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About Wallowa County chieftain. (Enterprise, Wallowa County, Or.) 1943-current | View Entire Issue (April 21, 2021)
LOCAL Wallowa.com Wednesday, April 21, 2021 A7 Telephone pedestals go up in fl ames Community food project takes root with FEAST grant Ditch burning temporarily disrupts service Eff ort aims to boost feeding the hungry By BILL BRADSHAW Wallowa County Chieftain ENTERPRISE — Three telephone service pedestals in the rural Enterprise area were burned in just seven days by landowners burn- ing ditches along roadsides, temporarily disrupting ser- vice, said a spokesman with Ziply Fiber, the company that owns the pedestals. “This is an uncommon volume for such a short win- dow of time,” said Ryan Luckin, vice president of marketing and communica- tions in an email Thursday, April 15. The most recent ped- estal destroyed was at the intersection of Hurricane Creek Road and Dorrance Lane between Enterprise and Joseph. It was replaced Monday, April 19, by a Zip- ley crew from La Grande. Luckin said telephone customers were quickly returned to service on a tem- porary basis. He did not know if cellular towers were aff ected by the damage and thus, was unsure if cell ser- vice was disrupted. He said it depends on the extent of the damage, but he estimated the cost to replace the pedestal would be between $1,800 and $2,000. He said often the responsi- ble landowner is billed for the damage, but that’s evalu- ated on a case-by-case basis. “The most important thing is to restore service quickly and keep residents connected to critical means of communication,” Luckin said. The pedestal is one that provides telephone ser- vice to customers in rather remote areas, he said. Paul Karvoski, emer- gency services manager for Wallowa County, is appre- hensive over the coming potential fi re season. “Get ready for summer,” he told the Enterprise City By BILL BRADSHAW Wallowa County Chieftain Bill Bradshaw/Wallowa County Chieftain Ziply Fiber worker Mark Ralph, left, watches as Danny Stubblefi eld operates a backhoe to dig out and replace a telephone service pedestal Monday, April 19, 2021, that was burned April 14 by a landowner burning his ditch at the intersection of Hurricane Creek Road and Dorrance Lane south of Enterprise. Bill Bradshaw/Wallowa County Chieftain This telephone service pedestal was damaged Wednesday, April 14, 2021, when a landowner burned the roadside along Hurricane Creek Road at Dorrance Lane. Ziply Fiber had to replace the box Monday. Council in his dual capac- ity as city fi re chief Monday, April 12. He also told the coun- cil of numerous incidents of intentional burns getting out of control over the previ- ous few days, including fi ve from noon to 5 p.m. the pre- vious Friday. “Friday afternoon was very stressful,” he told the council. On Thursday, Karvoski said it appears landown- ers need to be more careful when conducting controlled burns. “They’re not doing their due diligence to keep it away from the telephone box,” he said. Karvoski agreed with Luckin that the recent rash of utility destruction was unusual. “This is the fi rst time it’s been this bad over the years,” he said. He also said there is an unusual increase in con- trolled burns in the county. “I’ve never seen so many fi elds burned,” he said, not- ing that it was a positive action to get rid of fl amma- ble weeds, but care needs to be taken. “If you see one of those things in the ditches, you’d better burn around it,” he said. In the future, Luckin said, landowners conducting burning should be “cautious and aware of surroundings and nearby utilities.” He said it goes beyond simply damaging his com- pany’s equipment. “Damages such as this can take customers out of service and cause them to have no capability to contact 911 for emergency services,” he said. “In addition, many utilities are located together and when power is involved, life-threatening injuries can occur when damages such as this happen.” Coleman Oil Wallowa Cardlock is NOW OPEN ENTERPRISE — Sup- porters of the Wallowa County Food Bank are working to raise an addi- tional $500 toward a proj- ect to help feed and inform the needy about food resources after the receipt of a $1,075 grant for the eff ort, according to a press release. A new project emerged March 16 when more than 25 community mem- bers gathered in the online Wallowa County FEAST (Food, Education and Agri- culture Solutions Together) event and has received seed funds to launch the proj- ect. The FEAST grant will pay about two-thirds of the project, which is expected to cost $1,575, the release stated. During the March 16 event, panelists told about opportunities and chal- lenges in local farming, food distribution and food access. Participants also broke into small groups for more in-depth discussion and idea sharing. A challenge that came up in all four breakout groups was local access to fresh, healthy foods by people on a limited budget. One idea to address this challenge has now grown roots into a new project. “The challenge of accessing nutritious food on a limited budget has come up in all three FEAST events held since 2012,” said Sara Miller, a FEAST Leadership Team member of the Northeast Oregon Economic Devel- opment District. “It is exciting to see this collaborative project com- ing together to help all of us know about and be able to share information that can benefi t our commu- nities,” said Katy Nesbitt, of St. Patrick’s Episcopal Church, the sponsor of this year’s FEAST event. The project will share information on food pro- grams/services and trans- portation services avail- able to people with lower incomes in Wallowa County. Information such as where to apply and who can off er support in the application process, loca- tions of food banks and food box programs, what local establishments accept state and federal benefi ts such as SNAP and WIC and ways to support local food programs will be included. The project will work with the many organiza- tions providing resources to gather information and develop a fl yer that can be handed out and posted on websites and social media. In addition, an info-mailer will be direct-mailed to every mailbox. Project organizers hope that sharing the informa- tion will ensure many more people know about these essential resources and ways to support them, and that people will also feel empowered to share the information with others. The Wallowa County Farmers Market will work with partners to raise the remaining $500 needed to complete the project. The goal is to post online con- tent and distribute 4,525 direct mailers and fl yers to homes and partner organi- zations by June 30. Anyone who would like to support the project fi nan- cially or with informa- tion can reach out to Sara Averbeck, secretary for the farmers market, at aver- becksara@gmail.com. • Conveniently Located • Accepting all Major Credit/Debit and CFN Cards • Easily Accessible for Semi trucks, Campers and RV’s • Non-Ethanol Premium • 24/7 Fueling 71051 HWY 82 Wallowa, OR 97885 888-799-2000 www.colemanoil.com o l l e H g n i r Sp To advertise in the Wallowa County Chieftain Contact Jennifer Cooney jcooney@wallowa.com 541-805-9630 BARGAINS OF THE MONTH ® While supplies last. FINAL PRICE 21.99 25.99 SALE PRICE -4.00 INSTANT REBATE Roundup® Gal. Ready-To-Use Extended Control Weed & Grass Killer Prevents weeds for up to 4 months. Comfort wand for extended reach. L 161 996 B4 1.1 gal. Ready-To-Use Weed & Grass Killer, 17.99 after $4 Mail-in rebate* L 161 436 B4 *Limit 2 per offer. Consumer responsible for taxes. 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