A16 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM
SCHOOL:
continued from Page A1
Board members shared
what they’d learned in the
days since the failure of the
bond, which proposed to
replace Highland Hills and
Rocky Heights elementary
schools, upgrade the high
school and build a new ele-
mentary school on East The-
ater Lane.
Many said they’d heard
from people who couldn’t
afford the tax increase on
a fixed income, as well as
those who wanted to see the
district try to upgrade the
buildings they had instead
of building a brand-new
Highland Hills.
But others said they were
surprised by the responses
from community members.
Multiple board members
said they knew people who
claimed they didn’t receive
ballots. Several also said
they heard comments from
people who were more in-
terested in seeing the high
school developed than
focusing on elementary
schools.
Another common cri-
tique was from the senior
citizen community, which
was unhappy at having to
move from their current se-
nior center location once the
school district purchased the
property.
Karen Sherman, the
board chair, said while it
was a difficult transition,
she felt some of the blame
was unfairly placed on the
schools.
“We took that into con-
sideration,” she said. “We
offered them the land by Ar-
mand Larive right up front.
Unfortunately, the senior
board and city have not been
able to get the center built in
a timely fashion. Here we
are, looking like the peo-
ple pushing them out, but I
don’t feel we are totally re-
sponsible for that.”
“I think it comes down
to community trust,” said
board member Dave Smith.
“I had people saying to me
that we were asking for
more than we really need-
ed — and I took offense at
that. I think we’ve tried to be
transparent.”
WEDNESDAY, MAY 24, 2017
FROM PAGE A1
Sherman said while it
may not have been a direct
reason, she also felt the
city’s recent decision not
to renew the Chamber of
Commerce’s lease on the
Hermiston Conference Cen-
ter may have set a tone for
people in the community.
“I think there’s some anx-
iousness about that,” Sher-
man said. “Hermiston has
always been such a support-
ive place to live. Emotional-
ly, that has been the hardest
part of this week. I feel badly
because our kids did not get
the support they needed from
this community.”
Community
Response
Many senior citizens at
the Hermiston Senior Cen-
ter lunch last week said they
weren’t going to vote for
a bond that raised the tax
burden of people on fixed
incomes.
“If they would have just
put the repair of Rocky
Heights and Highland Hills
on there, I probably would
have voted for it,” said a
woman named Chris, who
asked that her last name not
be used, echoing the com-
ments of several others in
the room. “But I’m not vot-
ing for a new school.”
Others added that they
wanted to see the district put
more effort into maintaining
existing buildings, rather
than continue to build.
Still others said they
felt the influx of Hispanic
families was contributing
to the growing population
of schools, but felt those
populations weren’t paying
their fair share of taxes, and
wouldn’t help shoulder the
resulting tax increase.
Some seniors also ac-
knowledged the sting they’d
felt at being told they had to
leave their current location.
“It was harsh,” said Vir-
ginia Beebe, who doesn’t
live in Hermiston but is
active at the senior center.
“They basically told us the
building comes down no
matter what.”
Parents at some of the
schools that had been up for
replacement said they were
disappointed in the bond’s
failure — but several said
they didn’t vote, or failed to
turn in their ballots on time.
But others said they were
surprised by the outcome.
“I was so sad,” said Katie
Anderson, a parent at Rocky
Heights Elementary. “I think
it was just the money.”
Liz Sharon, another par-
ent at Rocky Heights, said
the school is in great need of
the proposed repairs.
“It’s 56 years old,” she
said. “It’s just worn down.”
Heather Beal, a parent at
Rocky Heights, said most
parents she knew supported
the bond because they see
the problems with the facili-
ties on a daily basis.
“It’s so crowded,” she
said.
Moving forward
Sherman said despite
the disappointing loss, it’s
important to take people’s
comments seriously.
The school district did
two community attitude
polls in 2016 before put-
ting the bond before voters.
In the first, conducted in
April 2016, 47 percent were
in favor of the $104 mil-
lion bond while 43 percent
were against it and 10 per-
cent couldn’t decide. When
asked about a smaller $84
million bond that wouldn’t
replace Highland Hills, 48
percent were in favor and 41
percent were against.
Five months later the dis-
trict returned with a similar
set of questions and found
the sentiment had shifted.
When asked about the $104
million bond, 46 percent
were in favor and 48 percent
were against it, leaving just
six percent unsure.
