HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY
145TH YEAR, NO. 2
DailyAstorian.com // TUESDAY, JULY 4, 2017
FALLING INTO PLACE
Logging makes
way for Seaside’s
new schools
By BRENNA VISSER
The Daily Astorian
By JACK HEFFERNAN
The Daily Astorian
Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian
Seaside School Board members gather around an inclinometer at their feet at
the new school construction site. The inclinometer is a device that monitors the
stability of the ground.
See SEASIDE, Page 4A
Police and state parks will take some steps
to ensure safety and respect tonight, but they
also are calling on residents and visitors to
regulate themselves on Independence Day.
Police typically receive a high volume
of fi reworks complaints around the holiday .
Astoria Police, Warrenton Police and the
Clatsop County Sheriff’s Offi ce have already
received about 20 such complaints this week.
Astoria Police will have at least one addi-
tional offi cer patrol the city tonight during
the fi reworks show , though the department
is still limited by staffi ng shortages. Offi -
cers will pay particular attention to possi-
ble open -container violations on the Astoria
Riverwalk and illegal -fi rework use, Deputy
Chief Eric Halverson said.
Differing fi reworks laws between Oregon
and neighboring Washington state are partly
to blame for the illegal use, Halverson said.
See FOURTH, Page 4A
In the zone
In 1999, the state published earth-
quake hazard maps showing Can-
non Beach and Gearhart elementary
schools, Broadway Middle School
and Seaside High School would all
be severely damaged in a major earth-
quake and tsunami. These schools
were also identifi ed as having a high
potential for collapse.
Bang,
pow,
boom —
but safely
Caution called for
on July 4th holiday
S
EASIDE — The new Seaside
School District campus sits 200
to 300 feet above sea level with a
panoramic view of the Pacifi c Ocean.
The breathtaking beauty is not only
a reminder of life on the coast, but the
earthquake and tsunami danger that
prompted the move to higher ground.
“Yes, this view is nice, but the nic-
est thing about this is our schools not
being wiped out by a big wave,” Sea-
side School District Superintendent
Sheila Roley said. “We needed new
schools, but safety for all kids was the
catalyst.”
Forty-two acres of the city’s largely
wooded backdrop have been logged
and cleared so far to make way for
the schools. On a tour through a maze
of logging roads Thursday to check
progress, school board members saw
an undefi ned fi eld of stumps, inter-
rupted only by loggers and equipment
loading the last of the timber.
The property is part of an 80-acre
site given to the school district by
Weyerhaeuser , which will sell the tim-
ber to local distributors.
“It’s simply breathtaking,” school
board member Lori Lum said.
ONE DOLLAR
Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian
ABOVE: Timber is being harvested to make way for schools. BELOW: Seaside
School Board members take a tour of the new school construction site that is
being logged and developed.
Port’s case
against
Smithart
on hold
Separate suit over
inn will go fi rst
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Daily Astorian
The Port of Astoria’s legal case against
heavily indebted former Astoria Riverwalk
Inn operator Brad Smithart will have to wait
for a lawsuit fi led against the Port by Param
Hotel Corp. to play out.
The Port sued Smithart and his company,
Hospitality Masters, in November, claiming
he failed to make $323,000 in required pay-
ments during his operation of the hotel from
2012 to 2015. Smithart admitting to not pay-
ing the rent the Port seeks, but has denied
other claims.
During a hearing Monday on the Port’s
motion for summary judgment against Smi-
thart, who did not show up, Circuit Court
Judge Dawn McIntosh said she had received
a letter asking her to set aside judgment
against Smithart until after the trial between
the Port and Param.
Param had sought since 2014 to take over
the remainder of Smithart’s lease in exchange
for paying his debts. The Portland company
See PORT, Page 4A
New era hailed at Port
New commissioners
sworn in Monday
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Daily Astorian
The seats in the Port of Astoria Commis-
sion’s chambers were full Monday for the
swearing in of two new c ommissioners, part
of what has been hailed as a new era for an
agency long mired in controversy.
The fi ve-member Port Commission now
includes Frank Spence, a former city and
county administrator who was elected in
May to replace Commissioner John Raichl;
and Dirk Rohne, a Brownsmead dairy
farmer and former elected county and col-
lege representative .
“When I fi rst got to this area four years
ago, they said, ‘I wouldn’t touch the Port
Commission with a 10-foot pole,’” Spence
said of the lackluster public perception . “So
here I am, and I’m very excited about what
is forthcoming. I look at it as a new era for
the Port.”
Spence was appointed president by his
fellow commissioners, while Rohne was
selected vice president. Spence takes over
as president from Commissioner Robert
Mushen, who will now serve as secretary.
Commissioner James Campbell was named
treasurer. Commissioner Bill Hunsinger,
who was away in Alaska, was chosen
under-secretary.
Rohne, who has called for “boring but
productive” Port meetings, thanked those
who helped him get elected. “I look forward
Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian
See COMMISSIONERS, Page 4A
Dirk Rohne, left, accepts the Port of Astoria Commission oath of
office from Clatsop County Sheriff Tom Bergin Monday.