WEDNESDAY, JULY 12, 2017
HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A3
LOCAL NEWS
City takes over portion of Highland Avenue
By JADE MCDOWELL
STAFF WRITER
The city of Hermis-
ton approved a request by
Umatilla County on Mon-
day to take over jurisdiction
of West Highland Avenue
between Southwest 11th
Street and Southwest 15th
Place.
City manager Byron
Smith said the city already
sweeps that portion of road,
and most of the property
on either side is within city
limits. The county made
the request after the city
approved a conditional use
permit for a mini-storage
project along that stretch
of roads, which the county
said would cause problems
in its permitting process if
storm drains were required
along their portion of road
as part of the development.
“This is a new approach
the county is taking, I
guess,” Smith said.
On Monday the coun-
cil also authorized Smith
to accept federal and state
grant funding to hire Centu-
ry West Engineering to up-
date the master plan for the
Hermiston Municipal Air-
port. Using Oregon Depart-
ment of Aviation dollars as a
match for the Federal Avia-
tion Administration funds,
the city’s maximum out-of-
pocket cost for the $300,000
project is expected to be no
more than $3,333.
During a work session
preceding the regular coun-
cil meeting Smith shared
updates on a number of city
projects that councilors and
citizens have inquired about
in recent months.
• New play equipment
for Greenwood Park is ex-
pected to arrive in August.
• The parks and recre-
ation department is ready to
start pouring concrete pads
for a new disc golf course
across from Good Shepherd
Medical Center.
• The city is almost done
finalizing an agreement
with the Department of Fish
and Wildlife to take over
management of the Steel-
head Park area, allowing
the planned West Highland
Trail project to loop under
the Highland Extension
bridge there and into River-
front Park.
• Now that recreation-
al immunity for cities has
been restored by the legis-
Power outages
hit Hermiston
twice in four days
Hermiston
customers
lost power on Friday and
Monday thanks to a bird
and a balloon.
About 2,900 Umatil-
la Electric customers lost
power Friday morning
when a bird flew into pow-
er equipment at the Herm-
iston Butte substation.
The power failure af-
fected people in Hermis-
ton, Irrigon and Boardman
from 9:43 a.m. until 10:41
a.m., with most customers
getting power back before
noon.
Steve Meyers, a spokes-
man for Umatilla Electric,
said most of the custom-
ers affected receive power
from the Butte substation.
The areas that appeared to
be hardest hit were in the
northern part of Hermiston
near East Punkin Center
Road south of Walls Road,
the area around Diagonal
Boulevard and in south-
west Hermiston south of
Highland and west of 11th
Street.
On Monday evening
a metallic party balloon
made contact with pow-
er lines at Geer Road and
Theater Lane, according
to Meyers, starting a fire
and knocking out power
to 2,950 Umatilla Elec-
tric members around north
Hermiston from 6:45-7:43
p.m.
Myers cautioned that
releasing helium balloons
into the atmosphere can
cause power outages and
fires.
Umatilla County Board
of Commissioners approved
a program July 5 to provide
mental health workers for
the Hermiston School Dis-
trict.
The program, however,
is contingent upon funding
from the Greater Oregon Be-
havioral Health Initiative.
Amy Ashton-Williams,
the county’s human services
director, in a memo to com-
missioners explained her
department has been nego-
tiating with GOBHI to pro-
vide the Hermiston School
District’s mental health pro-
gram.
“We are currently working
out the exact dollar amount
that GOBHI will fund for
this program,” according to
her memo, “knowing it will
be a minimum of $300,000.”
The memo stated Life-
ways provided the services
for the past five years while
the school district voiced
“concerns about the level of
care provided and the con-
sistency of such care.” The
district wants a program
that “emulates the care and
consistency” of the coun-
ty’s Community Access for
Resource Effectiveness pro-
gram.
The $300,000 would pay
for a mental health services
program manager with an
annual salary and benefits
of $93,000 and three mental
health associates, with an-
nual salary and benefits of
$68,000-$74,000.
