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About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (May 25, 2005)
TWO - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, May 25,2005 The Official N ew spaper o f the City o f Heppner and the County o f Morrow Heppner GAZETTE-TIMES U S P S 240-420 M orrow C o u n ty ’s H om e-O w ned W eekly New spaper Published weekly and entered as periodical mailer at the Post Office at Heppner. Oregon under the Act of March 3, 1879 Periodical postage paid at Heppner. Oregon Office at 188 W W illow Street Telephone (541)676-9228 Fax (541) 676-9211 E- mail editor a rapidserve net or davidu/ heppner net Web site www heppner net Post master send address changes to the Heppner Gazette-Times, P.O. Box 337, Heppner. Oregon 97836 Subscriptions $25 in Morrow County. $19 senior rate (in Morrow County only; 62 years or older); $31 elsewhere. $26 student subscriptions David Sykes ............................................................................. Publisher Katie Foster .................................................................................................... Editor News and Advertising Deadline is Monday at 5 p m For Advertising advertising deadline is Monday at 5 p m Cost tor a display ad is $4 90 per column inch Cost for classified ad is 500 per word Cost for Card of Thanks is $10 up to 100 words Cost for a classified display ad is $6 50 per column inch For Public/Legal Notices public/legal notces deadline is Monday at 5 p m Dates for publi cation must be specified Affidavits must be required at the lime of submission Affidavits require three weeks to process after last date of publication (a sooner return date must be specified if required) For Obituaries Obituaries are published in the Heppner GT at no charge and are edited to meet news guidelines Families wishing to include information not included in the guidelines or who wish to have the obituary wntten in a certain way must purchase advertising space for the obituary On the HEPPNER WEBSITE: www.heppner.net • Start or Change a Subscription • Place a Classified Ad • Submit a News Story • View Real Estate for Sale • City Council & Planning Minutes • Local Businesses • County Park • Willow Creek Park Reservations • Free Digital Postcards • Senior Housing • and more! Health District has largest loss since August The Morrow County H ealth D istrict posted a $102,614 loss for the month o f April, almost three times the loss ex p erien ced in M arch, and the board o f d irectors was told at its monthly meeting Monday night The loss is the largest since August o f 2004. The d eficit was blamed on a drop in patient revenue of over $67,000 at the district’s clinics and the hospital. Operating expenses were down slightly from last month, but not enough to offset the drop in income. The district has an average loss o f $30,733 per month so far this year In a som ew hat related matter, the board 'ifi&tissed complaiHts board members have heard in the com m unity about the difficulty getting into see doctors at the clinic. District Administrator Victor Vander Does said he would examine the problem and come up w ith som e p ro p o sed solutions at the next board meeting The board also heard a report that Dr Sam Datta’s w ife has co m p leted her schooling back East and will be returning to the area as a partner at Blue Mountain Pathology in Pendleton Dr Datta, who lives in Heppner and sees p atien ts at the clinic, has said he wishes to relocate to the Hermiston area but still see patients at the Heppner clinic He has indicated he wants to see p a tie n ts M onday and Tuesday in Heppner and also take emergency calls at the hospital. Vander Does asked the board to extend Datta’s contract for 30 days to work out details o f the days to be worked. Nazarene Church to host Bible study on Israel The H eppner N azarene Church will be hosting a four-week Bible study video series entitled, “Israel in Crisis: What Lies Ahead?” The video series is based on a book o f the same title by David Dolan. The study will begin Wednesday, June 8 at 6:30 p m , with each session expected to last one hour. The study will conclude on June 29. D olan, born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, is a Jerusalem- based author and broadcast jo u rn a list w ho has been living in Israel since 1980. Dolan uses his “first-hand perspective” to answer some fundam ental q u e stio n s co n ce rn in g Is ra e l’s reappearance on the modern world stage Some questions Dolan visits include: Will the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem be rebuilt; Will the missing Ark o f the C ovenant be found; Is Israel’s physical re birth really connected to Biblical prophecy and/or God; What about Jews living in the contested territories; Does the Bible have anything to say about them settling there; and If so, is it relevant to what is happening in the disputed zones today0 Dolan also discusses B iblical p ro p h ecy as connected