Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 25, 1973)
TV newt hits Penland Lake Corp. Hint' f 'wrong-doin 9 eirs investisation tngg Gov. Tom McCall's office ha authorized two separate agencies to invetitigate the affairs of Penland Prairie Lake Corpora ion; and, County Judge Paul Jones has refused an "invitation" by the governor's office to allow his name to be withdrawn as a member of a staie-wide com mittee because of a KGWTV, Portland, news broadcast Monday night that hinted at corruption at a local level in the Penland Lake Corpora tion. The news commentary that triggered the call from Gov. McCall's administrative as sistants hinted at possible collusion, graft and illegal procedures in the formation, construction and administra tion of Penland Lake. Judge Jones, along with 24 other local businessmen, were 'he original backers and builders of the Man-made lake that attracted the attention of the television newsmen. i " i , - , .-v ." ? i '4 I . : I ",V ', ! v - J J ' ' 'J f:: n ill l't;. I V 1 ll -1. 1 1 1 m4 w ' 1111 ' Jess Cooper, 10, Hermiston, one of the youngest fiddlers in the area, won a round of applause from the audience in the Old Time Fiddlers Contest held Saturday at the Heppner Elementary School. Cay Lombardo be ba t. the -sweetest mask this He prove his point to Fiddlers Contest Wednesday. Oct. 24. as a member of the Land Conser vation and Development Commission LCDO. com posed of seven statewide members appointed by the governor Jones is the only representative east of the Cascades, he said. The call from McCall's office came Tuesday morning. The governor's representa tives, whom Jones did not identify, asked his permission to withdraw his appointment in the light of the KGW TV commentary on his possible involvement in the Lake Penland affair. Jones refused "1 will not withdraw under fire because of the irrespon sibility of KGWTV repor ters," he declared, "and I will not quit as long as my name, and the names of my associ ates in Penland Lake are under a shadow. The governor can fire me if he wants to, but there will be no quitting under i I but Clay Cla.ghto. caa play side of beavea" oo his fiddle. listeners attending the Old this cloud of innuendo and suspicion." Jones said he had given similar statement to KL'MA Radio in Pendleton, but he had not contacted KGWTV nor had he been contacted by that television station. Later Tuesday afternoon, Jones was again contacted by spokesmen for Gov. McCall. "I told them exactly what I told them this morning," Jones told the Gazette-Times, "and that was that I insist upon the investigation men tioned in the television broad cast, be completed, and that I would not agree to have my name withdrawn as a member of LCDC." Jones said that the gover nor's spokesmen promised two investigations of Penland Lake Corporation from his office, one by the State Real Estate Board and the other by the Local Governments Division. No 'road monoy' until 70-Corps There won't be any tax money released to the Corps of Engineers for relocation of the -Willow Creek Dam road until the spring of 1974, Col. Nelson Conover, District Engineer, Corps of Engineers, told a small gathering at the court house today. "The reason the alternate road is being considered," he said, "is that it is a soundly engineered road, and was offered to us by the people of the community. However, there is a trade-off involved and Ifte ..aiternate route,, is more expensive because it involves more roadwork. But it will be considered," he said. He said he would recom mend Alternate Plan B, the one most recently approved by local governmental agen cies. Col. Conover spoke briefly on the construction of the Shakespearean group to appear A professional troupe of Ashland Shakespearean per formers will appear here on Friday, Nov. 2, it was learned this week. This traveling educational group from the regular com pany of The Ashland Shake spearean Festival will be at Heppner High School most of the day and evening. The evening performance at 7:30 o'clock in the high school cafetorium is open to the public. CALIFORNIANS VISIT HEPPNER Loren Frigault, Northern California banker, was a visitor in Heppner for four days last week. Here this week, also from the same area, will be Richard S. Hogan, civil engineer and surveyor. On Nov. 1, Hugh B. Codding, Santa Rosa, Ca., land developer, will spend several days in the area. Inadequate water City The City of Heppner, upon recommendation of the Health Division, Department of Hu man Resources, has placed a temporary freeze on all build ing permits within the city, effective Oct. 