1918 — 100 years ago
More than doubling its capacity, the Hood River Canning Company is erecting an addition to its factory which is even larger than the original structure. Work has been in progress on the addition for some time and the side walls and floors have been completed. The new building adjoins the factory on the east and is 72 feet square. It includes one floor and a full basement, which will be used as a storage room.
Ribbon cutting marks finish of downtown project
City officials, members of the Hood River Urban Renewal agency, contractors and guests gathered Thursday morning at windswept Second and Oak to cut a red ribbon formally opening the Oak Avenue development.
City Manger Lynn Guenther, Mayor Paul Cummings and City Councilman and Chairman of Urban Renewal Bob Hastings cut the ribbon to the applause of the crowd.
Joining them were Dave Bick, project engineer from David Evans Associates, Portland; Port of Hood River Commissioner Nancy Moller; Paul Randall of the city’s urban renewal agency; City Councilor Andrea Klaas; Steve Alford of Alford Landscape Services; and Chuck Schuepbach of Custom Blocks, the firm that did the concrete work.
Among others on hand for the ceremony were Ginnie Arens of Glenn Taylor Realty and Nellie Hjaltalin, a member of the Hood River Landmark Board whose members look after preserving the city’s downtown heritage.
“Everyone in the city — merchants, contractors, the engineering firm, concerned citizens — cooperated so beautifully to bring this project to such a successful conclusion,” Guenther said.
“I’m sure I speak for everyone when I express my appreciation.”
— Hood River News, May 9, 1998
1928 — 90 years ago
Items on the wonderful blossoms in Hood River sent to Portland by local correspondents of the Journal and Oregonian brought a huge crowd of people here last Sunday and Hood River Valley roads carried a heavy traffic throughout the day. The weather was ideal for picnics, and many sought the various shady nooks where spring water could be enjoyed with lunch. A cloudless sky and just enough breeze to temper the heat of the sun, with apple blossoms at the best they have been for several years, the visitors were all thoroughly happy, and some of them confessed that the warm sun alone was worth the effort of the trip up from Portland.
1938 — 80 years ago
Seeking cooperation of Columbia River communities in an effort to persuade the State Highway Commission to take up a plan for a super water grade highway to replace the present Columbia River Highway between Troutdale and The Dalles, a caravan of modern highway boosters left Hood River Wednesday morning and headed east, planning to visit all cities as far as Baker to outline plans to local civic organizations and enlist their support to petitions which are to be later presented to the State Highway Commission.
1948 — 70 years ago
Pioneer Day, that day of days for scores of Hood River folks and former Hood Riverites, will be observed next Tuesday, May 11, at Rockford Grange Hall. This is the day when friends from far and near gather in the morning and spend the day in happy reunion. Some cards have been mailed, but as all could not be reached, pioneers and their families of 1908 and prior years may consider this a personal invitation to attend.
Ralph E. Barclay, head coach at Hood River senior high school, was appointed manager of the new city swimming pool by Mayor Joe Meyer at the regular city council session Monday.
1958 — 60 years ago
With the month just begun and a neat $12,110 already in the till, the Memorial Hospital Building fund drive swung into high gear in the county this week. A goal of $80,000 to erase the only debt hanging over the newly-enlarged hospital has been set by the committee, to be reached during the month of May. Key features of the drive are personal solicitations to previous hospital subscribers, backed up by pledge letters mailed out to other donating citizens in the community. “Hood River Memorial Hospital, acting as a county and city hospital, bears a tremendous burden of charity cases,” said Chairman Vern Garrabrant. “It cannot, at the present level of ‘free admission’ it gives, be expected to earn a very great profit in its operations.”
1968 — 50 years ago
If you think a “sadiron” is one of the plants visible from earth, you can go out to the Hood River Charburger and get straightened out. Steve Bausch has a number of them among his collection of Americana there and they’re what great-grandmother used when she pressed clothes. The wagon wheel in front of the Charburger on Westcliff Drive ought to be a hint of the display. Still, it’s a surprise to find a small but growing antique display inside a restaurant. Lester Bausch, who has had the parent Charburger in Cascade Locks for five years, started the family collection. His son Steve is carrying it on at the Hood River branch since he took over the former Hesler’s Broiler in June 1967.
1978 — 40 years ago
A three-year project reached a landmark here Monday night when the Hood River City Planning Commission approved a new mobile home park ordinance and passed it on to the city council for study. The far-reaching law establishes standards not only for new mobile home parks developed in Hood River, but it makes provisions for requiring those in existence to meet standards within a prescribed period. It calls for paved streets, landscaping, setbacks and other refinements.
1988 — 30 years ago
An international corporation based in Hong Kong will have close ties with Hood River and the Columbia River Gorge following an agreement with two local businessmen, announced last week. Gaastra Sails International, Ltd., one of the world’s top sailmakers, and David Russell and Bruce Peterson, co-owners of Rushwind Sails, have put the final touches on an agreement which aligns the Hood River sailmakers with the extensive Gaastra research and development program.
A state recommendation stopping new water appropriations on two aquifers in the Mosier region will be considered when the Oregon State Water Resources Commission meets Friday in Lakeview. If approved, the restrictions would recognize a recent water level decline in areas served by the Pomona and Priest Rapids aquifers. Together, these serve both agricultural and municipal needs.
1998 — 20 years ago
Hood River County officials hope to bring the new 9-1-1 dispatch center online this August. The county recently gained approval from the city planning department to locate the facility on the third floor of the Sprint office building at Sixth Street and State. The company is leasing 2,700 square feet of space to the county for the new center, which will replace the current dispatch facility located in the county jail. Voters approved the creation of a new 9-1-1 emergency communications district two years ago, providing it with its own annual tax base.
2008 — 10 years ago
Mountain bikers are concerned that the latest master plan for Mount Hood could cut 123 miles from popular trail systems. Hood River County officials want to ensure that the proposed expansion of wilderness does not impede their ability to harvest timber or fight fires. They also believe federal approval should be given to move Highway 35 out of the existing flood zone if necessary.
Mt. Hood Meadows Oregon LLC and the Hood River Valley Residents Committee are seeking reassurance that a land trade won’t be stalled. The two parties worry that, without definitive language and a set time line, the deal to preserve resource lands in the southern sector of the county could fall through.
Compiled by Trisha Walker, News staff writer.
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