Polk County
Voices
Polk County Itemizer-Observer • September 7, 2016 4A
How to
Contact
Officials
PUBLIC AGENDA
Public Agenda is a listing of upcoming meetings for gov-
ernmental and nongovernmental agencies in Polk County.
To submit a meeting, send it at least two weeks before the
actual meeting date to the Itemizer-Observer via email
(ionews@polkio.com).
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WEDnESDAy, SEPT. 7
• Monmouth Historic Commission — 6 p.m., Volunteer Hall,
144 S. Warren St., monmouth. 503-838-0725.
• Monmouth Planning Commission — 7 p.m., Volunteer
Hall, 144 S. Warren St., monmouth. 503-838-0725.
• Polk County Board of Commissioners — 9 a.m., Polk
County Courthouse, first floor conference room, 850 main St.,
Dallas. 503-623-8173.
THuRSDAy, SEPT. 8
• Polk County Fire District no. 1 Board — 6 p.m., Central
Station 90, 1800 monmouth St., Independence. 503-838-1510.
• Western Days Commission — 7 p.m., Independence Civic
Center, 555 S. main St., Independence. 503-838-1212.
• Falls City City Council — 6 p.m., Falls City Community Cen-
ter, 320 n. main St., Falls City. 503-787- 3631.
MOnDAy, SEPT. 12
• WiMPEG Board of Directors — 7 p.m., 150 n. Knox St.,
monmouth. 503-838-0725.
• Monmouth Tree Advisory Board — 7 p.m., monmouth
Senior Center, 180 S. Warren St., monmouth. 503-838-0725.
• Dallas School Board — 6:30 p.m., Dallas School District of-
fice, 111 SW ash St., Dallas. 503-623-5594.
• Southwest Polk Fire Protection District Board — 7:30
p.m., Rickreall Fire Station, 275 main St., Rickreall. 503-831-3530.
• Central School District Board of Directors — 6:30 p.m.,
Henry Hill education Support Center, 750 S. Fifth St., Independ-
ence.
TuESDAy, SEPT. 13
• independence City Council — 7 p.m., Independence Civic
Center, 555 S. main St., Independence. 503-838-1212.
• Dallas Planning Commission — 7 p.m., Dallas City Hall,
187 Se Court St., Dallas. 503-831-3565.
• Polk County Board of Commission work session — 9
a.m., Polk County Courthouse, BOC office, 850 main St., Dallas.
503-623-8173.
WEDnESDAy, SEPT. 14
• independence Heritage Museum Commission — 4 p.m.,
Independence Heritage museum, 112 S. Third St., Independ-
ence. 503-838-1212.
• Monmouth Library Advisory Board — 7 a.m., monmouth
Public library, 168 ecols St. S., monmouth. 503-838-0725.
• Monmouth Parks and Recreation Board — 7 p.m., Volun-
teer Hall, 144 S. Warren St., monmouth. 503-838-0725.
• Polk County Board of Commissioners — 9 a.m., Polk
County Courthouse, first floor conference room, 850 main St.,
Dallas. 503-623-8173.
SUPERINTENDENT’S
CORNER
Welcome to the new school year.
Buildings are receiving the final touches in preparation
for school to begin.
Floors are all shined and facilities cleaned. Lyle Elemen-
tary has a new roof and will soon enter into the construc-
tion process along with Oakdale Heights for multipurpose
rooms.
Thank you Dallas community for the bond dollars.
Teachers are preparing for the start of the year. We have
16 new educators joining our team.
Deeper learning will be the focus of the coming school
year. Many teachers participated in Project Lead the Way
training while others learned more about STEM (science,
technology, engineering and math).
Discussions began at Dallas High School to increase
learning opportunities through CTE (career and technical
education). Thank you Dallas community for providing
feedback to guide this discussion.
As we continue our trek through the information age, we
have an outstanding technology department that provides
the resources.
Over the summer, our bandwidth increased from 200
megabits to 500 megabits. We added just over 700 new de-
vices to our buildings, and 400 phones were installed so
every classroom now has a phone.
Our goals for the coming school year are to continue to
focus on student achievement, facilities for the future,
communication, prioritizing our budget, and creating safe
learning environments for kids. Are you ready for a great
year ahead? We are, and we thank you for supporting Dal-
las School District.
Sincerely,
Michelle Johnstone
Superintendent
GOVeRnOR
Gov. Kate Brown (Dem.)
