Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, September 23, 2020 -- THREE
Wildhorse preps for expansion Radioactive materials disposal
opening
subject of upcoming meeting
The new Quaking Aspens bowling center will feature 24 lanes.
The year-long con-
struction at Wildhorse Re-
sort and Casino that adds a
bowling center, food court
and arcade is nearly done
and will open to the public
by month’s end. However,
due to pandemic restric-
tions, the highly anticipated
grand opening will not be
the usual flashy ceremony
for which Wildhorse is
known. Regardless, fun
seekers have many reasons
to celebrate this addition.
At the heart of the
Wildhorse expansion is
Quaking Aspens Lanes,
a 24-lane, state-of-the-art
bowling center that pro-
vides lively activity for
families, friends, novice
and serious bowlers. In the
future, competitive bowlers
may see leagues and tourna-
ments in the lineup.
Owned by the Confed-
erated Tribes of the Uma-
tilla Indian Reservation
(CTUIR), the bowling cen-
ter’s name is inspired by
Tribal history. “Nixyáawii”
was what the Cayuse named
the area where the Tribe’s
winter encampment was lo-
cated. Translated, the word
refers to the groves of quak-
ing aspen trees that grew
around the springs. Equiv-
alent to a large town, the en-
campment was the base for
celebrations, games, root
digging and horse racing.
The upscale bowling
center is divided by a con-
course with 16 lanes on
one side and eight boutique
lanes on the other. The
larger area is targeted for
open and league play while
the boutique lanes can be
reserved for private parties
and events.
Adjacent to the bou-
tique lanes are two party
rooms available to rent for
family and business events
or simply a friends’ night
out. The two rooms can be
opened up to a single, larger
space for bigger groups,
when needed. Event plan-
ners can opt for party pack-
ages or full catering service,
depending on their prefer-
ences.
Service and conve-
nience are a big part of
the experience at Quaking
Aspens Lanes. Bowlers
can choose from an all-in-
clusive food court menu
and place their order with a
lane server who will deliver
their snacks, meals and
beverages. Menus can be
viewed online or at the lane
terminals.
A full bar located in the
bowling center provides
beverages and seating.
Meals and snacks can be
ordered at the bar or carried
from the food court allow-
ing guests to dine while
watching the competition
in the lanes.
The food court at Wild-
horse will feature two in-
dependent vendors and
two Wildhorse operations.
Three restaurants will offer
full menus and one will
specialize in ice cream and
sweet treats. A 3000 square
foot dining room will seat
up to 110 people in a warm,
comfortable setting.
The new vendors bring-
ing even more culinary
options to Wildhorse are
Moe Phở and Brigham Fish
‘n Chips. Owners of both
restaurants have roots in
Pendleton.
Wildhorse will be the
second location for Moe
Phở, the first being in down-
town Pendleton. Owned
by Whitney Minthorn and
Moe Soeum, their focus
is on popular cuisine from
Thailand, Cambodia and
Vietnam. Many ingredients
are sourced from Thailand
and the eatery provides
gluten-free and vegan/veg-
etarian options. In business
since February 2018, Moe
Phở Noodles and Cafe pre-
pares their food fresh to
order with high quality
ingredients and authentic
recipes.
Also opening a sec-
ond location is Brigham
Fish Market. The Brigham
family is well known for
harvesting and selling fresh,
wild-caught fish along the
Columbia River. In 2014,
Kim Brigham-Camp -
bell opened a full-service
restaurant in Cascade Locks
selling both fresh fish and
prepared meals including
fish and chips, po’boy sand-
wiches and chowders. The
Wildhorse shop will be
called Brigham Fish ‘n
Chips and features a selec-
tion of favorites from the
Market’s menu.
Minthorn and
Brigham-Campbell are both
members of the Confederat-
ed Tribes of the Umatilla In-
dian Reservation (CTUIR).
The Wildhorse-run
restaurant serves family
favorites like pizza, burg-
ers, salads and appetizers.
The ice cream and pastry
shop is right next door and
features quality Tillamook
ice cream along with an as-
sortment of treats to satisfy
a sweet tooth.
Between the food court
and bowling center, visitors
will find the new Wildhorse
arcade which is significant-
ly larger than the old arcade
with almost 2,500 square
feet of play space. Young
gamers can choose from
over 30 high-tech games
and experiences in a single
room, a luxury you don’t
often find in rural resorts.
