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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 3, 2019)
WEEKEND EDITION JUDGE UPHOLDS HELLS CANYON GRAZING PERMITS NORTHWEST ARTISTS FLOCK TO CROW’S SHADOW FOR MONOTHON 2.0 KENNISON FIELD GETS TOP MARKS HEADING INTO FALL SPORTS NORTHWEST, A2 LIFESTYLES, C1 SPORTS, B1 E O AST 143rd Year, No. 207 REGONIAN AUGUST 3-4, 2019 WINNER OF THE 2019 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD Five bulls found dead and mutilated in Harney County By SIERRA DAWN MCCLAIN Capital Press BURNS — Five bulls were found dead and mutilated — with genitals and tongues cut out — on Silvies Valley Ranch in Harney County. Two carcasses were discovered July 30. On July 31, three more carcasses were found. The smell of decomposing bodies gave them away. The cause of death is unknown, but investigators suspect one or more people are responsible. The Harney County Sheriff’s Offi ce has named Deputy Dan Jenkins as the primary investiga- tor for the case. {span}The Ore- gon State Police and the Malheur National Forest Emigrant Creek Ranger District are also investi- gating. {/span} “I got stuck with the case,” Jen- kins said. He laughed wryly. “And it’s a mystery.” As an isolated incident, the case might appear a strange fl uke. But according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, thou- sands of killings and mutilations of cows have happened since the 1970s. The animals typically die in the same way with the same body parts removed. Jenkins said it’s hard to tell how these fi ve bulls died. There See Bulls, Page A9 a growing public discussion over the issue of homelessness. “The City has experienced growing numbers of persons who lack adequate housing and living facilities and who are present in public places,” Kerns wrote in the report. “Federal law has recognized that all persons have certain rights to exist and are trending toward declaring that all persons have a ‘right to rest.’” Although the new ordinance wipes away loitering language, it introduces sev- eral new items into the list of noncriminal prohibitions. See Camping, Page A9 See Permits, Page A9 Staff photo by Ben Lonergan Homeless ordinance By ANTONIO SIERRA East Oregonian P ENDLETON — On Tuesday, the Pendleton City Council will con- sider an ordinance that will prohibit the way many homeless people sleep. Some people in Pendleton’s home- less community think the new proposal is a bad idea, while an attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union of Ore- Court ruling could nix permits for big energy projects PORTLAND — An Oregon Supreme Court ruling could bring an end to permits for two big energy projects in Eastern Oregon and eight more statewide. The Oregon Energy Facility Sit- ing Council in October 2017 adopted a swifter, less public method to amend permits, or site certifi cates, for wind farms, thermal power plants and other large energy facil- ities. While the traditional “type A” review process involved public notices and hearings, the new “type B” process cut out the public involve- ment, including allowing interested parties to request a contested case proceeding. Type B also required staff to issue decisions as soon as possible. The Friends of the Columbia Gorge and eight other environmental conservation and community groups teamed up and fi led an appeal in December 2017 to challenge the new rules in the Oregon Supreme Court. The court in a 26-page decision Thursday determined the Energy Facility Siting Council violated Ore- gon rule-making procedures and set up rules that exceeded the coun- cil’s statutory authority. In short, the court ruled, the Energy Facility Sit- ing Council’s rules were invalid. Nathan Baker, senior staff attorney for Friends of the Columbia Gorge, praised the verdict: “The supreme court’s decision establishes an important precedent that all state agencies in Oregon must follow when adopting rules, in order to ensure full public transparency.” The siting council has 10 applica- tions for amendments to site certifi - cates pending that came in after the rule change in 2017. Baker explained the Oregon Court of Appeals has determined state agencies cannot apply or enforce invalid rules, thus those applications are invalid. That includes the permits for Summit Ridge Wind Farm pro- posal in Wasco County along the Deschutes River and the Perennial Wind Chaser Station, a natural gas power plant proposal in Umatilla County. As a result of the ruling, Mark Woodger stands in front of the Neighbor 2 Neighbor warming station at 715 S.E. Court Ave. in Pendleton. The station serves as a warming center in the winter and a cooling center and shower facility one day a week in the summer. gon thinks it could expose the city to lawsuits. The council was set to vote on the ordi- nance at a July 16 meeting before tabling it for further review. City Attorney Nancy Kerns said the changes to the ordinance’s language were minor, and the substance remains the same. The amendment to the noncriminal offenses ordinance repeals language pro- hibiting loitering, which the city now con- siders “unconstitutionally broad.” According to a staff report from Kerns, the changes were a response to potential changes to federal law. It also comes amid OREGON SUPREME COURT By PHIL WRIGHT East Oregonian EO SPOTLIGHT Homeless, ACLU speak out against city camping proposal $1.50 What it takes to prepare for the Umatilla County Fair EOTEC will transform into a rides-and-rodeo wonderland for the fair By JESSICA POLLARD East Oregonian HERMISTON — Less than a week before the Umatilla County Fair opens, the grounds at Eastern Oregon Trade and Event Center might look like a ghost town to the untrained eye. But behind the jungle gym of empty livestock pens and rows of freshly minted wooden benches, there is a network of volunteers num- bering in the hundreds, working to pull the fair together. Lots of the work gets done on the weekends, but some people start clocking 14-hour days as the fair’s opening day — Tuesday, Aug. 6 — approaches. “My days have already started to run together,” said EOTEC General Manager Al Davis. Davis harkens back to the fi rst year the fair stood on EOTEC grounds, in 2016, when the line for parking backed clear to the water tower. “People didn’t know what the expectations were,” he said. “We can claim ‘new’ for fi ve years.” Since then, it’s been a goal to make getting to the fair easier. The EOTEC access-way has been opened up and the usual free shuttle service, which runs from Hermiston City Hall to the fair, will be running later in the day — from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. — to allow fair-goers to fully enjoy the rodeo, See Fair, Page A9 Staff photo by Ben Lonergan Miguel Rojas pushes a roller coaster car off of the starting platform to al- low for further construction of the roller coaster during a setup day for the Umatilla County Fair. The Umatilla County Fair runs Aug. 6-10 at the Eastern Oregon Trade and Event Center in Hermiston.
