HEPPNER
G T
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azette
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VOL. 134
NO. 31
8 Pages
Wednesday, August 19, 2015
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
County court shows resolve
concerning wolves, right to
bear arms
By Andrea Di Salvo
Morrow County Court
signed two resolutions last
month concerning issues
close to the hearts of many
Eastern Oregon residents.
The resolution R-2015-
10, in support of Second
Amendment rights, was
signed in response to the
passing of Oregon Senate
Bill 941.
Senate Bill 941 was
enacted during the Oregon
Legislative Assembly’s
2015 regular session and
signed into law by Gover-
nor Kate Brown. It went
into effect on Sunday, Aug.
9.
According to the bill’s
summary, SB 941 “Re-
quires private person to
complete transfer of firearm
by appearing with trans-
feree before gun dealer
to request criminal back-
ground check or shipping
or delivering firearm to gun
dealer in certain circum-
stances. Specifies excep-
tions for family members,
law enforcement, inherited
firearms and certain tem-
Boardman County fair is ‘shear’ to be a good time
renames
street for
Umatilla
Electric
CEO
At their last council
meeting, Boardman City
Councilors unanimously
voted to pass a resolution
renaming a street after
Umatilla Electric’s Chief
Executive Officer Steve
Eldrige.
Building is already un-
derway for Umatilla Elec-
tric’s new operations cen-
ter on Puskarich Avenue,
which prompted the name-
change request. Puskarich
Avenue will now be NE
Eldrige Drive.
In the resolution it
states Steve
Eldrige
has had a
significant
presence to
the growth
of
the
Steve Eldrige Boardman
area with
his service as an engineer
since 1972 and as the CEO
of Umatilla Electric Co-
operative since 1990. It
also states Eldrige has an-
nounced his retirement in
2016.
The city recognizes
the capital, personnel, and
operational investment by
Umatilla Electric Coop-
erative’s construction of
the operations center in
Boardman for continued
economic development.
Currently there is only
one other business on NE
Eldrige Drive, which was
notified of the street name-
change request.
In other city business,
councilors saw a presenta-
tion of the police depart-
ment’s new body cameras
and Tasers.
Also, the council ap-
proved the city manager to
sign the closing documents
for the sale of city prop-
erty to Love’s Travel Stops,
which is expected to close
on Aug. 6.
The next meeting of
the Boardman City Council
will be Tuesday, Sept. 1, at
7 p.m. in the Boardman City
Hall Council Chambers.
Morrow County Fair and Rodeo Queen Macy Gibbs and brother Keegan Gibbs get in some last-minute preparations as they
shear a sheep Monday night before fair while Shane Rodriguez looks on. The Morrow County Fair and Rodeo will take place
Wednesday through Sunday, Aug. 19-23; see more photos PAGE EIGHT. -Photo by Andrea Di Salvo
Canyon Creek fire continues to threaten
Grant County
JOHN DAY, Ore.–With
so much smoke in the air,
it’s sometimes difficult to
tell where it’s coming from,
and whether it’s close to
home or farther away. How-
ever, it’s a safe bet that
much of the smoke hanging
over Morrow County right
now comes from the Can-
yon Creek Complex fire in
Grant County.
The Canyon Creek
Complex is currently es-
timated at 43,738 acres. It
was started Aug. 12 by a
lightning strike just south
of John Day and Canyon
City. So far it has threatened
more than 500 structures
and destroyed more than
50, 26 of them homes. At
the last update prior to press
time, it was still considered
0 percent contained.
It’s also not only a big
deal to locals; officials say
it is the number-one prior-
ity nationally for resources.
Additional firefighting re-
sources continue to arrive
from around the state and
country. Approximately
561 firefighters are current-
ly assigned to this incident
and more arrived Tuesday
to assist.
Monday firefighters
constructed and improved
fireline in the north. They
also focused on the south.
Structural firefighting crews
worked directly around
homes, while air resources
dropped retardant and bull-
dozers cut a line to slow
the spread of fire. Several
homes were saved due to
the direct action of fire
crews.
Tuesday evening at
5:30 p.m. a community
meeting was held at Grant
Union High School’s old
gym with incident com-
manders, fire crews and lo-
cal officials will be on scene
to provide information.
Several communities
are under Level 3 and Level
2 evacuations. An Ameri-
can Red Cross shelter has
been established at the Mt.
Vernon Community Center.
The Red Cross is tran-
sitioning to providing finan-
cial and relief services for
displaced residents. Those
Free Talking Rock tour this
Saturday
The City of Heppner is
inviting everyone for a free
bus tour of the town’s Talk-
ing Rocks after the Morrow
County Fair and Rodeo Pa-
rade this Saturday, Aug. 22.
Participants who want
to learn more about the
community’s history are
asked to meet in front of
Heppner City Hall at 11:30
a.m. The tour is expected
to last approximately one
hour.
