County tax levy up 1.8 percent;
estimated tax rate 6.38/thousand
F r SS
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VOL. 112
L I •
k
NO. 2
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J O
6 Pages Wednesday, January 13, 1993
Morrow County Heppner, Oregon
City council, Willow Creek Country
Club agree on irrigation system
The Heppner City Council and
the Willow Creek Country Club
board have agreed on terms for
irrigation of the Willow Creek
Golf Course with effluent from
the city’s proposed sewage treat
ment facility.
The city had been dumping ef
fluent in Willow Creek until the
Department of Environmental
Quality mandated changes during
low stream flow in the creek dur
ing summer months. The agree
ment follows four years of plan
ning on behalf of the city,
negotiations with various lan
downers and problems with the
DEQ and engineers.
Under the agreement, the city
will pay a one-time payment of
$30,000 to the country club for
use of the grounds for irrigation
for 30 years, until Dec. 31, 2023.
In addition, the city will pay for
installation of automatic irrigation
equipment, parts and electrical
costs for irrigation. The country
club will provide the labor to*
maintain the in-ground irrigation
system.
The city has the option to
renew the agreement three times,
once every 10 years.
The agreement between the city
and the club specifies that the
perimeter of the grounds, and the
area around the clubhouse are ir
rigated with fresh water. After ir
rigation needs of the country club
are met, the reclaimed water will
be used to irrigate the Fred and
Katherine Hoskins place.
It is anticipated that construc
tion on the irrigation system will
begin in late fall of 1993 and in
stallation will take place during
off season. The system will be
designed with a 500,000 to
750,000 gallon storage tank. The
citv estimates that 140,000 to
200.000 gallons of reclaimed will
be available for irrigation daily.
The city learned that the short
fall for funding the project is now
around $300,000. City ad
ministrator Gary Marks told the
council Monday night that an
Oregon Economic Development
grant may be available to make
up $250.000 of the shortfall.
DEQ earlier indicated that they
might grant the city additional
monies to complete the project,
but recently reversed that
decision.
Project cost estimates four
years ago when the project began
were over $1.5 million with a
$932.000 environmental Protec
tion Agency grant and a $625,000
sew er bond. Project cost
estimates are now over $1.7
million. The shortfall was
estimated to be around $240,000
in November. *
New city council sworn in
The Morrow County tax levy
is up $83,704, or 1.8 percent, ac
cording to Morrow County Judge
Louis Carlson.
The projected tax rate for the
1993 year is $6.38 per thousand
assessed valuation based on a
total
county
value o f
$735.000,000, which officials
say is a conservative estimate. If
the total county value is upped to
$745,000,000 the property tax
rate will be around $6.29 per
thousand assessed valuation. The
1992 tax rate was $6.21 per thou
sand assessed valuation.
Based on a tax rate of $6.38 per
thousand
taxes
on a
$40,000 home would be $255 up
around $7 from $248 at the .621
percent tax rate in 1992. A
$400,000 farm would pay $2,552
at a rate of .638 percent com
pared to $2,484 at a rate of .621
percent, a change of around $68.
The total Morrow County
value
for
1992
was
$725,121,370, around $10
million less than the anticipated
value for 1993-94.
Carlson said that the levy in-
includes the “ Allowable” six
percent increase on the tax base.
The total county budget is,
$15,776,478, up around $1
million over the 1992-93 budget,
Carlson said.
Carlson said that “ Everybody
came in with the exact same levy
as last year, except for wages.”
The medical fund tax levy is up
$19,972 from $506,344 to
$526,316, an increase of 3.9
Area students earn
scholastic honors
Laurel Webber-Gray
Heppner High School has
recieved notification that HHS
senior, Laurel Webber-Gray, is
a National Merit semifinalist.
Webber-Gray scored an im
pressive 1420 points out of a total
1600 on her Scholastic Aptitude
Test (SAT). Webber-Gray is the
daughter of Cherry Webber and
Tim Gray, Lexington.
Riverside
High School
students. Marc Evans was a com
mended student in the 1993 Na
tional Merit Scholarship program
and Seth Smythe also qualified as
a National Merit semifinalist.
People for the
Pool to meet
People for the pool will meet
Tues., Jan 19, at 4:30 p.m. at
Kate’s Pizza to discuss current
fund raisers.
