Smoke Signals 11
State Looking Into Widening Highway 22
Environmental and cost issues will be considered for the 2008-09 building season.
MAY 15, 2004
By Ron Karten
Tribal engineer Eric Scott and a team of experts from the state dropped
by Kissing Rock on Ilebo Road (State Highway 22) earlier this month to
scope out the details of what it will take to widen some nine turns in the
road.
These turns are narrow enough and sharp enough that most log trucks
coming out of the area's timber stands drive down Grand Ronde Road rather
than negotiate the turns on Hebo Road. In the last five years, this section
of the road has seen ten accidents with eight injuries, according to Brian
The End Of The Kiss? Tribal Engineer, Eric Scott (second from right)
recently met with officials from the Oregon Department of Transportation to discuss
the proposed Highway 22 road widening project at Kissing Rock..
Boedigheimer, Project Leader from the Department of Transportation.
Specialists in environment, parks, Tribal culture, safety and right-of-way
issues participated.
"Each gives an expert opinion of what it will cost to do this job," said
Boedigheimer. Boedigheimer summarizes these estimates, and submits
them to the Mid-Willamette Area Commission on Transportation (MWACT)
along with estimates for many other projects in the area. MWACT then
decides priorities and makes recommendations for ODOT.
"If everything goes right," said Boedigheimer, "we'll start work here in
2008-09."
OR22: YAMHILL CO. LINE - 0R18
(FORT YAMHILL MONUMENT) SEC.
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Map of proposed changes to Highway 22 near Grand Ronde.
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His Yard Is An Example Of What Your Yard Can Look Like
Tribal member Fred McGee runs his landscaping business out of his home in the Meadows.
ByPetaTinda
Tribal member Fred McGee's house
looks pretty much like any other in
Grand Meadows, a modest three-bedroom
with no fence.
But a second look reveals a well
maintained, extraordinarily land
scaped yard, planted with
lush Kentucky Bluegrass,
three dozen different trees
and shrubs, a dozen variet
ies of roses, ornamental
grasses and a three hundred
gallon pond surrounded by
miniature cattails and wa
ter lilies. The grass is thick
and green, all of the edges
perfectly trimmed. Clearly,
McGee must have a secret
technique.
"The secret to a nice yard
is to stay on top of it," said
McGee, holding a steel, triangle-shaped
gadget.
"This is called an oriental
weeding tool. If I can find a
weed, I'll show you how it
works," he said.
He couldn't find any.
McGee, who is the son of
Fred and Deloris McGee, has
been a landscaper for most
of his life. He works at
Spirit Mountain Casino as
a Landscape Technician,
maintaining the Casino's 30
manicured acres of grass,
trees and green areas.
"The other thing is weed
control. I try to use as little
synthetic man-made chemi
cals as possible," he said.
A quick tour around
McGee's yard shows an in
credible variety of plants and flowers,
as well as how hard he works to keep
it nice.
There are bonsai trees, strawberry
bushes and potted herbs surrounding
his deck, Japanese maples, Irish
mosses and a Golden Thread cypress
tree in the yard.
There is also a bristle cone pine tree,
McGee has a Master Gardener's cer
tificate from Polk County and is certi
fied by Chemeketa Community Col
lege for green house practices and turf
management.
He said that gardening gives him a
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Lawn Lord Tribal member Fred McGee stands in
front of his yard in Grand Meadows. McGee, who
works as a Landscape Technician at Spirit Mountain
Casino, has turned his yard into a botanists'paradise,
planting dozens of trees, ornamental grasses, a three
hundred gallon pond, complete with goldfish and a
Japanese Maple tree (left). McGee also built his own
greenhouse in his back yard.
numerous
varieties of
tulips, daffodils, crocuses and a French
Blue lilac bush that smells like what
heaven must.
lot of personal satisfaction.
"Plants give me such immediate
gratification for taking care of them."
McGee has also built his own green
house in his backyard for starting
seedling and cuttings.
McGee's interest in gardening ex
tends to his tools.
He bought and restored a 1963 Coo
per Klipper reel-type lawn mower,
which he uses regularly.
"I can pull the cord and it'll start,"
he said. "It was made when things were
built to last."
He spends about four hours a week
working on his yard.
One tip he recommends for novice
gardeners is to keep a sharp edge on
any metal tools, like hoes or shovels.
"It just makes it a lot easier," he said.
"You don't beat yourself up as much."
He also recommends fertilizing lawns
and plants at least twice a year, once
in spring and once more in the fall.
McGee offered to help any Tribal
member or Tribal Elder with consult
ing about their landscaping, free of
charge.
He feels that by keeping his home
looking nice, he is doing his bit to keep
the Grand Meadows community look
ing nice.
"We all have a responsibility to each
other to keep the community looking
as nice as we can," he said. "We should
be thankful for the opportunity that
being a Tribal member gives to us
without it, I wouldn't have been able
to move back here to where my father
and his father were raised."
In the end, McGee reminds people
not to get frustrated with their yards.
"After all, you're just playing in the
dirt," he said.
Note: If you would like Fred McGee
to help you with consulting on your
yard, he is available free of charge.
His phone number is: 503-871-6101
evenings 5 to 8 o'clock. McGee can be
reached via e-mail at:
dcl05msn.com.