NEWS
MyEagleNews.com
Three juveniles
charged for
break-ins
By Richard Hanners
Blue Mountain Eagle
Three John Day area juveniles face
felony charges stemming from a string
of break-ins last month.
According to John Day Police Sgt.
Scott Moore, the three juveniles were
charged with first-degree burglary based
on use of a tool to break into a building,
second-degree burglary based on unlaw-
ful entry into a building and criminal
mischief.
The high school age youths were sent
to juvenile court for prosecution, Moore
said.
A tip on Aug. 13 helped the police
identify the suspects, and the arrests
were made quickly, Moore said. Shoes
found at the home of one of the suspects
matched footprints in the dirt around one
of the businesses that was burglarized,
he said.
The front window of the Good
Deals store on West Main Street in
John Day was reported broken on July
28. The owner said some knives and
50-cent pieces were missing, Moore
said.
Cash was reported missing from the
Gleason Pool on Canton Street and the
Bit of Europe antique store on South
Canyon Boulevard on July 31, Moore
said. The Little Canyon Food Court also
was broken into on July 31.
Moore thanked the local community
for its assistance in locating the suspects,
but he advised more businesses to install
video cameras. They’re inexpensive and
easy to install, he said.
Moore also noted that three cases of
unlawful entry to motor vehicles in John
Day are still being investigated. These
incidents occurred on Northeast Dayton
Street and Northeast Elm Street on Aug.
8 and in the Chester’s Thriftway parking
lot on Aug. 10.
Wednesday, August 21, 2019
A5
County court to hold work session on pool
By Richard Hanners
Blue Mountain Eagle
The Grant County
Court agreed to hold a
work session on a new
public swimming pool
with stakeholders and
community
represen-
tatives sometime in
September.
Rob Raschio, who
brought the idea to the
court Aug. 14 and is the
court’s official representa-
tive for pool talks, said the
goal is to develop a plan
for constructing a new
pool to replace the Glea-
son Pool in John Day and
for funding annual opera-
tions and maintenance.
Judge Scott Myers
noted that, as a work ses-
sion open to the public,
those invited to attend
could speak, but no public
comment would be taken.
Commissioner Jim Ham-
sher emphasized that rep-
resentatives from com-
munities around Grant
County should be invited.
The city of John Day,
which owns Gleason
Pool, has publicly dis-
cussed replacing the pool
since December 2018 and
hired pool consultants
Counsilman-Hunsaker
and Opsis Architecture to
provide design options.
The city’s reasoning
in the past included three
key elements: Gleason
Pool is 60 years old and
expensive to maintain; the
state will provide the city
about $1 million in cash
and grants for the city park
land and pool site, a wind-
The Eagle/Richard Hanners
Rob Raschio addresses the Grant County Court about
plans for a new public swimming pool Aug. 14.
fall that could be used to
build another pool facil-
ity; and the state will use
the land to build a new
Kam Wah Chung interpre-
tative center that will sig-
nificantly contribute to the
economic development of
the John Day area.
Raschio said the city
intends to close Gleason
Pool after the 2020 sea-
son, but the pool could
continue to operate for
another three years under
a tentative agreement with
the state if a plan exists to
replace it. He said about
400 children participated
in the recent John Day and
district swim meets, which
brought in money for local
businesses from visiting
families.
Raschio also presented
the results of John Day’s
online survey, which saw
responses from 230 res-
idents, of which 97%
live within 30 miles of
John Day. About 97% of
respondents agreed that
Grant County should have
a public swimming pool,
and 70% of respondents
agreed the pool should
be funded by all users. A
majority also wanted to
see a facility that included
an indoor basketball
court and exercise and
weight-lifting rooms.
During an April 2 meet-
ing at the Grant County
Regional Airport, swim
team representative Haley
Walker said target figures
were $4.5 million for con-
struction of a new pool
and about $100,000 per
year for operation, main-
tenance and a future pool
replacement fund.
