Bessie Wetzell Newspaper Libran
University of Oregon
Eugene. OR 97403
County to build new
administrative offices
Health, accounting and juvenile to have new
home next to courthouse
VOL. 132
N 0. 51 10 Pages
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
Boardman Kiwanis and
county MDT join together to
make blankets for children
Two Morrow County
groups recently banded
together in a holiday project
to keep at-risk children
warm.
On Dec. 9 and 10,
members of the Boardman
Kiwanis and the Morrow
County Multidisciplinary
Team (M D T ) w o rk ed
together to make 16 blankets
for children involved with
the Department of Human
S e rv ic e s (D H S ). The
blankets will be donated to
DHS so they can be given
to children who have been
taken into DHS care.
“ D u r in g o n e o f
o u r m o n th ly M orrow
C ounty MDT m eetings
we discussed how many
o f the children in DHS
care enjoyed the blankets
that have been made for
them,” said Morrow County
D istrict A ttorney Justin
N elson. “ We wanted to
make sure that DHS had an
adequate supply of blankets
to provide to children in
their card, so we contacted
the Boardman Kiwanis to
see if they could assist us
in providing blankets.
“ T he B o a rd m a n
Kiwanis group has a long
history of public service to
Morrow County,” Nelson
continued. “ As a jo in t
venture we were able to
An aerial site plan of the courthouse and the proposed new administrative offices. -Contributed
photo
Pictured are(L-R): Margie Hollandsworth, Justin Nelson and
Mickie Khert working on blankets at Good Shepherd Lutheran
Church in Boardman on Dec. 9. Contributed photo
make a total of 16 blankets
over a two night period.”
O thers involved in
the project, Nelson said,
were Mickie Ebert. Deona
Siex, Jim and M argie
H o lla n d sw o rth . K aren
Dike, Carolyn Carter. Cindy
Isham . C heryl Taylor,
Miranda Taylor and Jane
Pope.
“ B e c a u s e o f th is
hard w ork, th ere w ill
be a co n tinued supply
o f b la n k e ts ,” N elso n
concluded.
The Morrow County
M ultidisciplinary Team
(MDT) is responsible for
reviewing both physical and
sexual child abuse cases,
as well as neglect cases
in Morrow County. It is
part of a multi-disciplinary
te a m c o m p r i s e d o f
r e p r e s e n ta tiv e s from
law enforcement, public
schools, ESD, hospitals,
D o m e s ti c V io le n c e
Services, courts, health
d e p a rtm e n ts , and the
O regon D epartm ent o f
Human Services (DHS).
I he MDT m em bers
w ork in c o lla b o ra tio n
to address the needs o f
children and their families
in M orrow County and
to facilitate a process in
which professionals from
diverse disciplines are able
to work more effectively
and efficiently.
A n y o n e in te re s te d
in learning more about
or joining the Boardman
Kiwanis is urged to contact
Mindy Binder at 541-571-
0817 or kmbinder@msn.
com.
By David Sykes
In a major move to
consolidate county offices
an d s e r v ic e s in one
location, Morrow County
has announced a plan to
p u rch ase three hom es
next to the courthouse in
Heppner, tear them down
and build a brand-new,
10,000-sqare-foot, $1.75
million office complex.
Expected to move into
the new offices are health,
juvenile and other offices
from the Gilliam Bisbee
building, and accounting
and other services from
the annex on Rock Street.
There will also be two
conference rooms that will
be available for public use.
County Judge Terry Tallman
says the entire project will
be funded with money
collected from county wind
projects, and will not raise
county property taxes.
“ Through planning
sessions with accounting,
th e c o m m i s s i o n e r s
determined that the new
adm inistrative building
could be built and fully
fu n d ed th ro u g h wi nd
energy projects funds; this
project will not result in any
increase in taxes,” Tallman
told the Gazette-Times.
Formal announcement
of the project was expected
to be made at county court
meeting Wednesday, Dec.
18. Tallman said deals have
been struck to purchase the
three residences to the north
o f the courthouse. Those
structures will be torn down
and the facility will be
built on that property. Lead
contractor for the project
will be the Pendleton-
based W enaha G roup.
Wenaha Group provides
construction management
and consulting services to
organizations, corporations,
and tribes throughout the
region, and is a certified
Indian-owned business.
Tallman said the company
has committed to use as
much local labor as possible
fo r the c on s t r u c t i o n ,
including sub contracting
when possible. The local
Intermountain Educational
Service District will also
be involved, overseeing
the tear down of the homes
and construction of the new
building.
