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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (June 14, 2018)
7A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, JUNE 14, 2018 Walmart: ‘It takes a village to open a Walmart, to raise a Walmart’ Continued from Page 1A Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian People line up for the grand opening of the new Walmart store in Warrenton. Before customers could start to shop, the store held a ceremony that included music from the Warrenton High School marching band, a ribbon-cutting and speeches from Balensifer and state Sen. Betsy Johnson, D-Scappoose. Walmart General Manager Kim- berly Smith said the store had hired 250 employees, 98 percent of which are from the local community. She gave away $23,000 to community groups, including the Astoria Parks, Recreation and Community Foundation, Clatsop County’s Healthy Kids program and the local police and fire station. “It takes a village to open a Walmart, to raise a Walmart,” Smith said. “Wel- come to the Walmart family.” Construction began last September after years of planning. Smith and Chris Emmons, the Walmart support man- ager, said people have been approach- ing them for months to ask when the new store would open. “I can hardly shop for myself at other stores,” Smith said. “‘When are you open, when are you open?’ It’s been all about inviting everybody and obvi- ously the word got out. There was a lot more people here than I anticipated.” For Emmons, the opening is a chance to move back home. The Ore- gon native started working for Walmart 22 years ago in Newport. He moved for Walmart job opportunities eight times — from Oregon to Idaho, Montana and South Dakota. The Warrenton store means Emmons can move back to the coast from North Dakota and settle down for good. “Other cities aren’t as friendly (as Warrenton),” Emmons said. “I love the coast. I’m looking forward to the crazi- ness of the tourist season. I’m glad to be back.” Ann Thomson, a Seaside resident and one of the store’s first customers, sees Walmart as a positive change. “I think it’s good competition for the area,” she said. Vacancies: In 2017, 50 percent of job vacancies required previous experience Continued from Page 1A feel comfortable. Sure, we are one of the most wonderful places, but without a place to stay, workers will move on.” In Seaside, Owen has seen more and more busi- ness reduce operating hours or days in response to not enough staff to cover shifts. While the effects are largely seen in small mom-and-pop shops, the phenomenon has even closed national chains like Taco Time down to only five days a week. “It has made business decisions for business own- ers,” he said. At Pelican Brewing in Cannon Beach, lack of afford- able housing has led CEO Jim Prinzing to invest more in local real estate to house his workers. Pelican Brew- ing operates seven apartment units on site and a house in Manzanita for its employees. Even with housing, the brew- ery operates at 10 to 15 per- cent below capacity at peak season, Prinzing said. “There are people who want to come and work for us who just have no place to live,” Prinzing said. “We’d continue to offer benefits to full-time employees and competitive wages to make the job worth their while. But I don’t think we’d be paying for housing.” ‘The right person’ Another struggle is finding qualified employees. In 2017, 50 percent of job vacancies required previous experience. In a county with only 742 people listed as unemployed, finding talent in a small pool can be tough. “Most who want to be working are working,” Sykes said. Lisa Kinsley, the general manager in human resources at McMenamins, experi- enced this firsthand when the company sought to fill eight new housekeeping positions for an expansion project in Gearhart. They managed to do it, but only through intense net- working and by raising pay a few dollars an hour. “The Oregon Coast has a lot of hotels, so there’s a lot of competition for housekeeping staff,” Kinsley said. Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian A line of people wait to place an order at Tsunami Sand- wich Co. in Seaside. The hotel and restau- rant chain has struggled the most with finding qualified kitchen staff — jobs the state has identified as some of the toughest to fill. McMenam- ins has 20 vacancies, mostly related to kitchen operations, before being at capacity for a typical summer rush. With lack of affordable housing keeping new tal- ent away, that leaves many in the hospitality industry to compete for a limited pool of experienced staff already on the North Coast, Kinsley said. That’s part of the reason David Posalski, the owner of Tsunami Sandwich Co. in Seaside, turned to employ- ing foreign exchange stu- dents on work-study visas six years ago. Another issue is that fewer local high school students are seeking summer jobs, and those who do want to work fewer hours. Posalski tried offering flexible schedules and end- of-summer bonuses to keep local kids on, but ultimately would find many weren’t willing to work the number of hours he needed to oper- ate, he said. Students on the work- study visas, however, are here to work, Posalski said. “When you interview them, the first question they ask is ‘How many hours can I work?’” he said. “These kids, from Bulgaria and Lithuania, they want to work 60 to 70 hours a week. Because here, you can work for a summer and make a year’s worth of income back home.” Impacts When the summer crowds hit, local businesses say they will be ready to serve — with or without vacancies. But readiness will come at a cost. If 20 positions at McMenamins