For information, call
541-676-9618.
Right: History buffs are invited to hop on board for a free bus
tour of Heppner’s Talking Rocks this Satruday after the fair
and rodeo parade. -Contributed photo
ALL NEWS AND ADVERTISEMENT DEADLINE:
MONDAYS AT 5:00 P.M.
Fire operations Tuesday on the Canyon Creek Complex in-
cluded protecting a powerline on the west side to avoid dam-
age and interruptions to service. -Contributed photo
wishing to make monetary
donations on behalf of dis-
placed residents can contact
the American Red Cross
Mountain River Chapter
at redcross.org/cascades
or in person at the shelter
located on Ingle Street in
Mt. Vernon.
Closures
ODOT crews are cur-
rently working on U.S. 395
between Canyon City and
Seneca, which has been
closed since Aug. 13 due
to the Canyon Creek Com-
plex fire. Numerous signs
and guard rail posts need
to be replaced along the
fire-damaged route, and
over a hundred hazard trees
removed. Falling rock and
debris due to fire-related
erosion issues is another
key safety concern that
ODOT says crews must
attend to. ODOT plans to
open the route by the end
of the week, with some
limitations.
An emergency fire
closure is in effect in the
Strawberry Mountain Wil-
derness area. A copy of the
closure order and map is
available at http://inciweb.
nwcg.gov/incident/4495/.
Forest Service personnel
have assisted with escort-
ing campers and other rec-
reationalists out high-use
areas, coordinating with
Grant County Sheriff’s Of-
fice and other local agencies
to facilitate the closure.
Fire activity will likely
have some effect on hunt-
ing; for more information
contact http://www.dfw.
state.or.us/resources/hunt-
ing/.
Additional informa-
tion on the Canyon Creek
Complex can be found on
-See CANYON CREEK
FIRE/PAGE TWO
porary transfers. Punishes
violation by maximum of
one year’s imprisonment,
$6,250 fine, or both, or
maximum of 10 years’ im-
prisonment, $250,000 fine,
or both, for second or sub-
sequent offense. Authorizes
Department of State Police
to notify appropriate law
enforcement agency when,
during criminal background
check performed prior to
transfer of firearm, depart-
ment determines that recipi-
ent is prohibited from pos-
sessing firearm. Authorizes
court to prohibit person
ordered to participate in as-
sisted outpatient treatment
from purchasing or possess-
ing firearm during period of
treatment if certain criteria
are met. Declares emergen-
cy, effective on passage.”
In plain language, Sen.
Doug Whitsett (R-Klamath
Falls), states, “The new
law requires a criminal
background check to be
performed by a third-party
licensed gun dealer prior
to most private firearm
transfers. Both the person
transferring the gun, and
the person receiving the
gun, must appear in person,
before the gun dealer, and
must bring each firearm to
be transferred with them.”
Whitsett also added that
“transfer” did not always
mean “sale,” but could refer
to leaving a firearm with a
friend for safekeeping.
Whitsett, who himself
voted against the bill, also
says that, during the bill’s
debate in the legislature,
local elected officials from
two-thirds of Oregon’s
counties opposed it, and
that many local governing
bodies have passed resolu-
tions or ordinances in sup-
port of their constituents’
Second Amendment rights.
Morrow County is
among those officially op-
posing the bill. The reso-
lution R-2015-10 quotes
both the U.S. and Oregon
constitutions and declares
that “state and federal law-
makers continue to propose
measures aimed at restrict-
ing all firearms and am-
munitions,” as well as call-
ing the bill an “unfunded
mandate.”
The resolution con-
cludes by stating that the
county “strongly supports
the right of the people to
keep and bear arms,” and
“vigorously opposes any
state or federal law that un-
fairly and unconstitutional-
ly restricts these rights….”
On another note,
the county court drafted
R-2015-11 urging the Or-
egon Fish and Wildlife
Commission to delist gray
wolves under the Oregon
Endangered Species Act.
The issue is on the agenda
at Fish and Wildlife meet-
ings scheduled for this fall.
Gray wolves were list-
ed as endangered under
the Federal Endangered
Species Act in 1973, but
federally delisted in Oregon
east of highways 395, 78,
and 95 in 2011.
At the state level, the
Oregon Fish and Wildlife
Commission implemented
a Wolf Conservation and
Management Plan in 2005,
updating it in 2010 to focus
on building a self-sustain-
ing population with the
-See COUNTY COURT/
PAGE TWO
FAIR & RODEO SPECIAL!
20%
OFF
ALL MONTANA
SILVER
free rodeo ticket with purchase of
$50 or more of w rangler clothing
Oregon Trail Pro Rodeo or Morrow County Rodeo tickets
AND Pendleton Round-Up or Happy Canyon tickets
Morrow County Grain Growers Green Feed & Seed
242 W. Linden Way, Heppner • 676-9422 • 989-8221 (MCGG main office)