Human services also
wants GOBHI to provide
another $135,000 to buy
three vehicles and pay for an
additional substance abuse
counselor who would split
time between the Hermiston
School District and county
ing plant’s parent compa-
ny NORPAC. Smith said
the city would like to offer
whatever services it can in
helping market the building
or otherwise clear the way
for re-purposing the proper-
ty. However, he said NOR-
PAC has a history of not
being very communicative.
• Smith also noted that
the city has been pursuing
all legal avenues available
to address nuisance com-
plaints against a property
owner in the Highway 207/
Feedville Road area that has
been causing a strong rotting
food odor neighbors have
complained about. He said
within a week or so there
should be a form on the
city’s website for citizens to
directly submit complaints
that can be used in court.
STAFF PHOTO BY GARY L. WEST
A combine off-loads grain while on the move in a wheat field on the Hale family farms on along Butter Creek in rural Echo,
south of Hermiston on July 5. Wheat harvest often starts locally around the Fourth of July holiday.
“We are currently working out the
exact dollar amount that GOBHI will
fund for this program, knowing it
will be a minimum of $300,000.”
Amy Ashton-Williams, Umatilla County’s
human services director
human services.
The county does not plan
to advertise the openings
until GOBHI provides the
funding. Jennifer Blake, the
county’s human resources
manager, told commission-
ers during the public meeting
Wednesday in Pendleton the
county incurs no cost for the
program.
Commissioners
Larry
Givens and Bill Elfering vot-
ed in favor of the proposal.
Commissioner George Mur-
dock was out of town.
out to bid again in the fall.
• The planning depart-
ment continues to work on
opening the door for in-
creased housing develop-
ment in Hermiston, includ-
ing rezoning 40 acres off
of Diagonal Road from in-
dustrial to residential mixed
with some commercial. On
Wednesday at 7 p.m. at city
hall the planning commis-
sion has invited real estate
professionals, developers
and lot owners to come dis-
cuss further ways the city
can help clear away barriers
to housing development.
• Smith said the city
reached out to Hermiston
Foods after hearing of its
impending closure at the
end of the year. The local
managers referred the city
to the vegetable-process-
HARVEST TIME
County approves mental health
program for Hermiston schools
By PHIL WRIGHT
STAFF WRITER
lature, the city is searching
for an architect with expe-
rience designing skate parks
to move forward on the
planned skate park on North
First Place across from the
fire station.
• Parks and Recreation
director Larry Fetter has
been working on a plan with
the Bureau of Reclamation
to manage the dry grasses
and weeds along the Oxbow
Trail so that they pose less
of a fire hazard.
• The Oregon Depart-
ment of Transportation proj-
ect to place traffic signals
at Northwest 11th Street’s
intersections with Orchard
Avenue and Elm Avenue
did not receive any bids
from contractors, so the de-
partment has postponed the
project and hopes to put it
The county also approved
the purchase of a 2001 paint
truck for $8,500 for the road
department.
County public works di-
rector Tom Fellows told the
board his department pays
$6,000-$10,000 a year to
use Morrow County’s truck.
Buying the used vehicle from
the state’s surplus would save
the county money in the long
run, he said, and the truck
also comes with $10,000
worth of replacement parts
and paint equipment.
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Welcomes
A native of the Columbia Basin since 1973, Darrell brings his passion for the
area and a desire to help those fi nd their dream home in our rural communi-
ties. Darrell appreciates the slower pace, and sense of community that comes
with living in Eastern Oregon. Darrell’s background also includes 25 years of ac-
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ness offi ce where he helps with the Grant Accounting.
Darrell enjoys bowling, hiking, biking, kayaking, traveling
a and pretty much anything outdoors. He enjoys watching the
Seahawks, the Tri-City Americans, the Mariners and taking in
a Cougar game in the Palouse. Every year he looks forward
t to catching a play or two, or attending a music concert. To
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509-222-0022 • darrell@darrellstewart.net
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985 N. First Street • Hermiston, OR 97838 • 541-567-8303
www.hermistonuniversalrealty.com