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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (June 22, 2016)
12A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • WEDNESDAY, JUNE 22, 2016 Union Paciic resuming oil trains in Columbia Gorge Associated Press PORTLAND — Union Paciic plans to resume transporting oil by train through the Oregon side of the scenic Columbia River Gorge at some point this week. It will mark the irst time trains car- rying barrels of crude oil will move through the area since June 3, when a train derailed near Mosier. The iery derailment caused 42,000 gallons of oil to spill. The company’s latest plans, announced Wednesday, stand at odds with several government and pri- vate-sector leaders in Oregon and Washington state, who say oil-by- train is too dangerous and are urg- ing their governors, Congress and the White House to push for a morato- rium on the practice. Union Paciic defended its deci- sion, saying its oil train operations are a federal obligation. Submitted Photo Horse Feathers will perform at Liberty Theater on July 13. Submitted Photo Israel Nebeker Theater: ‘I want to see that generational gap start to bridge’ Continued from Page 1A The trio spearheaded the project and secured $8,000 in seed money from the city’s Promote Astoria fund. The theater had requested $20,000 in tourism promo- tion money. However, the grant will only cover about one show, Bovenizer said. Productions beyond Blind Pilot’s opener will likely be funded by ticket sales and local donations. The organizers plan to hold one show every month, but know that scheduling con- licts may prevent that. The bands that’ll follow Blind Pilot will be announced soon, Bovenizer said. “It will probably carry into next spring with the last couple shows of the season,” Orange said. “And we’ll ire it back up again as long as we have participation from the community.” Once the inaugural series gains traction, “we’ll have a budget to keep putting on these shows,” he added. Eventually, ticket sales may go toward helping the theater stay aloat inancially, Bovenizer said. Generational gap If the Liberty doesn’t become more relevant to a younger crowd, it may be in trouble over the long run, according to Carol Shepherd, the interim theater director. “Our regular audience is going to start dying off, and we won’t have anybody to replace them,” she joked, “so this is an effort to do that.” Orange said he has noticed a generational gap affect- ing local nonproits; the peo- ple running them are usually established residents, often retirees, with plenty of spare time. As a result, the communi- ty’s working youth don’t get much representation. “I want to see that generational gap start to bridge,” he said. The Sunset Series, which aims to bring together patrons young and not-so-young, may be vital to keeping the com- munity-owned Liberty alive. More than one source noted that many of the North Coast’s 20- and 30-somethings have never even stepped foot in the theater. “There was nothing there to bring them in,” Orange said. “But if they can get behind the amazing space that’s in their backyard, I think they’ll be proud of that space and take ownership of it, and be invested in their community theater, and grow to appreci- ate and then support it.” Photo Courtesy of Alex Loops Mandolin Orange, a duo consisting of Andrew Marlin and Emily Frantz, based in Chapel Hill, N.C., will be in concert at Liberty Theater on July 13. OT rules: Oregon is home to more than 17,000 nonproit organizations Continued from Page 1A “Fundraising events are a lot of work and require staff to put in a lot of hours lead- ing up to them,” Mickel- berry said. “We will need to look at either paying over- time or re-evaluating how we run those events. We are very supportive of the changes, but it is affecting the way we think about how we do our work to make sure we are compensating and supporting staff through those times.” Getting a raise The new rules by the U.S. Department of Labor could give up to 4 million Ameri- cans a raise, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. President Obama irst pro- posed the changes in 2014 with a memorandum direct- ing the labor department to update the Fair Labor Stan- dards Act overtime reg- ulations. The department received more than 270,000 comments on proposed rules, including from pro-business groups such as Associated Oregon Industries. “The proposed over- time wage threshold increase unevenly affects Oregon busi- nesses due to Oregon’s lower wages while failing to address the varying characteristics of local and regional econ- omies,” Associated Oregon Industries and other business groups wrote in a letter to the labor department. “Institut- ing such an increase endan- gers both job security and advancement opportunity for far too many Oregonians.” Nonprofit staff While for-proit employ- ers have been vocal about how the changes will impact their bottom lines, nonproit organizations also anticipate a boost in costs or a reduction in services due to the new rules. There are more than 17,000 nonproit organi- zations in Oregon. A vast majority of those have no paid staff. But between those that do, there are about 172,000 employees, said Jim White, executive director of the Nonproit Association of Oregon. It’s unclear how many of those are exempt from overtime and how many are hourly. In discussions with the association, nonproit leaders have generally been support- ive of the new overtime rules but have felt burdened by the fact that the new rules will take effect shortly after Ore- gon’s new higher minimum wage rate takes effect July 1. “We have heard concerns that it wasn’t one or the other but the back-to-back suc- cession,” White said. “Non- proits have expressed con- cerns: How are we going to do this? How are we going to make these changes simul- taneously? They are con- cerned with being able to absorb changes without cuts in program services or cuts in staff.” Oregon SMART (Start Making a Reader Today), a nonproit organization that provides one-on-one reading support in schools, has ive to 10 employees out of 36 who could be eligible for overtime under the new rules, said Nell Whitman, director of inance and administration. “We are, like many orga- nizations, trying to ride the right line between fair com- pensation and making sure we keep the business side within budget and provide all the services to the commu- nity,” Whitman said. “I think we can make the rules work. I think they provide a pretty reasonable balance between those things.” SMART will review its positions and determine whether to make some of them hourly or raise salaries to make employees exempt from overtime, she said. “Organizations with a lot of government contracts and a set amount to spend will have more dificulty with the new rules,” she said. “We are not in that situation.” ‘... We are very supportive of the changes, but it is affecting the way we think about how we do our work to make sure we are compensating and supporting staff through those times.’ Noel Mickelberry executive director of Oregon Walks Healthcare at your Convenience Appointment Times hat Work For You You’ve got a million and one things to do this week. Taking care of your health does not have to mean missing other important events—like that game-winning slide into home. See your doctor when it’s convenient to you. CMH Primary Care in Warrenton has new extended hours: 7 am - 7 pm , M - Th 7 am - 5 pm , Fri People Centered, Quality Driven & Service Focused. 1639 SE Ensign Lane, Ste B103, Warrenton, Oregon 503-338-4500 • www.columbiamemorial.org
