Nestle Waters might open plant in Cascade Locks

By RAELYNN RICARTE
News staff writer

Cascade Locks will soon be experimenting to see if rainbow trout can thrive in well water instead of a free-flowing spring.

The project will be funded by Nestle Waters North America, which wants to construct a bottling plant within the city’s industrial park.

The proposal by Nestle is to draw water out of Oxbow Spring and then purchase $360,000 of well water from Cascade Locks each year. The city’s water would be fed into the spring so that Nestle could tap about 100 million gallons per year.

As early as August, about 500 trout will be placed in a holding tank in an undisclosed location. The city’s well water will then be pumped into the facility and the trout cared for by the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.

The plan developed by Nestle, the city and ODFW is to have the fish monitored for a period of 12 months. The state agency will then determine whether the well water is an adequate substitute for spring water.

Cascade Locks City Manager Bernard Seeger said the bottling plant would create about 53 direct jobs. He said another 25-50 jobs would be provided by related services, such as the construction of shipping pallets.

He said, in addition to employment opportunities, Nestle plans about $50 million of land improvements on 25 acres of industrially zoned property now owned by Hood River Sand and Gravel. He said the city would benefit by the large boost in property taxes paid by the company, as well as the sale of electricity.

“There are just so many winners in this project,” said Seeger.

He said another potential source of new jobs and general fund revenue is the construction of a tribal gambling casino in Cascade Locks.

An analysis of the environmental impacts related to that proposal is now under legal review by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Once the report is published in the federal register — sometime in the near future — the public will have 30 days to comment on the contents of the document.

Government leaders from the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs expect a decision by the Department of the Interior, which oversees Indian affairs, by the end of 2009.

The tribes are seeking to build a 600,000-square-foot resort/gaming center on 25 acres of land within the city’s industrial park. Another 35 acres would be leased by the Port of Cascade Locks for parking and other needs.

Once opened, the casino is expected to employ about 1,700 people. The project, if approved, is likely to be legally challenged by conservation groups. Opponents of the gambling facility believe the increased traffic from several million visitors each year will create pollution that threatens the ecology of the area.

Seeger said the tribes have pledged about $1.7 annually to offset general services provided by local governments. One million of that revenue goes to Cascade Locks, another $570,000 to Hood River County and $10,000 to the Port of Cascade Locks.

The transient room tax paid to the city by the resort, which will have 250 rooms, is expected to be $407,000 annually. Another $432,000 will be provided to Cascade Locks each year for fire and police services, with an additional $340,000 in start-up costs the first year of operation.

The city will receive the first $100,000 of a $1.7 million annual community benefit fund paid by the tribe.