NORTHWEST
East Oregonian
A2
Saturday, April 23, 2022
Cost overruns hit Treasure Valley Reload Center
By BRAD CARLSON
Capital Press
NYSSA — Building
the Treasure Valley Reload
Center to original design
specifications would cost
almost one-third more
than originally estimated,
prompting proponents to
scale back the project.
The truck-to-train load-
ing facility to be built north
of Nyssa would ship onions
and other commodities east
to major markets. Southeast
Oregon and southwest Idaho
produce about a quarter of
the country’s fall storage
onions.
The 2017 Legislature
approved a $26 million
ConnectOregon grant from
lottery-backed bonds. Legis-
lators this year approved a $3
million grant, from federal
coronavirus recovery funds,
to the city of Nyssa, for a
water line extension for the
reload center and future
industrial development.
Greg Smith, Malheur
County Economic Develop-
ment director and officer of
the separate Malheur County
Development Corp., said the
project is about $9.8 million
more than the original $35
million budget. The origi-
nal plan called for opening
Anderson Perry Inc./Contributed Image
An artist’s rendering of Treasure Valley Reload Center as originally designed. It is under con-
struction near Nyssa and costing about $9.8 million more than the original $35 million budget.
nearly 290 acres of industri-
ally zoned ground for devel-
opment.
He said an overarch-
ing solution is to reduce the
budget and features “from
a Cadillac to a Chevro-
let” including eliminating
“unnecessary wants.”
Cost overruns include
about $5 million in unex-
pected necessary excavation
to deal with excess ground-
water, a price from lone
building-construction bidder
TCG Construction, Merid-
ian, Idaho, that was about
$2.9 million above expecta-
tions, and steel and asphalt
costs driven by high infla-
tion.
Smith said construc-
tion bidding interest has
dropped due to development
in southwest Idaho and high
transportation costs. The
Forecast for Pendleton Area
TODAY
SUNDAY
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MONDAY
TUESDAY
WEDNESDAY
corporation will solicit new
bids.
About $3 million could be
saved by delaying construc-
tion of one of the three rail
spurs for three years, he
said. And $1 million could
be saved by using a septic
waste system instead of
a lagoon system serving
several companies.
Smith said $2 million
could be saved by eliminat-
ing all access roads except
the one to the reload center.
Industrial park roads could
be added later as funding
becomes available.
S u b s t a n t i a l e xc e s s
groundwater lies in the path
of planned rail spurs. An
engineering solution that
uses riprap rock to displace
water and add support
strength is expected to
reduce remediation cost by
about $1 million, he said.
Another $300,000 could
be saved by reducing office
square footage.
“We don’t need $10
million, we need $3 million,”
Smith said.
The development corpo-
ration is inquiring with legis-
lators and state economic
development unit Business
Oregon about potential solu-
tions.
Sm it h s a id p ot e n -
tial funding sources are
the Legislative Emer-
gency Board, which meets
between sessions, and the
state Special Public Works
Fund that provides low-cost
financing to municipalities.
A Special Public Works
loan would be repaid by
Malheur County or Nyssa,
depending on which applies.
He said it would be backed by
the development corporation,
either through the 65 acres it
has acquired or future sale of
industrial park lots.
Malheur County Judge
Dan Joyce, who heads the
commission-like county
court, said commissioners
likely would be hesitant to
borrow. The county at the
outset did not plan to spend
money on the project but
ended up doing so to help
the corporation purchase the
site.
But the county supports
the economic development
project “and would like to see
it come to fruition,” he said.
Nyssa City Manager Jim
Maret could not be reached
immediately.
Site work started in Octo-
ber, triggering state fund-
ing. Steel for the building is
on-site. Smith said rail will
be placed starting by late this
month or in early May.
“Our goal is to ship onions
by Oct. 1, and as of right now
we are within that schedule,”
he said.
A less expensive build-
ing is an option, though
capacity to place and briefly
store onions is important to
handling efficiency, Smith
said.
Reload Center features
would be added as funding
becomes available, he said.
Baker City students meet K9 officer
By IAN CRAWFORD
Baker City Herald
Mostly sunny
Partly sunny
62° 39°
67° 46°
Cloudy
A shower; breezy
in the p.m.
Mostly cloudy and
cool
PENDLETON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
62° 45°
53° 38°
53° 39°
HERMISTON TEMPERATURE FORECAST
67° 38°
71° 48°
69° 51°
60° 42°
OREGON FORECAST
58° 42°
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
58/41
56/35
66/35
Longview
Kennewick Walla Walla
61/40
Lewiston
65/40
68/39
Astoria
56/41
Pullman
Yakima 66/36
62/38
63/39
Portland
Hermiston
65/44
The Dalles 67/38
Salem
Corvallis
64/36
La Grande
Yesterday
Normals
Records
58/32
PRECIPITATION
John Day
Eugene
Bend
66/38
62/36
56/32
Ontario
65/36
Caldwell
Burns
65°
32°
69°
40°
94° (1934) 25° (1951)
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
66/35
0.00"
1.37"
0.57"
3.32"
1.73"
3.34"
WINDS (in mph)
62/34
58/24
Trace
1.06"
0.96"
4.66"
3.34"
5.03"
through 3 p.m. yest.
