WEDNESDAY, MARCH 7, 2018
LOCAL
HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A3
Hermiston
council race to
feature three
contested seats
Miller is challenging
incumbent Jackie Myers.
Myers, a licensed tax pre-
parer, was first elected to
the council in 1994 and
has served on a variety of
city committees includ-
ing a current assignment
on the Parks and Recre-
ation committee.
Miller said he decided
to run because he thought
his years as a small busi-
ness owner would help
him find ways that the
city could save taxpayer
money on operational
costs, and find ways to
attract more businesses
and promote growth in
Hermiston.
“I have no problem
with any of the city coun-
cilors, they’re all doing
a wonderful job, but I
wanted to throw my hat
into the ring to provide a
different perspective as a
business owner,” he said.
Miller spent his career
as a funeral home direc-
tor in Michigan before
retiring to Hermiston in
August 2016. He said he
had visited for “business
and friends” for about
10 years before that and
liked the community.
In Ward 4, incumbent
Doug Smith is running
against Michael Engel-
brecht. Smith is in his
first term as city coun-
cilor after being elected
in 2015. He started work-
ing as an officer with the
Hermiston Police Depart-
ment in 1988 and after
retiring began to work as
a general contractor.
Engelbrecht did not
return a call for comment
Tuesday afternoon.
Hermiston residents
will get a chance to cast
their vote for the coun-
cilor representing their
ward in the May 15
election.
For Wards 2, 3 and
4 the May election will
be considered the gen-
eral election and the win-
ner will take their seat in
January.
Because Ward 1 has
more than two candi-
dates, the May election
will be a primary and
the top two vote-get-
ters will have a runoff in
November.
To find what ward you
live in, visit www.herm-
iston.or.us/government/
city-council.
By JADE MCDOWELL
STAFF WRITER
STAFF PHOTO BY E.J. HARRIS
The Hermiston Downtown District is planning a “pocket park” in the courtyard in the 200 block of Main Street.
Upgrading downtown
By JADE MCDOWELL
STAFF WRITER
Hermiston’s downtown
district has added more than
$8 million in assessed value
in just four years.
The blossoming of new
and improved features has
come in many forms, both
public and private, and it’s
not done yet.
“There’s lots of good
news,” city planner Clint
Spencer said.
While large public proj-
ects like the festival street
and Harkenrider Center —
both under construction
now — have been taking up
most of the attention, Spen-
cer said private businesses
have also taken the initiative
to complete projects on their
own to enhance downtown.
A group of business own-
ers meet regularly as the
Hermiston Downtown Dis-
trict, whose mission is to
“revitalize, enhance, and
maintain the economic,
social, aesthetic, and cul-
tural environment of Herm-
iston’s historic downtown
area.” Last week they dis-
cussed beautification proj-
ects they have taken on,
including flower baskets and
a “pocket park” project they
are planning for the large
courtyard in the 200 block
of Main Street.
Susie Bendixsen, office
manager for Bendixsen Law,
which looks out into the
courtyard, said they would
like to add planters and
possibly a shade tree and
wrought-iron benches simi-
lar to those in city parks.
“If somebody wants to
go outside and eat a sand-
wich they’ll have a place to
do that,” she said. “There’s
not a lot of places to sit
downtown.”
Bendixsen said business
owners raised some money
for the project last year with
the help of RARE planner
Emma Porricolo and will
likely take turns watering
the landscaping to save on
irrigation costs.
Main Street is a brighter,
more vital place than it was
four years ago when the city
council created the Hermis-
ton Urban Renewal District
to focus on downtown revi-
talization. During a coun-
cil meeting Spencer counted
27 total projects downtown
since 2013 — 13 private
projects, four public proj-
ects and 10 spearheaded by
private entities that received
assistance from the city or
urban renewal agency.
The result has been a 20
percent increase in assessed
property values, from $42.3
million in 2013 to $50.6 mil-
lion at the end of 2017. Spen-
cer said about half of the
increase can be attributed to
the new Holiday Inn Express
that opened in late 2016.
The
urban
renewal
agency (made up of the city
councilors) gets its money
by freezing the amount of
property taxes going to tax-
ing districts like the fire dis-
trict at 2013 levels down-
town for the next 20 years,
then skimming off the extra
revenue generated by prop-
erty value increases to fun-
nel back into projects that
will push property values
even higher.
Some property owners
have made improvements
without the help of the
urban renewal agency, such
as the extensive remodel
and expansion of La Palma
restaurant. Others, like Sim-
mons Insurance Agency,
have gotten help sprucing
up their storefronts from a
façade grant program started
by the agency.
As for public projects,
Hermiston Energy Services
recently replaced old utility
poles downtown with more
decorative lighting, com-
plete with hooks and irri-
gation for hanging flower
baskets. Spencer said the
urban renewal agency plans
to expand that lighting
throughout the downtown
district and add decorative
wayfinding signs, additional
landscaping and possibly
arches leading into areas of
downtown.
The capstone of the urban
renewal district is the festi-
val street currently under
construction on Northeast
Second Street in front of city
hall.
