Police officer cut from ‘92-93 budget
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azette
imes
VOL. 111
NO. 12
8 Pages Wednesday, March 25, 1992
One city police position will be
eliminated as a result of city
budget cuts for the 1992-93 fiscal
year. The police cut is in addition
to elimination of the city library
and city pool budgets, forced by
Ballot Measure 5 shortfalls.
Included in the 1991-92 budget
and eliminated from the upcom
ing budget was $23,413 for a
police officer, $25,923 for city
pool expenses, $15,229 for city
library expenses and $5,000 for
the Chamber of Commerce
manager’s salary.
The city will operate with one
less police officer and the pool
and library will be closed. For
mation of a library district, in
cluding Heppner and Boardman
precincts, will come before the
voters this year, but not as a city
issue. The city proposes a hotel-
motel tax to offset the chamber
manager’s salary. Capital outlay
expenditures will also be
eliminated from the general fund.
A fire protection, law enforce
ment and administrative capital
bond issue will come before the
voters in June.
City administrator Gray Marks
said that city employees will
receive a five percent cost-of-
living increase, or, in lieu of a
cost-of-living increase may enroll
in a dental plan.
The city has entered into a con
tract with the county to provide
grounds maintenance services for
the county for $6,000 for the year
and hopes to provide budgeting
services for the proposed library
district for $4,000.
The estimated tax rate of $6.04
per thousand will cost $241.60 a
year for a taxpayer with a
$40,000 home. A person with a
$100,000 home would pay $604
a year in estimated taxes.
The proposed 1992-93 general
fund budget of $372,661 appears
to be up from the 1991-92
estimated budget of $350,241.
But Marks said the apparent in
crease is because of a change in
accounting procedures and the
1992-93 budget is actually 27 per
cent less than the 1991-92 budget.
The '92-93 budget includes
$82,000 in a beginning fund
Proposes new fire hall
lone RFD to drop levy at $90,000 savings
Morrow County Heppner, Oregon
Lilly Sasser celebrates 102 birthday
The lone Rural Fire District is
proposing an operating levy and
a $30,000 capital improvement
levy for the next fiscal year.
However, because the district had
paid off the five year equipment
loan in three years, the directors
are also recommending that the
district drop the final two years
of the special levy at a savings of
$90,000 to lone Rural Fire
District taxpayers. The $90,000
savings includes the $30,000
capital improvment levy.
The district has purchased six
lots next to the Post Office at a
cost of $4,500 as a site for con
struction of a new fire hall. The
proposed four-bay steel structure,
which includes a meeting room
and office, is estimated to cost
around $50,000, which is less
than the cost involved in
rebuilding the existing building,
according to the directors. The
district has $51,000 in its building
fund, after land acquisition and
Pageant to be aired on Channel 3
Did you miss the St. Patrick’s
Celebration’s first pageant ‘Erin
Came to County M orrow ’,
directed by Jane Rawlins with
over 100 county residents perfor
ming? Heppner T.V. Inc. is
bringing it to your living room on
Monday, March 30 at 7 p.m. on
Channel 3. To air the pageant the
company must interrupt USA
Network from 6:30 until around
8:45 p.m. or when the show
ends.
Everyone is invited to tune to
Channel 3 and enjoy an evening
of community involvement from
some great folks with music,
singing, dancing, joking and just
having a good time.
Area schools schedule conferences
Lilly Sasser’s (center) children helped her celebrate her birthday on March 24. L-R Lester
Sasser, Portland; Minnie Miller, Prineville; Lilly, birthday girl; Vernon Sasser, Portland; and
Mary Lee Britt, Lexington.
were able to attend her birthday
celebration. Jack Dean, Lucille’s
husband, was also on hand for the
festivities. Lilly has numerous
grandchildren, several great
grandchildren and one great-great
grandchild.
Mrs. Sasser was a homemaker
and enjoyed having a big garden.
She was active in the Baptist
church and sang in the choir with
her beautiful alto voice.
Mrs. Sasser lived at home and
was still driving until she moved
into the Haven House care facility
in Fossil three years ago.
Spring parent-teacher con
ferences have been set for lone
Elementary school and Heppner
Elementary, Middle and High
Schools.
Parents of lone students in
Kindergarten through fifth grade
will hold conferences on Thurs
day, April 2, all day. Students in
those grades will be dismissed
from school. Students sixth grade
through seniors will have a
regular school day.
Heppner schools will hold con-
ferences Friday afternoon, April
3. Students will attend school in
the morning and will be dismiss
ed at 12:20 p.m. following lunch.
Busses will run at that time.
There will be no kindergarten
classes on April 3 to allow ade
quate time for conferences at that
level.
Parent-Teacher conferences at
all schools are pre-arranged. If
you have questions or would like
to schedule a conference, call the
appropriate school office.
some permit fees, so the special
levy will be for finishing the
building. The building fund is
comprised of funds from Pioneer
Memorial Hospital and from the
first year’s operating budget.
