REGION
Thursday, March 21, 2019
East Oregonian
Council deadlocked on parade fee
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
A highly divided Pendle-
ton City Council was set to
march forward on a parade
fee ordinance until the dis-
covery of a council rule
forced them to halt.
With the council tied
4-4 at a meeting Tuesday,
Mayor John Turner cast the
first tie-breaking vote of his
two-year tenure to pass an
ordinance that would charge
parade fees with a few nota-
ble exceptions.
But the council also dead-
locked on a follow-up vote
to codify the fee amount
into a resolution, prompting
Turner to ask City Attor-
ney Nancy Kerns if he could
break a tie on a vote for a
resolution.
“Mr. Mayor, it looks
like,” she said, pausing as
she referenced the city coun-
cil rulebook, “when an ordi-
nance or resolution is voted
upon by the council and
does not receive a majority
of yes or no votes, then the
resolution or ordinance shall
automatically be consid-
ered at the following coun-
cil meeting and successive
meetings if necessary until
such time as a majority vote
of the council is achieved.”
The revelation voided
Turner’s initial vote and
forced both the resolution
and the ordinance to be
moved to the next council
meeting, extending a debate
the council has engaged in
since January.
The proposed law would
assess a non-specific fee
that would cover anticipated
costs of policing the parade
plus a 15 percent adminis-
trative fee.
Local educators balk
at Ways and Means
proposed K-12 budget
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
EO file photo
A VFW color guard marches underneath a large United States flag at the start of the Fourth of
July Parade on July 4, 2018, in Pendleton.
Police Chief Stuart Rob-
erts told the council that he
started discussing the city’s
parade laws not because
he desired a fee but due to
the frequency of 11th-hour
parade requests.
But the most conten-
tious part of the ordinance
is a list of events that are
exempted from the fee —
the Little League, Fourth
of July, Westward Ho! and
Dress-Up parades.
During the public hear-
ing, Pendleton resident Rex
Morehouse questioned why
some parades would be
charged over others.
Councilor Carole Innes
said she spoke with constit-
uents about the issue, and
some residents said they
could understand why some
parades like Westward Ho!
were exempted because its
popularity generated eco-
nomic activity.
But Councilor Scott Fair-
ley said he agreed with
Morehouse, who ran against
Fairley in 2016 for the Ward
2 seat.
“This ordinance essen-
tially discriminates against
the smaller events and I just
don’t think as a council we
should be supporting that,”
Fairley said.
After Councilor Dale
Primmer made a motion to
pass the ordinance with a
one-year sunset so the coun-
cil could review the results
of the law, Fairley asked
him to amend it to remove
the list of exemptions, but
they couldn’t come to an
agreement.
When it came to vote for
the ordinance and the res-
olution, the same council-
ors contributed to the stale-
mates: councilors Jake
Cambier, Becky Marks,
McKennon McDonald and
Primmer voted yes, and
councilors Paul Chalmers,
Linda Neuman, Fairley and
Innes voted no.
Turner said the coun-
cil will discuss the parade
fee ordinance further at a
March 26 workshop, but
will take no action.
In a less contentious vote,
the council unanimously
voted to contract with a new
towing service for the first
time since 1999.
Roberts, the police
chief, said Blue Mountain
Towing & Recovery has
done good work for the
past 18 years, but when he
solicited bids, Frankie’s
Towing & Roadside was
the only company to return
a complete bid.
The city’s contract with
Frankie’s Towing is for
three years with an option
to renew for another three
years after that.
A3
Local education offi-
cials took the Joint Ways
and Means Committee
co-chairs to task for pro-
posing a budget they say
will result in more cuts to
K-12 education.
At a Ways and Means
hearing in Pendleton on
Friday, officials from the
Hermiston and Pendle-
ton school districts advo-
cated for the committee
to at least retain the fund-
ing level proposed by Gov.
Kate Brown.
The governor is pro-
posing an $8.97 billion
state school fund while
the co-chairs have offered
an $8.87 million fund pro-
posal. The added twist in
the governor’s budget is
that she’s also encouraging
legislators to adopt a rev-
enue package that would
further boost K-12 edu-
cation funding to $10.7
billion.
Sunridge Middle School
teacher Chris Demianew
said lawmakers needed to
fund schools at $8.97 bil-
lion to maintain the status
quo and the $10.7 billion
figure if it wanted to rein-
vest in education.
Citing the Oregon Edu-
cation Association, Demi-
anew said the co-chairs’
budget would result in
the layoffs of 900 teach-
ers across the state and
more cuts to the Pendleton
School District.
Hermiston
School
Board member Ginny Hol-
thus also took issue with
the co-chairs’ budget.
“It doesn’t make sense
to propose more instruc-
tional time and at the same
time reduce funding,” she
said.
Holthus suggested the
Legislature fund K-12
using figures from the
Quality Education Model,
a formula that determines
how much Oregon should
spend to property fund
education that hasn’t been
met since its introduction
in 1999.
Hermiston School Dis-
trict Superintendent Tricia
Mooney said the “elephant
in the room” was the Pub-
lic Employee Retirement
System. The system’s $26
billion unfunded liability
has caused local govern-
ment agencies, including
school districts, to shift
more money toward pen-
sion payments instead of
services.
Besides solving PERS,
Mooney suggested leg-
islators create an edu-
cation funding plan that
addressed the next two
or three budget cycles, all
while funding education
at the quality education
model.
“A failure to invest in
Oregon schools today is a
failure to invest in Oregon
tomorrow,” she said.
For the people who
testified in favor of K-12
funding and other peo-
ple invested in local edu-
cation, they won’t know
whether lawmakers will
adhere to their advice until
closer to the legislative
session on June 30.
