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THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, JULY 1, 2016
Friends: Efforts create well-rounded experience for park visitors
Continued from Page 1A
“These guys ill a wonder-
ful niche here. I applaud the
Friends for all the work they
have done over the years,”
park ranger John Koch said.
“It’s been incredibly benei-
cial for the park.”
The group has its sights set
on upgrades to a lagpole in
the Civil War earthen fort and
multiple repairs to Battery
Pratt, a gun emplacement fac-
ing the Columbia River.
Jack’s masterpiece
An attraction of Battery
Pratt is a remade artillery
rile, which was scrapped by
the Army years ago. The full-
scale replica was designed
and built by Friends of Old
Fort Stevens member Jack
Buckmeir, who recently died.
David Lindstrom, sec-
retary and treasurer for the
nonproit group, said all the
members are impressed with
Buckmeir’s work, and are
disappointed he is no longer
around to inish other projects
in Battery Pratt.
“Literally out of scrap steel
and being able to use line
drawings, he was able to come
up with the right dimensions
and came up with this,” Lind-
strom said of the replica gun.
“This is Jack’s masterpiece.”
Inside Battery Pratt, sol-
diers used a hand-cranked ele-
vator to bring shells up to the
rile. One area was designated
as the plotting room, where
soldiers used maps to calculate
where the guns should point
and when they should ire.
“It sounds primitive, but it
worked,” Lindstrom said.
The group received a plot-
ting table for the room this
week, costing about $1,200.
The group hopes to use
another $2,000 to $3,000
to fully rebuild the plotting
room.
At a meeting Wednesday,
the group agreed to spend
$4,000 on historically accu-
rate steel doors for Battery
Pratt.
Restoring historical pieces
is ongoing work for the group,
Lindstrom said.
“It’s always a scramble,”
he said. “The instruments we
need to replicate, we are still
iguring out exactly what they
looked like.”
For the Civil War earthen
fort, the Friends allocated
$2,000 this week for a new
75-foot lagpole. It will
be large enough to hoist a
30-foot American lag that is
being stored in a duffel bag at
the park.
“We ly a very small lag
now, but it’s not the type that
was there originally,” Lind-
strom said.
Living history
The Friends’ work is seen
all around the historical area
of the park. From new gravel
walkways to new historical
pieces, the group is constantly
adding to the fort.
Some projects are too
expensive or too cumbersome,
having to get the approval of
the U.S. Army Corps of Engi-
neers and the National Regis-
ter of Historic Places.
Overall, the state parks
sees the partnership with the
Friends as valuable.
The Friends are all vol-
unteers except two paid staff
positions who manage the
military museum.
Having the group staff the
museum takes pressure off
the state park, which is not
always budgeted to operate
the museum.
Photos by Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian
Friends of Old Fort Stevens Secretary David Lindstrom tours Fort Stevens State Park historic area Thursday.
The Friends of Old Fort Stevens group works to preserve and restore parts of the park.
Koch said the group’s
efforts create a well-rounded
experience for park visitors.
“We are very thankful they
are able to help us in the way
they do,” Koch said.
Each weekend this sum-
mer, the Friends are busy host-
ing living history events lead-
ing up to the 26th annual Civil
War re-enactment in Septem-
ber. The living history events
are another way the group
tells the story of the fort.
“It’s one of the more
important things we do here,”
Lindstrom said.
Friends of Old Fort Ste-
vens Secretary David Lind-
strom shows the original
steel door on Battery Pratt
Thursday at Fort Stevens
State Park historic area.
The Friends of Old Fort
Stevens group has in-
stalled replica steel doors
on many of the historic
military structures around
the park. More photos on-
line at DailyAstorian.com
Frtisch: ‘I leave here with no ill will towards this community or this commission’
Continued from Page 1A
further on the reasons behind
his resignation.
Personnel matter
Privately, some city com-
missioners had discussed plac-
ing Fritsch on administrative
leave pending an independent
investigation of his conduct on
the dam. The City Commis-
sion had scheduled a perfor-
mance evaluation for Fritsch
for Tuesday’s regular meet-
ing but postponed the review.
Commissioners
announced
instead that the city would
contract with Akin Blitz, a
Portland labor attorney, on a
personnel matter, which turned
out to be Fritsch’s separation
agreement.
Commissioners
had
reviewed Fritch’s performance
earlier this year and awarded
him a raise. Over the past few
months, however, the city
manager became a focal point
among people who oppose the
removal of the dam.
