BUSINESS
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 24, 2021
HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A7
Bird Scooters launches Hermiston fl eet
By JADE MCDOWELL
NEWS EDITOR
Hermiston residents have
a new transportation option
with the arrival of Bird
Scooters.
The company provides
electric scooters, which
people can locate around
town using a mobile app
and rent for a per-minute
fee. According to Jasmine
Wallsmith, a marketing and
communications director for
the company, the company
is launching with 75 scoot-
ers in Hermiston.
“Shared scooters can be
a terrifi c choice to navigate
the fairly short distances
between some of the large
employment hubs or recre-
ation areas within Hermis-
ton and the commercial dis-
trict,” she said in an email.
The company touts the
scooters as a convenient,
socially distanced “micro
Ben Lonergan/Hermiston Herald
A group of four Bird e-scooters sits parked along East Main Street in Hermiston on Wednesday,
March 10, 2021.
mobility” option that can
reduce traffi c and green-
house emissions compared
to automobile use. Some cit-
ies have created ordinances
to bar them from operating
locally, however, citing con-
cerns about safety and scoot-
ers being left in unwanted
places.
To access the scooters,
people must download the
Bird Scooters mobile app,
sign up for the service and
enter their payment informa-
tion. After that is complete,
they can fi nd where scoot-
ers are currently located,
reserve one and start and end
their ride, which the scoot-
er’s rules state must stay off
of sidewalks and follow traf-
fi c laws.
In order to end their ride
time, riders are asked upload
a photo of the scooter prop-
erly parked in a safe place.
Wallsmith said the company
pays “local fl eet managers”
to move the scooters around
during operating hours so
that they can be accessed
throughout the city.
She said the scooters
have a “warm up mode”
with more gentle acceler-
ation for new riders. The
company also off ers a 50%
discount to certain groups,
including low-income rid-
ers, senior citizens, Pell
grant recipients, veterans
and some nonprofi ts.
During the pandemic,
health care workers and
emergency responders can
ride up to an hour per day
for free if they sign up by
emailing their credentials to
together@bird.co.
For questions or con-
cerns, call 1-866-205-2442,
email hello@bird.co. or visit
www.bird.co. More infor-
mation about the company
can be found on their web-
site (www.bird.co) and on
their blog (bird.co/blog).
Hermiston business group announces new CEO
By JADE MCDOWELL
NEWS EDITOR
Kristina Olivas has
been chosen as the Herm-
iston Chamber of Com-
merce’s new chief execu-
tive offi cer.
The chamber’s board
of directors announced the
hire in an email to mem-
bers on Friday, March 19.
Olivas will start work on
March 30.
According to the news
release, Olivas comes to
the chamber from
in Hermiston, is
the Walmart Dis-
fl uent in English
tribution Center in
and Spanish and is
Hermiston, where
a mother to three
she spent the past
children.
fi ve years as human
Annette Kirkpat-
resources offi ce and
rick, chamber board
Olivas
training manager,
president, said in a
providing, “coun-
statement that the
seling, coaching and lead- board felt Olivas brought
ership to nearly 1,000 the skills, experience and
employees.” Before that, personality needed to con-
she worked for Oregon nect with a diverse and
Potato Company and Wil- growing community.
cox Furniture.
“We are impressed with
She was born and raised Kristina’s energy, work
history and love of com-
munity,” she said. “She has
a natural ability to listen
and connect with others.
We expect Kristina to not
only continue our success-
ful programs, but to work
with members, partners
and community stakehold-
ers to bring our Chamber
to a new level of service.”
Olivas said her career
goals have always been to
develop personal and pro-
fessional
relationships,
while building up the com-
Columbia Basin Bioscience gains certifi cation
HERMISTON HERALD
Columbia Basin Bio-
science, a CBD extraction
company based in Hermis-
ton, announced on Wednes-
day, March 17, that it has
received a Current Good
Manufacturing
Practice
certifi cation.
The CGMP is in “man-
ufacturing,
packaging,
labeling, or holding oper-
ations for dietary supple-
ments” standards, awarded
by AIB International.
