LOSING HIS CATTLE
ATTACKS CONTINUE TO FRUSTRATE
OREGON RANCHER | PAGE A8
Enterprise, Oregon
134th Year, No. 38
Wallowa.com
Wednesday, January 9, 2019
PLUNGE IN,
RUN OUT!
$1
Wallowa
Memorial
Hospital
shows profi t
in 2018
By Steve Tool
Wallowa County Chieftain
Wallowa Memorial Hospital, the coun-
ty’s largest employer, made a profi t in 2018
along with signifi cant strides in other areas,
according to chief executive offi cer Larry
Davy.
Davy spoke to the Chieftain about the ban-
ner year from his modest-sized offi ce at the
hospital. The National Rural Health Associ-
ation, using a metric that ranges from patient
care and satisfaction to fi nancial strength,
rated Wallowa Memorial sixth among 1,350
rural hospitals around the country.
“It think it’s a great commentary on our
staff, our physicians and our community
support,” Davy said. “It shows that local
efforts for health care are very effective.”
Still, Davy said he and the staff are not
satisfi ed with the ranking and are striving to
be number one.
“We don’t target numbers,” Davy said.
“But if you do your job well, with quality
and service, those numbers come.”
See Hospital, Page A6
Environmental
groups pull
out of wolf
plan talks
By Gillian Flaccus
Associated Press
Courtesy photos/Kathy Drake
IN — The Wallowa County hardy of heart Polar Plungers make their way into Wallowa Lake to celebrate the new year on Jan. 1.
OUT — The same hardy revelers on their way out of the lake at a bit faster speed. About 85 people attended the event with several
dozen actually participating in the plunge and an equal number in a support role.
PORTLAND (AP) — Environmental
groups in Oregon announced Monday they
have withdrawn from talks on how to man-
age the state’s rebounding wolf population
because of what they called a “broken” pro-
cess, and concerns that state wildlife offi cials
want to make it easier to kill wolves that eat
livestock without trying other alternatives.
The announcement came after months
of negotiations to update rules on how and
when wolves can be killed as their numbers
increase and they spread farther west and
south after re-entering northeastern Oregon
from Idaho more than a decade ago.
It wasn’t immediately clear what would
happen to the talks, although the environ-
mental groups said they would “collectively
and actively” oppose the wolf management
plan proposed by the Oregon Department of
Fish and Wildlife.
Michelle Dennehy, an agency spokes-
woman, did not return a call and email seek-
ing comment. The agency oversees the group
of ranchers, hunters and wolf conservation
See Wolf plan, Page A6
Alpenfest to move to Wallowa Lake State Park
Seeks fi nancial
support for big tent
Wallowa County Chieftain
Oregon’s Alpenfest has
lost the only home it has
known: the 97-year-old
Edelweiss Inn declared
recently as uninhabitable.
“We have loved that old
building, but we knew it was
just a matter of time before
something like this would
happen,” said Chuck Ander-
son, the festival’s president.
The festival plans to go
forward in 2019 and hold the
event under a 3,200-square-
foot tent at Wallowa Lake
State Park in September. The
nonprofi t festival is launch-
ing a campaign to pay to
rent the tent, a stage, dance
fl oor, heaters, lighting and
other necessities, estimated
at roughly $15,000 annually,
Anderson said.
Anderson said he is work-
ing with state parks offi cials
for the necessary permit and
applying for fi nancial sup-
port from regional founda-
tions and local businesses.
Eventually,
Alpenfest
directors hope for the fes-
tival to be staged perma-
nently at an event center. A
3,800-square-foot structure
at the northeast corner of
the marina parking lot with
views overlooking Wallowa
Lake is currently included
in the park’s longterm mas-
ter plan. But that idea awaits
architectural concepts, fund-
ing and county approval.
The process and construc-
tion will probably take sev-
eral years, said Anderson.
The Edelweiss, located
next door to and owned by
Wallowa Lake Tramway,
has a storied history. Before
the Tramway acquired it, a
series of owners used it as
an Elks Lodge clubhouse,
a lodge, a dance hall and a
roller-skating rink. There
are Prohibition-era legends
of bootleg liquor and rooms
available for more than just
dancing.
Edelweiss Inn