COAST WEEKEND: BEWARE THE BANDAGE MAN, PART I
INSIDE
DailyAstorian.com // THURSDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2017
145TH YEAR, NO. 84
ONE DOLLAR
Lee calls for Thompson’s resignation
for Commissioner Lianne Thomp-
son’s resignation Wednesday after a
meeting in which she was criticized
for her conduct and spending.
One topic included Thompson’s
interaction with a county staff mem-
ber in June, which led to an indepen-
dent internal investigation that found
she “crossed the boundary of accept-
able decorum.” Though the county
does not intend to take disciplinary
action, commissioners chided her for
the incident, as well as her response to
Chairman cites
commissioner’s
lost confi dence
of staff , others
By JACK HEFFERNAN
The Daily Astorian
Clatsop County Board of Com-
missioners Chairman Scott Lee called
Lianne
Thompson
Scott
Lee
the investigation.
She also was criticized for claiming
thousands of dollars in travel and edu-
cation expenses in the fi rst quarter of
this fi scal year, an ongoing issue since
she became a commissioner in 2015.
“I think she should resign,” Lee
said. “She’s lost confi dence of staff
and other commissioners.”
The chairman’s statement rep-
resents the latest escalation in ten-
sions between Thompson and Lee —
along with other commissioners and
County Manager Cameron Moore —
that has been building for months.
Thompson said she does not intend to
resign and will respond to the addi-
tional accusations at the board’s Nov.
8 meeting.
“This whole exercise was designed
to coerce me into resigning, which I
refuse to do,” Thompson said.
Spending limit
A fi nancial report presented at
the meeting revealed that Thompson
has accumulated $3,640 in expenses
See THOMPSON, Page 7A
CASTOFF CONUNDRUM
Warrenton Marina puts derelict boats on notice
AP Photo/Molly Riley
A visitor touches a name on the Vietnam
Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.
Memories
stirred by
Vietnam War
documentary
About 13 million
watched fi rst episode
By JACK HEFFERNAN
The Daily Astorian
Sitting at his desk in a small Alder-
brook home, Phil Hertel peered through his
three pages of handwritten notes as a “A
Bright Shining Lie” — a Pulitzer Prize-win-
ning book in which author Neil Sheehan
takes Vietnam-era policy makers to task —
lay on a dinner table just a few feet behind
him.
Hertel, an Army veteran of the Viet-
nam War, was explaining — using the notes
— his thoughts on Ken Burns’ recently
released television documentary about the
confl ict.
The fi lm refl ected a negative perspective
of the war that has only strengthened with
time, Hertel said.
“I knew we didn’t belong there, but I
couldn’t articulate it at the time like I can
now,” he said. “It confi rmed and detailed
and provided one or two facts that I had not
already gained from the study from the rest
of my life or the mild interest in the Vietnam
experience.”
Hertel has become increasingly disil-
lusioned with the U.S. military over the
course of his life. Since moving to Astoria
10 years ago, though, he has connected with
other local veterans and helped connect them
with career resources. He and a fellow vet-
eran spend 4 to 5 hours each Saturday night
“saving the world” by discussing hot-button
issues.
Photos by Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: The Dixie Lee lies derelict on Tuesday at the Warrenton Marina. The commercial fishing
vessel Master Chris is the largest ship in the Warrenton Marina on a list of derelict property . A notice posted on a boat in
the Warrenton Marina indicates the vessel is in danger of sinking. Owners of derelict property at the Warrenton Marina
have been asked to claim and remove their property. Find more photos of the marina online at DailyAstorian.com
By KATIE FRANKOWICZ
The Daily Astorian
W
ARRENTON — It happened at night — these things usually do. The boat showed up in the War-
renton Marina, its fi shing permits already sold. Someone else bought it from the previous owners
for next to nothing. They took what they wanted off it and left it sitting in a boat slip. It’s still there.
Last month, marina staff issued seizure notices to the owners
of seven derelict or abandoned boats in the Warrenton Marina,
most of them older, wooden commercial vessels and ranging in
size from a 26-foot recreational boat to the 62-foot wooden fi sh-
ing vessel Master Chris. Often such boats end up abandoned in
the marina because the owners get sick, or there’s a death and
the question of who has ownership is muddied. Others realize
they’ve taken on a bigger project than they can afford or have the
knowledge to tackle.
“I think life just happens to a lot of these people,” said Har-
bormaster Jane Sweet.
All of the owners owe the marina several thousand dollars in
salvage, towing, storage and disposal costs and could owe even
more if the marina ends up needing to demolish the vessels. If an
unattended vessel ends up sinking — like the abandoned 44-foot
Western Skies did this summer — the costs increase along with
the hassle to marina staff.
A state fund created over a dozen years ago to help offset the
cost of dealing with derelict or abandoned recreational boats is
fed in part by the cost of title registrations of recreational boats.
See MARINA, Page 5A
See VIETNAM WAR, Page 3A
Local developer looks to add on to Astoria portfolio
Medical, money
services to be
offered at site
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Daily Astorian
Medical and fi nancial services
buildings are in the works for the
vacant lot at the corner of Sixth Street
and Marine Drive.
Local developer Chester Trabucco
plans to submit a conditional use per-
mit to the Astoria Planning Commis-
sion next month for a 7,200-square-
foot medical building at the corner of
Sixth Street and the Astoria Riverwalk.
The corner of the lot is owned by
No. 10 Sixth Street, a company includ-
ing Trabucco, local accountant Stephen
Allen and the late Randal Bowe, a local
real estate agent. A conditional-use
permit is required because the land is
zoned for tourist-oriented businesses.
A separate 3,400-square-foot fi nan-
cial services building is not a part of
Trabucco’s conditional-use applica-
tion, but is part of his eventual devel-
opment of the lot .
“We’re doing what’s known in the
industry as a build-to-suit,” Trabucco
said of the buildings, adding that nei-
ther of their intended tenants is com-
mitted until he can get the permit to
build.
The fi nancial services building
would be on the southwest corner of
the lot owned by the Bechtolt family.
Cary Bechtolt said Trabucco has a pur-
chase and sale agreement to buy out
the family after getting the permit to
build.
The family has owned the lot since
the 1950s, he said, when his grandfa-
ther was a local fuel distributor. The
last brick-and-mortar store on the site
was a gas station that closed down in
the late 1990s.
“All we’ve really done is try to sell
it,” Bechtolt said of the site, which
has briefl y played host to food carts,
a wood -carver, a street fair and other
vendors and events.
Trabucco said the buildings will
help fi x a blighted portion of Astoria
and complete a node of development
including the Fisher Bros. Building
and Buoy Beer Co.
“Having some activity there and
some low-profi le structures, it’s a win
for everybody,” Trabucco said.
Edward Stratton/The Daily Astorian
Local developer Chester Trabucco
is planning a medical and financial
services buildings in a vacant lot at
the corner of Sixth Street and Ma-
rine Drive.