Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 23, 2016)
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2016 HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A3 LOCAL NEWS EOTEC CONSTRUCTION CONTINUES AS CENTER PREPARES TO HOST FARM FAIR By JADE McDOWELL Staff Writer Work on the Eastern Or- egon Trade and Event Cen- ter has been moving along quickly in the last month. Carl Hendon, CFO for Hendon Construction, said the company has been working to accelerate the schedule for the rodeo are- na. “As things stand right now, I’d say we’re a week to 10 days ahead of sched- ule,” he told the EOTEC board during their Friday meeting. He said with construc- tion it’s always possible that roadblocks will come up in the future, but for now the goal is to finish the are- na in June. The board also heard an update from Knerr Con- struction. John Eckhardt told them that American Fencing was the low bidder for on-site fencing and the landscaping bids will be in this week. Creation of the metal barn buildings is in the works, as are the pens and panels. The company will hire subcontractors for installation of the barns in December. Business manager Heather Cannell said she had been working with G2 Construction and Frew De- velopment Group to fix a checklist of problems with the event center that were discussed at a board work- shop in October. Some issues, like the water heater not making the water hot enough, have already been fixed. Others, like an imperfection in the glass front doors that makes them look streaky, are scheduled to be repaired. And some, like a loud jet engine sound in the confer- ence room when the HVAC system kicks on, still have people working to locate the problem. Cannell said the event center has been busy, with events every day last week Hermiston leads county in population growth By JADE McDOWELL Staff Writer Hermiston is still grow- ing. According to prelimi- nary estimates released by Portland State University’s Population Research Cen- ter, Hermiston’s population grew by 210 people be- tween July 2015 and July 2016. The university esti- mates Hermiston’s popula- tion at 17,730 this year. The growth should come as no surprise to anyone in the Hermiston School Dis- trict, which saw an extra 141 students in September enrollment counts. Overall Umatilla Coun- ty grew by 725 residents for just under a 1 percent increase in growth over 12 months. Umatilla also had a sig- nificant jump in growth, go- ing from 7,060 residents to 7,220. Pendleton grew by an estimated 35 residents, from 16,845 to 16,880. Echo and Milton-Free- water’s populations held steady, while Stanfield’s dipped by five residents. Neighboring Morrow County grew by a full one percent, jumping from 11,630 residents in July 2015 to 11,745 this July. Half of the increase was inside the city limits of Boardman, which is now at 3,555 people, and most of the rest was in the un- incorporated parts of the county. Irrigon’s population dipped by 30 residents, down to 1,900. Oregon as a whole grew 1.6 percent and is now up to 4,076,350 people living in the state. FILE PHOTO The Hermiston water tower got a fresh coat of paint and new logo in October, replacing the former “You Can GROW Here” slogan. Fuzzball Animal Rescue looking for foster homes Operation uses volunteers’ homes By JADE McDOWELL Staff Writer The animals of Fuzz- ball Animal Rescue aren’t always easy to find homes for. The small Hermiston rescue operation, which places injured and sick stray animals into fos- ter homes while they are nursed back to health, has rescued everything from a playful kitten with a broken leg to a geriatric Shi Tzu with a skin condition. The Shi Tzu’s name is Sweetie Pie and she is still looking for a forever home. Her foster mom, Joellyn Herriman, said Sweetie Pie was found near Hat Rock in August. “She’s pretty much blind and pretty much deaf, but she’s a nice girl,” Herriman said. She hopes perhaps a re- tired couple or someone G O O D else who doesn’t mind keeping the little dog com- pany during the day and giving her medicated baths will come forward to give her a home. Fuzzball Animal Res- cue foots the bill for vet- erinarian care and food for foster animals like Sweetie Pie, but the small nonprof- it relies entirely on foster homes instead of running a shelter. The group is in des- perate need of more fosters who don’t mind temporari- ly hosting a kitten with a re- spiratory infection or a dog with an injured paw. “That is huge,” Herri- man said. “We can’t take in animals if they don’t have somewhere to go.” She said finances are also a “challenge” and the group could always use do- nations or help fundraising. Most of the money goes toward veterinarian fees for not only healing the animals, but also getting them vaccinated, spayed/ neutered and microchipped before they are adopted out. S H E P H E R D Herriman