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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (April 11, 2018)
A18 News Blue Mountain Eagle HAMSHER Continued from Page A1 cost estimates and a market analysis conducted ahead of time. He is particularly concerned that the county, John Day and Seneca each have one vote on the coalition board, but the county is responsible for 60 percent of the network’s oper- ating costs. “It needed more discus- sion,” he said. Hamsher said the problem with outsourcing emergency dispatch to Frontier Regional 911 is that Grant County would not have a vote on the board. He was willing to look at keep- ing 911 dispatch local under a special district to avoid high payments to the state retirement system. He also was “optimis- tic” the 911 dispatch problem will be solved and that the 911 phone tax will be increased to support local dispatch. Hamsher said he supports creation of a natural resource adviser position to research is- sues, communicate with state and federal agencies and ad- vise the county court. He said it wouldn’t be hard to bring $50,000 in benefits to the coun- ty to offset the cost of the posi- tion, which he noted would be hourly, not salaried. “The court could use the adviser as much as it wanted or needed,” he said. “There are lots of complex issues coming down the pike — water, fish, timber and grazing.” Hamsher said he offers years of experience in govern- ment as a lifelong resident and “a good dose of common sense not seen elsewhere in govern- ment.” He also wants to mend the divide in Grant County. “Regardless of where you are on the political spectrum, we can all agree that we love this county,” Hamsher said. “If we can set aside our differenc- es, we can solve our problems — I saw that immediately after the Canyon Creek Complex fire.” Wednesday, April 11, 2018 MYERS Continued from Page A1 — including outsourc- ing the service to Frontier Regional 911 in Condon. Myers said he would sup- port the decision of the 911 User Board. “If it’s not Frontier, then I’d like to see the hybrid cost-sharing formula used to pay for a local dispatch,” he said. “It would be nice to retain payroll in Grant County.” Myers has concerns about establishing a new natural resource adviser position for the county — including its role and fund- ing. “We have a lot of eyes looking at natural resourc- es for us already,” he said, citing the Eastern Oregon Counties Association and the Association of Oregon Counties. He said the new posi- tion was not sustainable for more than a year, and if the county turned to fed- eral Secure Rural Schools or payment-in-lieu of taxes funding, that might not be available two years from now. Myers has a straightfor- ward vision for the area’s economy. “We need to sustain jobs that we have while attempt- ing to attract new ones,” he said. “Tourism does not bring family-wage jobs — industry does.” Bringing broadband ac- cess to the county could help by encouraging home businesses that the area doesn’t have now, he not- ed. In addition to common sense and patience, Myers said he’s bringing legacy knowledge to the job. “I have experience — there’s no substitute for institutional experience,” he said. “I’ve been here a long time.” POND Continued from Page A1 By 2009, the Oregon Wa- tershed Enhancement Board had invested more than $6 million in fisheries projects over 10 years in Grant Coun- ty. Much of that money had been spent on the Middle Fork of the John Day River, which flows past Bates. The concern was protec- tion for two native fish — spring chinook salmon and summer steelhead. The latter are listed under the Endan- gered Species Act. The Mo- lalla-based Native Fish So- ciety sought funding in 2009 to conduct a comprehensive and independent review of the benefits of removing the Bates dam as opposed to OPRD’s approach of saving the dam and mitigating damage to fish and the watershed. Collaborative meetings By June 2011, construc- tion of the park was under- way, which included planting 4,000 trees and shrubs and restoring a riparian area with a meandering stream where Bridge Creek enters the Mid- dle Fork. The park opened three months later and was soon seeing 20,000 day visi- tors a year. But the issue of the dam and pond was not settled. The the HOT The Eagle/Sean Hart Grant County Judge Scott Myers describes a plan to retain Bates Pond while improving fish passage. Myers said creating a di- version around the pond, deepening the pond and im- proving the fish ladder were on the table. “I don’t see a win-win if we have to compromise and allow the pond to be perma- nently drained,” he said at the time. “I think we will fight that option.” Breaking the deadlock Contributed photo The community of Bates, the Oregon Lumber Co. mill and the mill pond are shown in this historic aerial photo taken before the buildings were