The Skipanon Water Con-
trol District, which owns the
dam, wants to remove the out-
dated structure to shed liability
and improve ish passage and
water quality on the river. An
engineering plan has found no
increased lood risk if the dam
is taken out.
The Nygaard family, who
own Warrenton Fiber, and
Mayor Kujala’s family, who
own property near the dam,
have urged the city to take
control of the dam, warn-
ing of lood risks to property
owners.
The City Commission in
May voted against renew-
ing a $1.2 million agreement
with the water district and the
Columbia River Estuary Study
Taskforce that would have
given the city a single-lane
bridge over the river once the
dam is removed. The city and
others have access over the
river now through a gravel
road over the dam, and the
commission had twice voted
in favor of the deal to preserve
emergency access.
Removing the dam
Undeterred by the commis-
sion’s reversal, the water dis-
trict and CREST are moving
forward on a $1 million proj-
ect to remove the dam with-
out the new bridge for the city.
On Monday, the water dis-
trict agreed to barricade the
gravel road because of liability
concerns.
Behind the scenes, crit-
ics have faulted Fritsch for
not disclosing a city tech-
nical review on the dam to
city commissioners and the
public. The city review, pre-
pared by a consultant, ques-
tioned whether engineers for
the water district and CREST
properly modeled the lood
plain.
Fritsch told The Daily
Astorian last week that the
technical review was ordered
by the city to help the Plan-
ning Commission evaluate the
dam removal project. He said
it would not have been appro-
priate to share the review with
the City Commission, which
might have to assess the proj-
ect on appeal.
“I leave here with no ill will
towards this community or
this commission,” Fritsch told
city commissioners at the spe-
cial meeting Thursday morn-
ing. “I’m positive about what
we’ve done and certainly wish
you well going forward.
“I think this is a good agree-
ment for both of us.”
Kujala and the commis-
sioners thanked Fritsch for his
work.
“We’re going to miss you,”
Commissioner Henry Balen-
sifer said.
An item on the Eighth
Street Dam was pulled from
the agenda for the special
meeting after Kujala said the
city needed to have an inde-
pendent legal and technical
review of the subject.
Are you interested in participating in g a in a
heart health study?
Dr. Diana Rinkevich and her research team are holding a recruit-
ment event at Columbia Memorial Hospital on July 7th, 8th and 9th.
Staf will be onsite to discuss the study and enroll those who are
interested in participating.
4 of july WEEKEND
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Sidewalk Sale
Zoo
Free Special from Daisy May’s Sandwich Shop
when you show your receipt of $100 purchase from
any of the Seaside OutletS stores.
eN
OP R
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going on behind closed doors,”
he continued.
Calog questioned why
Fritsch was a distraction. He
said “somebody got their feel-
ings rufled on the dam, and,
all of a sudden, we don’t have
a city manager. And there’s no
explanation given.”
‘An ambush’
Fri. July 1 ST - Mon. July 4 TH
and Petting
Outside City Hall, Calog
said, “I’m an old combat vet,
and I can smell an ambush
when I see one.”
“Every indication I’ve
heard about this gentleman is
he’s been a damn good city
manager, and the people here
have a right to know what’s
Mike Calog, a Warrenton
resident and retired Cannon
Beach police oficer, was out-
raged that no public comments
fun for the family!
HH
were allowed at the special
meeting.
When he asked Kujala why,
the mayor said, “Because there’s
nothing to comment on.”
Calog replied, “You just
lost a good city manager. I
think that’s something to com-
ment on.”
Diana Rinkevich, MD of Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) and
Columbia Memorial Hospital (CMH) is conducing a study to determine
how levels of eicosanoids, which are substances found in blood, difer
between men and women and between women who are in menopause
and those who are not. We are currently enrolling men and women
aged 18 and older.
Paricipants in this study will have one visit to the CMH Cardiology
Clinic to complete quesionnaires, have vital measurements taken, and
have a fasing single blood draw. At years one and two, you will receive
a follow-up quesionnaire to be returned by mail.
questionnaire to be returned by mail.
*Limit one special per person, per receipt,
while supplies last.
For more information, please contact:
12 Ave. & hwy. 101
SeASiDe, OR
503.717.1603
SeASiDeOutLetS.cOM
th
Sarah Egan (503) 494-4614 egans@ohsu.edu
2111 Exchange St., Astoria, Oregon • 503-325-4321
www.columbiamemorial.org • A Planetree-Designated Hospital