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About Baker City herald. (Baker City, Or.) 1990-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 8, 2022)
SPORTS A5 SPORTS A6 HOME B1 Baker boys 5th, girls 10th at state Bulldogs claim 5th-place trophy Lemon chicken has twice the tart Serving Baker County since 1870 • bakercityherald.com IN THIS EDITION: LOCAL • HOME & LIVING • SPORTS TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2022 • $1.50 QUICK HITS ————— Good Day Wish To A Subscriber COVID-19 cases drop by half in October A special good day to Herald subscribers Karen and Dave Daffer of Baker City. Baker City Herald BRIEFING ————— Veterans Day ceremony The community is invited to a ceremony at 11 a.m. Friday, Nov. 11, at the Baker County Courthouse, 1995 Third St., in honor of Veterans Day. The gathering, which honors all vet- erans, includes an invocation, pledge and brief speech. The number of COVID-19 cases re- ported in Baker County during Octo- ber was the lowest monthly total for the county since April. The Oregon Health Authority (OHA) reported 34 cases in the county during October, almost 50% fewer than the 65 cases in September. October was the fourth straight month with a drop in cases. There were 121 cases reported in June, 116 in July, and 79 in August. October’s total of 34 was the fewest since April 2022, when there were 13 cases. OHA officials say the official case totals underestimate the actual preva- lence of COVID-19 because residents who do home tests are not required to report the results. In Baker County, however, the num- ber of tests reported to OHA has in- creased over the past three months, from 384 in August, to 503 in Septem- ber and to 551 in October. OHA reported one COVID-19-re- lated death in the county during Octo- ber, on Oct. 24. There have been 61 COVID-19-re- lated deaths in the county during the pandemic, 22 of those happening in 2022. Neither the state nor the county has released age, gender or other informa- tion about recent deaths. After a monthly record of 646 cases in January 2022 during the omicron surge, Baker County’s case rate plum- meted to 230 during February and then dropped even more rapidly during March, when there were 14 cases. The fi fth and fi nal Baker Community Sciences & Arts Lecture will be Nov. 17 at the OTEC conference room, 4005 23rd St. Doors open 5:30 p.m., and the lecture starts promptly at 6 p.m. The lecture is titled “A Brief History of Art: Fabulous Facts, Divine Discoveries, and Creative Connections.” Award-winning local artist, teacher and writer Nancy Coffelt will share her expertise and inspiration. OTEC sponsoring food drive WEATHER ————— Today 40/17 Partly sunny Wednesday 33/8 Mostly cloudy Full forecast on the back of the B section. The space below is for a postage label for issues that are mailed. Vaccination Since the new bivalent booster dose became available in early September, 491 Baker County residents have had that booster — 6.7% of the county resi- dents who are eligible for it. That’s slightly below the statewide av- erage of 7.4% of eligible residents receiv- ing the bivalent booster. Civil rights lawsuit against county, sheriff continues Final science and art lecture is Nov. 17 Oregon Trail Electric Coop- erative (OTEC) is sponsoring a community food drive to help provide meals to local residents for Thanksgiving. Through Mon- day, Nov. 14, OTEC members can drop off nonperishable food at any OTEC offi ce. In Baker City that’s at 4005 23rd St., just south of Pocahontas Road west of the railroad tracks. All food will be donated to food banks across OTEC’s service territory for distribution before Thanks- giving. More information is available by emailing commu- nications@otec.coop or calling 541-523-3616. After April’s total of 13 — the fewest since May 2020, the month when Baker County had its first reported case — cases rose to 49 in May and 121 in June. Adam Nilsson contends Sheriff Travis Ash retaliated against him for complaints about 2017 incident BY JAYSON JACOBY jjacoby@bakercityherald.com Baker City Police Department/Contributed Photo The Baker City Police Department had this trailer moved from public property on Oct. 25, 2022. The trailer had a sewage hose buried in the ground, according to police. City focusing on camping, vehicle parking limits Alderson McQuisten Councilors applaud effort to enforce ordinance BY SAMANTHA O’CONNER soconner@bakercityherald.com The Baker City Police Department has ramped up enforcement of both a new and an older ordinance that regulate camping on public property and limit how long recreational vehicles, including trail- ers, can be parked on city