The school board on
Monday talked about hir-
ing a consultant for another
round of community input
as it moves forward.
While there is current-
ly no timeline for when the
issue of school construction
will go back to the ballot,
Sherman said she had al-
ready heard some sugges-
tions — re-submitting the
bond but not including
Highland Hills, or just up-
grading the existing build-
ings for safety issues.
“We need to revisit these
again,” Sherman said.
Our smallest
hearing aid
made with
medical-grade
titanium.
MARKET:
continued from Page A1
Second Street between Main
Street and Gladys Avenue.
The market will open Sat-
urday, June 17 from 9 a.m.
to 1 p.m. The season runs
through Oct. 14.
Active with the market
off and on over the past de-
cade, Smith is excited about
the change in venue. The
visibility off Highway 395,
she said, should bring extra
traffic to the market.
“What better place to
be located, than right in the
heart of Hermiston?” she
said. “Also, increasing foot
traffic on Main Street can
only be a good thing for our
town and local shops.”
People interested in sell-
ing goods at the market need
to pay a one-time registration
fee of $35, which includes a
T-shirt. Also, weekly booth
rates are $20 for homemade/
homegrown goods or $25
for commercial vendors.
Also, Smith said those
belonging to the market
can participate in the in the
BTW:
continued from Page A1
Thompson Hall on the
old fairgrounds but gaining
the Maxwell Event Cen-
ter downtown as a venue
for hosting medium-sized
events. Mitch Meyers,
owner of Hermiston Brew-
ing Company and Nook-
ies Restaurant, is almost
done turning the building
at the northeast corner of
Locust Avenue and N First
Place into a 3,000 square
foot event center capable
of seating 150 to 160 peo-
ple indoors and another 75
to 100 outdoors. The center
can be booked by calling
541-561-1047.
•••
Four local members
of the class of 2017 won
Ford Family Foundation
scholarships, joining 101
other winners from Ore-
gon out of a pool of 5,883
applicants. Vanessa Am-
FILE PHOTO
A variety of jewelry is displayed at the Devine Designs
vendor booth of Mike and Edi Devine during a past
Hermiston Farmers’ Market.
small-town Thursdays sale
on the first Thursday of each
month. All vendor’s booth
fees are free for those Thurs-
days, she said.
In addition, Smith is hop-
ing to include some evening
markets and introduce a
Foodtruck Friday. She’s also
in contact with area musi-
cians for entertainment and
local businesses for possible
do-it-yourself projects.
Booth space is still avail-
able, Smith said. The success
of the market depends on
both vendors and the pub-
lic’s response. Smith knows
there are many talented
people and locally-sourced
products in the community
— and hopes to showcase
those.
“When you buy local and
keep money in your own
community, everyone bene-
fits,” she said. “I want this to
be a farmers’ market — to be
a place where people travel
to see or plan to stop at when
coming through out beauti-
ful little town.”
For more information,
contact Smith at hermis-
tonfarmersmarket@gmail.
com or visit www.facebook.
com/Hermistonfarmersmar-
ket-1713625582263775.
briz-Mendoza of Herm-
iston High School, Ja-
hayra Garcia-Sandoval
of Hermiston High School
and Selene Andrade-Ber-
nal of Riverside High
School are all headed to
University of Portland,
while Marlina Serratos
of Irrigon High School
is headed to George Fox
University. The renewable
scholarship covers 90 per-
cent of each student’s un-
met financial need for each
academic year.
•••
The new downtown
Holiday Inn Express is
kicking into nearby proj-
ects, bringing in about
$100,000 in additional tax
revenue to the urban re-
newal district. That money
is being spent on things
like the festival street and
wayfinding signs. For
more on the budget, see
Page A3.
•••
The Umatilla County
Fire District 1 is holding
an open house from 11
a.m. to 3 p.m. on June 3,
at their station 22 on Di-
agonal and East Punkin
Center Road. The district
will be hosting a barbecue
to show its appreciation
for the community’s sup-
port of the new fire dis-
trict.
•••
Does anyone remember
Hal Block? We found his
name as an owner of the
current Hermiston Herald
office at 333 E. Main and
we’d like to know more
about the man. Give us a
call at 541-567-6457.
•••
And lastly, welcome to
new Hermiston residents
and newspaper subscribers
John and Sherry Christ-
ner, who recently moved
from California. If you
happen to bump into them
around town, make sure
to share Hermiston’s wel-
coming spirit.
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