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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 10, 2019)
A7 THE DAILY ASTORIAN • THuRSDAY, JANuARY 10, 2019 Health: County hopes to issue proposal requests by end of February Continued from Page A1 New contracts in July Clatsop Behavioral Healthcare, a private non- profit, is the county’s long- time mental health contrac- tor. The agency expanded over the years to also pro- vide the county with addic- tion treatment and care for people with developmental disabilities. The contracts expire in June. The county hopes to issue requests for proposals by the end of February and close the bidding by the end of March. After the bids are scored, county commission- ers would review the pro- posals and award new con- tracts effective in July. “CBH is welcome to, of course, apply, and encour- aged to apply,” Steele told county commissioners. But she said “it’s good to make sure that we aren’t being stagnant and just letting somebody assume that they will always receive a con- tract renewal.” The county — the local mental health authority — will likely demand timely access to information about staff and operational matters as a condition of the new contracts. “My vision is to make sure that we won’t have the same situation happening now, where we don’t have any information whatso- ever, and it’s really hard to get anything out of them,” said Michael McNickle, the county’s public health director, who has oversight responsibility. “I want it to be, when we first start, the expectation is going to be that I’m a partner in this from the very get-go.” The partnership behind the crisis respite center — the county, Greater Ore- gon Behavioral Health Inc., Columbia Memorial Hospi- tal in Astoria and Providence Seaside Hospital — will also likely put the contract to operate the respite center up for bid, Steele said. Clat- sop Behavioral Healthcare has operated the respite cen- ter since it opened in 2016. Several county com- missioners are alarmed by the mental health agency’s secretive approach given the history of management dysfunction and the life- and-death nature of crisis intervention. Baker arrived in 2016 after three top administra- tors left and the agency was hobbled by staff defections and legal disputes. Many in the county believe Baker has made progress, although the agency still struggles with high turnover and adminis- trative challenges. “Am I the only person who sees an elephant in this room?” Commissioner Pamela Wev said of learn- ing about Baker’s leave from The Daily Astorian, Unsettling The mental health agen- cy’s board sent an email to staff last week acknowledg- ing that recent events have been unsettling. The board said Baker was on administrative leave pending an investigation. “The board has not assumed any wrongdo- ing because of this and nor should you,” according to the email. “It is our duty as your board to assure the investigation occurs as thor- oughly and quickly as pos- sible and it would be inap- propriate for any of us to comment further at this time.” The agency’s board also defended the decision to name Ben Paz, the cri- sis services manager, as interim executive direc- tor. Several staffers on the agency’s leadership team had signed a letter to the board with concerns about Paz’s appointment, sup- port for Baker, and ques- tions about the process the board followed in placing Baker on leave, a source familiar with the letter explained. “Our hope is you will keep your focus on what’s most important right now, our clients and provid- ing excellent services,” the agency’s board told staff. Chair: Functionality was an immediate priority for the new board Abuse: ‘Mr. Hagnas, you are a wolf in sheep’s clothing’ Continued from Page A1 Continued from Page A1 Hagnas’ access to children — largely due to his likability and occupations, and despite a 1986 sex abuse conviction — was a common theme Wednesday. The victims’ families and oth- ers said Hagnas tried to groom their children. Some of the tac- tics included obtaining the cell- phone numbers of children and attempting to spend time alone with them. “Mr. Hagnas, you are a wolf in sheep’s clothing,” the mother of the victim from the 1990s said. “You manipulated your way into people’s lives for the sole pur- pose of molesting their children.” The first crimes were reported in 2005, but investigators at the time did not find enough evi- dence, beyond hearsay, to pursue charges. But 10 years later, an unusual encounter would even- tually strengthen the case. When Hagnas visited the fam- ily of the two more recent vic- tims, the girls typically would rush to greet him. One time, though, one of the girls darted toward her room, raising the suspicion of her grandmother, Deputy District Attorney Dawn Buzzard said. The girl eventu- ally reported the abuse to her grandmother. With the additional allega- tions, investigators conducted more interviews and arrested Hagnas in 2017. In the two decades since the first incidents, the victim devel- oped a drug addiction as she coped with the trauma, her mother said. She described her daughter’s struggle with normal physical contact. “You make me uncomfortable and scared around guys,” the vic- tim wrote in a statement read in court. “I don’t want you to hurt anyone else like you’ve hurt me.” Buzzard said Hagnas has repeatedly denied committing the crimes, claiming that family members may be responsible and that the girls forced themselves on him. “For once in your life, Mr. Hagnas, tell the truth. These girls deserve it,” the mother of the first victim said. Later in the hearing, Cir- cuit Court Judge Cindee Matyas asked Hagnas if he wished to make a statement. “Not a word, your honor,” Hagnas said. Matyas said the girls were brave to report the abuse by a family friend. “In my generation, there was a lot of abuse going on, but we weren’t sure about what to call it,” Matyas said. “We’ve thought we’ve evolved and can recognize that special kind of suffering, but I think we’ve got a long way to go.” The grandmother of one of the children Hagnas allegedly tried to form a relationship with said he probably thought he “pulled the wool over” her eyes. “I had a long time to not say things because I knew he would be arrested,” the grandmother said. “You may be able to fool some of the people some of the time, but you can’t fool all of the people all of the time. Many peo- ple have been affected for a life- time because of your cunning ways.” rather than county staff. Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian Markers on a map at Gearhart City Hall indicate the location of vacation rental properties. Airbnb: Homeowners could unknowingly be breaking Gearhart’s ordinance Continued from Page A1 Brewer, the city’s finance director, said after sending a series of emails, Airbnb responded and agreed to start collecting local taxes in October. Writing an ordinance that aligns with state law does make the process smoother, Johnson said, but she feels it is ultimately Airbnb’s responsibility to reach out to local govern- ments — not the other way around. “If you’re going to take rental money from the community, you have to pay taxes due in that com- munity. You are required by law to file,” Johnson said. “(Airbnb) needs to reach out to those cities and make sure they are com- plying with local tax laws like any other company.” Part of what makes the situation difficult is that many of the taxing dis- tricts affected are smaller and can’t leverage pres- sure like a large city or county might. The biggest taxing districts in Oregon, like Portland and Washing- ton County, have voluntary agreements with Airbnb and are already receiving money, Johnson said. “Short of lawsuit, how do (smaller cities) enforce?” Johnson said. “(They) can’t afford to go toe-to-toe with Airbnb in court.” Local impact With only about 80 rentals in Gearhart, and only some using Airbnb, Sweet expects the amount of taxes the city would get from the platform would be relatively small. The lack of reporting, however, interferes with the section of Gearhart’s short-term rental ordi- nance that requires a per- mit holder to prove they are actively using their home as a rental. They do that by showing they’ve paid lodging taxes. But if Airbnb is not collecting and paying the taxes to the city, like some would assume under the new law, homeown- ers could unknowingly be breaking the city’s ordinance. “If you’re relying on (a) third party, you expect they are following all the rules,” said Peter Watts, the city’s attorney. “Peo- ple not getting taxes paid might be completely unaware.” Even if Airbnb did start paying the city directly, it would be in a lump sum, making it difficult for the city to cross-reference to see who paid their taxes and who didn’t. The city is facing similar difficulties with VRBO, which does collect and pay the tax, but doesn’t provide home- owner information. Because these compa- nies will not reveal where the taxes are coming from, the city warned permit holders in a letter that even if companies are collect- ing the taxes they could still be in violation of the city’s code. “Unfortunately, the lack of reporting has put you, and other short-term rental owners, out of com- pliance with the city’s code,” according to the letter. “The city under- stands that this is likely being done without your knowledge and is inter- ested in coming up with a solution that allows us to ensure that all taxes are being collected and paid.” In the short term, the city is looking for ways to independently get the information from home- owners and cross-refer- ence themselves — an exercise that creates extra work for both the city and residents. “This disproportion- ately affects small cities,” Watts said. To avoid any compli- ance issues, Fullerton pro- vides a schedule to the city of when rooms were rented and through which booking site, and then lists whether he or another agency has paid the lodg- ing tax. “It’s just extra work. We’d always have to rec- oncile, but if Airbnb was doing this properly, we wouldn’t be sending (the city) a check,” Fuller- ton said. “The ideal solu- tion would be for (the plat- form) to collect and remit the right amount, and pro- vide the city with a level of detail.” people who care a lot about the citizens of our county,” Nebeker said. Former Warrenton Mayor Mark Kujala was sworn in to replace Lee in District 1, and Pamela Wev suc- ceeded former Commis- sioner Lisa Clement in Dis- trict 3. Thompson, who was re-elected in Novem- ber, took her second oath of office in District 5. “We collaborate with our colleagues to define and accomplish the work of our collective body, the board. We act to further our work by our liaison assignments. That much, I think, we can agree on,” Thompson said in a statement she read at the meeting. “After that, we have differences. How we resolve those differences arising as our intentions are translated into words and actions determines our effectiveness and results.” Functionality was an immediate priority for the new board after two rocky years. Commissioners plan to meet in the coming weeks to discuss board rules and potentially make changes. “As we revisit our rules, I have some ideas that I think may improve our meetings, so that’s my first thought,” Nebeker said. Another new face at the meeting served as a