Healy resigns from
Port of Morrow
50¢
VOL. 143
NO. 33 8 Pages
Wednesday, August 16, 2023
Port seeks to fill commission
vacancy
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
The Morrow County Fair Starts Today
Jerry Healy of Heppner
has resigned from the Port
of Morrow Commission,
the Port announced this
week. That leaves the Port
looking to fill the position
until the next district elec-
tion in May 2025.
According to state law,
the remaining commission-
ers will appoint Healy’s
replacement. The Port of
Morrow Commission en-
courages all interested and
eligible local residents to
send a letter of interest and
resume to POM Executive
Director Lisa Mittelsdorf.
The Port Board of
Commissioners sets policy
for the Port. Commission-
ers must attend board of
commissioners meetings
on a regular basis. Regular
meetings are held on the
second Wednesday of each
month at 1:30 p.m. Special
meetings are also held oc-
casionally.
Applicants must reside
in and be a legally reg-
istered voter in Morrow
County and meet other legal
requirements. Upon receipt
of the letter of interest and
resume, the Port Commis-
sion will review them, pro-
ceed with interviews and
make a determination by
the majority of votes.
The cover letter and
resume must be received
at the Port Office no later
than 5 p.m. on September
11, 2023, at 2 Marine Drive,
P.O. Box 200, Boardman,
OR 97818.
The person appointed
shall serve until the next
district election, which is
May 2025 with a term ef-
fective date beginning July
1, 2025.
Ione school hopes to break ground on bond Heppner council
discusses feral cat
project this fall
vacating the portion of 3 problem
Street between Spring and
rd
Plans for the new athletic complex, which the school district hopes to place along Hwy. 74.
Superintendent Tracey Johnson says the plans are a “wish list,” and may change according
to funding. Right now they include a football field, track, areas for field events and 150-seat
bleachers, among others. -Contributed
By Andrea Di Salvo
The Ione School Dis-
trict hopes to break ground
on the long-awaited school
bond project this fall. The
$22.5 million project will
include expansion and re-
model of the Ione school,
along with improved park-
ing and new athletic facil-
ities.
Ione voters approved
the 30-year, $18.5 million
bond in May of 2021. The
school district chose to
go for the bond that year
because of the possibility
of an Oregon School Im-
provement Match grant
(OSCIM) for $4 million,
as well as the expectation
of an increased tax base
due to investments like the
TransCanada natural gas
pipeline and wind projects
located in the district.
The Willow Creek
Farms and Shepherds Flat
wind projects are under tax
abatement programs right
now, which will expire in
2024 and 2027, adding an
expected $215 million to
the district’s tax base.
The school district de-
termined the need for the
bond after receiving a grant
for professional analysis on
the condition of ISD facili-
ties and long-range student
needs. The report indicated
a need for significant re-
pair, modernization and up-
grades in all of the district’s
facilities. Additional com-
munity focus groups and
surveys showed priorities
of school modernization,
additional educational and
athletic space and expanded
community services.
To accommodate the
additions and upgrades,
the school district will
need to make some major
changes to the school’s
existing layout. Since the
bond passed two years ago,
ISD has been busy behind
ing across the current foot-
ball field toward Cherry St.
Between that addition
and 3 rd Street will be new
student parking and a parent
drop-off lane.
Behind the addition
will be a new lane for bus
drop-off and fire access.
Part of the football field
will remain as a grassy field
New Ione School District Superintendent Tracey Johnson
holds the architectural plans for the school improvements.
She stands in her office, which will become the new Life Skills
Space. -Photo by Andrea Di Salvo
the scenes, working with
Alliance Management and
Construction Solutions and
Architects West to design
plans that will fit both the
district’s needs and the
budget.
Current plans are for
both the elementary and
secondary buildings to stay,
though with some portions
repurposed—especially
on the secondary side. For
instance, the site of the
current school office will
become a Life Skills room.
A new addition to house
secondary classrooms will
be built extending from the
existing elementary build-
that can still be used for
some practices and outdoor
activities.
Johnson says the school
will need to rearrange stu-
dent pick-up and drop-off
for the short term, as well,
to accommodate the ongo-
ing construction and ensure
student safety. She says she
plans to be in touch with
parents before school be-
gins at the end of the month.
The school district has
also been working closely
with the City of Ione to
get the necessary ease-
ments and permits. One big
change to the city’s layout
will come from the city’s
Green streets.
With part of the current
playground taken up by
new construction, not to
mention being inaccessible
during construction, part
of the vacated street will
serve as a paved play area.
To make up for the loss
of the football field as a
grassy playground, the area
between Ione Community
Clinic and Green Street
will become a grassy play-
ground with a garden area.
The school’s new front
entrance will be from the
parking lot at Third Street
and Green.
The loss of the Cardinal
football field is an obvious
concern to the community,
but the school district has
big plans to remedy that.
Those plans include a
new athletic complex with
football field, track and
field facilities, and bleach-
ers. They hope to put it
along Hwy. 74 just east of
town, with an entrance off
H Street.
The Port of Morrow
has promised both funding
and help with the actual
building of the facility.
Morrow County Unified
Recreation District also do-
nated $200,000 toward the
track and field, along with
$25,000 to the Ione Pool.
The layout of the new
athletic complex is excit-
ing, but Johnson clarifies
that the plans are more of a
wish list, “just to make sure
things fit.” While funding is
there, the school district has
to take into account rising
Heppner city council discussed the increasing feral
cat problem at last meeting - Contributed Photo
By Andrea Di Salvo
Feral cats were the hot
topic of conversation at
the Heppner City Council
Meeting Monday night,
as the City of Heppner de-
cided in a split vote not to
dedicate city resources to
the capture and transport of
stray cats. The city is also
considering an ordinance
against feeding feral cats.
“Heppner has a feral cat
problem,” Heppner Inter-
im City Manager Thomas
Wolff stated to the council
at the Aug. 14 meeting.
He said he had on his
desk two pictures that viv-
idly showed the problem.
One of the photos showed
a residence at N. Elder St.
with a feeding station for
feral cats.
“With 32 cats in the
picture,” he added.
The second picture
showed around 25 cats and
kittens around a feeding
station in a back yard on
Morrow St., Wolff said.
Among the problems
produced by the feral cats
were the time and cost of
-Continued to PAGE SIX
Emergency coordinator
to speak in Ione
Stephanie Pflugrad,
Eastern Regional Coor-
dinator with the Oregon
Department of Emergency
Management, will be the
guest speaker at the Con-
versation and Coffee Hour
held at Ione Community
Church on Aug. 24. The
-Continued to PAGE SEVEN program will begin at 10
a.m.
Pflugrad works with the
Division of Mitigation and
Recovery Services and will
explain the disaster mitiga-
tion process. She will also
lead a question-and-answer
session regarding the recent
flooding in Ione.
CALL
541-989-8221
ext 204
for more
information