SATURDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2021
Republicans sue over new Oregon U.S. House maps
SALEM (AP) — Former Oregon
Secretary of State Bev Clarno and three
other Republicans have fi led a lawsuit
to challenge new congressional districts
recently passed by state lawmakers.
They say the new maps are partisan
gerrymandering, unconstitutional and
contrary to state law.
Oregon Public Broadcasting reports
the suit, fi led Monday, Oct. 11 in Mar-
ion County Circuit Court, is the fi rst
such attempt to alter the six-district
map that Democrats pushed through
during a contentious special legislative
session last month.
That session nearly ended in a Re-
publican walkout after House Speaker
RENOVATE
Continued from A1
Shannon, whose father
was the construction fi rm’s
founder, Sid Johnson, who
died in 2014, is the com-
pany’s offi ce manager.
And it happened that
when the pandemic began,
the company was able to add
the renovation to its other
projects.
“It wouldn’t have gotten
done otherwise,” Shannon
said. “This would have been
too much to do on our own.”
Doing away with that
dropped ceiling was a vital
part of the project in mul-
tiple ways. Besides revealing
the pressed tin ceiling, the
removal uncovered a row
of windows that had been
blocked, making the fi rst
fl oor much darker than it
was originally.
Natural light now
streams into the lobby and
into Bob’s and Kyra’s offi ces.
The renovation was com-
prehensive.
“There isn’t anything
you see here that was there
when we fi rst bought the
building,” Bob said, gestur-
ing to his offi ce and to the
main entrance area outside.
Except, of course, that
ceiling.
It was in excellent condi-
tion for the most part, Bob
said.
A few sections had to be
repaired, and the owners
found a company in Cleve-
land that had experience
with pressed tin.
Josh designed the
renovations and oversaw
the project, which included
replacing the heating and
ventilation system.
Shannon and Kyra
decided on such things as
light fi xtures, including eight
large lamps that hang from
the ceiling.
They also chose paint
colors, Shannon said, her
laugh suggesting that their
conclusions didn’t always
happen without a certain
amount of discussion.
BAKER CITY HERALD — A3
LOCAL & STATE
Tina Kotek, D-Portland, reneged on a
deal to grant the GOP an equal say in
new congressional and legislative maps.
Instead, Republican lawmakers
showed up on the last possible day and
allowed Democrats to pass a map that
could lead to Democratic control of fi ve
of the state’s now-six seats in Congress.
Oregon picked up an additional U.S.
House seat because of population gains
recorded by the recent U.S. Census.
Clarno, the secretary of state
until this year, was joined by three
other former Republican offi cials: Gary
Wilhelms of Portland, a former House
Republican leader; James Wilcox,
former mayor of The Dalles; and Larry
Bob, also smiling at the
memory, avoided those
debates.
“It was really easy for
me,” he said.
One of the more diffi cult
parts of the project — and
certainly the heaviest — was
moving the massive steel
door to its current place at
the entrance to one of the
building’s two former bank
vaults.
Trouble is, the door had
been in the basement, where
the other vault is.
And the route from the
basement to the fi rst fl oor
is a fl ight of stairs that, by
today’s more stringent build-
ing standards, are both steep
and narrow.
Shannon said that dur-
ing the renovations she
asked Josh whether the
door, which bears the name
“Baker Loan & Trust Co.”
and was constructed by The
Hall’s Safe Co. in Cincinnati,
would fi t at the entrance to
the fi rst fl oor vault.
His rueful answer: “Un-
fortunately, yes.”
Sliding it out of its spot in
the basement was compara-
tively easy.
But maneuvering the
ponderous thing up those
stairs was a different matter.
“It’s nice ... now,” Shan-
non said.
Bob and Kyra moved
into their new offi ces on
Monday, Oct. 11, following
an open house on Wednes-
day, Oct. 6 to celebrate
completion of the fi rst phase
of the renovations.
Bob and Shannon said
they still plan to refurbish
the second fl oor, a project
they expect will take two
years.
They haven’t decided on
its use, but one possibility is
using it as a vacation rental,
Bob said.
Shannon said they would
like to apply for a grant to
cover part of the cost.
In the meantime they’re
still excited about having
completed the fi rst phase,
seeing the utter transfor-
mation of the space that
Health, said in a press
releasing announcing the
scholarship recipients.
Continued from A1
Colton, who was not able
To qualify, students must to attend the conference
due to her rigorous schedule
be AABP members.
at OSU, said she was “just
“These 18 students
exemplify what the future of basically in shock” when she
learned about the award.
veterinary medicine needs:
“I’m still in shock,” she
leadership, ambition and
said on Wednesday, Oct. 13.
a devotion to continuously
“I was so pleasantly sur-
elevating and improving
prised.”
animal health and well-be-
Colton said she never di-
ing,” Justin Welsh, executive
director of livestock technical verted from the career path
she chose as a little girl.
services for Merck Animal
AWARD
Campbell of Eugene, a former House
speaker.
