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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (May 10, 2017)
4A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • WEDNESDAY, MAY 10, 2017 Seaside parks district looks to possibly grow footprint Older facilities, school move spurs talk By R.J. MARX The Daily Astorian SEASIDE — Members of the Sunset Empire Park and Recreation District Board of Directors could be evaluating the addition of a new building or buildings, Executive Direc- tor Skyler Archibald said. “A lot of this is in the really early stages of devel- oping,” Archibald said of a facility plan. “We really need more indoor recreation space for our fitness participants, as well as youth programs. It may be feasible to acquire space in the area, and we’ve talked about the potential of middle school property, which would be available, or constructing a new building on our campus area.” The pool is roughly 40 years old; the youth center 20 years old, “maybe a little older,” Archibald said. In September, the district embarks on a $120,000 proj- ect to resurface, polish and R.J. Marx/The Daily Astorian Sign at the Sunset Empire pool in Seaside. The pool will be closed for renova- tions for six weeks this fall. Expansion? R.J. Marx/The Daily Astorian Aquatics is a major portion of the district’s programs. add underwater lighting to the main pool. “We’re excited about it, but also realize the cost and the impact to our reg- ular swimmers,” Archibald said. The project could keep the pool out of service for about six weeks, he said. Formed in 1969, the SEPRD boundary follows Seaside School District #10 boundary, excluding Gearhart and Cannon Beach. “We’re basically a resource available to the entire county,” board of directors chairman Michael Hinton said Monday. Hinton said the district is looking at the possibil- ity of “some kind of expan- sion,” either funded through a bond or system development charges — the fees paid by builders to the city for essen- tial infrastructure. “That would give us a means of keeping abreast of urban growth and development,” Hinton said. “It would help set aside money for capital improvements.” Among a wide variety of programs for all ages, the dis- trict offers aquatics, early edu- cation, a farmers market and events at the Bob Chisholm Community Center, including Meals on Wheels. “We’re considering some renovation or development project that would allow us to build or redesign the youth center and basketball court adjacent to the pool to develop a gym or indoor track,” Hin- ton said. The board is also keeping an eye on the Seaside School District expansion and possi- ble utilization of former school buildings. “That’s valuable property,” Hinton said. “The school district will probably need to take every advantage of a potential sale and gain from that to manage expenses,” he said. Pool programs are drawing visitors from Astoria as a result of their lower cost and facili- ties. “A lot of them like our city parks, too,” Hinton said, including an Americans with Disabilities Act accessible boat lot on the Wahanna River on the east side of Broadway Park. “Our programs seem to be thriving.” Budget Archibald and Finance Manager Jennifer Stephens presented a preliminary bud- get at the district’s April board meeting. “We’re still going through the details,” Hinton said. “We have a major overhaul of our swimming pool. We’re going to shut it down and replace the plaster around the pool. This shutdown will extend from September to November. The budget is divided in six departments, with the largest being aquatics, including three bodies of water, the main pool, the learner pool and the spa. District revenues derive from property taxes, grants, timber tax and an ending fund balance, Archibald said. “We’ve been fortunate to get some sizable grants, some really sizable in the past,” Archibald said. “Today we have some really valuable smaller ones. “They help us kick-start some of the projects we’ve been working on but didn’t have the funds for.” As for future building plans, discussion will begin “depending on how our com- munity feels,” Archibald said. “This is going to need to be a community-driven project. We hope to engage our com- munity and then get the help of some experts to see what’s possible, what’s feasible and what would be the best solu- tion moving forward.” SUNDAY MAY 21, 2017 Tunnel collapse renews safety concerns about nuclear site By NICHOLAS K. GERANIOS and MANUEL VALDES Associated Press RICHLAND, Wash. — The collapse of an underground tunnel containing radioac- tive waste that forced workers at the Hanford Nuclear Res- ervation to shelter in place is the latest incident to raise safety concerns at the sprawl- ing site that made plutonium for nuclear bombs for decades after World War II. Officials detected no release of radiation Tuesday and no workers were injured, said Randy Bradbury, a spokes- man for the Washington state Department of Ecology. No workers were inside the tunnel when it collapsed, caus- ing soil on the surface above to sink 2 to 4 feet over a 400 square foot area, officials said. The tunnels are hundreds of feet long, with about 8 feet of soil covering them, the U.S. Department of Energy said. The anti-nuclear group Beyond Nuclear said the inci- dent helped show “radioactive waste management is out of control.” Democratic U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington said worker safety must be the priority. “My thoughts are with the first responders who are work- ing to assess the situation on the ground,” she said. Worker safety has long been a concern at Hanford, which is located about 200 miles south- east of Seattle. Washington Attorney Gen- eral Bob Ferguson filed a law- suit last fall against the Energy Department and its contractor, Washington River Protection Solutions, contending vapors released from underground nuclear waste tanks posed a serious risk to workers. Ferguson said that since the early 1980s, hundreds of workers have been exposed to vapors escaping from the tanks and that those breathing the vapors developed nosebleeds, chest and lung pain, headaches, coughing, sore throats, irritated eyes and difficulty breathing. Lawyers for the Energy Department have said no evi- dence has been provided show- ing workers have been harmed by vapors. The cause of the collapse was not immediately known. It was discovered Tuesday as part of a routine inspection and occurred during a massive cleanup that has been under- way since the 1980s and costs more than $2 billion a year. The work is expected to take until 2060 and cost more than $100 billion. Hanford officials said they were studying the area of the collapse to determine how to create a barrier between the contaminated equipment in the tunnel and the outside air. S TART T IMES : Half Marathon Walkers: 8:30AM Half Marathon Runners • 9AM | 10K • 10AM | 5K • 11AM Proceeds go to the Astoria Parks and Recreation Foundation Scholarship Fund. #runontheriver Register at http://astoriaparks.com/parks/ROTR.aspx May 15th, 2017. May 15 th , 2017. May 15th, 2017. Miracle-Ear Center Youngs Bay Plaza 173 S. Hwy 101 Warrenton, OR 97146 (503) 836-7921 miracle-ear-warrenton.com Miracle-Ear Center 2505 Main Ave N, Suite C Tillamook, OR 97141 (503) 836-7926 miracle-ear-tillamook.com May 15th, 2017.
