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About Baker City herald. (Baker City, Or.) 1990-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 5, 2020)
SATURDAY OREGON GOVERNOR KATE BROWN CALLS FOR END TO VIOLENCE: PAGE 5A In OUTDOORS, 1B Serving Baker County since 1870 • bakercityherald.com September 5, 2020 Local • Outdoors • TV IN THIS EDITION: HOME & l l a F GARDEN Saturday, September 5, 2020 Signs your gutters are in need of repair Defining hardscape and how to use it $1.50 Exploring at Eagle Creek State: school employees must repay some furlough benefits How to avoid spreading illnesses at home By Chris Collins INSIDE TODAY: A 12-page special section with tips for making the most of autumn at home ccollins@bakercityherald.com Baker School District employees can add their names to the long list of Oregonians who believe they’ve been mistreated by the state’s belea- guered Employment Department. But rather than having to wait for their benefi ts as thousands of others have had to do, the school employees got their money, but now the state wants some of it back. The Employment Department says about 155 District employees who were furloughed and participat- ed in its Work Share program were paid about $100,000 in benefi ts to which they were not entitled. Witty said the overpayments, which are from a single week, the last week of May, range from $630 to $730 per employee. However, District offi cials learned late Thursday that affected employ- ees might end up having to repay only a relatively small portion of the benefi t, ranging from about $30 to $139 depending on the employee, that came from the state rather than from federal COVID-19 aid. See Benefi ts/Page 5A QUICK HITS County dropped from COVID-19 watch list Baker City’s Water Use Remains Higher Than Usual Good Day Wish To A Subscriber A special good day to Herald subscriber Eric Colton of Baker City. BRIEFING Legislator Lynn Findley to visit Baker on Tuesday By Jayson Jacoby jjacoby@bakercityherald.com State Sen. Lynn Findley, the Vale Republican who represents Baker County in the Oregon Legislature, will be stopping at the Cof- fee Corral, 1325 Campbell St. in Baker City, from 10:15 a.m. to 11:15 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 8 to meet with constituents. A declining rate of new COVID-19 cases in Baker County over the past two weeks has prompted Oregon Gov. Kate Brown to remove the county from the state “watch list.” Brown added Baker County to that list on July 15. Although being on the list Bennett didn’t impose extra restric- tions on the county, the gov- ernor’s decision, announced Thursday, refl ects a welcome trend in the virus’ spread in the county, County Commis- sioner Mark Bennett said Friday afternoon. WEATHER Today 95 / 42 Mostly sunny Sunday 90 / 53 Mostly sunny Monday 75 / 36 Sunny, cooler Correction: A story about a rash of dog deaths in Haines on Page 2A of Thursday’s Baker City Herald misidentifi ed dog owner Patty Dennis. The space below is for a postage label for issues that are mailed. Photo courtesy of Baker City Public Works Department Goodrich Reservoir in the Elkhorn Mountains west of Baker City is key source of water for Baker City. Water Worries Lasting Longer See Virus/Page 2A Business grants available By Samantha O’Conner soconner@bakercityherald.com ■ Water use usually plummets when students return to school, but with all classes starting online, the city’s public works director isn’t expecting the relief community continues to use,” Owen said on Thursday. In a normal year Michelle Owen Owen’s trepidation stems from two can pretty well predict when Baker main factors. City’s thirst for water will start to be First, hot weather, with tempera- satiated. tures potentially setting daily records This, of course, is not a normal year. during the weekend, is forecast to And because it’s not, Owen, who continue. is the city’s public works director, is The correlation between heat and slightly concerned about the persis- water usage is well-established, tently high demand for water. Owen said, and generally speaking “I’m not in panic mode at all, but people are more likely to keep their it is concerning how much water the sprinklers going in the yard and By Jayson Jacoby jjacoby@bakercityherald.com garden when the temperature nears or exceeds 90. The second factor is the one unique to 2020. One thing Owen counts on is a signifi cant drop in water use once school starts and students return to classrooms. But that’s not happening this year, as Baker schools start Tuesday with students learning online. The Baker County Eco- nomic Development Depart- ment hopes to distribute $200,000 in grants of up to $5,000 to local businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The federal money, dis- bursed by Business Oregon, is available to businesses that have been operating for at least one year and that meet income eligibility limits either for the business owner or for employees. See Water/Page 3A See Grants/Page 2A Baker schools preparing for online classes By Chris Collins ccollins@bakercityherald.com With the opening of online classes just three days away, Baker School District administrators are hoping the extra training staff members received prior to the Sept. 8 opening of comprehensive distance learning will help the year begin without too many hitches. TODAY Issue 50, 24 pages Geno Bates, South Baker Interme- diate School principal, said Thursday morning that most of his students have picked up their Chromebook laptop computers and are registered for the new year. The computers were distributed Monday from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the school. “We’re down to about a handful,” Classified ............. 2B-4B Comics ....................... 5B Community News ....3A Crossword ........2B & 4B Dear Abby ................. 6B Horoscope ........2B & 4B Bates said of students who hadn’t registered as of Thursday. Bates said he’s expecting about 270 South Baker fourth-, fi fth- and sixth- graders will take remote classes, watching their teachers via comput- ers on a defi ned schedule. Another 28 or 29 South Baker students will study independently by watching recorded online classes in Jayson Jacoby ..........4A Lottery Results ..........2A News of Record ........2A the Baker Virtual Academy. The Baker School District devel- oped the online system for students in kindergarten through sixth grade based on programs and platforms that have been used by Baker Web Academy since it was started in 2008, Superintendent Mark Witty said. Obituaries ..................2A Opinion ......................4A Outdoors ..........1B & 6B See Schools/Page 3A Senior Menus ...........2A Turning Backs ...........2A Weather ..................... 6B INSIDE — GOP HOPEFULS FOR SEC. OF STATE, TREASURER HERE: PG. 5A
