144TH YEAR, NO. 191
WEEKEND EDITION // FRIDAY, MARCH 24, 2017
ONE DOLLAR
Parks boss
makes pitch
for fee to
raise funds
Selling little-used parks
would still be on table
By ERICK BENGEL
The Daily Astorian
Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian
Diane Berry, an Oregon Equestrian Trails member, stands next to one of the horse corrals on Tuesday at Northrup Creek Horse Camp.
The camp is an important place to Berry, and because of Oregon Department of Forestry budget cuts, the camp’s future is uncertain.
HORSE PUCKY
Fee increase, special permit at horse camp rile campers
By JACK HEFFERNAN
The Daily Astorian
Area in detail
Ore.
30
CLATSOP
STATE
FOREST
CLATSOP
STATE
FOREST
COLUMBIA CO.
CLATSOP CO.
Northrup Creek
Horse Camp
Birkenfeld
H
orse enthusiasts are challenging
a proposed fee that would make
camping at Northrup Creek Horse
Camp more expensive beginning this
summer.
The Astoria Forest Protection District,
citing budget cuts, released a plan that
would require campers with horses to apply
for a special-use permit. The permit would
charge $175 per night for the campground
for a minimum two-night stay. Campers in
previous years could pay a $15 per-night
fee upon arrival at the site without a permit.
The Oregon Department of Forestry has
called for $3 million in cuts in the upcom-
ing state budget, 70 percent of which will
come from districts in northwest Oregon,
Astoria Assistant District Forester Ty Wil-
liams said. The department has instituted a
hiring freeze along with the cuts, meaning
just three staff members — based out of the
district offi ce an hour away from Northrup
Creek — manage the fi ve campgrounds
in Clatsop State Forest. With all of the
expenses associated with maintaining the
campground, the department likely will not
receive any profi t from any fee increases,
Williams said.
Though open through November,
the 11-campground site just north of
State Highway 202 between Jewell and
Birkenfeld reaches peak use typically
from Memorial Day weekend through
The city of Astoria may impose a utility
fee on Pacifi c Power customers to boost the
Parks and Recreation budget and help stabi-
lize the department’s operations.
At a City Council work session Thurs-
day, Angela Cosby, the parks and recreation
director, proposed the fee during a presen-
tation that told the story of the parks bud-
get — a story of department obligations
gradually overwhelming its personnel and
fi nances.
Cosby and several park staff members
showed up with four small seesaws — rep-
resenting aquatics, recreation, mainte-
nance and administration — depicting how
requirements came to outweigh resources as
the department added services and programs,
created and eliminated staff positions, while
general fund transfers have stagnated or
declined.
Under Cosby’s proposal, nearly 5,000
utility customers would pay a fee of $5.92 a
month, plus a monthly 51 cents for residen-
tial customers or 55 cents for commercial
customers to their Recology bill for garbage
services. The department expects to bring in
slightly more than $350,000.
Parks and Rec has seven full-time
employees that manage about 300 acres
of parkland, nine miles of trails, 12 indoor
facilities, and the department’s recreation,
aquatics and child care programs, accord-
ing to the parks master plan.
The money would add to the depart-
ment’s existing revenue streams, which
include general fund transfers and user fees.
It would pay for — among other assets —
an additional three full-time employees;
increase wages for cashiers, child care pro-
viders and parks maintenance workers; and
update the franchise agreement with Recol-
ogy to include garbage, and possibly recy-
cling services, within parks.
See PARKS, Page 9A
See HORSE CAMP, Page 9A
Jewell
103
er
halem
Riv
Ne
202
N
2 miles
Alan Kenaga/EO Media Group
The Daily Astorian/File Photo
People walk along the playground of Al-
derbrook Park during a parks tour in 2015.
‘It’s totally
unrealistic
for this camp.
That will
effectively
kill the camp.’
Diane Berry
member of Oregon Equestrian Trails,
which helps maintain the state-owned
campground, day-use area and adjacent
9-mile trail for horse riders
Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian
A trailhead at Northrup Creek Horse Camp is named after Diane Berry, an active
member with Oregon Equestrian Trails North Coast Chapter.
Fulton wants Port to evict ‘Man Cave’
City Council
hopes to halt
J.C. Penney’s
shuttering
Letter highlights town
as important retail hub
By ERICK BENGEL
The Daily Astorian
Escalating his political campaign against a
private hangar at the Astoria Regional Airport
known as the Man Cave, Port of Astoria Com-
missioner Stephen Fulton wants the Port Com-
mission to evict the owner and make room for
Life Flight Network’s new hangar.
Fulton, who has asked for an emergency
meeting of the commission, said the move
could spare the Port from needing a $1.96 mil-
lion bond measure in May to help fi nance a
Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian
In the wake of J.C. Penney Co.’s deci-
sion to close Astoria’s 101-year-old store,
the City Council plans to send the company’s
CEO a letter today asking him to reconsider.
The chain department store recently
announced it would soon shutter two dis-
tribution facilities and 138 stores, including
the historic location in downtown Astoria, to
help the company’s bottom line.
Astoria’s residents are already mourn-
ing the loss. On Monday, the City Council
authorized Councilor Cindy Price to draft
the letter to CEO Marvin Ellison, which the
entire council later signed.
The letter does not offer a sentimental
plea to save the store on Commercial Street,
but a pragmatic rundown of reasons that
might rekindle the company’s fi nancial inter-
est in the area.
See ‘MAN CAVE’, Page 5A
Philip Bales’ Man Cave includes a fully stocked bar
adorned with a portrait of movie star John Wayne.
See LETTER, Page 9A
Commissioner says
Life Flight should have
that airport location
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Daily Astorian