1C
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • FRIDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2016
CONTACT US
Rebecca Sedlak | Weekend Editor
rsedlak@dailyastorian.com
WEEKEND
BREAK
2016
FOLLOW US
facebook.com/
DailyAstorian
The tragic shooting of a police officer in the line of duty.
The collapse of a $6 billion liquefied natural gas project.
Guilty verdicts in horrific child murders. A housing crunch
that touched people of all income levels. These are some
of the stories that dominated the North Coast in 2016.
GOODDING, LNG, HOUSING AMONG TOP NORTH COAST STORIES OF THE YEAR
SGT. GOODDING’S DEATH
Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian
Students, community members and voters in sup-
port of the Seaside schools bond measure march
around downtown reminding voters to turn in their
ballots before Election Day in Seaside.
ELECTION CHANGES
In a week in February that saw six
police officers shot across the nation,
the death of 13-year police veteran
Jason Goodding had tragic resonance
in Seaside. Goodding was shot trying
to apprehend Phillip Max Ferry —
who had an extensive criminal record
— on an arrest warrant. Ferry was
shot and killed by Goodding’s fellow
officer, David Davidson.
Goodding’s death brought an out-
pouring of grief and support for his
wife, Amy, and two daughters. At
his funeral at the Seaside Civic and
Joshua Bessex/The Daily Astorian
Members of the ceremonial hon-
or guard kneel in front of Sgt.
Jason Goodding’s casket during
the presentation of the flag at the
memorial service in February.
Convention Center, attended by law
enforcement officers from throughout
the country, Gov. Kate Brown pre-
sented Amy Goodding with the Medal
of Ultimate Sacrifice. Jason Goodding
was remembered with love, humor
and affection in remarks by Clatsop
County Sheriff Tom Bergin, Seaside
Police Chief Dave Ham and state Sen.
Betsy Johnson, among others.
In subsequent months, Goodding
was honored by his high school with
the renaming of their athletic field
and as The Oregonian’s Person of the
Year. Local dispatchers received rec-
ognition for their work the night of the
shooting and in its aftermath.
Jamie Lee Jones, the man linked
to the weapon Ferry fired, was sen-
tenced to five years in prison for his
involvement.
Joshua Bessex/The Daily Astorian
Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian
Jesus Morales, fiancé Jessica Jacobsen, and son
Daniel Morales stand outside their apartment in the
Emerald Heights complex in October in Astoria. “No
one wants to move, so there are never any openings
anywhere,” says Jacobsen.
AFFORDABLE HOUSING
In the fall, The Daily Astorian ran a weeklong series on
Clatsop County’s housing crunch. The series explored how
each city in the county is confronting the issue, and featured
profiles of families and individuals dealing with the short-
age in different ways.
The housing crunch touches all income levels, from low-
wage workers to six-figure executives, from renters just
starting out to would-be homeowners looking to plant roots.
And the effects are felt at every rung of the employment
ladder — from small retail operations to midlevel breweries
to large health care agencies. The situation is frustrating the
workforce and also limiting it.
Most experts do not believe market forces alone will
solve the problem. Rather, it will require a combination of
market activity, development code changes and community
consensus to make the creation of new housing a priority.
Protesters use signs to shield themselves from the
rain during a rally before the Oregon LNG permit public
hearing at the Warrenton Community Center in 2015.
LNG IS A DONE NO-DEAL
Oregon LNG withdrew a proposed $6 billion terminal
and pipeline project from Warrenton’s Skipanon Peninsula
in April when the New York-based holding company behind
the project decided to stop bankrolling the effort.
The move ended a decade of acrimony over a liquefied
natural gas project that galvanized residents to protect the
Columbia River and caused political upheaval in Clatsop
County.
A hearings officer had already denied the terminal por-
tion of the project. Oregon LNG pulled out before an appeal
could be heard by the City Commission.
The company had argued that the project would be an
economic boon for Warrenton and Clatsop County, provid-
ing jobs as well as tax revenue to local governments.
But a coalition of residents, environmentalists and fish-
ermen attacked the project as misguided and potentially
dangerous. Activists had previously fought an LNG project
at Bradwood Landing east of Astoria, which collapsed in
2010 after hitting financial and political roadblocks.
