Image provided by: Morrow County Museum; Heppner, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 27, 1993)
' • "" ' T ' ” 1 --- JL+. , 0 F ssli v.rTr - L Majority favors indoor swimming pool 0 P r-' EUGtNt 0 K HEPPNER 35C azette imes VOL. 112 NO. 4 8 Pages Wednesday, January 27, 1993 Morrow County Heppner, Oregon Kinzua employees donate time and firewood - 3r* . Volunteers and Kinzua Mill employees help load wood to be donated to Irrigon and Board- man Emergency centers Kinzua Mill employees load wood donated by Kinzua into a truck bound for the Irrigon- Boardman Emergency Assistance Center in Irrigon. Kinzua donated around 4 Vi cords of wood and Kinzua employees donated their time. Participating were employees Ivan Bork and his wife. Saundra, Delbert Binschus, Dave Mitchell, Butch Winters, John Tellechea, Lowell Jones, Lloyd Humphreys, Water rights to be discussed Water rights, ditch riders and irrigation districts will be some of the topics discussed at a meeting planned for February 4 at the H eppner Elks Lodge. The meeting, sponsored by the coun ty court, will begin at 1 p.m. A panel of water experts will be on hand prepared to discuss subjects of interest including Larry Parson of the Bureau of Reclamation; Mike Ladd of Oregon Water Resources; Steve Bloom offices of Kottkamp & O ’Rourke; and Dick Cassidy of the U .S. Army Corps o f Engineers. Topics will include water laws, availability of water from the Willow Creek Dam and other issues ranging from minimum stream flows to the formation of a water district. “ Although the county court is not directly involved, we feel that we should participate to the ex tent that adequate information is presented to the irrigators for good management practices and a good decision making process. his wife Lola, and and their two sons, Frank Pearson and Paul Sumner. Bob Taylor, who is retired, also helped out. Assisting from north Morrow County were Don Adams and Matt Doherty. Bids let on sh eriffs Mark your calendar,” said Mor row County Judge Louis Carlson. “ Given the extended drought condition of the past six years, the use of water on the traditional ir The county has let bids for rigated pastures and alfalfa fields renovation of the old U.S. Forest of south Morrow County has Service building in Heppner. The building will house the generated a flurry of interest and in some cases downright an Morrow County Sheriffs office tagonism among ranchers,” and the new emergency manage ment center. Carlson said. Personal invitations have been Morrow County Judge Louis sent to all water users on Hinton Carlson said that construction Creek. Willow Creek and Rhea could begin within the month. The project is funded by the Creek. The meeting will begin promptly at 1 p.m. and is ex Federal Emergency Management pected to end at 4 p.m. Coffee Administration. Once renovations are com will be served. Following the presentations pleted and the sheriffs office time will be set aside for ques moves, Carlson said that the tions and answers. A steering county accountant offices will committee of irrigators will be move into the courthouse base selected by the group or the Mor ment. The judge's and commis row County Water Advisory sioners' offices have already been Committee and will be responsi moved into the outer office ble for analyzing the information formerly occupied by accounting received and make recommenda and administrative assistant tions back to the irrigators for LoRayne Bowman. Their offices future water planning. are in the judge's former office. office renovation Treasure hunt added to St. Pat’s celebration A hunt to find hidden treasure has been added to this year’s St. Patrick’s Day Celebration. Sponsored by the St. Patrick’s Day committee and the Heppner Gazette-Times, hunters will each week find a new clue published in the paper. The clues will lead to a set of Oregon Trail com memorative coins valued at near ly $90. A St. Patrick's Day memento will be hidden somewhere in Heppner, and with each week's clues, searchers will be led closer to the prize. First person to find the memento can turn it in for the coin set. The first clue, and a complete set of rules, will be published in the February 10 issue of the paper. A total of five clues will be published through March 10. A majority of people attending a public hearing Monday, Jan. 25 concerning a proposed swimming pool in the area favored a covered pool located somewhere at the Morrow County Fairgrounds. Only around 20 people attended the meeting. Members of the Exploratory Swimming Pool Commission, stressed that the recommendation is advisory and more public hear ings are scheduled, as well as meetings with engineers, lan downers and the Willow Creek Park District. The commission is a committee of the park district. The fairgrounds may not be available for a swimming pool because of prior committments in a fairgrounds master plan which includes fair and rodeo grounds improvements and a sports com plex and activities center. In a straw vote, the fairgrounds site received nine votes and Hager Park, located by the Willow Creek Dam, received four. Other siting options included Cemetery Hill, on a site owned by the Army Corps of Engineers, Heppner High School, Heppner Middle School, the Lexington ball park and an undeter mined site in lone. None of these options received any votes in the straw poll. Access for children and wind chill problems were concerns in the sites located at higher elevations. Eleven votes were cast favor ing an indoor pool, three for an outdoor pool and none for renovation of the present pool. According to cost estimates released by the commission, renovation of the existing pool would cost around $800 thou sand. Costs for renovation and operating expenses would be 63 cents per thousand assessed valuation. A taxpayer with a $40,000 home would pay $25.20 a year for 20 