SATURDAY, MAY 15, 2021
LOCAL, STATE & NATION
CONTRACT
“We promised the community we
were going to have a new RFP by
that date so we would continue the
services as we have been doing,”
Harvey said.
“It is a bigger task than it ap-
peared,” Bennett said.
Baker City Mayor Kerry Mc-
Quisten, one of the city’s three
representatives on the work group,
attended the commissioners’
Wednesday morning meeting by
Zoom. McQuisten said she found
the discussion “horrifying, to tell you
the truth.”
“I don’t recall in the county com-
missioners’ meeting any mention in
Lisa Britton/Baker City Herald that motion of hiring a consultant,”
The Baker County visitors center is at the right side of the Baker
McQuisten said. “We’re looking now
County Chamber of Commerce building at 490 Campbell St.
at months or years delay. We didn’t
want to continue kicking the can
The work group has a draft RFP county needs to stay with the previ- down the road with fi nancing on
available now, ahead of its earlier
ous goal of putting out an RFP and this. What I’m hearing is the moti-
estimate (a copy of the draft is avail- approving a new contract before the vation behind it is because a couple
able on the Herald’s website, www. current contract’s extension ends
of people have complained loudly to
bakercityherald.com).
Aug. 31.
the commissioners?”
But on Wednesday, commissioner
“We have not got the time to do
Bennett said that he “started get-
Mark Bennett said
everything that you’re asking for
ting phone calls that things weren’t
he believes the work
and come up with an RFP,” Harvey going right” with the work group.
group’s draft RFP is
said to Bennett during the com-
McQuisten said her understand-
“premature” because
missioners’ meeting Wednesday
ing is that once the work group has
the county has not
morning.
a draft RFP, the document then
gathered input from
Bennett’s response: “How can you would go to the City Council and
Bennett
the community, and in
build an RFP without getting the
county commissioners for their
particular businesses
data?”
review and approval during a public
that depend on visitors.
Harvey: “We did get the data. It’s meeting.
“We’re spending over half a mil-
not that diffi cult to just do one RFP
Bennett emphasized that he
lion dollars a year on all of these
(for operating the visitors center).
doesn’t want to interfere with the
various programs and we need
You just list what you want done.”
continued operation of the visitors
to assure the entire community
Harvey, in response to Bennett’s
center.
and especially the visitors services
statement that the work group did
His goal, he said, is to review the
industry, that we’re doing it in the
not schedule “listening sessions”
entire lodging tax system, and to en-
best interest,” Bennett said. “And so for the public, pointed out that the
sure the tax money, which amount-
while I appreciate the work, and I
work group’s meetings were public ed to about $440,000 in the most
understand that a lot of work went but just a few people attended.
recent fi scal year, is spent wisely.
into (the draft RFP), it’s premature
Harvey contended that the work
An ordinance requires that 70%
because we don’t have the back-
group, which has been advised
of the money be spent for tourism
ground data, we don’t have trend-
by Jason Brandt, president of the
marketing and promotion, and
ing, we don’t have where we’re going Oregon Restaurant and Lodging
25% for economic development.
with this whole thing.”
Association, has done the job it was Baker County, which administers
Commissioner Bruce Nichols
assigned in early March.
the program, can keep up to 5% for
agreed with Bennett.
“We worked our butts off trying
administrative costs.
Nichols said he expected that the to get to that point (with a draft
McQuisten pointed out that the
work group would survey the hospi- RFP) and now everything is wrong visitor center contract has been in
tality industry before an RFP went so we’re going to just start all over,” limbo since early 2020.
out for operating the visitors center. Harvey said. “I really don’t care. We
Commissioners meet with
“Is it going to benefi t the com-
were tasked with a job. We did our
munity like it’s supposed to? We
best to do it. So, when we come into lodging tax work group
The discussion, and at times the
really don’t know that unless we do the next session, I want a motion on
dispute, continued several hours
a study and that includes visiting
this table that says what direction
later on Wednesday evening when
with people, the players in this, and you want and I need a second to
commissioners met with the work
the (Economic Development Com-
continue that.”
group.
mittee), business hospitality indus-
Bennett responded: “I would ap-
Harvey reiterated his concern
try, all those things,” Nichols said.
preciate that you quit demanding
about timing, saying that the tasks
Bennett said he doesn’t want the anything, you have no right, Bill,
Bennett had mentioned, such
county to be locked into an artifi cial that’s rude and out of order.”
as public listening sessions and
timeline.
