A18
News
Blue Mountain Eagle
Wednesday, March 28, 2018
PLANT
911
SCHOOL
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by hog fuel from the Mal-
heur mill or other sources.
The dried chips will be
roasted in a 70- to 80-foot-
long rotary kiln heated by
the reaction inside, Kru-
menauer said. The torrefied
material will then be cooled
and compressed into bri-
quettes for shipment. Torre-
fied biomass contains high
energy with low weight, is
stable and resists moisture.
Krumenauer said plans
now call for trucking the
briquettes to Prineville,
loading them on rail cars
and then shipping them to
a coastal port for export, or
to a domestic user. He said
initial talks have been held
with the Port of Longview
in Washington.
One market for the bri-
quettes is Japan, which is
interested in substituting
torrefied biomass for coal at
electrical-generating plants,
but additional negotiations
with customers will take
place over the following
months, Krumenauer said.
The U.S. Forest Service,
which would be a main
source of biomass for the
John Day plant, has been
very supportive of the proj-
ect, he said.
“We are excited for the
opportunity to partner with
and support the torrefaction
plant,” Malheur National
Forest Supervisor Steve
Beverlin said. “It will pro-
vide additional infrastruc-
ture for processing bio-
mass, like the new post and
pole mill at Seneca.”
Krumenauer said the
plant will start small and
ramp up production over
the next three years. Pos-
sible future changes in-
clude loading wood chips
in trucks returning from
Prineville and using juniper
trees as a source material.
The Endowment consid-
ers the plant to be an equity
investment, but unlike the
private sector, the Endow-
ment is “more patient and
flexible” about its invest-
ments, Krumenauer said.
The Endowment is willing
to take more risk in order to
help forest communities, he
said.
Communications Center. The size of the 911
User Board increased from 18 when it was cre-
ated in 1989 to 28 today.
Facing increasing and unsustainable costs,
the John Day City Council voted unanimously in
November to discontinue providing 911 dispatch
service by June 30, 2019. The vote followed a
failed ballot initiative that would have estab-
lished a levy of $38 per $100,000 assessed value
to support 911 dispatch service in Grant County.
According to Green’s report to the board, the
cost to run the 911 center was $425,244 in fiscal
year 2017. The costs vary from year to year as
does revenue from the state 911 tax on telephone
bills, which was $274,501 in fiscal year 2017.
John Day received $420,000 from the legis-
lature to maintain 911 dispatch through the cur-
rent biennium while a solution was found and
implemented. A 911 Task Force reviewed three
options — contracting with Frontier, forming
a joint dispatch center with Grant and Harney
counties or creating a new countywide entity in
Grant County.
The Harney County option was not developed
in detail, Green told the board. Harney County
was interested in the idea but would not set up a
joint center in Grant County, he said.
per capita basis to be unfair and did not recom-
mended it. The Task Force instead looked at the
Umatilla 911 Center’s cost-sharing system and
developed a hybrid model, charging per call as
well as by jurisdiction based on assessed tax val-
ue not population
determined that instead of
being expelled, the student
would be educated in an “al-
ternative setting” for the rest
of the semester.
Rohner-Ingram told the
Eagle that she believes the
current issue is that school
policy is not being followed
correctly.
“I expect the practices
within the district to follow
the policy, and most impor-
tantly the law,” she told the
Eagle. “I believe the board
should diligently review
whether this is happening
within each school in their
district. It is my opinion that
on at least one occasion, if
not more, Grant Union High
School is not following the
law regarding student disci-
pline.”
911 user comments
Student impacts
PALMER
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disclosed, but The Oregonian
was awarded $28,337 in attor-
ney fees.
Palmer and DeFord also in-
curred $41,355.62 in fees while
represented by a private law
firm, Hostetter Law Group, ac-
cording to the new complaint,
which claims the county must
cover all of the fees.
Palmer and DeFord’s attor-
ney, Benjamin Boyd of Hostet-
The Frontier option
Frontier Regional 911 serves Gilliam, Jef-
ferson, Sherman and Wheeler counties and the
Burns Paiute Tribe. It is the only multi-county
public safety answering point in Oregon. Wheel-
er County Sheriff Chris Humphreys, who is
chairman of Frontier’s board of directors, spoke
to the 911 User Board.
