B USINESS
Hermiston
A4
WEDNESDAY, JULY 15, 2015
HERMISTONHERALD.COM
Holiday Inn Express coming to town
STAFF REPORT
A four-story Holiday Inn
Express will become the
tallest building in Hermis-
ton when it’s built down-
town next year.
The hotel at the north-
w e s t
rner
HOTEL c of o High-
way 395
and West Hermiston Ave-
nue will have 93 rooms, in-
cluding 18 suites, an indoor
SRROVSDDQG¿WQHVVFHQWHU
and is expected to open
July 1, 2016.
According to a study
by the city, the 434 hotel
rooms currently in town av-
eraged 69.6 percent occu-
pancy in 2014, an increase
of almost 1.5 percent from
the year before. High-end
hotels averaged 76.9 per-
cent occupancy, an increase
of 6.5 percent from 2013.
Hotels can run out of va-
cancy during peak travel
times, said Mark Morgan,
Hermiston assistant city man-
ager. That includes during re-
gional sports and community
events, but it can also occur
any given day of the week.
“The interesting thing
about the Hermiston market
is that hotels are more full
during the week,” he said.
“Our big driver is business
travel stays.”
Morgan also said the
bump to the urban renew-
al fund will be substantial
— $75,000 annually if the
property is assessed at a
conservative $5 million —
which would help jump start
the long list of downtown
projects the city is planning.
But the biggest boost
could be to existing and new
businesses downtown, Mor-
JDQVDLGZKLFKZLOOEHQH¿W
from a nearby hotel. He said
even conservative estimates
have about 50 people stay-
ing in the hotel each night.
“This is a catalyst-type
investment,” he said.
The Holiday Inn Ex-
press will employ 25
full-time workers once
it opens, according to
a press release from its
management
company,
and will be designed in
the company’s newest
style, which premiered in
Salt Lake City earlier this
year. The new style was
created to appeal to mil-
lennial travelers and fea-
tures a more open lobby
with high-top tables and
barstool chairs.
Sycan B Corp. will de-
velop the hotel and Inn-
Sight Hotel Management
Group, based in Spring-
¿HOGZLOOPDQDJHLW
A dispute over the
property was resolved in
January after the city div-
vied up ownership of the
gravel West Ridgeway
Avenue between the hotel
property and Sallee Prop-
erties, the neighbor to the
north.
Hermiston Auto Parts moving into former PGG store
By JADE McDOWELL
Hermiston History: 25 years ago,
‘other’ PGG store was being built
Staff Writer
Hermiston’s
former
Pendleton Grain Grow-
ers retail store is getting a
new occupant this week as
Hermiston Auto Parts is re-
locating to the larger space.
The move will mean
twice as much room for
the NAPA retailer, own-
er Kevin Cleaver said,
as well as a more visible
location than the store’s
current spot at 292 W.
Hermiston Ave.
“The biggest advan-
tage is probably going to
be the location,” he said.
Cleaver and his wife,
Georgia, have owned the
store, which was estab-
lished in the 1960s, since
1994. He said the store
has outgrown its original
location, which is why he
became interested in the
building at 200 S. First
Place after PGG closed its
retail store there in the fall.
Cleaver said having
twice as much space will
mean more inventory.
“We’ll
have
stuff
we’ve never carried be-
fore,” he said.
The store currently
has seven employees, but
Cleaver said he will prob-
ably hire three more peo-
ple after the expansion.
The plan is for NAPA’s
Portland distribution center
to bring “as many people as
they can” to help move in-
6T$)) 3H2T2 %< *$5< /. W(6T
Kevin Cleaver (right), owner of Hermiston Auto Parts, watches
as inventory is moved into the new store location Monday on
South First Place next to Bi-Mart. The store is moving to the
new location and expects to be open for business this week.
RELOCATION
ventory on Monday, Tues-
day and Wednesday while
the store remains open at its
current location, then tran-
sition to being open at the
new location on Thursday,
or earlier if possible, while
the rest of the inventory is
moved over.
