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Serving Baker County since 1870 • bakercityherald.com
August 14, 2021
Local • Outdoors & Rec • Sports
IN THIS EDITION:
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Baker County
health offi cer
discusses
spike in cases
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Baker City Herald
BRIEFING
Black Butte fi re
25% contained
As of Friday, Aug. 13, the
Black Butte Fire burning in
nearby Grant County is 25%
contained with a total of
16,609 acres burned.
Firefi ghters were able to
secure black line from the
north and along the eastern
edge of the fi re.
According to a press
release, on the northeast
edge, crews will secure and
hold alternate lines and con-
tinue to prep the 416 road.
Along the eastern edge of
the fi re, crews will again
utilize air support to limit
fi re spread east of the North
Fork of the Malheur River.
Protecting private lands
and structures at Flag Prairie
is a priority, and mop-up
work will begin on primary
lines.
Along the southern edge
of the fi re, crews will hold
and secure lines and put in
hose lay to the North Fork of
the Malheur River to control
fi re spread to the south.
To the west, crews will
construct hand lines from
Crane Creek Trailhead to
the 832 road and continue
prep of primary lines, burn-
ing vegetation along the
1420 road.
Lisa Britton/Baker City Herald
Bob Bennett, left, and his daughter, Lori Brock on the front door of the Pondosa store on July 20, 2021.
Town’s gone
BUT THE STORE STAYS
WEATHER
Today
98 / 66
Sunny y and smoky
Bob Bennett, age 98, is again operating
the Pondosa store seven days a week
after limits due to the pandemic
Sunday
99 / 61
Mostly sunny
Monday
90 / 56
Sunny
Full forecast on the
back of the B section.
The space below is for
a postage label for issues
that are mailed.
See, Cases/Page A3
By LISA BRITTON
Baker City Herald
PONDOSA — Bob Bennett is just three years older
than the Pondosa Store, where he’s been selling cold
drinks and ice cream since 1983.
Bob, 98, was born in 1923.
The store was built in 1926 to serve Pondosa, a mill
town about 25 miles north of Baker City on Highway 203,
a couple miles from Medical Springs.
Pondosa as a town no longer exists.
But Bob is happy to share the story with anyone who
happens by his remote store.
Although Pondosa was home to 500 people at one time,
it was wholly dependent on a lumber mill.
The mill closed in 1959 — just one year after the area
was named the geographic center of the United States
with the addition of Alaska and Hawaii.
“They were going to name it Centerville, USA, but
the town closed up,” said Lori Brock, Bob’s daughter who
moved to Pondosa several years ago.
City Manager Jon Can-
non discussed House Bill
3115 with the Baker City
Council at their regular
session Tuesday, August 10.
According to the Oregon
State Legislature, HB 3115
provides that “local law
regulating sitting, lying,
sleeping or keeping warm
and dry outdoors on public
property that is open to
public must be objectively
reasonable as to time, place
and manner with regards
to persons experiencing
homelessness.”
HB 3115 creates “cause
of action for person expe-
riencing homelessness to
TODAY
Issue 41, 12 pages
Classified ................... B2
Comics ....................... B5
Community News ....A2
Crossword ................. B2
Dear Abby ................. B6
Horoscope ................. B2
By COREY KIRK
Baker City Herald
See, Council/Page A3
See, Census/Page A3
City Council discusses House Bill 3115
Law enforcement
must provide a notice of
24 hours, in English and
Spanish, and shall inform
local agencies that deliver
social services to home-
less individuals where the
notice has been posted.
“And those agencies
have the option to come
in and offer assistance or
whatever. But this is re-
quired by our law enforce-
ment to put this post out
that they have 24 hours to
vacate,” said Cannon.
Once people leave, if
any property is left behind,
that has to be collected and
saved for 30 days, made
available for individuals
to claim.
Baker County saw
population increase
by 3.3% according to
latest census data
Exceptions are weap-
ons, drug paraphernalia
and items involved or
thought to be involved
with a crime.
“We do not have a policy
in place, that I’m aware
of, for 203.077. So that is
something that we’re going
to need to work on and put
into place in order for us to
do the 24-hour notice,” said
Cannon.
Cannon said then there
is the option of a follow-up
assessment as to whether
removals are occurring in
a humane and just man-
ner is an option for law
enforcement to handle.
See, Pondosa/Page 3A
challenge objective reason-
ableness of such local law.”
It authorizes the court
to award attorney fees to
prevailing “plaintiff in such
suit in certain circum-
stances.”
Cannon said HB 3115 is
of signifi cance to the city.
“This has a real po-
tential to impact our law
enforcement as well as our
budget as well as potential-
ly our ambulance services
and our fi re department,”
said Cannon.
He also discussed Or-
egon Statute 203.077; “local
governments to develop
humane policy for removal
of homeless camps from
public property.”
Baker County,
and Oregon as
a whole, grew
in last decade
Though running behind
by about four months due to
the COVID-19 pandemic, the
2020 U.S. Census was offi cially
released Thursday, Aug. 12,
showing that not only the
state of Oregon, but most of
its counties, are continuing to
thrive, according to Charles
Rynerson with the Population
Research Center at Portland
State University.
Every county except one in
the state of Oregon has seen
a population increase over the
past decade. In 2010, Baker
County had about 16,134
people within its confi nes.
The 2020 census marks the
population at 16,668, seeing
a 3.3% increase of people that
call this region home.
“Relative to the rest of the
nation, (the fact that) Oregon’s
predominantly rural coun-
ties are not losing as much is
relevant. Oregon has attracted
more migration than most
states, and that’s going to
continue,” Rynerson said.
Lisa Britton/Baker City Herald
The Pondosa store is in a house built in 1923.
By SAMANTHA O’CONNER
Baker City Herald
With the latest spike in
COVID-19 cases, the Baker
County Health Department
is working with more people
who are sick now than at
any other time during the
pandemic.
According to a press
release sent out Thursday,
Aug. 12, Baker County’s
Public Health Offi cer, Dr.
Eric Lamb, is concerned
about the health of the com-
munity and what this means
for Baker County’s schools,
workforce and businesses.
“Baker County has fared
better than many other ar-
eas of the state and nation.
The number of hospitaliza-
tions or transfers to other
hospitals have been around
50, and unfortunately, there
have been 18 COVID-19 re-
lated deaths. However, right
now we are seeing a spike in
cases and hospitalizations
that threatens to overwhelm
hospital capacity,” said Lamb
in the press release.
The spike in cases has
increased the rate of local
hospitalizations. Lamb at-
tributes the surge in cases
to the County’s low vaccina-
tion rate, which the Oregon
Health Authority reports at
47.3% of residents 18 and
older.
“If we had gotten to an
80% vaccination rate, the
pandemic would be over for
us right now,” said Lamb in
the press release.
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Opinion ......................A4
Outdoors ................... B1
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Sports ........................A6
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