Court signs MOU with USFS

During the public comment portion of the regular meeting of the Harney County Court (held June 1), Kim Rollins addressed the court regarding the Commercial Sublease Agreement between the county and Grase Communications LLC (doing business as MiWave) for use of the archive center.

MiWave will offer high-speed Internet services.

Rollins said the court should immediately reconsider the agreement, asserting that the sublease should have been put out for bid and expressing concern that MiWave is a “new company with no track record.” He added that he’d like to see the space utilized by an information technology company that has the resources to make infrastructure upgrades. Rollins also mentioned that MiWave is owned by a family member of a business partner of Economic Development Executive Director Randy Fulton, and said the sublease should have been handled differently “to void even a perception of something wrong.”

Harney County Judge Steve Grasty said the court has been trying to find occupants for the archive center for more than 17 years, adding that he, Fulton and Harney County Commissioner Dan Nichols have repeatedly approached IT companies regarding the opportunity.

Grasty said the state spent millions of dollars on the unused building, and Nichols stated that he was “tickled to death” to get someone to come in and use it.

Nichols also expressed frustration that input and expertise regarding the use of the archive center were not offered until after the sublease agreement was made.

“We come up with something we think will be good for the community, and then the concerns come out,” Nichols said.

Rollins replied that total transparency might bring the concerns out easier.

“I think it’s been pretty transparent,” Nichols said, adding that the privacy of private businesses should be protected, and some opportunities have left due to the “rumor mill”.

Grasty said, “If we can grow a business, I’m going to protect it.”

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The court received a letter from Steve Beverlin, forest supervisor for the Malheur National Forest, regarding coordination for the Blue Mountains Forest Plan Revision process, which will guide the management of approximately 5 million acres of the Malheur, Umatilla and Wallowa-Whitman National Forests.

During its meeting on April 20, the court considered signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) for cooperating agency status. However, after some discussion, the court agreed to send a letter to the USFS inquiring about coordination prior to signing the MOU for cooperation.

Beverlin’s letter states, “I am writing to invite Harney County to help us continue coordinating the Blue Mountains Forest Plans with the county’s planning and land use policies. This effort would be separate from, but related to, our recent invitation to the county regarding cooperating agency status.”

The USFS will review the county’s planning and land use policies and include the results of the review in the Environmental Impact Statement for the Blue Mountains Forest Plans.

After some discussion, the court agreed to sign the MOU for cooperating agency status.

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The court recommended the appointment of Nichols, Erin Maupin, Brenda Smith, Allison Aldous, Steve Rickman, Gary Ball, Mark Owens, Fred Otley, Karen Moon, Herb Vloedman and Wayne Evans to the Harney County Groundwater Study Advisory Committee (SAC).

The SAC is being formed to track and provide input on the groundwater study that Oregon Water Resources Department is conducting in the Greater Harney Valley to provide additional information regarding the aquifer system and whether there is opportunity for new groundwater development in some parts of the study area.

During the May 4 meeting, District 10 Watermaster JR Johnson explained that the Groundwater Division of Oregon Water Resources became concerned with the development of groundwater in the Malheur Lake Basin and stopped issuing groundwater permits about a year and a half ago.

Unfortunately, about 39 groundwater applications were caught in limbo with no real pathway to move forward. Thus, a rules advisory committee was formed to develop rules that will allow applications pending as of April 15, 2016, to be approved if certain criteria are met. Adopted by the Oregon Water Resources Commission on April 13, the rules also outline a process to plan and conduct the study in coordination with the SAC.

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The court discussed the Findings and Decision for Harney Rock and Paving’s application for a conditional use permit to expand an existing aggregate mine on Hines Logging Road.

Harney County Planning Director Brandon McMullen discussed changes to the decision, including access coming off the Hines Logging Road and the self-imposed 1,500 foot buffer that’s applied to the project site.

“That self-imposed 1,500 feet is a big step for that landowner,” Grasty said. “I applaud that.”

The court agreed to approve the Findings and Decision for Local File No. 16-02 Harney Rock and Paving Conditional Use Permit.

The court also approved Ordinance 2016-77 in the matter of amending the Harney County Comprehensive Plan Mineral and Aggregate Inventory and the application of the Mineral and Aggregate Resource Overlay zone.

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The Burns Paiute Tribe released 127 Chinook salmon into the Malheur River, at the Malheur Ford in Logan Valley May 25.

Grasty said it was a privilege to attend the event and observe the pride and happiness of the tribal members who participated.

He added that he’s requested a letter from the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife clarifying that this was a ceremonial event of incredible importance to the Burns Paiute Tribe, not a reintroduction of salmon. He explained that the terminology is important because a reintroduction would take years under National Environmental Policy Act guidelines.

Grasty reiterated that the court is in support of the event.

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In other business, the court:

• met with Christy Cheyne, Lori Bailey, Melissa Ward and Joshua Giles of the USFS to discuss the Dove Vegetation Management Project.

Please see page 11 of this week’s edition of the Burns Times-Herald for additional information regarding the project;

• was addressed by Rollins and Barbara Cannady regarding the $500,000 that Facebook invested in Harney County for its infrastructure.

Grasty clarified that the investment was from Facebook, not Google. He added that rumors that he told Google and Facebook not to come to Harney County are untrue;

• was addressed by Cannady regarding a rumor that Grasty will act as a consultant for the court after he retires. Grasty dispelled the rumor;

• was addressed by Herb Vloedman regarding funding for the courthouse heating, ventilating, and air conditioning project. Grasty suggested that the topic be discussed during the budget hearing.

The hearing to approve the 2016/2017 budget was held at 1:32 p.m.

Budget board members agreed to accept the budget as proposed with the changes that were discussed during the hearing. The board also agreed to levy the tax at a permanent tax rate of 4.5016;

• signed an agreement between the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the county for cooperative maintenance of BLM Road 6274 (Warm Springs Road), formalizing the verbal agreement that the Harney County Road Department has had with the BLM;

• approved the 2016-17 Maintenance Assistance Program grant with the Oregon State Marine Board to augment routine maintenance expenses at improved public boating facilities;

• discussed the completed application for funding the Juntura Cutoff Road construction project.

An issue was raised regarding the portion of the road that’s located in Malheur County. Grasty suggested drafting an MOU with Malheur County, as well as a letter outlining Malheur County’s responsibility for its portion of the road;

• reviewed water use requests;

• received a letter from the Office of Pharmacy Affairs confirming recertification for the 340B Drug Pricing Program, which requires drug manufactures to provide outpatient drugs to eligible health care organizations/covered entities at significantly reduced prices;

• received a letter from the fire marshal regarding fireworks permits outside the city limits. Anyone wishing to request a permit should contact the court;

• submitted the Landfill Financial Assurance report to the Department of Environmental Quality June 3. Grasty recommended hiring an engineer to review the permanent closure cost;

• received an update from Interim Fair Manager Rick Paul regarding issues with the floor in the Memorial Building at the Harney County Fairgrounds. The Harney County Fair Board will be notified about the problem.

The court agreed to change its next meeting to Wednesday, June 22, at 10 a.m. The meeting will be held at the courthouse.