2A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, MARCH 28, 2017 Visitors face Seaside Judge wants more room tax hike in July water released from dams to help salmon The rate, last changed in 2002, stands at 8 percent. The tax does not include vaca- tion rental revenue and cov- ers accommodations only, excluding extra goods and services. Work has already begun on the project, convention center General Manager Russ Vandenberg said. “It sets the stage for our project to move forward,” Vandenberg said. “We are now in selection for an archi- tecture fi rm. We’ve hired a project manager. Soon after that we’ll hire a construc- tion fi rm. It’s moving in the right direction and I’m totally ready and excited to get this thing underway.” The renovation’s design phase could take six months and construction up to two years, Vandenberg said at an earlier meeting. Vanden- berg said he not only hopes to recruit larger groups, but to keep current clients. “They’ve grown over the last 25, 30 years and we hav- en’t added any space in 25 years,” he said. “You’ve really vetted this very carefully,” Mayor Jay Barber said before Monday’s council vote. “You’ve had good input from the lodging owners in the community. This is a big step forward.” Money will fund convention center upgrades By R.J. MARX The Daily Astorian SEASIDE — Visitors will pay a little bit more for their Seaside vacation this summer. At Monday’s City Coun- cil meeting, councilors unan- imously approved a hike in the city’s room tax from 8 to 10 percent in July, which will fund $14.5 million in 30-year bonds to pay for upgrades to the Seaside Civic and Con- vention Center. The construction proj- ect will add about 10,000 square feet to the existing 62,000-square-foot facil- ity, and renovate more than 13,000 square feet of the cur- rent space. “Implementing a room tax increase requires some fore- thought, because it takes a lit- tle while for all of the prop- erties to notify the different people that they’re work- ing with that the room tax is going up,” City Manager Mark Winstanley said. “This will allow them 90 days to implement that increase with all their customers. ” The city will collect the R.J. Marx/The Daily Astorian Seaside Civic and Conven- tion Center General Man- ager Russ Vandenberg af- ter the City Council voted to implement a room tax hike to finance upgrades. “It sets the stage for our project to move forward,” Russ Vandenberg Seaside Civic and Convention Center general manager tax quarterly. Funds will be used to fi nance principal and interest on the convention center’s construction cost. Seaside’s original hotel and motel tax was set at 5 per- cent in the early 1970s. Associated Press PORTLAND — A fed- eral judge in Oregon says that beginning next year, the government must spill more water from dams on the lower Columbia and Snake rivers to improve the chances that pro- tected salmon will survive. U.S. District Judge Michael Simon said in a ruling Monday WEDNESDAY THURSDAY 54 43 48 Periods of rain; breezy late Breezy with periods of rain ALMANAC Associated Press SALEM — Oregon State Park offi cials say a record amount of people camping out may lead to a price hike for popular campground sites, and lower rates for least used sites. The Salem Statesman Jour- nal reported that House Bill 2318 would make park fees Variable clouds with a couple of showers Areas of low clouds, then some sun Cloudy with a couple of showers Full Apr 10 Coos Bay 50/57 New Apr 19 Source: Jim Todd, OMSI TOMORROW'S TIDES Astoria / Port Docks Time 9:21 a.m. 9:27 p.m. Low -0.2 ft. 0.6 ft. REGIONAL CITIES City Baker City Bend Brookings Eugene Ilwaco Klamath Falls Medford Newberg Newport North Bend Hi 52 53 57 61 51 54 62 57 53 58 Today Lo 35 40 47 48 47 34 45 46 48 50 W pc c s c sh pc pc c c c Hi 55 57 55 55 53 61 61 55 53 57 Wed. Lo 41 35 46 44 44 38 45 42 43 46 W sh r r r r sh r r r r City Olympia Pendleton Portland Roseburg Salem Seaside Spokane Springfi eld Vancouver Yakima W pc r c r pc pc pc c pc c pc s s pc s pc pc r t t c c s r t Hi 82 51 49 53 49 52 69 27 84 60 58 78 83 81 84 78 83 60 73 