Heppner gazette-times., June 11, 2014, Page TEN, Image 10

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TEN - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, June 11, 2014
COURTHOUSE DOME
Streets in the area of the courthouse in Heppner will be closed during the lift planned for June
26. -Contributed photo
-Continuedfrom PAGE ONE operation to first remove project, which has been
be put back in place.
The target date for
the lift to rep la ce the
structure will be June 26,
w ith m o b iliz atio n and
prep work to be completed
June 25, subject to weather
co n d itio n s. I f w eath er
conditions dictate, June
27 will be the alternate lift
date.
N o r th w e s t C r a n e
Service was the successful
b id d e r fo r th e c ra n e
and then to replace the
courthouse dome and clock
tower. They will bring in
a 360-ton crane, which
will be set up in the lower
parking lot behind the
courthouse.
Aside from work on the
dome itself, the tower clock
is also being repaired and
renovated. Gary Kopperud,
Master Clock Maker from
Pendleton, has generously
donated his time to this
used as a hands-on teaching
project at Eastern Oregon
Correctional Institute in
their clock-making class.
A fter the dome and
tow er are replaced, the
clock will be replaced and
calibrated. The clock is
being returned to original,
weight driven condition.
Three separate lifts will
take place on the June 26
target date. The first lift will
consist of the tower deck
with pillars and railings.
The second lift will be the
bell. The third and final
lift will be the refurbished
dome with the clock faces.
It will be necessary to
close the courthouse for
the safety of the employees,
the general public and the
contractor. The closures
will be kept to a minimum in
order to continue to provide
services to the public.
Safety zones will be
estab lish ed around the
courthouse and w ill be
enforced, but the public
is encouraged to watch
the process from a safe
distance. There are many
places in town that will
provide a good view o f
the action while also being
outside of the safety zones.
As updates becom e
av ailab le, they will be
provided in the Heppner
G azette-T im es, on the
Morrow County website
h o m e p a g e at w w w .
morrowcountyoregon.com.
and on the ‘Morrow County
Oregon Courthouse Clock
Tower' Facebook page.
A re-dedication
ceremony is planned for
later in the summer, with
the date and time to be
announced.
Monstar winners
announced
The theme for this year's Accelerated Reading (AR) program
was Monstar; each month Monstar AR students who read a
selected Monster book and passed a quiz were entered into
a drawing for a prize package. Winners this month were
(pictured) Kami Holtz, Teagan Ramsey and (not pictured)
Dillan Doyle. -Contributedphoto
Riverside basketball
court receives
Wildhorse grant
PAVING ROCK STREET
-Continuedfrom PAGE ONE extra $24,000 to pave Rock the new court and it will
this with Columbia Basin
E lectric, the com pany
responsible for the cost of
the repairs, and Granite
Paving, it was decided that
with the cost of repairs and
additional money from the
Street Repair Fund, it would
be a better investment to do
an overlay.” Cutsforth said
in her report to the council.
She had to take $24,000
out of the city street fund
to do th e p ro je c t but
emphasized that in the long
run the city would come out
ahead.
Cutsforth said if the
city just did the repairs to
Rock Street instead of the
com plete overlay, Rock
“would just end up looking
like Jones Street in another
three years.”
It
is
widely
acknowledged that Jones
and C h ase s tr e e ts in
Heppner are two o f the
worst city streets needing
repairs.
H eppner citizen Jay
K eith ley asked if the
city had a priority list of
streets needing repair in
Heppner, and C utsforth
acknow ledged there is,
and that Jones and Chase
were high on the list and
that Rock “is way down.”
But she reiterated that
since the paving company
w as in tow n to do the
O regon D epartm ent o f
T ra n s p o rta tio n S perry
S treet paving, it was a
better deal in the long run
for the city to spend the
Street now than repair it.
“ You c o u ld n ’t do
another street for $24,000?”
Keithley asked.
Cutsforth said $24,000
wouldn't normally go very
far in street repair, and that
it would cost $110,000 to
com pletely pave Chase
Street. She said street repair
priority is based on usage
and how many people live
on a particular street.
“ There are a lot o f
people that live on Rock
Street,” she pointed out.
In other street business
Cutsforth said the city was
able to accomplish a lot of
smaller street repair jobs
using excess asphalt from
the Sperry Street paving.
“ The Public Works
D epartm ent stayed late
on these days and used
the left-over asphalt to
make much-needed repairs
around tow n,” Cutsforth
said in her report.
“These paving days
were long days for our
crew both with preparation
for paving and staying to
finish after paving. It is a
big savings to the city to
use up the hot mix for street
repairs, but it requires a
hard-working crew and I
commend them for their
efforts,” she said.
