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VOL. 144
NO. 42 8 Pages
Wednesday, October 23, 2024
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
Lexington airport work sees setback due Ione FFA Chicken
to new cultural study requirements
Coop Build
By Andrea Di Salvo
Needed work at Lex-
ington Airport will be de-
layed a little due to a new
requirement by the Federal
Aviation Administration.
Morrow County Pub-
lic Works Administration
Manager Sandra Pointer
told the board of commis-
sioners of the new require-
ment at its regular meeting
Oct. 16 in Irrigon. Pointer
said the requirement came
to light when planning
much-needed replacement
of the airport’s Precision
Approach Path Indicator
(PAPI) lights.
Pointer said the Federal
Aviation Admin conducted
a PAPI light test at the air-
port in 2022. They found
that the path indicators
no longer met clearance
requirements. They were
also outdated and could not
be adjusted to the required
angle.
The county plans to
replace the PAPI lights
through Critical Investment
Planning (CIP) funding
coming to the county in
the 2025-26 fiscal year.
The county contracted with
Bend firm Centurywest
Engineering for the work,
at a total project cost of
$50,000.
However, the FAA
threw a wrench in the
works. Mark Hagedorn of
Centurywest told the Mor-
row County Board of Com-
missioners that a recent
change requires an Oregon
State Historic Preservation
Office environmental study
for any off-pavement work.
“So I’ve worked with
Sandi to quickly get this en-
vironmental scope together
so we can stay on track with
our typical CIP projects at
the airport,” Hagedorn said.
Pointer said the county
had a cultural study done
at the airport 10 years ago,
but the FAA requires a new
one. Also, the studies are
only good for the specific
area studied.
Aside from added
expense, Pointer said the
study will add eight months
to a year to the airport’s
work timeline. That also
delays the funding needed
for the work.
“The issue with these
new environmental scopes
that we have to do whenever
we’re breaking new ground
is that has to be done before
we can complete our de-
sign, and we can’t get the
grants until we complete
our design,” Hagedorn told
the commissioners.
So, while Hagedorn
said the work would be
95 percent reimbursable
through the FAA, the coun-
ty will have to carry the
environmental costs for six
to nine months until that
grant is issued.
Morrow County Fi-
nance Director Kevin Ince
said he was concerned that
there was no room in the
airport budget to carry those
costs, even with a budget
adjustment. Pointer said she
hoped to use the remaining
funds from a Business Or-
egon grant.
At the same time, that
grant is slated for pouring
new pads at the airport—
another process that will
require a new archaeolog-
ical study.
However, Hagedorn
said Centurywest realized
it was a last-minute hiccup
and could delay invoicing
until January.
The board of commis-
sioners voted unanimously
to accept the work from
Centurywest in anticipation
of the 2025 design grant.
Also at the meeting,
the board of commission-
ers moved forward with an
intent to award the contract
for a new Enterprise Re-
source Planning (ERP) sys-
tem. The ERP is intended
to make county operations
such as budgeting, payroll
and human resources more
efficient.
The expected cost for
implementation and the
first year of the contract is
$697,740 to $801,520, with
an estimated $145,512 in
recurring annual costs.
The county intends to
contract with Univerus and
Euna for the platform and
software needed. Contract
negotiations will begin after
a week unless the intent to
award is contested.
The BOC also voted
to accept consultant firm
BerryDunn’s proposal for
implementation project
management assistance.
Tammie Warren, se-
nior consultant and project
manager with BerryDunn,
said the project came to
light based on existing chal-
lenges the county had with
outdated software.
“So the approach was
to really come in and do a
good current state analysis,
see where the county was,
what existing softwares
were being used, what
business processes were
being impacted, and then
what was the path forward
through this process,” she
said.
The project kicked off
in January and has been
10 months in the making.
Warren said BerryDunn
started with assessments
and activities to learn more
about the county and then
reached out to vendors to
see what was available.
“Then we sat down
with the team and we went
through a deep dive into
what do those functional
technical requirements look
like for a future system,
what is needed in a new
system?” she said.
Warren said they issued
a request for proposals,
as well as contacting 50
companies directly. They
received eight responses,
five for full ERP suites
and three for specialized
software solutions. They
made final evaluations and
selections in September.
One of the finalists was
Univerus, which proposed
three software solutions in
its suite. BerryDunn also
proffered Euna Solutions
as a budget solution to in-
tegrate with Univerus.
Depending on contract
negotiations and availabil-
ity, it could be nine to 12
months before the system
is operational.
Morrow County BOC
Chair David Sykes asked
how the new software might
apply directly to board of
commissioners work such
as capital planning. Ince
said there wasn’t a direct
link, but there would cer-
tainly be areas in which it
would help the BOC func-
tion more smoothly.
“There’s functional-
ity that currently is just
on paper and exists on
somebody’s desk that’s
going to be more auto-
mated and convert it to a
process and a system,” said
Ince. “There’ll certainly be
updates and information
provided to, not just the
board, but all the county
employees that it’s going
to ultimately affect.”
Ince also said the tim-
ing is good regarding the
new risk and procurement
manager the county is look-
ing to hire.
“The processes used to
execute procurements for
-Continued to PAGE EIGHT
Heppner council gives update on city park remodel
and tiny homes project
By Annalynn Black
During the October 14 th
Heppner city council meet-
ing, a significant portion of
the agenda was dedicated to
the discussion of ongoing
developmental projects,
including enhancements
to the local park and an
exciting housing initiative
involving tiny homes.
