Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, June 3, 2020 -- THREE
County won’t oppose new power line project
‘Condemnation…should only occur as an absolute last resort’
By David Sykes
Morrow County owns
property in the vicinity of
a controversial new power
line project near Boardman.
And although commission-
ers have access concerns
if the transmission line is
built, they did not come out
against the project, even
though it will involve prop-
erty condemnation which
has been criticized by one
of the commissioners in
the past.
The Oregon Public
Utility Commission (PUC)
will hold a public hearing
June 4 to take public com-
ment on the proposed Uma-
tilla Electric Cooperative
(UEC) plan to condemn pri-
vate property for construc-
tion of the new 4.3-mile
overhead power line. UEC
filed application with the
utility commission to begin
proceedings against several
property owners along the
route, who have not signed
easement agreements with
the co-op (see following
letters from one of the prop-
erty owners). The county
submitted testimony as part
of the PUC process.
“While none of the
proposed routes include
condemnation or use of
county owned property,
the transmission line would
run along two sides of the
county-owned property,”
the commissioner’s letter to
the PUC said. “The county
has concerns regarding any
negative effects on access
to the county parcel (line
goes over road,) and any
insurance issues regarding
fall lines of the poles,” it
said.
The transmission line
will run for about 4.3 miles
from the Highway 730
switchyard and terminate at
UEC’s planned Olson Road
substation. The substation
is where a new Amazon
data center is currently
being built.
The electric co-op says
it does not want to condemn
property; however, the new
line is needed to service a
surge in customer growth
in the area. Critics say the
line is mainly to service one
customer, Amazon, which
is building the new data fa-
cility and reportedly needs
additional power. One such
critic of the condemnation
is Morrow County Com-
missioner Jim Doherty, who
Oppose devaluing Boardman
Mr. Doherty,
I am writing to appeal
to you on of behalf myself
and the other residents and
businesses along the pro-
posed route for the Vadata
power distribution line.
Please help us oppose de-
valuing Boardman. The
new Vadata buildings are
going to have enough ad-
verse effects without this
line going through neigh-
borhoods and businesses.
After initially reject-
ing the idea of the power
distribution line over my
property, I attempted to
make a deal with UEC
to allow a city street to
share part of the proposed
easement with the City of
Boardman because the city
is going to be required to
install one to comply with
DOT interstate regulations.
I offered any proceeds from
the easement to be given to
the city to help complete the
project. After several plan-
ning meetings; UEC agreed
but returned agreements
with ambiguous language
regarding the street which
would prevent the project
from coming to fruition.
I have offered to draft an
agreement and looked at
their revised agreements
but have met resistance.
There are routes avail-
able to get the power to the
site through an industrial
area north of 1-84. The
cost is said to be greater,
but in all the meetings I
have attended relating to
getting power to Vadata, I
have not seen evaluation
of that route. Even if the
cost truly is greater; the
burden should be placed
on the customer needing
the distribution line, not
the surrounding community
which already afforded Va-
data hundreds of millions
of dollars in tax deferments.
I have struggled to
come to terms with this
project. I understand that
growth is part of human
existence, and that things
don’t always end up the
way I want them to. The re-
ality for me is that if I allow
UEC to take 1.5 acres for a
distribution line to Vadata,
and the City of Boardman
to take 1.5 acres for their
street; I will no longer be
able to operate at the facil-
ity I spent my life’s wealth
on. I am one of the largest
employers in this area. I pay
my employees well, and I
ensure my customer’s prof-
its. Custom Feed Services is
now a keystone company
in this community. I did all
due diligence before even
buying this property to en-
sure it would work for my
company and the communi-
ty we chose for our home.
When I speak with the
Tallmans and hear that
UEC’s offer would have
Terry leave his garden;
I am angered about the
things they say regarding
him being unreasonable.
When I look at the map of
the proposed route with the
Fredericksons; my heart
breaks thinking about each
of their homes being affect-
ed by this project.
