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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 4, 2019)
2020 Pendleton Round-Up Court revealed | REGION, A3 E O AST 143rd Year, No. 293 REGONIAN WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2019 $1.50 WINNER OF THE 2019 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD PENDLETON Council approves street funding plan By ANTONIO SIERRA East Oregonian PENDLETON — In the span of a few minutes, the Pendleton City Council made offi cial a plan to fund street repair that should dominate council activity for much of the year. At a meeting Tuesday, the coun- cil unanimously approved a motion that directs staff to draft ordinances that will create three new taxes and fees for street maintenance: • A 4-cent gas tax • A $2 hotel room fee • A $3 increase to the street util- ity fee Additionally, the council has committed to make $110,000 in cuts to the general fund to free up more money for road repair. The council’s vote doesn’t mean these taxes and fees are automati- cally enacted. City Attorney Nancy Kerns said city staff will return with more defi nitive proposals at a later date. “It’s not set in stone at this point,” she said. “You’re just asking us to start putting things on paper and present them to you.” Some of the concepts will also require more steps than a simple council vote. The council will have to approve the procedural steps to put the gas tax on the May ballot, where voters will determine its fate. And some of these proposals could face organized campaigns against them at future public hear- ings. Representatives for local oil distributors and the hospitality industry have voiced their opposi- tion to the gas tax and hotel room fee, respectively. The council’s decision caps months worth of discussion over the best way to bolster street funding No major changes for the city. The council had consid- ered a ticket fee on large events as a part of that discussion, but the city instead elected to form a committee to further study the issue at the urg- ing of local event promoters. If all these measures are approved, the city estimates it will raise more than $1 million per year for road maintenance and begin to reverse the system’s steady deterio- ration over the past few decades. Report fi nds evidence of police profi ling The landmark report paints a complex picture while calling out one city for its disparities By JAKE THOMAS Oregon Capital Bureau CEO of Wildhorse Resort & Casino says tribe not planning complete overhauls of recently purchased properties Staff photo by Ben Lonergan Wildhorse Resort & Casino CEO Gary George speaks during the annual Tribal-State Government-to-Government Summit on Tuesday morning at Wildhorse Resort & Casino. George was part of a panel on tribal gaming and took the opportunity to dis- cuss Wildhorse’s future expansion plans. By ANTONIO SIERRA East Oregonian ENDLETON — Gary George, the CEO of Wildhorse Resort & Casino, doesn’t mince words when it comes to one of the Con- federated Tribes of the Indian Reserva- tion’s latest acquisitions. “The one thing we want to ensure to the East Oregonian, as well as the pub- lic, is the tribe has a vested interest in maintaining the Hamley’s brand and tra- dition,” he said in an interview. The CTUIR bought the Hamley’s complex and the Pendleton Country Club over the summer and put Wild- horse in charge of operating them, but the tribes aren’t planning any major changes to the two businesses. George said the history between the tribes and Hamley’s dates back to 1905, when the store would advance crop pay- ments to tribal members. P See Changes, Page A8 Staff photo by Ben Lonergan Attitude Adjustment, a 16-foot statue by Austin Barton cast in 1990, rises over boxes of cowboy hats and other Western wares in the Hamley Western Store on Nov. 26, 2019. SALEM — Most of Oregon’s larg- est police departments are slightly more likely to cite or arrest minorities during traffi c and pedestrian stops, but the dis- parity isn’t signifi cant enough to warrant further scrutiny, according to a new state report. However, the report singled out the Portland Police Bureau for its disparate treatment of African Americans. The Oregon Criminal Justice Com- mission on Sunday issued its fi rst-ever report examining data from the state’s 12 largest police agencies for evidence of racial disparities in traffi c and pedes- trian stops. The analysis, based on data from nearly 400,000 stops between July of 2018 and June of 2019, was mandated by the Legislature in 2017. A review of smaller agencies is next. Ken Sanchagrin, commission deputy director, said that the report evaluated why each person was stopped, their race and whether they were searched, arrested or given a warning. Sanchagrin said that the Portland Police Bureau was the only agency to warrant further examination by the commission. “I was frankly pleasantly surprised that we didn’t fi nd a lot of systematic issues,” said Sanchagrin. But state Sen. Lew Frederick, D-Port- land, called the report concerning because it highlighted longstanding issues. “I don’t think that’s a minor situation at all,” said Frederick. “These are issues we have been trying to deal with for some time.” The report used a statistical technique to predict how likely an individual was to be stopped, searched, cited and arrested. Factors considered the time of day and See Profi ling, Page A8 Tribal issues get the spotlight at annual summit By ANTONIO SIERRA East Oregonian MISSION — For a good por- tion of Tuesday, the eyes of the state were trained on the Umatilla Indian Reservation. The Wildhorse Resort and Casino hosted the state’s annual Tribal-State Government-to-Gov- ernment Summit, which not only brought together representatives from all of Oregon’s nine federally recognized tribes, but also some of the top offi cials in state government. Attendees included Gov. Kate Brown, Secretary of State Bev Clarno, Treasurer Tobias Read, and Labor and Industries Commis- sioner Val Hoyle. Brown told the audience in attendance that Attor- ney General Ellen Rosenblum was sick and couldn’t attend). Attendees listened as panels discussed issues that revolved around the summit’s theme: “Opportunity in the next decade.” In a panel on tribal gaming, Wildhorse CEO Gary George said the future of the facility had more to do with the resort than the casino. George said the state’s gam- ing market has reached a satura- tion point, with tribal share of gam- ing revenue actually falling over the previous few decades. Although Wildhorse is explor- ing new gaming opportunities, like online gambling and sports betting, George said the facility’s multimil- lion dollar expansion isn’t going toward expanding the casino fl oor. See Summit, Page A8 Saturday DECEMBER 7 th , 2019 Friday DECEMBER 6 th , 2019 Evening Gala | 6:00 pm Family Day | 10am-2pm LOCATED AT THE Pendleton Convention Center For more information or to purchase tickets: sahpendleton.org/winterfest or 541-278-2627
