ASTORIA OPEN STUDIOS TOUR 2018
146TH YEAR, NO. 119
COAST WEEKEND
INSIDE
ONE DOLLAR
DailyAstorian.com //
More than just a summer job
County
approves
lodging tax
for new jail
Money for jail operations
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Daily Astorian
Photos by Edward Stratton/The Daily Astorian
Mike Ward, a sawmill, logyard and truck shop manager at Hampton Lumber’s Warrenton mill, shows Clatsop Works
interns the area where fresh-cut lumber is stacked before being kiln-dried.
See TAX, Page 7A
Clatsop Works
connects students
to workforce
Authorities
identify man
killed by
Seaside police
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Daily Astorian
R
ebecca Sprengeler felt bad not being
able to take on shifts at her usual
summer job at Pelican Brewing Co.
in Cannon Beach, despite the need for
help during the busy tourist season.
But the recent Warrenton High
School graduate received a job offer
managing social media and helping
to market the Sunset Empire Park and
Recreation District in Seaside, more
in line with her goal of becoming a
graphic designer.
“I could just be working during the
summer, working at a restaurant down
in Cannon Beach, but this is helping me
get to where I want to be in the future,”
Sprengeler said.
Sprengeler is one of 16 students in
Clatsop Works, a new summer intern-
ship program to give local students an
introduction to the workforce.
Interns from Astoria, Warrenton and
Knappa high schools, along with Clat-
sop Community College, have taken up
a wide variety of full-time jobs around
the county with Sunset Empire, Berger-
son Construction Inc., Englund Marine
& Industrial Supply Co., Colum-
bia Memorial Hospital, Providence
Seaside Hospital, Hampton Lumber,
Ocean Crest Chevrolet Buick GMC,
The Clatsop County Board of Commission-
ers on Wednesday approved a 1 percent lodging
tax to help pay for jail operations, despite con-
certed opposition from the lodging and tourism
industries.
The new tax, which will take effect in January,
will generate an estimated $1.4 million annually in
revenue for the county and cities. By state law, 70
percent must be spent on tourism promotion, while
30 percent — an estimated $420,000 — can be used
for jail operations. The county already imposes a 9.5
percent lodging tax in unincorporated areas, in addi-
tion to state and city taxes. The new tax will apply
within and outside city limits.
The tax comes in advance of a $20 million bond
measure in November to move the Clatsop County
Jail from Astoria to the former North Coast Youth
Correctional Facility in Warrenton.
The vote to impose the tax was 3-1. Scott Lee,
Clatsop Works intern Rebecca Sprengeler, who recently graduated from
Warrenton High School, works on marketing and social media for the Sun-
set Empire Park and Recreation District.
Lum’s Auto Center, the Haystack Rock
Awareness Program, Martin North
Hospitality and Rickenbach Construc-
tion Inc.
Students spend each Wednesday in
professional development workshops
learning customer service, safety, com-
munication and other skills.
Local school districts and the col-
lege provided funding for the internship
program’s coordinator, Anna Stamper,
who led students through the process of
applying and interviewing for jobs.
“It’s very real-world,” Stamper said.
“The students negotiate their pay rate.”
One early entrant was Hampton
Lumber, which last year took on two
local high schoolers as part of a pilot
program. Cliff Tuttle, who oversees
special projects for Hampton Lum-
ber, said he’d spoken with Craig Hop-
pes, superintendent of Astoria schools,
about how to get kids more engaged
in school and ready for the workforce.
Hampton Lumber has also helped
expand career-technical courses at
Astoria High School.
“Everywhere, Hampton tries to take
on interns,” he said. “It was a natural
fit. We were surprised by the number of
kids who did not know about the oppor-
tunities” locally.
Case was allegedly
waving pistols
By BRENNA VISSER
The Daily Astorian
SEASIDE — Authorities said the man shot and
killed by Seaside police on Tuesday afternoon was
armed with two black powder pistols.
Cashus Dean Case, 44, of Seaside, was
allegedly waving the pistols at the Seasider RV
Park in anger after a man had been bitten by a dog.
He was shot by police after allegedly refusing to
disarm, according to the Clatsop County District
Attorney’s Office.
Authorities said the gunfire occurred after a con-
frontation, but did not say whether Case was point-
ing or waving the pistols at police. Black powder
pistols are antiques or reproductions of guns popu-
lar in the 1800s.
See CLATSOP WORKS, Page 7A
See SHOOTING, Page 7A
Warrenton considers zone change to spur growth
City leaders
want closer
look at traffic
By KATIE
FRANKOWICZ
The Daily Astorian
WARRENTON — A zone
change that would open up
property in Warrenton for
housing and business devel-
opment is on hold while city
leaders take a closer look at
potential traffic impacts.
The City Commission
voted Tuesday night to con-
tinue a hearing on a city-ini-
tiated zone change for about
‘IF YOU COMPARE IT TO THE STATEWIDE
GOALS AND GUIDELINES, IT’S REALLY
KIND OF A UNIQUE PARCEL THAT COULD
SATISFY YOUR BUILDABLE LANDS AND
GROWTH REQUIREMENTS.’
Mike Morgan | a planning consultant for Warrenton
20 acres of land between U.S.
Highway 101 and Spur 104 to
Aug. 14. Mayor Henry Balen-
sifer said he wanted more time
to read through a revised traf-
fic study that was only dis-
tributed to commissioners on
Monday.
The zone change and any
resulting development will
funnel more traffic onto side
streets and nearby Ensign
Lane, as well as Spur 104, city
consultants said.
Traffic is an issue the city
is particularly sensitive to right
now. Since the new Walmart
opened, county officials and
Warrenton police say the flood
of cars coming and going from
the store are creating new traf-
fic flow problems and exacer-
bating old ones.
Traffic flows impact quality
of life, and enhancing quality
of life in Warrenton is a com-
mission goal, Commissioner
Rick Newton said.
“While that spur road isn’t
particularly busy, some of the
proposed improvements are
going to cost a bit of money,”
Balensifer said, “and the ques-
tion is: Will (the Oregon
Department of Transportation)
do them? It’s one thing for us
to say, ‘Build and go, it’s good
go,’ and if ODOT doesn’t fol-
low up on their part, you’ve
just created a nightmare. Sure
you built it, but it’s not a
very great place to live or do
business.”
See WARRENTON, Page 7A