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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 13, 2019)
HIGH-SPEED CHASE ENDS IN CRASH NEAR MT. VERNON NIXYAAWII BESTS STANFIELD AT COLUMBIA RIVER CLASH NORTHWEST, A2 SPORTS, B1 E O AST 144th Year, No. 42 REGONIAN FRIDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2019 $1.50 WINNER OF THE 2019 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD Your Weekend NECESSARY CHANGES? • HEPPNER WINTER FEST, downtown Heppner • HOLIDAY MUSIC FESTIVAL, Vert Auditorium, Pendleton • WINTER FESTIVAL, downtown Pilot Rock Sewer plant could alter the way it discharges water into the Umatilla River FOR TIMES AND LOCATIONS CHECK COMING EVENTS, A6 Weekend Weather FRI SAT SUN 48/34 42/29 38/25 Oregon Trail advocates disagree with depot proposal By JADE MCDOWELL East Oregonian HERMISTON — The program- matic agreement to protect historical assets at the former Umatilla Chemi- cal Depot will be up for public com- ment in “very short order,” according to Columbia Development Authority director Greg Smith. Getting the U.S. Army to sign off on the agreement is the fi nal hur- dle for the depot to transfer from the Army to local control. Smith told the CDA board on Thursday that the 30-day comment period should begin in roughly two weeks. Some Oregon Trail advocates have already expressed disapproval. Wen- dell Baskins of the Oregon Historic Trails Advisory Council said he and other advocates sent the Army an alternate proposal for consideration, which would preserve a much larger portion of the Oregon Trail ruts run- ning through land the CDA has slated Staff photo by Ben Lonergan Pendleton Wastewater Superintendent Mark Milne explains how a clarifi er works at the wastewater treatment plant in Pendleton on Thursday afternoon. By ANTONIO SIERRA East Oregonian P ENDLETON — Five degrees in water tem- perature could drastically change the way Pendle- ton’s sewer plant operates. At a Pendleton City Council work- shop Tuesday, Public Works Direc- tor Bob Patterson and Preston Van Meter, a principal engineer with con- sulting fi rm Murraysmith, explained the proposed update to the wastewa- ter treatment plant facility plan. The plan was last updated in 2007 and was meant to update the facil- ity to address the ammonia and tem- perature standards set by the Oregon Department of Environmental Qual- ity at the time. The sewer plant deposits 100% of its discharge into the Umatilla River, which it can do as long as its total Staff photo by Ben Lonergan See Changes, Page A8 Treated water fl ows along a channel at the wastewater treatment plant before being piped to the Umatilla River in Pendleton on Thursday afternoon. See Depot, Page A8 Loss of funding surprises educators Poverty level estimates change up federal funding for Title V Rural and Low Income Schools grant By JESSICA POLLARD East Oregonian HERMISTON — Drops in poverty level estimates between 2015 and 2016 resulted in less federal funding for some local rural districts this year, including Hermiston. During the last fi scal year, the district was eligible for more than $85,000 from the Title V Rural and Low Income Schools grant. Browning Dirksen This year, they weren’t eligible at all, stunning offi cials at the school district. “This came as a surprise to us,” said Assistant Superinten- dent Bryn Browning. “We’ve gotten it for eight or nine years.” Funds from the grant are typ- ically distributed between the schools in the district, and go toward hiring substitutes for teachers that miss school for pro- fessional and leadership devel- opment opportunities, Browning said. She added since the dis- trict learned it was ineligible to receive the grant for the 2019-20 school year, professional develop- ment opportunities were put to a halt. “We’ll have to fi gure out other possible ways to do these pro- grams,” she said. Browning said the district would look into using other state funding, or dip into general funds in the future. “We’re not going to count on the grant,” she said. “This will impact conversations moving forward about where professional development fi ts in.” The Rural and Low Income Schools grant is a federal formula grant with two major criteria — school districts must be in a rural area, and at least 20% of the chil- dren ages 5 to 17 served by the agency must come from fami- lies with incomes below the pov- erty line, according to the Oregon Department of Education. This year, 33 fewer school dis- tricts in Oregon fi t the bill than during the 2018 school year, although fi ve did gain eligibil- ity. La Grande School District received more than $35,000 in Title V funding during the last school year, but none this year. “The Oregon local educational agencies that were not eligible in See Poverty, Page A8
