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THE DAILY ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2017
Port explains rationale for severing Riverwalk Inn deal
Lawsuit may go
to jury today
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Daily Astorian
The second day of the trial
Wednesday between the Port
of Astoria and Param Hotel
Corp. featured five witnesses
testifying about facets of the
agency’s actions surrounding
the Astoria Riverwalk Inn.
The Port’s attorney, Luke
Reese, started the day cross-ex-
amining Ganesh Sonpatki, the
owner of Param. The com-
pany offered $500,000 in June
2014 to buy out the remain-
ing seven years on the lease of
heavily indebted operator Brad
Smithart.
When the Port terminated
Smithart’s lease, opened the
hotel to proposals and chose
the locally connected Astoria
Hospitality Ventures, Param
sued for fraud and breach of
contract. Forensic accountant
Tiffany Couch took the stand
to explain how she estimated
Sonpatki’s losses at $4 million,
along with $500,000 in damage
to the company’s reputation.
Former Port Commissioner
Stephen Fulton was grilled
by Param’s attorney, Colin
Hunter, about missing text
messages he was supposed
to turn over. Meanwhile, Port
Executive Director Jim Knight
— individually sued for
fraud along with the Port —
defended his decision to evict
Smithart in July 2015 and open
the hotel to potential operators.
Port: Deal was doomed
Hunter opened his case
Tuesday arguing that the Port
had caused the deal between
Param and Smithart to fall
through by not providing the
consent documents the com-
panies needed to transfer the
lease. Reese, the Port’s attor-
ney, argued Wednesday that
the deal was doomed by Smi-
thart not fully disclosing the
extent of his debt.
By the time the Port Com-
mission voted in June 2015
to pursue Sonpatki’s offer,
Smithart owed an estimated
$300,000 combined to the
Port, city and county. He had
also owed almost $100,000 in
state and federal taxes, accord-
ing to testimony Tuesday
by Mike Weston, the Port’s
interim director at the time of
Sonpatki’s initial offer.
Smithart and Sonpatki
extended the closing date of
their agreement several times,
eventually scheduling the
transfer of the hotel for after
the 2015 summer season. By
the time of the vote, Reese said,
Sonpatki had hired Hunter to
potentially sue Smithart. Reese
submitted an email showing
the first escrow officer, hired
by Sonpatki to make sure Smi-
thart’s debts were paid after
the transfer, quit because of
difficulties getting information
from Smithart.
‘Enough is enough’
Knight, who started work
in October 2014, eventually
took over negotiations on the
Riverwalk Inn. In early July
2015, he had ordered the Port’s
attorneys to terminate Smi-
thart’s lease.
Knight argued Wednesday
that the decision was necessary
because of Smithart’s debt,
poor operations, the run-down
Joshua Bessex/The Daily Astorian
The Port of Astoria and a Portland hotelier are in a lawsuit over the Astoria Riverwalk Inn.
state of the hotel and Smi-
thart’s simultaneous pursuit of
other suitors behind Sonpat-
ki’s back. “I simply had to say,
‘Enough is enough,’” he said.
Hunter argued that Knight
had failed to provide accu-
rate documents to Param to
complete the deal and sought
to show that the Port direc-
tor had also been reaching out
to Chester Trabucco, a part-
ner in rival suitor Hospitality
Ventures with William Orr, as
Param’s deal unraveled. Son-
patki later tried to get Smi-
thart’s lease reinstated so he
could close the deal. Despite
the option being discussed at
a Port meeting, Hunter argued,
“A reasonable conclusion is
that you deleted texts,” Hunter
said.
Judge Dawn McIntosh,
who is hearing the case in
Circuit Court, later said she
thought about informing Ful-
ton of his rights under the Fifth
Amendment not to incriminate
himself.
Knight claimed that he could
not do it.
Orr is the brother-in-law of
Fulton, who said he had pub-
licly recused himself during
discussions of the Riverwalk
Inn.
But Hunter pointed out at
least one meeting where Fulton
had taken part in discussions
on the hotel and texts stretch-
ing back to June between Ful-
ton and Trabucco. The texts
show up on Trabucco’s phone,
Hunter said, but only start in
mid-August on Fulton’s. Ful-
ton said he changed phones in
July, later claiming that a soft-
ware glitch could cause entire
chains of emails to be deleted.
Smithart back in town
Smithart, who recently
closed the Arc Arcade in
downtown Astoria and moved
to New York City, said he read
about the trial in The Daily
Astorian and came back vol-
untarily because it might help
in the agency’s lawsuit against
Details emerge on immigration arrests in Pacific County
Advocates
asking for
donations
By AMY NILE
EO Media Group
LONG BEACH, Wash. —
Neighbors are trying to come
up with cash to help families
of immigrants who’ve been
rounded up in federal raids
across Pacific County.
A newly formed local
group, the Immigration Assis-
tance Committee, has given
more than $4,000 to help
eight affected families with
expenses, such as rent, food
and moving costs, said vol-
unteer Sandy Nielson of
Nahcotta.
Now, the advocates are
asking for help.
So far, the group’s dona-
tions have gone to mothers
and fathers who are struggling
to raise children with little to
no income after their spouses
were taken by U.S. Immigra-
tion and Customs Enforce-
ment agents, Nielson said.
Many worked in the shell-
fish industry. Their families
relied upon their incomes.
Employers were counting on
them too, Nielson said.
Volunteers hope to raise at
least $10,000 through dona-
tions at gofundme.com/immi-
grants-long-beach-washing-
ton.
