG Public House to Pendle- ton City Council. Regarding complaints that the business was from out-of-state, Beard said local laws prevent organiza- tions from awarding a con- tract to a business based on their location. “Following state law and city ordinance, we can never consider locale,” he said. Beard said he is excited about the changes the new company will bring. “It was a very positive opportunity for us,” he said. Fairbank said she had lots of good memories from her time at the convention center. “I don’t even know how many prime ribs I’ve cooked,” she said. “It’s been a wonderful experience. I’m going to miss all my Happy Canyon boys, all the organizations.” Leadership Hermiston got a boost in funds after Two Rivers Correctional Institution inmates chose to fundraise for the pro- gram that tours TRCI each year. The Greater Hermiston Area Chamber of Com- merce was presented with a $4,321 check Thursday. The chamber offers Lead- ership Hermiston to a class of about 20 people who live or work in Hermiston each year, to learn about the city and get involved in a group service project of the class’s choosing. Public Safety Day includes a tour of the “city within a city” that is the prison. “It’s a great opportunity for folks in our region to see what you do out here,” chamber director Debbie Pedro told superintendent Troy Bowser. “It’s one of the best things we do.” Brad Wayland, who was in the Leadership Hermis- ton cohort that graduated in June and now serves on the steering committee, said the prison tour was one of his favorite events the group did that year. TRCI allows inmates to create fundraisers inter- nally to help local groups. And after the Leadership Hermiston tour, some of them decided they wanted to help the program. Matt Vester, food ser- vice manager for TRCI, said many of the forms giving permission for money to be drawn from their accounts included a thank-you note for allow- ing them the opportunity to contribute to a good cause. “At the core of our mis- sion is rehabilitation, and a lot of them want to do that,” he said. “A lot of them want to give back.” Pedro said the steer- ing committee would meet soon to discuss how the funds would be used to improve the program. The chamber is now taking applications for the next Leadership Hermis- ton cycle, which begins Sept. 11 and ends in June 2019. Classes — which include themes such as Media Day, Agriculture Day and Education Day — are the second Tuesday of each month and include tours and presentations on the topic from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. April’s class will include an overnight trip to Salem to learn about state government. To apply for a spot, download the application at hermistonchamber.com, email info@hermiston- chamber.com or call 541- 567-6151. Tuition is $700 for chamber members and $850 for non-Chamber members, due upon notifi- cation of selection. Contact Jade McDowell at jmcdowell@eastorego- nian.com or 541-564-4536. “It’s a great opportunity for folks in our region to see what you do out here” — Debby Pedro, Chamber Director HERMISTON Airport looks for feedback on master plan at open house By JADE MCDOWELL East Oregonian The public is invited to learn about current and upcoming projects at the Hermiston Municipal Airport next week. The airport is hosting an open house Wednesday, July 25 from 3-4 p.m. at the airport on 1600 Airport Way, Herm- iston, where project consul- tants and airport staff will be on hand to answer ques- tions about recent upgrades to the airport and what proj- ects are being considered for inclusion in the Airport Mas- ter Plan. Rolf Anderson Leirvik, who started as the airport’s new general manager this month, said he wants to hear from people. “It’s a great opportunity for people to come in and ask questions or raise any issues,” he said. Hermiston’s airport has received millions of dol- lars in upgrades over the past few years, thanks mostly to grants from the Federal Avia- tion Administration and Ore- gon Department of Aviation. In 2015 and 2016 contrac- tors performed runway pav- ing work and moved the air- port’s taxiway to comply with FAA standards. During the project, the airport’s fuel- ing station was moved and enlarged. Anderson Leirvik said the “great new fuel farm” was more convenient and also helped the airport be prepared for serving larger planes in the future. Last year the city accepted federal and state grant fund- ing to hire Century West Engi- neering to update the airport’s master plan. At the time assis- tant city manager Mark Mor- gan said that using the state grant as matching dollars for federal funds means the city’s out-of-pocket costs for the $300,000 project is expected to be about $3,300. Anderson Leirvik said airports are required to sub- mit a master plan to the FAA for approval about every 10 years. The plan studies the airport and its traffic, poten- tial growth and other fac- tors in-depth and creates a roadmap for the next 10 to 15 years that the airport is required to follow. “If it’s not on the master plan, you’re not going to get a grant for it,” he said. “It’s never going to go anywhere.” While the Hermiston Municipal Airport doesn’t have commercial passenger flights, it is more than sin- gle-engine hobby planes. Traffic in and out of the air- port includes UPS deliver- ies, corporate traffic and agri- cultural uses. A 2014 report from the Oregon Department of Aviation stated the airport supported 80 local jobs and 26 elsewhere in the state. Anderson Leirvik said the master plan that citizens can give feedback for on Wednes- day will help the city get fund- ing for future projects to help it continue to improve and expand over the next decade. “The community has grown a lot, and the airport is going to grow with it,” he said. 7/20 - 22 Cineplex Show Times $5 Classic Movie • 7/25 • 12pm Casablanca $5 Children’s Classic Movie • 7/25 • 10am Kung Fu Panda Free Small Popcorn & Small Soda THE EQUALIZER 2 (R) 1:00* 3:50* 6:50 9:30 SKYSCRAPER (PG13) 2:00* 7:10 4:30 9:40 ANT-MAN AND THE WASP (PG13) 1:50* 4:40 7:20 10:00 JURASSIC WORLD: FALLEN KINGDOM (PG13) 1:20* 4:10 7:00 9:50 INCREDIBLES 2 (PG) 1:10* 4:00 6:40 9:20 * Matinee Pricing wildhorseresort.com • 541-966-1850 Pendleton, OR I-84 - Exit 216 Medical Aesthetic Appointments OUTWEST CATERING Botox • Fillers • Kybella • IPL • Ultherapy IS LEAVING THE BUILDING!!! available with Dr. Marcea Wiggins at Exhale Day Spa • Joseph, OR. July 26 & 30, 2018 Call 971.407.3066 to schedule for a complimentary consultation, a specific service or with questions. Visit Santepdx.com to learn more about Dr. Wiggins and the service she offers! The city of Pendleton has awarded the catering contract at the Pendleton Convention Center to an out of state caterer. {COUNTRY GENTLEMAN} After fifteen years of serving this wonderful community, we are auctioning off all of our equipment and decor. There are too many items to list here. See the list online at www.maconbrosauction.com Onsite Preview on Monday July 23rd Auction Closes Tuesday July 24th Thanks to the people of Pendleton for a great fifteen years. Miss Patti and the Ladies of Outwest Catering