They argue that Democrats’ han-
dling of the process harms them “by
frustrating their ability to vote for and
campaign for congressional candidates
who share their values, and who share
their views on issues such as gun rights,
transportation, and water rights.”
The suit notes that four of the
state’s six new congressional districts
include part of the Portland area,
which they say is a sign Democrats
improperly stocked the districts with
left-leaning voters.
They have asked the court to block
the plan and draw its own.
Gary Dielman/Contributed Photo
The Baker Loan and Trust building was constructed
in 1910 and 1911 after a fi re on Jan. 26, 1910,
destroyed the previous building at the southwest
corner of Main and Broadway streets.
COUNTY
Continued from A1
Commissioner Mark
Bennett said “both applica-
tions hit it out of the ballpark
and they were really good.
They addressed a lot of the
concerns that we heard in the
community and new ideas
and I think that the proposal
that we have from the Cham-
ber is really forward looking
and that’s in a visionary docu-
ment and that’s what we had
hoped to see.”
Commissioner Bruce
Nichols, who participated in
the meeting by computer, said
the county’s Transient Lodg-
ing Tax Committee (TLT) did
a fi ne job reviewing the two
proposals.
“Both entities that did
their proposals did a re-
ally good job of putting stuff
together. This was a very
arduous process for all of us,”
Nichols said.
The TLT, which advises
commissioners, went through
both visitor center proposals
on Oct. 7, scoring both based
on the criteria included in the
county’s Request for Propos-
als.
The committee gave the
Anthony Lakes proposal a
score of 98, and the Cham-
ber’s proposal a score of 96.
Harvey said county of-
fi cials will be in contact with
the Chamber of Commerce
soon to talk about the new
contract, which will continue
through Jan. 1, 2024.
“We’ll get to a point where
in November, our regular ses-
sion meeting, at that point in
time we’ll approve a contract,”
Harvey said.
Bennett thanked all of the
people involved in the pro-
cess, including county counsel
Kim Mosier and Heidi
Martin, the county’s human
resource director.
“I’d like to thank all the
parties that participated and
really the staff work that
went into it,” Bennett said.
“I think we need to acknowl-
edge that. And I know it’s
been a really trying period of
time, and also the work that
the TLT did and a lot of other
folks, work groups, et cetera.”
County commissioners
initially were slated to award
a new contract in early 2020.
The same two groups — the
Chamber and Anthony Lakes
— were the only applicants
then.
But commissioners didn’t
make a decision then and
instead extended the contract
with the Chamber several
times, most recently through
Aug. 31, 2021. During that
period the county restarted
the process and wrote a
new Request for Proposals,
which was released in early
September.
Commissioners voted
unanimously to pay the
Chamber at the rate in the
previous contract — it was
about $77,000 per year —
starting Oct. 1 and until the
new contract takes effect.
Money for the contract
comes from the tax that
guests pay at motels, bed and
breakfasts, vacation rental
homes and other lodging
businesses.
The Chamber listed in its
proposal an annual budget
$87,575. Cutler said that
includes $7,600 in payroll
expenses that in the previous
contract the Chamber paid on
its own.
More Information
Baker City historian Gary Dielman compiled a history of the
Baker Loan and Trust building at 2043 Main St., including pho-
tographs and text that are displayed at the renovated struc-
ture. During his research Dielman learned that the building has
had a variety of tenants over the decades, including, as is the
case now, attorneys, as well as a dentist, a title company and
an insurance fi rm. The Baker State Bank occupied the building
from 1946-58. The offi ce space on the north (Broadway Street)
side, near the alley, has had several occupants. Its current ten-
ant is fi nancial offi cer Scott Warner. Surveyor Tom Hanley has
an offi ce in the basement, the same space his father, James D.
Hanley, also a surveyor, used. The elder Hanley had his offi ce
elsewhere in the building starting in 1956, before moving to
the basement in 1984, according to Dielman’s research.
confronted them three
years ago.
“It’s better than what we
thought it would be,” Shan-
non said.
Bob said he recognizes
that the building is a promi-
nent piece in Baker City’s
nationally recognized down-
town historic district.
“It’s right in the center
of Baker,” he said. “We’re
happy to have the opportu-
nity to do this.”
Shannon said they
bought the building in part
because her brother, Mark
Johnson, co-owner of Sid
Johnson & Co., inspected
the structure and deemed
it sound.
The new owners also
marvel at how rapidly the
building went up follow-
ing the fi re, back when the
20th century was scarcely a
decade old.
“Within a year it was
rebuilt,” Shannon said.
“It took us a year to
remodel it,” Bob said with
a grin.
During the summer after
she graduated from Powder
Valley, she worked with Dr.