I think there are good
people leading our commu-
nity, but there is a misguid-
ed group mentality that this
Vadata project needs to be
pushed through. There are
rules, laws and guidelines
that are being bent to the
will of Vadata. Those rules,
laws and guidelines were
put there to help leaders
make the right decisions
when dealing with people
or entities that we need, but
don’t necessarily carry the
same values that make a
successful community.
Let’s be good leaders,
J. Fletcher Hobbs
Bank of Eastern Oregon
among 200 top performing
banks in nation
American Banker mag-
azine has ranked five Ore-
gon and eleven Washington
banks among the top 200
community banks in the
country.
The magazine, a trade
publication based in New
York City, named Oregon
Bancorp of Salem, OR;
FS Bancorp of Mountlake
Terrace, WA; Timberland
Bancorp of Hoquiam, WA;
Summit Bank of Eugene,
OR; Baker Boyer Bancorp
of Walla Walla, WA; Com-
munity Financial Group of
Spokane, WA; Pacific Fi-
nancial Corp. of Aberdeen,
WA; Cashmere Valley Bank
of Cashmere, WA; BEO
Bancorp of Heppner, OR;
Riverview Bancorp of Van-
couver, WA; Peoples Ban-
corp of Bellingham, WA;
Citizens Bancorp of Cor-
vallis, OR; U&I Financial
Corp of Lynnwood, WA;
Coastal Financial Corp. of
Everett, WA; Commence-
ment Bank of Tacoma,
WA; and People’s Bank of
Commerce in Medford, OR
to the list based on average
return of shareholder equity
between 2017 and 2019.
Banks with less than $2 bil-
lion in assets were eligible.
The above referenced
banks rank, and average
return are as follows: #1
Oregon Bancorp 29.4 per-
cent; #14 FS Bancorp 14.96
percent; #20 Timberland
Bancorp 14.47 percent; #36
Summit Bank 12.9 percent;
#53 Baker Boyer Bancorp
12.18 percent; #57 Commu-
nity Financial Group 12.08
percent; #71 Pacific Finan-
cial Corp 11.51 percent;
#74 Cashmere Valley Bank
11.49 percent; #84 BEO
Bancorp 11.27 percent;
said the proposed power
line route is the result of
poor planning for the data
facility. Doherty said, at an
earlier county commission
meeting, that another power
line route north of the I-84
freeway would be better,
and not require any prop-
erty condemnation.
The June 4 PUC hear-
ing will be held over the
phone in the evening from
6 to 8 p.m. and the public
can call in to give comment.
The phone number is 866-
390-1828 and the access
code to join the hearing is
2252868.
The public comment
hearing is an opportunity
for customers and mem-
bers of the public to offer
unsworn testimony to the
commissioners and Ad-
ministrative Law Judge.
Because the purpose of this
hearing is to take comments
from the public, Umatilla
Electric Cooperative (UEC)
and the other parties to the
proceeding will not make
formal presentations and
the commissioners will not
take questions. Members of
the UEC and the commis-
sion staff will be available
to answer questions from
the public during the public
comment hearing.
Comments made during
the public comment hearing
will be recorded and tran-
scribed. The transcript will
become part of the public
comment record in the pro-
ceeding. Interested persons
not able to attend the public
comment hearing may mail
written comments to the
Commission at: Attn.: PCN
4, Administrative Hearings
Division, Public Utility
Commission of Oregon,
PO Box 1088, Salem, OR
97308-1088; via e-mail
to puc.publiccomments@
state.or.us; or by telephone
to: Consumer Services Di-
vision 503- 378-6600 or
1-800-522-2404. Custom-
ers may also contact the
Administrative Hearings
Division for more infor-
mation at (503) 378-6678
or e-mail (puc.hearings@
state.or.us).
Following are two let-
ters written by a property
owner J. Fletcher Hobbs,
who would have his land
condemned if the power
line project moves forward
as planned.
Reaching point of no return on PUC
hearing
To the editor
Since my last letter to
anyone who will listen, I
talked with several more
folks and revisited a few. I
have had an interview with
a newspaper writing a fea-
ture and set up interviews
for others. I have crafted a
strategy with my attorneys
to lay out the position we
hold for the PUC and hired
experts in the field of power
distribution and engineer-
ing to drive the point home.