to the Jewish Holocaust o f World War II This study is open to all in te re ste d in the com m unity. For m ore information you can contact the H eppner N azarene Church at 676-5529. Stone moving to Heppner High School principal job Letten to the Editor Editor's note: Letters to the Editor must be signed. The Cazette-Times w ill not publish unsigned letters. Please include your address and phone num ber on all letters for use by the G-T office. The C-T reserves the right to edit. T h e C - T is not responsible for a c c u r a c y o f statements made in letters. (Any letters expressing thanks w ill be placed in the classifieds under "Card o f Thanks" at a cost o f $10.) Rent raise was not an easy decision To the Editor: The le tte r to the Editor in the May 18 Gazette really u p set me I have listened as my husband and o th e r H eppner H ousing Authority members agonize over having to raise the rents on the H eppner Senior Center apartments. Believe me, no one thought having to raise the rent was funny and no one was uncaring about the plight o f the current tenants. These Board members do this work as volunteers, out o f a sense of duty to the community and do not receive one cent for th e ir tim e and effort. I believe it is time people ed u cate th em selv es reg ard in g ev en ts in the community and attend the meetings that are open to all citizens, so that they know first hand what the facts are Gossip is a vicious hurtful thing. On June 29, 1988, the City of Heppner and the H eppner Senior C itizens C en ter B oard, Inc., an Oregon non-profit charitable corporation, entered into a contract stating the terms of the purchase o f the Heppner H otel by the C ity o f Heppner The contract states the role o f each entity and methods o f paying for the conversion o f the Heppner Hotel into apartments on the upper floors and leasing back to the H eppner Senior Citizens Center Board, Inc., the 4650 square feet o f the main floor that the Senior Center Board still manages It also states the purpose for the building is to be for the benefit o f sen io rs and disabled; there is no mention - o f “low income” persons. The City has named the H eppner H ousing A uthority B oard to supervise the apartments and adjacent public areas and to work with the Senior Center Board for the main level o f the building The H ousing Authority Board is charged with setting the rents in the apartments and their public areas at a rate that there is no expense to the City That is a part o f that original contract. The “non profit” statem ent in the Heppner S en io r C itizen s C en ter B oard, In c .’s p ap ers o f in c o rp o ra tio n is still honored The City does not make any money from the building However, by the co n tract, the City is not allowed to pay for anything over and above the income The tenants receive much for their rent A secure, clean b u ild in g , th e ir electricity is paid and that includes their heat and air conditioning Their water, sewer and garbage are also in clu d ed in th e ir rent paym ent A nd, w hen something doesn’t work a call b rings re p a irs and maintenance people June 1, 2005 the rents will be $371 to $424, based on apartment square footage. This is only the second rent raise that I could find since the building opened The City now has no choice but to raise rents because the Reserve Fund to pay fo r re p a irs and m aintenance is now very low. They must maintain a R eserve Fund to handle unforeseen emergencies. It c o sts nearly $5000 to refurbish an apartment when someone moves out. Have you checked the cost to recarpet or lay new linoleum, replace countertops or paint and the cost o f the labor to have the work done? The ro o f is also having a problem, with a leak in one o f the apartments and the man hours to find the leak is expensive. The money from the rent raise will go into the Reserve Fund for all o f those things and more Please know that I feel very badly fo r the tenants who are having a problem with paying the additional monthly rent. (s) Jeanette Padberg Heppner To the Editor: This is a letter o f apology to the Heppner City Council In my le tte r last w eek, I a d d ressed the council and learned later my q u e stio n s and co n cern s should have been addressed to the Housing A uthority Board Most o f my questions have been an sw ered It seems that the rent will be raised There is no way for this to be prevented The board has considered all the options, I was told Also, what was said in the meeting was said. But it was explained to me that things were said in haste and w ith o u t th in k in g I can understand that We all say Daye Stone moving to Highs School principal job ■ ToyetAer je n a f/cnrsctt toi/A/ tAe/r Jbarenfa, <C- ftftezjamin jííc¿>//újott in vito ^tyoa to jo in tAem in tAe cc/eAration o f tAeir union < faturjqy, < ft rftne. 