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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 11, 2015)
Warrior volleyball, Seagull soccer action WEEKEND EDITION SPORTS • 8A 143rd YEAR, No. 53 A summer portrait FRIDAY EXTRA • 1C FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2015 ONE DOLLAR Abuse shelter tries to suspend services BEHIND THE CURTAIN CU 1onpro¿ t serving victims goes through restructuring By DERRICK DePLEDGE The Daily Astorian Photos by Joshua Bessex/The Daily Astorian Rachel Maxi does some touch-up painting near the top of the Astoria Column Wednesday. Astoria Column restoration nears completion Finished mural will closely resemble the original version By ERICK BENGEL The Daily Astorian T he team of painters tasked with restoring the mural that spirals up the Astoria Column and depicts the city’s ear- ly history are sticking to a general principle: channel the original art- ist, Attilio Pusterla. An Italian immigrant, Puster- la frescoed the scenes onto the 125-foot-tall monument in 1926, the year of the Column’s dedica- tion. In a series of striking tableaux covering a full century, his frieze captures, among other historical episodes, Capt . Robert Gray’s “discovery” of the Columbia Riv- er in 1792, the arrival of Lewis and Clark at Fort Clatsop in 1805 and Wilson Price Hunt’s overland Astor Expedition in 1812, and the advent of the railroad in the 1880s. With each restoration, the mu- ral’s look has changed slightly, resembling the original version to greater and lesser degrees. And with the current restoration — tentatively set to wrap up later this month and to be unveiled Oct. 24 — the mural will come closer to reÀ ecting Pus- terla’s vision than it has in decades. “We’re trying to be more true to his style,” Project Director The Harbor, a nonpro¿ t that pro- vides crisis intervention to victims of domestic violence and sexual as- sault, has tried to temporarily sus- pend all programs during an internal restructuring. The nonpro¿ t’s board has stepped in on an emergency basis to keep essential services functioning while sorting out the agency’s leadership. Julie Soderberg, The Harbor’s executive director, informed com- munity partners in an email Thurs- day afternoon that all programs would be suspended until Sept. 21. She said the services include a 24- hour crisis line, domestic violence and sexual assault response, the Deja Vu thrift store and advocacy operations. A handmade sign posted on the door of nonpro¿ t’s of¿ ces on Duane Street said the agency would be closed until further notice. “We are hoping this break in ser- vices will allow time for the board of directors to utilize outside resources to gain a new standard necessary for moving forward in a professional manner,” Soderberg said in a state- ment Friday morning. “The unfortunate reality of Clat- sop County is that there is a long his- tory of nonpro¿ t boards not taking their commitments seriously.” See SHELTER, Page 10A Lucero Garcia, a student at Tongue Point Job Corps, works on some touch-up painting on the Astoria Column. Marie Laibinis said. The last restoration, in 1995, was quite successful, Laibinis said. %ut it yielded a column whose ¿ g- ures largely had a “graphic” look to them: Solid blocks of color ¿ lled sharply de¿ ned boundaries. The 2015 restoration promises to be an upgrade — and a throw- back. “We understand the painter much better,” Laibinis said. “This will be, by far, the closest to the 1926 original.” Elementary schools without on-campus mental health resource By EDWARD STRATTON The Daily Astorian day was whether to “change my party af¿ liation.” Johnson’s independence has helped make her an inÀ uential ¿ gure in the closely divided state Senate. Last session, the senator, a moderate who serves on the Joint Committee on Ways and Means, was among the “Gang of Eight” lawmakers who worked with Gov. Kate Brown to try and forge a transportation funding package. Johnson, 64, who founded an avi- ation company, is an advocate for business and economic development, particularly in rural parts of the state. Her late father, Sam Johnson, who had thrived in the timber industry, was a Republican who represented Redmond in the state House. Johnson’s inÀ uence is also tied to her willingness to break with major- ity Democrats when she disagrees on Clatsop Behavioral Healthcare’s placement of counselors in the As- toria School District has been a suc- cess, district of- ¿ cials reported at a Wednesday Astoria School Board meeting. But Super- intendent Craig Hoppes also shared his frus- tration at the district’s inabil- Craig ity, so far this Hoppes school year, to get a mental health counselor on campus at John Jacob Astor and Lewis and Clark el- ementary schools. Before the program started, Hop- pes said, Astoria had 40 kids receiv- ing mental health services. But more than 60 additional students were re- ferred either by school staff or par- ents by the end of the year, he added. The district has reported good collaboration between the health- care provider and school counselors. While data is sparse on what effect the counseling has had on students’ academic attainment, district of¿ - cials say it has helped drastically im- prove attendance in some cases. See JOHNSON, Page 10A See COUNSELING, Page 10A See COLUMN, Page 10A A box of paints sits on the scaffolding. Johnson À irted with switch to Independent Party The state senator will remain a Democrat By DERRICK DePLEDGE The Daily Astorian State Sen. Betsy Johnson, a blunt-spoken pragmatist whose inde- pendent streak has at times infuriated Democrats in Salem, seriously consid- ered switching to the Independent Par- ty of Oregon. “I looked at it. I didn’t do it,” the Scappoose Democrat said Friday morning. Johnson toured the state this sum- mer, fueling talk she might run for gov- ernor as an Independent. But Thursday was the deadline to register as a mem- ber of the Independent Party to qualify to run as a party candidate in the May primaries. Johnson chose not discuss a poten- Seeking counsel R.J. Marx/The Daily Astorian Sen. Betsy Johnson speaks before members of the Seaside Downtown Development Association July 9. tial run for governor or any other of- ¿ ce, saying only that her choice Thurs-