LOCAL A2
SPORTS A6
Jobless rate down, but
hiring remains a challenge
Nine Baker baseball players
earn all-league honors
Serving Baker County since 1870 • bakercityherald.com
IN THIS EDITION: LOCAL • OUTDOORS & REC • SPORTS
QUICK HITS
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Good Day Wish
To A Subscriber
A special good day to
Herald subscriber Arthur
Blankenship of Huntington.
BRIEFING
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Elliott Averett earns
law degree from
Georgetown
WASHINGTON, D.C. —
Elliott Averett, a Baker High
School graduate, earned
summa cum laude honors
when he graduated from
Georgetown University law
school on May 22, 2022.
‘Jungle Book’ coming
to Baker City
There’s still time to
register for the Missoula
Children’s Theatre camp of
“Jungle Book” on June 13-
18 in Baker City.
Auditions are at 10 a.m.
Monday, June 13, at Baker
High School. The cast is
open to students in grades 1
through 12. Rehearsals are
held throughout the week
and culminate in public
performances at 6 p.m.
Friday, June 17, and 3 p.m.
Saturday, June 18.
MCT is brought to town
by Crossroads Carnegie Art
Center. Registration for the
camp is $40 for Cross-
roads members, or $60 for
nonmembers. Scholarships
are available.
Register at www.cross-
roads-arts.org or call 541-
523-5369.
Commissioners confident in new ambulance provider
Metro West Ambulance required by law to
give hiring preference, for 6 months, to
laid off Baker City Fire Dept. employees
BY JAYSON JACOBY
jjacoby@bakercityherald.com
All three Baker County
commissioners said they’re
confident that Metro West
Ambulance, the Hillsboro
company commissioners
picked to operate ambulances
in Baker City and much of the
rest of the county, will main-
tain the level of service resi-
dents expect.
“I’m comfortable with the
level of service they will pro-
vide to the citizens of Baker
County,” Commission Chair-
man Bill Harvey said on
Thursday, June 9.
The day before, commis-
Capstone re-
emergency trans-
quested that Baker
ports as well as
County and Baker
non-emergency —
City provide a sub-
what’s known as “pre
sidy of $1,280,000 for
hospital care.”
sioners voted unanimously
the first year, with an
Harvey said the
to accept the recommenda-
expected 3% annual
factor that most per-
tion of a committee, whose
increase thereafter.
suaded him to prefer
Harvey
Bennett
Nichols
members were appointed by
Metro West did not
Metro West was the
commissioners last month, to request any financial subsidy for feel better,” Nichols said. “I feel unanimous recommendation
negotiate a five-year contract the duration of the contract.
pretty comfortable with it.”
from the advisory committee,
with Metro West, which is
That difference alone made
Metro West was founded
whose members included Tony
based in Hillsboro.
Metro West an obvious choice, in 1953, and the company has Alexander, Wayne Endersby,
The county received one
Commissioner Bruce Nichols seven advanced life support
Debra Duggan, Pat Sullivan,
other proposal, from Capstone said on Thursday, June 9.
ambulance services in Oregon, David Richards, Loran Joseph
Transportation, which oper-
“Basically it was an easy
three in Washington state and and Jeanne Peacock.
ates as Victory EMS in South- pick,” he said.
one in California, according to
“They did the homework
ern Idaho.
Nichols, Harvey and the
its proposal to Baker County. and they all agreed that these
(Pdf copies of both proposals third commissioner, Mark
Capstone has been operat- (Metro West) are the folks we
are available for download at
Bennett, all cited Metro West’s ing in Idaho for four years, and should be going with,” Harvey
www.bakercityherald.com.)
extensive experience as an-
the company offers non-emer- said. “I’m quite comfortable
One of the more significant other clear advantage.
gency transports.
with the choice they made.”
differences between the two
“They do have a lot of ex-
The ambulance provider
See, Contract/Page A3
proposals is dollars.
perience, and that makes me
in Baker County handles
Today
74/52
Showers
Sunday
60/41
Heavy rain possible
this weekend
Powder River Music Review
season starts Sunday, June 12
The Powder River
Music Review will
open for the season
on Sunday, June
12, 2022, with a
performance by the
Inland Northwest
Musicians.
The orchestra
performed at
Geiser-Pollman Park
on Aug. 8, 2021.
Showers
Monday
54/37
Showers
Full forecast on the back
of the B section.
The space below is for a postage label
for issues that are mailed.
‘Atmospheric
river’ could
flow into
Baker County
Park
performances
BY JAYSON JACOBY
jjacoby@bakercityherald.com
BY LISA BRITTON
lbritton@bakercityherald.com
Travel Baker County, File
WEATHER
—————
SATURDAY, JUNE 11, 2022 • $1.50
T
he Powder River Music Review begins this season
with a patriotic twist and recognition of special
sponsors on Sunday, June 12.
The music series, organized by the
nonprofit Baker City Events, brings live
music to Geiser-Pollman Park every
Sunday through the summer, starting at
4 p.m.