Harvey said it wasn’t possible
potentially hiring a consultant to
“This body of work is important
for the work group to write a draft
help with the process, would take
but we need the foundation behind RFP in time to meet the Aug. 31
six months to a year, long after the
it,” he said.
deadline, when the current con-
contract extension with the Cham-
Harvey, who is the commission’s tract extension ends, and conduct
ber ends Aug. 31.
representative on the work group
the sort of public survey and other
Commissioners did discuss last
that’s been working on the draft
tasks that both Bennett and Nichols
fall hiring a consultant to guide the
RFP, disputed Bennett’s and Nich- mentioned.
RFP process, but that idea wasn’t
ols’ assessment of what the work
“I’m telling you, you tasked us
part of the commissioners’ vote on
group’s task is.
with something and a deadline,”
Harvey also argued that the
Harvey said. “We couldn’t do both.” March 3 to propose creating a city-
Continued from Page 1A
Then, on March 3, 2021, com-
missioners voted 3-0 to extend the
contract with the Chamber through
Aug. 31, 2021, and to propose a
six-member work group, with three
members appointed by commis-
sioners and three by the Baker City
Council, to review both the contract
and the other uses for the lodging
tax revenue.
That work group was formed, and
it has been meeting regularly over
the past two months.
The work group had a meeting
Wednesday evening, May 12, with
county commissioners, who them-
selves had a sometimes heated
discussion about the matter during
a work session earlier in the day.
The county’s
representatives on
the work group are
commission chairman
Bill Harvey, Martin
Arritola, chairman of
Harvey
the county’s Economic
Development Commit-
tee, and Tyler Brown, chairman of
the county’s Transient Lodging Tax
Committee.
The city’s representatives are city
manager Jon Cannon, mayor Kerry
McQuisten and councilor Joanna
Dixon.
During the meeting Wednesday
evening, Dixon suggested that
commissioners again
extend the visitor
services contract with
the Chamber, this
time to March 2022.
That’s also when the
Dixon
county’s contract for
tourism marketing,
with Timothy Bishop, expires.
“That gives us more time to do
what you want to do, but we’re
also funding visitors services until
March of next year,” Dixon said.
Commissioners will ask county
attorney Drew Martin about any
legal issues with extending the
contract, and potentially make a
decision at their regular meeting on
May 19.
Dixon’s reference to having time
“to do what you want to do” is at
the heart of the disagreement that
started during commissioners’ work
session Wednesday morning.
The main issue is the scope of the
work group’s task.
When commissioners voted on
March 3 to create the work group,
its objectives included reviewing the
overall lodging tax system, as well
as create a draft request for propos-
als (RFP) for the visitor center
contract specifi cally.
During the work group’s April 14
meeting, Harvey said its goal was to
have a draft RFP by early July, the
timing in recognition of the contract
with the Chamber ending Aug. 31.
BAKER CITY HERALD — 5A
county work group.
“The promise at the beginning of
this was that we were not going to
continue to drag this out because it
puts us at a legal liability,” Mc-
Quisten said.
Peter Johnson, general manager
of Anthony Lakes, which submit-
ted a proposal to operate a visitors
center in late 2019, has repeatedly
urged commissioners to award the
contract rather in a timely manner.
An attorney representing An-
thony Lakes sent a letter on Feb.
1 to Drew Martin, the county’s at-
torney, regarding the visitor center
contract.