10. The action was announced late Tuesday. In a letter to Mayor Jerry Sweeney dated Oct. 10, Leo G. Farr Jr., Director of Public Health Engineering for the agency, said his department cannot approve additional demand on the City of Heppner water system until it receives engineering plans and design data showing bow The investigations will be conducted independently but simultaneously, and should be completed within 10 days. Jones, while declining to have his appointment with drawn, did agree to be sworn in only after the Investigations are completed. "And it may be a lot longer than that." the judge stated. "I doubt I want to serve on a commission where a member can be all but convicted in advance on unfounded charges." The Monday night broad cast contained vague allega tions, but skirted any definite charges of wrong-doing in the Penland Lake deal. The two reporters who came to Hepp ner to film and tape inter views, some of which were heavily edited, according to L.E. Dick, asked questions which led few of their inter viewees to doubt they were on (continued on page 2) dam, and emphasized that money will have to be appro priated prior to construction. As for the relocation of existing water lines and a new reservoir to serve residents of Heppner, Col. Conover said the "Corps will help the city in every way possible." In view of the ban on water connections and building permits within the city be cause of an inadequate sys tem, the city will be pressing for all the help H can get. There was a detectable , ..concern ; yoa-Uhe "; part--of; Heppner officials as to when the road relocation work might start, and how much "cooperation" might be ex pected from the Corps. The climate was in marked con trast to previous meetings where the sentiment was torn between "we don't want the dam" and public apathy. Mrs. Jane Rawlins, high school English department head, has made arrangements for this appearance. The troupe is able to include Heppner in its itinerary be tween performances in Fossil and at Pilot Rock. This will be the first showing of this well-known theater group here, and presents a rare opportunity for many to see it. The players will give three classroom showings during the day and do an all-school assembly entitled "Poet and Players." lone High School students will be bussed here for the assembly. Mrs. Rawlins is not certain what the evening performance will include, but understands that the actors are bringing a collection of properties and costumes and will present an array of Shakespearean char acters and scenes. Each summer a group of Morrow County students and adults has gone to Ashland to enjoy the offering of five plays in five days. system freezes all the water system will be altered to supply city needs. "We believe the amount of( water that the present water sytera can safely deliver is less than the present user demands," the letter read. The letter continued: "We urge you to have this information submitted as soon as possible in order to take advantage of the early part of the 1974 construction season. We have about two to three months backlog of plans awaiting review at this time. The maximum water demand period for your city is July. If your engineer's report does Km?- THE Vol. 90. No. 36 GAS Boardmao. in housing By MARY LEE MARLOW The Boardman City Council was told by a spokesman for Desert Magic at their meeting Tuesday of last week that there will be a need for housing for its hundreds of employees during the next two years. There is already a pressing need for homes in the Boardman and Irrigon area. Cecil Cooley of Hermiston, a housing developer associated with Howard Kartchner, Des ert Magic president, says farms and allied industries in Annual co-op nuGGfing is Mo v. 1 The annual Membership Meeting of Columbia Basin Electric Co-op will be held . Nov. 1 at the Gilliam County Fairgrounds in Condon. Registration is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. with lunch at 12:30 p.m. A swiss steak dinner will be provided by the Co-op, served by the Condon Eastern Star. The meeting will begin promptly at 1:15 p.m. President of Columbia Basin's board is Walter Jae ger, who. has served on the board for 22 years. Columbia Basin was incor not show how the city can adequately serve this maxium demand in 1974, we will not be able to approve additional users. "We further caution you against forcing water through old, leaky mains because this may result in further deple tion of your system 's capacity. Our rules limit the maximum velocity in pipelines to five feet per second. "We understand your en gineer contemplates submis sion of engineering data within' 90 days. We shall review his material as quickly as our work load permit, ft Related story, p. 3 ETTIE-TIME Heppner. Ore., Thursday, October 25. 