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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 6, 2018)
DailyAstorian.com // TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 6, 2018 146TH YEAR, NO. 92 ONE DOLLAR Police delay plans to move homeless Some campers claim disabilities By KATIE FRANKOWICZ The Daily Astorian Photos by Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian The rock formation looms large in the background as waves crash along Cannon Beach. Who visits Haystack Rock? New survey delves into where visitors come from and how often Astoria police will delay moving home- less people out of the woods. Officers had planned to begin clearing camps today after posting cleanup notices and talking to campers last week. But police have delayed the sweeps until Friday after two homeless people camping in the woods, claiming disabilities, sent notices to the city under the Fair Housing Act. They asked for more time to clean up their camps and find somewhere else to go, Police Chief Geoff Spalding told the City Council. While the federal law is not necessar- ily applicable in this situation, Spalding said, “We don’t want to get in the business of making determinations if somebody has a disability or not, and it’s entirely possible they do.” Both homeless people told police they would likely be moved out of the woods sooner than Friday, but Spalding decided that if they were going to extend the deadline for two people, they might as well extend it for everyone who received notices. Police had gone out last week to tag roughly a dozen sites identified in September. Of the 12 sites, nine were occupied. See HOMELESS:, Page 7A By BRENNA VISSER The Daily Astorian C Businesses want help with bridge project ANNON BEACH — A recent survey shows visitors at Hay- stack Rock like to come often and from places outside of Oregon. The survey, facilitated by the feder- ally and state-funded Oregon Sea Grant, was conducted over six weeks this sum- mer to study the demographics of those who visit the 235-foot sea stack each year. While Haystack Rock Awareness Program has tracked the number of vis- itors for years — which has now topped more than 90,000 — this is the first time the group has seen a better look at the demographics. “We really wanted to learn about why visitors came here,” said Melissa Key- ser, program director of the Haystack Rock Awareness Program. “We wanted to ask them who they are and figure out how well we were educating them, so we can learn how to better engage with them.” Over the course of the summer, Dylan Rozansky, the marine science scholar chosen by the awareness program to conduct the study, interviewed people at the beach and at educational events, and collected data from online surveys. He asked beachgoers questions about where they traveled from, whether they had See HAYSTACK ROCK, Page 7A Haystack Rock is the site of nesting grounds for several endangered bird species. ‘WE REALLY WANTED TO LEARN ABOUT WHY VISITORS CAME HERE. WE WANTED TO ASK THEM WHO THEY ARE AND FIGURE OUT HOW WELL WE WERE EDUCATING THEM, SO WE CAN LEARN HOW TO BETTER ENGAGE WITH THEM.’ Disruption along the waterfront By KATIE FRANKOWICZ The Daily Astorian Business owners at the base of 11th Street pleaded with the Astoria City Council for help Monday night, saying foot traffic and profits have plummeted now that major con- struction work on three waterfront bridges is underway. “We understand that this project must go on but — help!” said Karen Allen, who with her husband, Steve, owns Astoria Brewing Co. and the Pier 11 building. The Allens estimate they will see a loss of $100,000 to $200,000 for one business Melissa Keyser | program director of the Haystack Rock Awareness Program See BRIDGE PROJECT, Page 7A Wendy’s to start building soon in Warrenton Company hopes to hire 50 people By EDWARD STRATTON The Daily Astorian WARRENTON — The owners of a proposed Wendy’s in Warrenton hope to begin construction by Thanksgiving, hire about 50 people and open by mid-March. Group W AKSAN Warren- ton recently closed on about one-half of an acre in the War- renton Highlands shopping center at the southwest cor- ner of Ensign Lane and U.S. Highway 101. The site will be Steve Harris’ 26th Wendy’s franchise. Harris’ company runs 25 other restaurants in the Pacific Northwest and is part of AKSAN United Fortune Inc., a chain of more than 60 Wendy’s restaurants throughout the West. He was attracted to Warrenton by the year-round local popu- lation and central location in a large shopping center, he said. Construction is expected to take about 14 weeks, said Jason Graber, a facilities coor- dinator with AKSAN United Fortune. The 2,400-square foot store will include seating for 40, an outdoor patio and nine parking spots. About two-thirds of Wen- dy’s customers will come through the drive-thru ringing the property, Harris said. The restaurant will begin recruiting up to 50 employees starting early next year, and staffing will eventually settle in at around 40, Harris said. Finding workers will likely be difficult, with Clat- sop County and the state at the lowest rate of unemployment since at least the 1970s. Other companies have reported issues finding workers, and workers have had difficulty finding affordable housing. See WENDY’S, Page 7A AKSAN United Fortune Inc. A 2,400-square-foot Wendy’s restaurant planned for the Warrenton Highlands shopping center will include a nar- row rectangular restaurant with seating for 40, an outdoor patio and a drive-thru ringing the property.