OPB’s First Look: Hermiston courts Amazon

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Good morning, Northwest.

Two Amazon data centers are currently under construction in Hermiston, but officials are already clearing the way for more.

Hermiston’s economy mainly revolved around agriculture and distribution before data centers. City leaders say it’s an opportunity to diversify the city’s economy, despite concerns over data centers’ effects on the water supply and electricity rates.

OPB’s Antonio Sierra leads off the newsletter with Hermiston’s pitch for more server farms.

In other news today, Portland is considering increasing fees required to run for city council, mayor or auditor to weed out “non-serious” candidates. And Oregon state Rep. Annessa Hartman, who split with fellow Democrats on the transportation bill, announced she will not seek reelection next year.

Here’s your First Look at Wednesday’s news.

— Francisca Benitez

Hermiston clears the way for data center industry

The first data centers in Hermiston are still under construction, but the city government is already paving the way for more in the future.

The City Council voted Monday to annex 800 acres of land for more data centers. Amazon Web Services has built dozens of data centers across Umatilla and Morrow counties, with Hermiston becoming the latest community they’ve expanded into.

While no company is attached to the newly annexed land, the city manager said Hermiston has fielded interest from tech companies for years.

One councilor voted againts the proposal, voicing concerns about data centers’ massive water needs. (Antonio Sierra)

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3 things to know this morning

• Portland is considering increasing fees required to run for city council, mayor or auditor to weed out “non-serious” candidates. Voters selected from 19 mayoral and 98 city council candidates in the city’s first ranked-choice election, which many people found overwhelming. (Alex Zielinski) 

• Washington plans to destroy some 30,000 doses of mifepristone set to expire in January. The pills are part of the state’s stockpile of abortion medication purchased in 2023 as access to the pill was under threat. (Jake Goldstein-Street)

• Oregon state Rep. Annessa Hartman was the sole Democrat who voted against the governor’s transportation package. Now, she has announced she will not seek reelection next year. (Lauren Dake)

Headlines from around the Northwest

• A 5.8 magnitude earthquake rumbled off the Oregon Coast Monday night (OPB staff) 

• CVS reverses course, won’t give COVID-19 vaccines to Oregonians without prescriptions (Shaanth Nanguneri)

• After years of delay, Portland Public Schools pursues property for its Center for Black Student Excellence (Natalie Pate)

Listen in on OPB’s daily conversation

“Think Out Loud” airs at noon and 8 p.m. weekdays on OPB Radio, opb.org and the OPB News app. Today’s planned topics (subject to change):

• How nearly 50-year-old camp in Gates is still recovering from 2020 Beachie Creek Fire 

• How tribal health clinics in Oregon are navigating federal changes

The unlikely bond between an Oregon town and the man who bombed it

On Sept. 9, 1942, a Japanese fighter pilot named Nobuo Fujita took off in a wheelless seaplane to drop bombs on the Oregon Coast.

Over the course of a few days, Fujita dropped a total of four bombs around Brookings. Being Oregon, the bombs fizzled in the damp woods.

He was perhaps the only foreign pilot to ever drop bombs on the mainland U.S.

Twenty years later, Brookings invited him to town. It started what became a lasting international friendship, as told in this story from 2016. (John Rosman)

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Subscribe to OPB’s First Look to receive Northwest news in your inbox six days a week.