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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (April 11, 2015)
DRONE FLIGHTS PREP BASEBALL SCIENTISTS USE AERIAL VEHICLES IN LOCAL TESTS BULLDOG FRESHMAN NOT JUST A MANAGER PAGE A3 SATURDAY, APRIL 11, 2015 City Council to consider approving new subdivision lots SPORTS PAGE A9 YOUR LOCAL NEWSPAPER HERMISTONHERALD.COM PROBLEMS WITH PANHANDLERS BY SEAN HART HERMISTON HERALD New houses could be built on 45 new lots if the Hermiston City Council ap- SURYHV ¿QDO SODW SODQV IRU three separate subdivisions Monday. The council will con- VLGHU DSSURYLQJ ¿QDO SODWV for different plan phases at Highland Summit, Desert Sky and Castle Homes sub- divisions, which could add more than $40,000 to the city’s tax base when the de- velopments are completed, according to city staff re- ports in the council agenda packet. The Hermiston Plan- ning Commission signed off on the plats Wednesday, subject to approval by the Hermiston Irrigation Dis- trict. The Highland Summit proposal covers 16 acres in the existing development. It would create 21 new 7,500- to 8,500-square-foot lots. The lots would be zoned R2 — duplex residential. About 10 acres would be reserved for future use. Each of the proposed single-family homes would be valued at approximately SEE LOTS/A18 SEAN HART PHOTO Joseph Day holds a sign asking for help Thursday afternoon in Umatilla as a Umatilla Police Department code enforcement vehicle drives past. Umatilla Police Chief Darla Huxel said the city is looking into options to address potential safety concerns caused by panhandling near roadways. Residents want begging off Umatilla VWUHHWVRI¿FLDOVZRUNLQJRQDSODQ same people holding signs asking for money every day. He said the activity has grown over the last two years he Many people entering Umatilla has worked at the truck stop, and it is from the freeway are greeted by peo- negatively impacting the city by pre- ple holding signs asking for help, and senting the wrong image. residents have complained about the “As an appearance for Umatilla, panhandlers and their effect on the WKDW¶VWKH¿UVWWKLQJSHRSOHVHHLVWZR city’s appearance and image. or three people at the only stoplight in Several people expressed con- town lined up asking for money,” he cerns at the Umatilla City Council said. “It doesn’t say much for the city. PHHWLQJ 7XHVGD\ DQG FLW\ RI¿FLDOV 7KDW¶VWKH¿UVWLPSUHVVLRQSHRSOHJHW said they are working on a plan to ad- when they come off the freeways.” dress the situation but cannot simply Wilkins said he is not sure where ban people from panhandling. the panhandlers live, but he has seen On Thursday, Tim Wilkins, man- some of them walk to vehicles and ager of Crossroads Truck Stop near drive away after leaving their favored the Interstate 82 offramp on High- spot on the side of the road. He has way 730 where most of the panhan- since banned them from parking on dling takes place, said he sees the business property. BY SEAN HART TODAY’S WEATHER Windy High: 58º Low: 37º OUTLOOK • SUNDAY A few clouds High: 63º Low: 36º • MONDAY Mostly sunny High: 67º Low: 43º A complete weather forecast is featured on page A2. HERMISTON HERALD Another manager of a business in Umatilla, who did not want her name published for fear of retaliation, said she saw one of the panhandlers walking toward Crossroads pushing a wheelchair and then later saw him using the wheelchair as though he were disabled. “It makes me angry,” she said. “It’s ridiculous that they dupe people like that. It’s pretty sad.” Crossroads bar manager Car- ol Welch said the panhandlers are a “horrible, horrible nuisance.” She said they used to come into the bar, but they bothered customers, so she now kicks them out of the business and off the property. SEE RESIDENTS/A6 ‘Down, out and hungry’ BY SEAN HART HERMISTON HERALD Joseph Day sat near the southbound interstate of- framp in Umatilla Thurs- day afternoon holding a cardboard sign asking for help from the many people who drove through the in- tersection of Interstate 82 and Highway 730. Someone rolled down SEE HOMELESS/A6 6WDQ¿HOGDFUHDJHFORVHUWREHLQJVKRYHOUHDG\ Public hearing on annexation scheduled for April 21 Find the Hermiston Herald on Facebook and Twitter and join the conversation. FOR LOCAL BREAKING NEWS www.HermistonHerald.com BY JESSICA KELLER HERMISTON HERALD Approximately 25 acres of land near the Interstate 84 and Highway 395 interchange on the outskirts of 6WDQ¿HOGDUHRQHVWHSFORVHUWREH ing open for development. 7KH6WDQ¿HOG&LW\&RXQFLOZLOO consider annexing the acreage at its next meeting this month fol- lowing a public hearing. The city’s planning commission recommend- ed the council annex the land, tar- geted for commercial develop- ment, at its meeting Wednesday. By annexing the land, situated across from the Pilot Travel Cen- ter truck stop and gas station at the HGJHRI6WDQ¿HOGRQHOHVVEDUULHU stands in the way of progress at the site. Bringing the land from 6WDQ¿HOG¶VXUEDQJURZWKERXQGDU ies into city limits paves the way for providing water and sewer ser- vices, as well as police protection, to the site, City Manager Blair Larsen said. The public hearing later this month is more of a formality, he said. “There isn’t really anybody op- posed to it, but we would certainly like to see it developed,” Larsen said, adding the affected proper- ty owners are in favor of the an- nexation because they would like to pursue selling their respective acreage. With those acres inside city lim- its, interested developers would only have to secure a land pur- chase and make arrangements to SEE ANNEXATION/A18 +HUPLVWRQDUWLVWUHÀHFWVUHDOGHWDLOVLQKHUZRUN Phillips’ intricate perception, knowledge of horses expressed in work on display BY SEAN HART HERMISTON HERALD Hermiston Herald $1.00 © 2015 EO Media Group Hermiston artist Linda Phil- lips sees the world as a series of exquisite details, and she focuses on bringing the intricate colors and shapes to life on her canvas. The artistic instinct always came naturally to her, Phillips said at a reception in her honor Thursday at the Hermiston Public Library, where a collection of her art, primarily featuring horses, is Tips for artists Hermiston artist Linda Phillips said, in addition to focusing on subject matter they know, artists should also focus on their collection by: • Building a large portfolio of work • Framing it the very best they can aff ord • Showing it everywhere and anywhere on display throughout the month. Phillips said some people can sing and some can dance, but, while she can do neither, drawing has always been easy for her. She can express the intricacies she per- ceives in the things she loves, such as dogs and horses, to the rest of SEE PHILLIPS/A18 SEAN HART PHOTO Hermiston artist Linda Phillips poses beside one of her pieces on display at the Hermiston Public Library this month. Phillips enjoys focusing on the details to create lifelike images.