Page Z, THE GAZETTE-TIMES. Heppner, OR. Thursday, Jan. 6. 1977
CBEC aaipQ
2 per cent franchise
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(Continued from Page 1)
agreements, a couple had 3.5
per cent and one, in Creswell,
paid five per cent. He added
that some were two per cent,
including Condon, and that
Gold Beach paid zero fees to
the city.
"We've improved the sys
tem and the rates have gone
up," Sweeney said. Attorney
Bob Abrams told Sweeney and
the council that CBEC's fran
chise proposal of 25 years was
not possible. According to
state statutes, Abrams said,
Students recognized
Two Morrow County stu
dents were recognized on the
Oregon State University honor
roll this week.
Students on the honor roll
had to have earned a 3.5 grade
point average or better on at
of
least 12 graded hours
coursework to qualify.
Michael A. Mills, Heppner,
a sophomore in business and
Catherine C. McElligott, lone,
a freshman in science, re
ceived the honor.
the city could agree to no more
than a 20 year agreement.
The agreement Monday
night, still not voted on as an
official franchise agreement,
was for a 20 year period with a
mandated proposal to review
the franchise every five years.
Abrams also said that Coops
are paying the state three per
cent fees on their gross, rather
than two per cent. "If the state
can get three per cent,"
Abrams said, "I don't know
why we can't get three per
cent."
Also coming up as a com
parison was Carl Spaulding's
Cable TV franchise. Spaulding
pays 3 per cent on a five year
franchise.
Mills maintained that the
Coop is a "local business" that
does a "lot of things for the
community, very willingly."
After listening to both sides,
and being a part of the
Heppner City Franchise Com
mittee, Councilman Rogers
said that though he was at first
in favor of the three per cent,
he would "concur with Cliff
and Larry." ;
Rogers was critical of the
council gaining additional
funds from the taxpayers.
Sweeney said as "council
men, we have an obligation to
protect this community" and
Rogers was quick to add that
"that's exactly the way we're
voting, Jerry."
Robert Jones was also in
favor of the franchise fee
raise, as was newly sworn in
councilman Hubert Wilson.
Wilson said the city should
try to gain funds "where we
can and not through the bud
get. I believe the three per
cent is correct."
Rogers said, "We might get
more with public opinion if
they can believe in us."
Abrams was instructed to
draft a franchise agreement to
be settled on Jan. 17 at a
special public hearing and
supplemental budget hearing
meeting.
Snow hit Heppner to delight of farmers, ch
are very icy.
ildren.
(G
Roads
T Photo)
Justice served?
Criminal pair get
separate sentences
Less than three months
after his partner was sen
tenced to five years in the
state penitentiary, another
Morrow County man has been
sentenced to 30 days. Both
sentences stemmed from the
same incident.
In late July, Rolando Rom
inez Martinez, Irrigon, was
indicted for first degree bur
glary after being caught in
C&H Market in Irrigon.
According to Dennis Do
herty, Morrow County District
Attorney, Martinez and
George Romo Tellaz were to
gether during the crime. The
burglar alarm at the market
went off and the store owner
and Oregon State Police re
sponded. The officers found both
Martinez and Tellez inside the
store room of the building.
They found a back window
that had been forced open. The
duo was found hiding in
restrooms, Doherty said.
Four rubber gloves, one
with a fingerprint of Martinez
on it, and two large screw
drivers were also found.
Both defendants, during
their trials, denied knowing
how they got into the store,
denied knowing the building
was a store, and denied any
knowledge of the gloves or
screwdrivers.
Doherty said the pair said
they couldn't remember any
thing that had happened. They
blamed their loss of memory
on drinking and taking a drug
called Mandrex.
Doherty said the fact that
the two couldn't remember
was interesting since the
window they came through
was four feet off the ground
and boxes in the storeroom
had not been moved. A piece
had been cut from a door.
Doherty said, too, that both
men had been in the store, two
and three times each, the
same afternoon. Store wit
nesses said the pair came in
and bought shrimp cocktails.