removed. Located at the terminus of the Sumpter Valley Railroad, the mill operated from 1917 to 1975. The Edward Hines Lumber Co. operated the mill from 1960 to 1975. dam was constructed in the late 1940s, and a fish ladder was built with public money in 2001 — a quarter century after the mill shut down for good. Water flowing from Bridge Creek warmed up several de- grees while stored behind the dam before discharging into the Middle Fork, a violation corner’s SH T of state water quality stan- dards. In addition, the fish ladder did not meet current fish-passage standards. A collaborative meeting led by a hired facilitator met for the first time in July 2016 to review options for the site. Lined up in support of fish and water quality were the Native Fish Society, the North Fork John Day Watershed Coun- cil, the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Res- ervation, the Warm Springs Tribe, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, the National Oceanic and Atmo- spheric Administration and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Grant County Judge Scott Myers said in advance of the meeting that he didn’t believe removing the dam was in the county’s best interest. “It has recreational po- tential for kayakers, boaters, swimmers, fishermen,” he said at the time. “It has a very strong sense of place for past generations and future gener- ations of families from Bates and Austin.” EEK OF THE W SYDNEY BROCKWAY The group met in Septem- ber 2016 for what was expect- ed to be the third and final meeting, but the group failed to reach a consensus. Myers said all but one member had agreed to not challenge one of the six proposed options. A fourth meeting was held in March. During the intervening year and a half, a stronger consensus developed and sideboards were estab- lished for the meeting. “For purposes of discuss- ing the options and devel- oping a path forward, doing nothing was not an option,” Nebeker told the Eagle. “Nei- ther was dam removal.” In the end, consensus was reached to allow OPRD to move forward in developing Option A into a more detailed design. Option A calls for constructing a bypass channel on the west side of the pond so most of the streamflow from Bridge Creek can flow to the Middle Fork without warming up. Option A also calls for shrinking the pond’s footprint while deepening the pond by dredging as much as six feet of silt — and any remain- ing logs called “sinkers” that might be buried in the silt. The dredged material would be used to erect a berm to form the bypass channel. In addition, Option A calls for improving fish passage around the dam by either fix- ing the existing fish ladder or replacing it with one that could include natural features in its design. “Some fish passage is oc- curring now,” Nebeker said. OPRD has lined up $200,000 of its own funding to work on planning, prelim- inary design and permitting for the project. A dam integ- rity study will be conducted in the next year, which “could potentially affect Option A depending on study results,” Nebeker said. OPRD will hold a public informational meeting on the plans this summer and then present the complete design to the public in spring 2019. The construction contract would be awarded in summer or fall 2019, with construction starting in spring or summer 2020. Nebeker said this time- line was optimistic, and he expected everything could be pushed back a year. School: Grant Union Grade: 11 Parent: Jodi & Kyle Myers Sport: Track and Field Position: 100-meter hurdles, long jump, triple jump, 4x100 relay What I like best about my sport: “I like the individual competition — you’re working against yourself to improve for the season.” Coach’s Comment: “Sydney is a hard worker and does everything she is asked. In her first two meets, she has shown she is picking up right where she left off last year. I expect her to be a major contributor to our team all season long.” -Coach Sonna Smith DOORS OPEN: 6:00. OPENING ACT: 7:30. HEADLINER: 9:00-10:30 Madden Brothers Performing Arts Center 116 NW Bridge St, John Day, Oregon 97845 51053 PROUD SPONSOR OF GRANT COUNTY ATHLETES Tickets Available maddenbrothers.tix.com 100 E. MAIN • Stoplight in John Day 51219 541-792-0425 TREAT YOUR FEET Sam Riggs & Epiphone Guitar Lesson & Giveaway TELL US YOUR STORY FOR A CHANCE TO WIN! 51054 Our Services by a registered nurse include: • Pedi-Spa treatment for your feet • Particular attention to Diabetic Foot • Multifunctional massage chair • Skin Inspection • Callus Removal • Nail Cutting We also check your blood pressure, blood sugar level and oxygen saturation. Call 541- 575-1648 for an appointment $35 00 fee Blue Mountain Hospital 541-523-6377 541-963-6577 541-573-6377 FOOT CLINIC 541-576-2160 49482 www.bluemountainhospital.org Services available at the Home Health Office, 422 W. Main, John Day.
