Wallowa County Chieftain
Local
wallowa.com
THREE
minutes with ...
March 8, 2017
The store is celebrating its 40th year. How long have
you been proprietor ? What were its origins ?
Today, March 1 marks 29 years that I have owned the
store. It was opened in 1976 by Rich and Judy Wand-
schneider.
What titles are selling these days ?
As always, local interest books sell the best. The local
memoirs that came out last year continue to do well.
Other more recent books that have sold well include A
Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles, The Book of Joy
by the Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu, and a new poetry
collection by Kim Stafford, The Flavor of Unity.
Caption
Who comes into your store? What is the mix between
locals and visitors ?
I like to think that my customers are anyone who enjoys
reading, drinking good coffee, chocolate-lovers, and those
who appreciate beautiful art that refl ects the area. That
should be everyone, right?
The locals are the ones who keep the store going year-
round. Visitors give a much appreciated boost, mostly in
the summer months.
MARY
SWANSON
Has the store been visited by notable authors ?
Yes! Back in the late 1990s, the children’s author and
illustrator Jan Brett. There was a massive line stretching
out the front door and around the corner. She stayed and
signed books for every person who came. Popular regional
authors Craig Lesley, Molly Gloss, Jane Kirkpatrick, and
Patrick McManus have all done readings at the store.
Proprietor of The Book Loft
in Enterprise
A7
‘I
think people have
come to appreciate the
opportunity to have a real vs.
a virtual experience.’
Tell us what else you have in the store, beyond books ?
I have surrounded myself with all the things I love: beau-
tiful cards, nice journals and pens, really good chocolates,
coffee and tea. And of course, The Skylight Gallery in the
back of the store features amazing work by local artists:
photography by David Jensen, Olaf pottery by Ted Juve,
blown glass by Russell Ford, and jewelry by Annie Rob-
inson and Brenda Burt. I also carry Wendy McCullough’s
lovely Sally B Farms goat milk soap.
There is a national trend that independent booksell-
ers are much healthier than was expected in the age of
the E-reader. To what do you attribute the Bookloft’s
endurance ?
Customer loyalty is a huge factor. Also, there is my
carefully selected inventory of books tailored to my cus-
tomers and the high level of customer service I offer. And
the fact that I pay lots of attention to the business side of
things. But most importantly, I offer the experience of real
books in a real bookstore. In this digital age, I think people
have come to appreciate the opportunity to have a real vs. a
virtual experience. As I say in my website bookloftoregon.
net, The Bookloft provides a sensory experience.
Wallowa city revitalization plans move forward
Five key projects
identified and
begun
By Kathleen Ellyn
Wallowa County Chieftain
It’s not just tulips popping
up in the city of Wallowa.
The city’s revitalization is
blooming. Specifi cally, there
is the prospect that the Forest
Service compound has fi nally
found a lessee. This is an es-
sential element in Wallowa’s
revitalization.
It’s been six months since
the City of Wallowa launched
its revitalization program,
adopting the Wallowa Home-
town Project as their name
and securing Wallowahome-
town.org for their web page.
City Councilor Garrett
Lowe is spearheading the
revitalization and he reports
progress on numerous fronts.
Coming off one of the
worst winters in decades,
most of the progress is in
planning.
Five projects have been
identifi ed as core projects and
“fi rst on the list,” according to
Lowe. The list includes:
• Moving the Wallowa
History Center offi ces.
• The city signage project.
• Setting a date for the “vi-
sion-to-action plan.”
• Connecting the Nez
Perce Homeland Project with
the city for walking tours.
• Consulting with the Or-
egon Main Street Program to
improve the downtown corri-
dor.
The city received the For-
est Service compound build-
ings by Presidential grant in
2012. Originally acquired
because a lessee was at hand,
those buildings have been a
burden to the city, after the
lessee backed out. However,
the city re-roofed two of the
four buildings with matching
funding from Oregon Heri-
tage, Oregon Parks and Rec-
reation Department last year.
Now, the Wallowa History
Center has expressed an inter-
est in moving its expanding
collection of documents, pho-
tographs and artifacts to the
compound.
“It’s not settled but we’re
thinking our collection will
go into the offi ce building.
