NORTHWEST
East Oregonian
A2
Thursday, January 6, 2022
Interior work on EOU fieldhouse starts soon
By DICK MASON
The Observer
LA GRANDE — A major
step is coming in the construc-
tion of Eastern Oregon
University’s $9 million field-
house.
Crews are expected to
begin working on the inte-
rior of the building after its
exterior is completed in about
three weeks, according to
John Garlitz, Eastern’s direc-
tor of planning and facilities.
“The shell of the fieldhouse
is almost finished,” Garlitz
said.
Once the exterior is
complete, crews will be able
to start work on the interior
because they will be protected
from the elements.
The installation of elec-
trical wiring and a heating,
ventilation and air condition-
ing system are among the first
things that will be done once
the interior work starts. Garlitz
said he anticipates the field-
house will be ready for team
practices and use by Eastern
students by the time the fall
term begins in late Septem-
ber. The fieldhouse’s features
will include expansive prac-
tice space for athletic teams,
an exercise physiology class-
room and space for the EOU
Outdoor Adventure Program.
Alex Wittwer/EO Media Group
Snow accumulates on the nearly finished frame of the Eastern Oregon University fieldhouse
on Tuesday, Jan. 4, 2022.
Work started on the field-
house in the summer of 2020.
Once completed, the field-
house will be the largest build-
ing of its kind at any college
or university in Oregon,
Washington and Idaho that
is not a NCAA Division I
school, according to Ben
Welch, EOU’s head men’s and
women’s track and field coach.
Welch said the fieldhouse
will provide his teams with a
a much more spacious place
to practice in the winter. The
Mountaineers’ track team
presently conducts its winter
practices in Quinn Coliseum’s
west gym, which has 4,545
square feet. But in the field-
house, he said, his team will
have access to about 48,000
square feet for practices. The
fieldhouse’s track and field
facilities will include a long
jump runway and pit, and high
jump and pole vaulting sites.
“It will be a great recruiting
Forecast for Pendleton Area
| Go to AccuWeather.com
TODAY
FRIDAY
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
MONDAY
A bit of morning
snow; cloudy
Rain and snow
showers
Breezy in the
morning; some sun
Partly sunny and
cold
Sun through high
clouds and cold
41° 39°
42° 32°
40° 37°
45° 34°
PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
40° 25°
32° 21°
31° 25°
HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
42° 22°
31° 23°
OREGON FORECAST
32° 25°
ALMANAC
Shown is today’s weather. Temperatures are today’s highs and tonight’s lows.
PENDLETON
through 3 p.m. yest.
HIGH
LOW
TEMP.
Seattle
Olympia
50/43
38/36
34/33
Longview
Kennewick Walla Walla
40/39
Lewiston
52/45
38/35
Astoria
52/45
Pullman
Yakima 31/29
50/43
40/39
Portland
Hermiston
54/46
The Dalles 40/37
Salem
Corvallis
54/44
Yesterday
Normals
Records
La Grande
45/39
PRECIPITATION
John Day
Eugene
Bend
56/46
45/39
45/42
Ontario
41/37
Caldwell
Burns
38°
33°
42°
28°
63° (1933) -11° (1950)
24 hours ending 3 p.m.
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Last year to date
Normal year to date
Albany
54/45
Boardman
Pendleton
Medford
52/45
0.07"
0.48"
0.19"
0.48"
0.11"
0.19"
WINDS (in mph)
44/40
42/34
0.27"
0.92"
0.26"
0.92"
0.15"
0.26"
through 3 p.m. yest.
HIGH
LOW
TEMP.
Pendleton 43/36
55/46
24 hours ending 3 p.m.
Month to date
Normal month to date
Year to date
Last year to date
Normal year to date
HERMISTON
Enterprise
41/39
43/39
37°
32°
41°
28°
62° (1933) -11° (2004)
PRECIPITATION
Moses
Lake
48/43
Aberdeen
31/31
28/27
Tacoma
Yesterday
Normals
Records
Spokane
Wenatchee
47/44
Today
Fri.
SSW 4-8
SW 7-14
WSW 8-16
SW 10-20
SUN AND MOON
Klamath Falls
44/37
Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2022
Sunrise today
Sunset tonight
Moonrise today
Moonset today
First
7:36 a.m.
4:27 p.m.
10:38 a.m.
9:26 p.m.
Full
Last
New
NATIONAL EXTREMES
Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states)
High 86° in Zapata, Texas Low -23° in Power, Mont.
