SIXTH-GRADERS PONDER DISTRICT ELECTIONS
‘IF I WERE MAYOR’ NEXT WEEK
LOCAL, A3
$1.50
LOCAL, A8
RDF&P BRINGS LIVING
WAGES TO COUNTY
BUSINESS, A6
137th Year, No. 5
WINNER OF THE 2020 ONPA GENERAL EXCELLENCE AWARD
Wednesday, May 12, 2021
Wallowa Memorial earns top-20 position
Fourth time in the
past fi ve years WMH
has earned a
top-20 distinction
By RONALD BOND
Wallowa County Chieftain
John
Howard
Wallowa
He always
wanted to
live here
ENTERPRISE — Wallowa
Memorial Hospital has again been
ranked among the top Critical
Access Hospitals in the nation.
And with that, it received the
distinction of the highest-ranked
one on the West Coast.
The Chartis Center for Rural
Health announced its top-20 list
of CAHs on Monday, May 3, and
WMH was in the top 20 for the
fourth time in the past fi ve years,
according to a press release from the
National Rural Health Association.
“Obviously, it’s gratifying to
know that your eff orts are achiev-
ing results,” WMH CEO Larry
Davy said. “Our goal is always to
aim for perfection, which is impos-
sible. But if you aim for perfec-
tion, you achieve excellence. It’s
encouraging that all the hard work
everyone is doing does have a very
positive result for our community.
It keeps you trying hard.”
The hospital learned in March it
was a top-100 hospital for the eighth
time in the past 11 years. Only three
other hospitals in Oregon made the
top-100 list, Brooke Pace, WMH
communications director said at the
time, and none of them were in the
top 20. In fact, there were no other
West Coast states that had a hospi-
tal in the top 20. Dillon, Montana,
and Beaver, Utah, were the next
farthest west. Most of the top 20
hospitals were located in the Mid-
west, including fi ve in the Dakotas,
fi ve in Kansas, three in Iowa and
two in Nebraska.
What challenges do you
feel the county faces?
None that I can think of. They
seem to be doing alright.
How has the COVID-19
pandemic aff ected you?
Not so far. I’ve had my shots.
I’ve tried to keep up on it and it
hasn’t bothered me yet.
What have you learned
from living in Wallowa
County?
I’ve lived on the farm most of
my life and done most of the same
things before I moved here as I do
now.
What’s your advice for
people who are thinking
about moving here?
It’s a little slower-paced life. We
don’t have to put up with the traf-
fi c. Some people live in the big city
and can’t get along without it. But
I get along without it fi ne. I think
there’s something here for every-
body if you can fi gure out what
you like to do.
— Bill Bradshaw,
Wallowa County Chieftain
See Hospital, Page A5
JOSEPH
Council
hears
public
works
updates
WALLOWA — John Howard
moved here just four years ago,
but already he’s found it just like
home.
“I like the country here and I
always wanted to live here,” he
said. “I fi nally got the chance to do
so.”
Originally from St. Helens, prior
to coming to Wallowa County he
lived on Washington state’s Long
Beach Peninsula. He worked as a
railroad brakeman/conductor for
31½ years. He and his late wife
have one son in Wallowa and two
others in Rogue River and Wilson-
ville. The three sons provide How-
ard with “about eight” grandchil-
dren, he said.
He recently shared his thoughts
about living in Wallowa County.
What’s your favorite thing
about Wallowa County?
The climate, I think, and it’s still
a little remote compared to the
rest of the world. The beautiful
scenery, of course, and the wildlife.
I hunt and I fi sh.
A series of factors are looked at
by the Chartis Center when deter-
mining the top hospitals.
“The determining factors for
the top-20 CAHs were based on
the results of the Hospital Strength
Index and its eight indices of per-
formance: inpatient market share,
outpatient market share, quality,
outcomes, patient perspective, cost,
charge and fi nancial effi ciency,”
the NRHA press release stated.
“This elite group of hospitals was
selected from the Chartis Center for
Rural Health’s 2021 top-100 CAH
Also OKs liquor
license, red for
ADA ramps
Bill Bradshaw/Wallowa County Chieftain
Clouds remain over Joseph on Friday, May 7, 2021, after the City Council received a scathing rebuke from the
Joseph Chamber of Commerce over the council’s dysfunctional performance and another employee complaint of
harassment surfaced at its meeting the previous evening.
government results in the inability
to effi ciently process permits and
other requests directly impacting
business. This same dysfunction is
also a deterrent in recruiting and
retaining qualifi ed personnel to staff
city positions as the city’s reputation
is damaged through press reports in
local and regional papers,” the let-
ter stated.