Kim Mahaffey at the Baker
Veterinary Hospital.
She also did job shadows
with two other Baker City
veterinarians, Drs. Tom Hill
and Brett Hamilton.
Then, for four summers
starting in 2017, she worked
during the summer at a
small animal clinic in Wash-
ington.
Colton said she intends
after graduation to return
COVID
Continued from A1
The resolution councilors
approved Tuesday states
that the governor’s vaccine
mandate has “destabilized the
supply of healthcare provid-
ers” and that it “negatively
impacts the fi nancial stability
of healthcare providers.”
In other business Tuesday,
councilors:
• Awarded a contract for
“cured in place” pipe work
to Planned and Engineer
Construction, Inc. (PEC) of
Helena, Montana, which was
the low bidder at $112,614.
This will be the 10th proj-
ect in Baker City the company
has done. The process involves
lining existing wastewater
mainlines with a material
that extends the lifespan of
the pipes.
• Scheduled a work session
with the Baker City-County
Planning Department for
Nov. 9 at 6 p.m. at City Hall
to discuss the city’s status
as a “severely rent burdened
city,” which means more than
25% of the population spends
more than 50% of income on
rent. A 2018 state law, House
Bill 4006, requires such cities
to have at least one public
meeting to discuss the causes
and consequences of the situa-
tion, barriers to reducing rent
burdens and possible solu-
tions, according to a memo to
councilors from Holly Kerns,
planning department director.
• Postponed reviewing
applications from people
interested in fi lling the one
vacancy on the Council,
created by Lynette Perry’s
resignation in August due to
health issues.
Councilors plan to invite
applicants to attend the Oct.
26 meeting to be introduced
and answer any questions
from councilors.
Three people have sub-
mitted applications — Tom
Hughes, Randy Daugherty
and Koby Myer.
to either Eastern Oregon or
Eastern Washington. Her
goal is to join a veterinary
practice where she can
focus about 70% of her time
treating large animals, and
in particular beef cattle
and dairy cows, with the
rest of her time devoted to
dogs, cats and other smaller
animals.
“I really want to focus my
career on supporting the ag
industry,” Colton said.
Her ultimate goal is to
own her own clinic.
Alexandra Colton/Contributed Photo
New At The Library
Patrons can reserve materials in
advance online or by calling 541-523-6419.
See everything new this week to Baker
County Library District at wowbrary.
org. Materials featured, and in library
collection, does not indicate endorsement
or approval of contents by the library.
Selections are based on factors such as
demand, public interest, diversity of view-
point, community relevance, and others.
• “The Morgans,” William W. Johnstone
• “World War C: Lessons from the Co-
and J.A. Johnstone
vid-19 Pandemic and How to Prepare for
the Next One,” Sanjay Gupta and Kristin
NONFICTION
Loberg
• “The Afghanistan Papers: A Secret
History of the War,” Craig Whitlock and The CHILDREN
Washington Post
• “All Thirteen: The Incredible Cave
• “The End of Bias: A Beginning: The
Rescue of the Thai Boys’ Soccer Team,”
Science and Practice of Overcoming
Christina Soontornvat
Unconscious Bias,” Jessica Nordell
• “Baby Loves Aerospace Engineer-
• “The Family Firm: A Data-Driven
ing!”
Ruth Spiro
FICTION
Guide to Better Decision Making in the
• “Change Sings: A Children’s Anthem,”
• “Much Ado About You,” Samantha
Early School Years,” Emily Oster
Amanda
Gorman
Young
• “The Storyteller: Tales of Life and
•
“My
Year
in the Middle,” Lila Quintero
• “The Book of Form and Emptiness,”
Music,” Dave Grohl
Weaver
Ruth Ozeki
• “The Taking of Jemima Boone: The
• “The Bad Seed Presents: The Good,
• “The Man Who Died Twice: A Thursday True Story of the Kidnap and Rescue That
the Bad, and the Spooky,” Jory John
Murder Club Mystery,” Richard Osman
Shaped America,” Matthew Pearl
Alexandra Colton, who’s in her fi nal year of veterinary
school at Oregon State University, is one of 18
veterinary students in the U.S. and Canada to receive a
$5,000 scholarship from Merck Animal Health.
Baker
County
Baker
County
The Baker
County
The Baker Services
County
Veteran
Veteran
Service
Veteran Services
Service
Veteran
Office
will be
will be closed
on
closed
June 1-5 December
and open for
14th
through
business
on
the 18th
Monday,
June 8th
Until further notice Veterans
will not be seen in person. If
you need assistance, call Rick’s
office
will 541-523-8223
be closed
work
number
and he will call you back to
from
18 -21 of October,
help you over the phone. This
is a measure
is being
2021
due to that
a training
implemented to minimize the
conference.
spread of COVID-19.