That’s our hope,” said Mary
Ann Borrows, director the
Wallowa History Center.
The proposed lease has
been approved by City Coun-
cil after legal advice and
awaits approval from the His-
torical Society as of this pub-
lication.
The Wallowa History Cen-
ter may be a key player in the
revitalization in other ways,
GUN - ANTIQUE
& HORN SHOW
March 11th & 12th
TROPHY DISPLAYS
(Bring your trophies)
$3,500 in prizes
Includes 3 each Henry
personalized engraved rifles.
1 each Current, Prior
& Youth Harvest
Trophies received after
9 am Saturday only.
Nez Perce County
Fairgrounds
1229 Burrell
Lewiston, Idaho
Sat. 9-6 & Sun. 9-3
Info 208/746-5555
Wallowa County
Chieftain Archives
A WURA Fishing Train crosses one of the 100-year-old
bridges along the Elgin to Minam line.
soon. But Burrows cautions
that details must be settled
before she can publicize those
plans.
Signage decisions
coming
A second project on the list
is the sign project. The city
had decided to go with an in-
dustrial theme for signage and
a selection of possible styles
has been completed. Deci-
sions on that will be forth-
coming.
Nez Perce Homeland
Project
Connecting the Nez Perce
Homeland Project and Tam-
kaliks grounds to the city by
way of a bridge, facilitating
walking tours is the fourth
project.
The fi nal project is the re-
vitalization and improvement
of streets and the downtown
corridor with improved light-
ing, landscaping and resurfac-
ing.
Sheri Stewart of the Ore-
gon Main Street program, Or-
egon Parks and Recreation is
helping the city fi nd funding,
Lowe said.
The Greater Enterprise
Merchant’s Association has
also expressed interest in be-
ing part of the process to gain
funding for both cities’ main
streets.
“Our ad hoc committee has
three members from Wallowa
and two from Enterprise,”
Lowe said. “There’s a lot of
interest on the part of this
committee to help streamline
the process by which mon-
ey can come to both down-
towns.”
Introducing new
Nurse Practitioner
Jennifer
Barden
This week’s athlete
of the week is Jimmy
Wells, an Enterprise High
School junior. Wells plays
basketball for the school.
During the 2016-17 school
year, Wells, 16, played point
guard for the Outlaws
and played consistent
basketball throughout the
season, always among the
top players of the game
and one of the team’s best
all-around players when it
came to stats.
The third project is to set a
date for the “Vision to Action
Plan” where members of the
public come to draw pictures
of their desires for the city.
North East Oregon Develop-
ment District (NEOEDD) is
working with the city on that
project with funding from the
Environmental
Protection
Agency.
Bates Mill site and the
railroad bed may both be con-
sidered Brownfi elds and be
eligible for funding through
that program according to
NEOEDD.
May 4 will be that com-
munity meeting, at the Wal-
lowa School, and children’s
input will be encouraged.
Participants will be asked
how the city keeps the in-
dustrial theme and draws
tourism while still qualifying
as a place where people can
raise their kids and not have
to worry about crime, drugs
and urban problems.
“We want people to be
able to live the small-town
experience and still have
businesses that provide a
good solid standard of living
for residents,” Lowe said.
Jennifer brings 17 years of
nursing experience covering
the areas of emergency,
trauma, oncology,
telemedicine, pediatrics and
public health. Now, as a nurse practitioner, Jennifer can
diagnose illnesses, prescribe medications, take care of
your annual physical exams, and help you stay well.
Now accepting new patients
Schedule your appointment today!
541.426.7900
Jimmy
Wells
Mountain View Medical Group
603 Medical Parkway
(next to Wallowa
Memorial Hospital)
Enterprise, Oregon 97828
Proudly Sponsored By:
Eastern Oregon’s Full Service Propane Supplier
We treat you like family
601 Medical Parkway, Enterprise, OR 97828 • 541-426-3111 • www.wchcd.org
Wallowa Memorial Hospital is an equal opportunity employer and provider.
201 E. Hwy 82, Enterprise
541-426-0320
www.edstaub.com
HEALTH LINE
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BARGAINS MONTH
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