Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 22, 2023)
NINE - Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, February 22, 2023 Pizza shop creates a living legacy Heppner needs more buildable land, -Continued fromPAGE ONE for Grandpa Bob’s service Next came Breaking Clean, a seasonal business doing chores like washing windows, cleaning gut- ters and pressure-washing buildings. “I just wanted a hobby to make a little extra on weekends,” says Brannon. But word spread. “That’s Heppner. As long as you do a good job, people will dis- cuss it,” he adds. “I didn’t really have a choice but to make it a business. “I fell right into the rabbit hole.” With the addition of the pizza shop, they tried to continue the trend in names, but say it didn’t quite work. “We were trying to name it Breaking Pizza, but that just didn’t roll off the tongue,” says Brannon. Similar attempts like Break- ing Dough and Breaking Crust didn’t catch their ears, either. That was when Tayllor Brannon suggest- ed, “What about DeSpain Pizza?” “We looked at each oth- er and said, ‘Yup, that’s it.’” The name came from Drew’s maternal grand- parents, Bob and Aloha DeSpain. He says the name is a way to honor two peo- ple who were influential in his life. “They built my foun- dation for being a Chris- tian,” he says. “During the hard times of my life, they helped me tremendous- ly.” He adds that they also helped Tayllor and he early in their marriage, teaching them to be respectful of each other, always love, and communicate everything. Brannon adds that, while Bob and Aloha De- Spain’s legacy lives on, there is no family left to carry on the DeSpain name. “We wanted to dedicate something to remember their name,” says Bran- non. “Because they loved so many, because they were loved by so many, we thought this was a really great tribute to them.” Not only is the name of the restaurant a tribute, but nearly every menu item is dedicated to a grandparent or other family member. The 1946 pizza refers to the year Bob and Aloha were married. The Red refers to uncle Bobby DeSpain, who’s nickname was Red. The Aloha, of course, was named after Grandma Alo- ha DeSpain. Navy Knots, DeSpain Pizza’s answer to bread sticks, are named in the Navy Armed Guard, and Shakeys are named after one of the DeSpain grandparents’ favorite pizza places in The Dalles. The Ron and Tami is named after Tayllor’s grandparents, Ron and Tami Stutzman, who were killed in a car accident Dec. 30 of last year. “They moved down because they were going to babysit for us,” Brannon says, adding that they lived in Drew and Tayllor’s living room for nine months, help- ing with William, five, and Wesley, age four. “Without them, there’s no way we’d have the successes we have today.” Aside from the legacy of DeSpain Pizza, Drew and Tayllor say they want it to be special in other ways. “I wanted pizza some- one would crave when they came back to Heppner,” says Brannon. He says the dough, technically called neo-Neo- politan, takes three days to make using a cold bulk fermentation. He had no experience with pizza, so to find the right method, he spent hours and hours doing research, sometimes staying up till 2 a.m. “When you go down the rabbit hole, you get stuck there,” he says. Another thing that makes the dough special is hand-tossing. “Hand tossing the dough is the fun way to do it, and it’s the best way to stretch the dough,” says Brannon. He says the result is a thick crust that’s great for tearing off and dipping. “That’s always been my favorite—a good, thick crust.” “Our crust is unlike any other in this area,” he says simply. Future plans involve a salad bar—a must-have for Grandpa Ron—and an arcade, though the second will be a year or two down the road. “There’s not a lot of places where kids can go and just hang out,” Brannon says. “Why not be that fun hangout spot?” Drew and Tayllor also put thought into the kind of environment they want at DeSpain Pizza. “Bob and Aloha were the life of the party. They were so much fun. Ev- eryone loved talking to them,” says Brannon. He says that’s what inspired the party-like atmosphere at DeSpain Pizza. “There’s a lot of danc- ing. The music is loud. This is where those chaotic families can come and the kids can run around,” he says. “Our life is chaos, so why not have a business that thrives on chaos?” So far, their methods are working. In the first six days, they recorded using 565 pounds of cheese and 315 pounds of red sauce, serving more than 136 cus- tomers at an average of 20 pizzas an hour, and throw- ing 600 pounds of dough. (In fact, Drew had to sit down for an interview with the G-T on his own because Tayllor had to make yet an- other run for groceries and supplies.) Brannon says a lot of that is due to having a phe- nomenal team. That’s an- other thing he says makes what they do so special— the ability to hire employees and watch them flourish. “It’s one of the most rewarding things we’ve ever found we could help with. We don’t want cook- ie-cutter employees,” he says, adding that they have 19 employees among their five businesses. “We love teaching and helping other people grow, just being a small business where we can help 19 different fam- ilies. “We have the best team. They’re phenomenal.” Even so, their work hours have gone from an average of 60 per week to 82-84 hours per week. It doesn’t seem to be sapping either their energy or their purpose. In fact, the couple seems to thrive on it. “When we open the doors, it starts the day over. It’s like a reset,” says Bran- non. “We’re just excited to serve pizza.” DeSpain Pizza is open seven days a week, 12-4 p.m. on Sunday and Wednesday and 4-8 p.m. the other five days. FEEL THE SPEED, EVEN AT PEAK TIMES. -Continued from PAGE SEVEN that same direction, but it also hasn’t been going down dramatically. It kind of waves from year to year,” said