THE NORTH COAST’S BUSINESS GUIDE
146TH YEAR, NO. 22
INSIDE
ONE DOLLAR
DailyAstorian.com // TUESDAY, JULY 31, 2018
WORST COULD BE OVER
FOR RAZOR CLAMS
States keep close eye
on a popular draw
By KATIE FRANKOWICZ
The Daily Astorian
I
t’s a mix of good news and bad news
for razor clam populations in Oregon
and Washington state this summer.
Fishery managers say after sev-
eral years of strange ocean conditions and
harmful algae blooms, there’s a feeling
that the worst is behind them for now.
But Oregon Fish and Wildlife Com-
missioner Bruce Buckmaster fielded con-
cerns from original members of a shell-
fish task force earlier this year and will
be asking his fellow commissioners to
re-examine how the fishery operates in
Oregon.
Near the end of June, staff with the
Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife
saw numerous small razor clams being
dug up and either left behind on purpose
or inadvertently discarded as people dug
down in pursuit of larger clams. Under
state rules, diggers must take the first 15
clams they dig no matter the size. Buck-
master was asked if a seasonal closure
on Clatsop beaches could occur earlier,
in June rather than in July, to give small
clams more time to grow.
While Washington state opens por-
tions of the coast to clam diggers on a
case-by-case basis from October through
May, Oregon’s beaches are, for the most
part, open year-round — barring emer-
gency closures due to the presence of
marine toxins like domoic acid. A sea-
sonal closure also occurs on 18 miles of
beach north of Tillamook Head in Clat-
sop County from mid-July through Sep-
tember to give young clams a chance
to grow. This area receives the brunt of
the state’s digging activity and accounts
for 95 percent of the clams harvested in
Oregon.
SEASIDE
Details
released
in fatal
police
shooting
Man allegedly
refused to drop guns
Photos by Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian
Valerie Miranda holds a razor clam dug up from the sand in order to study
the species.
Valerie
Miranda
and Micah
Rodgers
with the
Oregon
Department
of Fish and
Wildlife
search for
razor clams
on the
beaches
near Fort
Stevens
State Park.
By JACK HEFFERNAN
and BRENNA VISSER
The Daily Astorian
SEASIDE — The Seaside man who was
shot and killed by police last week allegedly
refused an order to drop two black powder
pistols and appeared to be concealing one
of the guns behind his back, authorities said
today.
In the first detailed account of the July 24
shooting, Clatsop County Chief Deputy Dis-
trict Attorney Ron Brown said police first
responded to the Seasider RV Park after a
man was mauled by a dog and suffered seri-
ous injuries.
Officers left the scene but came back after
a report from a neighbor that Cashus Dean
Case, 44, armed himself and was seen wav-
ing the pistols. Case, who had helped the
man who was attacked by dogs, allegedly
threatened to kill the dogs.
See SHOOTING, Page 3A
Astoria
backs new
co-op design
“We just have to look at it.”
Bruce Buckmaster
See CLAMS, Page 3A
Oregon Fish and Wildlife Commissioner
City Council rejects
appeal from neighbors
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Daily Astorian
Staff with the Oregon
Department of Fish
and Wildlife collect
razor clams near Fort
Stevens State Park.
The Astoria City Council tentatively
approved plans for the Astoria Co-op Gro-
cery’s new store in Mill Pond after a three-
hour public hearing Monday night about the
building’s configuration and traffic impacts.
City Councilors Tom Brownson, Cindy
Price and Bruce Jones voted to deny an
appeal by Mill Pond residents, who have
taken issue with vehicle access to the store
from Steam Whistle Way next to their prop-
erties. Mayor Arline LaMear supported the
appeal. Councilor Zetty Nemlowill, the
co-op’s marketing director, recused herself.
The appeal packet, including voluminous
testimony for and against the co-op proj-
ect, was more than 300 pages. City Manager
Brett Estes said there would be a revised
set of city findings based on the additional
testimony.
See CO-OP, Page 3A
Crisis respite center still evaluating secure beds
An elusive promise
made under pressure
By DERRICK DePLEDGE
The Daily Astorian
WARRENTON — Two years after promis-
ing secure beds to keep potentially dangerous
mental health patients from walking away, the
crisis respite center is still evaluating whether
the option is needed and worth the cost.
The respite center found financial footing
in residential mental health treatment and cri-
sis care, a voluntary place for people after they
leave the hospital or county jail but are not
ready to go home.
The promise to have four of the 16 beds
secure, made under political pressure before the
respite center opened in July 2016, was put off
as the financial model evolved.
Amy Baker, the executive director of Clat-
sop Behavioral Healthcare, which operates the
respite center, is not convinced secure beds are
necessary. The respite center was not designed
for secure beds and the conversation at the time
the promise was made did not draw out all of
the obstacles.
“It’s never going to be what people wanted.
It’s not going to be a police drop-off, and it’s not
going to be a psychiatric hospital that basically
removes people from the community,” Baker
said.
People must be medically cleared by a hospi-
tal before they go to the respite center, a screen-
ing process that can help determine whether
drug and alcohol abuse or physical ailments are
fueling a mental health breakdown.
With secure beds — a Class 2 designation
from the Oregon Health Authority — mental
health patients could be locked at the respite
center, but staff could not use seclusion, restraint
See CENTER, Page 4A
Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian
The North Coast Crisis Respite Center in Warrenton has
stabilized financially as a residential treatment center for
mental health, but does not have secure beds.