Council gives tentative “okay” to locating
mental health facility here in Heppner
Plans tour o f Umatilla facility, & public meeting
By David Sykes
1 1 1 1 1 1 1 • a 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 a 11 • 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
Bessie W et/ell Newspaper Library
University o f Oregon
Eugene, OR 97403
The Heppner City Coun
cil Monday was generally
receptive to locating a se
cure mental health treatment
facility in Heppner, however
final judgment w as reserved
until after a planned trip to a
similar facility and a public
meeting to be held on the
HEPPNER
unes
VOL. 127
NO. 29
8 Pages
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
Research project on harmful algal bloom
prevention begins at Willow Creek Reservoir
A research project
focused on preventing harm
ful algal blooms began this
week at the Willow Creek
R eserv o ir near H eppner
announced the U.S. Army
Corps o f Engineers.
Two solar-powered
long distance water circula
tors were placed in the Balm
Fork arm o f the reservoir.
The units draw water from
specified depths and distrib
ute that water throughout
the reservoir. A ccording
to the m anufacturer, this
process mixes the specified
layer o f reservoir, disrupting
blue-green algal habitat and
diversifying aquatic organ
isms within the lake.
Unlike the aeration
system used in the reservoir
in the past, the long distance
water circulators mix only
the top portion o f the res
ervoir, leaving the cooler,
nutrient rich waters found
at depth undisturbed.
T he p ro je c t w ill
stu d y th e e ffe c ts o f an
em erging technology, so
lar-powered long distance
circulation, for preventing
freshw ater harm ful algal
bloom s w ith the goal o f
gain in g accep tan ce as a
management method by the
scientific community. This
is the first year o f a poten
tially multi-year study.
R esearch ers from
Oregon State University and
the University o f Idaho will
study the changes caused by
the long distance circulator
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This is one of two solar-powered long distance water circulators
that were placed in the Balm Fork arm of the Willow Creek
Reservoir. -Photo by Autumn Morgan
treatment in the populations
of cyanobacteria (blue-green
algae), zooplankton, bacte
ria and viruses in order to
understand how the technol
ogy can potentially prevent
hlooms. The study will in
volve genetic characteriza
tion o f the bloom-forming
organisms, using technology
that will replace identifica
tion solely on the basis of
microscopic observation.
The study is a col
laborative effort between
the two universities with
long distance circulators
provided by Solar Bee, Inc.
and in cooperation with the
Corps o f Engineers.
The units float on
the surface o f the w ater and
are anchored directly un
derneath. They are marked
and have light beacons as a
safety precaution. There are
no anticipated recreational
impacts of the study.
H a rm f u i a l g a l
blooms caused by cyanobac
teria affect many lakes and
reservoirs across the US.
They are fueled by excess
n u trie n ts d e riv e d from
sources such as fertilizer
run-off or from manure or
septic system contam ina
tion.
Willow Creek Res
ervoir was chosen because
o f the presence and docu
mentation o f regular harm
ful algal blooms caused by
the toxigenic genera, Ana-
baena, Aphanizomenon, Mi
crocystis and Oscillatoria.
Exposure to toxins released
by these algae blooms can
produce symptoms o f numb
ness, tingling and dizziness
which can lead to difficulty
breathing or heart problems
and require immediate med
ical attention. A dditional
symptoms o f exposure to
toxins include skin irritation,
weakness, diarrhea, nausea,
cramps and fainting.
Articles wanted for annual fair edition
The annual Morrow County Fair is fast approaching. Once again this year the
Heppner Gazette-Times will he putting together a special fair edition. Anyone interested
in writing any fair related articles are asked to turn in those articles by Friday, July 25.
Articles can be dropped o f at the Heppner Gazette-Times or emailed to ed ito rs rapid-
serve.net.
Raport*a cool.
p
g portatole evaporative
evaporati' cooling units
1 6 ” Vi-hp H D Cooling Unit with cart & tank
S A L E : $959.00
36” Belt-Driven Cooling Unit
Sa lt limited to stock on hand
S A L E : $2,000.00
M o r r o w C o u n t y G r a in G r o w e r s
Lexington 989-8221 * 1-800-452-7396
project.
Last Tuesday the council,
along with the Willow Creek
E conom ic D evelopm ent
Group, and members o f the
county court heard a pre
sentation from Rod Estes,
who develops residential
treatment facilities used to
house and treat mentally ill
persons convicted o f crimes
and found “guilty except
for insanity.” Estes talked
about locating an eight-bed
6,200 square foot facility in
Heppner.
The council again dis
cussed the proposal at its
monthly meeting Monday
night, and was generally fa
vorable to the idea because
the facility would give an
economic boost to Heppner,
providing 20 to 24 full-time
positions paying $30,000 to
$65,000 in wages for annual
salaries o f $720,000. The
annual o p erating budget
would be around $960,000,
and construction costs o f
the facility would be $1.2
million, Estes said.
In addition, most supplies
for the facility would be
purchased locally, includ
ing food, medications, and
transportation and gener
al supplies. It would also
strengthen the local mental
health services, increase lo
cal school populations with
more students o f workers,
and generally strengthen the
local economy, Estes said.
The council was polled
at M onday's meeting, and
all in atten d an ce (coun-
cilm e m b er K eith Lew is
was absent), said they are,
at this time, in support o f
the project. The council
said, however, it is going
to reserve final judgm ent
until after a trip tentatively
scheduled for Monday. July
21, to visit a similar facility
recently opened in Umatilla.
