Week Eight: The Little House On the Hilltop Project

HIGHLIGHTS: Architects Meet Us On the Hilltop. Building-Wise, What Do We Really Need Now? Fan Keeps Up Much Needed Urging. Moving Along: To Do List.

COUNTDOWN: 35 WEEKS

Now that eight weeks of The Little House On the Hilltop (TLHOTH) project have come and gone, let me share what’s happened since the last post:

So. I realized a weekly update can get rather tiresome, for both you and me; how many times can you read about how tired I am? Exactly. So I’ll update as things happen. And right now things are happening well enough.

Hilltop Meeting with PSU Architecture Professors. This by far is the most exciting. I had been trying for weeks to reach someone and one day it was like Boom! Boom! I made it through many departmental levels and just like that plans were made to come out and meet Scott and myself, and to see the site.

The day couldn’t have been more lovely; as I continued the drive eastward from Portland, the early morning fog snagged at the Gorge’s midline dissipated way before I reached Hood River. Sam was sleeping in back, Scott was already out on the hill with a crew doing some pruning, and The Dalles classic rock station was just coming into tune with a fine Pink Floyd melody as we rounded the bend into town, the sun shining brightly in the sky. We never got to see Mt. Hood that day, just her snowy base, but the Profs were already smitten by what they had seen on the drive out, “It’s rather romantic,” one told me, and this before we had even gone to the top of our hill.

We probably spent a good two hours walking the site and the vineyard, me telling our story, him and his wife asking about weather for practical things like roof loads, building use, zoning regulations, how we went from bare wheat ground to producing vines, some questions about how Scott and I manage to do all this on our own, how Scott keeps his day job so our funding remains, how our wine will not be the expected release of a new label, how we feel about so many who have naysayed our endeavor. A lot of discussion. And I believe a sincere appreciation for our project, which is huge, to find someone who recognizes it for what it is, and how we’ve gone this far with what little we have. Few are the people who follow their dreams, and I believe even fewer who might understand those who do and then fewer yet who dare to share their goodwill and words of support. Thank you to all who do.

Next steps: The Professors will speak with their supervisor, to find out what PSU can and cannot do for such a project, whatever it might be, and we’ll take it from there. And I should mention, the husband of the duo is a new Professor at PSU, pioneering their Digital Media Design and Fabrication department. What that is exactly, I’m not sure, but I will find out, and regardless, he seems to think it can be applied to what we’re doing. The big thing is that they came out and were rather taken with the whole kit and caboodle. I’m glad I washed my hair that day.

Building-Wise, What Is It We Need? My last update I told you how I had spoken to Benjamin in the Wasco County Planning Department, and that my AR (Action Required, that’s Intel speak, from Scott) was to create a high level business plan of our proposed use of our property. I CAN cross that AR from my To Do list, but I did not yet send it on the Wasco County, which is a good thing, I believe. For after our meeting with the architects, I started thinking about what our actual parameters were within which a project—with or without PSU—will take place, and how that affects our plans.

What do I mean? Things like, we don’t have electricity up on our hill. Sure, we brought in three-phase to the property, but it’s just under one-quarter mile away. We also don’t have water at our site if our well’s not turned on, and we usually turn it off once growing season’s done since no-one’s out there to keep an eye on it. And the water that DOES come to the top of the hill is classified as “ag” water, so it’s not for drinking. We also have no septic/sewer. All these things are highly limiting since we technically have no budget set aside for this. This I essentially shared with our visitors, and also told them I’d do what had to be done to make it work: fund raise, drink more beer for the bottle returns…. But we might also approach it from another side, which is, what is the most essential structure we need up there now? And how, with what we have to work, can it happen?

Of course the first thing that comes to mind is an ag-related building, and I have a feeling that’s the line of thought of our visitors, too. They mentioned something like a garden pavilion. I forget the German word he used (they’re both Austrian and I can speak German, at times). In short, a rustic structure that provides shelter from the wind and sun, a place for equipment, and enough room for a small gathering of visitors to the hilltop. Commercial-wise, we won’t be selling wine there, won’t be storing wine there, won’t be doing any kind of business transaction, other than sharing wine and conversation alongside the tremendous beauty of the land that unfolds below.

Fan Shares More Words of Support. Honestly, for taking the time, making the effort, and sharing your kind words, I cannot thank you enough.

To Do List

• Dig deep into Wasco County regulations to better understand them, so hopefully in the end they can’t say no!
• Another Powerball ticket? I don’t know. Does anyone know anyone who ever won? Well, I guess you can’t win if you don’t buy a ticket…