Former Baker City Mayor Loran
Joseph, who was the city’s repre-
sentative on the county lodging tax
committee, attended Wednesday
evening’s meeting and pointed out
that commissioners could simply
award a new visitor center contract
to the Chamber.
“That seems like that would avoid
a lot of the headaches that we’re run-
ning into,” Joseph said. “Is that not
on the table anymore?”
Although that contract was the
main topic during Wednesday eve-
ning’s meeting between commission-
ers and the work group, offi cials also
briefl y talked about changing the
lodging tax ordinance to give Baker
City a bigger role in the lodging tax
committee, which serves as an advi-
sor to county commissioners.
The city has one member on the
seven-person committee now — city
councilor Shane Alderson.
One idea is to have the city ap-
point three members to the commit-
tee rather than one.
“I fully support that and still do to
this day,” Harvey said. “I think that’s
a good maneuver that we can allow
the city to become full partnership
with the TLT. And I think that’s a
good direction.”
In February, McQuisten proposed
a more dramatic change — hav-
ing the city withdraw from the
agreement under which the county
administers the lodging tax, and
instead have the city collect lodging
taxes from businesses within the city
limits. Guests at lodging establish-
ments inside the city pay about 70%
of the total lodging tax in the county.
The City Council rejected Mc-
Quisten’s proposal by a 4-3 vote on
Feb. 23.
During Wednesday evening’s
meeting, Arritola, one of the county’s
representatives on the work group,
asked whether the group has been
dissolved.
“Temporarily, or permanently,
I don’t know,” Harvey said. “We’re
going to have to make a decision at
one of our meetings that says this
is what we’re going to do regard-
less of how much time it takes and
regardless of what the consequences
are currently, then that’s what we
will do.”
CDC: Fully vaccinated people don’t need masks in most places
By Zeke Miller
and Michael Balsamo
Associated Press
WASHINGTON — In a
major step toward returning to
pre-pandemic life, the Centers
for Disease Control and Pre-
vention eased mask-wearing
guidance for fully vaccinated
people on Thursday, May 13,
allowing them to stop wearing
masks outdoors in crowds and
in most indoor settings.
The new guidance still calls
for wearing masks in crowded
the need for social distancing
for those who are fully vac-
cinated.
“We have all longed for this
moment — when we can get
back to some sense of normal-
— Dr. Rochelle Walensky,
cy,” said Dr. Rochelle Walensky,
director, Centers for Disease
the director of the CDC.
Control and Prevention
The CDC and the Biden
indoor settings like buses,
administration have faced pres-
planes, hospitals, prisons and
sure to ease restrictions on fully
homeless shelters but it will
vaccinated people — those who
help clear the way for reopen-
are two weeks past their last
ing workplaces, schools, and
required COVID-19 vaccine
other venues — even removing dose — in part to highlight the
“We have all longed for
this moment — when
we can get back to some
sense of normalcy.”
benefits of getting the shot.
The country’s aggressive
vaccination campaign has
paid off: U.S. virus cases are
at their lowest rate since
September, deaths are at their
lowest point since last April
and the test positivity rate is
at the lowest point since the
pandemic began.
Walensky announced the
new guidance on Thursday af-
ternoon at a White House brief-
ing, saying the long-awaited
change is thanks to millions of
people getting vaccinated and
is based on the latest science
about how well those shots
are working.
“Anyone who is fully vac-
cinated can participate in
indoor and outdoor activities
-– large or small — without
wearing a mask or physically
distancing,” Walensky said.
“If you are fully vaccinated,
you can start doing the things
that you had stopped doing
because of the pandemic.”
The new guidance is likely
to open the door to confusion,
since there is no surefi re way
for businesses or others to
distinguish between those
who are fully vaccinated and
those who are not. Walensky
said those who are not fully
vaccinated should continue to
wear masks indoors.
President Joe Biden was set
to highlight the new guidance
Thursday afternoon in a speech
from the White House.
See Masks/Page 6A