GREAT AMERICAN
PLAYER OF THE YEAR
ECLIPSE Pages 8A and 9A HOLSTAD
Volume 142, Issue 24
www.Polkio.com
Page 15A
June 14, 2017
$1.00
Tiny moth could lead to big problem
By Jolene Guzman
the itemizer-Observer
INDEPENDENCE — The
Oregon Department of Agri-
culture will begin the
process of spraying for the
invasive light brown apple
moth in an area south of In-
dependence next week.
A small population was
found there in 2015 and
again in 2016.
Department officials said
the best time to eradicate
the fruit-feeding pest is now.
“The discovery of an in-
cipient light brown apple
moth infestation in Polk
County has create a need for
action to mitigate the prob-
lem as soon as possible,”
wrote ODA director Alexis
Taylor in the record of the
decision last month. “Since
the infestation is relatively
small and well-defined,
prompt action now can
eliminate the danger of fur-
ther light brown spread.”
Richard Worth, a ODA en-
OregOn Department Of agriculture/for the itemizer-Observer
The light brown apple moth has created a need for action to mitigate the infestation
as soon as possible, the Oregon Department of Agriculture said.
tomologist, said the moth
probably hitched a ride on
plants from California,
where it’s present in several
counties.
“It can move here very
IN
YOUR
TOWN
easily from California,”
Worth said. “Once it’s over
the mountains and here in
the valley, it can survive.”
Worth said the moth has a
wide range of plants it at-
tacks, specifically those in
the rose family and fruit
trees, including cherry and
apple.
“It can directly damage
fruit externally, causing it to
dry out and shrivel,” he said.
“It mostly defoliates trees. It
feeds on the leaves.”
He said finding the moth
in 2015 and 2016 signaled
that the moth is surviving in
the area and needed to be
eradicated.
“It doesn’t seem to spread
real fast, so that gives us
time,” he said.
On its own, the moth trav-
els only about a half-mile a
year.
“It’s a small moth and a
weak flyer, so it doesn’t do
long distances on its own,”
Worth said.
See MOTh, Page 5A
DALLAS
Dallas chamber of
commerce sees good
participation in new
Women engaging pro-
gram.
»Page 2A
FALLS CITY
falls city city council
gets serious about hir-
ing a new city recorder.
»Page 5A
INDEPENDENCE
yul provancha takes
first steps in making a
brewery in downtown a
reality.
»Page 3A
Congratulations Class of 2017
MONMOUTh
Western Oregon uni-
versity to host speed
and agility camp for
youths aged 6 to 18.
»Page 15A
SPORTS
Dallas Booster club
ready to raise funds to
install a turf field at Dal-
las High School.
»Page 15A
Pick up a book
at the library
Itemizer-Observer staff report
pOlK cOunty — li-
braries in Dallas, falls city,
independence and mon-
mouth have kicked off
their summer reading pro-
grams for children and
adults. the theme is “Build
a Better World.” prizes are
available for reading.
Stop by your local li-
brary for more informa-
tion in its program.
emily mentzer/itemizer-Observer
Central high School graduates shake hands with and thank teachers before taking their seats on Friday. For more, see inside.
Falls City may ask voters to OK levy to keep Wagner open
By Jolene Guzman
the itemizer-Observer
FALLS CITY — Survey re-
sults asking if Falls City resi-
dents would pay to keep the
Wagner Community Library
open were encouraging
enough that the Falls City
City Council is researching a
November levy.
Falls City School District
Super intendent Jack
Thompson reviewed the
survey results Thursday dur-
ing a joint district and city
work session on the library.
He said 68 people com-
pleted the survey, and 74
percent said they would be
willing to pay at least $1 per
$1,000 of assessed value,
with some saying they
would pay more.
Thompson added, based
THE NEXT
7
DAYS
PLANNING
FOR YOUR
WEEK
on responses, that the sur-
vey captured a variety of de-
mographics within the com-
munity.
