COAST WEEKEND: CRAFT BEER FESTIVAL COMING UP INSIDE
DailyAstorian.com // THURSDAY, MARCH 16, 2017
144TH YEAR, NO. 185
County part
of national
sex offender
research
ONE DOLLAR
MEET ‘THE BEAST’
Weekly sessions
identify triggers
By JACK HEFFERNAN
The Daily Astorian
A handful of sex offenders sat on both
sides of a conference room table at the Clat-
sop County Sheriff’s Offi ce — older offend-
ers up to 82 years old on one side, younger
ones at least 18 years old on the other. Clin-
ical Social Worker Steven J. Powell pointed
toward the more senior side of the table, but
he directed his eyes toward the other.
“Do you guys really want to be on this
side of the table when you’re their age?” he
asked. The scene took place at one of the
weekly 90-minute meetings Powell holds
for local sex offenders as part of a nation-
wide cognitive behavioral intervention trial
program.
See RESEARCH, Page 4A
Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian
The Friends of Old Fort Stevens recently purchased and refurbished a Vietnam War-era cargo truck to be used for tours at Fort
Stevens State Park Historic Site . The two current military vehicles in use are from the 1950s and are wearing out.
Submitted Photo
Jackie Ferrier, project manager of the
Willapa National Wildlife Refuge, dis-
cusses bird identification with youth
hunters in 2015.
Vietnam War-era cargo truck
goes to work at Fort Stevens
Truck will take visitors
through historic site
Refuge seeks
to move base
close to town
By JACK HEFFERNAN
The Daily Astorian
H
Willapa wildlife area
wants advice on new
visitor center, offi ces
By AMY NILE
EO Media Group
LONG BEACH, Wash. — Offi cials with
the Willapa National Wildlife Refuge want
people to weigh-in on plans for a new head-
quarters and visitor center on the federal pre-
serve that spans almost 17,000 acres.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and
the nonprofi t Friends of Willapa National
Wildlife Refuge are asking for input at a
meeting scheduled from 5 to 7 p.m. today
at the Pacifi c Coast Cranberry Museum in
Long Beach.
Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian
Steve Wicklander, member of Friends of Old Fort Stevens, stands next to the new-
ly acquired Vietnam War -era cargo truck that he is fixing up for the park’s Military
Museum on Wednesday at Fort Stevens State Park .
“I hammered them so hard to get a
new truck, so they put me on the
board and said, ‘Go get one.’ ”
See REFUGE, Page 7A
Steve Wicklander
member of the Friends of Old Fort Stevens Board of Directors
AMMOND — A Vietnam War-era
cargo truck will transport visitors
through Fort Stevens State Historical
Site this summer.
Steve Wicklander, a member of the
Friends of Old Fort Stevens Board of Direc-
tors, will fi nish refurbishing the 5-ton, six-
wheel 1972 M54 by Wednesday. It will then
become the third military vehicle avail-
able for guided tours through the park this
summer.
Two 1950s-era trucks have been used
for tours at the park , but they are wear-
ing down and don’t feature power steering,
Wicklander said. One of them now will
only be used as backup for peak visiting
days when the other two trucks are
occupied.
Wicklander, a Vietnam War veteran who
drove an identical truck during his military
service, joined the board fi ve months ago
with a goal in mind: fi nd a new truck for the
tours.
“I hammered them so hard to get a new
truck, so they put me on the board and said,
‘Go get one,’” Wicklander said.
See ‘THE BEAST’, Page 7A
Legislature looks to name offi cial state pup, pony, pie
Several new
symbols are up
for discussion
By JADE McDOWELL
EO Media Group
Oregon may be known as
the Beaver State, but the state
animal is only one of 29 dif-
ferent symbols adopted by the
state Legislature.
The state also has a state
beverage (milk), a state dance
(the square dance) and a state
outdoor pageant (Pendleton’s
Happy Canyon), to name a few.
This legislative session six more
state symbols are up for a vote.
State Sen. Bill Hansell,
R-Athena, said he lends his
name to bills proposing state
symbols sometimes because
he tries to be responsive, where
possible, to constituents who
come to him with requests.
“Is it the most import-
ant thing we do? No, not even
close,” he said. “But it is some-
thing people are interested in.”
Hansell’s name is on two
state symbol bills this year —
one he sponsored at the request
of a constituent to make the
border collie the state dog, and
one that Sen. Richard Devlin,
D-Tualitin, asked him to join in
proposing the Kiger Mustang
become Oregon’s state horse.
State symbols and com-
memorative days can draw
constituent complaints that the
L egislature is wasting time on
unimportant issues.
Create awareness
But Hansell said a state
symbol can create awareness
for something that is important
to Oregon. Naming the Dunge-
ness crab as the state crusta-
cean, for example, draws atten-
tion to something that brings a
lot of income and tourism to the
state.
“It can highlight a particular
aspect of the culture or environ-
ment or what makes the state
unique,” he said.
See SYMBOLS, Page 7A
EO Media Group and Lee Williams
From upper left: border collie, marionberry pie, ospreys,
the tartan, Kiger M ustangs and rescue dogs are being dis-
cussed as possible state symbols this Legislative session.