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About Heppner gazette-times. (Heppner, Or.) 1925-current | View Entire Issue (April 19, 2023)
Heppner Gazette-Times, Heppner, Oregon Wednesday, April 19, 2023 - SEVEN Heppner council votes to close Stansbury two hours on school days Stansbury Street in Heppner may soon be closed for a cou- ple of hours during school days for student safety. -Photo by Andrea Di Salvo By Andrea Di Salvo Drivers looking to go through Stansbury St. in Heppner may soon need to reroute during morning and afternoon traffic times at the elementary school, the Heppner City Council voted last week. No date is yet set for when that closure might start. Heppner Elementary School submitted a request to the city to be able to close Stansbury St. for up to an hour both morning and afternoon on school days to allow children to safely cross the street. Heppner councilor JoAnna Lamb, who also works at HES, told the council that there have been several traffic violations, with drivers trying to go through when there are people crossing the street. “Not everyone has been very patient with wanting to get where they’re going,” said Lamb. The traffic flow for parent drop-off would be a circle through the parking lot and then down to the side of the school to drop off at the school yard gate. “So there’s not really any need for them to be go- ing through and just throw- ing the kids out at the gym or in front of the school,” she added. “There’ve been several of them that have done U-turns. We do not have a sheriff ’s deputy available to just sit there the whole time.” Times would be 7:30- 8:30 a.m. and 3-4 p.m., though Lamb said most of the time they probably wouldn’t have to close the street for the whole hour. The crossing guards would still be on duty and would be there to put up and take down street barriers, includ- ing if an emergency vehicle needed to get through. Council members ex- pressed concern with the idea, and Heppner Pub- lic Works Director Chad Doherty asked if it wouldn’t be better to educate the public first. “What if the officer was there to help police that be- fore we went to the drastic step of closing one of the two accesses to that side of town?” asked Doherty. “If we educate before we shut down, I would like that better.” Councilor Dale Bates also brought up the idea of using cameras to catch vio- lators, especially if they had license plate recognition so those drivers could be cited. “That would really cure somebody,” said Bates. “They’d never do it twice.” Lamb said the school has cameras, but she didn’t believe they had that capa- bility. Heppner City Manager Kraig Cutsforth suggested the city divert the Morrow County Sheriff’s Deputy to the school for a time to monitor the situation. “At least for the af- ternoon we could redirect those resources that we have at our disposal to see how big of a problem this is,” he said. “The ultimate concern is the safety of the chil- dren,” replied Lamb. “And there are people not being safe.” Councilor Cody High said that, while he saw some issues with closing the street, it came down to the school making a request because of safety. “I don’t think for two hours a day that it’s too much for people to avoid one cut-across,” said High. “People would get used to it,” agreed Heppner May- or Corey Sweeney. The council voted unanimously to allow Hep- pner Elementary to block off Stansbury for the re- quested time during school days. The school has not yet started blocking off the street but is still figuring out logistics for the temporary closures. DEADLINE: MONDAYS AT 5PM Rockwell appointed to fill Boardman councilor vacancy Roy Drago, Jr. (left) receives a certificate of appreciation from Boardman Mayor Paul Keefer. -Contributed photo Boardman Paul Keefer (left) swears in new city councilor Richard Rockwell at the April 11 meeting. -Contributed photo At its April 11 meeting, the Boardman City Council appointed Richard Rock- well to fill the vacant coun- cilor seat formerly held by Roy Drago, Jr. Drago resigned from the council upon his recent appoint- ment to the Morrow County Board of Commissioners. Rockwell is a 40-year resident of Boardman and owns a local business. He’s been involved in the com- munity as a long-time wres- tling coach and volunteer. Rockwell’s term expires Dec. 31, 2026. In other city business, Mayor Paul Keefer present- ed Drago with a certificate of appreciation for his years serving on the city council. Councilors also moved forward with establishing a timeline for the hiring of a new city manager. The community will be able to attend a meet and greet with the candidates for the city manager’s position on April 27. It will be held at the SAGE Center from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. T h e n e x t r e g u l a r- ly scheduled city council meeting will be Tuesday, May 2, at 7 p.m. at Board- man City Hall. Water control district to meet next Wednesday The Heppner Water Control District will meet next Wednesday, April 26, at the Ag Service Center conference room at 6:30 p.m. The agenda includes the district’s annual meet- ing, election of officers and annual financial report. The regular meeting to follow includes minutes of the previous meeting, finan- cial report and bid opening for the Shobe Creek Rus- sian Olive Project. Meetings of the district are open to the public. YOUR AD COULD BE HERE! Submit Ads heppner.net Call 541-676-9228 Email graphics@rapidserve.net We also offer design and printing services Heppner Gazette-Times Sykes Printing
