ASTORIA’S SEASON ENDS WITH LOSS TO BAKER SPORTS • 10A
DailyAstorian.com // MONDAY, OCTOBER 29, 2018
146TH YEAR, NO. 86
ONE DOLLAR
Mitchell
has money
edge for
state House
Spending higher
for open seat
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Daily Astorian
Amy Emmett
More than $230,000 has been spent so far
in the campaign between Democrat Tiffiny
Mitchell and Republican Vineeta Lower for
state House District 32.
Mitchell, a state child
welfare worker in Astoria,
spent $133,782 between
the end of the Democratic
primary in May and Fri-
day. Lower, an online schoolteacher from
Seaside, spent $98,453.
The campaign spending has largely focused
on television advertisements, mailers, door-to-
door contacts and social media outreach.
Mitchell has paid more than $77,000
to Winning Mark, a progressive campaign
strategy consultant based in Portland; nearly
$40,000 to Elevated Campaigns, a similar
progressive consulting firm; and more than
$21,000 to Kramer’s Metro Mailing.
Lower has paid more than $80,000 to
Jamestown Associates, a Republican political
advertising and campaign management firm;
and $4,000 to Victory Enterprises, a public
polling firm.
See MONEY, Page 7A
BY THE NUMBERS
• $403,781: Amount raised by Mitchell in
the primary and general election.
• $164,183: Amount raised by Lower in
the primary and general election.
• $211,889: Amount spent by Mitchell in
the primary and general election.
• $101,535: Amount spent by Lower in the
primary and general election.
Buehler calls
offshore
drilling ban a
‘distraction’
Musicians played on through a power outage Sunday afternoon at the Liberty Theatre.
THE BAND
PLAYED ON
Power outage during concert at Liberty Theatre
The Daily Astorian
A
power outage interrupted a con-
cert Sunday afternoon at the
Liberty Theatre, but did not
dampen the spirits of the musicians or
the audience.
The lights went out after a perfor-
mance by the North Coast Symphonic
Band and just before 3 Leg Torso was
preparing to take the stage.
Janet Bowler, who serves on the sym-
phonic band’s board, said 3 Leg Torso
decided to play an acoustic set. “The
audience supplied the lighting with their
cellphones and was delighted to hear the
five-piece band’s amazing ethnic tunes,”
she wrote in an email.
Teresa Bennett, who attended the per-
formance, wrote of “the wonderful natu-
ral acoustics of the old and vast theater.
Their inspiring performance had quite
a friendly and intimate vibe that while
some may have been a bit disappointed,
others were completely delighted by.”
After about 30 minutes into the set,
Bowler said, a Pacific Power regional
manager said the outage could continue
for a few hours, so the theater was evac-
uated for safety reasons.
About 1,350 customers in Astoria
lost power at 2:45 p.m., according to
Pacific Power. A pole fire — the cause of
which is unknown — on the 500 block of
Janet Bowler
Conductor Dave Becker and Courtney Von Drehle and Béla Balogh of 3 Leg
Torso announce the decision to leave the theater.
Franklin Avenue led to a smaller outage
at 11:30 a.m., said Tom Gauntt, a Pacific
Power spokesman. Workers determined
that a larger power outage was needed in
order to make repairs.
Power was restored by 4 p.m.
Republican brings
campaign to Astoria
By JACK HEFFERNAN
The Daily Astorian
State Rep. Knute Buehler called Gov.
Kate Brown’s offshore drilling ban a “dis-
traction” on Saturday during a campaign
visit to Astoria.
Brown signed an executive order Thurs-
day that directs state agencies to prevent
drilling off the Oregon Coast. The state con-
trols 3 miles of ocean off the shore.
A concert by cellphone light at the Liberty Theatre.
Teresa Bennett
See BUEHLER, Page 7A
Cannon Beach rallies behind beloved bartender
Response
to a cancer
diagnosis
By BRENNA VISSER
The Daily Astorian
ANNON BEACH —
Anyone who has stopped
for a beer after work from
Gearhart to Cannon Beach in
the past decade has likely met
Matt Owen.
Since moving to the North
Coast in 1999, Owen has been
behind the counter at hang-
outs like McMenamins, The
Driftwood, The Lumberyard
Grill & Rotisserie, and, most
C
Claire Demay
Matt Owen is the bar manager at the Cannon Beach Amer-
ican Legion Post 168.
recently, Cannon Beach Amer-
ican Legion Post 168.
Locally, he has earned a
reputation as one of the most
notable bartenders.
“I just kind of fell into (the
restaurant industry),” Owen
said. “It’s fun to get to be in
people’s lives. I never wanted
to be the guy who sat behind a
desk all day.”
But the customers he served
for years are now turning the
tables to serve him.
For about a year and half,
Owen, 36, was getting con-
stant migraines and blind
spots in his vision. At the end
of August, one migraine was
bad enough to send him to the
emergency room, and he was
flown to Portland for surgery
to remove a tumor.
About a month later, he was
diagnosed with brain cancer.
“I think I went numb when
I heard … And I’ve been numb
since then,” Owen said. “I’ve
been too busy trying to balance
my work, my daughter, family
… And how I’m going to pay
for all of this?”
See OWEN, Page 7A