years. If the present pool were renovated, no diving would be allowed because one section of the pool deck is too narrow for placement of lifeguard stations. The existing dimensions of the pool cannot be changed because the pool is in the floodway. The estimated life of the renovated pool would be around 20 to 25 years, compared to 40 years for a new pool. No wading pool is included in this plan. “ I would not recommend that (renovation of the present pool) to the park district,” said com mission member Mark Pointer of Lexington. Option 2 - A newly constructed 75x44 foot outdoor pool is ex pected to cost in the $1 million range. Cost to the taxpayer for construction and operating ex penses would be around 74 cents per thousand assessed valuation or around $29.60 a year for a homeowner with a $40,000 home. Also included in this op tion is a 20x44 foot “ trainer” or wading pool. The main pool would have a 13 foot deep div ing tank. Operating costs for either option one or two are ex pected to be around $35,000 a year. This pool would also be open three months out of the year. The favored option three - con struction of an indoor pool-is ex pected to cost around $2 million, although, Skip Mathews, com mission chairman, said that costs for different types of covered pools vary greatly. Taxpayers would pay $1.76 per thousand assessed valuation, or around $70.40 a year for 20 years for a taxpayer with a $40,000 home for construction and operating expenses. Operating expenses are estimated to be around $120,000 a year because the pool would be open year- round. The indoor pool would also include a 13-foot diving tank and a 20x44 foot wading pool. Estimated life of this pool would be around 40 years. Meetings concerning the pro posed pool were to be held in Lexington Tuesday and in lone Wednesday. The Willow Creek Park District, which would float the bond issue to fund construc tion and operating costs, includes Heppner, Lexington and lone and extends as far north as Bombing Range Road, encompassing Mor row County south of Cecil. Commission members in dicated at the Heppner meeting that improvements in other areas of the district, for example at the lone pool, would be included in any projects. Commission members said that in addition to a bond levy, they will continue to explore grants and donations. Local Sears store to close M an dead o f self inflicted wound The Heppner Sears Catalog Store will close “ within months” , according to Shirley George, who owns the store along with her husband Kit. Shirley says that they have not yet received notification as to the exact date of the closure. The Georges have operated the store since 1979. The store opened in 1971. The news of the closure of the local store follows an announce ment by Sears and Roebuck Co that it will eliminate 50,000 full Michael B. Hall, 32, Heppner. was discovered dead of a “ con firmed” self-inflicted gunshot wound at his home on Friday, Jan. 22, according to Morrow County District Attorney Earl R . Woods, Jr. Woods said that the weapon us ed was a 30 caliber lever action rifle. Hall was the son of LoRayne Bowman of Heppner and Eldon Hall of Corvallis. No other details had been released at press time. and part time jobs and discontinue its “ big book” catalog, a tradi tion for nearly a century. Sears has said it will close 113 retail stores mostly small to medium sized. The spring 1993 catalog will be Sears last big book catalog but they will continue to accept orders from it until the end of the year. In October Sears reported an $833.7 million third-quarter loss, its first quarterly loss since 1933. New Doliaride van purchased for seniors A new Dodge Caravan van has been purchased as the new Dollaride vehicle for the Hepp ner area. The Dollaride service offers transporation for seniors and han dicapped persons in the area Monday through Friday and delivers meals to the same from the Pioneer Memorial Hospital kitchen on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. This service has been in opera tion since the fall of 1988 when it was initiated by Jane Rawlins with the purchase of a “ 66 Ford Galaxie 500 which has been us ed until the arrival of the new van. Since 1990 the service has been part of the Oregon Special Transportation Fund supported by the tobacco tax. The new van. purchased through a special discretionary grant offered seniors and disabled, offers two wheel-chair stations and meets all legal specifications for senior and disabled transportation. Alternate drivers have includ ed Delta Huber, Shirley Haugen and Ralph Struthers. All are volunteers. Any senior over 60 or disabl- PMH Auxiliary schedules meeting Pioneer Memorial Nursing Home Auxiliary will meet on Thursday, February 4 at 7 p.m. at Kate's Pizza in Heppner. All members are urged to attend. “S. Jane Rawlins (I) and Ralph Struthers show some of the features of the Dollaride van. ed person may request a ride for medical, nutritional, educational, recreational, social or other pur poses by calling the Heppner Senior Center 676-9030 or Jane Rawlins 676-9435. Out-of-town or Saturday transportation is available by calling Rawlins for a special appointment. Meals may be ordered by call ing Pioneer Memorial Hospital 676-9133. Wednesday meals are available from the Nutritional Site Committee 676-9030. There is no charge for delivering meals but a $1 donation is suggested for riders' being picked up and taken to their destination and delivered back home. Two vehicles stolen in lone Two vehicle were reported stolen from the lone area on Tuesday, Jan. 26. The vehicles were a compact pickup and a regular sized pickup. No other details were reported at press time. Bank o f Eastern Oregon Announcing * ... HOME LOAN PROGRAM Rates as low as 7 .2 5 % B* K OF a ste rn C^reqcn Arlington • Heppner • lone )om liitlf/h tiili ii l Homi O i i i i i i I Hunk Member F D I C