That amount of money
is beyond the funding
capacity of either the city
of John Day or the John
Day-Canyon City Parks &
Recreation District, which
has operated Gleason Pool
for the city.
Suggested
funding
solutions have included
expanding the current
Parks & Recreation taxing
district, which the board
so far opposes; creating a
new service district with
a tax base that includes
John Day, Canyon City,
and approved another five-
year consulting engineer
contract with T-O Engi-
neers of Boise. There were
two applicants and the
scoring was close, Airport
Manager Haley Walker
said.
The
court
also
approved a five-year lease
with the Forest Service
for three concrete heli-
pads south of the termi-
nal, as recommended by
the Airport Commission.
The lease expired Sept.
30, 2018, and was rene-
gotiated. The price will
increase by 2.5% per year
to $18,390 for the year
ending Sept. 30, 2023.
The airport will adver-
tise for repairs to the ter-
minal building, includ-
ing exterior painting and
staining, interior settling
and crack repair and inte-
rior water damage.
• Stephen Baldwin,
Haley Olson and Kelly
McGirr were appointed
to the Grant County Plan-
ning Commission.
• The court approved a
public records request pol-
icy. Hamsher said the pol-
icy was approved by the
attorney for Prairie City. It
was modified with county
language and reviewed
and updated by the county
counsel, he said.
Commissioner Sam
Palmer said Sheriff
Glenn Palmer told him
he would look at the new
policy and decide if he
would continue to use
current sheriff’s office
policy or change to the
new policy.
Mt. Vernon, Prairie City,
Seneca and perhaps other
communities, as John Day
City Manager Nick Green
has described; or funding
the pool countywide.
Grant School District 3
is a stakeholder in support
of maintaining a public
swimming pool in Grant
County, but Raschio noted
that the school district
lacks the funding to build
or maintain a pool.
Raschio said a John
Day-budgeted feasibility
study will cover the costs
of drafting a ballot mea-
sure for a bond to pay
for construction of a new
pool. The ballot measure
would need approval by
the county court to be sent
out to voters countywide.
Myers noted that the
court issued ballot mea-
sures in the past, but that
didn’t mean they sup-
ported the proposal. Judy
Kerr took issue with that
point, suggesting that if
the court approves sending
the ballot measure to vot-
ers, the public will assume
the court supports it.
Hamsher emphasized
that pool supporters need
to engage communities
around the county if they
expect the ballot measure
to succeed.
The first step is to
decide if the public wants
a pool, Raschio said. The
next step would be to find
out who would pay for it.
In other county court
news:
• The court agreed
with the Airport Commis-
sion’s recommendation
COPS AND COURTS
Arrests and citations in
the Blue Mountain Eagle are
taken from the logs of law
enforcement agencies. Every
effort is made to report the
court disposition of arrest
cases.
Grant County Circuit
Court
Michele L. Trimble, 44,
Mt. Vernon, pleaded guilty
Aug. 15 to driving under
the influence of intoxicants
committed on Jan 17. She
was sentenced to 48 hours
jail, 24 months probation
and $1,355 in fines and fees.
She was ordered to install an
ignition interlock device on
any vehicle she drives and
her license was suspended
for one year.
Justice Court
• Violation of basic rule:
Steven D. Baldwin, 41,
Mt. Vernon, May 24, 75/55
zone, fined $140.
• Violation speed limit:
Roy B. Delacruz, 46, Twin
Falls, Idaho, July 11, 48/35
zone, fined $165; Nathan
M. Romney, 18, Springville,
Utah, May 31, 70/35 zone,
fined $440.
John Day.
Aug. 16: Advised about a
theft at a store on West Main
Street in John Day.
Aug. 16: Received a 911
call about a domestic inci-
dent at an apartment com-
plex on Highway 26 east of
John Day.
Aug. 16: Following war-
rant service at Southwest
Brent Drive in John Day,
Travis J. Freniere, 33, John
Day, was arrested on a
parole board warrant.
Aug. 16: Received a 911
call from East Main Street
about a domestic incident.
