OUR 113th Year
August 21, 2020 $1.00
SEASIDESIGNAL.COM
More than a beach day
Break the Chain Run
Gearhart
mayor won’t
run for
reelection
By R.J. MARX
Seaside Signal
Gearhart Mayor Matt Brown announced
last Friday he will not run for reelection in
November, citing professional reasons.
Brown has served as mayor since 2016,
when he won on a campaign of citizen
involvement and adherence
to the city’s comprehensive
plan, which he described as
“a blueprint for a sustain-
able, residential Gearhart.”
After more than a decade
serving on the City Coun-
cil and Planning Com-
Matt Brown
mission, Brown will stay
active in the community
and hasn’t ruled out more public service
in the future.
Brown, 44, a native of Gearhart,
returned in 2006 and serves as the gen-
eral manager and PGA professional at the
Highlands Golf Club. Brown purchased
the golf course in Manzanita in 2018. He
has also worked as the golf professional
See Brown, Page A6
Ownership of
youth buildings
transferred
By R.J. MARX
Seaside Signal
Two historic buildings held by Clat-
sop County will be transferred to local
ownership.
The Girl Scouts of Oregon and South-
west Washington lease the north end at 1215
Broadway; the south end, the Mary Blake
Playhouse at 1222 Avenue A, is leased by
Sunset Empire Park and Recreation Dis-
trict. The single parcel will be divided into
two, with each organization assuming own-
ership of their lots.
Photos by Melissa Ousley
Seaside Run to Break the Chain 5K came to Seaside on Saturday, Aug. 15, presented by the Sunset Empire Park and Recreation
District. Proceeds, estimated at $2,500 from this year’s run, go to support healthy activities for youth at the park and recreation
district and also help Operation Underground Railroad, which works to stop human traffi cking. The race had men’s and women’s
division winners in three age categories, adult, ages 12-17 and under age 12.
Voting concerns hit post offi ce
‘Business as usual’ at Seaside
and Gearhart post offi ces
By R.J. MARX
Seaside Signal
With a national election around the corner,
postal customers are asking for their Novem-
ber election ballots early.
Driven by a national political debate and
reports of the removal of 30 mailboxes from
Portland and Eugene streets and operational
issues at a national level, Karynn Kozij, an
employee of the Gearhart post offi ce, said
customers are “very, very concerned” about
potential postal slowdowns.
Seaside Postmaster Tony Sims said he is
hearing similar concerns from patrons.
“They’re calling wanting their ballot
early,” he said. “We have nothing to do with
GEORGE SAID THE
SEASIDE LOCATION, ONE
OF NINE GIRL SCOUT
PROPERTIES IN OREGON,
IS CONSIDERED THE
SCOUTS’ ‘MOST POPULAR
PROGRAM PROPERTY.’
the ballots. They have to talk to the county
offi ce that handles that.”
While customers are concerned about
their election ballots, daily mail delivery and
processing is pretty much the same, Sims
said. “We haven’t seen any changes, not on
our end yet. Our trucks are still coming in at
the same time.”
The post offi ce is fully staffed after fi lling
The deal received formal approval from
the county Board of Commissioners last
Wednesday.
“We are delighted with the transfer from
Clatsop County,” Harmony George, CFO/
VP Business Services of the Girl Scouts of
Oregon and Southwest Washington, said.
“They have been wonderful partners for
many years.”
See Post Offi ce, Page A6
See Scouts, Page A6
Broadway Field indoor batting facility takes shape
Facility scheduled
to debut in October
By GARY HENLEY
Seaside Signal
We’ve all heard the famous baseball
movie expression, “If you build it, they will
come.”
Well … it takes time, money and people
to build it, before they come.
And they’re getting it all done in Seaside.
Whenever the next spring sports season
begins, Seaside athletes will benefi t from a
brand new indoor training facility.
Since the groundbreaking ceremony May
11, the construction of Broadway Field’s
indoor batting and bullpen cage has made
big strides.
It has a roof and now a concrete fl oor, but
there’s a lot more in between that promises
to make it a state-of-the-art facility for use
by athletes, primarily baseball and softball.
Many have seen the outside of the building
and the progress made, said Seaside softball
coach Jessica Garrigues, one of the project’s
coordinators, “but maybe do not know all the
work that has gotten us to where we are now.”
Garrigues mentioned site excavation,
hauling in rock, supplying utilities, dig-
ging ditches, securing donated construction
materials, installing an in-fl oor heat system,
installation of plumbing/electrical and pour-
ing a concrete slab as among the everyday
activities.
Jessica Garrigues
See Indoor, Page A8
The Broadway Field indoor facility shortly after the concrete fl oor was complete.