It urged “corrective actions” to
be taken by the council such as:
• Allowing city staff “to perform
their duties without interference
from individual councilors.”
• Councilors causing discord
should resign. If they don’t, they
should be disciplined, such as
by being stripped of committee
assignments.
• The chamber supports the plan
to replace Braden with interim
administrator until a long-term
administrator can be found.
JOSEPH — Drama over how
city government functions not-
withstanding, the Joseph City
Council did make some progress
at its meeting Thursday, May 6.
Chief among that progress
was hearing an update from
Brad Baird, of Anderson Perry
Engineers, on the city’s plans
to revamp its sewage treatment
plant and water system and
some minor street paving work.
Baird explained requirements
from the state Department of
Environmental Quality. He said
the DEQ rewrote the city’s per-
mit with a new list of deadlines
in a memorandum of agreement.
He said the city should be able to
meet the deadlines.
“You are in a squeeze now to
get it designed and built within
two years,” he said. “We can do
it, but we’ve got to get started
now.”
Looking over the agreement
with the DEQ, Brock Eckstein,
the newly hired interim city
administrator, urged the coun-
cil to have city attorney Wyatt
Baum examine it.
“It’s a pretty basic contract,
but I’d still have your attorney
look it over,” Eckstein said.
Since the MOA needed to
be signed by Friday, May 7,
the council authorized Mayor
Belinda Buswell to sign it pend-
ing its approval by Baum.
Baird also told the council the
city’s water budget appeared to
be operating in the red, which is
a violation of state budget law.
“Please look at it,” Baird said.
He also asked and received
the council’s approval to move
ahead with planned paving proj-
ects, noting the city has unan-
ticipated extra funds to accom-
plish it.
“It’s a good position to be in
with a couple hundred thousand
dollars for paving,” he said.
In another matter, the council
voted 4-2 to change the color of
ramps to be installed downtown
from yellow to red on the rec-
ommendation of the Main Street
Motif Committee. The ramps
are being installed to comply
with the federal Americans with
Disabilities Act.
See Cloud, Page A5
See Council, Page A5
‘Cloud’ remains over
Joseph City Council
Chamber slams
council; another
harassment
claim surfaces
By BILL BRADSHAW
Wallowa County Chieftain
J
OSEPH — A scathing
rebuke by the Joseph Cham-
ber of Commerce, a sec-
ond employee complaint of
harassment and resident comments
on the “cloud” that remains over
the Joseph City Council greeted the
council during its Thursday, May 6,
meeting.
All this came despite progress
the council made by hiring Brock
Eckstein, interim city administra-
tor of Elgin, as interim administra-
tor for Joseph. The move comes to
replace Larry Braden, who resigned
April 16 citing “harassment” by
city council members.
Eckstein agreed to work one day
a week for the city, but other obli-
gations prevent him from doing
the job full time. He agreed that,
when the need arises, he can put in
a few more hours and even work
remotely.
“I’m available for emergency
situations to come up here, so long
as it’s allowable under my sched-
ule,” he told the council.
But uncertainty remained over
Joseph’s city government, as noted
by offi cials and some members of
the public in attendance.
Business owner Michael Lock-
hart said he’s been hearing com-
plaints from around town since Bra-
den’s resignation. He emphasized
he’s not out to implicate anyone,
just to have the council be more
open about the situation.
“People are bringing these things
Bill Bradshaw/Wallowa County Chieftain
Brock Eckstein answers questions and makes his pitch to become interim
city administrator Thursday, May 6, 2021, before the Joseph City Council.
Councilwomen Kirsten Rohla, center, and Tammy Jones listen. Eckstein was
hired by the council during the meeting.
to your attention and it’s throwing a
cloud over all of you,” he said. “It
would be much better if you guys
just cleared the air. The fi rst one had
you all ‘indicted;’ the second one’s
pretty clear. ... I don’t want to see
punishment or anything like that.
I just want to see you clear this up
and become a clean council and
move forward.”
Chamber rebukes council
Lockhart’s comments came after
a letter to the city from the Joseph
Chamber of Commerce. Cham-
ber President Dina McFetridge and
Vice President Jude Graham were
present to represent the chamber.
“The chamber has signifi cant
concerns on current decisions and
actions taken by a council mem-
ber that have directly resulted in a
loss of staff and expertise at the city
level that will have an impact on the
citizens of Joseph and the business
community. Dysfunction at the city
By BILL BRADSHAW
Wallowa County Chieftain