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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 4, 2015)
HAVING A PHOTOGRAPHIC DALLAS GIRLS SOCCER ADVENTURE Page BLAZES A TRAIL Page 7A 7A Page 10A Volume 140, Issue 44 www.Polkio.com 75¢ November 4, 2015 IN YOUR TOWN DALLAS Realtors hope prop- erties are priced to sell at auction. »Page 2A FALLS CITY Falls City School Dis- trict lists needs, wants for proposed gym. »Page 15A INDEPENDENCE Water, sewer rates to go up. »Page 6A MONMOUTH JOLENE GUZMAN/Itemizer-Observer Detective sergeant Mark Garton takes the office of sheriff Dec. 1 as interim after Sheriff Bob Wolfe steps down at the end of November. »Page 3A Familiar face, new job By Jolene Guzman The Itemizer-Observer POLK COUNTY — Mark Garton made it his goal to become sheriff several years ago. Wednesday, that objec- tive — at least temporari- ly — was fulfilled when the Polk County Board of Com- missioners appointed him to serve as interim sheriff for 13 months starting in De- cember. In his 18 years with the sheriff’s office, Garton has served many roles, from cadet to jail deputy to detec- tive sergeant. He’s spent the last six or seven years learning from Sheriff Bob Wolfe, who has held the post for 16 years. “This is what I’ve wanted to do,” Garton said. He’s also running to hold the job permanently, as is Yamhill County Sheriff’s Of- fice Patrol Sgt. Todd Whit- low, who applied for the in- terim job, as well. They are the only two candidates who have filed for the office in the May 2016 primary so far. The deadline for candidates to file is March 8, 2016. Polk County Commis- sioner Mike Ainsworth said he was impressed with both candidates, saying Whitlow is more than qualified for the job. His decision for the in- terim post hinged on creat- ing a smooth transition after Wolfe retires and he and the board thought Gar- ton was the best man for that job. “I think probably more than anything, it was the c o n t i n u i t y,” A i n s w o r t h said. “Mark has an under- standing of the depart- ment.” Garton said his objective once he takes over is contin- uing to rebuild the office with money provided through a tax levy passed in May. Top priorities are restoring 24-hour patrol and the Polk Interagency Nar- cotics Team (POINT). He said, no matter who voters choose next year, it will be his responsibility to have the office ready for a newly elected sheriff. “That’s my job for the next 13 months,” he said. “That is what I will focus on.” Garton said the office is ahead of schedule in restor- ing full patrol hours because of a number of “lateral,” hires, or officers already working in other depart- ments. “We got lucky hiring certi- fied police officers,” he said. Certified officers don’t have to go through officer training with the Depart- ment of Public Safety Stan- d a rd s a n d Tra i n i n g , a process that takes four months, making the transi- tion to the field quicker. If field training of new of- ficers goes as planned, full patrol hours could be re- stored by this summer, a lit- tle more than a year after the levy passed. Getting POINT running again will take longer, as the department wants to make sure it’s hiring the right offi- cers for the job. “We don’t want to com- promise our standards,” Garton said. Polk County avoids localized flooding By Emily Mentzer The Itemizer-Observer POLK COUNTY — Saturday’s storm that dumped 1.85 inches of rain was a “pretty textbook atmospheric river event,” said meteorologist Jeremiah Pyle, with the U.S. Na- tional Weather Service in Portland. “‘Pineapple Express’ is the term commonly used, but we’re trying to get away from that term because it’s not always Hawaii” that brings the sub-tropical moisture to the Willamette Valley, Pyle said. Instead, it was a mixture of a low pressure system to the northwest with a frontal boundary extending south of the low that tapped in some sub-tropical moisture. The storm was typical for Oregon, Pyle noted, and we’ll likely see a few more this winter. “We don’t have any on the short-term horizon, but it’s like- ly that we’ll see more of those types of events later on this winter,” he said. The storm caused little localized flooding throughout Polk County. The combination of heavy rain between 5 and 8 p.m. and fall leaves meant storm drains became covered with leaves and debris. See STORM, Page 5A THE NEXT 7 DAYS PLANNING FOR YOUR WEEK Lock up your bike to deter potential thieves from targeting your bike. JOLENE GUZMAN/ Itemizer-Observer A storm on Saturday dumped 1.85 inches of rain on Polk County. The storms caused little localized flooding throughout the county. SPORTS Perrydale’s volleyball team advances to the quarterinals of the 1A state volleyball tourna- ment. »Page 10A EDUCATION Central teachers, dis- trict approve three-year contract. »Page 15A Helicopter crashes while harvesting trees SHERIDAN — A heli- copter harvesting Christmas trees on a farm near Sheridan crashed Monday after- noon. Witnesses on the scene reported indica- tion of some sort of en- gine failure causing the pilot, later identiied as Blane Hayes of Apple- bee Aviation, to lose control of the aircraft, according to police re- ports. The helicopter spun around as it descended to the ground coming to crashing after dam- aging the rear tail sec- tion of the aircraft as well as the landing skids, according to the Polk County Sherif’s Oice. Hayes was uninjured in the accident and re- fused any medical assis- tance, according to po- lice. See CRASH, Page 15A wed thu fri sat sun mon tue Grab your thinking caps and head to In- dependence library for an afternoon of fun and Scrabble with Betty. 1 p.m. Free. James2 Community Kitchen ofers free meals for all who are hungry at Dallas United Methodist each Thursday. 4:30-6 p.m. Free. Have a luau-inspired dinner and play casino-style games at a fundraiser for PCL at Eola Hills win- ery. 6 p.m. $20. Polk Community Free Clinic provides medical and mental health services for folks who can’t af- ford health care. 7-11 a.m. Free. The Buell Grange will host its monthly breakfast of all-you- care-to-eat pan- cakes, eggs, hash browns and more. 8-11 a.m. $6. Drop of new or gently used coats, blankets, scarves, hats and gloves to Windermere Real Es- tate in Monmouth. 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Free. Happy Birthday U.S. Marine Corps! All marines and their families are invited to a birthday party at Murphy’s Grill. 6 p.m. Free. Partly Cloudy Hi: 56 Lo: 44 Cloudy Hi: 55 Lo: 42 Partly Cloudy Hi: 58 Lo: 44 Showers Hi: 55 Lo: 43 Showers Hi: 54 Lo: 41 Partly Cloudy Hi: 53 Lo: 38 Partly Cloudy Hi: 54 Lo: 38