“When you look at where
the surveys are coming
from, the
communi-
t y w e’v e
g o t , h ow
many reg-
istered vot-
ers we’ve
got, I think
this is a
Ungricht
pretty sig-
nificant
survey,” Thompson said.
“This is not parents of chil-
dren who are specifically an-
swering these questions. I
think we have a very broad
spectrum of the community
who are answering these
questions.”
Mayor Terry Ungricht said
the city has about 400 vot-
ers. In the May 2017 elec-
tion, there were 919 regis-
tered voters in the Falls City
precinct, which includes the
area surrounding Falls City.
If a levy is placed on the bal-
lot, only voters within city lim-
its, not the Falls City School
District boundary, would vote
on it. The school district al-
ready has a levy on the books.
“We wouldn’t be able to
have an additional operat-
ing levy,” Thompson said.
Ungricht said keeping the
library doors open is costing
Wagner Trust Fund about
$46,000 per year. To raise
$50,000, the levy would need
to charge about $1.30 per
$1,000 of assessed value. The
fund has enough money to
operate the district through
the end of 2018.
Thompson said the dis-
trict will continue to support
the library by providing the
building and for its mainte-
nance. He noted that the
district re-
serves the
right to
take over
that space
only if en-
rollment
grows to
the point
Thompson
it’s needed
for instruction.
“Every indication that I’ve
had from the board mem-
bers would be that it would
be allowed to continue in
that space,” Thompson said.
“It works well. We have not
had any issues. It been a
good relationship with the
city and with the library.”
Ungricht said he’s con-
cerned the city may have to
ask residents for financial sup-
port for other needs, namely
firefighting equipment.
He said the fire depart-
ment has been applying for
grants to replace the breath-
ing units firefighters are re-
quired to have to battle fires
from inside buildings.
“They are into their sev-
enth run, and we have not re-
ceived the award. My best bet
is we are not going to get
that,” Ungricht said. “In two
years, we will no longer be
able to fight structure fires. We
will only be able to be outside
and water them down. We
won’t be able to go in.”
The cost to replace the
units is $72,000.
“I think the council really
needs to think about strate-
gy,” he said. “It just concerns
me about throwing a lot of
requests onto a ballot.”
Ungricht said he will get
information on require-
ments to put a levy on the
ballot, precisely how much
will be needed to keep the li-
brary open, and get an up-
date on the fire depart-
ment’s needs, and bring the
updates at the July 13 coun-
cil meeting.
Councilors Cliff Lauder
and Dennis Sickles said the
council should put the re-
quests to voters and let
them decide.
“Saying, well as a city we’re
not going to put it on there be-
cause we feel like you are going
to fail it. That’s not fair,” Sickles
said. “I really think we need to
let the people say yes or no.”
wed
thu
fri
sat
sun
mon
tue
the free summer
meal program starts
today in Dallas, falls
city, independence
and monmouth. See
page 8a for details
on times and places.
Veterans are wel-
come to the inde-
pendence elks
lodge for a meal
and speaker. Bunko
for families.
6:30 p.m. Free.
Head to guthrie
park community
center for some toe-
tapping fun during
its monthly music
jam.
6:30 p.m. Free.
Join in the eclipse
fun at independ-
ence library each
Saturday in June for
its Solar Saturdays.
2 p.m. Free.
Bicyclists will be on
the roads in force
this weekend, with
the team npf cycle
raising awareness
about psoriasis.
All day.
interested in the
new testament?
Bring a brew of your
choice to St. thomas
episcopal church for
a lecture series.
7 p.m. Free.
independence
riverview market
now has a tuesday
time. See what’s
new and fresh at
the market.
1-6 p.m. Free.
Mostly cloudy
Hi: 69
Lo: 50
Rain
Hi: 64
Lo: 55
Morning rain
Hi: 66
Lo: 51
Partly sunny
Hi: 73
Lo: 51
Sunny
Hi: 80
Lo: 53
Sunny
Hi: 82
Lo: 55
Sunny
Hi: 78
Lo: 50