Jan 9
Jan 17
Jan 25
Jan 31
NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY
Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day.
-10s
-0s
0s
showers t-storms
10s
rain
20s
flurries
30s
snow
40s
ice
50s
60s
cold front
E AST O REGONIAN
— Founded Oct. 16, 1875 —
70s
East Oregonian (USPS 164-980) is published Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday,
by the EO Media Group, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801. Periodicals
postage paid at Pendleton, OR. Postmaster: send address changes to
East Oregonian, 211 S.E. Byers Ave. Pendleton, OR 97801.
Copyright © 2021, EO Media Group
90s
100s
110s
warm front stationary front high low
the wrestling teams back on
campus,” Weissenfluh said.
The athletic director said
she hopes the public will be
able to use the fieldhouse
in the future for activities,
including walking and aero-
bic exercise.
She warned, though,
community use will be
delayed due to the pandemic.
“We will not be able to
do this right out of the gate
because of COVID-19,” she
said. “It will not happen until
down the road.”
Michael Hatch, director of
Eastern’s Outdoor Adventure
Program, said his program
will benefit enormously by
moving from its present site
on the bottom floor of the
Hoke Union Building to the
fieldhouse.
The additional space the
Outdoor Adventure Program
will have in the fieldhouse
will allow the program to
carry a much larger inventory
of outdoor items students can
check out and members of
the public can rent, including
rafts, kayaks, mountain bikes
and snowshoes.
Hatch also noted the climb-
ing wall in the fieldhouse will
be triple the size of the one his
program now uses at Quinn
Coliseum, making it the
biggest in the region.
Closed Walla Walla motels
could become apartments
By EMRY DINMAN
Walla Walla Union-Bulletin
WALLA WALLA — Two
permanently closed hotels in
downtown Walla Walla soon
may become apartments,
with primarily market-rate
but potentially some low-in-
come units, according to
plans presented to the city by a
Beaverton-based development
group.
The Budget Inn, 305 N.
Second Ave., and Travelodge
by Wyndham Walla Walla,
421 E. Main St., would be
converted into mostly studio
and one-bedroom apartments
by Fortify Holdings, a firm
that specializes in converting
hotel spaces into residential
and commercial spaces.
However, the group also
expressed interest in applying
for a multi-family tax incentive
through the city, which would
provide tax benefits for eight
years, if approved by the city
council, or 12 years that would
be approved by city staff.
To qualify for that longer
tax benefit, 10% of the
developed units must meet
affordability standards for
low-income residents, and
an additional 10% must be
affordable for moderate-in-
come residents, according
to Preston Frederickson, the
city’s development services
director.
The new Lodge apartments
near downtown Walla Walla,
completed in 2021, previously
received a similar tax incen-
tive, Frederickson said.
However, plans for the two
motels have not been final-
ized, and it is unclear how
many units Fortify Holdings
intends to build or whether
it is committed to pursuing
the multi-family tax incen-
tive. Fortify Holdings did not
respond to repeated requests
for comment.
Fortify Holdings has
converted similar properties
before in Spokane and Pasco,
Frederickson said. In Septem-
ber, the group presented a plan
at a Richland City Council
workshop to convert a hotel
into studio and one-bedroom
apartments, as well as a wine
village.
The development group
has regulatory hurdles to cross
before development can begin
on the properties, as Walla
Walla’s municipal code does
not typically allow for resi-
dential units on the first floor
of a building within the city’s
commercial zone.
Earlier this year, Fortify
Holding applied for a code
amendment to allow for first-
floor residential use specifi-
cally for converted hotels or
motels. The group went before
the city’s planning commis-
sion on Dec. 6, which has
recommended the amend-
ment, said commission chair
Brenda Bernards.
The Walla Walla City
Council reviews the recom-
mendation during its work
session Monday, Jan. 10, and
considers approval at the Jan.
12 council meeting.
University of Portland joins Oregon
ranks to require COVID-19 boosters
By MEERAH POWELL
Oregon Public Broadcasting
PORTLAND — The
University of Por tland
announced Tuesday, Jan. 4,
that it will require COVID-
19 booster shots for students,
staff and faculty.
The private Portland
university joins other schools
that have made the shift to
requiring boosters in the
past few weeks including
the University of Oregon,
Oregon State University and
Southern Oregon University.
Other private institu-
tions such as Lewis & Clark
College and Pacific Univer-
sity have also announced
booster requirements. Willa-
mette University announced
its booster requirement late
last week after initially only
encouraging boosters.