64 63 58 67 53 65 Wed. Lo 62 33 38 34 38 36 47 8 73 46 49 57 57 64 68 60 69 38 44 37 56 43 55 43 40 Hi 51 56 56 63 58 52 47 61 55 60 Today Lo 45 43 46 48 48 48 40 48 46 42 W r c c c c c c c c c Hi 53 58 55 60 56 53 50 56 55 61 Wed. Lo 41 43 42 45 43 44 41 44 43 40 W r r r r r r r r r c Shown are noon positions of weather systems and precipitation. Temperature bands are highs for the day. W pc pc pc c r s s sf pc pc r s s pc s pc pc pc t pc r pc pc r s APPLIANCE PACKAGE DEALS APPLIANCE AND HOME FURNISHINGS 529 SE MARLIN, WARRENTON 503-861-0929 O VER Mattresses, Furniture 3 A 0 RS YE TSOP C LA U Y C O NT Both men allegedly left the car and tried to fl ee from police once they reached the build- ing. Gates managed to make it inside the apartment building, while Lyons was taken into custody near the car. Gates then allegedly went upstairs and locked himself inside an apartment. After staying in the apartment for more than 1 1/2 hours, he sur- rendered himself to police. Gates faces numerous charges, including two counts of recklessly endangering another person, second-degree A man has been accused of raping a woman twice within the immediate vicinity of his daughter. Rene Geronimo Verduzco, 39, allegedly committed the crimes last Thursday and Fri- day. He has been charged with two counts of fi rst-degree rape and two counts of fourth-de- gree felony assault. & More! escape and fl eeing or attempt- ing to elude a police offi cer. A grand jury will decide whether or not to indict him prior to a possible arraignment next Monday. Gates is also facing harass- ment and disorderly conduct charges stemming from a case earlier this month. He has been charged for allegedly physi- cally harassing his girlfriend. Lyons has been charged with resisting arrest and interfering with a peace offi cer. He pleaded not guilty to both counts at an arraignment Monday. HOURS OPEN: MON-FRI 8-6 • SATURDAY 9-5 • SUNDAY 10-4 We Service What We Sell A grand jury will decide this week whether or not to indict Verduzco, whose fi rst arraign- ment took place Monday at Clatsop County Circuit Court. He would be arraigned on the indictment next Monday. ON THE RECORD DEATH DUII • At 8:18 p.m. Friday, Kendall Oscar Archer, 31, of Astoria, was arrested by the Astoria Police Department at the intersec- tion of Commercial Street and 10th Street for driving under the infl uence of intoxicants and hit and run. His blood alcohol con- tent was .13. • At 2:17 a.m. Saturday, Philip Allen Case, 51, of Warrenton, was arrested by the Clatsop County Sheriff’s Offi ce at the inter- section of U.S. Highway 101 and Bailey Lane in Gearhart for driving under the infl uence of intoxicants. Assault • At 8:34 a.m. Saturday, Amy Ridens, 46, of Seaside, was arrested by the Seaside Police Department at the 800 block of South Holladay Drive for fourth-degree assault and strangula- tion. Ridens allegedly assaulted her husband after they argued over who would use a car. • At 2:35 p.m. Saturday, Joseph William Blackler, 35, of Asto- ria, was arrested by the Astoria Police Department on the Asto- ria Riverwalk just east of the Astoria Bridge for fourth-degree assault. The victim was found with cuts to his hand and face after fi ghting Blackler. March 26, 2017 MALO, Violet May, 91, of Cannon Beach, died in Wheeler. Cald- well’s Funeral & Crema- tion Arrangement Center in Seaside is in charge of the arrangements. PUBLIC MEETINGS Weather (W): s-sunny, pc-partly cloudy, c-cloudy, sh-showers, t-thunderstorms, r-rain, sf-snow fl urries, sn-snow, i-ice. IN Two Warrenton men have been accused of fl eeing from police after a traffi c stop. Warrenton Police Offi cer Tyler Johnston attempted to stop Edward Frederick Gates Sr., 38, and Isaac Daniel Lyons, 23, as Gates drove along South Main Avenue near Third Street at 11:49 p.m. Sunday. The offi - cer allegedly then pursued them about a half mile to an apart- ment complex on the 100 block of Southwest Cedar Avenue. By JACK HEFFERNAN The Daily Astorian Lakeview 32/59 Ashland 44/62 By JACK HEFFERNAN The Daily Astorian Man accused of rape in vicinity of his child Burns 