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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 1, 2019)
A4 THE DAILY ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, JANUARY 1, 2019 Director: Agency has struggled to attract, retain expert staff Continued from Page A1 a text message. “I trust that my leadership team and staff continue to respond to the needs of the community in my absence. I look forward to serving Clatsop County’s residents again soon.” Debbie Morrow, the chairwoman of the agen- cy’s board, could not imme- diately be reached for comment. Ben Paz, the agency’s crisis services manager, was named interim execu- tive director. “Every CBH employee deserves pri- vacy as it pertains to his or her employment, so I can’t really comment on those issues,” he said when asked to explain the cir- cumstances of Baker’s leave. “CBH does remain in a strong clinical posi- tion. No services are going to be impacted by current events.” Some of the staff at Clat- sop Behavioral Health- care, speaking privately to discuss internal opera- tions, are unnerved by the cryptic nature of Baker’s exit. The agency’s human resources director sent out an email Wednesday after- noon explaining Baker would be out of the offi ce for the next two weeks and that Paz would be their con- tact. On Thursday and Fri- day, sources said, word sur- faced that Paz was interim executive director. While Baker serves at the discretion of the agen- cy’s board, the county con- tracts with Clatsop Behav- ioral Healthcare to provide mental health coverage, so the county manager and the Board of Com- missioners have oversight responsibility. “We were kind of caught off guard by this, to say the least,” said Monica Steele, the county’s budget and fi nance director and assis- tant county manager. Baker arrived in June 2016 after three top admin- istrators at the mental health agency left under a cloud of management dysfunction, staff turnover, legal trou- ble and complaints about patient care. She was the director of prevention and trauma informed systems at Greater Oregon Behavioral Health Inc., which helps administer mental health treatment in Clatsop and several other counties. Over the past 2 1/2 years, Clatsop Behavioral Health- care has also operated a cri- sis respite center in Warren- ton and launched mobile crisis services to help relieve pressure on local hospi- tals and the county jail. The agency has partnered with Columbia Memorial Hos- pital in Astoria on medica- tion-assisted treatment to help combat opioid abuse. Baker emerged as a voice of compassion for the needy in policy debates over the homeless and a new county jail. She has also improved relationships between the mental health agency, the county and law enforce- ment through more frequent communication. But the agency, like many in rural areas, has struggled to attract and retain expert staff. Some staff also still complain privately about a toxic and unhealthy work environment. “I thought she’s been doing a good job,” said Scott Lee, who served as the chairman of the county commission. Josh Marquis, the former district attorney, has been critical in the past of the county’s handling of men- tal health treatment. “Amy has been much, much more responsive than most — if not all — of the previous CBH directors,” he said. “The only concern I’ve had is that there has been an alarming turnover. “But, in fairness, I think that probably has very little to do with Amy and more to do with the pay that’s offered and the nature of the work, which is very, very high intensity.” Mo’s: Will seat up to 200 diners Continued from Page A1 Jolee Bancroft, the com- pany’s president, said in a release. “We are so excited to bring our culture of fam- ily dining to this esteemed community.” Mo’s has been in Can- non Beach since 1991 and opened a new location and commercial chowder kitchen in Astoria in 2017. Shilo Inns reached out to Mo’s about moving into Seaside, said Riley Plesha, the restaurant’s director of marketing. The new location will have a mix of indoor and outdoor seating for up to 200 diners . The restaurant is closed for renovation until March or April. Representatives for Shilo Inns were not immediately available for comment. Council: It’s been rare to see more than three candidates run Continued from Page A1 Leahy is a former retail store owner and department store executive who grad- uated from Astoria High School. He has led Clat- sop Economic Development Resources and Clatsop Com- munity College’s Small Busi- ness Development Center for the past several years. CEDR provides business, fi nancial and workforce guidance to entrepreneurs and business owners in the region. Jessamyn West, the co-owner of the Odd Fellows B uilding downtown and the executive director of the Astoria Arts and Movement Center, has also applied for the vacancy. Clifford Hunter-Gammon, a software support manager, and Pamela Mattson McDon- ald, a writer and researcher, are the other applicants . Mattson McDonald ran for a position on the Clatsop Community College b oard in 2017, but was defeated by incumbent Patrick Wingard. “We were pleased that we had four people interested,” Jones said, noting that even for elections it has been rare to see more than three candi- dates run . Each applicant will have up to fi ve minutes to intro- duce themselves on Mon- day and talk about why they should be appointed . Jones said people in the audience will also have a chance to provide public comment before city councilors discuss the applicants and vote . Jones is also in the middle of considering appointments to several other city boards and has received a large num- ber of applications for each opening. “Lots of well-qualifi ed people,” the mayor-elect said. OREGON CAPITAL INSIDER Get the inside scoop on state government and politics! 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On Buy One, Get One Free (“BOGO”) offers, customer must purchase the first item to receive the second item free. BOGO offers are not 1/2 price sales. If only a single item purchased, the regular price applies. Manufacturers’ coupons may be used on purchased items only — not on free items. Limit one coupon per purchased item. Customer will be responsible for tax and deposits as required by law on the purchased and free items. No liquor sales in excess of 52 gallons. No liquor sales for resale. Liquor sales at licensed Safeway or Albertsons stores only. © 2019 Safeway Inc. or © 2019 Albertsons LLC. Availability of items may vary by store. Online and In-store prices, discounts and offers may differ. PG 1,Common 010219_POR_ROP_SA_8.722x17_DailyAstorian_V01_Common
