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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 10, 2018)
146TH YEAR, NO. 30 WEEKEND EDITION // FRIDAY, AUGUST 10, 2018 ONE DOLLAR Oregon ranks first for homeless youth BUOY 10 New report examined two dozen indicators of child welfare By PARIS ACHEN Capital Bureau SALEM — Oregon ranks first in the nation for the rate of homeless children and youth and 10th in the percentage of foster care placements, according to a new report by WalletHub. Overall, Oregon ranked 12th in the ratio of disadvantaged, or “underprivileged” chil- dren, compared with Washington state, which ranked 26th, and California, which was 22nd. The report compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 24 child welfare metrics using statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau and other sources. Metrics included the percentage of chil- dren living in poverty, the rate of child food insecurity, the state’s share of children who have been reported abused and other factors. In Oregon, the rate of homeless chil- dren and foster care placements have some correlation. The state’s number of homeless students was at a record high in 2016-17 at 22,541, according to the most recent state count. That was a 5.6 percent jump from 2015-16. Meanwhile, inadequate housing is the See YOUTH, Page 6A Art Garden takes seed Artists step into downtown space By EDWARD STRATTON The Daily Astorian Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian A fishing boat heads out from the Hammond Marina to catch salmon during the Buoy 10 season. See a photo gallery on Page 5A Michael Bruhn’s Art Garden at 11th and Duane streets has taken seed with the relo- cation of Astoria Visual Arts and two other independent artists. Oscar de’Masi started his gallery shortly after Bruhn bought the building, and after a long sabbatical from art. A native of Naples, Italy, de’Masi immigrated to New York City at the age of 15. “I stopped painting when I came to the U.S.,” he said. “To go to another country, it’s traumatic.” At 17, de’Masi joined the Navy. He later worked in the casino and restaurant industry of Las Vegas before relocating with his wife, Patricia, last year to the North Coast. He has a son stationed at the Coast Guard’s Aids to Navigation Team at Tongue Point and a daughter who works for Lum’s Auto Cen- ter. He started painting again four years ago and eventually ran out of space for his art at home before renting from Bruhn. In front of his studio at 395 11th St. is a gallery filled with his paintings, from sto- See ART, Page 6A Burgers and tacos served up at bAKos New food cart opens in downtown Astoria By EDWARD STRATTON The Daily Astorian Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian Alec Evans and Kelsi Beek prepare to open bAKos, the newest food truck in Astoria. Alec Evans and Kelsi Beek have been close friends since attending culinary school in Iowa. The two relocated five years ago to the North Coast, where they both work as cooks at the Astoria Coffeehouse & Bistro. On Saturday, they will debut bAKos, their from-scratch, Midwestern-inspired burger and taco food cart at the corner of 11th and Duane streets. “When we lived in Iowa, my mom and dad were the owners of a biker bar, and we would set up and sell stuff out of there,” Beek said. The pair hatched their plans for a restau- rant in Iowa and kept waiting for the right opportunity. Their chance came when Michael Bruhn, the helicopter mechanic who purchased the downtown property in a fore- closure auction, announced he was searching for food carts. Evans and Beek acquired and converted the former DJ’s Vinyl Vegan cart. They passed their health inspection Thursday and began to prep for the weekend crowds for Astoria Regatta and Second Saturday Art Walk. Their cart will serve burgers and tacos on fry bread-like shells or vegan corn tortillas. Tacos will come filled with Korean pork, chicken fajita, Cajun prawn, ground beef and vegan textured vegetable protein. The burg- See CART, Page 6A
