Hermiston herald., May 20, 2020, Page 8, Image 8

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A8 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM
WEDNESDAY, MAY 20, 2020
Restaurants:
Continued from Page A1
Contrbiuted photo by NOWA
A booster for the recently completed West Project is pictured.
Water project:
Continued from Page A1
Project pump test on May
5 yielded approximately
195,000 gallons per minute,
or approximately 435 cubic
feet per second; a cubic
foot is roughly the size of
a regulation basketball. The
Columbia River water used
comes from existing certif-
icated rights and municipal
water rights transferred to
instream rights.
Cook said the region
has been making prom-
ises to Salem about what
additional water resources
would be able to deliver,
including new jobs, more
crops, energy savings, envi-
ronmental benefi ts and
replenished
groundwa-
ter supplies. They’re ready
to follow through on those
commitments.
“Now we can talk with
data and facts, instead of just
conceptually, about what we
can do with this water,” he
said.
According to the news
release, the total cost of the
West Project was roughly
$34 million. About $4 mil-
lion of that came from an
$11 million funding pack-
age for water projects in the
region that the Legislature
passed in 2015. The Port of
Morrow’s partnership with
the Columbia Improvement
District allowed the district
to use the port’s bond rating
to receive a low interest rate
when taking on debt for the
project.
Lisa Mittelsdorf, director
of economic development
for the Port of Morrow, said
the port was glad to assist
on such an important project
for the region — a sentiment
echoed by Sen. Bill Hansell,
R-Athena, and Rep. Greg
Smith, R-Heppner, who sup-
ported it in the Legislature.
“This project is vital to
Umatilla Basin’s economy,”
Hansell said in a statement.
“It shows we can use our
natural resources in a sus-
tainable way to create jobs
and opportunity for people
in rural Oregon.”
As a result of the quick
return to pre-COVID-19
sales, Myers has said that he
has had diffi culty sourcing
materials, and that supply
chain slowdowns have left
him worried about running
out of food at times.
“About 90% of our beef
was coming from one par-
ticular supplier,” he said.
“And now, we had to source
meat from three separate
suppliers to get the volumes
that we require.”
In addition to supply
chain issues, the restau-
rant has faced diffi culties
in fi nding staff. Myers said
that less than half of his 50
person staff have chosen
to return to work and, as a
result, he is being forced to
pay overtime and begin hir-
ing additional staff to fi ll the
shortfall.
“Two of my main gals
worked 70 hours this last
week — each — covering
for people who didn’t come
back,” he said. “So we are
hiring.”
Issues with supply chain
and staffi ng have also
impacted The Pheasant Bar
and Grill, where owner Che-
rie Bumpaous said that only
10 of her 22 employees had
chosen to return to work.
Bumpaous, who is a
strong proponent of reopen-
ing and a vocal voice in
planning the “Reopen
Hermiston & Eastern Ore-
gon” protest planned for
May 30, said that she feels
the reopening is a step in the
right direction but nowhere
near far enough. Bumpaous
takes particular objection
to the requirement that bars
close at 10 p.m., though she
said she plans to abide by
the rules.
Despite issues with
staffi ng and the supply
chain, Bumpaous said she
planned to open on Wednes-
day morning and expects a
decent crowd.
“People can’t wait to
get back in here,” she said.
“People are excited to get
Staff photo by Ben Lonergan
Restaurant customers dine at Nookie’s Restaurant and Brewery for lunch on Tuesday
afternoon, Nookie’s owner Mitch Myers said that the restaurant had seen record sales over
their fi rst weekend since reopening.
Staff photo by Ben Lonergan
A hiring sign is taped to the front window of Nookie’s Restaurant and Brewery in Hermiston
on Tuesday afternoon.
back out there and back into
public again.”
While some area restau-
rants reopened their lob-
bies immediately when that
restriction was lifted Friday,
others have posted online
that they will need some
time to prepare to meet
requirements, such as spac-
ing tables 6 feet apart. Some
have said they are sticking
to take-out for now.
Hermiston Chamber of
Commerce CEO Kimberly
Nevil said that the chamber
is focusing on distributing
accurate information and
ensuring that businesses are
ready to go as they reopen.
“Our members have
done a very good job at
pivoting through this,” she
said. “Overall, our chamber
members have been really
adaptive.”
Nevil went on to add
that many businesses have
put in place practices that
may remain after reopening,
such as expanded ordering
options and a more in-depth
presence online.
The chamber has ordered
nearly 200 yard signs for
chamber members to dis-
play and advertise their
reopening, and has worked
with other chambers in
the region to put together
a “Back to Business Tool-
kit.” The toolkit, which was
distributed electronically,
includes information and
signage from the Centers
for Disease Control and Pre-
vention as well as sugges-
tions for creating a reopen-
ing plan.
“I’m excited for those
that have opened their doors
already and I respect the
ones that aren’t quite ready
yet,” Nevil said.
HARVEST SAFETY TIPS FOR
FARMWORKERS
• Maintain a 10-foot clearance
around all utility equipment in all
directions.
• Use a spotter and deployed flags to
maintain safe distances from power
lines and other equipment when
doing field work.
• If your equipment makes contact
with an energized or downed
power line, contact us immediately
by phone and remain inside the
vehicle until the power line is de-
energized. In case of smoke or fire,
exit the cab by making a solid jump
out of the cab, without touching it
at the same time, and hop away to
safety.
• Consider equipment and cargo
extensions of your vehicle. Lumber,
hay, tree limbs, irrigation pipe and
even bulk materials can conduct
electricity, so keep them out of
contact with electrical equipment.
Source: Safe Electricity
Hermiston Office
750 W. Elm Ave.
Hermiston, OR 97838
(541) 567-6414
Boardman Office
400 N.E. Eldrige Drive
Boardman, OR 97818
(541) 481-2220
www.UmatillaElectric.com