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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 6, 2017)
The Blue Mountain EAGLE ANNUAL HOLIDAY SHOWCASE DRAWS LARGE CROWD PAGE B1 Grant County’s newspaper since 1868 W edNesday , d ecember 6, 2017 • N o . 49 • 20 P ages • $1.00 www.MyEagleNews.com CREATING A DESTINATION Eagle photos/Sean Hart Dan Hixson, who designed The Links at Silvies Valley Ranch, tees off on the 16th hole of the Hankins course. Ranch resort aims to attract visitors, improve economy By Sean Hart Blue Mountain Eagle M ost business owners want to make money. Dr. Scott Campbell al- ready did that. In his latest venture, The Retreat and Links at Silvies Valley Ranch, the retired veterinarian hopes only to break even. His goal: Improve the local economy by bringing in outside money. His method: Invest his own money to make Grant and Harney counties a destina- tion for tourists. After six years of building on the ranch in the secluded Silvies Valley between John Day and Burns, Eastern Oregon is now home to a high-end reversible golf course, luxuri- ous lodging and a ranch-to-table restaurant. The resort recently wrapped up its first season, and plans are underway to begin sell- LEFT: The Links at Silvies Valley Ranch opened for a trial year in 2017. Dr. Scott Campbell, an owner who attended high school in Burns, hopes the resort will bring destination tourism to Grant and Harney counties. CENTER: Jeff Wallach, left, and Renee Renfrow enjoy a round of golf at The Links at Silvies Valley Ranch. RIGHT: The John Hopper Homestead, built in the late 1800s, is one of six homesteads preserved on the Silvies Valley Ranch. ing vacation homes on the serene country property. “What we’re trying to do here is give back to our community in a way that’s sus- tainable,” Campbell said. “One little thing like this is not going to change the world, but you’ve got to start someplace.” Recognizing the need When Campbell graduated from Burns High School in 1975, he said, Harney and Grant counties often boasted the highest per-capita state income with high-paying jobs from lumber and support industries. Growing up on a ranch, the son of a rural doctor, Campbell said he intended to return to the area after college, but few opportuni- ties existed for him and his wife, Sandy, a registered nurse. See RESORT, Page A12 Phony contractor hits at least 19 in Grant County Bend man admits to using another man’s name By Richard Hanners Blue Mountain Eagle District Attorney Jim Carpenter The Grant County District Attorney’s Office is seeking information about any house inspections handled in Grant County by a person claiming to be Gregory M. Miller. According to a press release from Grant County District At- torney Jim Carpenter, a man named Gregory Mason Mill- er, 47, of Bend has admitted to stealing the name and Oregon Construction Contractors Board license number of Gregory M. Miller, a contractor in Coos Bay. To date, Gregory Mason Miller has admitted to using the stolen identity at 58 different lo- cations, resulting in 58 separate violations of working without a license. Carpenter said Miller currently owes $298,236 in fines to the state of Oregon. Mill- er also admitted to performing hundreds of jobs under the Coos Bay man’s name, but he would not disclose the locations, Car- penter said. Stan Jessup at the Ore- gon Construction Contractors Board said Gregory Mason Miller performed house inspec- tions without a state license in six counties, mostly in the Bend area. The board learned about his activity in April when a complaint was made to the board and the scam unraveled. The board’s press release was carried in many newspapers at the time. See PHONY, Page A12 Two young girls die in Prairie City fire Neighbor pulls 4-year-old boy from blaze the mother was transported by air ambulance to another hos- pital, Rynearson said. Escaping the inferno By Richard Hanners Blue Mountain Eagle A neighbor pulled a boy from an apartment fire in Prairie City early Thursday morning, but two girls died in the blaze. Kimberley Shelton lived in the Strawberry Village apart- ment complex with her five children, three boys ages 17, 12 and 4 and two girls ages 3 and 1, according to Prairie City Volunteer Fire Depart- The Eagle/Richard Hanners Two members of a family staying at the Strawberry Village apartment complex in Prairie City died in a fire Nov. 30. ment Chief Marvin Rynear- son. The mother and three boys survived, and the two girls perished in the fire, he said. The surviving family members were transported to Blue Mountain Hospital, and According to next-door neighbor Gloria Tirico, Shel- ton managed to get out of her burning apartment and go to Unit 4 in another building for help. Tirico’s niece Livy Atchley and Allen Detweiler live in Unit 4. “Livy said she didn’t know how Kimberley made it to their apartment, she was so badly burned,” Tirico said. Tirico said she heard some pounding on the walls of her apartment about 2:40 a.m. while she lay in bed but didn’t consider it unusual. Then she heard a very loud bang. “I later learned that was Allen breaking down the back door to Kimberley’s apartment,” Tirico said. Tirico then said she heard some pounding on her apartment door. It was her niece banging on the door to wake her up. Tirico said she smelled smoke when she got downstairs but never heard a smoke alarm. She left her apartment in her nightgown and saw Kimberley Shelton See FIRE, Page A12