Aug. 16: Responded to
Northeast Elm Street in John
Day. Jeffery C. Cook, 22,
John Day, was arrested and
charged with theft.
Aug. 17: Following a
traffic complaint, David W.
Burke, 25, was arrested and
charged with driving with a
suspended driver’s license.
Aug. 17: After responding
to a report of a fight on South-
east Dayton Street in John
Day, Michael D. Griffith, 23,
John Day, was arrested and
charged with assault.
Aug. 17: Dispatched to
the fairgrounds in John Day
for a theft report.
• Oregon State Police
Aug. 12: Dispatched to
a report of a horse on High-
way 26 west of John Day.
Aug. 13: Responded to a
report of a pig on Highway
26 near Moon Creek.
Aug. 15: Advised of a
cow on Highway 7 near
Austin Junction.
Aug. 15: Received a call
about a noninjury accident
on Highway 395 near Beech
Creek Road.
• Grant County Sher-
iff’s Office
Aug. 14: Received a
harassment report from
South Johnson Avenue in
Prairie City.
Aug. 15: Advised of a
suspicious person on High-
way 26 near Laycock Creek.
Aug. 16: Received a
report of shots fired on South
Canyon Boulevard.
Aug. 18: Received a 911
phone call about a prowler
near a marijuana dispensary
in John Day.
• John Day ambulance
Aug. 13: Dispatched
to Northwest Charolais
Heights for an elderly man
who fell.
Aug. 13: Responded to
the high school in John Day
for a middle-aged man who
was not feeling well.
Aug. 14: Dispatched
to Northwest Charolais
Heights for an 83-year-old
man.
Aug. 14: Called to a
senior home in John Day for
a lift assist.
Aug. 15: Dispatched
to East Riverside Street in
Mt. Vernon for an elderly
woman who fell.
Aug. 16: Received a 911
call from North Humbolt
Street in Canyon City.
Aug. 17: Responded to a
mobile home park on West
Main Street in John Day.
Aug. 17: Dispatched to
North Washington Street in
Prairie City for an elderly
man who had fallen and
might have suffered a stroke.
Aug. 17: Responded to a
mobile home park on West
Main Street in John Day for
a man with neck pain, diffi-
culty breathing and nausea.
Aug. 17: Responded
to Highway 7 near Austin
Junction for a single-vehicle
crash with injuries.
Aug. 17: Transported a
patient to the airport in John
Day.
Aug. 18: Responded to
Charolais Heights in John
Day for an 83-year-old man
who had taken a fall.
Aug. 18: Received a
911 call for an 89-year-old
woman on North Washing-
ton Street in Prairie City.
Aug. 18: Dispatched to
Northwest Bridge Street in
John Day for a 80-year-old
woman with back pain.
• Canyon City public
works
Aug. 12: Advised of a
brown water problem on
South Humbolt Street in
Canyon City.
• John Day public works
Aug. 13: Advised that
Canyon City was taking on
water.
• Forest Service
Aug. 13: Advised of
smoke seen in the Keeney
Fork Road area.
Aug. 17: Received a 911
phone call about a possi-
ble forest fire near Highway
402.
• Oregon Transporta-
tion Department
Aug. 16: Advised of a
downed tree creating a haz-
ard on Highway 395 south
of Canyon City.
Aug. 17: Received a
report of a rock slide on
Highway 396 near Mt.
Vernon.
I got screened.
Now, I’m talking about it.
Dispatch
John
Day
dispatch
worked 167 calls during
the week of Aug. 12-18,
including:
• John Day Police
Department
Aug. 13: Responded to a
dog running loose on Sev-
enth Street in John Day.
Aug. 13: Dispatched to a
mobile home park on West
Main Street in John Day for
a juvenile problem.
Aug. 14: Responded to
a Ford Road residence in
John Day for a missing child
report.
Aug. 15: Dispatched to
a report of an unoccupied
vehicle rolling into another
vehicle at a grocery store in
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