BRIEFLY
Task force honors
UCSO members
for DUII efforts
PENDLETON — Two
members of the Umatilla
County Sheriff’s Office
will receive awards for their
efforts to keep impaired
drivers off the road.
The sheriff’s office
announced the Oregon DUII
Multi-Disciplinary Training
Task Force selected sher-
iff’s Sgt. Josh Roberts as
the “2018 DUII Trainer of
the Year” and senior deputy
Nathan Rankin as the “2018
DUII Enforcement Deputy
of the Year.”
The nonprofit based in
Albany aims to train and
consult with law enforce-
ment and other community
and professional partners
to curtail impaired driving.
The task force will pres-
ent the awards to the local
officers at its conference in
April in Canyonville.
The organization recog-
nized the sheriff’s office in
2017 as its “Agency of the
Year.” The sheriff’s office in
a written statement congrat-
ulated Roberts and Rankin
for earning the awards.
Saturday
workshop
highlights
hydroponics
PENDLETON — Peo-
ple are invited to dig in
and learn about hydroponic
planting systems during a
Saturday presentation at
Pendleton Center for the
Arts.
Participants will learn
how to grow plants without
the help of soil or sun. “Big
Leafy Greens: Hydropon-
ics with Richard B.” is Sat-
urday from 10 a.m. to noon.
The arts center is located at
214 N. Main St., Pendleton.
The cost is $45 for members
or $50 for non-members.
A master gardener, Rich-
ard Bertram will share about
the planting system that can
be used year-round and in
limited space.
For information, call the
arts center at 541-278-9201
or www.pendletonarts.org.
Sheriff’s office
rolls out vehicle
repair vouchers
PENDLETON — The
Umatilla County Sher-
iff’s Office in April rolls
out a program to help driv-
ers make minor vehicle
repairs and avoid equipment
violations.
The local law enforce-
ment agency announced
deputies will be able to
issue an “Oregon Car Care”
voucher to drivers of vehi-
cles with defective equip-
ment, such as a broken head-
light, taillight and the like.
Operating a vehicle without
required lighting is a traf-
fic violation and a safety
hazard.
The sheriff’s office is
partnering with the Oregon
State Sheriff’s Association
and the Oregon State Police
to participate in the pro-
gram. The voucher provides
a discount on automotive
parts to purchase, repair or
replace the defective equip-
ment. Drivers can redeem
the vouchers at the following
businesses: Advance Auto
Parts, Battery Systems,
Baxter Auto Parts, Carquest
Auto Parts, Clackamas Auto
Parts, Milex Complete Auto
Care, Mt. Angel Auto Body,
Napa Auto Parts, White’s
Collision.
“We understand that
sometimes drivers have to
defer maintenance on their
vehicles to pay for other
Firefighters respond to drone crash fire at UAS Range
By ANTONIO SIERRA
East Oregonian
The Pendleton Fire
Department responded to
a small grass fire caused
by a drone crash north of
the Pendleton airport on
Wednesday afternoon.
Interim Pendleton Fire
Chief Paul Berardi said fire-
fighters responded to the
call around 4:10 p.m.
Berardi said the depart-
ment helped the group fly-
ing the drone locate the
vehicle, which he estimated
was about a quarter mile
north of the airfield.
The fire was about 70
square feet in size, Berardi
said, describing it as “min-
imal” and “non-eventful”
before it was extinguished.
Berardi said he did not
know what organization the
unmanned vehicle was affil-
March 22-23-24, 2019
20th Annual Spring
$5 Classic Movie
3/27 • 12 PM
WW.Friends meet
Thursday for
dinner get-together
PENDLETON — An
upcoming gathering of area
widows and widowers will
feature a baked potato bar.
WW.Friends meets each
month for friendship and
to share positive experi-
ences. It’s not a grief sup-
port group.
MATILDA
Us (R)
7:00 10:00
Wonder Park (PG)
7:20
4:50 9:30
Captive State (PG13)
4:40 7:10 9:40
Captain Marvel (PG13)
4:10 7:00 9:50
3:40*
How To Train Your Dragon:
The Hidden World (PG)
4:30 6:50 9:10
* Matinee Pricing
wildhorseresort.com • 541-966-1850
Pendleton, OR I-84 - Exit 216
ST. ANTHONY HOSPITAL VOLUNTEERS
have the unique opportunity to make a positive
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1-844-533-9173
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At St. Anthony Hospital, you can volunteer as little as an hour a week or as
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and skills and our hospital needs.
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This month’s get-together
is Thursday at 5:30 p.m. For
the location, contact Sandra
Nicassio at sjnicassio@out-
look.com, 541-276-4708 or
541-969-2450.
iated with, but added that
officials from the Pendleton
Unmanned Aerial Systems
Range were investigating
the crash.
Imagine The Difference You Can Make
BEST
necessities, such as grocer-
ies, rent, etc.,” according to
the announcement from the
sheriff’s office. “UCSO’s
participation in the Oregon
Car Care Program allows us
to help our citizens and their
families fix these items,
which improves the safety of
their vehicles — and keeps
our highways safer for all.”
For information about the
program, visit www.oregon.
gov/osp/CarCare.
Subject to availability. Restrictions apply. Internet not
provided by DISH and will be billed separately.
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Sunday 10 AM —4 PM
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Frequent volunteer opportunities include:
• Customer service/cashier in the gift shop,
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• Patient services.
• Day Surgery
If you’d like to discuss how you can join the St. Anthony Hospital family, please call the number below.
Emily Smith • 541-278-2627 • emilysmith@chiwest.com
2801 St. Anthony Way, Pendleton, OR 97801
www.sahpendleton.org