The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current, October 10, 2017, Image 3

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The daily Astorian., October 10, 2017, Page 3A, Image 3

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Newspaper Page Text3A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, OCTOBER 10, 2017 Hood to Coast looks to ink long-term Seaside deal Discord from 2015 relay a thing of past ‘This is a lot different than two years ago. The sentiment and the feeling has really changed dramatically and in a very positive way.’ By R.J. MARX The Daily Astorian SEASIDE — Two years ago it was unclear if Hood to Coast would return to Seaside. The iconic 198-mile relay starting at Timberline Lodge and ending at the Seaside Prom ﬁ rst arrived here in the 1980s. But mounting complaints from residents and businesses about unruly behavior, trafﬁ c and poor organization brought angry crowds to City Council meetings and threatened to end the relationship. The 2015 relay may have been the low point: with high winds and downpours, crowds ﬁ lled Broadway and tensions soared. Business owners said organizers arbitrarily closed Dan Floyd Hood to Coast chief operating officer R.J. Marx/The Daily Astorian Hood to Coast Chief Op- erating Officer Dan Floyd spoke at Monday’s City Council meeting. streets, tapped into private power sources and illegally sold wares on the street. After the 2015 run, the City Council threatened to sever ties to the event. Dozens of local business owners signed a letter expressing discon- tent “that the overall impact of hosting this massive event during the busy summer tour- ist season is negative.” At the time, some council- ors called the event “overrated” and sought greater responsive- ness from organizers. On Monday night, evidence of the new bond between the city and Hood to Coast orga- nizers was on full display. Hood to Coast Chief Oper- ating Ofﬁ cer Dan Floyd appeared before the City Council looking to lock in the race for 2018 and begin dis- cussions for a possible multi- year deal. “We want to come back and we want to come back for many more years,” Floyd told councilors. “Rather than ask- ing for one year, we want to look for a long-term commit- ment to be a very long time.” Councilors praised the organization and its role in the community. “This is an incredible event and I’m very proud to have it in Seaside,” Councilor Dana Phillips said. Floyd attributed the improved relationship to city leadership and personnel changes at the Hood to Coast organization. “We were not without sin in this case,” Floyd said. “In the last ﬁ ve years there has been a pretty signiﬁ cant change in staff and the way we’ve trained volunteers.” Runners from 43 coun- tries and 50 states participated in this year’s race. The race brings in about 18,000 runners, Floyd said, and the city gener- ally collects about $1 per head. Funds from Hood to Coast raised more than $730,000 for Providence Cancer Center in 2017. The Seaside Chamber of Commerce nets about another $30,000 by stafﬁ ng and oper- ating the event’s beer garden. “This is a lot different than two years ago,” Floyd said after the meeting. “The senti- ment and the feeling has really changed dramatically and in a very positive way.” “They’ve addressed situa- tions that in the past years that were negative and have turned them into positives,” Brian Owen, executive director of the Seaside Chamber of Com- merce said. “It’s a good, strong partnership. We all win.” Future meetings with Hood to Coast organizers will deter- mine details about the 2018 race, including compensation and a potential long-term deal, City Manager Mark Winstan- ley said. In the meantime, the coun- cil approved the one-year extension. “I am fully conﬁ dent that we will be working together for a long time,” Floyd said. The 2018 race is scheduled for Aug. 24 and Aug. 25. Morgan to help with Astoria planning State claims feds are backtracking was leaving, he offered his on Portland Harbor cleanup plan services to the city. He will By KATIE FRANKOWICZ The Daily Astorian A former Cannon Beach mayor will assist Astoria’s Community Development Department while the city searches for a new director. Mike Morgan, who was Cannon Beach’s mayor from 2009 until 2015, will serve as interim city planner, help- ing City Planner Nancy Fer- ber tackle various projects in the department while the city searches for a replace- ment for former Community Development Director Kevin Cronin. City Manager Brett Estes, himself a former Asto- ria community development director, will act as interim director in the meantime. Cronin, who was hired in 2015, announced in Septem- ber that he was leaving the department to pursue other opportunities. H is last day was Friday . The Daily Astorian Former Cannon Beach Mayor Mike Morgan will serve as interim city plan- ner in Astoria. This isn’t the ﬁ rst time Morgan has taken on city planning work with the city. His time with Astoria dates back to the 1970s and he was the city planner from 1987 to 1991. He has also served as interim city plan- ner before, most recently to ﬁ ll a gap in 2015 after long- time planner Rosemary John- son retired. “I’ve seen something like four decades of development here,” Morgan said. When he learned Cronin be in the Community Devel- opment ofﬁ ce three days a week. At 71 years old, he’s not interested in applying for Cronin’s old job. “I’m happy