33/56 TOMORROW'S NATIONAL WEATHER NATIONAL CITIES Hi 78 44 50 48 55 54 68 28 84 59 58 73 78 74 83 70 82 51 70 62 60 52 67 50 72 Ontario 37/60 Klamath Falls 34/61 along the coast, typically has 85 percent full capacity while Humbug Mountain State Park, six hours south of Fort Ste- vens, is typically at 20 percent capacity. Oregon Parks and Rec- reation Department Director Lisa Sumption says she hopes the change will encourage people to visit new areas. Baker 35/55 Forecasts and graphics provided by AccuWeather, Inc. ©2017 Tonight's Sky: Hydra the Snake will be low above the southern horizon. Today Lo 58 38 36 32 41 35 53 8 72 45 47 55 55 60 67 51 67 46 58 48 48 34 53 46 53 La Grande 41/53 Roseburg 48/60 Brookings 47/55 Apr 26 John Day 41/59 Bend 40/57 Medford 45/61 UNDER THE SKY High 9.2 ft. 8.6 ft. Prineville 41/59 Lebanon 48/55 Eugene 48/55 Last Pendleton 43/58 The Dalles 45/57 Salem 48/56 Newport 48/53 Sunset tonight ........................... 7:39 p.m. Sunrise Wednesday .................... 7:01 a.m. Moonrise today ........................... 7:41 a.m. Moonset today ........................... 8:40 p.m. City Atlanta Boston Chicago Denver Des Moines Detroit El Paso Fairbanks Honolulu Indianapolis Kansas City Las Vegas Los Angeles Memphis Miami Nashville New Orleans New York Oklahoma City Philadelphia St. Louis Salt Lake City San Francisco Seattle Washington, DC 53 44 Portland 46/55 SUN AND MOON Time 2:52 a.m. 3:24 p.m. 54 43 Shown is tomorrow's weather. Temperatures are tonight's lows and tomorrow's highs. ASTORIA 48/54 Precipitation Monday ............................................ 0.39" Month to date ................................. 13.83" Normal month to date ....................... 6.58" Year to date .................................... 31.71" Normal year to date ........................ 23.97" Apr 3 SATURDAY 52 41 Tillamook 47/53 more fl exible. The prices for popular sites could increase by $1 or $2 per night. Some site prices would only see an increase on certain dates. Park offi cials say they will use the extra money to offer other discounts that will offset the price. Fort Stevens State Park, Oregon’s most popular park Two Warrenton men arrested after fl eeing the police on Sunday night REGIONAL WEATHER Astoria through Monday. Temperatures High/low ....................................... 51°/44° Normal high/low ........................... 55°/40° Record high ............................ 79° in 1941 Record low ............................. 29° in 1991 First FRIDAY without created strong eddies or other conditions that could wind up endangering the fi sh further. Conservationists say the extra water will help young salmon migrate out to sea. Simon is the same judge who last year urged the gov- ernment to consider breaching the four dams on the Lower Snake River. Prices may be adjusted for camping at some popular Oregon State Parks FIVE-DAY FORECAST FOR ASTORIA TONIGHT that the salmon continue to be imperiled and that the Army Corps of Engineers must spill more water for the fi sh at eight dams. However, he declined to require the corps to do so immediately, as conservation- ists requested. Instead, he told the govern- ment to spend the next year studying how best to release the right amount of water TUESDAY Clatsop Care Health District Board, noon, Clatsop Care Memory Community, 2219 Dolphin Ave., Warrenton. Astoria Library Board, 5:30 p.m., Library Flag Room, 450 10th St. Warrenton City Commission, 6 p.m., City Hall, 225 S. Main Ave. Seaside Airport Advisory Committee, 6 p.m. City Hall, 989 Broadway. Astoria Traffi c Safety Adviso- ry Committee, 6:30 p.m., City Hall, 1095 Duane St. WEDNESDAY Cannon Beach Tourism and Arts Commission, 1 p.m., City Hall, 163 E. Gower St. Astoria Watershed Forest Practices Open House, 6 p.m., City Hall, 1095 Duane St. The Daily Astorian Established July 1, 1873 (USPS 035-000) Published daily, except Saturday and Sunday, by EO Media Group, 949 Exchange St., PO Box 210, Astoria, OR 97103 Telephone 503- 325-3211, 800-781-3211 or Fax 503-325-6573. 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