Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (May 11, 2019)
A2 THE ASTORIAN • SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2019 Colin Murphey/The Astorian IN BRIEF A sailboat heads out of the marina at the Port of Astoria to begin the annual Oregon Off shore yacht race. Tower work will close Cathedral Tree Trail An upper section of the Cathedral Tree Trail will be closed on Monday and Tuesday while crews remove a communications tower on Coxcomb Hill. The roughly 1.5-mile hiking trail runs through coastal forest from Irving Street to the Astoria Column. Con- struction crews will close a section between the Cathe- dral Tree itself up to the Column while they decommis- sion the Coxcomb Hill communications site. The project requires removing the tower, all attached equipment and a Verizon shelter building. There will be overhead work and public access will be restricted from the entire work area. Hikers walking up from Irving Street will still be able to reach the famed Cathedral Tree, but will not be able to continue up to the Column. — The Astorian ASTORIA SCHOOL BOARD Burn ban in Pacifi c County A burn ban is in effect in Pacifi c County because of dry conditions. As of Monday, recorded rainfall in Long Beach was about 21 inches since Jan. 1, down 13.5 inches from the same date in 2018. The precipitation total in Naselle stood at about 28 inches, about 22 inches less than on the same date last year. All residential burning associated with land clearing is prohibited until further notice. Recreational campfi res are allowed if built in improved fi re pits in designated campgrounds. On pri- vate land, campfi res are permitted with the landowner’s permission under restrictions. — Chinook Observer Washington ready to ditch time changes With the stroke of the governor’s pen Wednesday, Washington offi cially became the fi rst West Coast state to ditch the twice-yearly time switch. But the end of “spring forward-fall back” won’t hap- pen until Congress gives the green light to all of the states moving toward year-round daylight saving time. “This legislation arrives on my desk just in time,” joked Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee at the beginning of a bill signing ceremony in the state Capitol. Washingtonians would no longer have to go through the biannual ritual of resetting their clocks if Congress signs off. However, it looks like it could be a year or two or three before that happens because Congress seems in no hurry to make a needed change in federal statute. Washington state’s switch to one year-round time would then happen the following spring. Inslee’s signature puts his state in the vanguard of a loosely coordinated West Coast movement. Similar leg- islation is moving through the Oregon and California legislatures. — Northwest News Network DEATHS May 9, 2019 HELLIGSO, Donald Lee, 88, of Warrenton, died in Warrenton. Caldwell’s Luce-Layton Mortuary of Astoria is in charge of the arrangements. May 8, 2019 BERG, Lorraine Jean, 89, of Astoria, died in Astoria. Caldwell’s Luce-Layton Mortuary in Astoria is in charge of the arrangements. May 6, 2019 WON, Youngsoon, 75, of Seaside, died in Sea- side. Caldwell’s Funeral & Cremation Arrangement Center is in charge of the arrangements. May 5, 2019 WARD, Caroline Gentle, 95, of Gearhart, died in Gearhart. Cald- well’s Luce-Layton Mor- tuary is in charge of the arrangements. ON THE RECORD Assault • Around 3:45 p.m. on Wednesday, Tybre Snell, 21, of Warrenton, was arrested by Warrenton police on the 1500 block of S. Main Avenue for fourth-degree assault. DUII • Around 12:30 a.m. on Saturday, Amanda David, 21, of Astoria, was arrested by Warrenton police near Ensign Lane and U.S. Highway 101 for driving under the infl u- ence of intoxicants. Her blood alcohol content was 0.20%. PUBLIC MEETINGS MONDAY Youngs River Lewis & Clark Water District Board, 6 p.m., 34583 U.S. Highway 101 Business. Cannon Beach Rural Fire Protection District Board, 6 p.m., Fire-Rescue Main Station, 188 Sunset Ave. Seaside City Council, 7 p.m., City Hall, 989 Broadway. Established July 1, 1873 (USPS 035-000) Published Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday by EO Media Group, 949 Exchange St., PO Box 210, Astoria, OR 97103 Telephone 503-325-3211, 800-781-3211 or Fax 503-325-6573. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Astorian, PO Box 210, Astoria, OR 97103-0210 DailyAstorian.com TUESDAY Cannon Beach City Coun- cil, 5:30 p.m., work session, City Hall, 163 E. Gower St. Warrenton City Commis- sion, 6 p.m., City Hall, 225 S. Main Ave. Lewis & Clark Fire De- partment Board, 7 p.m., main fi re station, 34571 U.S. Highway 101 Business. Circulation phone number: 503-325-3211 Periodicals postage paid at Astoria, OR ADVERTISING OWNERSHIP All advertising copy and illustrations prepared by The Astorian become the property of The Astorian and may not be reproduced for any use without explicit prior approval. COPYRIGHT © Entire contents © Copyright, 2019 by The Astorian. MEMBER OF THE ASSOCIATED PRESS MEMBER CERTIFIED AUDIT OF CIRCULATIONS, INC. SEE MORE PHOTOS OF THE OREGON OFFSHORE YACHT RACE AT DAILYASTORIAN.COM Printed on recycled paper Subscription rates Eff ective May 1, 2019 MAIL (IN COUNTY) EZpay (per month) ...............................................................................................................$11.25 13 weeks in advance ...........................................................................................................$37.00 26 weeks in advance ...........................................................................................................$71.00 52 weeks in advance ........................................................................................................ $135.00 Out of County Rates available at 800-781-3214 DIGITAL EZpay (per month) .................................................................................................................$8.00 Board candidates tout expertise Oser, Wintermute square off in election By EDWARD STRATTON The Astorian A contested Astoria School Board r ace in the May election offers voters the choice between fi nancial and mental health expertise. David Oser, a retired chief fi nancial offi cer from regional lender Craft3 who was appointed to the school board in 2016, drew a chal- lenge from Heidi Winter- mute, a school psycholo- gist in Washington’s Ocean Beach School District. Oser, 69, has served on the boards of Columbia Memo- rial Hospital and the Clatsop Community College Founda- tion. He neared a position on Astoria’s b udget c ommittee, but said former Mayor Arline LaMear encouraged him to instead apply for the school board. H e helped stump for a $70 million school bond passed by voters in November to rebuild an academic hall at Astoria Middle School, while modernizing and improving safety at all campuses. “A lot of the things that David Oser Heidi Wintermute I’ve done here in town have been because of the expertise I have in fi nance, business and risk management,” Oser said. “I felt I had talents and experiences that not a lot of people had here. “I want to be able to con- tinue utilizing those skills during the period when the bond proceeds are actually spent.” Wintermute, 41, said she was inspired to run for sev- eral reasons, including her 3-year-old son in Shooting Stars Child Development Center. Being a third-genera- tion Astorian who left and returned, Wintermute said, she felt the need to give back. She also serves on the school district’s budget committee. “I am an educator, and I feel like we don’t currently have an educator on the school board, and I feel like I have a lot to offer in that way,” she said. Both Oser and Winter- mute have focused on the need for more counseling and other trauma-informed sup- port to help students, along with more preschool and early learning opportunities. Oser said he is getting more educated on trauma-in- formed care, an organiza- tional structure and treatment framework responding to childhood traumas and how they affect learning. There is money in the proposed bud- get for next year to train the school district on its tenets , he said. As a school psycholo- gist for 10 years, Winter- mute said, she’s worked with the most at-risk kids and seen childhood trauma, mental health and the resul- tant behavioral issues getting worse in schools. “I think making sure that we are helping our kids’ basic needs are being met is super-important, making sure that we have small class sizes so that teachers can teach and have the mental health sup- port staff that they need so kids can get what they need in school is big, huge right now,” she said. “I think that’s a big challenge, because you have to