Home News Local News Jubilee signs of success: Quiet on the police front, bustling elsewhere

Jubilee signs of success: Quiet on the police front, bustling elsewhere

Written by Jayson Jacoby and Russell Vineyard July 19, 2010 02:34 am

Eva Mather, 3, spent Saturday afternoon enjoying the slide that was part of the family fun area. In addition to the slide, kids could romp in a jump house, play games and make crafts.
By JAYSON JACOBY and
RUSSELL VINEYARD
Baker City Herald

Baker City Police Chief Wyn Lohner was ready for trouble.

He didn’t get it.

And the absence of turmoil, in Lohner’s view, makes for a pretty fair definition of the ideal Miners Jubilee weekend.

Event organizers, who have the same goal albeit different responsibilities, also deemed as a success Baker City’s signature summer festival, which ran initially from 1934-41 then was revived, after a four-decade hiatus, in 1982.

“I was real pleased,” Lohner said this morning, the day after an event that’s not always quite so tranquil.

“Overall it was a good weekend. We always prepare for the worst and hope for the best. And fortunately we’ve had the best more often than not.”

That preparation included having seven city police officers on duty from 7 p.m. to 3 a.m. during the Friday-Saturday and Saturday-Sunday periods.
Typically the city has three officers on duty during weekend nights.
Two of the extra officers were stationed outside the beer garden, a preventive measure that was instituted a few years ago and has proved beneficial.
“It’s helped immensely,” Lohner said. “The officers stay outside the beer garden and just chat with folks. It helps defuse a lot of situations.”
Police made only one arrest at the beer garden, for disorderly conduct.
Officers also responded to a fight on Thursday, and they arrested one person for drunken driving early Saturday, but otherwise the police blotter was innocuous.
Elsewhere, however, Baker City was bustling — in a good way.
Friday’s bronc riding and Saturday’s bull riding events brought big crowds to the Fairgrounds as always.
Ellen Stevenson, who helped the Chamber of Commerce organize events at Geiser-Pollman Park, said the food and craft vendors she talked with “were happy with the turn out.”
“Everybody I talked to in the park were having a good time,” Stevenson said this morning. “It brought in people from Idaho and Washington and other places, which is good for our local businesses.”
As for complaints, Stevenson said some people told her the rock band, which was one of several music performers in the park, was a bit too exuberant with its volume.
She also heard from people who were displeased with the park bathrooms (an issue the city intends to fix by renovating the restrooms), and by some younger Jubilee revelers who ignored the park rules regarding bicycles and skateboards.
Ann Mehaffy, director of Historic Baker City, said the turnout for both the Jubilee parade and street dance exceeded expectations.
“The street dance was well attended and everybody had a good time,” Mehaffy said. “The community really enjoys it and there are some that want to have it every week during the summer months.”
Stevenson also said there was an unsung hero in the midst of the festivities.
“I took a call from someone in Portland asking about the mosquitoes. In Portland the mosquitoes are really bad. I was able to tell them Jim Lunders is a good vector control manager who always takes care of it before the Jubilee,” she said.
Lunders is responsible for controlling mosquito in a 200,000-acre district that includes Baker City.