Data company looks at industrial park
By David Sykes
1 1 1 1 • 1 1 1 a • i • 1 1 1 111 > 111 ■ 11 • 1 1 • 1 11
Bessie W et/ell Newspaper Library
L ni V ersi tv o f Oregon
Eugene, OR 97403
A California com
pany that sp ec ia liz es in
locating data centers has
signed an option to lease 25
acres o f ground at the South
Morrow Industrial Park out
side of Heppner, the Port o f
Morrow has announced.
The follow ing ar
ticle about the lease option
appeared on the “ Data Cen
ter Know ledge” web site, a
site that is a leading source
o f daily news and analysis
about the data center indus
try: A CDH California data
center consultant, CDH Con
sulting, has leased 25 acres
o f land in a business park
in Morrow County, Oregon
w ith plans to develop a data
center project. The vacant
land in Heppner, Oregon is
w ithin the Port o f Morrow
and could receive afford
able electric pow er from
the Columbia Basin Electri
cal Cooperative. The CDH
site is about 50 miles from
Google’s data center cam
pus at The Dalles, Oregon.
Chris Hardin, president
of Santa Clara, Calif.-based
CDH, told local officials that
he is in talks with clients
about building a data center
project that could involve
an investment o f $ 100 mil
lion. “ It's very p re lim i
nary,” Hardin said, adding
that “w e've identified some
key factors. This particular
site has a high percentage
o f those q u alificatio n s.”
Jerry Healy, general
manager o f Columbia Basin
Electric Cooperative in Hep
pner, told local media that
Heppner isn't the only place
in Oregon where corpora
tions are seeking to estab
lish data centers. “Oregon
has probably the ch eap
est power structure on the
West Coast,” he said, “and
that’s why they're looking
in Oregon. We'd certainly
like to see an opportuni
ty like this in H eppner."
CDH has a one-year
option on the site, which is
located in the Port o f Mor
row. The land leased by
CDH was previously part
o f the Kinzua Mill logging
operation, and has fiber con
nectivity from Windwave
Communications.
Employment at
the facility could vary from
25 to 100, H ardin said,
w ith the building occupying
150,000 to 200,000 square
feet.
Hardin said if con
structed the facility could
house a call center, customer
service cen ter, te le c o m
munications center or data
center.
US Army Corps of Engineers hold public hearing
regarding Willow Creek Lake
purposes. He said irrigators
75 that under the lake's orig- have not taken advantage of
The US Army Corps inal operating instructions the water until several years
o f Engineers held a public 3,500 acre feet o f water
Continued on page S
hearing in H eppner last were allocated for irrigation
week to discuss the plan to
make long term agreements
to release 2,500 acre-feet of
water from Willow Creek
Lake each year for use in
irrigation o f farm land down
stream from the dam.
S in c e p ro p o se d
in November the plan has
caused controversy in the
community with irrigators
saying they need the water
and recreationists fearful the
drawdown will harm fishing
and other recreational activ
ity at the lake.
The Corps of Engi
neers was asking for public
comments on the proposals
when it received enough
written comments (60) that
it decided to hold a public
hearing in Heppner to ex
plain the proposal.
Taylor Kem pas of Heppner hustles to get the hall
Tim Kuhn, project Senior
from a C hiloquinn Queen. The Mustangs advance to Pend
manager o f the lake was on
leton, beating the Queens 66-39. The Mustangs took on San-
hand and told the crowd of tiam todav at 3:15 in Pendleton. Photo by Sandy Matthews
Bv David Sykes
Heppner girls continue
on in bid for state title
VOL. 127
NO. 9
8 Pages
Wednesday, February 27 2008
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
Heppner Juvenile Department names new director
By Autumn Morgan
The Heppner Juve
nile D epartm ent recently
added a new member to their
workforce. Tom Meier from
Pendleton recently stepped
in to take the position o f
juvenile director. Meier took
on the position vacated by
Carolyn Holt who retired
from the position in January
after 35 years o f service.
Meier, who is from
Pendleton, worked for 13
years as a probation officer
in Umatilla County and for
the- last year has worked
with the child welfare sys
tem. Meier, who has a bach
elor's degree in history from
Whitman College in Walla
W alla, said he stum bled
into this line o f work right
out o f college. After gradu
ation, he started working in
the juvenile detention center
in Pendleton and has been
working with some aspect
Tim Meier
o f the juvenile system ever
since.
M eier said he was
initially worried about how
smoothly his transition from
w ork w ith child w elfare
and as a probation officer
would go. But he said he
was pleased to learn that he
would basically be doing the
same job he did before as a
probation officer but is also
acting as an administrator.
“This job works hand-in-
hand with the child welfare
system in many different
ways,” said Meier.
