Official word has finally been received by local customers of The Oregonian that there will no longer be delivery of the Portland daily newspaper in Wallowa County, as of Jan. 1.

This week, county subscribers received the following letter, dated Dec. 17, from delivery contractor Mike Ellis of Enterprise:

“I regret to confirm the rumors that The Oregonian newspaper will no longer be delivered to the county, neither home delivery or newsstand. The Oregonian has made it impossible for me to continue the service. They increased the cost of the papers, took away my bundle haul compensation and the papers would be at least three or four hours later. They have informed me that they will not even try to replace me…”

Ellis states that the last paper will be delivered on Dec. 31 and refers any questions to The Oregonian at 1-800-452-1420 or 1320 S.W. Broadway, Portland OR 97201 (Attn. Kevin Denny, circulation director).

An accompanying letter from The Oregonian, signed by Denny and dated Dec. 1, reads: “Due to rising transportation and distribution costs, The Oregonian will be curtailing delivery in your area, effective Jan. 1. Please know , we value each and every one of our readers and understand the impact this change may have on you.”

The letter also states that, while home delivery, retail store and newsrack purchase will no longer be available in this area, the newspaper is available by mail delivery and much of the content is also accessible at its online affiliate, OregonLive.com.

In the Pendleton area, delivery of the newspaper will continue, but according to notices to subscribers there, The Oregonian has changed the terms and conditions to which it will deliver newspapers to the local distributors there and other areas outside the Portland area.

The rates were increased substantially and the subsidy provided to the dealer to make home delivery possible was taken away, according to the notice, so as a results delivery rates were increased substantially, to $34 for four weeks for seven days a week delivery.

In comparison, according to a call to The Oregonian, mail subscription rates are $24.64 for four weeks of seven day a week mail delivery.

The notice asks Pendleton subscribers to let the contractors know if they will be able to continue to subscribe to the paper by Dec. 16 so a determination can be made about what kind of service could be continued, home delivery and/or coin box and store accounts only.

A similar notice was sent to Oregonian subscribers in the Hermiston area by the dealers there, which notes that their new rates would make a home delivery cost $.91 compared to $.75 now in the racks.

The cost of the combined daily/Sunday papers were $2 less than in Pendleton.

“Many communities in Eastern Oregon will no longer be providing The Oregonian for sale after Jan. 1 because of the recent changes. We hope to continue to have The Oregonian available in the Hermiston area for many years to come,” the Hermiston notice said.

Oregonian circulation manager Kevin Denny did not return a Wallowa County Chieftain call regarding the possible delivery curtailment for a Dec. 7 story in the Chieftain.

The Chieftain is the first general circulation newspaper to have covered this story.