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About Baker City herald. (Baker City, Or.) 1990-current | View Entire Issue (April 21, 2020)
TUESDAY STORY MILLER’S CORONAVIRUS CHRONICLE FROM ITALY CONTINUES: PG. 5A In HOME, 1B Serving Baker County since 1870 • bakercityherald.com April 21, 2020 Local • Home & Living • Sports IN THIS EDITION: QUICK HITS Good Day Wish To A Subscriber A special good day to Herald subscriber Todd Callaway of Baker City. BRIEFING Downtown cleanup set to start Friday The Baker City Down- town design committee is organizing a downtown cleanup Friday, April 24, starting at 9 a.m. Social distancing guidelines will be observed. Volunteers should meet at Royal Artisan at 1912 Main St. to get assignments and spread out from there. Baker City Downtown is also coordinating with the City of Baker to schedule street sweeping. Volunteers should bring gloves, brooms, dustpans, and any gardening and cleaning tools they have. Volunteers will be work- ing individually or in small groups to ensure that social distancing protocols are maintained throughout the day. Work will include weeding, cleaning and planting tree wells, clean- ing sidewalks, storefronts, benches, bike racks and sidewalk fi xtures. “We know this is a chal- lenging time for our com- munity and we think this a great opportunity to come together (not too close) as a community and spend the day doing something really positive, and proac- tive for our town,” stated a press release from BCD. Those wishing to volun- teer can contact Kate Reid at 541-465-4547 or by mes- saging the Royal Artisan’s Facebook page. County joins in effort to reopen businesses By Jayson Jacoby jjacoby@bakercityherald.com Baker County offi cials will ask Gov. Kate Brown to consider easing business closures and restrictions that have severely hampered the local economy during the coronavirus pan- demic. “We’ve been working all weekend on recovery plans, and our hope is to get it out by the middle of the week,” Baker County Commissioner Mark Bennett said Monday morning. Baker County joined with several other counties, all east of the Cascades, in sending a letter to Brown on April 13 noting that “our citizens and businesses have followed your Executive Orders and guidelines” and that “every business in these areas is considered ‘essential’ to us.” The next day the governor had a press conference during which she said that reopening busi- 68 / 35 Sunny Wednesday 60 / 41 Rain likely The space below is for a postage label for issues that are mailed. nesses would happen “gradually, carefully and incrementally.” Brown did not give a timeline. The governor issued an execu- tive order March 17 that banned indoor dining at restaurants, and closed bars. Bennett See Reopen/Page 2A Jobless claims rise again Coronavirus Prompts Pastor To Deliver Sermons Outdoors By Jayson Jacoby jjacoby@bakercityherald.com WEATHER Today $1.50 Chilling out at home Samantha O’Conner/Baker City Herald Pastor Nathan Neff of the Apostolic Lighthouse Church in Baker City delivers a sermon from a newly con- structed podium at the Baker County Fairgrounds on Sunday. Sunshine Service together as much, I wanted to get out soconner@bakercityherald.com and do something,” Neff said. Pastor Nathan Neff stood on a He said a friend and fellow pastor freshly made wooden podium Sunday in North Carolina is doing something morning as members of his congre- similar, and Neff thought, “well, let’s gation at the Apostolic Lighthouse give it a shot and see what happens.’ ” Church gathered for the second time Churches have closed their doors at the Baker County Fairgrounds for and many have been mainly offering an outdoor service. live-streaming or pre-recorded ser- “With the whole coronavirus and vices to comply with social distancing. everybody not being able to gather By having services outside at the By Samantha O’Conner Fairgrounds, people can maintain a 6-foot distance while listening to the sermon. “The driving thought of that was there’s so many people that can’t get to church right now with everything that’s going on,” Neff said. “But, in the world in general, church is what we need now more than ever before.” See Service/Page 3A After a one-week dip, the number of unemployment claims rose again in Baker County as the effects of the coronavirus pandemic continue to spread. For the week ending April 11, the number of new claims in the county was 139, up from 111 for the week ending April 4. The previous high this year had been 129 claims for the week ending March 28. That was the fi rst full week after Gov. Kate Brown signed an executive order restricting businesses, including allowing restau- rants to offer only takeout and delivery meals. During that week, initial claims more than doubled, from 61 to 129. Prior to the week ending March 21, weekly claims during 2020 had ranged from 8 to 27. See Claims/Page 3A Local gas prices slower to plummet As oil futures dropped below zero for the fi rst time on Monday, gasoline prices continue to plunge as well. But Baker County’s aver- age price is higher than all but one other county east of the Cascades in Oregon. Baker County’s average price for a gallon of regular unleaded on Monday was $2.51, according to the AAA auto club. Among the 17 Oregon counties east of the Cas- cades, only Wallowa County had a higher average price, at $2.74. Samantha O’Conner/Baker City Herald Members of the Apostolic Lighthouse Church listen to Pastor Nathan Neff’s sermon Sunday. TODAY Issue 157, 14 pages Calendar ....................2A Classified ............. 4B-6B Comics ....................... 7B Community News ....3A Crossword ........5B & 6B Dear Abby ................. 8B Home ................... 1B-3B Horoscope ................. 5B Lottery Results ..........2A See Prices/Page 6A News of Record ........2A Obituaries ..................2A Opinion ......................4A Senior Menus ...........2A Sports ........................6A Weather ..................... 8B THURSDAY — GO! MAGAZINE ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT GUIDE