In Astoria’s election, Bruce Jones, a retired U.S. Coast
Guard commander, won a decisive victory over Cory Peder-
son for an east-side seat on the City Council. Jones replaces
City Councilor Russ Warr, who decided not to run for re-elec-
tion after serving three terms.
Jones will be joined by Tom Brownson, the new south-
side representative who ran unopposed.
Brownson, a retired contractor, replaces former City
Councilor Drew Herzig, who moved with his partner to Mas-
sachusetts in September before completing his first term in
Ward 2. For almost four months, the council has had four
members.
The closest election in Clatsop County this year hap-
pened in Warrenton, where City Commissioner Pam Ackley
prevailed over challenger Ryan Lampi, a planning commis-
sioner, by six votes after a recount.
The recount ended several weeks of uncertainty in the
Position 1 race. At the close of Election Day, Lampi had a
one-vote lead over Ackley, who was appointed last year to
fill a vacancy.
Seaside voters in November overwhelmingly approved a
$99.7 million bond to move three schools out of the tsunami
inundation zone.
In its second go-around before voters, the scaled-down
package moves students from endangered Gearhart Elemen-
tary, Seaside High School and Broadway Middle School to a
location in the southeast hills adjacent to Seaside Heights Ele-
mentary School. A $128.8 million plan failed in 2013.
Tsunami preparedness was also an issue in a Seaside City
Council election. Tom Horning, a geologist who ran on a
platform of tsunami safety, ousted Don Johnson, the coun-
cil president.
In Gearhart, Matt Brown, a golf pro, defeated Bob Short-
man, a property manager, for mayor. Brown replaces Dianne
Widdop, who had served on the City Council for two decades
and — as mayor — had survived a recall attempt in 2014.
In Cannon Beach, two fresh faces were elected to the City
Council, former Cannon Beach Gazette Editor Nancy McCa-
rthy and previous Planning Commission Chairman Brandon
Ogilvie. A citizen initiative to prohibit retail marijuana shops
in Cannon Beach was narrowly defeated in November.
In May, Dawn McIntosh, an attorney and former prosecu-
tor, won a three-candidate race for Circuit Court judge. McIn-
tosh replaces Judge Philip Nelson, the county’s longest-serv-
ing elected official, who is retiring after 24 years on the bench.
Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian
GUILTY VERDICT IN SEASIDE TODDLER MURDER
In one of the worst recorded cases of child abuse in
Clatsop County’s history, Randy Roden was sentenced in
November to nearly 40 years in prison for the abuse and mur-
der of 2-year-old Evangelina Wing in Seaside. Roden was
found guilty by a 12-person jury in October of murder by
abuse, felony murder, manslaughter, criminal mistreatment
and assault in the death of Evangelina in 2014, along with
the abuse of her two surviving brothers. He avoided the death
penalty, the first proposed in a county case in more than a
decade.
Dorothy Wing, Evangelina’s mother, was also sentenced
to 15 years in prison for first-degree manslaughter and crimi-
nal mistreatment related to her daughter’s death. She testified
against Roden in exchange for a lesser sentence.
The couple called 911 on Dec. 20, 2014, after discover-
ing Wing’s daughter unresponsive. Her two sons were also
found injured and taken into protective custody. Prosecutors
believe the children were tortured, burned, bitten and caged
Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian
in the months before Evangelina’s death. Blood spatter was Randy Roden exits the courtroom after his verdict is
discovered around the apartment.
read Oct. 31 at Clatsop County Circuit Court in Astoria.
Jessica Smith attends a hearing on July 7 at Clat-
sop County Circuit Court in Astoria. She will serve a
minimum of 40 years in prison for aggravated murder and
attempted aggravated murder.
LIFE SENTENCE FOR SMITH
In August, Jessica Smith was sentenced to life in prison
for drowning her toddler, Isabella, and slashing her teen-
ager, Alana, at the Surfsand Resort in Cannon Beach in July
2014. The Vancouver, Washington, woman pleaded guilty
and will serve a minimum of 40 years in prison for aggra-
vated murder and attempted aggravated murder.
The murder rattled Cannon Beach, which had not had
a homicide for almost 50 years. Police Chief Jason Scher-
merhorn and former Assistant Fire Chief Frank Swedenborg
were the first to respond.
MORE STORIES ON PAGES 2C-3C
TOP PHOTOS ON PAGES 4C-5C