I have appointments to
visit with some of you in the
near future, but I feel we are
approaching a point of no
return on the PUC hearing.
I desperately want to stop
the things that I am doing
to fight this extreme action
made by UEC. Extreme
actions cause extreme reac-
tions and I think I can speak
for all of us when I say that
we do not want any of the
adverse consequences of
extreme actions.
I am appealing to all
of you because I am confi-
dent that I will succeed in
having the Public Utility
Commission deny UEC’s
application for convenience
and necessity. The actions I
must take to do so will most
certainly cause irreparable
damage to future commerce
in our community. That is as
clear to me as these actions
are of being the only ones I
can take.
The folks at UEC need
to get power to the middle
of Boardman on the south
side of the freeway. They
are feeling pressure and
want to rush forward to
complete this project. It is
a complicated task because
of many obstacles, but that
is why they are a publicly
owned entity; sometimes
they have to do compli-
cated/expensive things in
order to power the commu-
nity they work for. Some
representatives at UEC are
treating this application to
the PUC as no big deal but
evoking the 5 th amendment
in order to seize someone’s
property is extreme, and a
very big deal. It is some-
times a necessity but should
not be weaponized in the
name of expediency.
All of us interested in
continuing to see this area
prosper have an obligation
to say “not yet” to UEC.
The leaders of UEC claim
they don’t see a path to
powering that neighbor-
hood without the hammer
of condemnation, but I
don’t believe that, because
I see a path. I am not sug-
gesting that UEC and its
leaders are bad guys, but
they are running fast and
loose, and it is our commu-
nity and guaranteed basic
rights which are suffering.
I have crafted a sword
which I can only use to de-
#89 Riverview Bancorp
11.2 percent; #95 Peoples
Bancorp 11.0 percent; #103
Citizens Bancorp 10.65 per-
cent; #116 U&I Financial
Corp 10.44 percent; #124
Coastal Financial Corp.
10.32 percent; #170 Com-
mencement Bank 9.69 per-
cent; #192 People’s Bank
of Commerce 9.43 percent
“It is exciting to be
recognized in American
Banker magazine among
some of the most admired
and well ran banks in the
country,” said Jeff Bailey
President and CEO of Bank
of Eastern Oregon. “We
have an extremely dedi-
cated team of bankers that
embody the core values that
have guided our bank for
over 75 years. We are proud
to serve eastern Oregon and
southeastern Washington
communities and are de-
lighted to be the one of only
16 banks located in Oregon
and Washington that can
make the claim of being
one of the top 200 commu-
nity banks in the country,”
concluded Bailey.
fend myself in an effective,
but destructive manner.
You, as leaders though,
have the ability to take this
sword from me and use it
to cut the ribbon on a new
era in the Boardman area.
After which; you can hang
it on the wall for decoration
and we’ll have a feast after
UEC does their homework.
Please join me in op-
posing the application for
convenience and necessity
at the PUC hearing. Better
yet; ask the leaders at UEC
to withdraw their appli-
cation now. Withdrawing
the application will allow
UEC to save face as well
as restore faith within the
community that they have
not become pirates plunder-
ing for large corporations.
If UEC applies themselves
to finding the path that
preserves our community
and adheres to our rules
and codes; I am confident
they will find that path. If
all avenues have been pur-
sued and weighed, and it is
impossible to run the line
without spoilage; it will be
evident and we will have
to accept it. The act of op-
posing the application does
not prevent our community
from growing and moving
forward; it will just be a
firm reminder to UEC that
the best way to finish a job
is to do it right.
I would love for the ar-
ticle being printed Wednes-
day to be a coming of age
story. One where an adoles-
cent community tries some
new things, makes some
mistakes, has crisis, makes
some friends, and perse-
veres. The citizens who
gathered with pitchforks
will cheer and hug knowing
their leaders figured it out
and companies looking to
site will be confident in the
stability of the area. There
is no reason I can think of
for us to choose another
ending. We can get it right.
Thank you for partic-
ipating,
J. Fletcher Hobbs,
Boardman
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