1973 the area will be employing upward of 650 people in the next two years, and housing is not available. The great need is adequate water and sewer facilities. Boarman is trying to work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on a new lagoon site for the sewer program, but consulting engineer Stan ley Wallulis told the council he has called the Corps in Portland many times in recent weeks, but all he has gotten from them is delay. Kartchner has said several porated Sept. 18, 1940. The first electric service was provided nine years later at the Ralph Potter Farm, Con don, on Oct. 14, 1949. The present Board of Di rectors is Jaeger, Condon; Dick Krebs, Cecil; Paul Tews, lone; Kenneth Smouse, lone; Van Rietmann, Condon; Herb Wright, Fossil; Walter Wright, Hardman; Elmer Palmer, Heppner; Dick Wil kinson, Heppner; Randall Peterson, Heppner; Floyd Palmer, Olex; and Paul Jaeger, Condon. Kenneth Smouse is to be honored at the building permits would also appreciate receiv ing information concerning the manner in which the required work will be fi nanced." Contacted by telephone Monday at his office in Portland, Farr told the Gazette-Times that the state had not placed a ban on water connections. He said be had newspaper clippings in his files to show that the City of Heppner invoked the ban on new connections, and that he concurred in that decision. "We have the authority to stop new water connections." Farr said, "but we have not Peaceful Penland Lake, a quiet and beautiful spot where private landowners and the public share fishing and recreational facilities, will be better known over the state from now on. crisis times this year that he has the financing available for hous ing, if he could get the water and sewer plans from Board man or Irrigon to accommo date the housing. Both towns are working on the problem. For water, Boardman is trying to get about $9,000 of a $30,000 federal Economic Development Administration grant to have a study done on its water expansion program. The balance of the grant would go to Hermiston. Cooley told the council that meeting for a quarter-century of service. Columbia Basin serves 3,100 customer ac counts over 2,850 square miles of service area. The annual report of the local utility shows annual income exceeding one million for the first time in the past fiscal year, $1,075,261.97. As sets of the corporation are $5,215,136.99, based on depre ciated values. No guest speaker is sched uled for the meeting this year. President Jaeger will briefly report concerning the energy crisis. done so." Asked by the Gazette-Times if his office would take action if the city went ahead and connected "one or four new homes" to the water system, Farr would not give a definite answer. "We would recommend a gainst it," he said. The water ban was imposed Tuesday-by the city, on recommendation of the state agency. D J Hebard, associate sani tary engineer, was in Heppner for a meeting with city officials Tuesday, and shortly afterward the announcement 1 ....." ''-. is- f ' - - f ..-V.V:...-.- i-rt-U'' s; " t' 3 15 cents Desert Magic and other farm organizations have recently talked about a farm labor camp, but that farm workers m Northern Morrow County will be employed most of the year and need housing better than a labor camp. He also said a child day center would make it possible for families to expand their incomes with the mothers working in jobs related to agriculture. He said the average farm worker will be grossing $8,000 annually. Secretary - Treasurer Paul Tews will discuss the audit and fiscal financial report. Manager David Harrison will show colored slides on the operation. Entertainment will be by Lisa Ward, Swiss yodeler from Portland, There will be many door prizes presented. Four districts are electing directors at the meeting. The annual report shows that the employees have 157 years of service to Columbu Basin and 261 years of total utility experience. was made. "We will not stop water service to anyone who has his home near completion," He bard said, "However, we hope the mayor will not issue any further building permits until the entire system can be reviewed." Mayor Sweeney said that at the last meeting of the council Friday, Oct. 19, a building permit for a new $40,000 home was not refused, but the permit was tabled. City Engineer Steve An derson has plans ready to submit to Mate officials.
