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About Coast river business journal. (Astoria, OR) 2006-current | View Entire Issue (April 11, 2018)
4 | APRIL 2018 Pacific County, Astoria highly rated in different ways LONG BEACH — SmartAsset, a finan- cial technology company that provides per- sonal finance advice on the web and which performs interesting comparisons of how counties and states perform in terms of tax efficiency and other measures, said in March that Pacific County ranks ninth among Wash- ington’s 39 counties for getting the most “Bang for their Buck.” In addition to property taxes, the study analyzed the quality of local schools and the local crime rates to find where people were seeing the most value, SmartAsset said. Oth- er Western Washington counties in the top 10 were San Juan, Clark and Island. Clatsop County ranks 26th among Ore- gon’s 36 counties for effective use of proper- ty tax dollars, the firm said. On the other hand, SmartAsset ranked Astoria one of the 10 best places to retire in Oregon, based on taxes (both income and sales), the number of doctors’ offices and opportunity for recreation and social life. As- toria ranked ninth, behind number one Rose- burg, followed by Hood River, Brookings, Florence, Ontario, Grants Pass, Ashland and Dallas. Learn health insurance basics at local workshop SEASIDE — The Oregon Health Insur- ance Marketplace will sponsor “Building Blocks of Health Insurance,” a free 90-min- ute workshop on understanding health insur- ance, this month in Seaside. The event, which is open to the public, will be held from 5 to 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 26, in the community room at the Sea- side Public Library, 1131 Broadway. Attendees will receive information to help them be confident health coverage consum- ers. An experienced health-insurance educa- tor from the Marketplace will present on: • Types of health insurance, including Medicare, the Oregon Health Plan, and indi- vidual and family plans • Summary of Benefits documents • Explanation of Benefits letters • Eligibility for financial assistance To attend, register in advance by calling 855-268-3767 (toll-free) or emailing info. marketplace@oregon.gov. County jobless rate up slightly from 2017 LONG BEACH — With a rate of 8.1 per- cent, Pacific County was one of 10 of Wash- ington’s 39 counties with joblessness above 8 percent in February, most of the other being east of the Cascades. All the Washington coastal counties were close to being in the same boat, with average COAST RIVER BUSINESS JOURNAL BUSINESS BRIEFS joblessness of about 7.8 percent on the outer coast, plus neighboring Lewis and Wahkia- kum. Pacific County’s rate declined from 8.3 percent in January, but was slightly higher than it was in February 2017. Washington’s statewide rate was 4.7 per- cent. “Job growth remains strong,” said Paul Turek for the Employment Security Depart- ment. “A growing labor force is supplying workers to meet labor demand while unem- ployment remains low.” Oregon’s unemployment rate was 4.1 per- cent in January and February. For 14 consec- utive months, Oregon’s unemployment rate has been close to 4.1 percent, its lowest level since comparable records began in 1976. The U.S. unemployment rate was also 4.1 percent in both January and February. Rates for Oregon counties were not avail- able by CRBJ’s press time. effects and fallout for coastal communities puts us ahead of the curve in terms of consid- ering those impacts in planning and manage- ment decisions.” The new model estimates the future losses associated with fisheries closures based on the way fishermen reacted to previous clo- sures. It anticipates, for instance, that many fishermen will simply quit fishing rather than shift their efforts to another fishery instead. In this way, the model accounts for the diffi- culty fishermen face in entering other fisher- ies with limited permits, Richerson said. The study estimated that the closure led to a loss of $12.8 million to $19.6 million in sales. Richerson noted that the model es- timates only the economic consequences of the closure to the commercial ocean salmon fishery and does not include the toll on rec- reational fisheries or in-river fisheries, which would make the total losses even higher. New study reveals cost of 2017 salmon fisheries closure Forest stewardship short-course aims to aid families LONG BEACH — Last year’s closure of the commercial ocean salmon troll