John Randall, general
manager of NAPA Port-
land, called the new store
site a “Cadillac” location.
“It will be a good
move,” Randall said.
Over the weekend the
outside of the store was
repainted. New shelves
are being installed in-
side, and eventually the
store will get new signage
marking it as Hermiston
Auto Parts.
Cleaver said he hasn’t
set a date yet but plans to
have a grand opening cel-
ebration for the commu-
nity after they get settled
in at their new location.
Cleaver said Hermis-
ton Auto Parts is leasing
the location for now, be-
cause there is a Depart-
ment of Environmental
Quality hold on the prop-
erty due to underground
tanks at the location for
the former PGG fueling
station that was located
on the property. However,
he does intend to buy the
building once the DEQ is-
sues are resolved.
— Gary L. West con-
tributed to this report.
A photo and story on
the front page of the July
17, 1990, edition of the
Hermiston Herald fea-
tured an update on how
construction was progress-
ing on a new building. The
building was built spe-
FL¿FDOO\ IRU D 3HQGOHWRQ
Grain Growers retail store,
but that building is now
home to Bi-Mart, which
has been at that location
since 1999.
PGG moved to another
building across the parking
lot where it would remain
until it closed last Septem-
ber. But now, this week, a
new business is moving in
to the last home of PGG in
Hermiston.
What follows is the text
of the story from July 1990,
25 years ago this week.
The new 34,000-square-
foot Pendleton Grain
Growers hardware and feed
store will be completed
sometime in early October
according to Hermiston
Manager Nathan Crowther.
“The construction com-
pany is right on schedule,”
said Crowther and has been
WKHODVWIRXURU¿YHZHHNV
³7KDW¶VZK\ZH¶UHVRFRQ¿
dent that the store will open
on schedule.”
The building is going up
on PGG’s property west of
(South) First Place and con-
struction is well under way.
The new store had been
planned for more than a
year prior to the start of
construction.
Hermiston
City Council agreed to
vacate Southeast Second
Street to make room for the
new store and adequate off-
street parking.
PGG will tear down the
existing hardware store on
the west side of First Place.
That site will become part
of the new store’s parking
lot. The feed and seed store
on the east side of North
First Place also will be torn
down.
Haskins Construction
of Spokane is the general
contractor for the job and
the sub contractors are from
Umatilla County.
• • •
The Hermiston PGG
store, in what is now the Bi-
Mart building, opened on
Oct. 8, 1990, and a ribbon
cutting for the new facility
was held on Nov. 16, 1990.
PGG shuttered its retail
store in September 2014, as
part of a major restructur-
ing when no buyers could
be found for the Hermiston
store or three other retail
locations in Pendleton, Mil-
ton-Freewater and Athena.
But the building didn’t
stay closed for long. This
week, Hermiston Auto
Parts is moving inventory
into the new location and
plans to open for business
at its new location on or be-
fore Thursday.
Hermiston History
Hermiston History will
be a regular feature in the
Hermiston Herald. If you
have something to share
about the history of the
greater Hermiston area,
send your submission to
editor@hermistonherald.
com with “Hermiston
History” in the subject
line. If you have a ques-
tion about the area’s his-
tory you would like the
Herald staff to look into,
you can send your ques-
tions to the same email
address with “Hermiston
History question” in the
subject line.
NEWS IN BRIEF
Chamber to host
networking event at
Ashley Manor
The Hermiston Chamber
of Commerce will host a
Network Hermiston event
at 5:30 p.m. today at Ashley
Manor Care Center, 1355
Manzanita Place, Hermis-
ton.
The business is cele-
brating with a family block
party that will include
food, music, games and
prizes.
For more information
about the event, contact
the Hermiston Chamber
of Commerce at 541-567-
6151.
Network Hermiston
event planned at
Umatilla Electric
The Hermiston Chamber
of Commerce will host a
Network Hermiston event
at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, July
21, at Umatilla Electric
Cooperative, 750 W. Elm
Ave., Hermiston.
