143RD YEAR, NO. 181
DailyAstorian.com // THURSDAY, MARCH 17, 2016
POURING ON THE COAST
COAST WEEKEND
ONE DOLLAR
STORIES
ON
PAGE 5A
Warming
center
goes on
hiatus
Volunteer-run shelter
reopens in November;
weekly showers on tap
By ERICK BENGEL
The Daily Astorian
Photos by Joshua Bessex/The Daily Astorian
Sea Lions and harbor seals dive off the docks of the East End Mooring Basin after crews from the Port of Astoria inflated air danc-
ers in an attempt to scare the pinnipeds this morning.
JUST DANC E!
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Port employs air dancers to drive away sea lion squatters
The Daily Astorian
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of the East End Mooring Basin. ¶ The Port of Astoria used a handful of the nylon, tube-shaped dancers to scare sea lions
and harbor seals off the dock Thursday morning. ¶$VWKHFRORUIXOFDUWRRQLVKFUHDWXUHV¿OOHGZLWKDLUVHDOLRQVDQGKDU
ERUVHDOVLQWKHLPPHGLDWHYLFLQLW\TXLFNO\WRRNWRWKHZDWHUZKLOHRWKHUVHDOLRQVMXVWRQHGRFNRYHUVWD\HGSXW¶ “Our
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be the permanent solution.” ¶6WXGHQWZHOGHUVIURP.QDSSDZLOOIDEULFDWHVWHHOUDLOLQJVWROLQHWKH3RUWGRFNVZKLFK.QLJKW
said has proven effective in other ports at keeping sea lions off docks. ¶ Video online at www.dailyastorian.com
The Astoria Warming Center, which
houses the homeless overnight during cold or
inclement weather in the First United Meth-
odist Church basement, closed for the sea-
son Wednesday morning after four months
in operation.
But they were a busy and eventful four
months : From mid-November through Tues-
day , the center operated 66 nights, put up 98
people — including 77 men, 21 women and
15 veterans — and averaged 17 per night,
and provided a total of 1,098 overnight stays,
according to center tallies.
Volunteers served more than 2,000 meals
— furnished mostly by the North Coast Food
Web and Astoria Coffeeh ouse & Bistro —
and logged more than 2,000 volunteer hours.
“We served at least three times as many
of our homeless population this year as we
served last year,” City Councilor Drew Herzig,
a warming center founder and organizer, said.
The center also added a shower, a washer
and two dryers in January, acquired a 501(c)
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the same space for another four-month
period beginning in November.
But for now, “they’re going to have to be
back out on the street again, and that really
breaks my heart,” Herzig said of the homeless.
To keep the center open beyond its sched-
uled closing date, let alone year-round,
would require more volunteers, greater
capacity and more community partnerships,
he said.
See WARMING CENTER, Page 10A
Home health
care shifts
to Seaside
Providence takes on
CMH’s caseload
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Daily Astorian
In a room crowded with busi-
ness owners, elected officials and
local leaders, the winners of the Clat-
sop County Outstanding Businesses
awards took the stage to accept their
plaques Wednesday.
The fourth annual ceremony hon-
ored businesses in 10 categories rang-
ing from customer service to entrepre-
neurship and economic impact. Each
winner was nominated by a letter sent
to Clatsop Economic Development
Resources.
Columbia Memorial Hospital is ending
h ome h ealth c are services at the end of April
after 25 years of operation, citing decreased
Medicare reimbursements amid increasing
costs.
The hospital serves 22
people through the program,
but expects the number of
affected patients to drop to
17 by the time the program
closes. Patients will be noti-
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Erik
Providence Seaside Hos-
Thorsen
pital, the only other hospi-
tal-based home health pro-
vider in Clatsop County, will
incorporate those patients
in its larger home health
program.
“CMH has explored all
options to keep this program
Paul
open, however, the necessary
Mitchell
reduction in costs to keep the
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quality of service,” Erik Thorsen, the hospi-
tal’s CEO, said in a statement .
Paul Mitchell, a hospital spokesman , said
home health patients are people needing
post-surgery monitoring, therapy and med-
ication management. They include people
with chronic health conditions or disabilities
who need continued monitoring and have
trouble leaving their home, but don’t need to
live in a nursing home.
See AWARDS, Page 10A
See SEASIDE, Page 10A
ABOVE: Jose Delgado, with the Port of Astoria, sets up an inflatable air dancer on
a dock in the East End Mooring Basin today. LEFT: Sea Lions and harbor seals
hang out on the docks of the East End Mooring Basin before crews from the Port
of Astoria inflated air dancers in an attempt to scare them away this morning.
These people are taking care of business
CEDR awards honor
Clatsop businesses
By CYNTHIA WASHICKO
EO Media Group
Joshua Bessex/The Daily Astorian
Skip Hauke smiles during a speech by state Sen. Betsy John-
son at the Clatsop Economic Development Resources Awards
banquet at The Loft in Astoria on Wednesday. Hauke was recog-
nized for his work for CEDR during this year’s banquet.