4 at / f.m . fßatricA i (fAuircA in ff t jjo e s tâeocfbtion t o f j/o io at fAc fFairqm rtnjx things on the spur o f the moment that we regret I am still concerned that some o f the people will not be able to pay the ad d itio n al ren t. Tw enty dollars a month additional expense would be hard on our budget But, it seems that the apartments were not intended to be low rent apartments So, C ity C ouncil, you have my apology. I hope I have not inserted “foot in m o u th ” again w ith something I have written in this letter, because I sure don’t like writing apology letters, (s) Ruth Donohoe Heppner Rent increase upset tenants & families To the Editor: Heppner, we need to be c o n cern ed ab o u t the residents o f St. P atrick’s Senior Center apartments. Recently they were notified that their rent was being increased by $20, effectiv e June 1, 2005. According to the minutes o f the H ousing A u th o rity B oard, w ho m ade this decision based on the city m anager’s report that they were going behind $1500 a month and it would take an in crease o f $78.95 per m onth, based on full occupancy. It was voted on and passed that the rent would be increased every six months until the sum o f $80 increase was reached and a letter would be sent out to ten an ts. (T he add itio n al in creases w ere not mentioned in this letter.) The m otion was carried by a unanimous vote Som e . o f the residents and their children met and approached the board, the city manager and the mayor. They explained that an increase in rent would force some o f the tenants to move out, since being on a fixed income left them no room for increases The affect this is having on them cannot be counted in dollars. Many m oved to the C e n te r’s apartments thinking it would be their home as long as they could live independently, yet be near their families. Living with their children or 60 miles or more away from Apartment tenant expresses concern their families was not part of their plan. However, that is regarding rent hike what is facing the fortunate ones who even have a family, To the Editor: Here are few of their now. No matter what our suggestions to us: After looking into age, we like to maintain 1. ) Sell your car. the You financial dilemma o f the some pride and a lot o f d o n ’t need it You have Housing Authority, we, the independence. But now everything you need- post that’s even being threatened office, grocery store, drug The powers that be store, bank, great doctors, are raising the rent at the wonderful town Senior Center In fact, it will 2. ) Get the extra be so high before they get money from your kids. They through that we w on’t be would do it, but you really able to afford to live here don’t want them to have to Our “ set income” is being Independence again “upset.” 3. ) You need to budget your money better Let’s see, $700 minus $800. lone Community Church How does that work? 43rd Annual 4 ) You can’t move, Auction and Barbecue you don’t have any place else Something for everyone! to go Whatever happened to Saturday, June 4, 2005 respect your elders? Willows Grange Hall lone, Oregon (s) Bonnie Gates Country Store and Heppner Silent Auction. 10 a m. AUCTION. 10:30 a m Pit Barbecue Dinner 12:30 p.m. Daye Stone, vice-principal o f Heppner Grade School, will be moving up to take over the job of Heppner High School principal Stone will be taking over the job vacated by Wade A Smith, who is moving up to be Morrow County School District Assistant Superintendent “My wife and I have enjoyed living and working here in Heppner and we look forward to my new position as high school principal,” Stone said Apology to the City Council families, found that the loss was due to fo u r em pty apartments since November o f 2004. So, the increase is to make up for the empties. A lthough the apartm ents were originally budgeted to run with three empties. (One has filled since November.) The city m anager arg u es th at th ere is m ain ten an ce th a t could re q u ire ad d ed fin an cial burden The ro o f and the heat pumps being the ones he was concerned about. In 2000, the Housing Authority b o rro w ed $1 5 0 ,0 0 0 to spruce the place up and those items didn’t seem to be in their plan. The Board has, acco rd in g to th eir A pril fin an cial sta te m e n t, $21,017.54 in the C enter fund and $8972.41 in the reserve fund and $12,000 budgeted in a contingency fund. We suggested that the $80 rent increase be applied to the empty apartments and the tenants rent stay the same until th ey m oved o u t Allowing the Board to see if the apartments would rent at the increased amount and keeping them from having added vacancies, which is a real p o ssib ility . O ur suggestion was ignored and when faced with having even m ore v a can cies, the response to the tenants was that they would just “close the doors ” U n fo rtu n ate ly , it may be too late when this does happen. As a community we need to put our heads together. If you have any suggestions, please contact Corol Mitchell, 676- 5596, Linda Schultz, 676- 5010 or Joann Weisler, 676- 8702. (s) Corol Mitchell Linda Schultz Joann Weisler Heppner