There are still
details to be completed,
Tallman stressed . The
City of Heppner planning
department will need to
issue a conditional use
permit since the property
is zoned residential, and
purchase of the three homes
should be closed by the end
o f the year. Construction
of the facility is expected
to take about 14 months,
Tallman said.
Tallman stressed that
funding of the new offices
will come from the Strategic
Investment Program, or
SIP agreem ent, an in-
lieu-of-taxes agreem ent
between the county and the
Shepherds Flat Wind Farm,
which brings in $1 million
to the county per year for
the next 15 years.
“This is a very good
thing for the county, and
for South County,” Tallman
-See NEW COUNTY OF
FICES/PAGE TWO
Other taxing districts ask CREZ to split the money
By David Sykes
A representative
o f four Morrow County
taxing districts presented
a proposal at M onday’s
Columbia River Enterprise
Zone (CR EZ) m eeting,
asking that other county
t a x i n g d i s t r i c t s no t
represented on the CREZ
board receive 50 percent of
the future fees collected by
the CREZ.
Larry Mills, Chairman
of the MC Health District
board o f directors, was
making the req u est on
behalf of the MC Unified
Recreation District, MCI ID.
Nort h M orrow V ector
Control and the Oregon
Trial Library District.
Mi l l s p r e s e n t e d a
schedule of proposed taxes
and said that 50 percent of
the funding after meeting
ongoing expenses and prior
commitments of the CREZ
should be distributed to
11 other districts in the
county. The schedule did
not include any money to
Morrow County, the City
of Boardman or the Port of
Morrow because the group
felt these entities have the
opportunity for the other 50
percent of the CREZ funds.
T he C R E Z b o a r d
is m a d e up o f s i x
representatives, two each
from the Port of Morrow,
City o f B oardm an and
Morrow County, and they
decide how the money is
to be spent. The CREZ
guidelines loosely stipulate
that spending is to be on
“ im pacted” districts, or
those seein g the m ost
increase for services as a
New towing business opens
result of new businesses
locating at the Port.
C R E Z f u n d s ar e
collected from businesses
locating in the Enterprise
Zone, which pay the fees
instead o f property taxes.
The zone is a recruitment
tool to attract businesses
and jobs to the Port o f
M orrow and so far has
been very s u c c e s s fu l,
expecting to collect at least
$22 million over the next
15 years.
So far this year the
CREZ board has agreed
to gi ve $ 1 5 0 , 0 0 0 to
Morrow County Education
Foundation and another
$ 150,000 to a housing plan
to entice new workers to
live in Morrow County. The
board will not be receiving
any other funds until next
year.
Mills said a concern of
the other districts is the loss
of coal-fired plant taxes,
estimated to be $3.5 million
per year, that will be going
off the rolls when the plant
closes in 2020.
“This group of small
districts wishes to present
to the enterprise board
members a proposal for
possible distribution of
payment in lieu o f taxes
payments that the enterprise
fund will receive in future
years.
“The group recognizes
that the (coal) plant will not
go completely off the tax
rolls immediately; however,
it appears it will probably
come off the rolls as soon as
the owners can accomplish
-See CREZ FUND DISTRI
BUTION/PAGE TEN
G-T closed for Christmas,
New Year’s
Contributors , advertisers asked to note
differing deadlines fo r those issues
The Gazette-Times will
be closed Wednesday, Dec.
25 and Thursday, Dec. 26,
for the Christmas holiday.
Next w eek’s edition o f
the G azette-Tim es will
be published on Tuesday,
Dec. 24; the news and ad
deadline for that edition
will be this Friday. Dec. 20,
at 5 p.m. Normal business
hours will resume Friday,
Dec. 27.
The Gazette-Times will
also be closed Wednesday.
Jan. 1, for New Year's Day.
c le a r a n c e sale
50 % Oil
Gary Wall* show* off the truck for the new towing business. Martin’s Towing. The business
will offer 24/7 towing and, according to Walls, has been registered with the sheriff for towing
calls. They will take all calls including flat tires, accidents, disabled vehicles and more. Walls
will be operating the business for owner Sam Martin. The company's phone number is M I-
571-4260. - Photo by David Sykes
I
I
a
The news and ad deadline
for the Dec. 3 1 edition will
be Friday. Dec. 27 at 5 p.m.
Normal business hours will
resume Thursday, Jan 2.
We wish everyone a
safe and happy Christmas
and New Year.
treat for feet!
COW BOY KICKERS
A MONTANA 8 2 0 % O ff
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