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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 24, 2018)
LETTERS TO SANTA • INSIDE DailyAstorian.com // MONDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2018 146TH YEAR, NO. 126 ONE DOLLAR Santa delivers the goods at Armory A reward for volunteers By EDWARD STRATTON The Daily Astorian Photos by Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian Cannon Beach had hoped to develop the South Wind property into an elementary school. The city is now considering a new City Hall and police station on the site. Cannon Beach gets a reality check on South Wind A high cost for development ‘THE PEOPLE ARE SO NICE. THEY WATCH OUT FOR YOU.’ Aubrie Haskell | youth volunteer at the Armory By BRENNA VISSER The Daily Astorian C ANNON BEACH — G eo- technical fi ndings are raising new questions about develop- ing South Wind, a 55-acre, city-owned property which for years has been con- sidered the long-term solution to mov- ing critical services out of tsunami danger . SRG, a P ortland-based architecture fi rm, submitted a report to the City Council last week detailing the bene- fi ts, downsides and costs of building a new City Hall and p olice s tation . Across the board, the project is esti- mated to be more expensive than the city anticipated, ranging from $14.5 million to almost $28 million, depend- ing on the location. A one-story building along Hem- lock Street would cost about $14.5 million and would not be tsunami resistant. A two-story building south and to the east of the existing City Hall on Gower Street would be resistant to a medium-size tsunami and cost about $16 million. At South Wind, however, the esti- mates jump to between $27.2 mil- lion and $27.7 million, depending on whether the city chooses to build out utilities for the benefi t of future proj- ects. The high price tag is largely because of the signifi cant work engi- neers believe will need to be done to offset landslide risks . The full geotechnical analysis is still underway and won’t be completed Skaters at the Astoria Armory got a surprise Friday from Santa, who passed out hundreds of locally donated toys and beanies. Robyn Koustik, the manager of the Friends of the Astoria Armory, said she tries to organize Christmas events each year for the children who attend Friday and Saturday skate nights . The Friends recently received a donation of about 400 toys from Dollar Tree by way of the Asto- ria Elks Lodge. Sara Moritz-Crowell, a friend of Armory volunteers, added 40 beanies. “I really enjoy helping out the commu- nity and just thought it was a good thing to do,” Moritz-Crowell said. “I actually just started up my own knit business. Just trying to get my name out there a little bit.” A new report is raising questions about the feasibility of developing the South Wind property in Cannon Beach. until January, but preliminary fi ndings suggest that addressing landslide risks could be more complicated and expen- sive than previously understood, add- ing “the potential of tens of millions of dollars” on top of the $27 million estimate , said Lisa Patterson, an SRG architect. “It’s bad. We have to mitigate through it,” Patterson said. The report is shedding new light on the fi nancial and logistical realities of South Wind . “I’m struggling with why we would still contemplate South Wind after see- ing those kinds of numbers and hear- ing these kinds of risks, even though it gets us out of the extra-large tsunami range,” City Councilor Mike Bene- fi eld said. “Are you willing to spend $15 million more for an area that may be out of the tsunami range but may slide down the hill in the end? The geology there seems much worse than I ever envisioned.” The beanies went to the youth vol- unteers at the Armory who keep watch and promote good behavior during skate nights. Aubrie Haskell has been volun- teering over the past month . Along with her beanie, she walked away Friday with a stuffed bear and a jump rope she plans to give to her sisters. “It’s just so nice,” she said of the Armory. “The people are so nice. They watch out for you.” Haskell is one of nearly 80 volunteers between 5 and 15 years old at the Armory, at least half of whom Koustik estimates are low-income. “For them, I think it’s a cool sta- tus, with the lanyard and the made-up names,” Koustik said. Koustik runs anti-bullying, youth vol- unteering, roller derby and other commu- nity service programs aimed at promoting good behavior . Her focus is catching kids before high school to steer them away from bad choices , she said. An emergency building Conversations about replacing City Hall resurfaced earlier this year at the urging of City Manager Bruce St. Denis, who had concerns about how the existing building would fare in a tsunami or earthquake . “It was never meant to be an emer- gency building,” St. Denis said. The idea is for the city to have a more suitable emergency opera- tions center, with the majority of the See Property, Page A5 Edward Stratton/The Daily Astorian Aubrie Haskell, right, was surprised Friday at the Astoria Armory with a stuff ed bear and a jump rope from Santa, played by Jeff Daly, and his helper, Dan Stein. Warrenton man to compete in skateboard challenge McClelland will try to skate 200 miles By JACK HEFFERNAN The Daily Astorian WARRENTON — When Randy McClelland was given a skateboard as a birth- day gift at 3, he couldn’t have known that it would prepare him for a unique — and exhausting — hobby. McClelland, 47, of War- renton, was forced to quit long-distance running in 2015 because of a lung con- dition. Instead, he picked up a skateboard. For the third year, McClel- land will combine his pas- sion for endurance and skat- ing in a grueling challenge. In January, he will ride in the 24-Hour Ultraskate at a race- track in Miami, where he will attempt to skate 200 miles. “When I go down there, I believe it’s an opportunity to recycle my own energy,” he said. Dozens of people, with various skill sets, typically ride in the event, which will start on a Friday at 8 a.m. Competitors will race on the Homestead-Miami Speed- way, a NASCAR track. In his fi rst year compet- ing in the challenge, McClel- land skated 120 miles and was forced to stop near the 14-hour mark due to a hair- line fracture in his foot. Last year, he skated 160 miles in 20 hours. Event organizers recog- nize personal-record pla- teaus, including the 200-mile mark. “That’s turned out to be a big deal to me,” McClelland said. McClelland, director of strategic initiatives at Columbia Memorial Hospi- tal in Astoria, has also used the event to raise funds for local causes. Last year, he raised $5,000 for the hospi- tal’s Friendship Fund, which helps caregivers after cri- ses such as house fi res, crit- ical illnesses, deaths in the family and other traumatic events. This year, McClelland will support the Assistance League of the Columbia Pacifi c, which promotes child wellness and self-esteem . “There’s nothing formal about it, you know. I’m just asking people I know if they Jack Harris Photography See Skater, Page A5 Randy McClelland participates in 24-hour Ultraskate events.