Frontier offered to provide 911 dispatch ser-
vice to Grant County under a six-year contract
for $300,000 per year, which would come to
$30,000 after the average $270,000 from 911
phone tax was accounted for.
Grant County would connect through the
Frontier TeleNet system with a fiber optic backup
for redundancy. Frontier offered to cover half the
initial $126,500 connection cost and was willing
to finance the rest on six-year terms with no in-
terest.
Humphreys said Frontier currently has 11 dis-
patchers and would need three more if it served
Grant County. Priority would be given to hire
John Day dispatchers, he said.
Humphreys said Frontier’s dispatchers are
familiar with pager problems and radio dead
spots and sometimes need to go through name
lists and phone trees just like they do in John
Day. He added that Frontier’s dispatchers learn
local geography and names quickly, and he’s
never seen service degradation due to regional
dispatch.
Sharing the costs
Whether 911 dispatch stays local or is out-
sourced, a cost-sharing system will be needed,
Green said. An independent agency or a new
county department will need to oversee it — John
Day will no longer be financially responsible, he
said.
The 911 Task Force found sharing costs on a
ter Law Group, declined to
comment for this story. Coun-
ty Judge Scott Myers said he
would not discuss pending lit-
igation.
The suit claims the county
has a duty to defend Palmer
and DeFord because The Ore-
gonian’s lawsuit was based on
“alleged acts or omissions” in
the performance of their duties.
Palmer and DeFord requested
that the county provide legal
counsel for their defense, but
the county did not respond in a
timely manner, so they retained
The Eagle/Richard Hanners
Wheeler County Sheriff Chris Humphreys
speaks on behalf of Frontier Regional 911
to Grant County’s 911 User Board at the
Oregon Department of Forestry building
in John Day March 20.
Grant County Sheriff Glenn Palmer brought
up the idea of creating a special district under
state law, similar to what’s used for hospital,
fire and cemetery districts. He noted that it
could take several years to set up a special dis-
trict that could establish a board of directors
elected by voters countywide and could estab-
lish a tax to fund the 911 system if approved
by voters.
Green noted that the 911 Task Force had not
looked into raising taxes to fund 911 service.
In explaining their positions on local or
outsourced dispatch service, many of the rep-
resentatives cited the need for dispatchers with
local knowledge, and several supported the
idea of creating a special district to oversee
dispatch.
Several wanted to somehow buy time until
a special district could be set up or until the
legislature increased the 911 tax on telephone
bills when the law sunsets on Dec. 31, 2021.
Grant County Judge Scott Myers, however,
noted that it might not be wise to count on the
state changing the 911 tax for the better — or
making enough of an increase to help the fi-
nancial situation.
Economic conditions will get worse, Palm-
er warned the board. The sheriff’s office is run-
ning on a shoestring budget, he noted. Voters
turned down the 911 ballot measure last fall
and might not support creating a district, he
added. With that said, he favored outsourcing
911 dispatch to Frontier.
Seneca fire representative Josh Walker said
he couldn’t approve of the Frontier option if
Grant County would not have a voting position
on the Frontier board.
Green said a smooth transition process will
take place, with no abrupt change. But John Day
911 dispatchers are concerned, and a severance
package has been suggested as a way to keep
dispatchers on the job through June 2019.
private counsel, according to
the suit. Except in cases of mal-
feasance in office or willful or
wanton neglect of duty, Ore-
gon law requires public bodies,
such as the county court, to de-
fend its officers for acts occur-
ring in the performance of their
duties.
The Grant County Court
declined to pay for the attor-
ney fees in a unanimous deci-
sion in December 2016 after
investigation determined the
action was not covered by the
Oregon Tort Claims Act.
Keith Thomas, MD, FACS
Board-Certified by the
American Board of Surgery
Myers previously told the
Eagle Palmer’s actions regard-
ing the records were personal,
not in his official duties as sher-
iff.
He said District Attorney
Jim Carpenter ordered Palmer
and DeFord to produce the re-
cords when they were request-
ed by The Oregonian, but the
records were not released until
the lawsuit was filed.
Myers said the county’s
insurance company has also
indicated it will not cover the
sheriff in this matter.