aren’t filled, the company will have to continue paying for wages, travel and hotel expenses for staff they bring in from Port- land to fill shifts. At Pelican Brewing, run- ning without a full staff means sometimes closing off certain sections of the restaurant or slower food times — realities that ultimately impact profit- ability, Prinzing said. “You get creative. You make it work,” he said. “You get to the point where you can make it through the day, but you can’t do those extra things.” For now, businesses are making it work. But if prob- lems persist, there could be a breaking point. “We are fortunate enough to have three locations. We’re diversified. If we were one standalone restaurant it would be exceptionally challenging to handle housing,” Prinzing said. “It makes you think seriously about whether it’s worth expanding on the coast. That’s probably the most sig- nificant impact of all this.” CLASSIFIEDS WE GETRESULTS THE DEADLINE FOR CLASSIFIED ADS is 1 p.m. the day before your ad is scheduled to run All classifieds require pre-payment 104 Special Notices SOLICITATION FOR BIDS and REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS: The City of Astoria’s Parks and Recreation Department is currently seeking bids for landscape maintenance ser- vices at multiple Park prop- erties, bids for janitorial ser- vices at Park restrooms, and is seeking qualified individu- als or businesses to provide Marketing and Communica- tions services for the Depart- ment. Inquiries for all three outreaches can be directed to Jonah Dart-Mclean at jdart@astoria.or.us EVERYTHING is coming up results when you use a classified ad! 104 Special Notices Do you love libraries? Enjoy history? The Astoria Public Library is conducting Preservation training on June 28, 2018 from 9 am to 3 pm. Training will prepare volunteers to work in the archives located in the library basement. Space is limited to 30 people. Volunteers may call the library at 503-325-7323 or 503-298-2450 to apply and obtain further details. 107 Public Notices A small-town newspaper with a GLOBAL OUTLOOK Occasionally other companies make telemarketing calls off classified ads. These companies are not affiliated with The Daily Astorian and customers are under no obligation to participate. If you would like to contact the attorney general or be put on the do not call list, here are the links to both of them Complaint form link: http://www.doj.state.or.us/ finfraud/ www.DailyAstorian.com 181 Lost & Found Lost June 8th L380 Nikon Camera Screen saver of quaker parrot bathing in a bowl. No ID Contains photos of beloved pets. Irreplaceable memories. $150 reward (503)325-9004 301 RVs & Travel Trailers 2003 Itasca Class A Sun Cruiser for sale 31ft. Gas. Ford V10. Pristine condition. 503-861-3598 Beautiful brand-new Jayco Jay Flight 25- foot 2017 travel trailer Model 212QBW Purchased in the summer of 2017 and never used. Comfortable, airy, well-de- signed travel trailer with lots of windows, a skylight, elec- tric canopy, air-condition- ing, radio, microwave and all the usual features in this best-selling model. Purchased in anticipation of travel but plans have changed. We literally have not spent a single night in it and it has not left our Il- waco driveway since being delivered from Portland. $18,000. 360-642-7116; Please leave msg. Let your pockets “jingle” with extra cash from The Daily Astorian classifieds. 481 Freebies Truck Canopy for Chevy S10 or GMC S15 Needs rear window. (503)325-7345 504 Homes for Sale Call DANIELLE today to place your ad 5033253211 or 800-781-3211 x231 Email: classifieds@dailyastorian.com Web: www.dailyastorian.com 616 Rooms & Roommates Rooms to let CE PUBLISHER’S NOTICE 651 Help Wanted All real estate advertising in this newspaper is subject to the Fair Housing Act which makes it illegal to advertise “Any preference, limitation or discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status, or national origin, or an intention to make any such preference, limitation or discrimination.” Familial status includes children under the age of 18 living with parents or legal custodians; pregnant women and people securing custody of children under 18. This newspaper will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of the law. Our readers are hereby informed that all dwellings advertised in this newspaper are available on an equal opportunity basis. To complain of discrimination call HUD at 1(800)669-9777. The toll free telephone number for the hearing impaired is 1(800)927-9275. Riley’s Restaurant in Seaside is looking for line cooks. Come in and apply 1104 S Holladay Drive 604 Apartments Emerald Heights 2 & 3 bedroom large & small apartments available (503)325-8221 SOCIAL ANXIETY? Send an email to: classifieds@dailyastorian.com to place a classified ad without picking up a phone! BEACH BURRITO WANTS YOU! Friendly, outgoing persons please apply from 2-5pm at Beach Burrito Contractors needed immediately Starting pay $15-$20 DOE Call 971-320-0544 SUBWAY WANTS YOU Friendly, outgoing persons please apply from 2-5pm at all North Coast Subways 651 Help Wanted Concrete Worker/Finisher Needed Valid ODL and pre-drug screening. Call (503)440-2382 or email rpromconcrete@aol.com Full-Time Employment Help wanted: Construction Laborer $14.00/per hour ASTORIA, OR 503-440-1573 Part-Time Employment We have housekeeping positions available! Manzanita, OR 503-368-7701 info@oceaninnatmanzanita. com CASH buyers are reading your classified ad. The City of Cannon Beach is seeking qualified applicants for the position of Utility Worker II in the wastewater division . Full details at ci.cannon-beach.or.us/jobs
