The
Grant County’s newspaper since 1868
Blue Mountain
EAGLE
PROSPECTORS CLINCH
LEAGUE TITLE
W EDNESDAY , O CTOBER 18, 2017
• N O . 42
• 16 P AGES
• $1.00
For complete
game
coverage
see Page A9
www.MyEagleNews.com
Sheriff Palmer
cleared by DOJ
Investigation
limited to
potentially
criminal matters
By Sean Hart
Blue Mountain Eagle
The Oregon Department
of Justice announced its inves-
tigation into complaints about
Grant County Sheriff Glenn
Palmer revealed no evidence
of criminal conduct.
At least eight people sent
formal complaints about
Palmer to Oregon’s police li-
censing agency after he met
with people who participated
in the 41-day occupation of
the Malheur National Wildlife
Refuge in 2016. The agency
forwarded the complaints to
the Department of Justice, rec-
ommending an investigation.
Most of the complaints
focused on Palmer’s involve-
ment with the refuge occupi-
ers, after Palmer met with three
occupiers and
the president of
a militia group
in John Day in
January 2016. A
complaint from
John Day Po-
lice Chief Rich-
Sheriff
ard Gray also
Glenn
accused Palmer
Palmer
of destroying a
public record,
and an anonymous complaint
accused Palmer of issuing
concealed handgun licenses to
out-of-state residents.
Department of Justice Chief
Counsel Michael Slauson said
in an Oct. 10 letter to Grant
County District Attorney Jim
Carpenter the department had
reviewed all complaints sub-
mitted but limited the scope of
its investigation to allegations
involving potentially criminal
conduct, specifi cally wheth-
er Palmer destroyed public
records or issued concealed
handgun licenses unlawfully.
See PALMER, Page A8
OSP investigating Dixie
Campground shooting
Injured party
transported by
air ambulance
By Richard Hanners
Blue Mountain Eagle
A person was injured
during a shooting incident
at the Dixie Campground
around 6:30 a.m. on Monday,
Oct. 16.
The Oregon State Po-
lice are heading up an active
shooting investigation.
The injured person was
fl own by air ambulance to a
hospital in Bend, according
to Lt. Mark Duncan at the
Oregon State Police offi ce in
Ontario.
The investigation contin-
ues, Duncan said on Monday,
with offi cers interviewing in-
volved parties.
Dixie Campground is in
the Malheur National Forest
east of Dixie Summit and
north of Highway 26.
Grant County Sheriff
Glenn Palmer confi rmed on
Tuesday that the investiga-
tion was still ongoing and he
couldn’t comment. He said
a major crimes team with
investigators and forensics
experts was working on the
case.
Eagle file photo
Chief Dispatcher Valerie Maynard keeps track of numerous computer monitors at the John Day Emergency
Communications Center. Ballot measure 12-69 would create a local option tax to keep the local dispatch center open.
Offi cials support
911 ballot measure
Dispatch costs exceed
state funding
By Richard Hanners
Blue Mountain Eagle
Many local public safety offi cials are
in favor of retaining local 911 dispatch
services.
The John Day City Council dis-
cussed the upcoming 911 dispatch bal-
lot measure at their Oct. 10 meeting.
City manager Nick Green reminded the
council that the 911 dispatch funding is-
sue has been “a long time coming.”
The 911 dispatch center operated
by the city of John Day services all of
Grant County, but the state 911 tax allo-
cated to the city does not cover the cost
of its operation. Ballot measure 12-69
would create a short-term local option
tax throughout the county to fund the
defi cit to keep the local dispatch center
open.
“The topic has been raised at every
city budget meeting in the past sev-
Eagle file photo
A desk in the John Day Dispatch
Center includes a map monitor, a
radio monitor, a multi-use monitor, a
keyboard, a radio, a telephone and
a monitor displaying cameras on
the premises. Ballot measure 12-69
would create a local option tax to
keep the local dispatch center open.
en years,” Green said, describing it as
“creeping normalcy” and an “unsustain-
able situation.”
If allowed to continue, funding for
911 dispatch would take the city’s entire
property tax revenue, he said. The city
had managed to keep some personnel
costs down, but others such as retire-
ment that were beyond the city’s control
were driving dispatch costs higher.
“Just about every city in Oregon is
facing this same issue,” he said.
Green noted that it was unusual to
see one city pay for another city’s dis-
patch services.
“I’m not sure residents are aware of
this,” he said.
The $420,000 appropriation from the
Oregon Legislature to bridge the city’s
funding gap for the next two years was
“fantastic,” Green said, “but it has to be
a bridge to somewhere.”
If it passes, the impact of the local
option tax would be $38 for a home with
an assessed value of $100,000, and the
tax could run from 2019 through 2023.
Green noted, if the ballot measure
fails, the city would likely be forced to
outsource dispatch services to Frontier
Dispatch, a regional dispatch center in
Condon that benefi ts from economies of
scale by consolidating four counties.
Councilor Gregg Haberly expressed
concern that emergency dispatchers
See 911, Page A8
Prairie City seeks new site for cell tower
Water workshop
to be held at
6 p.m. Oct. 18
By Angel Carpenter
Blue Mountain Eagle
It was standing room only
at Prairie City’s Oct. 11 city
council meeting, where a pro-
posal to consider a conditional
use permit for a U.S. Cellular
cellphone tower was turned
down.
A total of 33 people fi lled
the council room, including
Mayor Jim Hamsher and six
council members. The meeting
started with an hour-long hear-
ing to address the cell tower.
Loren Bebb
sought a permit
to place a 195-
foot cellphone
tower on his
Prairie
City
property
at
Joe
10th Street and
Phippen
Hall Avenue.
Tracey
Malone, a zoning specialist
for Faulk & Foster, made a
presentation about the ben-
efi ts of placing the tower in
that area, which happens to be
next to the school.
Cellphone providers cur-
rently available in Prairie
City are Verizon and AT&T.
Malone said the nearest U.S.
Cellular tower is in John Day.
“It’s a challenging terrain,”
she said, noting surveyors
studied the area for two years,
looking for the most con-
structible and feasible area,
which is also zoneable.
Malone said the benefi ts
of a cell tower would include
more choice and competitive
pricing.
Council members Car-
ole Garrison, Dottie Miller,
Les Church, Frank Primozic,
Joe Phippen and Georgia
Patterson voted unanimous-
ly against the proposed site.
Some council members said
they heard from constituents
who didn’t like the location.
Joe Phippen said some res-
idents told him the proposed
See TOWER, Page A8
The Eagle/Angel Carpenter
The Prairie City City Council votes unanimously against
the proposed cellphone tower plan. Later, the council
voted unanimously to approve the cellphone tower if it
is placed in the industrial park, away from the residential
and school zones. Clockwise, from left, Frank Primozic,
Joe Phippen, Georgia Patterson, Mayor Jim Hamsher,
Carole Garrison, Dottie Miller, Les Church and, standing,
Faulk & Foster representative Tracey Malone.