visible example of her thinking. Nebeker asked Larry Tay- lor to take notes as a voluntary parliamentarian, an expert on board rules and procedures. Taylor sat behind a table near the dais and next to County Clerk Theresa Dursse. One of Nebeker’s ideas is to enter into a contract with Taylor to help stream- line meetings and ensure that commissioners are fol- lowing board rules and Rob- ert’s Rules of Order, a set of guidelines for public meet- ings widely used in the U.S. The board rules, adopted in 2014, require that meet- ings adhere to Robert’s Rules unless they conflict with previously stated man- dates. The rules also give the chair the power to appoint a parliamentarian. “I just thought it would be good if he could face the board so that if anyone had a question to ask about pro- cedure or had a point of order, they could ask him,” Nebeker said. “We have, in the past, run our meetings, I think, quite casually. But it worked, and we may agree that we want to continue to do that. But our county coun- sel is not a parliamentarian, and we all look to her for that advice. But I just thought, let’s give this a try.” In an email forwarded to commissioners Wednesday morning, County Counsel Heather Reynolds said she had “grave concerns” about the idea. “A parliamentarian usu- ally serves a large legislative body, and the board of county commissioners acts both in a legislative and quasi-judicial capacity,” Reynolds wrote. “The chair runs the meeting (and) determines the order of the board business under the rules of the board per chap- ter 3, section 4 of the (Clat- sop County) Charter.” Both Reynolds, in the email, and Thompson, at the meeting, also raised concerns about an appearance of par- tisanship. The county char- ter mandates that all county offices be nonpartisan. Taylor, a longtime Dem- ocratic activist who ran for Astoria mayor in 2014, served last year as chairman of the Clatsop County Dem- ocratic Central Committee. “I’m eager to keep a bright, clear line between any affiliation and the operation of this nonpartisan board,” Thompson said. “Anybody who thinks Larry Taylor isn’t still active in the Dem- ocratic Party locally and at the state level just isn’t pay- ing attention.” During the discussion, Sullivan offered support for Nebeker’s idea. “I have no problem with working towards better understanding of Robert’s Rules of Order. I think that they can be very helpful in a meeting,” Sullivan said. “I also know that Mr. Taylor has recently been certified as a parliamentarian, which is not an easy task, and not many people have that level of skill.” Elk: Oregon Solutions often plays the role of mediator Continued from Page A1 But working with Oregon Solutions, based out of Portland State University’s National Pol- icy Consensus Center, may be one way for diverse groups to develop a cohesive management plan. The organization met with Warrenton Mayor Henry Balen- sifer and Gearhart Mayor Matt Brown, law enforcement, state fish and wildlife employees and other stakeholders to discuss the growing number of elk in and around the two cities. Karmen Fore, the director of Oregon Solutions, and her team plan to talk with more stakehold- ers and determine whether tack- ling the elk issue should become one of the organization’s projects. The organization could also ask Gov. Kate Brown’s office to offi- cially designate the work an Ore- gon Solutions project, opening up potential state funds. Oregon Solutions often plays the role of mediator, but also enters the scene when communi- ties are struggling to determine oversight and responsibility of an issue. One example is the group’s involvement after flooding in Vernonia in 2007 destroyed the town’s middle school and high school. Rebuilding the schools was vital to the town’s survival, but was too much for a single group — or someone like a school principal — to coordinate. Warrenton and Gearhart lead- ers told Fore and Michael Mills, program outreach manager with Oregon Solutions, that the elk herds pose public safety risks and damage private property. Last month, an elk clambered over the hood of a Toyota Prius that had stopped to let a herd cross state Highway 104. The elk slipped and smashed into the windshield. Neither Mayor Brown nor Mayor Balensifer believe they would find widespread commu- nity support for culling the herds. But Balensifer said Warrenton is interested in discussing a variety of options, including controlled hunting. Brown noted Gearhart is still interested in looking at the pos- sibility of relocating animals, even though state wildlife offi- cials have said this would not be possible. Most elk-appropriate habi- tat in Oregon already has plenty of elk. Some of the animals even came originally from Clatsop Plains stock, noted Chris Knut- sen, northwest watershed man- ager for the Department of Fish and Wildlife. Transporting elk is no lon- ger considered biologically or socially responsible, Biederbeck added. There is always the chance of transferring disease along with the animals. John Putnam, northwest direc- tor for the Oregon Hunters Asso- ciation, said it is important to explore all solutions. Human behavior — feeding the elk, stopping to take pictures of them — has helped to create the problem, habituating the ani- mals to the presence of people. “But we need to keep all options on the table,” he said. It is unlikely the elk will ever be gone for good, no matter what solutions communities may attempt. But on a scale from zero to a million elk, stakeholders still do not know what their communi- ties are willing to tolerate. “We don’t even really know, from a public perspective, what an acceptable number is,” Knut- sen said.
