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The "tentatively final" Oregon Wildfire Hazard map was updated by the Oregon Department of Forestry on January 7 and shows that much of the tri-county area is at high hazard designation for wildfires. The map categorizes all land in Oregon under low, medium, or high wildfire hazard levels and identifies wildland urban interface (WUI) areas that are under increased risk of fire. The map shows that much of Gilliam, Wheeler, and Sherman counties are at high hazard designation...
Judge Cris Patnode and Commissioner Grant Wilkins were sworn in at the Gilliam County Courthouse on Monday. No guests or family members were present, likely because Judge Patnode and Commissioner Wilkins have been on the job for several months. Cris Patnode was appointed to the position over six months ago by Governor Tina Kotek, following the recall election of former Gilliam County Judge Elizabeth Farrar. Commissioner Wilkins joined the court in August. Patnode had served...
Wheeler County welcomed a new County Commissioner and Sheriff this week, swearing in Commissioner Matt Davis and Sheriff Jeremiah Holmes. At a standing-only event at the courthouse in Fossil, Sheriff Holmes took his oath, and then swore in his deputies. Matt Davis, who had been working as the Planning Director at Wheeler County for several years, was elected as the Wheeler County Commissioner #2 position. Davis has said that he is going to focus on long-term planning...
The City of Grass Valley has a new mayor. When nobody filed for the mayor position last spring, some thought that a write-in campaign would be lodged. But that didn't take shape either. A total of 33 votes were cast in the mayoral election in November, but none of the write-ins wanted the job. Ultimately, the council appointed Christian Ayles of Grass Valley as City Mayor. Ayles is employed by the OSU Extension Service in Sherman County and works with the Sherman County 4-H,...
The Wheeler County Court met last Wednesday, January 8, and welcomed Matt Davis as its new County Commissioner. Commissioner Davis and Judge Lynn Morley worked through several issues, Commissioner Ben Logan was not present for the session. The Court heard from Wheeler County Public Health Administrator Shelby Thompson, who is preparing to be deployed with the Idaho Air National Guard. Thompson has been with Wheeler County Public Health since 2021 and is a Flight Operational...
"Fire is a good servant, but a bad master." — ancient proverb I’ve heard a few people say that the 2024 fires that carved a path of destruction through Gilliam and Wheeler counties were “once in a lifetime” events. The kind of blazes that someone will ask about in 20 years after another fire hits, to which, we will certainly say, “oh no my boy – you should have seen that fire in 2024.” But it is hard to say with any certainty whether such megafires are one-offs or a part of...
It's no big secret that businesses in frontier counties rely on summer earnings to carry them through lean, and sometimes anemic, winter months. In particular, restaurants are known to cut way back in winter months and to make it up in busy when tourists and visitors come to small towns. But this year, area restaurants are struggling in the aftermath of a historic wildfire season that forced them to close and in some cases, even evacuate. So is the case for one of the best...
The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) has awarded $432,000 to Sherman County for transportation projects under the Statewide Transportation Improvement Fund (STIF). Sherman County Transportation Director Kelsi Phillips appeared before the Sherman County Court last Wednesday to discuss the funding and the projects that her office is working on. Sherman County Community Transit intends to use the funding for operational expenses for the dial-a-ride service, which...
Five counties in eastern Oregon are set to receive federal assistance to recover from the historic wildfires that ravaged rangelands, homes, and infrastructure during the summer of 2024. Recognizing the most excruciating fire season in Oregon's history, President Joe Biden announced on New Year's Day the approval of major disaster declarations for Gilliam, Grant, Umatilla, Wasco, and Wheeler counties, unlocking federal funding through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (F...
The Wheeler Soil and Water Conservation District will hold its annual meeting this Thursday, January 9, 2025, at the Rock in Spray. The meeting will feature a presentation by Russ Vaagen, Founder and CEO of Vaagen Timber, who will talk about forest restoration and mass timber production. The Wheeler SWCD is in the midst of a capital fundraising campaign to build a new headquarters and community center at Service Creek using mass timber materials. Mass timber has become a...
“If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.” — Mother Teresa It’s hard to see peace and stability in our day-to-day lives. Anger and vitriol have become commonplace in our society, and the hatred that exists for our fellow Americans is hard to ignore. The events from January 6, 2021 were a turning-point in this nation. And the aftermath of the 2020 election set us on a truly ugly path. Thinking about that day, four years ago, I wonder...
The nine participants from the 2024 Condon Elks Lodge Hoop Shoot pose with Exalted Ruler Cassandra Flatt and Coordinator Mark Griffith. (contributed photo) The Condon Elks Lodge #1869 hosted the annual Hoop Shoot at the Condon High School on December 8, 2024. Mark Griffith served as the coordinator for this year's shoot. Nine participants from Condon took part and several high schoolers helped out as judges. Evan Selby won the 8-9 year boys group. Tanessa Washington won the...
