La Grande Observer

LA GRANDE — A La Grande man accused of murder will soon face a Union County jury. Ronald Lee is accused by the state of Oregon of killing his wife, Loretta Williams, in November 2018 at her home in Cove. The 74-year-old is facing charges of second-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder, while being held without bond in the Union County Jail. Lee has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

LA GRANDE — La Grande is losing a business that appeared to have a promising future. Rebel Woolworks, a dyed yarn shop at 113 Adams Ave., closed in June. The store’s owner, Tara Sager, wrote on her store’s Facebook page that she will be moving to Alaska where she has accepted a construction project management position.

LA GRANDE — The second phase of the Red Apple Forest Management project at Mount Emily Recreation Area could happen earlier than anticipated, but the timeline is still undecided, according to Doug Wright, director of Union County Public Works. In June, the MERA Advisory Committee held a special session...

LA GRANDE — A group of Grande Ronde Valley ham radio operators are helping keep an iconic part of the past alive while securing Union County’s future. The individuals are the members of the Grande Ronde Radio Amateur Association, many of who use Morse code, a communication tool that was all the rage for much of the 1800s when the telegraph was the king of long range communication.

There were and are a lot of good things to point out in the recent decision by the Elgin City Council to move ahead on a new contract with the Union County Sheriff’s Office. Readers may recall the city council pondered an idea to create its own police force recently, voting in May not to renew its contract with the sheriff’s office for enhanced law enforcement services and announcing plans to add back its own police department, one it disbanded about 10 years ago.