Baker City herald. (Baker City, Or.) 1990-current, September 03, 2020, Image 1

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    THURSDAY
OREGON VETERANS RECALL END OF WORLD WAR II AFTER 75 YEARS: PG. 5A
In SPORTS, 6A
Serving Baker County since 1870 • bakercityherald.com
September 3, 2020
IN THIS EDITION:
Local • Business & AgLife • Go! magazine $1.50
Vinyl Wrap Transforms Utility Boxes Into Public Art
QUICK HITS
Good Day Wish
To A Subscriber
A special good day to
Herald subscriber Marcus
Sackos of Baker City.
Local, 2A
The Bureau of Land
Management’s Vale
District is urging out-
door recreationists to be
careful during the Labor
Day weekend as the fi re
danger remains high, and
many restrictions are still
in effect.
The National Weather
Service is forecasting hot,
dry weather, with possible
record high tempera-
tures, during the holiday
weekend.
Downtown Decor
■ Baker City Public Arts Commission proposed idea 4 years ago
Schools
planning
sports
County sets
up care
center for
workers’
children
By Samantha O’Conner
and Jayson Jacoby
Baker City Herald
Baker County will pay the Baker School
District $300 per day from the county’s
share of federal COVID-19 aid to provide
child care for county employees’ children,
from grades K-8, while they are taking all
online classes.
BRIEFING
See Child Care/Page 3A
Sumpter Valley
Railroad plans
round-trip runs
over Labor Day
Police say
dog deaths
in Haines
suspicious
SUMPTER — The
historic narrow-gauge
Sumpter Valley Railroad
will have three round-trip
runs on Saturday and
Sunday, Sept. 5 and 6. The
schedule:
• 10 a.m., leave McEwen
Depot; 11:30 a.m., leave
Sumpter Depot
• 12:30 p.m., leave
McEwen; 2 p.m., leave
Sumpter
• 3 p.m., leave McEwen;
4:30 p.m., leave Sumpter
Tickets are $24 for
adults, $20 for seniors and
military members, and $14
for kids 3-17.
Tickets are available at
Sumptervalleyrailroad.org
By Chris Collins
ccollins@bakercityherald.com
The Baker County Sheriff’s Offi ce is
investigating multiple dog deaths at Haines
this week.
Ashley McClay, the department’s public
information offi cer, said six dog deaths
have been reported in the community since
Sunday. The cause of the deaths has yet to
be determined, but they appear suspicious
and might be the result of poisoning.
WEATHER
See Dog Deaths/Page 2A
Today
91 / 46
Sunny
Friday
97 / 52
Lisa Britton/For the Baker City Herald
A box that houses equipment for the traffi c signals at Main Street and Washington Avenue in
downtown Baker City has been wrapped with vinyl showing a historic photo.
Sunny
By Jayson Jacoby
By Lisa Britton
Full forecast on the back
of the B section.
The space below is for
a postage label for issues
that are mailed.
City seeking
park monitor
For the Baker City Herald
Utility boxes in Baker City
are transforming into public
works of art.
The project started four
years ago with the Baker City
Public Arts Commission. The
initial idea was to wrap utility
boxes along Main Street with
vinyl portraying various types
of art, including paintings and
photographs.
Those boxes, though, are
owned and maintained by the
Oregon Department of Trans-
portation (ODOT). Before the
project gained approval from
ODOT, the Commission ran a
year-long trial to make sure the
vinyl wouldn’t affect the inner
temperature of the box and
interfere with the controls for
traffi c signals.
The test showed no ill effects,
and the multiyear project
became reality last week when
Christy Witham of Oregon Sign
Company in Baker City in-
stalled the fi rst vinyl wrap on a
signal box at the corner of Main
Street and Washington Avenue.
The image is a historic
photograph from the collec-
tion maintained by the Baker
County Library.
This is a pilot project for the
state.
“This is the fi rst one they’ve
allowed in the state of Oregon,”
said Kate Reid, owner of Royal
Artisan and a member of the
Public Arts Commission.
jjacoby@bakercityherald.com
Baker City hasn’t been able to entice
somebody to earn a paycheck for spending
most of the day in the park.
Two people expressed interest in working
as the city’s park ambassador, but neither
accepted the temporary job, City Manager
Fred Warner Jr. said.
Warner said the seasonal job would
continue until cold weather arrives and the
number of people using Geiser-Pollman
Park, the city’s largest and most popular
park, drops signifi cantly later this fall.
See Public Art/Page 3A
See Parks/Page 3A
Baker City Events donates
bench for Geiser-Pollman
By Samantha O’Conner
soconner@bakercityherald.com
Lynette Perry smiles as
she looks at Geiser-Pollman
Park’s new addition placed
in the cool shade of one of the
park’s many trees on a bright
Tuesday afternoon.
Facing the Powder River
Pavilion, the stage for con-
certs sponsored by Baker
City Events, is a brand new,
TODAY
Issue 49, 20 pages
400-pound concrete bench.
Perry, who is the events
coordinator and treasurer for
Baker City Events, a nonprofi t
organization, had been looking
for an affordable way to put
benches in the park for sum-
mer concerts and other events.
“We felt if we could put the
benches over the roots and off
the grass so it didn’t hamper
the mowing and upkeep of the
park, we could provide more
seating for people who are com-
ing to events or just coming to
enjoy the park,” Perry said.
See Bench/Page 3A
Photo courtesy of Baker City Events
A new bench was installed Tuesday at Geiser-Pollman Park.
Business .................... 1B
Classified ............. 2B-4B
Comics ....................... 5B
Community News ....3A
Crossword ........2B & 4B
Dear Abby ................. 6B
Horoscope ........2B & 4B
Letters ........................4A
Lottery Results ..........2A
News of Record ........2A
Obituaries ..................2A
Opinion ......................4A
Senior Menus ...........2A
Sports ........................6A
Weather ..................... 6B
SATURDAY — EXPLORING A CORNER OF THE EAGLE CAP WILDERNESS