160 State Capitol
900 Court St. ne
Salem, OR 97301
503-378-4582
email: via website,
http://governor.oregon.gov/
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STaTe leGISlaTORS
Sen. Arnie Roblan
(District 5, Democrat)
S-417 State Capitol
900 Court St. ne
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1705
sen.arnieroblan@state.or.us
www.oregonlegislature.gov/roblan
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
‘Survivor’ not
qualified for office
Those of us in Polk Coun-
ty know there is only one
choice when it comes to
state representative. Paul
Evans deserves to be re-
elected to the Legislature. In
an interview, his opponent
claimed she was qualified
for office because she is
older than 21 and lives in
the district. She now claims
she should be elected be-
cause she was a contestant
on “Survivor.” I doubt that
qualifies a person for politi-
cal office. Paul has real ex-
perience — in schools, in
government, and in the mil-
itary. He is the clear choice.
Please join me in voting for
Evans for House District 20.
Jeanne Deane
Monmouth
Road upgrades
needed for safety
I travel every day to my
job from Dallas, to Portland
and several times I have wit-
nessed the setup for a
tragedy much like that
which took the life of an ex-
pectant mother and her un-
born child at the exit on
Highway 22 just a few years
ago. People miss the left
turn lane to Route 51 to In-
dependence, and they try to
turn in front of traffic to use
the exit for oncoming traffic.
There is a hill there and on-
coming traffic cannot see
the obstacle this creates.
Last week, it was a full-size
pickup, towing a long trailer
with heavy machinery. Peo-
ple will continue to break
the law. People will contin-
ue to lose their lives.
I am an engineer, but any
reasonable person can see
that the solution is to ex-
tend a wall or block the
ability for others to cause
this situation with perma-
nent orange buoys in the
center divider, a cheap fix. I
can’t believe that after the
tragedy of a few years ago,
the state has done nothing,
the saddest situation in-
deed.
Randy Wisnia
Dallas
Kudos to Todahl:
skate park hero
I was so pleased to see
your article about Perry To-
dahl and his volunteer work
at the Dallas Skate Park. We
too often read of young
people in trouble or with no
work ethic or sense of re-
WANT TO
WRITE
A LETTER?
letters to the editor are
limited to 300 words. longer
letters will be edited.
election-related letters of
all types are limited to 100
words. Writers are limited to
one election-related letter
per election season. election
letters from writers outside
of Polk County are not ac-
cepted.
each writer is restricted to
one letter per 30-day period.
letters that are libelous,
obscene or in bad taste will
not be printed. attacks by
name on businesses or indi-
viduals will not be printed.
letters of thanks to busi-
nesses, individuals and or-
ganizations are limited to 10
names.
The deadline for letters to
the editor is 10 a.m. monday.
letters submitted may not
be retractable after this
deadline.
—
sponsibility. This article
demonstrates that there are
young people all around us
that break from the stereo-
type that many of us accept.
Kudos to Perry and to the I-
O for printing this uplifting
article.
Lynne Bowen
Dallas
Thompson right
choice for District
Jim Thompson has the
values we need representing
this district. Jim has always
been a champion for the
sanctity of human life and a
watchdog for limited gov-
ernment.
The difference between
Jim and his opponent is his
ability to work effectively —
even with people he dis-
agrees with. That is the
mark of a true leader.
Any of us could vote the
conservative line. We need a
representative that can per-
suade others. Mike Near-
man’s demeanor and con-
duct make it impossible for
him to do so.
Jim Thompson’s profes-
sionalism and manner make
him the clear choice for
House District 23.
Lynnette Henshaw
Dallas
Great Music in the
Park, Monmouth
The 2016 Monmouth
Music in the Park was a
huge success this summer.
All of the bands were fantas-
tic. The amphitheater and
new restrooms are such an
improvement to our city. We
are so blessed to have gen-
erous sponsors and volun-
teers that bring this com-
munity event to us every
Wednesday night during
July and August. Special
thanks to Bill Foster and
Richard Mann for the many
hours spent setting up and
assisting the bands with
their sound needs. Mark
Fancey did a great job in
spearheading the program
and also donating many
personal hours assisting
every Wednesday night.
Congratulations for a fan-
tastic year. We are looking
forward to 2017.