The city manager,
John Doherty, provided
an update on the Heppner
city park project, which
has been gaining traction
thanks to the acquisition of
three different grants total-
ing $270,000. His goal is to
make the city park inclusive
for all users, adding ADA
accessible structures and
additions. Additional fund-
ing is still being pursued
through pending grant ap-
plications. A focal point of
the park’s development was
the potential installation of
a shade structure, crucial
to making the park more
accessible and comfortable
during peak sunny hours.
Initially, the city considered
a large conventional shade
structure; however, esti-
mates revealed that such an
installation could cost about
$100,000. An alternative,
more innovative “sail-type”
structure modeled after
sailboat technology is being
considered, that will cost
around $50,000, according
to John.
Given the high costs,
alternative methods of in-
creasing visibility and sup-
port for the project were
discussed. Ideas included
hosting a community event
focusing on the park’s ben-
efits, collaborating with
Sykes Brothers Printing
for a promotional vinyl
banner, and engaging local
elementary school students
through informative pre-
sentations. The target goal
for this project stands at
$500,000 to cover all nec-
essary developments and
installations.
An essential compo-
nent of the park enhance-
ments highlighted during
the meeting was the con-
sideration of accessibility.
Council member Cody High
emphasized the project’s in-
clusive design, ensuring it
accommodates individuals
with disabilities. Despite
the relatively small size of
Heppner’s community, the
council is committed to ad-
dressing the needs of every
resident, reinforcing the
importance of accessible
public spaces. “We have a
smaller community and a
smaller need but the one
individual that meets that
need makes it worthwhile.”
John says.
Furthermore, the coun-
cil discussed progress on the
development of the Chase
Street property, which is
set to be transformed into a
community of tiny homes.
Spearheading this project
is Kim Cutsforth, who is
working with the Willow
Creek development group.
Preparations are underway
for the financial aspects of
the property transaction,
with groundbreaking antici-
pated around the beginning
of 2025. These homes, pro-
jected to be around 1,000
square feet, according to
John, aim to provide in-
novative, compact living
solutions and are expected
to be under construction
by Spring 2025. Cutsforth
says these homes will be
mainly for the elderly in
the community looking to
sell/ downsize their current
homes. Tiny homes are
generally defined as dwell-
ings that are 400 square feet
or less in total living area.
Despite their small size,
these homes are meticu-
lously designed to be both
functional and comfortable.
Additionally, tiny homes
are often more energy-effi-
cient and environmentally
friendly compared to tradi-
tional housing due to their
small footprint and lesser
material requirements. The
trend of tiny home living
also encourages a mini-
malist lifestyle, promoting
the idea of living with less
material possessions and
greater financial freedom
due to reduced housing
costs.
The Ione FFA group with their chicken coup. -Photo from
Ione FFA Facebook page.
We have officially fin-
ished building the chicken
coop! Our 16 chickens are
now producing eggs for our
School Based Enterprise.
Soon, we’ll have an egg
hutch where community
members can pick up egg
packs on a first-come, first-
serve basis, with donations
appreciated. The kids are
working hard to prepare
the coop for winter and for
chicks next spring.
If anyone in the com-
munity would like to sup-
port us with unused chicken
gear or materials, we are
currently looking for 3
straw bales, pine shavings,
chicken feed bags, empty
feed bags (to sew into carry-
ing bags), chicken feeders,
chicken waterers, a heat
lamp, and old stock tanks
for housing chicks.
Please drop off items
inside the garden fence, and
notify Ms. Castle of your
donation along with your
address so the Chapter can
send you a thank you and a
holiday card!
Heppner Booster Club
Dinner raises nearly
$50,000 in a night of
fun and giving
The annual Heppner
Booster Club Dinner and
Auction took place on Sat-
urday, October 19th, at the
Gilliam Bisbee building
in Heppner, Oregon. The
atmosphere was lively and
filled with laughter, thanks
in part to Ken Grieb, who
served as both MC and
auctioneer, skillfully enter-
taining the crowd with his
jokes and keeping the event
running smoothly.
Attendees enjoyed a
delicious steak dinner, com-
plete with baked potatoes
and salad. The event was a
success, with an estimated
total of nearly $50,000
raised for the booster club.
A notable highlight of
the evening was when Steve
Rhea took the microphone
to announce an $8,000 do-
nation from Mulligans,
accumulated over the years
from past alumni golf tour-
naments. The story behind
this donation began years
ago with $3,000 that Dave
Alstott had saved from
Mulligan donations, kept in
his sock drawer. Steve and
Dave decided to invest the
money in the bank, which
eventually grew to $8,000.
Steve humorously remarked
that Dave must not have
changed his socks often.
The night featured a
variety of exciting auction
items, including: Black-
stone grills, Fishing trips,
Cornhole games, Baseball
tickets, Oregon Ducks-
themed baskets, Blazer tick-
ets, A load of gravel, Gift
certificates to Les Schwab
Some of the standout
auction sales included:
A handmade purse by
Amelia Haguewood, selling
for $4,500
A shrimp boil dinner,
donated by Troy & Autumn
Morgan, fetching $3,000
A weekend stay at the
Marcus Whitman Hotel, do-
nated by Mark Huddleston
of Crown Paper, selling for
$2,050
The 2025 VIP Table,
which sold for $5,500
CALL
541-989-8221
ext 204
for more
information