According to a news
release from Columbia
Basin Bioscience, the cer-
tifi cation “is a key indica-
tor that a company adheres
to stringent protocols to
ensure a safe, consistent
and quality product.”
The business has more
than 2,000 acres of USDA
organic farmland for grow-
ing hemp and a process-
ing facility that extracts
CBD from the hemp, to be
used in a variety of prod-
ucts. According to the
news release, the company
employs 50 people and
currently extracts thou-
sands of CBD isolate per
month.
CEO Alan Cleaver
said in a statement that
the company believes the
hemp industry is lack-
ing consistent, high-qual-
ity biomass like that pro-
duced by Columbia Basin
Bioscience.
“GMP certifi cation isn’t
easy or even required in
the hemp industry, but it’s
something we believe in.
We are very proud of our
company’s processes and
dedication to quality.” he
said.
Columba Basin Bio-
science co-founder Sean
Groer said in the news
release that so far humans
have “only begun to scratch
the surface” of what is pos-
sible with hemp.
Sen. Hansell appointed to State Fair Council
HERMISTON HERALD
Oregon Sen. Bill Hansell
has an additional job.
The Republican from
Athena
was
recently
appointed to serve on the
Oregon State Fair Coun-
cil by Senate President Pete
Courtney, according to a
press release.
“I am excited and hon-
ored to have been appointed
to the State Fair Council,
formerly called the State
Fair Board,” Hansell said.
“I look forward to ensuring
state and county fairs will be
enjoyed by countless more
Oregonians in the future.”
The Oregon State Fair
Council is a state of Ore-
gon public corporation,
with 11 council members
State Sen. Bill Hansell,
R-Athena,
has
been
appointed to serve on the
Oregon State Fair Council.
appointed by the governor.
Two additional positions are
reserved for a state senator
and a state representative,
and are appointed by the
Senate president and House
speaker, respectively.
“I want to thank Senate
President Peter Courtney for
the appointment. I look for-
ward to serving on the coun-
cil,” Hansell said. “The Ore-
gon State Fair has been held
since the early days of state-
hood, and along with county
fairs, are critical sources of
economic vitality and cul-
tural celebration.”
Hansell’s appointment
to the fair council was met
with excitement in Umatilla
County.
“Hansell’s background,
wisdom and dedication will
make him a great advocate
for our state and county
fairs,” said Umatilla County
Commissioner Dan Dor-
ran. “I believe he is the fi rst
munity she loves.
“I feel excitement and
pride,” she said of her new
job. “I’m so proud to be
on the front lines in repre-
senting the businesses of
Hermiston.”
Olivas takes the helm
at the chamber after the
departure of Kimberly Rill,
who was hired in April
2019 and resigned on Feb.
12, 2021, to take a new job
as the education and work-
force training coordinator
for the Port of Morrow.
In her new position,
Olivas will be tasked with
building relationships with
chamber members, plan-
ning events and programs,
coordinating the cham-
ber’s committees and man-
aging other parts of the
chamber’s day to day oper-
ations. She will also help
lead eff orts toward build-
ing the chamber’s new
offi ces planned for the
intersection of South High-
way 395 and East Evelyn
Avenue.
Commercial Tire now
employee owned
HERMISTON HERALD
Commercial
Tire
announced last week that
the company is now 100%
employee owned.
The tire company has
45 locations across the
Pacifi c Northwest, includ-
ing a Hermiston store. It
has moved to an employee
stock ownership plan busi-
ness model, which allows
employees
to
accrue
stock over time from an
employee retirement trust.
According to a news
elected offi cial from Uma-
tilla County to serve on the
State Fair Council, and I
know he will do a great job
and serve us well.”
release, research has shown
the business model is asso-
ciated with improved
employee performance and
job stability.
“Selling the company
could create unwanted
change and instability for
the people we care about,”
Bob
Schwenkfelder,
founder and CEO of Com-
mercial Tire, said in a news
release. “This transition is
about leaving a legacy for
our employees and in our
communities that will have
a lasting, positive impact.”
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Hermiston Office Boardman Office
750 W. Elm Ave.
Hermiston, OR 97838
(541) 567-6414
400 N.E. Eldrige Drive
Boardman, OR 97818
(541) 481-2220
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