Othello man takes over CBDL reins

OTHELLO — Kevin Lyle, president of Wind Prairie in Othello, has taken over leadership of the Columbia Basement Development League, effective Jan. 1.

The CBDL’s Board of Trustees voted on recommendations from the League’s Nominating Committee. Lyle previously served as vice-chair.

Lyle’s elevation follows two years of “exemplary service” from Orman Johnson, Connell, CBDL Communications Director Amanda Brack said.

Other Executive Committee members taking on new roles include Jeff Schibel and Clark Kagele. Schibel, a fourth-generation farmer from Odessa, previously served as secretary and is taking on the role of vice chair. Kagele, a fifth-generation farmer from Odessa, will fill the role of secretary.

2016 Executive Committee members Jake Wollman Jr., Matt Hawley, and Dale Pomeroy will serve another term, with Wollman Jr. as treasurer, and Hawley and Pomeroy as at-large members.

Shawn O’Brien, an engineer from Moses Lake, and Mark Stedman, a retired teacher and administrator and current Lincoln County Commissioner, Lincoln City, are new to the Executive Committee as at-large members.

The Executive Committee, along with the Board, stakeholders, irrigation districts and others work together to support the Columbia Basin Project and its future development.

They protect the Project’s water rights and educate the public about the renewable resource and multiple-purpose benefits of the Project, including the $4 billion of cumulative economic activity generated annually on the Project.