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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (May 30, 2018)
A12 News Blue Mountain Eagle CELEBRATE Continued from Page A1 About half are written in English and involve bookkeeping, Merritt told the Eagle, and about half are in Chinese and in- clude medical formu- las, patient records and business transactions. “We are in our 11th year of scanning these documents into the Savannah computer,” Merritt said. “We have about one Wyllie year’s left to finish.” The Kam Wah Chung site has been recognized in many ways. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973, and the store opened as a city- run museum in 1975. The site was named a National His- toric Landmark in 2005, by which time the city understood that it lacked the funds to run the museum properly and sold the site to the state. A 2010 documentary about the Kam Wah Chung site was produced for the Oregon Public Broadcasting television series “Oregon Experience.” A crew from the Discovery Channel will be in John Day in July to begin filming another documentary, Merritt said. Last September, 12 students and two professors from Washington State University visited the Kam Wah Chung site, the first field trip for WSU’s new Asian Culture studies program. Forest Service archaeologist Don Hann led the class on a visit to a Chinese archae- ological site during their trip. POT Continued from Page A1 urban growth boundary since June 1, 2017. All cities in Grant County ban the sale of medical or recreational marijuana in- side their city limits, including John Day. Both attempts to overturn the Grant County ban were led by Haley Olson, whose family owns Rocky Mountain Dispen- sary. The language of the mea- sure filed by Olson Jan. 18 calls for allowing producers, proces- sors, dispensaries, wholesalers, labs and research businesses licensed by the Oregon Li- quor Control Commission and the Oregon Health Authority to operate businesses in Grant County. OLCC spokesman Mark Pettinger said the licensing process would take four to six months. Olson’s mother, Cindy Kidd, said Rocky Mountain Dispensary plans to expand their business to include rec- reational marijuana sales in the same building where med- ical marijuana is sold. Medical marijuana customers must be 18 or older and provide a card showing they are registered with the state, while recreation- al marijuana customers must be 21 or older. Kidd said the company plans to offer a wider variety of products and to continue to Contributed photo A dragon from the Portland Lee’s Association Dragon & Lion Dance Team team balances atop sawhorses during an exhibition at the Kam Wah Chung Heritage Site in John Day in 2008. Tourism improvements The popularity of the Kam Wah Chung site has grown in recent years. Merritt, who succeeded Sweet as cu- rator in 2016, reported that 9,314 vis- itors and 1,154 tours representing all 50 states and 42 countries came to the heritage site in 2017. Taking into ac- count the impact of the eclipse event last year, visitation increased by about 1,000 people, he said. “We expect between 9,000 and 10,000 visitors this year,” he said. Former Grant County Chamber of Commerce President Jerry Franklin led a two-year effort to erect a new sign on Main Street in John Day directing visitors down Northwest Canton Street to the heritage site. The 26-foot-tall Wednesday, May 30, 2018 sign, which required a conditional-use permit from the city, will feature an 8-foot tiger and an 8-foot dragon on each side. The colorful orange and black ti- gers and green and red dragons were hand-painted by Grant Union High School art student Savannah Wyl- lie as her senior project. The steel plates were cut into shape by the high school’s metal class using a computer numerical control plasma cutter. The chamber recently presented a proposal to the John Day City Coun- cil to establish a sister city relationship between John Day and Sijiuzhen, a city in the Guangdong Province in China, or Canton, the provincial capital. Ha-Pen, a village in Sijiuzhen, is where Ing “Doc” Hay and Lung On, owners of the Kam Wah Chung busi- ness, lived before coming to the Unit- ed States. Sister city relationships not only foster tourism and cultural and educational exchanges but also estab- lish contacts that could lead to trade and investment, Taci Philbrook said on behalf of the chamber of commerce. Merritt said three-directional sound speakers recently were installed in the interpretive center that allow for a quieter viewing and visitor experi- ence. Funding for the speakers came from the Oregon Department of Parks and Recreation, Friends of Kam Wah Chung & Co. and the chamber using a John Day room tax grant. Tickets for the June 9 celebration dinner at the John Day Senior Center have already sold out. For more information about the Kam Wah Chung Heritage Site, vis- it https://oregonstateparks.org and friendsofkamwahchung.com. grow marijuana at their other location. She said “quite a few” marijuana growers are already in the county, but with passage of the measure overturning the ban, she knew only of locals interested in growing, includ- ing hemp, but not opening dis- pensaries. Regulatory hurdles Medical and recreation- al marijuana businesses must comply with a long list of regulations, which range from background checks and strict business practices to special security measures and prod- uct safety rules. Growers must prove they have a legal source of water. With certain exceptions, a marijuana dispensary cannot be located within 1,000 feet of a school or in an area zoned exclusively for residential use. Applicants for a state marijua- na business license must pro- duce a land-use compatibility form signed by the local juris- diction. While growers can set up business in Grant County’s vast agriculturally zoned land, dispensaries are mostly limited to the urban growth boundary areas