The district has monies remain
ing from the three-year special
levy plus additional monies that
have yet to be collected, which
are expected to be ‘‘more than
adequate for” their present equip
ment needs.
Hermiston man
dies result of
work accident
A Hermiston man, Bob E.
Grotz, 28, died March 22 at the
Port of Morrow as the result of
an industrial accident.
According to the sheriffs
department, Grotz was working
w ith a front end loader in the seed
processing plant at the Port of
Morrow when the accident occur
red around 4:30 p.m.
Forest Service
makes move
The U.S. Forest Service offices
were scheduled to move to their
new location on Main Street in
Heppner beginning Wed., March
25. They expect to have their of
fices completely moved by
Thursday evening, March 26.
An open house is tentatively
scheduled for sometime in May.
HMS sixth graders DARE class graduate
Meeting airs USFS access travel plan
H e p p n e r/
H a rd m a n
March 24, 1992
Special Election
Alternatives range from pro
viding greater motor vehicle ac
cess to closing all but the main
travel routes.
The planning process of
developing an access and travel
plan started over a year ago with
local citizens and officials work
ing with the Forest Service. This
group’s purpose was to represent
a wide variety of public uses.
For further information contact
Don Finley, Heppner Ranger
District 676-9187.
L ex in g to n
A public meeting to disclose
the proposed ‘‘Access and Travel
Plan” of the Heppner Ranger
District will be held Monday,
March 30 at the Heppner Grade
School multi-purpose room
beginning at 7 p.m.
The meeting concerns alter
natives developed by the Ranger
District and a local public group.
These alternatives will be
presented for public comment
before a final decision is made on
the plan.
Irrig o n
Dwayne Carroll, Irrigon, who
was uncontested for Morrow
County School Board director for
zone 2, received 1,376 votes in
the March 24 mail-in ballot. Zone
2 is an at-large position.
James H. Hankins received 555
votes for Morrow County School
District advisory position no. 3,
Boardman and Irrigon. Hankins
was unopposed.
Other unopposed advisory can
didates include Robert Pointer
who received 359 votes for
Lexingon-Ione advisory position
no. 2; Anita Orem, who receiv
ed 319 votes for Ione-Lexington
position no. 1; and George
Miller, who received 354 votes
for Ione-Lexington position no.
5.
In the BMCC directors’ spot,
Joe Green received 1,456 Mor
row County votes for position no.
3 and Tom Able 1.561 votes for
position no. 4.
lo n e
Election results
Mrs. Sasser was born in Lon
don, Kentucky in 1890. She mar
ried Scott Sasser at Mitchell on
March 27, 1910 and moved to
Fossil in 1911. Her husband, who
was the Wheeler County Clerk
for 50 years, passed away in
1964.
The couple had seven children,
Paul and Lucille, both of whom
have passed away; Lester and
Vernon, both of Portland; Min
nie Miller, Prineville and Mary
Lee Britt, Lexington and Lillian
Reedze, Lakeview. All her sur
viving children, except Lillian
B o a rd m a n
Lilly Sasser of Fossil turned
102 Tuesday, March 24 and
celebrated with cake and ice
cream at Pioneer Memorial Nur
sing Home in Heppner.
balance which will be used to pay
bills for the coming year and
$53,700 in transfers which were
previously not included in the
general fund. Monies for ad
ministrative purposes which had
been listed in the street, sewer
and water funds were transferred
to the general fund, where they
were combined and listed as a
lump sum in the administrative
budget. Marks said that this pro
cedure makes the administrative
budget more visible and therefore
more accountable.
Also changed in the 1992-93
budgeting procedures is a move
of payroll costs from the ad
ministrative budget to the area
where the cost is incurred. For
example, $25,500 in estimated
costs for ‘92-93 for police social
security, medicaid, SAIF, retire
ment, death and dismemberment,
health and life insurance,
previously listed in the ad
ministrative budget have been
transferred to the law enforce
ment budget of the general fund.
T o ta ls
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
No
No
No
414
116
1082
183
Shall Morrow County Levy $3,358,245 211
158
319
923
239
80
209
76
Operating Purposes 1992-93?
127
550
1213
166
153
Shall Morrow County Levy $506,344 217
789
266
69
185
201
68
Health Care Operations 1992-93?
164
92
276
720
149
39
Director Zone 6 - Bill Doherty
566
80
355
33
65
33
Director Zone 6 - Edward P. Hiemstra
22
60
314
192
603
15
Director Zone 6 - Don Russell
The first DARE class of sixth graders graduated from Heppner, lone and Irrigon recently
in ceremonies held in their respective cities.
In addition to DARE pledges read by the students, speakers included DARE coordinator
and teacher Morrow County Sheriff's Deputy Steve Myren, Morrow County District Attorney
Jeff Wallace and County Commissioner Raymond French.
DARE is an anti drug and alcohol program taught in the schools.