Houfmuse seeks release before trial
have been in jail almost a
year and a half while being
presumptively innocent.
Murder defendant Tyree
“Credit for time served
Houfmuse of Hermiston is as a remedy is meaningless
seeking release from jail in the case of an acquittal,”
while the state has asked to Davis states.
delay his trial as it waits for
Davis also explains the
more work by the
district
attorney
crime lab.
declined to hold a
The
Umatilla
bail hearing to show
County
District
a judge the proof is
Attorney’s Office
evident or the pre-
sumption
strong
on Feb. 27 filed a
that
Houfmuse
motion that would
killed Cragun. Ore-
stall the trial — now
gon’s constitution,
set to begin April
she argues, man-
30 — until Novem-
ber. The DA’s office Houfmuse
dates the court to set
claims the delay
reasonable bail.
is necessary because more
Houfmuse is claiming
tests are still needed from self defense. Davis in court
the Oregon State Crime documents asserts Cra-
Lab, while Houfmuse’s gun was violent, violated
attorney says he should at restraining orders not to
least be given the opportu- contact his ex-girlfriend and
nity to make bail.
sent her text messages using
Houfmuse, 35, faces a racial slur to refer to Houf-
murder, first-degree man- muse, an African-American,
slaughter and weapons and stated “I’m going to kill
charges in the May 2017 him then myself.”
shooting death of James
Houfmuse was aware
Cragun. Houfmuse has been of the threats when they
in the county jail in Pendle- fought, according to Davis,
ton since his arrest in June and Cragun had the gun and
with bail set at more than $1 charged Houfmuse. Cragun,
million.
however, died from a gun-
A motion for Houfmuse’s shot wound.
“You’re allowed to use
release will be heard Thurs-
day afternoon in Hermiston. lethal force anytime some-
Defense attorney Kara one is trying to commit
Davis, in the motion filed a serious personal felony
Feb. 28, claims if the state against you and as long as
gets the delay, her client will it’s reasonable,” Davis said.
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After filing her docu-
ments with the court, Davis
said, she received a crime
lab report ruling Houf-
muse’s DNA on the gun was
“inconclusive.” Cragun’s
DNA, however, was on the
gun. Still, she said, she did
not understand how her cli-
ent’s DNA would make a
difference in the state’s trial
tactics.
“This is a self defense
case,” she said. “Why
would you need his DNA on
the gun?”
District Attorney Dan
Primus did not immediately
return a call seeking com-
ment, but in its request his
office said testing won’t be
done in time for an April
trial.
“The state just received a
new report from the Oregon
State Crime Lab, which will
affect how this case will be
tried, and, additionally, there
are still tests being done by
the crime lab,” according to
the request. “We have been
told that there is no way
these tests can be completed
by the trial date as currently
set.”
Davis said she does not
know of any new evidence.
“All the evidence the
state has is evidence that
would have been seized at
the time of the shooting or
shortly thereafter,” she said
in an interview with the
East Oregonian.
In her motion, Davis
wrote: “Because the state’s
case is weak at best and
because the Oregon State
Police Crime Lab’s own
tests further weaken the
case against Mr. Houf-
muse, Defense asks for his
release or at least a signifi-
cant reduction in bail.”
Davis also filed motions
asking the court to hold a
separate trial for the man-
slaughter charge, suppress
evidence from a police
search and not allow state-
ments Houfmuse made after
he told police he should
probably talk to a lawyer.
The state has until the
end of March to respond to
Davis’ filings.
Three of Hermiston’s
four city council races are
contested this year.
Only Shean Fitzgerald,
husband of current coun-
cilor Clara Beas Fitzger-
ald, is running unopposed
after the deadline for fil-
ing passed Tuesday. He
is looking to take over
his wife’s seat in Ward
2 after Clara decided to
retire from the council
to focus on other things,
including her position on
the Oregon Commission
for Women. Fitzgerald
is a “semi-retired” oper-
ating engineer who still
takes jobs in the con-
struction industry from
time to time.
In Ward 1, a three-way
race between incumbent
Lori Davis, school board
member Mark Gomolski
and resident Jackie Lin-
ton is underway. Davis
has served on the coun-
cil for eight years after
first being appointed to
the seat and then being
elected a few months
later in 2010.
Gomolski previously
ran for an at-large seat
on the city council in
2016 but was edged out
of the five-way race by
the four incumbents. If
Gomolski, elected to the
Hermiston School Dis-
trict board by write-in
last year, is elected he is
hoping either the city or
school district is willing
to change their meeting
dates, as they both meet
on the second and fourth
Monday of the month.
He said he believes the
change would be ben-
eficial to members of
the community who
wish to attend both
meetings.
Linton, who did not
immediately return a
call for comment, has
been a frequent attendee
at Hermiston council
meetings in the past two
years after first becoming
involved in a city proj-
ect to renovate a park
on Beech Avenue, which
in 2016 was re-named
Greenwood Park after
her grandfather Green-
wood Woodrow Luster,
who first established the
park.
In Ward 3, Kyran
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