Cutsforth also gave an
update on the new basketball
court going in down by
the swimming pool along
Riverside Ave. She said
the Wildhorse Foundation
provided $10,000 to build
now be turned over to the
Willow Creek Park District
to maintain. She said Dice
C o n stru c tio n w as low
bidder on the project and
expected to pour concrete
by the second week in July.
Cutsforth said cost of the
lighting for the court is also
covered by the Wildhorse
grant, and what is needed
now is h elp w ith the
irrigation and landscaping.
In other business the
council heard a report
that recommends the city
increase the utility rate $1
per month beginning in
2015. At its May 22 meeting
the u tility com m ission
recommended the increase.
Cutsforth said she did not
want to see Heppner get
in the same position as
Hermiston, which put off
raising rates and then had
to do a large $ 10 per month
increase.
“We thought it should
be a $ 1-per-month increase
each year starting in 2015.
That would be an increase of
$ 12 for the year.” Cutsforth
said the $ 1 increase amount
came from, but was not
tied to, the average COLA
or cost o f living increase
re fle c te d in in creased
wages, supplies and other
costs in operating the city
and the water and sewer
system.
The council did not
vote on the increase but
was only inform ed that
the administration wanted
to prepare the council that
they would “start talking
about it next spring.”
In other business the
council revoked a permit for
a Heppner resident to keep a
horse within the city limits.
Cutsforth said there have
been complaints from the
neighbors on South Main
Street and that the Soil and
Water Conservation District
has also expressed concern
since a creek runs through
the area where the horses
are fenced. She said there
are also dust and manure
issues from the horses.
T he c o u n c i l a l s o
approved a request from
Dean Antonucci to keep
chickens in the city limits at
505 N. Gale St. Antonucci
said the project was for his
children's learning and FFA
and to “enjoy the benefit of
eggs.” He said there would
be no roosters.
In other business the
sheriff’s representative on
the council heard complaints
from one council member
about possible drug activity
near Hager Park.
Councilmember Joann
Burleson said she has seen
suspicious activity near the
Little League field under
the dam for quite some time
and asked the police to keep
an eye on the area.
She said the activity
happens around 9:30 p.m.
on certain nights. The police
were also asked to watch
the area around Lovers
Lane Bridge and an area at
the other city park behind
the library.
A new basketball court under construction on Riverside St. in
Heppner (above) has received a boost in funding in the form
of a $10,000 grant from the Wildhorse Foundation. Willow
Creek Park District is managing this project; the low bid for
construction of the project came from Dice Construction. Dice
broke ground the week of May 26, and they expect to pour
concrete by the third week in June. The court will be a concrete
slab, with high-end 72" hoops, lighting, striping, fencing and
landscaping. The City of Heppner will be assisting with the
administration of this project but will not be funding it. This
project has been made possible through volunteer efforts and
community support. -Contributedphoto
C utsforth rem inded
people that the city parks
are closed at 9 p.m. and
people are not supposed to
be in there.
Police report for
May
The Morrow County
Sheriff s Office underwent
a transition to a different
com puter system in the
mi ddl e o f the mont h.
Information from the old
c o mp u t e r sy stem w as
obtained by going through
each call in Heppner for the
month. The new computer
system provides m edia
inform ation in the new
format.
Traffic-
There were eight traffic
stops.
There were three
driving complaints.
MCSO received one
parking complaint.
Code Enforcement-
Four animal calls were
reported.
Deputies worked on
DEADLINE FOR
NEWS AND
ADVERTISING:
MONDAYAT 5 PM
9th Annual Y o u t h
fish in g
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
and Morrow County Parks
eight city code violations
concerning trash and weeds.
A deputy contacted a
residence regarding being
too loud.
Theft Complaints-
A person reported a
theft of a vehicle registration
sticker.
A citizen reported a
phone scam requesting
money.
A deputy investigated
a burglary of a residence.
All Other-
A p erso n r epor t e d
juveniles throwing rocks
in a roadway. A deputy
responded and spoke with
the juveniles. A deputy
assisted a parent with a
child who did not want to
attend school.
MCSO investigated a
harassment case involving
texting.
A pe r s on r epor t e d
a civil issue regarding
property.
There were two false
alarms at businesses.
W e Print
Freí
Letterhead
ft
Envelopes
are sponsoring a F R E E
YOUTH FISHING DERBIÎ
>: Cutsforth Park
Saturday, June 14,2014
Start T im e: 8:30 am
E n d T im e: 11:00 am
For ch ild ren 14 years old and younger
m w warn
Heppner
Address: 58430Willow C reek Rd., Heppner, Oregon
oh
541 878-9228
-
F: 541 1711211
For more information contact Betty Gray at the Morrow County Public Works Office (541 ) 989-8214
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