A public m eeting with a
presentation from Estes and
chance for questions and
answers from the public is
also being planned, but the
date and time have not been
announced.
Several member o f the
public in attendance at the
council m eeting M onday
expressed support for the
project, saying it w ould
help the local economy and
the schools. No one in the
audience voiced opposition
to the facility.
Umatilla City Manager
Larry Clucas attended Mon
day’s council meeting and
said there have been very
few problems with McNary
Place, the secure facility lo
cated at McNary in Umatilla
which opened in December.
The facility is not exactly
what is planned for Hep
pner, however Clucas said
it has been an asset to the
community.
C o u n c ilm e m b e r John
Bowles, who is also a Mor
row County Sheriff's Depu
ty, said following last Tues
day’s meeting he toured the
facility at Umatilla, talked
to the staff and found the
security to be “impressive”.
Bowles also said the two-
bed crisis respite unit for
local people that is part of
the treatment facility would
be very helpful for the local
community and law enforce
ment. Bowles said that a lot
o f times deputies, who also
provide patrol duties for
Heppner, encounter local
people hav ing mental health
crises and law enforcement
officers really do not have
any place close to take them.
He said the beds reserved
for locals w ould be o f great
benefit.
Mayor Les Paustian said
the facility would be a ben
efit to Heppner, but the city
would have to be compen
sated somehow for the addi
tional city services needed.
"Stable employment from
state jobs would sure help
local businesses," he said.
“ We haven't had anything
like that for a long time."
He added that the city would
need to be com pensated
eith er through increased
taxes or direct payment for
services used.
The facility would re
quire one to one-and-one-
half acres of land on w hich
to locate, and could be lo
cated in a residential zone
without a conditional use
permit. "We will work hand
in hand w ith the community
to find a piece o f property
that works,” Estes told the
council. Although an okay
from the city council is
not “required” to locate a
facility here, Estes said he
wants a general approval
from the community before
pursuing a facility in Hep
pner. A mental health facil
ity recently proposed for
Fossil caused considerable
upheaval in the com m u
nity because it was to house
sexual offenders. The Hep
pner facility will not house
continued page four
Heppner United Methodist
Church welcomes new minister
By Autumn Morgan
Jonathan Enz said he
received his call to the min
istry when he was a senior
in high school, but did not
answer it. In 1991 he heeded
to the call to go into ministry
and now, 17 years later, he
has been appointed as the
new m inister at Heppner
United Methodist Church.
Enz was raised in
p a rs o n a g e s th ro u g h o u t
western Oregon as his dad
was a M ethodist pastor.
After graduating from high
sch o o l, he atte n d ed the
University o f Puget Sound
(UPS) and Willamette Uni
versity College o f Law. He
later passed the bar and be
came an attorney. He served
for four years as an attorney
in the Army with the Judge
Advocate General. He later
practiced business law in
Portland for 17 years.
After answering the
his call to ministry in 1991,
Enz went to San Francisco
Theological School where
he completed the four year
course in two and a half
years. Methodist ministers
are appointed to churches
hy the bishop annually at
conference. In January of
1995 he was appointed to
Philomath United Methodist
Church where he served un
til July o f 2001. He was then
appointed
to Monroe
United
Methodist
C h u rc h .
He served
there until
the end of
June2008,
w hen he
w as a p
pointed to ■,ona,han Lnz
H eppner
United Methodist Church.
“1 like Heppner, the
area and the people,” said
Enz. “We are getting settled
and unpacked and getting to
know people both inside and
outside the church.”
Enz and his w ife
Dorine, who he met at UPS,
have two children and three
g ran d ch ild ren . One son,
David, a police officer, lives
in Molalla. Their other son,
Michael, lives in Framing
ham, MA, and is a professor
o f economics at Framing
ham State College. His three
grandchildren live in Mo
lalla. Dorine is a retired
elementary school teacher
and is hoping to be able to
substitute in the area.
Enz is very active in
community organizations.
He served for four years as
co-chair of Benton County's
Com m ission on Children
and Families. For the last
10 years he has been on the
Oregon Hunger ReliefTask
Force. This is a legislative
task force that was formed
12 years ago to address
the fact that Oregon was
number one in hunger. Now
Oregon is ranked in the 2()'s.
“ Elim inating hunger and
the root causes o f hunger is
important to me," said Enz.
He has also served for four
years on the Oregon Faith
Round Table on Hunger and
has served for the past three
years on the Bishop's Initia
tive to Eliminate Hunger.
“ 1 am looking for
ward to meeting and work
ing with area pastors," said
Enz. “The church (Heppner
United Methodist Church)
will continue to be active in
the community.”
Enz is still an active
member o f the Oregon State
Bar. He is currently looking
for the opportunity to work
on pro bono projects with a
non profit agency.
Free tax preparations available
for those who have not filed
The IRS recently announced that 61 people in the Heppner zip code area have
not filed a 2007 tax return to get their stimulus payment.
Leann Rea will make arrangements to come to Heppner and provide free tax
preparation for those who have not yet filed their 2007 tax return. To make an appoint
ment call 541-481-5922.
ALL NEWS AND ADVERTISEMENT DEADLINE:
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