to have my freedom and help the city ﬁ nd a good person,” he said. Estes said the cost of hir- ing Morgan will depend on how long Morgan will need to stay on as interim planner, but it will cost less than pay- ing a director’s salary. He said the city is also looking at how to use some of the salary savings to have planners with the Columbia River Estuary Study Task- force review more permits. The organization works with cities and agencies along the Columbia River estuary in Oregon and Washington state, and already reviews some permits for Astoria. Planners there could have the capacity to take on more, Estes said. Aerial photos show wildﬁ re losses in the Gorge Associated Press CASCADE LOCKS — New aerial photos show severe damage to some parts of the Columbia River Gorge from a large wildﬁ re that con- tinues to burn. The photos taken Sun- day by The Oregonian show the areas most impacted by the blaze include Oneonta Gorge, Eagle Creek and Tan- ner Creek. McCord Creek near Cas- cade Locks and Moffett Creek are also severely burned. Some trails in the gorge won’t open until spring and some may not open for a year or two. The ﬁ re erupted Sept. 2 and has burned more than 75 square miles. It continues to burn in some areas but is not expected to grow. The risk of rockslides and mudslides in the burned area is high as the winter rainy season begins. Inspection ﬁ nds maintenance ﬂ aws at salmon pens Associated Press OLYMPIA, Wash. — State ofﬁ cials say an inspec- tion has found maintenance issues at Cooke Aquacul- ture’s farmed salmon opera- tion off Bainbridge Island. The state Department of Natural Resources on Mon- day issued a default notice and gave the company 60 days to ﬁ x the problems. Public Lands Commis- sioner Hilary Franz said in a statement that they need to make sure Cooke’s salmon farms are structurally sound given the August collapse at its Cypress Island facility. Tens of thousands of non-na- tive Atlantic salmon were released into Puget Sound. A contractor hired by the state found issues at Cooke’s farms in Rich Passage, including a hole in netting and severe corrosion on ﬂ oat- ing piers. The state says com- panies that lease state aquatic lands must maintain property in good order. Another state agency approved a permit last week for Cooke to stock its net pens with 1 million juvenile Atlan- tic salmon. W A NTED Alder and Maple Saw Logs & Standing Timber N orth w es t H a rdw oods • Lon gview , W A w e N WARRENTON Contact: John Anderson • 360-269-2500 SELF-STORAGE By ANDREW SELSKY Associated Press SALEM — Ofﬁ cials in Oregon are accusing the fed- eral government of going behind their backs to under- mine a plan to clean up toxic pollution along the Willa- mette River in Portland. In January, two weeks before President Barack Obama left the White House, the U.S. Environmental Pro- tection Agency announced a ﬁ nal $1.05 billion cleanup plan for a 10-mile stretch of the Willamette River that became polluted from a cen- tury of industrial use. But the EPA, under Pres- ident Donald Trump, has been negotiating part of the plan with some of the compa- nies responsible for cleanup, Richard Whitman, the direc- tor of the Oregon Depart- ment of Environmental Qual- ity, complained in a letter to a regional EPA boss on Thursday. Gov. Kate Brown made the letter public on Monday. She urged the EPA “to honor its commitment to work col- laboratively and transpar- ently with the state, city, and all responsible parties.” In his letter, Whitman told Michelle Pirzadeh, act- ing regional EPA admin- istrator in Seattle, that the changes could lead to “sig- niﬁ cant additional delays in the implementation of any remedy.” Whitman said a draft agreement between the EPA and some companies respon- sible for the cleanup calls for more sediment samples to be taken, and for ﬁ sh con- sumption rates to be updated. He said such tactics appear intended to call into ques- tion the underpinnings of the cleanup plan announced in January. Furthermore, Whit- man wrote that the federal agency’s failure to coordi- nate and consult violates a memorandum of understand- ing between federal, state and tribal parties. Mark MacIntyre, spokes- man for the EPA’s regional ofﬁ ce, had no immediate comment. He said he was seeking information from EPA headquarters in Wash- ington, D.C., but noted that Monday was a federal holiday. In an email to Pirzadeh, Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler and Commissioner Nick Fish said they are deeply trou- bled that state, tribal and local stakeholders have been excluded from an opportu- nity to review changes in plans. The polluted stretch of river is called the Port- land Harbor Superfund Site. Superfund sites are contami- nated areas identiﬁ ed by the federal government as candi- dates for cleanup. “We must move forward with the cleanup of the Port- land Harbor, but the federal administration’s latest direc- tion to the EPA undermines the progress we’ve made,” Brown said. BRIM’S Farm & Garden t Rode o n ls! 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WARRENTON, OR BOOK ONLINE WWW.OOSITESTORAGE.COM 150 /month $ CATHLAMET, WASHINGTON • Thursday, October 19 Norse Hall 444 State Highway 409, Cathlamet, WA All meetings are open from 4 to 7 p.m. Learn more: www.nwp.usace.army.mil/lcrchannelmaintenance (8’ X 40’|320SF|9.5’ tall) Second Month Free * *Limited time only US Army Corps of Engineers ® Portland District