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About The Blue Mountain eagle. (John Day, Or.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 28, 2018)
News Blue Mountain Eagle Wednesday, November 28, 2018 A7 City greenhouse project could grow by two bays Hops for microbreweries could be grown By Richard Hanners Blue Mountain Eagle The city of John Day took anoth- er step closer to entering the agri- cultural industry at the Nov. 13 city council meeting. City Manager Nick Green was di- rected to begin the process to apply for a $180,000 loan from Business Oregon to construct an additional two greenhouse bays at the former Oregon Pine mill site. EuroMex, the company that will supply the first three bays at the fu- ture Innovation Gateway project, recently offered to sell the city two more 2,000-square-foot bays at $45 per square foot — instead of the $61 charged for the first three bays, a savings of $58,000. “We are not under any obligation to proceed with the additional bays, but if we anticipate expanding in the future, this is probably our best op- portunity to do so,” Green said. The city’s goal has been to use the first three bays to produce enough garden vegetables to meet local de- mand. Green said the produce will go to local grocery stores, schools Contributed photo John Day agriculture projects leader Matt Manitsas views young tomato plants at the Agriciola Nueva Generacion greenhouse farm in Mexico. The city of John Day may expand its planned greenhouse from three bays to five. and restaurants, and demand might exceed estimated harvest levels. How the additional two bays are used will evolve from talks with Or- egon State University faculty and agricultural companies. The focus currently has been on hops for craft breweries, Green said. “Distributors are working on esti- mates for market pricing and market volatility for off-season hops as well as specific varieties that may be of interest to IPA brewers,” Green told the council. The city can cover the Business Oregon loan with a monthly revenue of $1,000, Green said. He advised the council that construction costs appear to be increasing, but he want- ed a commitment from both OSU and the hops distributors. “If the hops were not successful, we would likely be able to reach this target by expanding our fresh pro- duce selection,” Green said. “OSU faculty are also looking into the op- tion of using a portion of this space for commercial research opportuni- ties.” Agriculture project leader Matt Manitsas said he had located online greenhouses growing hops in Colo- rado and Pennsylvania. Mayor Ron Lundbom said the microbrewing in- dustry was “hot” and the city should get into it. Green was directed to bring the proposal back to the council Dec. 4. If approved, construction could be- gin Dec. 12. The first three bays will arrive in November. In other city council news: • The council approved a lease agreement pending attorney review for use of the John Day Fire Hall by the new 911 dispatch agency. While fire hall improvements are River linking the south and north portions of the former Oregon Pine mill site indicated the bridge was structurally sound. Green said DR Johnson Lumber has offered to donate cross-lami- nated timber panels to replace the bridge decking if the city pays for the engineering and design. The bridge would become a key element in the future Innovation Gateway project. • A public hearing on the city’s request for $366,500 in federal Community Development Block Grant funding for a new wastewater treatment plant will take place at the Grant County Regional Airport con- ference room on Dec. 4. This will be a joint meeting with the city’s ad- visory committees and the Canyon City Council, Green said. Anderson Perry, the engineering consultant for the city, has estimated the cost of engineering the new plant at $320,000. Another $50,000 will be needed to pay for an environmen- tal review, Green said. The engineering work will begin in January. A technical memoran- dum also will be prepared for the Oregon Department of Environ- mental Quality. The city plans to construct a facility that uses plants to treat wastewater and produces Class A reclaimed water, rather than a traditional mechanical treatment plant or lagoons. nearly completed, the new con- soles will not arrive until mid-Jan- uary, delaying the transition, Green said. The city provided formal notifica- tion to the Grant County Peace Of- ficers Association, representing dis- patchers, that their transition to the Grant County Emergency Commu- nications Agency will be effective Jan. 1. Rural fire district boards are still in the process of adopting the intergovernmental agreements estab- lishing a new 911 dispatch organiza- tion for the county, Green said. • The council approved annex- ation of city-owned land in the Da- vis Creek area and the adjacent Mid County Cemetery District, totaling about 6.1 acres, along with the city- owned former Oregon Pine mill site and portions of two adjoining prop- erties, totaling about 51 acres. Re- zoning accompanied the annexation ordinances. • The city has moved up plans to install fencing and security cameras at the new city shop at the former Oregon Pine mill site. The building was broken into in mid-October, be- fore city equipment was moved to the site. Police Chief Mike Durr said it appeared the break-in was a case of vandalism, not theft. • Public works director Monte Legg said an engineering analysis of the small bridge over the John Day B RIEFLY B & M Timber nominated as operator of the year B & M Timber from Burns, operated by Brad Clemens, has been nominated for the Eastern Oregon Regional Operator of the Year Award. Each year, the Oregon Department of Forestry selects an outstanding logger from each of the three regions for this award. B & M Timber’s work has consistently exceeded the Forest Practices Act and Forest Practice rules, according to a press re- lease, and their work has demonstrated the ability to handle dif- ficult circumstances, innovation and extra effort to consistently produce outstanding results. On Oct. 16, a committee consisting of ODF employees toured a logging site that B & M Timber had recently completed on private property within the McClellan Creek drainage with landowners Roger and Meridith Ediger of the Box T Ranch. This logging job was particularly challenging because of the fish bearing stream, McClellan Creek, bordering the west side of the job. B & M Timber used some unique logging techniques to re- move the timber while working within the Forest Practices Act to protect the riparian area. The committee visited logging sites in Baker and Klamath counties that were also nominated for this award. The 2018 Eastern Oregon Operator of the year award will be announced in December. B & M Timber’s nomination was submitted by Kirk Aus- land, the ODF stewardship forester in John Day. Paleontology center hours change Winter operations at John Day Fossil Beds