Stories in this Regional News Roundup are excerpted from weekly newspapers from around the region. This is part two, with part one having appeared in Saturday’s Tribune.

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KOOSKIA — The Syringa Hospital Foundation (SHF) announced July 30 it will not move forward with purchasing the Baylor Building on Main Street where the Kooskia Syringa Clinic is located.

SHF is an independent, nonprofit organization that supports the mission and endeavors of Syringa Hospital & Clinics. It had recently pursued an opportunity to purchase the building; however, following negotiations with the owners, SHF decided not to move forward with that plan.

SHF director Kristi Brooks reported at the July board meeting the owner had made a specific offer to sell to the hospital; however, Brooks said she felt “a lot of angst” within the board members and said maybe they needed to revisit their previous discussions and decisions, adding that St. Mary’s had just opened a brand new medical facility in Kamiah.

“Do we know the loyalty of our customers?” she asked at the meeting.

She also explained Syringa has seven years remaining on its Kooskia Clinic lease, no matter who owns the building, with a maximum rent increase of 10 percent built into the contract.

Syringa board chairwoman Leta Strauss had expressed uncertainly about putting money into a building at this point in time.

“With the way our world is and the advent of telemedicine, I’m not sure putting money into bricks and mortar is in our best interests,” she offered.

The foundation had previously agreed to provide a certain amount of funding to assist in purchasing the property.

Trustee Jim Zumwalt said he wondered what kind of message not purchasing the building may say to the community of Kooskia.

“What is our desired footprint?” he had asked.

SHC put out a news release July 30 that stated they “remain committed to providing the Kooskia community the quality healthcare experience they deserve and plans to remain in their current location.”

“This was strictly a real estate decision on whether owning this building would improve our ability to support the mission of the hospital,” Brooks said. “There has never been a question about providing services in Kooskia; we remain committed to our patients and the community of Kooskia.”

— Lorie Palmer, Idaho County Free Press (Grangeville), Wednesday

Ulmer quits Idaho County Sheriff’s Office to focus on his campaign for sheriff

KAMIAH — It’s no secret that Doug Ulmer has been campaigning for the position of Idaho County sheriff for some time.

He announced his candidacy for the office in May of last year and handily won the primary election for the position against three other candidates, one of whom was the current sheriff, Doug Giddings.

To further bolster his election campaign, Ulmer recently resigned his position as a deputy lieutenant in the Idaho County Sheriff’s Office to concentrate on his campaign.

“I wanted to make it easier on the department during the transition to the end of the current sheriff’s term,” said Ulmer. “Let’s face it: I was the guy who was working at the department during the primary campaign, which made things awkward for everybody. So now everybody can just focus on their jobs of protecting the community. Additionally, I really need to focus my time on the campaign right now.”

Ulmer is counting on his 34 years of experience in law enforcement, working in both Idaho and Lewis counties, to help his campaign. He knows Idaho County very well, he said, and has been meeting with various citizen groups and individuals to learn even more.

Ulmer has been spending three or four days a week meeting with people all around the county to get to know them better and get their opinions.

“I am listening to the public to find out what their thinking on the department is,” said Ulmer. “I want to know what they think we do well and also where they think we need to improve.”

— Pete DuPre, The Clearwater Progress (Kamiah), Thursday

Columbia County courtroom will look different to prospective jurors

DAYTON — Jurors are seeing some changes in the county courtroom layout, practices and procedures, now that trials are resuming in Superior Court and Municipal Court after a long recess because of the COVID-19 shutdown.

Jury Coordinator Jessica Atwood said Superior Court Judge Gary J. Libey has visited the courtroom and taken measurements to make certain social distancing requirements will be met. The state’s chief justice, Debra Stevens, has appointed Libey to presiding judge for the Columbia, Garfield and Asotin county Superior Court circuit. He will fill the remainder of Judge Scott Gallina’s term, which will expire at the end of 2020.

Atwood said 27 percent of the population in Columbia County is over the age of 65 and Libey is particularly concerned about that population. She outlined actions being taken to protect people from COVID-19:

The pool of potential jurors will be divided into two smaller groups during the jury selection process. Only 15 jurors can be seated inside the courtroom.

Jurors will sign in, daily, on their own sheet of paper, keeping the pen they use.

Hand sanitizer, handwashing stations, gloves, masks and face shields are available to them. Visitors will have their temperatures taken daily, and the doors of the courtroom will remain open for better air circulation.

The courtroom is also being cleaned daily.

Jurors will remain inside the courtroom for breaks and lunch. Snacks will not be provided to them, but bottled water will be.

During deliberations, the judge, counsel, defendant and the clerk will be moved from the courtroom and jurors will remain sequestered inside the courtroom.

Atwood said she has been attending virtual meetings with other court personnel, working on issues related to trials and COVID-19. It was from that group that the idea to remove fabric cushions from chairs inside the courtroom was floated.

“There is a lot of communication about the best practices,” Atwood said “I feel we have a really good handle on trials, and how this is going to go.”

— Michele Smith, The Times (Waitsburg), Thursday

McCall extends mask mandate to Sept. 1

MCCALL — An extension to Sept. 1 of an emergency order to wear masks in the city of McCall as a precaution against COVID-19 was approved last week by the McCall City Council.

The council voted 4-1 to extend the order that was originally approved July 1. That order was set to expire July 31, but the council took action during a special meeting July 30.

Mayor Bob Giles and council members Colby Nielsen, Melanie Holmes and Mike Maciaszek were in favor of extending the order another 30 days while council member Thom Sowers voted against.

“To do otherwise is to disregard both the advice of our health care community and our citizens,” Maciaszek said, noting that more than 300 public comments the council received and briefings by local health officials in favor.

Sowers, who also voted against the original mask order, suggested the city was disenfranchising many businesses by making the decision on masks for them.

“I feel that’s my job to represent these folks, so I think we should let this expire,” he said.

Just one ticket has been written for a violation since the ban went into effect July 1, McCall Police Chief Justin Williams told council members.

St. Luke’s McCall Chief of Staff Gregory Irvine credited the council for adopting the original mask order and urged council members to extend it until at least Sept. 1.

“There is no doubt in my mind that it has slowed the spread of the disease in the McCall area and has kept our hospital from being overwhelmed by cases of COVID-19,” Irvine said.

— Drew Dodson, The Star-News (McCall), Thursday