Oil Trains in the Gorge

  • News

Public Hearing Tuesday Sept. 6th on Union Pacific Rail Expansion near Mosier, OR WHEN: Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2016, rally outside at 2:15 pm, hearing at 3:00 pm WHERE: Columbia Gorge Discovery Center, 5000 Discovery Drive, The Dalles, OR 97058 TALKING POINTS: See fact sheet for more information. MORE INFO: Read a study on the project's impact on rail traffic commissioned by Friends of the Columbia Gorge. COMMENT TODAY! From the HRVRC Board of Directors: Only three months after an oil train derailed, spilled, and burned in Mosier on June 3rd, Union Pacific Railroad is proposing to construct four additional miles of mainline track through the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area near Mosier, OR. This would allow more, longer trains to pass along communities in the Gorge. HRVRC is opposed to Union Pacific's expansion proposal. While Mosier is in Wasco County, adding tracks in Mosier will lead to increased train traffic all…

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H is for Harvest October 15

H is for Harvest Saturday October 15, 6-9 pm Springhouse Cellar, Hood River Join the Resident's Committee and sponsors Cardinal Glass and Timberline Lodge at one of Hood River’s coolest venues for a harvest inspired evening of live music, delicious food, Northwest wines, and exciting auction items that celebrate our beautiful county and its bounty--and support our 39 years of work protecting farms, forests, wild places and the livability of our community. We’ll provide light appetizers and desserts – and fabulous food truck fare for purchase from Dhaba Dhaba and The Huck Truck. A is for the AMAZING items in our live and silent auctions.  Auction items range from a rare overnight ‘slumber party’ package for up to 24 people at Silcox Hut at Timberline,  eight tons of gravel delivered from Lane’s Excavation for your driveway or landscaping project, a Hood River Wine Country bike tour from MountNbarrel or a week’s stay in…

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HRVRC Annual Meeting August 7

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JOIN US FOR OUR 39TH ANNUAL MEETING - WE'RE COMING TO TOWN! Sunday, August 7, 2016, 3:00 - 6:00 Columbia Center for the Arts Agenda: 3:00 - 3:30 Informal Social 3:30 - 4:30 Meeting and Speakers 4:30 - 6:00 Potluck HRVRC will provide sandwiches, wine, beer and soft drinks. Please bring a side dish or dessert to share. Fighting the Good Fight for the Long Haul As HRVRC enters its 39th year, we wanted to reflect on what it takes to be successful advocacy group, and investigate the combination of courage and persistence that makes the best groups relevant and effective over decades not just years. Buck Parker, former President and Executive Director of EarthJustice. Buck is a Hood River native (Hood River High School Class of '63) who left our county and did good. He has a resume of environmental accomplishments as long as your arm. In his 30+ years with EarthJustice, he…

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Win an Electric Bike–Buy a Raffle Ticket

We're trying to control ourselves but we are so excited about this year's raffle prize, a Felt SPORTe 95 S electric bike ($2,999 value). We're finding it hard not to unleash a string of exclamation points about how cool this bike is and how great it is for Hood River living !!!!!! Sorry, we couldn't help ourselves. The SPORTe is a commuting and fitness machine, the ultimate bike to get around town and country with pleasing speed and ease. Errand in the Heights? No sweat with the SPORTe. With everything a rider needs for swift commutes, running errands or cycling adventures, the SPORTe comes in traditional and step-through designs (winner's choice) to fit all types of riders.   Raffle tickets are $20 each or 3 for $50. Only 300 will be sold and the drawing will be held at our annual meeting, Sunday August 7th, 3-6 pm, Columbia Center for…

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Welcome New Board Member Anna Cavaleri

Anna Cavaleri is a Colorado licensed attorney with a passion for land use and sustainable development. Anna, her husband and her daughter moved from Denver to Hood River in 2015. The beauty of the area, strong sense of community, endless opportunities for outdoor recreation and having family in town made the move to Hood River an easy choice. As a new Hood River citizen, Anna recognizes and appreciates the efforts made by  Hood River communities to preserve area natural resources and foster the values of stewardship and responsible growth. As a HRVRC board member, Anna’s objectives are to provide the perspective of a newer Hood River citizen and to promote those values that make Hood River such a unique and special place. 