The University of Port-
land set Feb. 1 as its booster
deadline.
Circulation Dept.
For mail delivery, online access, vacation stops
or delivery concerns call 800-781-3214
“Throughout the COVID-
19 pandemic, two principles
have guided our efforts: First,
promoting the health and
well-being of UP commu-
nity members, and second,
living out our mission as
a face-to-face, residential
institution,” UP Provost and
Acting President Herbert
Medina said in a statement.
“The measures we announce
today are intended to help us
achieve both goals and safely
return to campus for our new
academic term. I am confi-
dent that with continued
vigilance and adherence to
our COVID-19 protocols, the
coming semester will be just
as successful as the last.”
Along with the booster
requirement, the Univer-
sity of Portland will also
start the first week of its new
term online as an additional
precaution against COVID-
19 spread. Willamette
University is also imple-
menting a similar “quiet
period.”
UP’s spring semester
begins Monday, Jan. 10.
Eastern Oregon Univer-
sity officials have not insti-
tuted COVID-19 booster
shot requirements.
“Our current vaccina-
tion requirement does not
include boosters,” Tim
Seydel, EOU’s vice presi-
dent for university advance-
ment, said in a text message
on Tuesday, Jan. 4. “We are
evaluating the use of boost-
ers and reviewing recom-
mendations from the CDC,
OHA and public health offi-
cials.”
The school instituted
a vaccination mandate in
October that requires all of
EOU’s on-campus staff and
students to be fully vacci-
nated for COVID-19 or to
have an approved religious,
philosophical or medical
exemption.
ADVERTISING
Classified & Legal Advertising
Regional Sales Director (Eastside) EO Media Group:
Classified advertising: 541-564-4538
• Karrine Brogoitti
Legal advertising: 541-966-0824
classifieds@eastoregonian.com or legals@eastoregonian.com
541-963-3161 • kbrogoitti@eomediagroup.com
211 S.E. Byers Ave., Pendleton 541-276-2211
333 E. Main St., Hermiston 541-567-6211
Office hours: Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Closed major holidays
EastOregonian.com
In the App Store:
80s
tool. Not everyone has a facil-
ity like this. It will make East-
ern a little more special,” said
EOU assistant track coach Joe
Brogdon, who specializes in
coaching javelin throwers.
Eastern’s track and field
teams will be among the most
frequent users of the field-
house, but it will be available
to all of the school’s athletic
teams. Jake Plocher, EOU’s
women’s soccer coach, said
he will welcome the availabil-
ity of the extra practice space
the fieldhouse will provide his
team, especially when weather
conditions are less than ideal.
“We need more open space
because our numbers are
larger,” he said. “I am very
excited.”
Plocher said the fieldhouse
also will be a plus even in late
summer because it will give
his team a place to practice
when outdoor air quality is
sometimes poor due to wild-
fires.
A ngie Weissenf lu h,
EOU’s athletic director and
women’s basketball coach,
said the space the fieldhouse
will provide is badly needed
since a number of sports have
been added at the university
in recent years, including
baseball, women’s lacrosse,
men’s soccer, and men’s and
women’s wrestling.
“We have outgrown our
facilities,” she said.
The men’s and women’s
wrestling teams practice in a
warehouse in downtown La
Grande, but once the field-
house opens, the wrestling
teams will be able to practice
on campus in the west Quinn
Coliseum gym, which will be
free since the track teams will
doing winter workouts in the
fieldhouse.
“It will be nice to have
SUBSCRIPTION RATES
Multimedia Consultants:
541-564-4531
Local home
delivery
Savings
(cover price)
$10.75/month
50 percent
52 weeks
$135
42 percent
• Audra Workman
26 weeks
$71
39 percent
541-564-4538 • aworkman@eastoregonian.com
13 weeks
$37
36 percent
Business Office
EZPay
Single copy price:
$1.50 Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday
• Melissa Barnes
541-966-0827 mbarnes@eastoregonina.com
NEWS
• To submit news tips and press releases:
call 541-966-0818 or email news@eastoregonian.com
• To submit community events, calendar items, engagements,
weddings and anniversaries: email community@eastoregonian.com,
call 541-966-0818 or or visit eastoregonian.com/community/
announcements.
• To submit sports or outdoors information or tips,
email sports@eastoregonian.com.
COMMERCIAL PRINTING
• Dayle Stinson
Commercial Print Manager: Holly Rouska
541-966-0824 • dstinson@eastoregonian.com
541-617-7839 • hrouska@eomediagroup.com