A16
NEWS
Blue Mountain Eagle
Wednesday, July 31, 2019
Hearing
Continued from Page A1
coordinate with state and
federal agencies. It will
also establish a natural
resources committee to
advise the court.
Pros and cons
Mark Webb, a former
Grant County judge and
the executive director of
the Blue Mountains For-
est Partners collaborative
group, emailed the county
court the morning of the
hearing to comment on the
draft ordinance.
Webb had submitted a
letter to the Eagle express-
ing concerns about how
the new ordinance would
conflict with county ordi-
nances from 1995 and
2002. The letter ran in the
Eagle the morning of the
hearing.
“Scott, Jim, Sam: nice
job on the ordinance,”
Webb said in his email.
“Thoughtful and well writ-
ten, I believe it addresses
the concerns I raise in my
letter to the editor.”
Coordination
will
enable the county to be
involved in agency plan-
ning early enough to have
an impact, Myers said.
In the past, the court has
received information on
Forest Service projects just
weeks before the deadline
for input, he said.
As an example, Myers
said he was interested in
talking to the Forest Ser-
vice about elk security
measures proposed in the
Austin Project before the
U.S. Forest Service talks
to the state Fish and Wild-
life Department.
Frances Preston said
she disagreed with state-
ments by members of the
court that the county was
already coordinating with
the Forest Service. The
Forest Service wads up
and throws away county
suggestions, she said. But
under coordination, they
would be obligated to fol-
low county suggestions,
she said.
Beth Spell said she pre-
viously spoke with the
late County Judge Dennis
Reynolds about his 2011
trip to Nevada to attend a
seminar on coordination.
People in favor of coor-
dination think it will give
them the power to dic-
tate planning decisions to
the federal agencies, she
said. But that is legally and
practically dubious. The
court needs clear and con-
cise reasons to persuade
the public that the ordi-
nance is necessary, she
said.
Dan Becker said he sup-
ports the “mutual princi-
ples and practices for com-
munication” proposed by
the Eastern Oregon Coun-
ties Association but not the
draft coordination ordi-
nance, which he said was
too “demanding.” He said
he expected the county
will be challenged in court.
Adele Cerny called the
ordinance a regressive
statement. She said Reyn-
olds told her counties that
adopted coordination ordi-
nances would deplete their
general funds defending
themselves in court. The
anti-federal government
image could also nega-
tively affect businesses
considering a move to
Grant County, she said.
A draft of the ordinance
was first presented by Sam
Palmer on July 10. The
latest version will have a
second hearing. It would
be effective 90 days after
approval.
Eagle photos/Richard Hanners
No. 70, driven by Chad Law, Mt. Vernon, crashes into car No. 35, driven by Mark Jeys, Prineville, during the second heat of the 2019 Whiskey Gulch Gang
Demolition Derby
Derby
Continued from Page A1
car from last year.
By 7 p.m. the night
before the derby, organiz-
ers had no entries for pick-
ups in the halftime barrel
race. Grant County’s active
social networking went to
work, and by Saturday night
more than a dozen side-by-
sides and other vehicles had
entered the event.
Luke Claughton Jr. of
Canyon City won the bar-
rel race on his dirt bike,
performing a wheelie right
out the exit gate. His father
drove a golf cart equipped
with a 400cc Polaris engine.
Steve Patterson won the
first heat, in a wild smashing
start to the derby. A radia-
tor geyser didn’t stop his car
from taking first. Last year,
Mike Patterson took first
at the demolition derby
in Baker City, leaving his
father in second place.
Chase Jeys and his
father, Mark, both from
Prineville, took first and
second place in the second
heat. Law roared around
the arena at high speed in
the heat, but his targets
often managed to avoid
a hit. Chase Jeys’ engine
died at the end of the heat,
but his car coasted into his
father’s car for a gentle
final tap.
Crews repaired the
driveshaft of a blue Ford
Edsel in time for the main
event, but Law knocked
it up on top of a 3-foot
diameter log. When the
Steve Patterson, Prairie City, winner of the 2019 Whiskey Gulch Gang Demolition Derby’s main event, sits atop car No. 66
during the derby’s introduction July 27.
smoke cleared and the
mud settled, Steve Pat-
terson’s black car was the
only one rolling, and he
roared out of the arena a
winner.
The organizers thanked
U.S. Bank for a $500 dona-
tion, John Day True Value
for $250 in door prizes
for drivers, the Grant
Union High School wres-
tling team for its con-
cession stand and Gard-
ner Enterprises and Heidi
Law for assistance and
help.
Winners of the main event in the 2019 Whiskey Gulch Gang Demolition Derby were, from
left, Chad Law, Mt. Vernon, second; Steve Patterson, Prairie City, first; and Mike Patterson,
Pendleton, third.
Bridge
Continued from Page A1
“It’s like a shell game,” he said.
Reasonable price
spurs action
Past rough estimates to raise
either the Nugget or Inland street
bridges have typically topped $1
million, but Fischer presented the
court with an engineer’s estimate to
do so for just $76,500. This included
engineering, bid assistance, over-
sight, construction contingency as
well as legal and administrative
costs.
Raising the bridge 2 feet will
allow another 550 cubic feet
of stream flow per second, said
Fischer. According to Grant County
Emergency Management Coordina-
tor Ted Williams, the Canyon Creek
channel is expected to safely han-
dle 850 cubic feet per second, but
the flow at Adam Road this April
reached 1,150 cubic feet per second.
A key factor in the low engi-
neer’s estimate was the $10,000 cost
for a 30-ton crane to lift the bridge
and then reset it after repairs were
made. Bringing that large a crane to
Grant County is typically expensive,
but such a crane is currently at Mal-
heur Lumber Co. for the torrefaction
plant project and is idle some of the
time, Fischer said.
Commissioner Jim Hamsher said
he showed the estimate to an Ore-
gon Department of Transportation
Eagle photos/Richard Hanners
Canyon City Mayor Steve Fischer
listens to Grant County Court
discussion about the Inland Street
bridge on July 24.
official who suggested the county
“jump on it.”
Grant County Roadmaster Alan
Hickerson said the county could
assist Canyon City by loaning a
dump truck and an excavator and
providing gravel and some labor.
Fischer said he appreciated the
offer, but he also wanted the county
to split the out-of-pocket expenses.
He emphasized that the bridge
project was not just a Canyon City
interest — it was important to the
On July 24, the Grant County Court agreed to split out-of-pocket expenses
to repair and upgrade the Inland Street Bridge with Canyon City.
school district.
Canyon City resident Garth
Leighton asked why the court
was just “kicking the can down
the road.” The solution to Canyon
Creek flooding problem is digging
out the channel, he said.
The court was familiar with that
proposal from past discussions,
but they decided to act now to get
the Inland Street bridge upgraded.
Fischer agreed, saying the stream
channel could be dug out later.
Commissioner Sam Palmer
addressed a concern that if the court
assisted Canyon City, other commu-
nities would want the same kind of
help. He noted that this was a spe-
cial circumstance, with flooding
affecting schools.
Hamsher emphasized that resi-
dents were getting a lot of “bang for
the bucks,” and Myers noted that the
county was still protecting its road
fund. The vote to split the costs with
Canyon City was unanimous.
No Matter
how big or small your trophy was
or if you just want to share a hunting adventure,
send or drop off your best
hunting photos or stories
to
195 N Canyon Blvd., John Day, OR 97845 • kim@bmeagle.com
Your photos could be published in this year’s EAGLE HUNTING JOURNAL
Please have them to the Eagle by August 8.