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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (April 3, 2018)
6A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, APRIL 3, 2018 editor@dailyastorian.com KARI BORGEN Publisher JIM VAN NOSTRAND Editor Founded in 1873 JEREMY FELDMAN Circulation Manager DEBRA BLOOM Business Manager JOHN D. BRUIJN Production Manager CARL EARL Systems Manager OUR VIEW Bus system marks significant milestone T he Sunset Empire Transportation District is celebrating a quarter-century of service to the North Coast community. That astonishing milestone is a testimony to the founders of the organi- zation, who saw a need for a publicly financed bus system in the early 1990s and worked to make it happen. The system grew from small, private means. Executive Director Jeff Hazen routes which operated without a pub- and his team continue to enhance opera- lic subsidy. Knappa mink farmer Jack tions to make the service more efficient Davies ran a bus system in Astoria in and friendly to riders. the 1980s and Robert Brown operated One of the most important facets of a small, dilapidated the transit system is bus between Astoria the manner in which it One of the most and Seaside. In 1991, links in with neighbor- important facets ing counties, in part the Clatsop County through the Northwest Commission con- of the transit system vened a task force and Connector program. is the manner in two years later the Leaders recognize that board voted to cre- jurisdictional boundar- which it links in ate a new countywide ies simply don’t mat- with neighboring transportation district ter to passengers who counties, in using a state transit might travel across grant as seed money. the Astoria Bridge part through the By 1999, Sunset from Pacific County Northwest Connector in Washington state, Empire had taken over all public trans- change buses at the program. portation services in Astoria Transit Center, the county. then head inland Many residents of Clatsop County through Columbia County or down the who jump into their cars or pickups to Oregon Coast to Tillamook. drive across town may not think that The transit center in central Astoria bus service is a priority. But for people is an ideal location for travelers to link who don’t own cars, especially students in with the Northwest Point buses, attending Clatsop Community College, which offer a handy and reason- ably priced alternative to driving to or those who work some distance from Portland to enjoy the city, link up with home, the bus is vital for them to carry Amtrak trains or Greyhound buses, or out their daily lives. Leaders of the transit system are take convenient Max connections to deservedly celebrating the milestone the Portland International Airport and and are due a pat on the back. But they beyond. are not resting on their laurels by any Our transit system’s operations Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian A Sunset Empire bus sits waiting for passengers at the transit center in Astoria. made headlines of the wrong kind in 2011 when a manager’s personal dif- ficulties prompted her departure and a major overhaul in the manner in which the agency’s finances were han- dled. Additionally, changes in the board lineup since then have been instrumen- tal in settling things down. A 2016 long-range planning report spearheaded by Hazen was a blueprint for growth. One key was recognition of the need to provide much-needed, reli- able service for people working in tour- ism industry jobs in Seaside and Cannon Beach who could not find affordable housing in those communities and needed to commute from Warrenton and Hammond. Another was to begin plan- ning to predict workers’ and shoppers’ transit needs when the Walmart store opens in Warrenton. The report noted that in each of the years between 2012 are 2014 there were more than 150,000 passengers on the fixed routes (this does not include peo- ple using the dial-a-ride service). Whether you ride the bus every day or once or twice a year, it is an import- ant part of the fabric of our commu- nity that we must never take for granted. It’s a pleasure to join other agencies, organizations and individuals in salut- ing the Sunset Empire for marking this milestone. ogy took the mattresses away and charged us for only the original quote. Recology is to be commended for their contribution to this event. Please, please put your waste in the proper areas, recycle when you can, and honor this beautiful, fragile ecosystem in which we live. CARRIE NYLAND Warrenton guys around the high school, and some had knives. But at that time, there were no guns. And no one was killed. With fists or a knife you have to directly confront the person you intend to harm. With guns like those used in the awful school shootings in the past few years, the most cra- ven coward can kill from a distance; ran- domly, efficiently, anonymously, and at no personal risk. Almost like a computer shooter game. ROGER ROCKA Astoria LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Foster care problem must be addressed I am writing to recognize the efforts of our community on behalf of children in foster care in Clatsop County. I recently attended the annual Court Appointed Special Advo- cates (CASA) fundraiser at the Bridgewater Bistro. I am familiar with the indispensable role played by the CASA volunteers, due to my 24 years representing both parents and children in the juvenile dependency system. CASA volunteers advocate with dedica- tion and love for these children, who must endure separation from parents and siblings for long periods of time. Judges and attor- neys alike are grateful for the help provided by CASA. That said, I would be remiss if I did not raise up the social workers and support staff at the Oregon Department of Human Ser- vices, Astoria branch, for their efforts, as well. We appreciate the selfless and compas- sionate efforts of these state workers. That said, an