They went back across the
street and sat in a neighbor's
yard, directly east of the
window of the storeroom.
They sat there all afternoon,
Doherty said, eating the cock
tails and going back and forth
to the store.
What is even more inter
esting is the jury verdicts in
the two separate cases.
In October, Tellez was found
guilty of first degree burglary
and sentenced to five years in
the state penitentiary. Last
week, Martinez was found
guilty of second degree tres
passing and received the
maximum 30 days in the
county jail.
By Lavon Starr
Irrigation in one form
doesn't always have the
same end result as
irrigation in another
form. Circle irrigation is
bringing prosperity to
the Irrigon area while
its great-grandfather,
canal irrigation, contri
buted to the production
of broken dreams.
Irrigon's surrounding
communities are exper
iencing today what it
has already known. But
perhaps with some dif-
Canal project started Irrigon
ference.
"Around 1909," ac
cording to Batie Rand,
Irrigon pioneer, "Irri
gon's population was
rumored to be in the
two thousand zone."
Farmers were attracted
to the area from the
midwest by the Oregon
Land and Water Com
pany. The company had
taken pictures of al
ready developed land on
the lower Umatilla Riv
er and Butter Creek and
enticed settlers out
west.
A canal project from
the Umatilla River on to
Boardman was to sup
ply the water necessary
to irrigate the 5 and 10
acre lots the company
sold to the settlers,
sight unseen. "Water
running down the ditch
seeped away and very
little made it to the
end," states Max Jones,
the second and only
other'remaining' Irrigon
pioneer. Joiies came to
Irrigon in 1914 to work
on the canal. His job
working with horses
and mules moving canal
dirt lasted three years
from 1914 to 1916.
At one time Irrigon
boasted a hotel, train
depot and newspaper
the Irrigon Irrigator.
The publisher of the
Port of council commended
At least part of the Heppner Common Council is to be commended. ,
We'll be specific: Jimmy Rogers, Larry Mills, Cliff Green and Warren Plocharsky.
We'll excuse Hubert Wilson, a new councilman, because he didn't know any better. But for heavens sake, Mayor Jerry
Sweeney and nine year councilman Robert Jones should think twice about it.
For more than a month, the councilmen have bickered over the Columbia Basin Electric Cooperative franchise. Monday
night, four councilmen went with the voters' choice and retained the two per cent franchise fee. :, ;
Sweeney, Jones and Wilson were in favor of upping that fee to three per cent, even if it meant that CBEC would billback
its constituents. In other words, the voters were going to pay for that extra per cent through their monthly electric bills.
And Sweeney was working hard to sway anyone he could his way.
Rogers was the first to use a little common sense and smart philosophy. Rogers said he'd trade community support and
good public opinion for that reported $1,000 the extra per cent would generate.
Mills said he'd told people the council wouldn't "back-door" 'em with little hidden revenue makers. And, he, and Rogers,,
and Green and Plocharsky stood up for it. '.
Another thing worth mentioning. The CBEC franchise talks were not even listed on Monday night's agenda, even though
the franchise is up in February and the regular January meeting was Monday.
If Mayor Sweeney proposed to let the talks slip and wait until February to get things done, then that's simple
procrastination. If it was the purpose to present a three per cent figure to a council without proper representation from the
other party, CBEC, then that's simple underhandedness. . "'
We commend the four councilmen who stood strong for the voters. The voters said no to one budget and said yes to a
second that had to be chopped.
If they'd wanted to spend more tax dollars from their pockets, they'd have said yes to the first one.
It is good to see that the councilmen were taking the people's wishes to heart Monday night. As Sweeney said at the
meeting, "It is the obligation of this council to protect this community." ' ' ""
Justly done, justly done. wcp
Snow brings good, bad news
The snow is great and even greater when it's melting for farmers in the area. , ;
But drivers should take caution and avoid driving if possible. The roads are slick.