Meier said that Mor
row County is one o f the
few counties in Oregon in
which the juvenile director
also acts as the probation of
ficer. He said he was initially
surprised at the differences
between how problems are
handled here as compared to
other counties. “Not much is
dismissed here in Heppner,”
said Meier. “ We handle the
s tu ff big co u n tie s d o n ’t
handle. We don't specialize
with one aspect, we deal
with everything and it keeps
us busy. Carolyn (Holt) built
good partnerships with the
police, courts, schools, at
torneys and counselors.”
M eier’s wife Heidi
is employed with the O r
egon Youth Authority and is
based out o f Pendleton.
Let’s hear it for the girls!
Ilcppner fans, Jared lledman and Daniel Jeffreys join in with the band to keep the spirits
high at the Heppner game last Friday in Heppner. Photo by Sandy Matthews
ALL NEWS AND ADVERTISEMENT DEADLINE:
MONDAYS AT 5:00 P.M.
NAPA FILTER SALE
M arch 3 rd - 8 th
,
Lexington B oardm an and U m atilla stores
Morrow County Grain Growers
Lexinqton 989-8221 • 1-800-452-7396
For farm miilDment. visit our wfb sit* at www m e « net
Health district sets timeline for remodel
proposals to accommodate long-term patients
By April Sykes
M o rro w C o u n ty
Health District CEO Victor
Vander Does, at the regular
board m eetinga M onday
night in B oardm an, p re
sented the board a timeline
for requesting and receiving
proposals for the planned re
model ing of Pioneer Memo
rial Hospital to allow for the
care o f long-term patients.
The hospital has not pro
vided long-term care since
the closing o f the nursing
home several years earlier.
Vander Does said
that the rem odeling proj
ect will be advertised in
several media on March 5;
a pre-bid walk-through is
planned March 10; bids will
be opened on March 24;
and recommendations will
be presented to the board
at their next regular meet
ing March 31. Documents
are available for viewing
at several locations around
the state.
Vander Does said
that when the long-term care
rem odeling is com plete.
Pioneer Memorial may also
accept Alzheimer’s patients
in addition to other long
term care patients, however
their admission will he on
a case-by-case review, de
pending on the level o f
care the facility is able to
provide.
Also at the meeting,
board members came to a
consensus that the district
w ill most likely seek a bond
measure to allow the district
to continue to “prov ide qual
ity care” for its patrons. Dis
trict Chief Financial Officer
Nicole Mahoney had ear
lier projected the district’s
long-term financial outlook,
which showed that the dis
trict will require passage
o f another bond measure
to provide up-to-date care.
The board's goals include
expanding the Irrigon Clinic
and continuing to provide
funding for the Boardman
community clinic, in addi
tion to remodeling Pioneer
Memorial Hospital. Vander
Does and board members
stressed that they have to
continually upgrade tech
nology, equipment and fa
cilities to provide the best
possible care. The district
also now pays fora full-time
param edic in Irrigon and
two full-tim e param edics
in Boardman. Vander Does
and board Chair Larry Mills
also noted that the district
will continue to require a
subsidy if they continue to
take Medicare, which does
not reim burse at the dis
trict's rate.
The board agreed
that they would not pursue
a voters' survey to indicate
how patrons may vote on the
issue because o f the survey
cost. Vander Does said that
the district can, however, put
out facts concerning the ser
vices the district prov ides.
In other business,
the board:
-learned that the dis
trict lost $35.598 in Janu-
ary with $450.706 in gross
patient revenue and $531,
141 in total operating ex
penses, with an additional
$17,818 in other funds. In
December the district had
$450,998 in gross patient
revenue and $473,734 in to
tal operating expenses with
an additional $17,402 for a
$68,275 gain.
-receiv ed the fo l
lowing report: In January.
Pioneer Memorial Hospital
had 426 patients with 16
new patients and 51 seen
by a nurse; Irrigon Clinic
had 202 patients with 29
new patients, 36 seen by
a nurse and II no-shows,
which may be attributed to
the several weather; Hep
pner A m bulance had 19
page-outs with 15 transports
for $14,684 in revenue;
Boardman Ambulance had
21 page-outs w ith 10 trans
ports for $9.785 in revenue;
Irrigon Ambulance had 23
page-outs with 16 tran s
ports for$ 14.028 in rev enue;
there was one flight; Pioneer
Memorial Hospital had five
admissions, three sw ing bed
admissions, 15 admitted for
observation, two admitted
for respite care, 355 outpa
tients, 70 emergency room
encounters, 1460 lab tests.
102 x-ray procedures. 26
CT scans. 23 EKG tests.
2 19 respiratory therapy pro
cedures; Home Health had
166 visits; Hospice had one
adm ission; pharmacy had
1320 drug doses for $51.713
in drug revenue.