said she and her husband have two dogs of their own, as well as a couple of cats that they meant to just foster but ended up keeping. They also continue to take in cats and dogs rescued by Fuzzball off and on through- out the year. “I like my animals to have little breaks, and us to have little breaks,” she said. Some of the foster ani- mals need some extra love and care, but Herriman said it is always a good feeling to save the life of an animal that may have otherwise been euthanized for some- thing as fixable as a broken bone. Once an animal is in good enough health, the group takes them to adop- tion events like the nation- wide one recently hosted by PetSmart. They also adopt animals out directly or do transfers with other rescue groups. Pictures of the animals currently avail- able can be found on the Fuzzball Animal Rescue Facebook page or at www. W O M E N ’ S C E N T E R fuzzballrescue.com/adopt- able-pets. To inquire about adopt- ing a pet, donating, becom- ing a foster or reporting an injured stray, email fuzz- ballrescue@gmail.com or send a message through the group’s Facebook page, which is monitored daily. Donations can also be giv- en directly to Oregon Trail Veterinary Clinic, which provides the care for Fuzz- ball animals. ——— Contact Jade McDowell at 541-564-4536. and the Hermiston Farm Fair coming up at the be- ginning of December. After speaking with the nonprofits that have tradi- tionally had a permanent food building at the Uma- tilla County Fairgrounds, board member Dan Dorran asked for and received per- mission to begin searching for mobile food trucks to use instead. The trucks, instead of buildings, will al- low for more flexibili- ty in arranging the fair and could be rented out during the year for use at other events. Dorran said Hermiston Christian School has said it does not want to continue selling hot food, meaning the board only has to find two trucks. He said he be- lieved he could procure two used food trucks for less than $75,000. ——— Contact Jade McDowell at 541-564-4536. Simmons Insurance holds grand opening at former RoeMarks building Simmons Insurance Group will unveil the new- ly-renovated RoeMarks building at an open house on Nov. 29. The insurance company purchased the former west- ern wear store in downtown Hermiston, which had sat empty for nearly four years, in May. They will maintain offices on the eastern side of the building and have leased portions of the west side (on the corner of Main Street and Northeast Sec- ond Street) to Scrubs and Bloomz Coffee Bar. The 6,000 square foot space on the eastern side will hold administrative of- fice and commercial insur- ance for Simmons Insurance while the company’s home, auto and health offices will remain at 702 E. Main St. Renovations to the new space included hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of new HVAC, light- ing, windows, flooring and walls. A facade grant from the Hermiston Urban Re- newal Agency provided the money for windows to be restored to the upper floors. To see the new office, visit the grand opening and ribbon cutting at noon Tues- day, Nov. 29. Alcohol suspected in death of student over the weekend A Hermiston High staff and students during this difficult School student died time on Monday Sunday afternoon at Hermiston High from a possible alco- hol overdose. School and Ar- Hermiston School mand Larive Middle District reported Ce- School. sar Roque, 15, was Roque Hermiston Police Chief Jason Edmis- a sophomore soccer player for the school. A writ- ton said there is an ongoing ten statement from the dis- investigation into who pro- trict called the death “tragic” vided the alcohol to Roque, and stated “our thoughts and who was a minor. prayers go out to all affected He said there was not by this tragedy.” yet an official cause of The district also stated death, but alcohol appeared it will provide support for to be a prime factor. Th anksgiving Dining Guide Thanksgiving Traditional Dinner 2:00 PM - 5:00 PM 233 SE 3rd St., Pendleton • 541.276.8500 Feast on style woth Famoly thos Thanksgovong! November 24 Good Shepherd Health Care System is proud to introduce Famoly Style ų±ÚĜƋĜŅĹŸƚýåƋ 11am to 9pm Famoly Style Plateau Fone Donong 12pm to 7pm Allison Khavkin, M.D., OB/GYN “ I provide women with preventative healthcare services as well as treating both short- and long-term medical conditions. I take a holistic approach to caring for my patients understanding your specific needs—while keeping your quality of life at the forefront of your care. ” Welcoming New Patients Good Shepherd Women’s Center 541.667.3801 620 NW 11th Street, Suite 103 Hermiston, OR 97838 CASINO • HOTEL • GOLF • CINEPLEX • RV MUSEUM • DINING • TRAVEL PLAZA 800.654.9453 • PENDLETON, OR • I-84, EXIT 216 wildhorseresort.com • Owned & operated by CTUIR Management reserves all rights. 650.7683.BA.11.16