The committee counts 35
immigrants who have been
picked up on the peninsula
in 2016 and 2017, volunteer
Ann Reeves said. The advo-
cate from Long Beach said
the group has learned in the
past few weeks of at least four
others who were taken around
South Bend and Raymond.
Pacific County has at least
23 open cases in U.S. immi-
gration courts, according to a
analysis of records obtained
from federal agencies and
courts by the Transactional
Records Access Clearing-
house at Syracuse University.
The data shows 15 pending
cases from around Raymond
and six from the peninsula.
Some of those who’ve
been arrested are locked up at
the private Northwest Deten-
tion Center in Tacoma, leaving
their families without income
for meals and housing, let
alone money to post bond for
their loved one, Nielson said.
Others want to reunite their
families after being split up by
deportations. They need help
with travel documents and
expenses.
“These families have been
torn apart,” said Robert Brake,
another advocate. “We can’t sit
by and do nothing.”
Fundraiser scheduled
Brake and his wife, Gwen,
are organizing a celebration
of Hispanic culture to help
raise money for immigrant
spokeswoman Virginia Kice
said in August.
‘They’re gone’
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
A newly created advocacy group in Pacific County is
raising money for families of people deported by ICE.
‘Most of the people have
been here a long time.’
Sandy Nielson
neighbors. The Ocean Park
couple plans to auction col-
orful pinatas filled with Mex-
ican candy and other items,
and donate the proceeds to
affected immigrants and their
families.
“It’s the right thing to do,”
Brake said. “We’ll make it
a little bit of a fiesta in the
midst of a tragedy.”
The fundraiser is sched-
uled from 7-9 p.m. Oct. 20 at
Chautauqua Lodge in Long
Beach.
Gwen Brake acknowl-
edges that the people being
picked up did commit a crime
by coming into the coun-
Welcome Jacob Bushnell!
We are excited to announce that Jacob Bushnell, DDS is
joining our team at Leinassar Dental Excellence. Dr. Bushnell
grew up in Svensen, graduating from Knappa High School.
He obtained his Bachelors of Science from Oregon State
University. He completed his dental education in San Francisco
at The University of the Pacifi c, Arthur A Dugoni School of
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dentistry, complex restorative dentistry, prosthodontics and
operative dentistry. Dr. Bushnell has returned to the Pacifi c
Northwest excited to bring his skills and knowledge to the
team at Leinassar Dental Excellence.
try illegally. But, the Ocean
Beach after-school program
teacher said, arresting and
deporting parents punishes
children. Families, including
those who’ve been part of the
community for decades, and
businesses that rely on the
work of immigrants are also
suffering.
“They’ve been our friends
and our neighbors,” she said.
“They’re the people who’ve
held up our little corner of the
world.”
ICE does not have arrest
and deportation counts by
county readily available,
Pacific County Sheriff
Scott Johnson said ICE gave
his requests the cold shoulder
for months until the Chinook
Observer raised questions
about why federal officials
weren’t sharing information
with local law enforcement.
The agency has recently
started to provide at least some
details about arrests, Johnson
said. ICE last reported mak-
ing an arrest in the county on
Friday.
The Observer has requested
public records under the Free-
dom of Information Act that
could reveal more details
about the federal agency’s
local activities. The sheriff’s
office is also expected to pro-
vide information.
Despite the recent step
toward transparency, immi-
grants on the peninsula aren’t
counting on enforcement
relenting any time soon, Niel-
son, the Nahcotta volunteer,
said.
She knows one man who’s
saving money in case he
needs to bail himself out.
“He expects to be picked
up anytime in a raid,” she
said. “Most of the people
have been here a long time.
Their families and employ-
ers depend on them, then —
they’re gone.”
W A NTED
him. The Port is suing Smi-
thart for more than $320,000
in back-due rent and rev-
enue-sharing. McIntosh is
reserving judgment against
Smithart until after Param’s
lawsuit is resolved.
Smithart, who operated the
hotel from 2012 to 2015, was
technically in default though
most of his tenure. His original
partner, Seth Davis, left shortly
after the two got a lease. By
the time Sonpatki entered the
picture, Smithart said, he was
looking for a way to leave
the hotel, satisfy his debt and
keep his staff employed. But
the Port was holding the deal
back by not providing the doc-
uments necessary for him to
close with Sonpatki, Smithart
said.
Reese argued that Smithart
had not provided the full extent
of his debt to the escrow officer
hired to pay people using Son-
patki’s money. Reese claimed
Smithart owed $150,000 to
the IRS and couldn’t close the
deal with Sonpatki until the tax
issues were resolved. Smithart
disputed the figure and said the
deal could have closed.
At the end of the day
Wednesday, Reese attempted
to have McIntosh rule on the
claims against the Port and
Knight without waiting for a
jury verdict. But McIntosh,
who had previously denied
attempts by Param and the
Port to rule in the case before
trial, said there was enough
evidence of a possible contract
between the Port and Param
for the jury to consider.
Hunter rested his case
Wednesday. Reese will make
his today, after which the jury
will deliberate.
County moves
forward with
boat ramp
By JACK HEFFERNAN
The Daily Astorian
Clatsop County will hire a
consultant to help submit per-
mits for a new boat ramp at
the planned Westport County
Park, and a contractor may be
selected by early next year.
The county Board of Com-
missioners accepted a more
than $40,000 grant Wednesday
from the Oregon State Marine
Board and agreed to pay an
additional $13,750 to pay
both the consultant as well as
some permit fees. A statement
of work for the project will be
completed by January and a
contract awarded to a bidder
by February.
“This will help us get
our permits so we can actu-
ally move forward with the
construction,” County Natu-
ral Resources Manager Steve
Meshke said.
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