National Monu- ment begin Nov. 1. The Thomas Condon Paleontology Center, in the Sheep Rock Unit, will be open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays. The visitor center will be closed on Sundays and Mondays as well as all federal holidays. All recreation op- portunities in the park will remain open from sunrise to sun- set, including all overlooks and hiking trails at the park’s three units: Sheep Rock, Painted Hills and Clarno. Beginning March 1, the visitor center will be open daily, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Forest internships available for vets Two 45-week internships for veterans are available in 2019 on the Malheur National Forest through VetsWork. VetsWork, a program of the Mt. Adams Institute, trains mil- itary veterans for potential careers in public lands and natural resources management. The program entails a 45-week hands-on internship in which participants learn new skills while supporting recreation, facili- ties, roads, community engagement and volunteer coordination projects on the forest. Since the inception of the program, over 95 veterans have been hired into positions with public lands agencies as a result of the program. This is the second year the forest has partnered for the pro- gram. The program begins Feb. 4. Interested applicants should contact Mt. Adams Institute’s recruitment coordinator, katie@ mtadamsinstitute.org, or review the position descriptions at mtadamsinstitute.org/internships. Participants receive a modest living stipend, basic health in- mittee for the Pacific Northwest Region. The Recreation RAC will provide recommendations on recreation fees for Forest Service lands in Oregon and Washington, according to a press release. All applicants must be United States citizens and at least 18 years old. People selected for positions will initially serve two or three-year terms and can apply to serve a subsequent three-year term. Recreation RAC members serve without pay but are reimbursed for travel and per diem expenses for regu- larly scheduled committee meetings, which occur at least once annually. People interested should send contact information by Nov. 30 via email to R6_Recreation_RAC@fs.fed.us or write to USDA Forest Service, Attn: Recreation RAC; 1220 SW Third Ave., Suite 1700; Portland, OR 97204. For more information, visit fs.usda.gov/main/r6/recreation/racs. Contributed photo Bud Gienger, left, and Brad Clemens pose for a photo. Clemens’ B & M Timber of Burns has been nominated for the Eastern Oregon Regional Operator of the Year award from the Oregon Department of Forestry. surance, an AmeriCorps education award of $6,095 and other benefits including housing assistance. As a result of the pro- gram’s success, the Department of Labor has designated Vets- Work as an official apprenticeship program, which allows par- ticipants to access additional GI Bill benefits. Kelly named to state forestry board The Oregon Department of Forestry welcomes three new Board Members. Gov. Kate Brown announced her nominations Aug. 30. The Oregon Senate confirmed Joe Justice, Brenda McComb and Jim Kelly to the Oregon Department of Forestry board Sept. 26. Kelly is an entrepreneur with a long history of civic involve- ment. Since 1999, he has owned and managed a ranch that pro- duces grass-fed beef in rural Grant County. He has served on boards of 1000 Friends of Oregon, the Portland Housing Au- thority and Business for Social Responsibility. He is co-founder of the Oregon Business Association and served on that organi- zation’s board for 17 years. Kelly is a lifelong Oregonian who grew up in northeast Portland and founded a successful hard- ware company. He is also co-founder of the North Star Civ- ic Foundation, a small Oregon nonprofit involved with public policy issues. Justice is the Region Manager of Hancock Forest Manage- ment lands in northeast Oregon. McComb retired as vice pro- vost for academic affairs at Oregon State University in 2016 and is professor emerita in the Department of Forest Ecosys- tems and Society at OSU. More information on the Board of Forestry is available at oregon.gov/odf/board. Forest Service seeks recreation advisory committee members The Forest Service is soliciting potential nominees as part of its effort to re-establish a Recreation Resource Advisory Com- ! ODFW electronic licensing system set The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife is encouraging hunters to take note of their Hunter/Angler ID to verify their ac- count in a new electronic licensing system set to launch Dec. 1. Once the new system launches, hunters and anglers should use their Hunter/Angler ID to verify their account in the new system, which can be done either online at MyODFW.com or at a license sale agent, according to a press release. The Hunter/ Angler ID number is printed on all ODFW licenses and tags and stays the same from year to year. It will be known as the “ODFW ID” in the new licensing system. Hunters and anglers can also enter a phone number or email associated with their ODFW account to verify it in the new sys- tem. Those who don’t have any of this information can visit a license sale agent or call ODFW Licensing at 503-947-6101 for help. Verifying an account will be an important step for hunters and anglers who have big game preference points or other certi- fications/special status in effect (such as a Pioneer License, Or- egon Hunting and Fishing Disability Permit, Northwest Goose certification, etc.). Customers who have purchased a hunting, fishing, shellfish, combination or Sports Pac license in the last three years (2016-2018) should also verify their account in the new system. All others can choose “I am a new customer or have not pur- chased an annual license in the last 3 years” to open an account either at MyODFW.com or a license sale agent. With the new system, hunters and anglers will be able to carry their documents electronically (on a smartphone or tablet) and tag fish and wildlife with a mobile app that will even work offline. Or, they can continue to use paper documents, but will be able to buy online at MyODFW.com and print licenses and tags directly at home on regular paper. The old licensing system will stop operating at 6 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 30, so the new system can launch sometime on Dec. 1. Not all license sales agents may have their new systems up and running immediately on Dec. 1, so customers who need to purchase 2018 licenses or tags to hunt, fish, crab or clam the first weekend of December are encouraged to purchase needed documents before Nov. 30. For more information, visit https://myodfw.com/articles/ odfws-new-electronic-licensing-system-els. Blue Mountain Hospice’s up a light ! life ! December 13th, 2018 6:00 pm At Valley View Assisted Living Facility Contact Blue Mountain Hospice at 541-575-1648, or mgibson@bluemountainhospital.org 541-523-6377 541-963-6577 541-573-6377 541-576-2160 90632 90080
