LOGGERS GET ANOTHER SHOT AT STATE TITLE
DailyAstorian.com // WEDNESDAY, MAY 31, 2017
144TH YEAR, NO. 239
SPORTS • PAGE 10A
ONE DOLLAR
Astoria
Library
to get a
makeover
Project could wrap in
2020; cost $5 million
By KATIE FRANKOWICZ
The Daily Astorian
Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian
The planned Astoria Co-op Grocery expansion in the Mill Pond neighborhood will need a conditional use permit, zone adjust-
ment and approval by the Mill Pond Village Owners Association. The co-op hopes to raise more than $1 million for the store.
GROCERY ON THE GO
Astoria Co-op signs
lease at Mill Pond
The C ity C ouncil gave unanimous sup-
port Tuesday night to a plan to renovate the
Astoria Library , essentially going back to a
feasibility study that explored the same idea
in 2013.
Renovation work on the $5 million proj-
ect would begin in 2019 and wrap in 2020.
The council’s vote marks a turning point
in discussions about the library’s future.
For years city councilors , library board
members and others have proposed and
debated a variety of alternatives — every-
thing from building an entirely new library
to knocking down the neighboring former
Waldorf Hotel to make room for an expan-
sion. None of the ideas drew unanimous sup-
port and fundraising efforts stalled .
See LIBRARY, Page 5A
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Daily Astorian
T
he Astoria Co-Op Grocery has signed
a lease to build a new store on the
site of the former Astoria Plywood
Cooperative at the corner of 23rd Street and
Marine Drive.
The new location in Mill Pond, at more
than 11,000 square feet, will increase the
co-op’s retail footprint from 2,100 to 7,500
square feet and is expected to nearly triple
the current staff of 25. The expansion will
add more fresh produce, meat, cheese, deli
and a dining area.
The co-op has a 20-year lease on the site
with landowner Astor Venture LLC and will
start a capital campaign in the fall to raise
substantially more than $1 million for the
construction of the store. Co-op General
Manager Matt Stanley said the co-op’s total
project cost will be about $3.8 million, with a
similar amount coming from Astor Venture.
Danny Miller/The Daily Astorian
Life Flight Pilot Dan Leary performs a
preflight inspection of a helicopter at
the Astoria Regional Airport.
Astoria Co-op Grocery/Submitted Photo
The Astoria Co-op Grocery hopes to raise more than $1 million from members and
open a new store at the corner of 23rd Street and Marine Drive in the Mill Pond
neighborhood by the end of 2018.
Growing
“Most shoppers feel the c o-op has out-
grown its current space at 14th and Exchange
(streets) in Astoria,” a release from the co-op
said. “Crowded aisles and lack of a des-
ignated receiving area for deliveries are
a few of the telltale signs. A shopper sur-
vey revealed that the vast majority support
expansion, so the board of directors made
that a goal in the co-op’s strategic plan.”
Stanley joined the co-op in 2008, shortly
before the store moved from the Norblad
Building on 14th between Exchange and
Duane streets to the Shark Rock Building,
one block south. Since then, he said, the store
has grown from between 500 and 600 mem-
bers to nearly 4,000, with annual sales climb-
ing from $800,000 to $3.8 million.
“This current location has allowed us to
be really successful,” he said, but the Shark
Rock Building was meant to be offi ce spaces,
while the vacant land provides the co-op a
chance to build a dedicated grocery store.
See CO-OP, Page 7A
Life Flight
funds not in
Port budget
$1.96 million bond
rejected by voters
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Daily Astorian
Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian
The sun sets over the Mill Pond neighborhood , which could see an expansion of
the Astoria Co-op Grocery in the future if it passes zoning hurdles and is approved
by the homeowner s association. The new location offers more square footage.
After the failure of a $1.96 million bond
for infrastructure development at the Astoria
Regional Airport failed this month, the Port
of Astoria has no money in its budget next
fi scal year to help develop Life Flight Net-
work’s new base.
During a budget committee meeting
Tuesday, committee member Cindy Daly
asked what the plan was to help accommo-
date the medevac service, which last year
received a $665,000 ConnectOregon infra-
structure grant to pair with its $285,000
match and build a hangar and crew quarters.
See PORT, Page 7A
From the love of libraries to leadership
Seaside leader
elected to state
library post
By BRENNA VISSER
The Daily Astorian
SEASIDE — When Esther
Moberg was 17 years old work-
ing as a page in the Astoria
Library, the thought of becom-
ing one of the most infl uential
librarians in Oregon was not on
her mind.
Starting in September,
Moberg will take over as the
president of the Oregon Library
Association. She is the director
of Seaside Public Library, and
has been working in the library
world for more than 14 years.
The library association elected
her at the end of May for a year-
long term.
As president, it will be
Moberg’s job to advocate for
the health and well -being of
all academic, public, school
and special libraries throughout
Oregon, she said. She will often
be at the same table as govern-
ment offi cials and publishers
and will organize conferences
to help give Oregon’s libraries
a unifi ed voice .
“It’s such an honor. It says
your peers respect you enough
to give you this kind of respon-
sibility,” Moberg said. “It’s all
about giving back.”
She said she decided to run
after the nominating commit-
tee reached out to her, recom-
mending her as a viable candi-
date. Before this, she had been
involved with the library asso-
ciation for about fi ve years,
serving on a variety of confer-
ence and award committees.
Love at young age
Her love for libraries started
at a young age, she said. She was
home-schooled, which meant
going on multiple trips to the
library for learning materials.
See MOBERG, Page 7A
Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian
Library Director Esther Moberg, left, helps a colleague at the
Seaside Library where she has worked for years . Moberg was
recently elected president of the Oregon Library Association.