Anyone who cannot attend but
is willing to help, please call Theo
G reenup 676-9795, Joyce
Breeding 676-5305, or Kay Pro
ctor. 676-9827.
Council members sworn in by city administrator Gary Marks (I). Back l-r: Mayor Bob Jepsen,
Chuck Holt, Dave Pranger; front Martha Doherty, Kay Robinson, LoRayne Bowman.
Heppner Mayor Bob Jepsen
and council members Kay Robin
son, LoRayne Bowman, Martha
Doherty, Chuck Holt and David
Pranger were swom in at the
regular city council meeting
Monday, Jan. 11.
Jepsen will serve a two-year
term. Doherty, Robinson and
Holt will serve a four-year term.
Bowman and Pranger will serve
the remaining two years on four-
year terms originally held by Rick
Curtis and Amie Hedman. who
were both elected in 1990 for four
year terms.
The term for council members
Bowman. Pranger and David
Allstott will expire Dec. 31,
1994.
Commission appointments
were also made at the council
meeting. The mayor will serve as
chair of the personnel committee
and as a member of the housing
authority board. Holt was assign
ed public works commissioner;
Bowman, budget commissioner;
Pranger, parks and lands com
missioner; Allstott police and fire
commissioner; Doherty streets
and landfill commissioner; and
Robinson housing authority
commissioner.
Jackie Allstott, Larry Mills and
Rollie Marshall were named to
the budget committee.
Camp Fire candy sale begins
The annual Camp Fire candy
sale will be held from January 15
to Feb. 13,, Sally Olson, Oregon
Trail Council regional director,
has announced. Olson said,
however, that the sale may be ex
tended because of bad weather.
Camp Fire Girls will sell
Brown and Haley mints. Almond
Roca and chocolate clusters for
$3 a box.
Olson said that some of the
money from the sale will go
toward local Camp Fire groups.
Camp Fire Camps and some will
help fund babysitting courses.
The local group, with Merry
Brannon as leader, now has
around 32 girls, said Olsen. She
added that in addition to acting as
leader for girls from kindergarten
through high school. Brannon
donates a week of her summer to
act as a camp counselor.
St. Pat meeting
There will be a St. Patrick’s
Committee meeting Tuesday,
January 19. 7 p.m. in the Colum
bia Basin Electric Coop board
room.
The committee is finalizing
plans for the weekend celebration
to be held March 12. 13 and 14.
Anyone interested in helping with
the auction, the parade, the
pageant, the duck or bed race, or
anvthinn else is urged to attend.
percent.
Carlson said that the hospital is
generating more revenue and the
accounts receivable have gone
down dramatically.
The Fair and Rodeo required
taxes are down substantially
around $12,280 from $31,194 for
1992-93 to $18,914 for ‘93-94.
The required road fund taxes
are also down, from $1,907,816
for 1992-93 to $1,891,774 for
‘93-94, a decrease of $16,042.
The county school fund taxes
are down slightly, from $16,847
in ‘92-93 to $16,493 in ‘93-94.
a decrease of $354.
The “ other road district” (a
percentage
paid
to the
municipalities, based on the size
of the road levy and the valuation
of the municipalities) is down on
ly $24 from $82,724 to $82,699.
The increase in county taxes re
quired comes from the general
fund, which shows an increase of
$92,434, from $2,060,129 to
$2,152,563 in ‘93-94.
The total taxes required for the
upcoming year are $4,688,758
minus the $784,892 tax base. The
total taxes required for 1992-93
were $4,605,054 minus the
$740,465 tax base. The tax base
for the coming year will have a
six percent increase over last
year
The one year county special
levy will rise one percent, up
from $3,864,589 to $3,903,866,
a change of $39,277. The general
operating special levy is up .09
percent, a change of $30,305, up
from $3,358,245 to $3,377,550.
The county levy and the
medical fund levy will go before
the voters as separate ballot
measures on March 23.