Points. “That is saying something, for a town of this size to sustain. A lot of times, towns of this size, you tend to have a really negative economic shock such as the mill closure, and then it never really recovers.” He finished by saying that Heppner has an esti- mated 90 gross acres of commercial land, 150 gross acres of industrial land, and 40 gross acres of public land within the UGB. “A small portion of that is vacant. There’s not a lot of vacant land according to the process we’ve worked on so far,” he said. “We can’t get away from the fact that we need the planning and zoning process to be an ally in this. I think when you get into smaller communities, it’s not necessarily always seen that way. But you can’t just do whatever you want on your land. You need to be aware of the constraints, the restrictions, the competition for land within a certain urban growth area. It takes forethought to determine what is the best use,” he added. “That said, on the other side of the coin, this is America and we have property rights.” On a positive note, though, Points said there are positive changes ahead at the South Morrow Coun- ty Industrial Park. Known to most as the site of the old Kinzua mill, the industrial park is technically outside Heppner’s UGB, so doesn’t affect the city’s buildable lands, but would have an impact on Heppner if de- veloped. Kim Cutsforth told the crowd that the Kinzua mill site is in the flood plain, and in some places is at the base flood elevation. Where Eric Chick is, the base flood ele- vation is eight feet in some spots in his building. No annual contract. Power multiple devices at once— everyone can enjoy their own screen. Number of devices depends on screen size/resolution. Over 99% reliability. Excludes DSL. Based on network availability. AT&T INTERNET 100 †† 45 /mo * Contact your local DIRECTV dealer For 12 mos, plus taxes & equip.fee.$10/mo equip. fee applies. Limited availability in selectareas. *Price after $5/mo Autopay & Paperless bill discount (w/in 2 bills). Limited availability in select areas. May not be available inyour area. Call or goto att.com/internetto see if you qualify. Sweeney pointed out that there are currently people wanting to move to Hep- pner who can’t because there isn’t enough housing. “It would be great for the future to have more industry,” said Sweeney, “but right now we need to have the people who would move, move here.” “If you can’t grow your population, it’s hard for the employment to get tugged along with that,” Points agreed. “So somewhere in this forecast we do need to say how many houses will be built here in the next 20 years.” Willow Creek Valley Economic Development Group (WCVEDG) is cur- rently working to develop 22 acres for housing in Heppner, but is having trou- ble getting enough water pressure to the site. Kim Cutsforth raised the issue of childcare. Hep- pner has two preschools but only one day care, and it is “operating fairly full,” she said. Both preschools are at capacity. Heppner has no infant care. “It’s an expensive en- deavor, but we need it des- perately,” said Cutsforth. “I just don’t know how we’re going to get it.” Kraig Cutsforth ad- dressed the issue of down- town businesses. He said there were storefronts not in use because interested businesses wanted more parking and there was no room to build it. Heppner councilor Sharon Inskeep added that she had received complaints about parking downtown, especially at noon time. O ld T imers ’ N ighT Thursday, March 2nd Dinner at 6:00pm/Lodge at 8:00 Steak Caesar Salad Roasted Potatoes Asparagus Garlic Bread Dessert Get strong, fast Wi-Fi to work and play throughout your home. ^ Based on wired connection to gateway. $ “You can’t put any util- ities or anything below. You can’t have light switches, plug-ins, anything for a foot above the base flood elevation. He can’t improve his building legally, and he can’t add on,” Cutsforth said. “In the mill site, in many places, it is like that.” The mill site is about 84 acres. Most of that is in the flood plain. A current flood abatement project will give the mill site about a 60-acre gain, bringing usable acres from 25 to 70. Anderson & Perry En- gineering is developing a plan to dig swale, or deep ditches, along the creek. That will allow floodwater to flow outside of the creek but not infringe on the bulk of the mill site. That brings about 60 acres, including Eric Chick’s property, out of the flood plain, making it completely open to de- velopment. Cutsforth said she has been working to find a way to use the mill site for about three years, but no one wanted to take the risk. About a month ago, Melissa Lindsay directed Cutsforth to Business Oregon, and Cutsforth wrote a grant with the Port of Morrow. Early in February, they were advised they would receive two million for the project. The Port has already started the process. “We’re going to start seeing things happen down there, too,” said Cutsforth. “It’s exciting, and it will change. We have people all the time looking for places to put stuff. And industrial land, you can pretty much do anything. It’s huge.” Heppner Mayor Corey IV Support Holdings 888-486-0359 INTERNET OFFER: Subj. to change and may be discontinued at any time. Price for Internet 100 for new residential customers & is after $5/mo. autopay & paperless bill discount. Pricing for first 12 months only. After 12 mos., then prevailing rate applies. Autopay & Paperless Bill Discount: Discount off the monthly rate when account is active & enrolled in both. Pay full plan cost until discount starts w/in 2 bill cycles. Must maintain autopay/paperless bill and valid email address to continue discount. Additional Fees & Taxes: AT&T one-time transactional fees, $10/mo. equipment fee, and monthly cost recovery surcharges which are not government-required may apply, as well as taxes. See www.att.com/fees