UEC has remodeled its
+HUPLVWRQRI¿FHVDQGWKH1HW
work Hermiston events cele-
brate businesses in the greater
Hermiston area and their com-
mitment to the region.
For more information
about the events, contact the
Hermiston Chamber of Com-
merce at 541-567-6151.
Good Shepherd to cut
ribbon on expansion July 21
The Hermiston Cham-
ber of Commerce will host
a grand opening and rib-
bon-cutting ceremony for
upgrades at Good Shepherd
Medical Center.
The event will be held at
5 p.m., Tuesday, July 21, at
the hospital, 610 N.W. 11th
St., Hermiston.
The event will provide
an opportunity to see the
new addition and expansion
of the surgery suite with a
15-bed day surgery center.
For more information
about the event, contact the
chamber, 541-567-6151.
Work begins on Don Horneck Memorial Building
By JADE McDOWELL
Staff Writer
The Hermiston Agricul-
tural Research & Extension
Center broke ground on a
new building Wednesday,
VOLUME 109 ɿ NUMBER 43
To contact the Hermiston Herald for news, advertising or subscription information:
• call 541-567-6457
• e-mail info@hermistonherald.com
• stop b\ our of¿ ces at (. 0ain 6t.
• visit us online at: www.hermistonherald.com
ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION RATES
Delivered by carrier and mail Wednesdays
,nside 8matilla0orrow counties ......................................................................................... $42.65
2utside 8matilla0orrow counties ...................................................................................... $5.
July 8, that will be named
in memory of the center’s
former agronomist profes-
sor Don Horneck.
“All of us here still
miss Don,” HAREC di-
rector Phil Hamm said.
“Don will always be
missed for who he was
and what he did for the
experiment station.”
Plans for the building were
in the works before Horneck
died in the fall of 2014.
The building also will
include an agronomy lab,
insect-rearing
facilities,
a tissue culture room and
various pieces of research
equipment, including spe-
cial super-cold freezers for
RNA and DNA samples
that will be equipped with
a back-up natural gas gen-
erator for when the power
goes out.
The $300,000 build-
ing was paid for by pub-
lic and private donations.
Hamm said about a third
of the money came from
private sources, including
many local growers.
“We’ve gotten tremen-
The Hermiston Herald 8636 24222, ,661 75-472 is published weeNly at Hermiston
Herald, (. 0ain 6t., Hermiston, 25 7, 541 567-6457, )$; 541 567-1764. 3eriodical
postage paid at Hermiston, 25. 3ostmaster, send address changes to Hermiston Herald,
3rinted on
(. 0ain 6t., Hermiston, 25 7.
recycled
$ member of the (2 0edia *roup &opyright ‹215
newsprint
Eagle Cap Excursion Train
Two Rivers Run
Dinner & Music on the Train
TRAIL
TRAKKERS
2015 Summer Walking Program
Through Aug. 27 th
Saturday, July 18
Departs from Elgin
at 4:30 p.m.
800.323.7330 eaglecaptrainrides.com
Two Rivers Bonus Run - August 1 & 15
See the full season schedule online.
Morning Walks
meet at Oxbow Trailhead
(Intersection of 11th & Elm St.)
Monday through Thursday
7:00 - 8:00 am
Questions? Call 541-667-3400 ext 3050
or email healthinfo@gshealth.org
dous support,” he said.
Hamm said it was a
mark of how important
the station’s research
is to the region that the
Washington Potato Com-
mission made a donation,
only its second dona-
tion to an entity outside
of Washington (HAREC
also received the commis-
sion’s first donation out-
side of Washington).
Horneck’s wife, Vic-
ki, attended the ground-
breaking ceremony along
with several other rep-
resentatives of the Hor-
neck family. She said the
family was very proud of
the work her husband had
done at the extension cen-
ter and was touched by
the tribute.
She said her husband
had been very excited
about the new building
when it was in the plan-
ning stages.
“He was talking about
the building and what was
going to be in it and how
great it was going to be,”
she said.