GRANT COUNTY HISTORY SPECIAL SECTION | INSIDE
Wednesday, September 28, 2022
154th Year • No. 39 • 16 Pages • $1.50
MyEagleNews.com
MyEagleN
For better or worse
Steven Mitchell/Blue Mountain Eagle
The Elkhorns are one of many ranges that make up the Blue Mountains, which are largely on land managed by the Malheur, Umatilla and Wallowa-Whitman national forests. The economic fate
of Grant County, like most other counties in Northeast Oregon and Southeast Washington, is deeply intertwined with the U.S. Forest Service.
County’s economy closely
linked to Forest Service
By STEVEN MITCHELL
Blue Mountain Eagle
A
s the U.S. Forest Service makes another run
at updating land management plans on three
national forests in Eastern Oregon and South-
east Washington, the authors of an in-depth
economic analysis ranked Grant County as the
most likely to experience fi nancial impacts — good or bad
— due to forest management decisions, and the least likely
to bounce back from a fi nancial crisis.
In Grant County, with more national forest acres per res-
ident than anywhere else in the region, forest management
decisions could mean boom or bust.
“There are certain limitations as well as opportunities
associated with where (Grant County) is located and the
amount of public land that surrounds the communities and
constitutes the county,” said Mark Webb, executive director
of Blue Mountains Forest Partners.
Recognizing the limitations and opportunities in the
region’s timber-dependent communities was one reason
behind the comprehensive study from the Rural Engagement
and Vitality Center (REV) — a joint venture between Wal-
lowa Resources and Eastern Oregon University — that was
presented to the Blue Mountains Intergovernmental Council,
or BIC for short.
The county-by-county analysis, headed up by East-
ern Oregon University economists Peter Maille and Scott
McConnell, assessed the socioeconomic makeup of a region
that includes 10 counties in Oregon and four in Washing-
ton, stretching across 46,000 square miles from east of Walla
Walla, Washington, to south of John Day.
See Economy, Page A16
GRANT COUNTY PROFILE
Current conditions
2020 population: 7,315
Economy: Forest products, agriculture, hunting, livestock
production, recreation
Public land coverage: 62.1% of the county
National forest coverage: 1,593,053 acres, 55% of the county
Largest industries by number of jobs (2019)
Government: 27%
Farm: 13%
Retail trade: 9%
Forestry, fi shing and ag services: 7%
Hospitality and restaurants: 6%
Construction: 5%
Other industries: 28%
Total jobs: 3,9368 (2019)
Forest Service spending
2010-2021 forest restoration contracts: $46,450,956 ($29
million issued to contractors based in Grant County)
Grant, loans fuel broadband access
By TONY CHIOTTI
Blue Mountain Eagle
DISCOUNTS AVAILABLE
JOHN DAY — Oregon Tele-
phone Corp. has been awarded $20.4
million in grants and loans to install
fi ber optic infrastructure in Grant,
Malheur and Baker counties.
The latest round of federal money
will provide high-speed fi ber con-
nections directly to 1,200 people, 41
businesses, 70 farms and four educa-
tional facilities as part of the ReCon-
nect Program, using funding from
the recent Bipartisan Infrastructure
Law. The program is aimed at ensur-
ing rural communities see the bene-
fi ts of high-speed internet.
The new funding is part of $502
million in loans and grants being
off ered to projects in 20 states
through the U.S. Department of
Agriculture’s Rural Development
OTC’s new high-speed internet service will be eligible for direct assistance
through the Federal Communications Commission’s Aff ordable Connectivity
Program, as well as the Oregon Telephone Assistance Program.
These programs are already available to qualifying broadband internet cus-
tomers.
To see if you qualify for discounted broadband service, visit the FCC’s Af-
fordable Connectivity Program website at https://www.fcc.gov/acp and the
Oregon Telephone Assistance Program at https://tinyurl.com/yt3k9zxa.
Tony Chiotti/Blue Mountain Eagle
An OTC Connections technician ex-
poses the glass fi bers at the heart of
a fi ber optic cable that makes high-
speed internet connections possible.
program. Of the $20.4 million ear-
marked for the state of Oregon, the
full amount is being awarded to Ore-
gon Telephone Co.
Marcus Bott, operations manager
of OTC Connections, explained that
OTC is currently using funds from
the fi rst round of the ReConnect Pro-
gram, over $8 million, to install fi ber
in Long Creek, Monument, Spray
and Seneca.
The newly announced award, a
mix of $10.2 million in grants and
an additional $10.2 million in loans,
will allow OTC to update the infra-
structure in additional areas. Inter-
net speeds will improve from 10-25
megabits per second over the old
copper lines to over 2 gigabits per
second over fi ber, a 200 times faster
connection for consumers. The new
work from this most recent round
will allow OTC to continue to expand
coverage to additional areas in Grant
County from Dayville to Mt. Vernon.
A fourth and possibly fi nal round of
ReConnect Program funding is cur-
rently open and OTC is in the pro-
cess of applying.
OTC is working to get all new
home developments wired to the net-
work at the time of construction. For
existing homes, the company would
run fi ber from the closest junction to
the home at the time the service is
ordered.
As the fi ber cables will be installed
underground, there will fi rst need to
be a review from the Oregon State
Historic Preservation Offi ce and a
review from federal agencies regard-
ing possible archaeological sites in
the path of construction. New instal-
lation from this latest round will not
begin until state and federal reviews
are completed, a process that took
about two years for the initial round.
OTC currently employs roughly
30 people, with 20 of those in John
Day. The new projects could lead to
additional hires, but no decisions on
that have yet been made.
John Day bowling alley reopens
By STEVEN MITCHELL
Blue Mountain Eagle
JOHN DAY — Over 100 people cele-
brated the grand opening of a bowling alley
across from the Bare Bones Bar on Main
Street in John Day Friday, Sept. 23.
The bowling alley, formally known
as Nugget Lanes, sat empty for about 10
years until Bare Bones Bar owner Nick
Stiner purchased the building in May of
this year.
Stiner, who opened the Bare Bones
Bar behind his Bare Bones Smokeshop last
year, said the bar had become so popular he
needed more space.
Additionally, Stiner said he does not like
to see businesses such as the bowling alley
that benefi t the community sitting empty. So
when the opportunity to purchase the old
Nugget Lanes came up in May, he jumped
on it.
The building already had space for a bar
with a separate entrance from the bowling area.
Stiner attributes the accomplishment of
reopening the 10-lane bowling alley to his
staff .
Stiner said his employees have been
working at the bowling alley since May to
prepare for Friday’s opening.
“I couldn’t do this without all these
employees that are like part of my family
now,” Stiner said. “Otherwise, I would have
never done this.”
The bowling alley is open from noon
to 2 a.m. seven days a week, although that
could change depending on business. “If
folks don’t come as much, we’ll shorten the
hours,” Stiner said.
Currently, according to Stiner, eight of
the 10 bowling lanes are functional. In addi-
tion to bowling, he said there are three new
pool tables and a video arcade. The bowl-
ing alley is also available to rent for private
events such as wedding receptions and birth-
day parties.
Steven Mitchell/Blue Mountain Eagle
Lead singer Les Church of the band Red Headed Stepchild belts
one out Friday, Sept. 23, 2022, during the grand opening of the
bowling alley across from the Bare Bones Bar on Main Street in
John Day.