streets. The goal, according to a press release from Police Chief Ty Duby, is to reduce the number of vehicles parked for long periods, which can make it a challenge for snowplows, street sweepers and other city maintenance equipment. “Both street sweepers and heavy snow removal equipment have difficult maneu- vering around these and other long-term storage vehicles,” Duby wrote. “This leaves the streets without regu- lar maintenance and creates hazardous snow and ice conditions for drivers as the weather worsens.” A city ordinance limits recreational vehicles, including RVs, utility trailers and boats, to parking on city streets for no more than 72 hours without being moved. Guyer Waggoner More Inside Please turn to Page A3 for a story about other cities, including Portland, that are struggling to deal with people camping on public property. A $1.3 million civil rights lawsuit that a former Baker City man filed more than three years ago against Baker County and Sheriff Travis Ash is still pending in federal court, although a federal magistrate judge recently recommended that all but one of the claims be dis- missed. Adam David Nilsson filed the suit in August 2019 in U.S. District Court in Pendleton. Nilsson, 51, who is rep- resenting himself and is Ash seeking a jury trial, con- tends the county and Ash violated his constitutional rights under the First, Second and Fourth amendments in Au- gust 2017. The Fourth Amendment claims are based on a warrant search that the sheriff’s office conducted of Nilsson’s home and vehicle. That search stemmed from an incident on Aug. 1, 2017, at the abandoned lime plant near Huntington in which Sheriff’s Deputy Gabe Maldonado cited Nilsson for trespass- ing with a firearm and criminal mischief. Nilsson said in 2017 that he and a friend had gone to the lime plant, which the county owns and where it had posted no trespassing signs, to photograph graffiti. See Lawsuit / A3 See Camping / A3 District governor meets with Baker City Rotary Club BY LISA BRITTON lbritton@bakercityherald.com Every day, Rotarians help fulfill the interna- tional club’s theme of “peace and peace building,” says Janice Fulkerson, governor for Rotary Dis- trict 5400. “Every day, as Rotarians, working in the com- munity is peace building. We’re working with other people,” Fulkerson said during a recent talk to the Baker City Rotary Club. District 5400 includes 42 clubs. Many, she said, have changed structure a bit to better accommo- date members who can’t fit weekly meetings into their life. The focus, she said, is to capitalize on what members can offer. “People have time, talent, treasure. They will contribute where they can,” she said. Although some clubs have seen declining membership or low attendance, “globally, mem- bership is growing,” she said. And, although only about a third of the Baker TODAY Issue 77 14 pages Classified ....................B4-B6 Comics ..............................B7 Community News.............A2 City club’s membership attends weekly meetings, she said the group’s activities demonstrate dedi- cation. “Your club does a lot,” she said. “If it wasn’t here, who would do it? Who would step in if not for Rotary?” The Baker City Rotary Club is most visi- ble during Miners Jubilee in July, for its buffalo burger fundraiser in Geiser-Pollman Park. Other activities include setting out flags on holidays, supporting the literacy program, fund- ing scholarships, providing free bike helmets through the Baker City Police Department, or- ganizing the Easter egg hunt and helping Sleep in Heavenly Peace (both by donating money and helping build beds). The Rotary Theme As part of her visit, Fulkerson explained Rota- ry’s theme for the year, “Imagine Rotary.” A large focus is “peace and peace building.” See Rotary / A3 Crossword ...............B4 & B6 Dear Abby .........................B8 Home & Living ............B1-B3 Lisa Britton/Baker City Herald Janice Fulkerson, kneeling on the left, is the district governor for Rotary District 5400. On Oct. 17, 2022, she attended a meeting of the Baker City Rotary Club to talk about the service club and present awards recognizing the club’s financial contributions to the Rotary Founda- tion. Attending the meeting were, from left, Dave Lindley, Bill Fessel, Ken Krohn, Anthony Bailey, Brenda Holly and Perry Stokes (kneeling). Horoscope ..............B4 & B6 Lottery Results .................A2 News of Record ................A2 Opinion .............................A4 Senior Menus ...................A2 Sports ..................... A5 & A6 Sudoku..............................B7 Turning Backs ..................A2 Weather ............................B8