for details. Installation: $99 installation for full tech install, plus tax where applicable. Credit restrictions apply. Pricing subject to change. Subj. to Internet Terms of Service at att.com/internet-terms. ^AT&T Smart Wi-Fi requires installation of a BGW210, 5268AC, or NVG599 Wi-Fi Gateway. Standard with Internet plans (12M or higher). Whole home Wi-Fi connectivity may require AT&T Smart Wi-Fi Extender(s) sold separately. ††Internet speed claims represent maximum network service capability speeds and based on wired connection to gateway. Actual customer speeds are not guaranteed and may vary based on several factors. For more information, go to www.att.com/speed101. ©2021 DIRECTV. DIRECTV and all other DIRECTV marks are trademarks of DIRECTV, LLC. AT&T and Globe logo are trademarks of AT&T Intellectual Property. TRUCKLOAD g n pri S 2 M Y - 6 A 9 A ! PM NL A Y Y & FRID D, 2023 O S DAY URSD & 3R 2ND H C MAR TH MEAT SALE! MEAT CUTTER ON DUTY TO CUT TO YOUR SPECIFICATIONS! Beef Fresh Extra Lean Ground Beef 85% Lean ........................................ 3.69lb Premium Beef Boneless Rib Eye .......................................................... 8.99lb Premium Beef New York .......................................................................... 7.99lb Choice Beef Top Sirloin .............................................................................. 4.99lb Choice Beef Tri Tip ......................................................................................... 6.99lb Choice Beef Eye Of Round ........................................................................ 3.99lb Choice Beef Sirloin Tip ............................................................................... 3.99lb Choice Beef Top Round Cap Off ............................................................ 4.99lb Choice Beef Back Ribs Cryo Vac ............................................................ 2.69lb Choice Beef Butt Tenderloin ................................................................ 16.99lb Choice Bnl Beef Chuck Roast .................................................................. 4.99lb Choice Beef Brisket .................................................................................... 4.99lb Pork Boneless Pork Loin ........................................................................................ 2.49lb Boneless Pork Sirloin ................................................................................... 2.29lb Boneless Pork Butts Single Cryo Pac .................................................. 2.69lb Pork Spareribs ................................................................................................. 2.99lb Smithfield Pork Baby Back Ribs ........................................................... 3.49lb Pork Tenderloin ............................................................................................... 3.49lb Poultry Boneless Skinless Chicken Tenders Appx 10 Lb. Package ................. 2.69lb Boneless Chicken Breast Appx 10 Lb. Package ....................................... 2.49lb Southern Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs Appx 10 Lb. Package ................................................................................................. 2.49lb Bone In Chicken Thighs .............................................................................. 1.39lb Chicken Legs ...................................................................................................... 1.39lb Bulk Case Ready Items Sugerhill Chicken Nuggets 2 Lb. Package ........................................ 3 For $10 Sugerhill Chicken Tenders 2 Lb. Package........................................... 3 For $10 Sugerhill Chicken Patties 2 Lb. Package ............................................ 3 For $10 Hills Sliced Bacon Sold By The Case 10 Lb. ......................................... 2.79lb Hills Breakfast Links 5 Lb. Case .................................................................... 4.49lb Hills Bulk Sausage Two 5 Lb. Per Case ....................................................... 3.99lb Fully Cooked Chicken Wings 10 Lb. Box .................................................. 2.99lb Vernon Manor Pepperoni 2 Lb. Package................................................. 6.99ea Foster Farm Bulk Corn Dogs 10 Lb. ........................................................ 1.99lb Smithfield Cooked Pork Shanks Sold In A 10-Lb. Case....................... 3.49lb All items are whole in the bag cut for free unless specified. Seafood 41/50 Cooked And Peeled Prawns 2lb Package ............................ 14.99ea 41/50 Raw Easy Peel Prawns 2lb Package ........................................ 12.99ea Bornstein Oregon Shrimp Meat 16oz Sold By The Bag .................... 5.99ea Service Deli Items Bar-M Roast Beef ........................................................................................... 8.99lb Bar-M Honey Ham 2 Or More Lbs. ............................................................... 4.99lb Butterball Turkey 2 Or More Lbs. ................................................................. 6.99lb SAVE AN ADDITIONAL $5 ON THESE ITEMS WITH DIGITAL COUPON!* Popcorn Chicken ......................................................................................... 24.90ea Stuffed Chicken Bakes 20/8oz Per Case 10 Lb. Case .......................... $34.90ea Smithfield Pork Riblets Sold In A 10 Lb. Case ..................................... 19.90ea Black Oak Smoked Rope Sausage 11 Lb. Case .................................. 9.90ea Download our new app! Sign up and receive Rewards, Digital Coupons, Special Savings & Discounts that are created just for you! Get a *FREE Item every week with Digital Download Coupon just for signing up. *Or Reduced (Requires digital download and may require minimum purchase.) 238 N. Main Street Heppner, OR 97836 541-676-9614