HIGH
LOW
TEMP.
Pendleton 52/30
65/40
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
62/39
70/41
59°
33°
65°
41°
95° (1934) 29° (2006)
PRECIPITATION
Moses
Lake
62/37
Aberdeen
60/36
64/39
Tacoma
Yesterday
Normals
Records
Spokane
Wenatchee
61/42
Today
Boardman
Pendleton
Medford
68/40
Sun.
WSW 6-12
W 7-14
SW 4-8
WNW 4-8
SUN AND MOON
Klamath Falls
59/27
Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2022
Sunrise today
Sunset tonight
Moonrise today
Moonset today
5:56 a.m.
7:52 p.m.
3:05 a.m.
11:48 a.m.
Last
New
First
Full
Apr 23
Apr 30
May 8
May 15
NATIONAL EXTREMES
Yesterday’s National Extremes: (for the 48 contiguous states)
High 101° in Pecos, Texas Low 18° in Clear Creek, Calif.
NATIONAL WEATHER TODAY
BAKER CITY — Local
elementary students in the
Friday Academy program
had the chance to meet Capa,
the Baker City Police Depart-
ment’s drug-detecting dog,
the morning of April 15.
The students gathered
at Geiser-Pollman Park to
meet not only Capa, but
also his handler, Sgt. Wayne
Chastain.
“Why do we need dogs?”
Chastain asked the students.
After a few odd guesses
and anecdotes, he eventually
gestured to his own nose in an
overt hint.
“Yes! Their nose! A dog’s
sense of smell is five million
times stronger than ours,”
Chastain said.
The students learned about
K9 training, the importance
of Capa’s sense of smell when
detecting drugs and also how
other dogs are trained for
finding contraband in jail,
chasing down perpetrators
and otherwise keeping the
community safe.
One by one the children
were invited to gently pet
Capa, a German shepherd and
Belgian Malinois mix, as he
busied himself gnawing on a
braided toy, which by the end
of the session was leaning
toward replacement.
“See that? This was new
this morning,” Chastain said.
Accompanying the Friday
Academy students were
Ian Crawford/Baker City Herald
Sgt. Wayne Chastain of the Baker City Police Department is
the handler for Capa, the department’s drug-detecting dog.
several chaperones, as well
as Robin Maille, family and
community health mentor for
the Oregon State University
Extension Service in Baker
County, which arranged the
event, and Katie Hauser, OSU
Extension’s 4-H program
coordinator.
OSU’s outreach specifi-
cally sets out to help students
in need of additional support
in matters of classwork and
personal skills, as well as
giving them extracurricular
experiences such as museum
visits and even yoga classes.
“Students are invited
based on academic needs, and
we provide a delicate balance
of academics and fun to keep
kids coming,” said Angela
Lattin, director of the Baker
Early Learning Center.
The Friday Academy
meets each Friday and largely
consist of students from
second through fourth grade,
although the program isn’t
limited to those grades.
Students enrolled are
usually recommended by
their teachers. The program
runs through May 13, with a
final trip for the school year a
guided tour of the campus at
Eastern Oregon University
in La Grande.
IN BRIEF
Pendleton turkey hunters
rescued after vehicle
gets stuck in the snow
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
70s
80s
90s
100s
warm front stationary front
110s
high
low
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BAKER COUNTY — Members of the
Baker County Sheriff’s Office’s Search and
Rescue team helped two turkey hunters from
Pendleton after they spent the night in the
Wallowa Mountains when their car got stuck
in the snow earlier this week.
Curtis Davidson and Missy Hull were in
good conditions when rescuers arrived Tues-
day morning, April 19, according to a press
release from the sheriff’s office.
The pair had gone hunting on Monday,
April 18, near Balm Creek Reservoir, several
miles north of Keating Valley.
While driving, their Subaru became
high-centered on snow. They sent a message
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to a friend, who contacted other friends but
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called police, and Davidson and Hull were
able to call 911, allowing dispatchers to
pinpoint their location via GPS.
Sheriff Travis Ash deployed search and
rescue volunteers at about 8:27 a.m. April 19.
They drove a side-by-side all-terrain vehicle
and helped Davidson and Hull free their car
and return to a main road.
The sheriff’s office reminds hunters and
other recreationists to prepare for a wide range
of weather and road conditions, and to notify
others of where you’re going and when you
plan to return.
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