Oregon schools and road departments suffered a significant setback when the U.S. House of Representatives failed to take up the Secure Rural Schools Act. Wheeler County schools and the county's road department are looking at a $580,908 shortfall. As Congress worked to prevent a government shutdown before Christmas, lawmakers passed a stop-gap funding plan at the eleventh hour. The temporary spending plan did not reauthorize several government programs, including the Secure...
It's been another busy year for the Gilliam County Road Department. Road Master Dewey Kennedy appeared before the Gilliam County Court last Wednesday and provided information on recent projects and events. Kennedy said that the road crew had finished 2.5 miles on Ferry Canyon, outside of Condon, where they rebuilt the road, installed culverts, did mud drainage. The road is ready to pave by May or June of 2025, Kennedy said. The Baseline East project, which runs on Baseline...
The Oregon Frontier Chamber of Commerce tracked spending over the holiday season and found that $171,000 was generated for forty businesses in Gilliam, Wheeler, and Sherman counties. While the counties are the least populated in Oregon, the spending power generated in the fall season is remarkable. Kicking off in November, shoppers at local establishments use a punch card for each purchase made. So, that cup of coffee at the Condon Local or Conaway's Coffee in Condon, or at...
Another bomb hoax has occurred at the Condon School, nearly one year after a series of bomb threats triggered evacuations in schools throughout the state. On Tuesday, December 17, just before 3:30 p.m., and as students were preparing to be released for the day, the Condon School received a phone call from an unknown number. The caller said that there was a bomb in a building and another outside on school grounds. The caller was a male, with a European accent, said Gilliam...
Asher Community Health Center CEO Albert Pacheco has given his resignation to the board and will depart by Christmas. Pacheco joined Asher Clinic in 2021 after serving as the leader of a federally qualified health center near Los Angeles for several years. Pacheco helped to navigate through the choppy waters of COVID, and oversaw an expansion of services in his tenure at Asher Health. As a federally qualified health center (FQHC), Asher Community Health gets a majority of its...
“Like I told ya, what I said. Steal your face right off your head.” — Robert Hunter Few things horrify me. I’m not afraid of snakes or spiders. Not bats, rats, or feral cats. But increasingly, technology is giving me the fear. Last week, a friend sent me an OPB article about the Ashland Daily Tidings and how an artificial intelligence (AI) ghost hacker company had coopted the defunct publication. It was enough to make the skin crawl. The small newspaper out of Ashland...
There were high hopes when the Royal Stag opened in 2022. Owner Shawn Hawkins put a considerable amount of time and money into the venture. As co-owner of Tiger Town Brewing in Mitchell, Hawkins brought experience in the restaurant industry and a track record of boosting the profile of a small Wheeler County community. But just over two years later, Hawkins had to pull the plug on the venture. Employees of The Royal Stag were notified last week that the establishment was...
A respected population study from Portland State University (PSU) was released last week and shows that Gilliam County had the fifth-highest growth rate in Oregon over the past four years. Sherman County grew, but at a slower rate, and Wheeler County's population decreased at the third highest percentage statewide. The study's estimates show that several counties in Oregon are experiencing growth while others are seeing population declines. Gilliam County grew at a rate of 2.1...
The Woolery Project, a 501c3 nonprofit organization with an all-volunteer board, led by Olex's Rod McGuire and Arlington's Julius Courtney, has been fundraising for several years in an effort to build an events and community center above Arlington. The Woolery has held events in Arlington and Ione in recent years, with auctions and dinners provided by McGuire's Paradise Rose Chuckwagon. Land was donated to the Woolery by the City of Arlington. Engineering plans were developed...
The Northern Oregon Regional Corrections (NORCOR) facility is grappling with significant funding and maintenance issues, Gilliam County Sheriff Gary Bettencourt informed the county court last Wednesday. Opened in 1999, the NORCOR facility has seen its infrastructure deteriorate over the years, with the roof requiring repairs for several years. The facility houses both adult and juvenile detainees, but operational and financial hurdles have sparked debates over its future....
President-elect Trump has tapped the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, and another billionaire entrepreneur, Vivek Ramaswamy, to target waste and spending in the U.S. Government. The U.S. spent a sprawling $6.75 trillion in the 2024 fiscal year and the national debt has climbed successively with each administration since 2000. Now, with Republicans in control of all three branches of government, conservatives are looking to make cuts and reshape government. Elon Musk’s mot...
After being closed for six months, the Arlington Community Childcare Center has reopened. Temporary licensing is in place until December 31st, and permanent licensure is expected soon. Director Ashley Bayliss told the Gilliam County Court that after considerable work, the center has had its inspections and is now a certified center, not just a certified family home, as it was previously. "The daycare has its own status and is not dependent on a director," Ashley Bayliss told...
Gilliam County is taking steps to bolster its emergency response and wildfire management efforts, with updates on a promising grant opportunity shared during a recent county court session. Herb Winters, Manager of the Gilliam Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD), informed the court about a FEMA grant that could reshape the county's approach to emergency preparedness. The court plans to apply for the grant, with Gilliam SWCD serving as the sub-grantee. A pre-application...
