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Serving Baker County since 1870 • bakercityherald.com
February 4, 2014
>N >H>saD>i'>oN: Local • Business @AgLife • Go! magazine QUICIC HITS
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First Friday art shows
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SnowpacKStays BelowAveraoe
Good Day Wish To A Subscriber A special good day to Herald subscriber Bob Kern of Baker City.
Results from our website poll: The most recent question on our website poll at www. bakercityherald.com. was: How will Haggen replacing Albertsons in Baker City affect grocery shoppers?" Options were: Better, Worse, No Change.
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• Commission Chairman Bill Harvey says cooperating with the agency has not helped the county
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BETTER — 208 NO CHANGE — 121 — 74 WORSE
By Jayson Jacoby llacoby©bakercityherald.com
The current question is: "What should Oregon's minimum wage be?" Options are: As is: $9 25, $10, $12, or $15. L Qrg
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Valentine's story time and crafts Saturday at library Kids and parents are invited to a special Valentine's Day story time and craft on Saturday, Feb. 7, at10:30 a.m. at Baker County Public Library, 2400 Resort St. Ready to Learn staff will share the book "Somebody loves you, Mr. Hatch" and a free Valentine craft activity.
Rabies clinic scheduled Feb. 11 at Extension Office Baker County veterinarians are hosting their annual rabies vaccination clinic on Wednesday, Feb. 11. Rabies vaccinations will be given to dogs and cats from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the Extension Office, 2600 East St. The charge is $10 per animal. Veterinarians ask that dogs be brought in on a leash and that cats be contained in carriers if possible. Baker City staff will be selling dog licenses during the event also. The cost for a license is $4.50 for a spayed or neutered animal until March 1 when the price will increase to $8.50. The fee for dogs that have not been spayed or neutered is $6 until March1 when the price will go to $10 per animal.
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Jayson Jacoby/Baker City Herald
The snowpack is fairly close to average at some higher-elevation sites in Northeastern Oregon, including theWallowa Mountains, seen here. But as the snow-free lower slopes in this photo show, the situation isn't as promising elsewhere.
By Jayson Jacoby llacoby©bakercityherald. com
N.E.OrelonSnswpackReport
The trouble Snow Water E uivalent i nches Snow with Northeastern MeaSuring Site Elevation Now A v erage% of avg. Lastyear Depth Oregon's snowpack is rain. Aneroid Lake 1 1.6 14. 7 79 14.1 32 7,300 Most snow-meaAnthony lakes* 7,125 1 4.7 15. 9 92 12.8 43 suring sites in the region's mountains Barney Creek* 5,850 3.7 N/ A N/A 2.0 15 have recorded more Beaver Reservoir 4.2 6.8 62 6.9 12 5,150 precipitation than average since the Bourne 8.5 11.5 74 6.7 24 5,800 water year started County Line 0.4 3.8 11 3.1 1 4,530 Oct. 1, 2014. But the water DooleyMountain* 5,340 3.2 6.5 48 4.4 N/A content in the snow Eilertson Meadow 5,400 4.7 8.1 58 4.3 13 — the measureEldorado Pass* 4,600 1.5 2.8 54 0 7 ment that matters most when it comes Gold Center 5,340 6.4 7.4 86 5.3 20 to forecasting the High Ridge 1 1.2 16. 2 69 11.1 32 4,980 summer water supply — is below Little Alps* 5.2 7.8 67 5.8 17 6,200 average at every Little Antone* 4,600 3.8 6.8 56 3.0 14 site. Put simply, it's Moss Springs 5,850 1 3.7 16. 5 83 16.3 36 been raining in Mount Howard 7,910 1 0.1 10. 2 99 14.0 26 places where it Schneider Meadow 5,400 1 6.8 20. 3 83 9.1 54 usually snows. And rain, in Taylor Green 1 1.5 14. 7 78 10.8 33 5,740 addition to being Tipton 7.1 8.9 80 3.2 23 5,150 a poor raw material for snowmen Wolf Creek 5,630 7.6 11.8 64 8.1 26 and snow angels, AVERAGE 71 doesn't make for a long-lasting Source: U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service reservoir. 'Denotes site measured monthly by snow surveyors. The others are Snotels — automated sites where data are measured hourly and relayed via radio signal. Snotel data SeeSnowlPage 5A are available online at: http:i/www.or.nrcs.usda.govisnowimapsioregon sitemap.html
Bill Harvey says Forest Service policies that restrict theharvestoftim ber, minerals and other natural resources on public land in Baker County are"choking us to death." And Harvey, the newly elected chairmanofthe county's Board of Commissioners, doesn't Har v ey intend to stick the county's neckout anyfarther, figuratively speaking. cwe keep getting hurtin Baker County," Harvey said Tuesday.'They're totallyignoring us and totallyignoring the needs of Baker County." Whichis why Harvey this morning asked fellow commissioners Mark Bennett and Tim L. Kerns to join him in signing whatis in effect a''Dear John" lettertotheForestService. All three commissioners agreed to sign the letter rejectingthe ForestService'soffer tosign a Memorandum of
Understanding iMOP. That MOU would make the county a"cooperating agency"intheForestService's multi-year endeavor to write new managementplans for the three national forests in the Blue Mountains: the Wallowa-Whitman, Malheur and Umatilla. In July 2009, Harvey's predecessor, Fred Warner Jr., along with Kerns and then-commissioner Carl Stiff, signed an MOU with the Forest Service making the county a cooperati ng agency forthe Blue Mountain forestplans revision. Harvey said that based on a draftversion oftheforest plan that the Forest Service released last year, he sees no benefit to the county fiom continuingin that status. SeeCounty IPage5A
At Crossroads Carnegie ArtCenter InBaKerCity WEATHER
Voung artistscandaddlein yottery,yainting By Lisa Britton For the Baker City Herald
Today
39/33
a'a a
Chance of rain
Thursday
47/38 Rain likely
Kids who want to play with clay or dabble in painting have the opportunity every Friday at Crossroads Carnegie Art Center.
T ODAY Issue 114, 28 pages
Two classes are offered: Kids Pottery taught by Megan Alameda and Young Artist Studio led by Paul Hoelscher. Both meet from 1:45-3:45 p.m. Fridays at Crossroads, 2020 Auburn Ave. in Baker
City. Although both are designed for ages 10 and older, the instructors may give permission for younger students to attend. In the pottery class, students have the opportunity
to build skills in coil, slab work and wheel throwing. The instructor will work with different skill levels in smallgroups,and projects will be based on themes and student interests. The cost for a one-day
drop-in is $15 for Crossroads members or $20 for nonmembers. Another option is four consecutive classesat $50 for members or $55 for nonmembers. See Artists/Page 5A
Business... ........1B & 2B Comics.......................3B DearAbby..... ..........10B News of Record........3A Senior Menus...........2A Calendar....................2A C o m m u nity News ....3A Hor o scope........7B & SB O b i t uaries..................2A Sp o r ts ........................6A Classified............. 4B-9B C r o ssword........7B & SB L e t t ers........................ 4A O p i n ion......................4A We a t her ................... 10B
Full forecast on the back of the B section.
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