MyEagleNews.com
PROGRESS 2019: DAYVILLE
Wednesday, June 26, 2019
5
Dayville blooms as grant funding rains down
Town’s residents rally,
face challenges head on
By Angel Carpenter
Blue Mountain Eagle
Two major upgrades in Day-
ville, supported by signifi cant
grants, include the renovation of
the 99-year-old Dayville Commu-
nity Hall and 95-year-old Dayville
School.
Mayor Ilah Bennett and City
Recorder Ruthie Moore work
together with fi ve city council
members to get the job done in
Dayville.
Two areas of focus for the Day-
ville city leaders are beautifi cation
and promotion of the town, said
Moore.
“We have a very dedicated
group of council members and
mayor,” she said. “They’re just
great. We have some young peo-
ple now, which is very nice to have
them stepping up as well to make
our community a better place to
be.”
The council members include
Tiffnie Schmadeka, Emmaleigh
Larson, Joseph M. Letosky, Valli
Hettinga and Skip Inscore.
Eagle fi le photo
City Recorder Ruthie Moore and Mayor Ilah Bennett stand in front of the Dayville Community Hall in April. The city leaders had recently received news
that Dayville had been awarded a Community Development Block Grant.
Dayville Community Hall
renovation
Bennett said they applied for a
Community Development Block
Grant for the community hall with
little hope of being awarded the
funding.
“We weren’t really expecting
to get the grant,” Bennett said.
“Even the guys helping Ruthie
said they didn’t know if we had
enough points. They said go
ahead and put it in, because not
very many people applied.”
Moore said they applied, hop-
ing to learn the ropes and see how
they could improve the process if
they didn’t receive the grant.
She sent out a city newsletter
the morning of Feb. 28 this year
letting residents know they would
probably hear about whether they
received the funding by April 1.
Moore received the good news
later that same day via an email
on her phone that the city was
awarded a $1.45 million grant.
She was in the midst of a cheer-
ing crowd in Pendleton when she
received the news, attending her
granddaughter Alcie’s state bas-
ketball tournament as a member
of the Grant Union Prospector
team, coached by Ruthie’s daugh-
ter Kristi.
Moore said the community hall
is at the top of residents’ list for
exciting progress in Dayville.
The renovation project is
something the community has
been working toward for two
decades, holding multiple fund-
raisers each year for the cause,
including a spring and fall potluck
with games, auctions and draw-
ings for prizes.
The grant funds will provide
full funding for the facelift the
hall has been needing for years.
“The old hall has been deterio-
rating rapidly and has needed ren-
ovation,” Moore said.
“It needs a lot of TLC,” Bennett
said.
Bennett said one of the main
issues has been the lack of heat,
making it impossible to use the
building year-round.
A new heating, cooling and
ventilation system will be installed
to fi x that problem.
The main building and the
stage are considered to be in rel-
atively good shape, but the bal-
cony and stairs will need structural
repairs. Interior wall and fl oor fi n-
ishes are in good shape and will be
preserved.
Major improvements to the hall
will include removing the exist-
ing roof sheathing and installing
pre-manufactured trusses and new
Eagle fi le photo
A false front adjacent to the Dayville Merc makes for an interesting stop
in the town.
roofi ng. The exterior siding also
will be removed, allowing electri-
cal work and insulating before new
sheathing and siding is installed.
The add-on built in the 1950s,
where food is prepared, is in poor
condition and will be torn down
and replaced with a new struc-
ture, including a commercial-grade
kitchen. The restrooms will also
be demolished and replaced with
ADA-compatible facilities. A
lobby space will also be added.
On the advice of the preser-
vation offi ce, the new addition
will be designed to look differ-
ently than the rest of the building.
Plaques describing the original hall
will be hung, and the lobby area
will house historical artifacts such
as the antique wood cookstove and
movie projector.
One “quirk” Moore discovered
is that if they had waited to apply
for the grant, they would not have
qualifi ed for the low- to moder-
ate-income level that is required.
“Everything fell into place so
well,” she said.
Davyille School upgrades
Dayville Superintendent/Princi-
pal Kathryn Hedrick, who came to
the school district in 2015, said the
$1.4 million the school is receiv-
ing for upgrades is, in a way, dove-
tailing with the $1.45 million the
city has received for the commu-
nity hall.
“It’s an uptick in the town pride
and dedication,” she said. “Our
community members have shown
us great support.”
Residents of Dayville passed
a $700,000 bond in May, and a
$700,000 match from the Oregon
School Capital Improvement Pro-
gram brings the total to $1.4 mil-
lion for the improvements.
“This is a 1924 building — and
without a new roof,” Hedrick said.
“The new roof is pretty important.”
