COAST WEEKEND: ‘ENCHANTED APRIL’ OPENS FRIDAY IN CHINOOK INSIDE
DailyAstorian.com // THURSDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2018
146TH YEAR, NO. 69
ONE DOLLAR
CROSSED WIRES
Cannon Beach
emergency responders
look to fix spotty
radio communications
By BRENNA VISSER
The Daily Astorian
C
ANNON BEACH — For emer-
gency responders in Cannon
Beach, being able to communi-
cate with dispatch over the radio while on
a call in certain parts of South County is
always a gamble.
For years, some areas south of Tilla-
mook Head have earned reputations as
perpetual dead zones: Haystack Heights.
Sections of Tolovana. Large chunks of the
beach. Even parts of downtown.
So far, these gaps have not led to seri-
ous incidents, though some situations tee-
ter too close for comfort. Police Chief
Jason Schermerhorn remembers one offi-
cer’s struggle to call for backup in a dead
spot near Tolovana during a drunken-driv-
ing test on the side of the road.
“That’s their lifeline,” Schermerhorn
said.
Radio communication can be so
spotty near Hug Point that Fire Chief
Matt Benedict recalls a rescue operation
where he was close enough to see his
crew and still not able to reach them on
the radio.
Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian
See DISPATCH, Page 7A
Jennifer Peden monitors multiple computer screens at Astoria 911 Dispatch.
‘IT’S A BIG SAFETY ISSUE. IF I’M GOING TO SEND SOME
INDIVIDUALS INTO A BURNING HOUSE ON A REPEATED CHANNEL I
MAY NOT BE ABLE TO HEAR THEM EVEN IF I’M ABLE TO SEE THEM.’
Matt Benedict | fire chief
ELECTION 2018
Astoria, Warrenton candidates talk Roscoe, Wev bring
different styles
bonds, homelessness and housing
Candidates for
county District 3
Election forum
held in Astoria
By JACK HEFFERNAN
The Daily Astorian
By KATIE
FRANKOWICZ
The Daily Astorian
Candidates for city posts in
Astoria and Warrenton rarely
differed on key issues from
homelessness to housing at an
election forum in Astoria on
Wednesday night.
But they diverged when it
came to supporting the Clat-
sop County Jail bond.
The nine candidates were
asked which bonds on the
November ballot most bene-
fit the communities they rep-
resent: a $70 million bond to
modernize and improve the
Astoria School District’s build-
ings; a $38.5 million bond to
Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian
Candidates participate in a forum at Astoria High School.
purchase land and build a new
middle school out of the tsu-
nami inundation zone in War-
renton; or the $20 million bond
to relocate the jail from Asto-
ria to the former North Coast
Youth Correctional Facility in
Warrenton.
“The best way to help keep
children out of going to jail in
the future is to educate them,”
said Joan Herman, a planning
commissioner running for the
downtown Ward 3 seat on the
Astoria City Council against
state forester Ron Zilli.
Herman was silent on the
jail bond but added that if the
community doesn’t begin to
address school infrastructure
now, “it’s going to cost us a lot
more in the long run to try to
fix them and it may be a situa-
tion where children are at risk
more than they already are.”
Roger Rocka, a former
chamber of commerce director
running for the west side Ward
1 seat on the council against
hairdresser David Drafall, pri-
oritized the school bond in
Astoria. He wondered about
the costs of the new jail and
how inmates would be trans-
ported for court dates from the
new facility.
Zilli said jail improvements
are needed, but he also priori-
tized the school bond.
Michael “Sasha” Miller, a
community activist running
for Astoria mayor against City
Councilor Bruce Jones and
downtown business owner
Dulcye Taylor, was the only
candidate to state plainly that
he did not support the jail
bond.
John Washington, a Ham-
mond resident who is chal-
lenging Warrenton Mayor
Henry Balensifer, was the
only candidate who said voters
should support the jail bond,
since overcrowding at the jail
means lower-level offenders
are often released early. Wash-
ington also supports the War-
renton school bond, but
believes the school district and
city are going about it in the
wrong way.
The school bond was the
top priority for Balensifer. The
mayor said a school built out-
side of hazard areas will pro-
vide citizens with a place to
gather during emergencies.
Also, he added, the school
just needs more space. In Sep-
tember, the Warrenton Grade
School welcomed over 700
students, far more than the
building was designed to
serve.
Lack of housing emerged
as central concern for Astoria
candidates.
With several hotel propos-
als in the works, candidates
like Herman, Rocka and Dra-
fall want to see zoning changes
that open some areas for high-
er-density housing instead.
Jones, who is also deputy
director of the Columbia River
Maritime Museum, pushed
for multiuse development at
See CITIES, Page 7A
Their views were simi-
lar, but their presentations
weren’t.
Pamela Wev and Peter
Roscoe, the candidates for
the Clatsop County commis-
sion District 3 seat, partic-
ipated in an election forum
Wednesday night at Astoria
High School. Neither can-
didate offered many spe-
cific solutions to issues, rely-
ing instead on their distinct
experience and governing
philosophies.
They are running to rep-
resent parts of Astoria, Miles
Crossing, Jeffers Garden,
Lewis and Clark, Youngs
River, Olney, Green Moun-
tain and parts of Walluski.
Wev, a land use planner
who once served in former
Portland Mayor Vera Katz’s
administration, mentioned
her government experience.
She declared her desire for a
more open, deliberative form
of county governance.
“I would like to address
the issues facing the county
commission kind of the same
way I’ve done most of my
public service and my par-
enting. I like to listen,” she
said. “I’d like to bring a dif-
ferent atmosphere to the
county commission.”
Roscoe, a former Astoria
city councilor and restaura-
teur, touted his background
in local organizations and
connections with residents.
“You know, I’m just a guy
who grew up here,” he said.
“I know the ins and outs of
so many people in this com-
munity that I feel I can repre-
sent the community because
of that.
Don’t
waste
my
experience.”
One of the questions
posed to candidates centered
on homelessness.
See COUNTY, Page 7A
Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian
Peter Roscoe and Pamela Wev answer questions
during the election forum in Astoria.