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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 3, 2015)
Knappa, Jewell Fall Sports Previews Take a hike, pup! PAGES 10 & 11A 143rd YEAR, No. 47 COAST WEEKEND THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2015 ONE DOLLAR CEASE FIRE OVER! Battles back on for Civil War re-enactments The Daily Astorian Joshua Bessex/The Daily Astorian Protesters use signs to shield themselves from the rain during a rally before the Oregon L N G permit public hearing at the Warrenton Community Center Wednesday. LNG opponents turn out in force Public hearing to resume Thursday See BATTLES, Page 7A Mays steps up Commissioners select interim county manager By ERICK BENGEL The Daily Astorian W ARRENTON — A crowd of concerned citizens sporting red an- ti-LNG shirts and protest buttons packed the Warrenton Community Center Wednesday evening to op- pose Oregon LNG’s plans to de- velop a pipeline and terminal on the Skipanon Peninsula. Before the public hearing on the company’s land use permits FRXOG EHJLQ FLW\ SROLFH RI¿FHUV asked that several dozen people leave the room, which is designed to hold only 135. The folks who stayed watched intently as attorneys, consultants and impassioned locals traded ar- guments for and against Oregon LNG’s proposed $6 billion proj- ect. The speakers made their case before Daniel Kearns, a Portland land use attorney appointed by the city to decide whether the com- pany’s permit applications satisfy the standards outlined in the city code. The project design includes a facility to liquefy natural gas, two storage tanks, a loading ter- minal for ocean-borne tankers and a new 87-mile pipeline that would connect to an existing nat- The battles are back on. The recent lifting of the burn ban by the Clatsop County Fire Defense Board has paved the way for the Northwest Civil War Council Labor Day weekend re-enactors to re-enact away. Jim Munson, an event organizer and former union battalion com- mander, said the battles and the FDPS¿UHVDUHEDFN The re-enactment is the council’s biggest event and draws on average 600 council members, he said, and WKLV ZRXOG KDYH EHHQ WKH ¿UVW WLPH without a battle in 29 years. Organizers are hoping they can regroup council members and get a good turnout, Munson said, adding drivers will probably see re-enac- tors doing road marches along U.S. Highway 101 to advertise the event. By DERRICK DePLEDGE The Daily Astorian and early November. Once the city mails Kearns’ de- cision to parties of record, a two- week appeal period will begin. If Kearns’ decision is appealed, the Warrenton City Commission will likely hold a public hearing on the appeal sometime in December. And, if the commission’s decision is appealed, the case may come before the state Land Use Board of Appeals. Rich Mays, the former city man- ager of Cannon Beach, will serve as interim Clatsop County manager. The county Board of Commis- sioners unanimously decided at a special meeting Wednesday night to select Mays to steer the county while commissioners search for a perma- nent replacement for Scott Somers, who has resigned to become city manager in College Park, Md. Mays will earn $11,500 a month and has pledged not to seek the top job, a requirement commissioners had set for the interim position. He will start before Somers leaves on Sept. 18. “He certainly has the experience and he knows the players better than any of the other applicants and could hit the ground running a little faster, which is what you need in an interim, is just somebody holding steady until you’ve selected who is going to be your manager,” County Counsel Heather Reynolds said of Mays. See LNG, Page 12A See MAYS, Page 7A Joshua Bessex/The Daily Astorian It was standing room only during the Oregon LNG permit public hearing at the Warrenton Community Center Wednesday. People were asked to leave the building before the hearing because the number of people attending the hearing exceeded the maximum occupancy . ural gas pipeline in Washington state . Supporters cast the project as a boon to the city, an opportuni- ty to provide well-paying jobs, stimulate the local economy and increase tax revenues by millions of dollars. Opponents, on the oth- er hand, cast it as a hazardous undertaking that could, among other problems, hold up traffic, drive down property values, dis- rupt fishing activities, pollute the environment and amplify the dangers posed by a Cascadia Subduction Zone earthquake and tsunami. Because of the overwhelming turnout, the public hearing has been extended to 5 p.m. Thursday. After the hearing, Kearns will leave the written record open for two weeks, then Oregon LNG will KDYHWLPHWRSUHSDUHD¿QDOUHEXW tal. Kearns will review the staff report and testimony and issue a written decision, which is expect- ed to arrive between late October Red Building lease changes hands By EDWARD STRATTON The Daily Astorian )LUVW)ULGD\RQWKH3OD]D 0XVLF0RYLHV)RRGDQG)XQ 0XVLFE\5K\WKP&XOWXUH )ULGD\6HSWWK0XVLF0RYLH +DQGVRQDFWLYLWLHVDQGJDPHVIRUDOODJHVJDWKHU\RXUODZQ FKDLUVDQGEODQNHWVIRUDSPVKRZLQJRIWKHPRYLH %HHWOHMXLFH)RRGYHQGRUVFDVKRQO\ Joshua Bessex/The Daily Astorian The Bridgewater Bistro is one of the businesses in the Red Building. lease without modifications. Lommasson had previously sought a perpetually renew- ing lease or to buy the prop- erty from the Port, which leases it to Union Fish. See LEASE, Page 12A )LUVW)ULGD\6XPPHU1LJKWV DUHIUHHRIFKDUJH The Port of Astoria Com- mission on Tuesday vot- ed to transfer the property lease for the Red Building in Uniontown from Union Fish Properties to Trout- dale developer Dale Lom- masson. Lommasson approached the Port Commission late last month and said he was buying the building for $1.7 million from Mark Cary and Shawn Helligso, partners in Union Fish Properties. Mike Weston, the director of operations and business development at the Port, said the parties had agreed to transfer the existing &ROXPELD5LYHU0DULWLPH0XVHXP