Arcade guests use their
“fun card” as currency at
arcade machines. The card
can be loaded with any
amount desired and is re-
chargeable. It keeps track of
points racked up by players
which they can then take to
the redemption center for
prizes.
Owners of Wildhorse
Resort and Casino, the
CTUIR, have eagerly an-
ticipated the opening of
the Family FunPlex. Board
of Trustees Chairman Kat
Brigham expressed the
tribes’ passion for this sig-
nificant project.
“The Tribe is very
pleased to see our plan-
ning for the FunPlex move
forward. We are very
pleased to offer bowling as
a sporting activity for the
entire community,” stated
Brigham. “So many fami-
lies love this sport and we
all look forward to seeing
everyone enjoy this enter-
tainment venue.”
The Family FunPlex
is expected to open to the
public before the end of
September. Updates and
information can be found
at https://www.wildhorsere-
sort.com/family-funplex/ or
call 800-654-9453.
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MONDAYS AT 5:00 P.M.
The Oregon Depart-
ment of Energy will hold
two public meetings on
September 30 to discuss
Chemical Waste Manage-
ment of the Northwest’s
risk assessment and correc-
tive action plan following
ODOE’s February Notice
of Violation to the compa-
ny for illegal disposal of
radioactive materials in an
Arlington landfill.
The material that was
disposed in the chemical
waste landfill is known as
TENORM – Technolog-
ically Enhanced Natural-
ly Occurring Radioactive
Materials. Radioactivity
occurs naturally in the en-
vironment, but can be con-
centrated during human
activity, like commercial
or industrial purposes. The
TENORM disposed at the
Arlington landfill includes
out-of-state materials that
are byproducts from the oil
and gas industry. Oregon
statutes and rules prohibit
the disposal of radioactive
materials within the state.
In its official Notice
of Violation to Chemical
Waste Management in Feb-
ruary, ODOE found that
the company failed to do
its due diligence by incor-
rectly analyzing the waste
against Oregon’s criteria
for the definition of “ra-
dioactive material” before
it was disposed. ODOE
directed Chemical Waste
Management to prepare a
risk assessment to formal-
ly evaluate potential past,
present and future risk from
the waste. From this infor-
mation, the company was
required to develop a cor-
rective action plan to eval-
uate options for addressing
the disposed TENORM and
to outline the processes the
company will put in place
to prevent re-occurrence.
The risk assessment and
corrective action plan are
now available on ODOE’s
website for public review
and comment.
The Oregon Depart-
ment of Energy will hold
two public meetings on
September 30 to discuss
Chemical Waste Manage-
ment’s submitted docu-
ments. The two meetings,
one virtual and one in-per-
son, will cover the same
information:
Virtual meeting Sep-
tember 30, 9 – 11 a.m.
ODOE will host a virtual
meeting beginning at 9
a.m. via the online platform
WebEx. We encourage par-
ticipants to join online, if
possible, so they may view
presentation materials. An
alternate phone number is
available for call-in: 1-408-
418-9388 (access code 173
016 8425).
In-person meeting
September 30, 6 – 8 p.m.
ODOE will host an in-per-
son meeting outdoors at
the Arlington High School
football stadium (1200
Main Street in Arlington).
Attendees are required to
practice COVID-19 phys-
ical distancing guidelines
and to wear face coverings
outdoors whenever six feet
of physical space is not
possible. The school district
will capture attendee infor-
mation for contact-tracing
purposes.
The Oregon Depart-
ment of Energy is also ac-
cepting public comments on
Chemical Waste Manage-
ment’s documents through
November 8, 2020. Public
comments or questions may
be addressed to ODOE.
Comments@Oregon.gov or
mailed directly to the Ore-
gon Department of Energy
Nuclear Safety Division at
550 Capitol St NE, Salem
OR 97301. Following the
close of the comment peri-
od, ODOE will review and
respond to all substantive
comments and issue a de-
termination accepting or
rejecting Chemical Waste
Management’s plan for the
waste in the landfill.
More information about
the documents and the pub-
lic meetings is available on
the Oregon Department of
Energy’s website: https://
www.oregon.gov/energy/
safety-resiliency/Pages/
Radioactive-Waste-Dispos-
al.aspx.
Due to Governor Brown requiring Morrow County
to return to Phase 1, Wheatland Insurance offices
in Ione and Heppner are open for business but
will be closed to the public until further notice.
Thank you and stay safe!