Packed snow on the back streets of town are producing little more than spinning tires now, but it's what's in store that's
scary.
If you don't have snow tires or studded tires, beware of the snowy, icy roads. A little warm wind, a bit of sunshine and a
night of freezing adds up to one thing : hazardous winter driving.
So far, there have been a few minor accidents. One Heppner youth sustained a concussion and separated shoulder when
an evening of sledding turned into a car accident.
Drivers should take note of the road's shape. Take extra precautions, such as looking a little longer both ways. Not many
motorists are looking for a sledder to come darting down the roadway, but it could happen. .; ;
Keep the snow pretty. Let it work its natural course, aiding the farmer with needed moisture. But don't egg it on into
something it wasn't brought here for. ' " wcp
THE " y .bmP
HEPFNEH
GAZETTE-TIMES
The official newspaper of the City
of Heppner and the County of
Morrow.
G.M. Reed, Publisher
Dolores Reed, Co-publisher
Wil C. Phinney, Editor
Published every Thursday and entered as a
second-class matter at the post office at Heppner,
Oregon, under the act of March 3, 1879. Second-class
postage paid at Heppner, Oregon.
paper succeeded in get
ting the town's name
changed from Stokes to
Irrigon combining the
words irrigation and
Oregon.
Unfortunately, the ir
rigation company went
broke by 1907 and in
1915 the corporation
dissolved. The com
pany's failure led to the
farmer's failure. Many
of them had come from
midwestern cities with
little or no knowledge
about farming, much
less irrigation. They
had come with the in
tention of raising fruit
but most of the trees
died from lack of water.
"Seven or eight years
ago I was walking out in
the desert here and
found an old peach and
almond tree with fruit
on them," recalls Jones.
Jones had managed
to acquire 160 acres out
of the 5 and 10 acre lots
of those days. He pur
chased them for $30 a
piece. "Today my son,
who bought me out
some years ago, is get
ting, $3,000 a lot. That's
how times have chan
ged." With the downfall of
the irrigation project
came the dwindling of
population as families
went elsewhere to seek
their fortunes. Aban
doned buildings burned
down and foundations
crumbled back into the
earth. Signs of the
prosperous community
have gradually disap
peared. "It was all just a
lot of speculation," says
Jones. "Just like today
only this time they're
right."
WEATHER
Wed., H L Pct
Dec. 29 34 21
Thurs.,
Dec. 30 31 26
Fri.,
Dec. 31 28 25
Sat.,
Jan. 1 30 24
Sun.,
Jan. 2 26 19 .17
2" snow
Mon.,
Jan. 3 29 20 .02
'V'snow
Tues.,
Jan. 4 30 11
December precipitation was
.36. Normal, 1.38. Prec. for
1976, 11.33. Normal for year,
13.28. 1975 total 12.57. Prec. for
Sept., Oct., Nov., Dec, 1.33.
Normal 4.84.
Western Family
Apple sauce i6
oz.
29
Western Family
Fruit cocktail 17 oz. 37
Tastewell
Grapefruit
sections 16oz. 35
Tastewell
Yellow cling
Peaches cf 1,290, 49
Hi-C
Drinks
46 oz.
498
Western Family
Grapefruit
Waetarn PimSlw
I Bartlett
PearS16oz.
I Pink Grapefrui
I w 1 w 46 OZ.
Nestles
3,or$1.00 Quick 2lb,
Pinic Picnic
t Pork shoulder
roasts
55f8
$1.69l
8J1.00
No. 1
Potatoes 10 ibs.
65
I Turnips, Rutabagas,
Carrots
Pork steaks
Old Fashion
Franks 2 ib.pak
whoh
Fryers ,v"u,e
cut-up
Central Market
19
Prices effective Thur., Fri.f Sat., Jan. 6, 7, 8
6 I
99b I
$1.49
75V
I
1
ts Lroc. 00-70 1 Neai 4
ft r 0 J
Groc. 676-9614