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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 13, 2017)
DailyAstorian.com // WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2017 145TH YEAR, NO. 53 ONE DOLLAR Former Abeco building is sold FIREFIGHTERS COME HOME Part of string of downtown properties By EDWARD STRATTON The Daily Astorian Submitted Photo Firefighters from the fourth Clatsop County task force pose in front of Multnomah Falls after fighting the Eagle Creek Fire last week. Local task forces sent to fi ght Oregon fi res By BRENNA VISSER The Daily Astorian C annon Beach Fire Chief Matt Ben- edict has been called to fi ght many wildfi res over his 20-year career, so getting the call from the state to go to Sisters and Eagle Creek for two weeks didn’t feel much different . But when he found himself at Mult- nomah Falls, memories of a fi re that raged in 1991 were rekindled. He was a student in fi re science at the time, and recalled protecting the historic lodge for two days straight with his classmates and mentor. “I just remember thinking, ‘Wow, this all over again,’” Benedict said. The fi re chief was among the more than 50 Clatsop County fi refi ghters who were deployed with Oregon State Fire Marshal Incident Management to the Milli Fire in Sisters, the Chetco Bar Fire in Brookings and the Eagle Creek Fire in Multnomah County throughout late August and early September. As of Tuesday, a team of 13 fi refi ght- ers at the Milli Fire in Sisters, another team of 14 at the Chetco Fire near Brook- ings and two teams of 13 and 14 in Eagle Creek have all returned home . It was the fi rst time in Clatsop County history two task forces were sent simultaneously to fi ght fi res around the state, Knappa Fire Chief Paul Olheiser said. The team deployed to Chetco Bar broke state history for the most days spent on a fi re as a part of a confl agration order from the state. Olheiser, who is coordinating the c ounty’s volunteer effort, said fi refi ght- ers from Seaside, Gearhart, Olney, Lewis and Clark, Cannon Beach, Warrenton and Knappa fi re districts were dispatched to fi res throughout the state . As of mid- week, more than 20 wildfi res are burning throughout Oregon. Many of the fi refi ghters served on multiple task forces — some even back to back, not even making it back into their own homes for more than a few hours. Luottamus Partners, the property com- pany owned by Rose Marie Paavola and Marie Mitchum, has sold the former Abeco Offi ce Systems storefront on Commercial Street in downtown Astoria to Hollywood Vintage, a vintage clothing and accessory store in Portland. William Hicks, the registered owner of Hollywood Vintage, did not respond to requests for comment. Luottamus Partners, founded in the mid- 2000s by Paavola and the late downtown advocate Mitch Mitchum to fi x up buildings downtown , once owned eight properties but is down to three. Paavola and Mitch Mitchum won a Dr. Edward. J. Harvey Award in 2010 for their restoration of the Sanborn Building at 10th and Commercial streets, which had been gutted by fi re. See SOLD, Page 7A Edward Stratton/The Daily Astorian Luottamus Partners has sold the former Abeco storefront at 1332 Commercial St. to Portland-based Hollywood Vintage, a vintage clothing and accessory store. See FIREFIGHTERS, Page 7A ‘WITHOUT DEDICATION FROM THE COMMUNITY, WE COULD NEVER DO THESE THINGS. IT’S A HARD HIT TO A SMALL BUSINESS IF YOU LOSE TWO OR THREE EMPLOYEES FOR WEEKS.’ Paul Olheiser | Knappa fi re chief Development fees going up in Warrenton Increases for the fi rst time in several years By KATIE FRANKOWICZ The Daily Astorian Two teams of firefighters from Clatsop County helped fight the Eagle Creek Fire. Inciweb via AP Fees that Warrenton charges for building permits and plan reviews are going up for the fi rst time in almost a decade. The changes the City Commission unani- mously approved at its meeting Tuesday will increase the combined cost for a permit and plan review for the average house built in Warrenton by about $57. “Really what we’re presenting here is a cost-of-living increase that is typically done once a year,” Warrenton Building Offi cial Chuck Goodwin said. He pointed out that the fees have not been adjusted since 2008, even while residential and commercial develop- ments have boomed . See WARRENTON, Page 7A Alderbrook property owner dodges foreclosure Olvey pays out $55,000 in fi nes By KATIE FRANKOWICZ The Daily Astorian The owner of a sign-cov- ered property in Alderbrook has dodged foreclosure, but could still face legal action if he doesn’t take care of issues that led the Astoria City Coun- cil to declare the site a nui- sance earlier this summer. Leroy Olvey, a lifelong Clatsop County resident, has paid the city $55,996 , the full amount he needed to pay to halt a process that would have otherwise ended in foreclo- sure and a public auction of his Birch Street property. Past judgments related to the con- dition of his property, with rel- atively smaller fi nes attached, still remain unpaid. Nothing has changed on the property itself. “While he’s paid his cita- tion fi nes, there are still contin- ued violations out there that he has not remedied,” City Man- ager Brett Estes said. “We still have the junk vehicles and the derelict building issues out there.” For more than a decade, the city has tried to get the 77-year-old man to clean up his property. Instead, Olvey has covered the house and the yard with colorful signs expressing his opinions about world affairs and local fi g- ures, and protesting his alleged treatment by the city over the years. Trash is piled up inside the run-down house and bro- ken, abandoned vehicles litter the overgrown yard. The prop- erty has become a neighbor- hood concern. In June, the C ity C oun- cil declared Olvey’s property derelict and a nuisance, a tool the city has used to get other Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian See OLVEY, Page 7A Leroy Olvey has covered his Alderbrook property with pro- test signs that document his fight against the city and others.