Sidewalks will be added to link
the high school to the gym and ele-
mentary school, and new ramps
with gentler slopes will provide
easier access to the high school.
Parking will be updated, and
though it won’t be paved, it will be
regraded. ADA-approved parking
spots will also be added.
Another main project included
in the plan is an overhaul of the
electrical wiring in the elemen-
tary school, which was built in the
1950s.
Hedrick said she appreciates the
work of the bond advisory com-
mittee, spearheaded by Brandon
Thompson.
“We’re very grateful for their
support,” Hedrick said.
She’s pleased with the renova-
tion plans and said, “The work of
the bond is just the beginning.”
The school received a tech-
nical assistance grant for a seis-
mic study, this time with no match
required. Once trouble spots are
assessed, the school may receive a
grant for those repairs.
“That’s why the gym isn’t get-
ting a whole lot of attention right
now,” Hedrick said.
She said the projects they’re
working on will increase the safety,
security and access of the school.
“The community defi nitely
invested in its kids and the build-
ings,” she said. “The process will
take a while, but the community
should know we’re jumping on
that and doing all we can to make
the repairs as fast as possible.”
Town promotion,
improvements, challenges
“If you blink you might miss it”
is an adage that could be applied to
many rural towns in the west.
Dayville, with a population of
155, is beautiful and welcoming,
but could be missed by visitors
traveling from the west who may
divert to the John Day Fossil Beds
National Monument before they
realize the town’s existence.
Moore said the city is working
Eagle fi le photo
A colorful sign in the city park welcomes visitors to Dayville.
with the Oregon Department of
Transportation to place a business
sign on Highway 26 a couple miles
before the Highway 19 junction,
which leads to the Fossil Beds, in
hopes of attracting more visitors.
“It will list what services are
available — a gas pump, a fork and
spoon, a tent for camping, all the
symbols that will specify what ser-
vices we have,” Moore said, add-
ing they hope to have it installed
by next spring.
Though no new establishments
have cropped up, Dayville’s cur-
rent businesses are holding steady,
including a cafe, a mercantile, a
mini-mart with a gas station, an
inn with an RV park and another
RV park and a retail shop with
art, espresso, ice cream and deli
sandwiches.
The newest business, Old
Gypsy Cowgirl, owned by Kelly
Cooper, sells vintage items and
quality crafts.
Dayville residents love a chance
to celebrate and gather.
The town goes big for the hol-
idays, including decorating the
downtown with scarecrows in the
fall, holding a bazaar in winter
and decking out adopted Christ-
mas trees that line Franklin Street.
A Bunny Hop 5K with an Eas-
ter egg hunt is a fun spring activ-
ity. Their Fourth of July festivi-
ties bring the biggest celebrations,
with a parade, food, games and a
classic car show.
“We’re always striving to make
our town appealing,” Moore said.
A $100,000 Small Cities Allot-
ment through the state will pay for
paving Owens Street in Dayville.
That street, which runs between
Schoolhouse Road near the fi re
department and Highway 26 near
Dayville Cafe, was torn up when
sewer system work was done in
2001, then chip sealed.
Moore said, at that time, there
weren’t enough funds to com-
pletely resurface the road.
Advice from a River: ‘Go with the Flow.
Immerse yourself in nature. Slow Down
and Meander. Go around the obstacles.
Be thoughtful of those downstream. Stay
Current. The beauty is in the journey.’
- Ilan Shamir
When asked what challenges
the city faces, Moore said they
had to increase the sewer rate last
year.
“Our sewer fund wasn’t as
healthy as we wanted it to be,
so by increasing the sewer rate
it looks a lot better,” she said.
“When you only have 105 connec-
tions, you have to keep a close eye
on your balances and increases,
unfortunately.”
Bennett said residents of Day-
ville face challenges head on.
“We pull together when we
need to pull together,” she said.
One resident said political dif-
ferences are set aside when called
to action to help the town or a
family.
High school students were out
in force to help sandbag when the
city was affected by spring fl ood-
ing this year, and townspeople
rally around those who may expe-
rience other disasters.
“I can remember when a place
burned down just outside of
town,” Bennett said. “They were
completely outfi tted by the next
day or the day after Christmas.”
She said within 24 hours the
family had a new home to live in,
furniture, new clothing, food and
a stack of wood for heat.
More recently, the commu-
nity came together when the late
Cheryl Hubbird was diagnosed
with cancer last year.
A benefi t dinner and auc-
tion raised $16,000 for Hubbird’s
expenses.
“I got to eat a cheesecake
bought by a friend for $250,” Ben-
nett said.
She said some people may shy
away from living in Dayville, if
they enjoy shopping at big box
stores.
“In Grant County, most people
live here because this is the way
we want to live,” Bennett said.
“Those of us who stay here don’t
mind the remoteness.”
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