fishery off the West Coast is estimated to have cost $5.8 million to $8.9 million in lost income for fishermen, with the loss of 200 to 330 jobs, according to a new model that determines the cost of fisheries closures based on the choices fishermen make. Scientists hope the model, described for the first time earlier this month in Marine Policy, will help policy makers anticipate the economic toll of fisheries closures. Such foresight may be especially useful as condi- tions in the California Current off the West Coast grow increasingly variable, leading to more potential closures, said lead author Kate Richerson, a marine ecologist with NOAA Fisheries’ Northwest Fisheries Science Cen- ter and the University of Washington. “We’re probably only going to see more of these closures in the future,” she said in a press release, “so being able to predict their ABERDEEN — Is your forest healthy? How do you know? When harvesting timber, what is your fair share? Is a handshake good enough? How do you enhance wildlife habitat and protect your land from wildfire? How do you harvest timber sustainably without harm- ing your land? A Forest stewardship short- course will help answer these questions. From April 23 through June 18, a series of weekly classes will be conducted in Aber- deen for owners of small-scale family forests (typically 5 to 500 acres) in Aberdeen. This award-winning program is known as the “Forest Stewardship – Coached Plan- ning Shortcourse,” and is conducted by WSU Extension and the Washington Department of Natural Resources. It is called “coached planning” because a major part of this train- ing involves “coaching” participants as they develop simple management plans for their forests that are tailored to fit personal land management goals. SUB-BIDS REQUESTED Seaside School District- New Middle/High Schools Bids Due: April 26th • 2:00pm 805 SW Broadway, Suite 2100 Portland, OR 97205 Phone (503) 221-8811 Bid Fax (503) 221-8888 BIDS@hoffmancorp.com Hoffman is an equal opportunity employer and requests sub-bids from all interested firms including disadvantaged, minority, women, disabled veterans and emerging small-business enterprises OR CCB#28417 LIC HOFFMCC164NC SALEM — The Committee for Family Forestlands will meet Friday, April 20, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. The meeting will be in the Tillamook Room at the Oregon Department of Forestry Salem Headquarters, 2600 State St. Board of Forestry Chairperson Tom Ime- son and State Forester Peter Daugherty will offer comments to the committee. In addition, the committee will receive updates about and discuss the Private Forests Division, the marbled murrelet rule process, rulemaking related to food plots and land- owner assistance. For more information, call Susan Domi- nique at 503-945-7502. More information on the committee can be found at www.oregon. gov/ODF/Board/Pages/CFF.aspx. Pacific EDC offers Internet marketing workshop RAYMOND — The Pacific County Eco- nomic Development Council is hosting an internet marketing workshop in Raymond all day April 25. “As Millennials become an ever greater percentage of the market, businesses must adapt their marketing strategy to the media these customers rely upon,” the EDC said. The workshop presenter will be Misty Lambrecht, owner of Webfoot Marketing & Design. For more information, call or email 360-875-9330/360-642-9330 or edcpcog@ pacificedc.org. Over 20 years combined experience serving the local area. Bid Package: #1 Site Work & Utilities Bid Documents: www.hoffmancorp.com/subcontractors Family forestlands committee meets April 20 Astoria’s Premier Insurance Agency Seaside, Oregon (Includes Site Work, Utilities & Retaining Walls, Underground Electrical & Telecom, Grading & Surface of the Gravel Road) Course fee is $75 per person, family or land parcel. Participation is limited to 15 registrants on a first-come, first-served ba- sis upon receipt of the registration and fee. Classes will be held weekly on Monday eve- nings from 6 to 9 p.m. in Room 4330 of the Schermer Building of Gray’s Harbor Col- lege. To register or for more information, call the WSU Extension office at (360) 740-1213 or email at patrick.shults@wsu.edu. You may not ALWAYS feel appreciated at your job... but here at Farmers, we ALWAYS appreciate you. Ask about our Affinity Program. Discounts for Teachers, Police Officers, Fire Fighters, Accountants, Doctors and RN’s 1007 Marine Drive Astoria, OR 97103 503.325.4410