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when students miss school
because of suspension and
expulsion, they are not only
missing those class days, but
are more at risk of being sus-
pended again, falling behind
in school, dropping out and
being drawn into the juvenile
justice system,” Blood said.
To improve outcomes for chil-
dren in Grant County, “Grant
Union administrators and staff
will need to abandon the dra-
conian measures taken against
students for typical adolescent
behavior,” she said.
Numerous parents and stu-
dents spoke of similar experi-
ences and frustrations, Blood
said, and some said they were
unwilling to confront school
administrators “out of fear
of retaliation by the school.”
Both Blood and Weigum de-
scribed to the Eagle instances
of personal retaliation they
claim resulted from their ef-
forts to address this issue.
Troubling
numbers
Offering the student on-
line courses and a few hours
Weigum provided the
of tutoring per week was
not a satisfactory solution board with a litany of statistics
for Tracey Blood and Lisa to back up Blood. According
Weigum, who also addressed to a 2016 student wellness
survey, 46 percent of 11th
the school board.
Blood, a 1999 Grant graders at Grant Union report-
Union graduate, is the ex- ed they could talk openly to
ecutive director of
teachers, compared to
Prevent Child Abuse
61 percent statewide,
Oregon, a nonprof-
and 64 percent of the
it
organization.
students reported feel-
ing like teachers treat-
Weigum, a 2003
ed them with respect,
Grant Union grad-
uate, is a substance
compared to 76 per-
cent statewide.
abuse prevention co-
Tracey
ordinator with Com-
About 78 percent
Blood
munity Counseling
of the students report-
ed hearing other stu-
Solutions.
They
dents being bullied,
spoke to the board as
compared to 66 per-
concerned citizens.
cent statewide, and 85
“There is a need
percent reported hear-
for intervention, not
ing another student
discipline,” Weigum
spread mean rumors
told the Eagle.
Lisa
or leave other students
In a three-page
Weigum
out of activities, com-
letter to the school
pared to 64 percent
board, Blood said
Grant Union’s practice of statewide. About 21 percent
disciplinary response not reported bullying another stu-
only fails to comply with dent physically or verbally,
state law, it “has been proven compared to 12 percent state-
to be detrimental to the de- wide.
velopment of children.”
About 21 percent of the
Over five months of students were found to be in
working with school admin- psychological distress, com-
istrators and staff to imple- pared to 14 percent statewide,
ment a “trauma-informed” and 28 percent reported seri-
approach, Blood said she ously considering attempting
saw an “inability or unwill- suicide, compared to 18 per-
ingness” by Grant Union cent statewide.
administrators to “ensure
In his response to the pre-
the needs of each student is sentation, School Board Vice
met.” As a result, at least 12 Chairman Zach Williams
students have left and en- noted that the numbers were
rolled in online programs or “very troubling” and he didn’t
at Prairie City High School, want to see students leaving
school.
she said.
Williams said he grew up
“At least seven of those
have withdrawn in the last in Grant County and attend-
two months alone,” she ed Grant Union High School.
said. “Numerous others The culture in area schools
have voiced their desire to has changed, he said, and
withdraw from this school demographic changes, with
or intend to move to anoth- families moving in and out
er school at the beginning of the county, might explain
of the next school year, citing why.
Williams also noted that
lack of academic and social
supports and services as their the school board acts in a judi-
reason for changing schools.” cial role when it reviews sus-
Blood said that instead of pension and expulsion cases,
helping children learn from and with the strict rules that
their mistakes and striving to the board operates under, the
provide students with protec- board cannot look at the de-
tive factors that would help tails of a case until it comes
them develop healthy habits, before them. On the other
Grant Union’s exclusionary hand, Williams noted that the
approach to discipline “de- district could review suspen-
prives students of the essential sion and expulsion policies.
support services they need.”
The board reached con-
Instead of providing sensus to direct Superinten-
guidance or instruction, the dent Curt Shelley to review
school’s punitive reaction the district’s policies and
breeds distrust toward adults present a report on recent
and nurtures an adversarial, disciplinary actions at their
confrontational attitude, she next meeting. The board
will meet next in Seneca on
said.
“It’s been proven that April 18.
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