adjacent to some of Grant County’s cities. Grant County Planning Director Hilary McNary said a small urban growth bound- SEWER Continued from Page A1 cities will want to copy John Day’s innovative greenhouse approach to wastewater treatment. Councilor Paul Smith concurred, noting that the leg- islature and the governor should rec- ognize that this was the wave of the future and give the city its support. One option for filling the finan- cial gap is to turn to the private sector, Green told the council. Or- dinarily the private sector won’t fi- nance a municipal wastewater treat- ment plant, but John Day’s would EO Media Group/E.J. Harris Marijuana businesses will soon be legal in Grant County after voters overturned the ban in the recent election. ary exists next to Seneca, and Prairie City’s urban growth boundary is the only one in the county that a city government administrates. The John Day urban growth boundary is administrated by the county under an intergov- ernmental agreement. The city can review and comment on development requests, but the final decision is made by the county. The goal of the urban growth boundaries is to pro- mote orderly development with the expectation that a city may one day annex the area into the city. But with a ban on marijua- na businesses inside the John Day city limits, annexation of a property with a marijuana busi- ness could create a conflict. be unique — it would produce Class A reclaimed water, something that might attract private investors. Green also noted that the Trump ad- ministration had said it would sup- port infrastructure projects, but de- tails were still lacking. Green updated the council on oth- er city projects: • The greenhouse project that will use city water to produce vegetables for human consumption was set back about 30 days after the city received no compliant bids for its requests for proposals, Green said. The first har- vest is expected to take place later this year. The greenhouse designers were This situation arose in October 2016 when Rocky Mountain Dispensary applied for a land-use review for their medical marijuana dispensary. In his comment, John Day City Manager Nick Green stated, “The city will not support the extension of city services or the annexation of the property into the city of John Day for so long as the prohibition remains in effect and/or the use and ac- tivities continue to occur on the subject property.” When asked by the Eagle about Rocky Mountain Dis- pensary’s future plans, Green said, “The city does not intend to take a position on recreation- al dispensaries in the urban growth boundary.” McNary noted that a county unable to find a local builder, so the city may have to take over the gen- eral contractor role and subcontract portions of the construction project, Green said. • Green said he was able to submit a lengthy and complex application for up to $3 million in funds to improve local internet service through a U.S. Department of Agriculture Commu- nity Connect grant, but insufficient bandwidth locally made things diffi- cult. He called the situation ironic. The grant will be used to pay for extending internet service south from Canyon City to Seneca. Green said the city will learn if it’s on the short list in a few months, at which point The following tax foreclosed properties failed to sell at the Tax Foreclosure Auction on May 17 th , 2018: Acct.# 2470 39185 3639 3721 6744 6773 6780 6232 4949 1773 1211/1862 2842 2275 Map & Tax Lot 08S35V-900 09S26-3608 09S35V4AD-500 09S35V4DA-5200 10S3010BC-1700 10S3010CB-1900 10S3010CB-2600 13S2813-302 13S2919D-100 13S3121C-2600 13S3126BB-1505 13S3302CA-700 16S3135CD-300 Minimum Bid $ 23,215 $ 72,880 $ 9,920 $ 12,575 $ 19,545 $ 5,935 $ 27,425 $ 20,300 $ 20,395 $ 1,300 $ 7,700 $ 15,130 $ 5,100 Property Description 19.87 Acres North of Granite 12.80 Acres in Kimberly Bare Lot in Granite 1.72 Acres in Granite House in Long Creek House Not Habitable Long Creek House in Long Creek 9.62 Acres N. of John Day River 17.56 Acres S. of Hwy. 26 Steep Hillside S. of Hwy. 26 Steep Hillside above Hospital House Not Habitable Prairie City Bare Lot in Seneca No minimum bid offers were received for the above listed properties. The Grant County Court will now accept reasonable written offers for each of the above listed properties. The written offers must include the dollar amount of the offer and the name, address and telephone number of the person making the offer. Present the written offers in a sealed envelope to the Grant County Court either in person or by mail to: 201 S. Humbolt Street, Suite 280, Canyon City, OR 97820. All written offers must be received by 4 pm on Monday, June 11, 2018. The Grant County Court will review offers received and make a decision regarding each offer on June 13, 2018. Contact the Court Office with questions at 541-575-0059. Grant County retains the right to refuse any and all offers, and to accept the offer that is in the best interest of Grant County. Continued from Page A1 who spoke both Chinese and English, ran the general store and facilitated communica- tion between Chinese and American settlers. Over time, the building served as a community center, offering a place for gambling, drinking and smoking. Some miners boarded there as well. At its heyday in 1887, the Chinese community in John Day included three stores, a temple and a laundry. The Kam Wah Chung building is all that remains of those struc- tures. “Doc” Hay and Lung On held onto their business through a period of violent anti-Chinese agitation in Or- egon in the mid-1880s. By 1910, American settlers be- gan to visit Hay for their ail- ments. As his reputation grew, Hay began serving clients as far away as Massachusetts, sending diagnoses and herbal remedies by mail. Meanwhile, On put his business acumen to work and opened the first auto dealership in Oregon east of the Cascades. Lung On suddenly sick- ened and died