audit by the Oregon Secre- tary of State’s office flagged significant prob- lems with the foster care program. There were 11,000 children in foster care in 2017. This report pointed out three areas of pri- mary concern: • Chronic management shortcomings. • Chronic understaffing, burnout and high turnover. • Too few foster placements, and strug- gles to retain existing foster home and fos- ter parents. If we are to invest in our children’s future, and avoid more costly solutions to children who are abused and neglected, changes need to be made. Legislative oversight is criti- cal, and increased funding ought be consid- ered. If elected as your state representative, I will dedicate myself to making changes to address this unfortunate foster care problem. JOHN F. ORR Democratic candidate for Oregon House, District 32 Astoria Vote Orr for state representative I would like to encourage everyone to vote for John Orr to represent District 32 in the Oregon House of Representatives. I have known and worked alongside John for many years. John has been a resident of the county for 25 years. John will do his research, find the facts, lis- ten to the people, and make the best decision for us. John has years of training and expe- rience in public speaking, negotiation, and problem solving. I know if John is voted to represent me in the House of Representatives he has my best interests. ROBERT BURK Hammond Leave the elk alone I am writing in reference to the article “Gear- hart, Warrenton join forces against elk” (The Daily Astorian, March 22). We have owned our home in Gearhart since 1994. In the intervening time, we have noticed an increasing number of elk in and around Gearhart. We believe this increase coincides with increasing development and loss of habitat. The elk are an indication of balance disrupted. Please consider elk as displaced through no fault of their own. Human decisions regarding development apparently failed to take into account the plight of various fauna where their normal environment was bulldozed, paved, and otherwise rendered uninhabitable. Currently we vote to leave the elk alone. Use education and fundraising to improve elk habitat and lure them away from towns and from people. Support land conservancy and green space throughways. Use herding dogs on the golf course. Be creative with the nui- sance element of the elk. And don’t minimize the tourist attraction. Ultimately, we must hold the developers accountable for damages to the homeown- ers’ landscaping, dangerous encounters with protective herd mentality, and general prob- lems within the townscape. Do not discount the effect of the destruction of the elk envi- ronment that formerly held them in their usual quiet, forest habitat. When developers, such as big box stores and the city of Warrenton Business Park, cre- ate the disruption to habitat, the remedia- tion should be upon their shoulders and out of their pockets. And to feign surprise is disingenuous. NANCY DOTY DRUMMOND Gearhart Please honor our beautiful ecosystem O ur group, Indivisible North Coast Ore- gon-Warrenton, is applying to the Adopt- a-Highway program as a means of public service. While looking about for an available loca- tion to perform this service, I came upon two discarded mattresses by the side of the road, on U.S. Highway 101 near milepost 16, in view of passers-by and becoming waterlogged in our rains. Several authorities, county and state, were contacted about removing this debris. Because there was a debate on whose land (county or state) the mattresses lay, no removal took place. Recology was called, and indicated that there would a pickup fee plus a per item fee. Our group agreed to pay the fee, as the mat- tresses were such an unpleasant eyesore. By the time Recology arrived to do the pickup, a third mattress had appeared. Recol- Limit private ownership of military weapons T he Second Amendment protects only the ownership of military-type weap- ons appropriate for use in “a well regulated militia.” The only one I’m aware of is the National Guard, and I’m fine with them hav- ing military weapons, even fighter jets. But isn’t it reasonable to limit private own- ership of weapons to those that are not pri- marily designed for the purpose of killing people? The Supreme Court ruled in 1939 that sawed-off shotguns are not protected. And, I think logic tells us that rapid-fire weapons with high-capacity magazines are not pro- tected, either. If you’re going to jump up and down about your gun rights and the Second Amendment, you really have to include the whole thing, including “a well regulated militia.” A bunch of loose guns running around in camouflage gear doesn’t really fit the definition. There are plenty of other gun choices to satisfy every wish for hunting, target shooting, and personal protection. Let’s leave the killing machines to the military and National Guard. I grew up in a tough neighborhood on the south side of Chicago. There were some bad What a privilege E arly on Sunday morning, following the crucifixion of Jesus, a small group of ladies approached the place where he had been buried. Their hearts were heavy. Many tears had been shed. Hope had vanished. In their minds he was dead. Now all they could do was show their love and respect by anoint- ing his dead body with spices. All of that quickly changed, for the grave was empty. An angel of the Lord delivered wonderful news, “Do not be afraid … he is not here, for he has risen.” That angel also instructed the ladies to go and share the good news. Tell others. Jesus is alive. (Matthew 28:1-8) His resurrection indicates several import- ant facts. He is the Son of God, just as he said he was. He overcame Satan. He overcame death. Thus, we know he can deliver all of his promises, including an eternal home in heaven for the faithful. Those ladies were selected to be the first to share that good news, but it’s our privilege to do so as well. KEN TIPPS Astoria Church of Christ