Admission is free. Donations are
welcome, and raffle tickets are sold for
the chance to win weekly prizes.
June 12 features the Inland North-
west Musicians and their “Outdoor Pa-
triotic and Entertaining Pops Concert.”
This concert series is supported by
sponsors, grants and donations, said
Lynette Perry, a volunteer with Baker
City Events.
This year, she said BCE nominated two
sponsors — Oregon Trail Electric Coop-
erative and Sorbenots — for a “sponsor
of the year” Ovation Award with the Ore-
gon Festivals and Events Association.
“Competition is statewide,” Perry said.
“Imagine competing with the Oregon
State Fair and other large west-side events.”
The Baker City nomination won.
See, Music/Page A6
The spring has been decidedly drippy
in Baker County — and occasionally
flaky, with snow on Mother’s Day —
but the next storm in the series might
be the soggiest yet.
The National Weather Service office in
Boise, which issues forecasts for Baker
County, is tracking what meteorologists
call an “atmospheric river.”
As its name implies, this is an abnor-
mally saturated storm that taps into the
copious moisture in the tropical South
Pacific and brings it into the West.
“A significant amount of moisture,
with origins in the tropics will move
into the Pacific NW and then across
the rest of the West by Sunday,” a mete-
orologist wrote in the forecast discus-
sion from the Boise office on Thursday,
June 9. “Dewpoints will reach the up-
per 50s to low 60s, which will feel quite
humid for our standards. The ample
moisture aloft will pose a flash flooding
threat and significant river rises over
the weekend.”
The storm will interrupt what has
been the warmest week of the year.
Most of the rain in Baker County is
forecast to fall from Saturday through
Sunday night, with a slight chance of
showers on Monday, June 13.
See, Rain/Page A3
South Baker School bus lane project delayed
School district
didn’t receive
any bids for
the project
The district’s solution is to
separate the bus loading and
unloading zone from where
parents pick up and drop
off students.
Buses, which now travel
south on Fourth Street to
Grace Street, would instead
Baker City Herald
turn right one block north, on
The Baker School District’s
Carter Street, and then con-
plan to build a new bus lane
tinue south on Fifth Street.
at South Baker Intermediate
That street right-of-way ex-
School has been postponed.
tends south of Grace Street
District officials had hoped
into the northwest corner of
to do the project this summer,
Jayson Jacoby/Baker City Herald the South Baker playground.
but the district didn’t receive
Mark Witty, Baker School District superintendent, stands outside
The Baker City Council this
any bids for the work, said
South Baker Intermediate on Friday, Feb. 4, 2022. The district plans to spring approved the district’s
Lindsey McDowell, the dis-
revamp the bus lane at the school to reduce congestion with parents’ request to open that section of
trict’s public information and vehicles. The project has been delayed due to a lack of contractor bids. Fifth Street for buses.
communications coordinator.
The district will pave a lane
“At this time, I think the dis- ents pick up and drop off stu- parents to park elsewhere in
for buses and install a fence
the neighborhood and re-
trict plans to rebid the project dents in the same area, the
between that lane and the
one-way block of Grace Street quires students to cross one
in the fall,” McDowell said.
playground, Witty said.
between Third and Fourth
or more streets.
The district’s goal is to
When buses leave the
“We’re trying to avoid
deal with traffic congestion
streets on the north side of
school, they’ll drive north on
that,” Witty said in February Fourth Street, avoiding Grace
at South Baker, the school at
the school.
1285 Third St. that houses
Mark Witty, district super- 2022. “It’s been a goal for a
Street altogether.
number of years to make this
fourth, fifth and sixth graders. intendent, said this winter
Wayne Paxton, the district’s
Now, buses as well as par-
that the situation forces many area safer.”
transportation supervisor,
TODAY
Issue 14
14 pages
Classified ....................B2-B4
Comics ..............................B5
Community News.............A2
Crossword ...............B2 & B4
Dear Abby .........................B6
Horoscope ..............B2 & B4
Jayson Jacoby ..................A4
Lottery Results .................A2
News of Record ................A2
Opinion .............................A4
Outdoors .................B1 & B2
Senior Menus ...................A2
came up with the proposal a
few years ago to alleviate con-
gestion as buses and parents’
vehicles vied for the same lim-
ited amount of space.
He said there’s room for
three buses now in the bus
lane on the south side of Grace
Street next to the school.
“It’s just really tight,” Paxton
said. “I think this is going to
open it up quite a bit and be
safer.”
Witty said the change won’t
eliminate potential conflicts be-
tween buses and other vehicles.
Buses heading north on
Fourth Street, for instance, will
cross Grace Street where par-
ents will turn left.
But Witty said he’s con-
vinced the situation will be
safer since buses and cars won’t
be parking close to each other.
The bus lane project is not
one of the jobs the district will
do with money from the $4
million bond that district vot-
ers approved in May 2021.
Sports ...............................A6
Turning Backs ..................A2
Weather ............................B6