Top taxpayers for 1992 were
Portland G eneral Electric,
$6,122,188,
down
from
$6,801,535 in ‘91; Idaho Power
down from $881,561 in ‘91 to
$779,074 in ‘92; Pacific Nor
thwest Generating down from
$844,529 in ‘91 to $761,724 in
*92; Lamb Weston, up from
$519,665 in ‘91 to $548,533 in
‘92; Pacific Gas Transmission up
from $258,189 in ‘91 to
$444,621 in ‘92; Boeing Agri-
Industrial, down from $457,685
in ‘91 to $285,805 in ‘92; Kin-
zua Corporation, down from
$470,105 in ‘91 to $222,672 in
‘92; Union Pacific Railroad up
slightly from $196,399 in ‘91 to
$199,927 in ‘92; Heppner
Generating (Kinzua) Co-Gen
Plant, down from $178,842 in
‘91 to $159.763 in ‘92; Eastern
Oregon Farming, down from
$169,842 in ‘91 to $143,044 in
‘92; Taggares Farms, down from
$142,806 in ‘91 to $137,251 in
‘92; Finley Buttes Landfill, up
from $124,361 in ‘91 to
$124,748 in ‘92; Logan Farms
down from $120,999 in ‘91 to
$115,475 in ‘92; U.S. West,
down from $90,616 in ‘91 to
$87,073 in ‘92; and Oregon
Pototo, down from $94,847 in
‘91 to $82,881 in ‘92.
Portland General Electric paid
over 40 percent of the total coun
ty taxes in 1992.
County and communities to
split landfill monies
Half of the $100 to $150 thou
sand generated by fees at the
Finley Buttes Landfill will be
returned to the communities in
Morrow County, according to
Morrow County Judge Louis
Carlson.
Carlson said that the county
will ask that each community
organize a committee to develop
a community plan. Then the
county will allocate the monies,
probably according to some for
mula based on population, he
said.
Carlson said that the money
would do better good if it were
returned to the communities for
a special project than if it were
used to offset taxes,
“ The
real benefit of the program.” he
said, “ is to coax communities to
develop their own community
development plan. The best use
of this money,” he added, “ is for
leverage money.”
The remaining half of the
money will be retained by the
county. Carlson said that it could
possibly be used for a special pro
ject or for regional strategies.
Last year the landfill generated
around $180 thousand. Carlson
said.
Hearings set on swimming pool
The Swimming Poo! Ex
ploratory Comm ission has
scheduled three public hearings in
south Morrow County concern
ing construction of a swimming
pool in the area.
Hearings have been scheduled
in Heppner on Monday, Jan. 25
from 7 to 9 p.m. at the Heppner
Elementary School multipurpose
room; in Lexington on Tuesday,
Jan. 26 from 7 to 9 p.m. at the
Morrow County School District
board room and in lone on
Wednesday. Jan. 27. 7-9 p.m. at
the lone school cafeteria.
Pat Corcoran, a professional
facilitator with the Oregon State
University Extension Service,
will attend all three meetings.
At the meetings the exploratory
commission will share their ideas
with the public and will take
public input.
After the meetings, the com
mission will develop a plan and
will meet with the Willow Creek
Park District Board. According to
commission member and Hepp
ner city administrator Gary
Marks, the plan will include the
greater south Morrow County
area, not just Heppner.
The Heppner swimming pool
was closed the summer of 1991
because of structural problems
and lack of funding for repairs or
operation. Attempts were made to
form a Heppner district for levy
purposes, but formation of a new
district was not allowed because
a district, the Willow Creek Park
District, which encompasses
Heppner, lone and Lexington,
had already been established.
Anticipated costs to build a new
pool are in the $1 million range.
A fund raising committee People
for the Pool, has raised around
$4.300 from various projects and
is selling inscribed bricks which
are to be installed at the pool.
PMH auxiliary to raffle weekend
Pioneer Memorial Hospital
Nursing Home Auxiliary is raf
fling off a weekend at Lake Creek
Lodge. The lodge is located 15
miles northwest of Sisters with
two ski resorts and shopping
nearby. The drawing will be held
Feb. 17. Proceeds will go toward
redecorating the dining room in
the nursing home. Tickets are
available from Tonia Adams.
676-% 16 or Delia Robinson at
the hospital.
The auxiliary is planning
several fund raisers as well as
projects for the nursing home.
The next meeting will be
Thursday, Feb. 4 at 7 p.m. at
Kate’s Pizza. For more informa
tion contact Adams or Robinson.
Bank of Eastern Oregon
Announcing . .
^
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.
HOME LOAN PROGRAM
Rates as low as 7.25%
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