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About Wallowa County chieftain. (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Or.) 1943-current | View Entire Issue (April 27, 2016)
Wallowa County Chieftain News wallowa.com R APTORS AT THE J OSEPHY C ENTER Steve Tool/The Chieftain Sage the Great Horned Owl was among the birds from the Blue Mountain Wildlife rehabilitation center in Pendleton that visited the Josephy Center on April 19 for several presentations to adults and students. The Josephy Center’s art theme this month is Wings: Flight in Fine Art. View a gallery of photos from the event at Wallowa. com. April 27, 2016 A3 Suit over Oregon wolf delisting ruled ‘moot’ Environmentalists’ challenge nullified by lawmakers By Mateusz Perkowski Capital Bureau SALEM — An environmen- talist legal challenge against Ore- gon’s decision to remove wolves from the state’s endangered spe- cies list has been dismissed due to legislation passed earlier this year. Wolves were delisted by state wildlife regulators last year, but three environmental groups — Cascadia Wildlands, Center for Biological Diversity and Oregon Wild — asked the Oregon Court of Appeals to reverse that decision, claiming it wasn’t based on sound science. Earlier this year, lawmakers passed House Bill 4040, which held that the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife had followed the law in delisting wolves. Opponents of the bill claimed it would deny the environmentalists their day in court. Supporters, on the other hand, argued the lawsuit was iled to pressure wildlife regu- lators while Oregon’s wolf recov- ery plan is updated. Gov. Kate Brown signed the bill despite environmentalist calls for a veto in March, stating in a signing letter that the “trajectory of wolf populations in Oregon re- mains strong.” The legislation was expected to nullify the legal challenge, which proved correct — on April 22, the Oregon Court of Appeals held that HB 4040 rendered the environ- mentalist petition moot. Proposed Wallowa Lake bike path hits setback New route likely to delay project for another year By Steve Tool Wallowa County Chieftain A proposed $1.6 million bike path from College Street in Joseph to the county park at the foot of Wallowa Lake will be delayed for a year after Native American tribes with cultural resources in the area expressed concerns. The National Park Service and Oregon State Parks, which hold jurisdiction over the Old Chief Joseph grave site and Iwetemlaykin State Heritage Site, respectively, also ex- pressed reservations about the path route. Construction of the 0.75- mile path was slated to begin this spring, with completion expected in August or Sep- tember. Ken Patterson, Region 5 project manager for Oregon Department of Transporta- tion, broke the news to the Jo- seph City Council during its April 7 meeting. The tribes involved include the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla as well as the Joseph band Nez Perce, located at the reservation in Colville, Wash. ODOT already had put to- gether a preliminary design, but as they started working with the tribes that had an in- terest in the area, the state re- alized the plan needed chang- es. “We had to step back and change a few things to reduce impact to the area,” Patterson said. Patterson said one beneit of the delay is that it gives ODOT more time to put the project together. The project is fully funded and the state already has purchased proper- ty and easements that helped seal the deal for the future completion of the path. Coordinating the project with the tribes and govern- ment entities to minimize the impact on cultural resources was a positive experience, Patterson said. “We’ve met with (Nation- al Park Service) a couple of times, and we’ve got a revised project design they’re more in favor of,” Patterson said. He noted some positive chang- es to the original plans that would have less visual affect on the area than before. For example, a proposed retaining wall across the Oregon Route 351 from the grave site was scrapped, meaning the state no longer plans to dig out the hillside. Part of the project also called for a cut into the Iwe- temlaykin property, but as that idea was shot down two separate retaining walls on the other side of the highway are now in the plans and it is still within the state’s right-of- way. “We put walls in to reduce impact and removed walls to reduce impact,” Patterson said. Although the tribes and Park Service have yet to sign off on the project, Patterson is optimistic about the bike path’s future. “I wouldn’t say things are resolved, but we’ve addressed their concerns and gotten back to them. We’ve done the ground work, it’s now a mat- ter of getting the agreements CJD seeks matching fund donations for new arbor roof By Steve Tool Wallowa County Chieftain Showing that Chief Joseph Days is more than a rodeo, the CJD directors are trying to raise matching funds for a generous donor grant for the installation of a roofed arbor at the Indian Encampment next to the ro- deo grounds. During the an- nual event, the encampment is home to several tribes, includ- ing the Nez Perce, members of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla and some from as far away as Yakima, Wash. In conjunction with the ro- deo, the encampment includes teepees, vendors, dancing and an all-inclusive Friendship Feast featuring Native Amer- ican dishes. The arbor, which covered the feast and dancing areas, formerly was covered with a blue tarp, but new plans call for a structure with a cedar shake roof to give it a more tra- ditional appearance as well as a permanent cover. The board is doing the proj- ect through private grants and donations. The rodeo board recently received an offer from a donor to match dollar-to-dol- lar up to $10,000 in donations, which the project sorely needs. “We can use that $10,000 and the matching funds for sure,” CJD board member John Hillock said. Hillock said the project has been in the works for several years with the board buying up materials for the structure during that time. “Ralph Swinehart and I have designed a building that looks like it has teepee poles on one end,” Hillock said. “I drove up to northern Idaho the other day and bought some ce- dar shakes so it will have a nice roof. The blueprint is pretty im- pressive. It’s going to be a gor- geous building.” Hillock has the project up for bid with local contractors. “The biggest problem I’m having now is that everyone is busy. I don’t know if we can get it done before (this year’s) Chief Joseph Days.” He added that two local con- tractors have expressed interest in the project. “The whole communi- ty thinks it’s a good idea to have something more perma- nent than a tarp. Plus, we’re extending the hand of friend- ship to the Nez Perce as well. signed.” ODOT plans another public meeting in Joseph shortly be- fore the project begins in the spring of 2017. The contract for the project will go up for bid in November to give the contractor time to plan for the project. Joseph Mayor Dennis Sands said the delay wasn’t surprising given the amount of entities involved. “My initial reaction was disappointment,” Sands said. “It takes time when you have to get a sign-off from every- one. 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