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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 15, 2019)
WEEKEND EDITION // FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2019 146TH YEAR, NO. 164 ONE DOLLAR Kindergarten assessments show growth in early math and literacy Preschool could be the key By EDWARD STRATTON The Daily Astorian Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian Steve Holman, far right, monitors traffi c while the rest of a Clatsop County Public Works Department crew cuts branches off trees on Lewis and Clark Road. County looks to move public works out of tsunami zone New locations on safer ground See Growth, Page A7 Boone questioned cost of records request By BRENNA VISSER The Daily Astorian C latsop C ounty is looking to move the p ublic w orks f acil- ity in Astoria out of the tsunami inundation zone. The county commission approved a request Wednesday to hire consultants to do property appraisals and environ- mental reviews for two possible sites, both inland and south of the Columbia River, that would better serve the south- ern portions of the county. Moving public works operations to safer ground has been a priority in the county’s strategic plan since 2012. The Astoria facility, which sits between 10 and 15 feet above sea level on Olney Avenue , is more than 100 years old. In addition to needed upgrades, reports showing the area is at risk for û ooding, landslides and, most notably, tsunami inundation, have prompted the depart- ment to look for new locations. Having equipment available to clear and repair roads has been identiû ed as a critical part of transporting supplies and rebuilding after a disaster. “By moving facilities on the other side of these rivers, maintenance and restoring of these areas can be done bet- ter by our crews,” said Ted Mclean, the county’s interim public works director. Over the past year, public works staff researched several sites that are centrally located , out of the inundation zone and with room to grow. Clatsop County kindergartners this year were as or more ready for school than their peers statewide. Incoming kindergartners are observed each school year on their self-regula- tion and interpersonal skills. They are assessed on their early literacy skills and understanding of basic mathematical concepts. The assessments are not used for placement, but provide educators a glimpse into the academic starting point of K-12 students. Astoria kindergartners, often the most prepared for school, continued outpacing county peers. They understood more than 12 of 16 math concepts, up nearly 20 per- cent from incoming kindergartners û ve years ago. They understood 31.4 upper- and lowercase letters, down 5 percent from the previous year, and could recog- nize nearly 11 letter sounds, down nearly 10 percent from the previous year. Former lawmaker had complained of 8û shing expeditions9 By ROB DAVIS The Oregonian pressure off other surviving roads and bridges. “A resilient transportation network is critical for re-establishing other life- lines, such as water, electricity, fuel, communication and natural gas after the earthquake,” Mclean wrote in a report. The county is also exploring a site known as Crown Camp, which most recently served as the company ofû ces for Greenwood Resources, off Lewis and Clark Road near Seaside. The site includes existing industrial infrastruc- ture, like utilities and a maintenance shop, and at 30 acres, could provide When recently retired state Rep. Deb- orah Boone began pushing a bill in Jan- uary to prevent news media <û shing expeditions” for public records, people wondered what she meant. An example of the types of requests Boone says have both- ered her: one that yielded 1,800 pages of her own correspondence, released to The Orego- nian days before the bill’s introduction. The records show the Deborah lawmaker using her state Boone email account to inter- cede with state agencies on problems that affected her family. In one email, she asked for help resolv- ing a billing issue at her home from a See Zone, Page A7 See Boone, Page A3 Colin Murphey/The Daily Astorian Steve Carlson, a mechanic for the Clatsop County Public Works Department, performs maintenance on a vehicle in the automotive shop. The Warrenton Fiber sort yard, a 37-acre parcel about 7 miles south of Astoria, meets all of those needs, Mclean said, and has the beneû t of already being an industrial site. The biggest advantage, however, is its cen- tral location and proximity to the Lewis and Clark Mainline, a logging road that runs from Warrenton to Seaside that the county is also evaluating to possibly purchase. The goal would be to retroû t the road to make it seismically sound so crews could use it to get to other roads that need clearing after a disaster. It could also serve as an evacuation route for coastal communities and relieve trafû c County scrambles to improve disabilities oversight Seaside-based provider rejects neglect claims State cited risk to health and safety By DERRICK DePLEDGE The Daily Astorian By DERRICK DePLEDGE The Daily Astorian Investigations into abuse and neglect at adult foster homes on the North Coast helped unearth a disturbing lack of oversight in Clatsop County’s developmental disability program. The county contracts with Clatsop Behavioral Health- care, a private nonproû t, to serve people with intellec- tual and developmental disabilities like autism, cerebral palsy, Down syndrome and epilepsy. Last May, the state Department of Human Services, after reports of risk to the health and safety of people in care, outlined a pattern of inconsistent monitoring that raised signiû cant concern. By last fall, the department drew the line. “The state informed the county that there needed to be changes made or the contract would be pulled,” said Monica Steele, the interim county manager. See Program, Page A7 The state Department of Human Services wants to revoke the licenses of KC Care LLC, an adult foster home pro- vider based in Seaside, after substantiating reports of abuse and neglect. The reports involve people with intellectual and develop- mental disabilities living in foster homes over the past three years. A woman who worked at KC Care allegedly had a sexual rela- tionship with a man in care, an Clatsop County contracts investigation found, leading to with Clatsop Behavioral violations of sexual abuse and Healthcare, a private neglect. The man initially denied nonprofi t. having sex with the caregiver MULTIþSTATE CONCEALED CARRY PERMIT CLASS because he was on probation for third-degree rape and unable to have intimate relationships with- out approval from his probation ofû cer. The caregiver also allegedly failed to provide appropriate supervision for another man during an overnight trip the three made to the Portland metro area, leading to a violation of neglect and a civil penalty against KC Care. The state found that Ken Biamont, who leads KC Care, allegedly neglected a young man who was on probation for harass- ment involving girls. The man was not supposed to be around See Neglect, Page A7 2/18/19 | 6pm Best Western 555 Hamburg Ave Astoria For more information: www.FirearmTrainingNW.com | FirearmTrainingNW@gmail.com | 360-921-2071