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A Legacy Park for Hood River?

Parks District Shocker Hood River Valley Residents Committee advocates for protection of our best farm and forest lands while supporting wise planning that makes our urban communities more healthy and livable.  We --and a much larger community of local citizens-- have been working with Hood River Valley Parks and Recreation District for the last six-months to create a large park --Westside Park-- on one of the last sizable parcels left next to town, a 20-acre piece at the corner of Fairview and Belmont, catty corner to Westside Elementary School. So it is with great disappointment that we find the Parks Board abandoning pursuit of a large park next to town and instead return their focus to a former orchard property on Barrett Drive more than three miles out of town. Yes, that Barrett! See our Hood River News Op-Ed on why that is a terrible idea. Westside Community Park Concept Plan Presentation Wednesday June 8th at 6…

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Co-Housing Presentation

Interested in finding out more about co-housing, a new form of development that is increasing in popularity? Come hear this talk by the guy who (literally) wrote the book on co-housing.  Charles Durrett invites all to attend his presentation on Wednesday, April 20th at 7 pm, at the Columbia Gorge Center for the Arts. Co-housing appeals to many for the safe, diverse, multi-generational, inclusive and family oriented atmosphere it provides. This might be a great new trend in Hood River. Find out more at http://www.gorgecohousing.com

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New Vacation Rental Rules for Hood River

The number of homes in Hood River that are being converted to vacation rentals has skyrocketed in recent years with the advent of Air BnB, Homeaway, VRBO and other online platforms. In 2000 about 4% of the City's housing stock was reserved for seasonal use (vacation rentals and second homes). By 2015, that number had shot up to 12%. About 2/3 of vacation rentals are investment properties owned by someone who lives outside of Hood River County (see maps from Livable Hood River). Concerned with protecting the integrity of residential neighborhoods from "the party house next door" and preserving Hood River's limited housing stock for year-round residents instead of out-of-county investors and second home owners, the City Council decided that Hood River needed rules to govern STRs. The City's draft regulations use a "cap and density" approach--they the limit the total number of whole-house non-owner occupied vacation rentals in residential zones (143…

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Trailbuilding at Punchbowl Falls Nature Park

  This summer we will start building a new trail system at Punchbowl Falls. Just like the mountain bike trails at Post Canyon, the walking trails at Punchbowl will be built by volunteers. Trail Keepers of Oregon has kindly offered to help us with the technical stuff, but we need local volunteers to get the work done. We especially need some folks to be crew leaders. If that sounds like a fun and rewarding way to give back to this special place, let us know. We encourage anyone interested in trailbuilding to go to college--Columbia Cascades Trail Skills College! This is run by the Pacific Crest Trail Association and will teach you everything you need to know to be a crew leader at Punchbowl. Trail Skills College, April 22-24 in Cascade Locks Registration begins today, and it will fill up very quickly. The courses range from beginner to expert, so it’s…

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Bad Bill HB 4079

Oregon's land use program, its communities, and its working and natural lands are under attack this legislative session. HB 4079 has been declared a MAJOR THREAT by the Oregon Conservation Network! HB 4079 would bust open urban growth boundaries on to farm and forest lands and natural areas, using affordable housing as the ruse, when no affordable housing is likely to ever be developed. This bill would allow two “pilot project” cities, one large and one small, to expand their urban growth boundaries by 50 acres each for residential use without showing that they need more land. The bill allows that expansion onto farm, forest and natural lands first.  In exchange, an unspecified portion of the 50 acres would be available for affordable housing – the definition of “affordable,” the percentage that would be “affordable,” and other terms are not defined. Make no mistake, the bill is a trojan horse…

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Thrive Hood River
Formerly HRVRC

Thrive Hood River, PO Box 1544, Hood River, OR 97031 • PHONE: (541) 288-4706