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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 13, 2017)
FOOTBALL: SEASIDE BEATS TILLAMOOK, BANKS BLANKS ASTORIA SPORTS • PAGE 8A 145TH YEAR, NO. 75 ONE DOLLAR WEEKEND EDITION // FRIDAY, OCTOBER 13, 2017 Port slapped with $4 million verdict Portland hotelier had deal on Riverwalk Inn By EDWARD STRATTON The Daily Astorian A jury has awarded $4 million in damages to Param Hotel Corp. in a breach of contract lawsuit against the Port of Astoria over the lease at the Astoria Riverwalk Inn. “The jury’s verdict affirms the fun- damental concept that a deal is a deal,” said Colin Hunter, Param’s attorney. “We sincerely thank the jury for their diligent service on this hard-fought case.” The jury found that the Port had breached a contract by failing to assign the remaining seven years of heavily indebted former operator Brad Smi- thart’s lease to Param after the Port Commission voted to do so in 2015, with damages of $202,430. The jury also found that the Port made false rep- resentations to Param, with damages of nearly $3.8 million. An individual fraud claim against Port Executive Director Jim Knight was dismissed. The Port’s attorney, Luke Reese, said the claims of fraud are subject to caps under the Oregon Tort Claims Act. The cap at the time of Param’s failed deal with the Port was more than $660,000. See PORT, Page 7A KNIGHT CANCER COLLABORATIVE A PLACE TO HEAL Edward Stratton/The Daily Astorian From left, Shary and Chris Schauer- mann recently acquired Astoria Granite Works, turning over daily operations to General Manager Isaac Bentson. Former pastor now running granite works in Astoria Left local church to take over business By EDWARD STRATTON The Daily Astorian Photos by Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian Attendees at the opening ceremony of the Knight Cancer Collaborative in Astoria on Thursday were encouraged by one of the speakers to take time to admire a mural on the outside of the building. H undreds of people turned out Thurs- day evening to celebrate the grand open- ing of the new Columbia Memorial Hospital-Or- egon Health & Science University Knight Cancer Collaborative. The project took seven years of development, planning and construc- tion before opening for patients earlier this week. Public open houses are scheduled 1-3 p.m. Satur- day and 2-4 p.m. Sunday. See a special section inside The Daily Asto- rian today. LEFT: Hundreds of people crowd into a tent to celebrate the opening of the CMH-OHSU Knight Cancer Collaborative on Thursday in Astoria. RIGHT: People file in past just one of many decorative features in the lobby of the Knight Cancer Collaborative in Astoria to take a tour of the new facility. See more photos online at DailyAstorian.com Chris Schauermann and his wife Shary, who renovate and flip houses, had been buy- ing stone from Russ Warr’s Astoria Gran- ite Works for years and storing it at his warehouse. In April, Warr called Schauermann and asked him to come get his stuff because he was closing the business down. “I said, ‘Well, do you want to sell some of your hand tools?’” Schauermann said. “And he said, ‘How about buying my whole business?’” A pastor for the past 25 years at Gateway Community Church in Hammond, Schauer- mann recently left the ministry and took over the business. Warr retired from operating the Asto- ria Sears, Roebuck & Co. in 1993, when Sears bought the store back from him. After three or four months, he realized retirement wasn’t for him. Dick and Denny Thompson approached him about buying Astoria Gran- ite Works, which their father Paul Thompson had started in 1917. After interning with the brothers for sev- eral months, Warr purchased the business in 1994. In 1998, he started doing stone countertops, the primary interest of the Schauermanns. Warr also served for 12 years on the Asto- ria City Council before deciding not to run for re-election last year. “I’m 75 years old, and I’ve been consid- ering retiring for several years,” he said. When he started trying to sell his business and building, Warr said, he fell ill. “The medical issues made it very import- ant for me to sell the business,” he said. See PASTOR, Page 7A Cannon Beach library celebrates 90 years Private library supported by 80 volunteers By BRENNA VISSER The Daily Astorian CANNON BEACH — The original Cannon Beach Library had 54 books sitting on three shelves at what used to be a grocery store on Hem- lock Street. Ninety years later, the library now fills its own build- ing with more than 14,000 books. It has seen a number of location changes and techno- logical advances since 1927. Submitted Photo The old Cannon Beach Library. But for nine decades its leg- acy as a private, almost solely volunteer-driven library has remained. The Cannon Beach Library board is hosting its 90th birth- day party Oct. 21 as a way to thank the community for decades of support. People are invited to dress as their favor- ite literary character and enjoy a buffet of snacks from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the library. “(The library) has been a community effort from the beginning, starting with com- munity dances and chicken dinner fundraisers,” said Phyllis Bernt, co-president of the library board. “We are here to serve the needs of the community.” Humble beginnings Unlike most libraries, Cannon Beach has never been Submitted Photo See LIBRARY, Page 7A A volunteer moves books into the new library in 1976.