James and Sharon Pointer
Monmouth
A veteran’s last
trip to state fair
After going to the fair this
past week, I was very disap-
pointed to go into the build-
ing where the veterans’ uni-
forms are displayed along
with the veterans, and their
stories of their time in the
service of our country.
I was told they could no
longer pay the fair board for
their space to display them.
Now, when have we had to
charge them to display
them, when they fought for
our country? I, for one, am a
very proud SeeBee veteran
of 1961 through 1964, and
wore my uniform and was
very proud of it.
Yes, we have had to fight
the Department of Veterans
Affairs to try and get our
benefits the past few years,
but this is a slap in the face
for our fair board to try and
get us to pay for this. I, for
one, will no longer go to the
fair.
Sen. Jackie Winters
(District 10, Republican)
S-301 State Capitol
900 Court St. ne
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1710
sen.jackiewinters@state.or.us
www.oregonlegislature.gov/winters
Sen. Brian Boquist
(District 12, Republican)
S-305 State Capitol
900 Court St. ne
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1712
sen.brianboquist@state.or.us
www.oregonlegislature.gov/boquist
Rep. David Gomberg
(District 10, Democrat)
H-471 State Capitol
900 Court St. ne
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1410
rep.davidgomberg@state.or.us
www.oregonlegislature.gov/gomberg
Rep. Paul Evans
(District 20, Democrat)
H-281 State Capitol
900 Court St. ne
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1420
rep.paulevans@state.or.us
www.oregonlegislature.gov/evans
Rep. Mike nearman
(District 23, Republican)
H-378 State Capitol
900 Court St. ne
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1423
rep.mikenearman@state.or.us
www.oregonlegislature.gov/nearman
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u.S. COnGReSS
Sen. Ron Wyden (Dem.)
221 Dirksen SOB
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: 202-224-5244
Fax: 202-228-2717
Salem office: 707 13th St. Se,
Suite 285, Salem, OR 97301
Phone: 503-589-4555
email: via website,
www.wyden.senate.gov
Gary Remington
Dallas
‘No’ vote for Trump
Any person considering
voting for Donald Trump
should read the New Yorker
magazine’s July 25 article by
Jane Mayer titled, “Trump’s
Boswell Speaks.”
She discusses Tony
Schwartz’s ghost writing of
Trump’s bestselling, “The
Art of the Deal,” which took
him more than a year and
which taught him much
about Trump and his per-
sonality.
Schwartz is not voting for
Trump, and I am not also.
Walden Joura
Dallas
Sen. Jeff Merkley (Dem.)
313 Hart SOB
Washington, D.C. 20510
Phone: 202-224-3753
Fax: 202-228-3997
Salem office: 495 State St. Se,
Suite 330, Salem, OR 97301
Phone: 503-362-8102
email: via website,
www.merkley.senate.gov
Rep. Kurt Schrader (Dem.)
108 Cannon HOB
Washington, D.C. 20515
Phone: 202-225-5711
Fax: 202-225-5699
Salem office: 544 Ferry St. Se,
Suite 2, Salem, OR 97301
Phone: 503-588-9100
Fax: 503-588-5517
email: via website,
www.schrader.house.gov
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POlK COunTY
Board of Commissioners
850 main St.
Dallas, OR 97338
Phone: 503-623-8173
www.co.polk.or.us
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CITIeS
Dallas
187 Se Court St.
Dallas, OR 97338
503-623-2338
www.ci.dallas.or.us
Falls City
299 mill St.
Falls City, OR 97344
503-787-3631
www.fallscityoregon.gov
independence
555 S. main St.
Independence, OR 97351
503-838-1212
www.ci.independence.or.us
Monmouth
151 W. main St.
monmouth, OR 97361
503-838-0722
www.ci.monmouth.or.us
HOW TO REACH US
Vol. 141, No. 36
(USPS) - 437-380)
The official newspaper of Polk County • Serving Polk County families since 1875
Winner of 2010, 2011, 2013 and 2014 General excellence awards
from the Oregon newspaper Publishers association
Periodicals postage paid at
Dallas, OR, Independence, OR and monmouth, OR.
Published weekly at 147 Se Court Street
Dallas, Oregon 97338
Phone: 503-623-2373
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nEWSROOM
emily mentzer ..............editor/monmouth/Independence Reporter ....ementzer@polkio.com
lukas eggen..................Sports editor......................................................................leggen@polkio.com
Jolene Guzman............Dallas/Falls City/Polk County Reporter ................jguzman@polkio.com
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