in 1940. His estate was valued at $90,000 at the time. Kam Wah Chung & Co. continued running for eight more years, at which time “Doc” Hay fell and court decision is not required for Rocky Mountain Dispen- sary to start selling recreation- al marijuana at its current site, and the matter may not go to the county planning commis- sion. She also said, if the business goes into an existing building, there is no requirement to notify nearby property owners. That was the case with the medical marijuana business, she said. But other questions remain about how state marijuana laws mesh with local laws, McNary noted, and the county may need to update its zoning regulations in the future. Tax benefits According to state law, a 17 percent base tax on recreational marijuana sales is collected by the state on the retail sales of leaves, flowers and immature plants; edibles, concentrates and extracts; products used on the skin or hair; and other can- nabinoid products. The revenue is distributed by the state, with 40 percent going to the Common School Fund, 20 percent to the men- tal health, alcoholism and drug services, 15 percent to the Or- egon State Police, 10 percent each to cities and counties that allow recreational marijuana businesses for enforcement of the state’s marijuana laws and 5 percent to the Oregon Health Authority for alcohol and drug federal personnel will come to Grant County to conduct speed tests and re- view local conditions. • The consultants who will be in- volved in planning the Innovation Gateway project using a state Trans- portation Growth Management grant have been selected. They include DKS Associates, transportation plan- ners in Salem; Walker Macy, a land- scape architect firm in Portland; JLA Public Involvement, a communica- tions firm in Portland; Inter-Fluve, a river restoration firm in Hood River; Angelo Planning Group, a commu- nity planning firm in Portland; KPFF Consulting Engineers of Portland; and John Southgate Consulting, a TAX FORECLOSED PROPERTIES FOR SALE Auction# 1 2 3 4 6 7 8 11 12 17 18 22 30 HISTORY Eagle file photo Yu-Ling Ho and Eric Brand examine a rattlesnake in a jar that is part of the Kam Wah Chung collection. broke his hip. He traveled to Portland for treatment and died there in 1952. Hay was brought back to John Day and was buried alongside Lung On at Rest Lawn Cemetery. Three years later, Bob Wah deeded the Kam Wah Chung building and its contents to the city of John Day for use as a cultur- al museum. The building was boarded up. Then in 1967, while surveying for a new park, John Day city staff discov- ered the ownership deed. When volunteers opened the building, they found it just as it was in 1955, with food in the kitchen, a stock of dry goods and medicinal herbs and Hay’s tools on the apothecary table. abuse prevention programs. Cities and counties can tack on another tax up to 3 percent by referring the ordinance to local voters at the next state- wide election. The local gov- ernments can use the revenue as they see fit. Grant County Judge Scott Myers told the Eagle he intends to seek a 3-percent tax on sales of recreational marijuana. He said he would like to see the tax revenue used to offset any legal costs resulting from over- turning the ban. While Oregon law allows marijuana businesses, it re- mains illegal under federal law. In a memo released May 18, U.S. Attorney for Oregon Billy Williams said his top priorities in enforcing marijuana laws will be threats to public safety and interstate trafficking. Among his concerns were overproduction of marijuana in Oregon and its diversion across state lines; minors’ ac- cess to marijuana; marijuana violations that involved fire- arms, violence or threats to public safety; the involvement of organized crime; and pro- tecting public lands and nat- ural resources from growers’ consumption of water or use of pesticides. Williams also said he would “not make broad proclamations of blanket immunity from pros- ecution to those who violate federal law.” municipal financing firm in Portland. The city is preparing an applica- tion for a grant through the Oregon Department of Parks and Recreation for improvements to numerous exist- ing trails along the John Day River that will connect to the Innovation Gateway site. John Day Senior Proj- ect Manager Aaron Lieuallen said the entire trails project could cost about $240,000. • The John Day City Council will hold a hearing on the city’s urban re- newal plan at their June 12 meeting. The city hopes providing a 7 percent rebate and waiving system connec- tion fees will encourage construction of 100 homes over 20 years. HAMMONDS Continued from Page A1 ulated under the Superfund statute for hazardous waste, so too rangeland fires weren’t intended to be punished as arson, he said. Zinke agreed with this sentment, giving the sign of the cross while vowing to give his blessing for their release to President Donald Trump, according to Rosa. Local employees of the U.S. Bureau of Land Manage- ment, which is overseen by the Interior Department, seem to have developed “hard feel- ings” in the matter and sup- ported the Hammonds’ return to prison, he said. The Oregon Cattlemen’s Association and Oregon Farm Bureau are planning to submit a court brief in a civil lawsuit urging that the Hammonds’ grazing privileges be restored, Rosa said. Duquette said he believes the Hammonds’ dispute with federal officials in the region originated because the govern- ment wanted to buy their prop- erty for inclusion in the Mal- heur National Wildlife Refuge. However, he said, it’s un- fortunate that in the public’s mind, the occupation of the refuge has become entwined with the Hammonds, who did not support the takeover. Pardoning the ranchers would be a show of goodwill by the new presidential ad- ministration, Duquette said. “It shows they’re getting things done and trying to right the wrongs that were done be- fore.”