fi nance all of that.” Educators around the state are lobbying for the passage of the Student Success Act, a gross receipts tax expected to add around $1 billion a year in K-12 funding, including an estimated $1.4 million in Astoria. Oser and Winter- mute are both in support. Despite his four children being grown and fi nished with school , Oser touted his involvement in school events. H is wife, Patsy Oser, is a retired librarian who reads regularly to classes at John Jacob Astor Elementary School. “On our school board, it’s important that there be peo- ple with kids in the district, and we do have that,” he said. “But it’s not like every mem- ber has to have kids in the district.” Asked why she chal- lenged Oser, Wintermute said that he’s a good guy, but that they are two totally different candidates. “It really depends on what the voter wants,” she said. “He does have more experi- ence than I do in the fi nan- cial world, but I have a lot more experience in the men- tal health world. So it just depends on what you want.” SUNSET EMPIRE TRANSPORTATION DISTRICT Transit district races draw new blood By EDWARD STRATTON The Astorian The May election for the Sunset Empire Transportation District Board has drawn sev- eral new candidates hoping to help guide the bus agency’s growth . In Position 1, incumbent Tracy McDonald, a retired paramedic, is facing Larry Taylor, a retired technology worker and former c hair- man of the Clatsop County Democrats. McDonald, 68, retired from Medix Ambulance Ser- vice, drove for Schwan’s Food Service and provided senior on-call transportation for Sun- set Empire before joining the board four years ago. As a driver for Schwan’s, McDonald said, he witnessed fi rsthand people without cars or too old to drive isolated in rural areas, an issue he hoped to help alleviate. Taylor, 66, recently retired from the technology sector, including a stint at Intel. He ran for Astoria mayor in 2014, losing to Arline LaMear. “The kinds of things that the board needs in terms of oversight and analysis is really similar to what I did at intel,” he said . In Position 2, retired 911 Debbie Boothe- Schmidt Lylla Gaebel dispatcher Lylla Gaebel is fac- ing Debbie Boothe-Schmidt, a trial assistant with the Clat- sop County District Attor- ney’s Offi ce and co-owner of Phog Bounders Antique Mall in Astoria. Gaebel, 73, a former Clat- sop County commissioner and Warrenton city commissioner, has been on the transportation district’s board about six of the p ast 10 years. Her goal is to ensure public transportation is available for seniors and low-income residents unable to drive, she said. “As I’m growing older now, I know there’s going to come a day when I can’t drive anymore, and I want to make sure public transportation is there and available for me,” Gaebel said. Boothe-Schmidt, 64, said she was looking for another volunteer opportunity for when she steps down as pres- ident of the local American Please ADOPT A PET! SABU and MAU bonded brother and sister pair of 1 year old American Shorthairs A lightsome pair whose allure is in their winsome and delicate features. See more on Petfinder.com CLATSOP COUNTY ANIMAL SHELTER • 861-PETS 1315 SE 19th St. • Warrenton | Tues-Sat 12-4pm www.dogsncats.org THIS SPACE SPONSORED BY BAY BREEZE BOARDING Tracy McDonald Larry Taylor Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union. “When I started looking at open positions, I was inter- ested in rural law enforce- ment, but that’s a confl ict of interest with the DA’s offi ce,” she said. “I’d like to see more ridership on the buses … more community outreach if possible.” After temporarily facing the loss of nearly half his oper- ating budget during the recent federal government shut- down, Jeff Hazen, the transit district’s executive director, is overseeing an expanding agency buffeted by a state- wide payroll tax expected to provide an additional $1.4 million annually. Candidates are hopeful the district can expand service in rural areas , and that technol- ogy such as Wi-Fi on buses and online scheduling can entice more riders. McDonald hopes to see more investment in on-de- mand transportation, such as Dial-A-Ride, while focusing on on-time arrivals and clean buses. Sunset Empire recently experienced a signifi cant data loss that ultimately cost the agency more than $60,000. Taylor wants to focus on tight- ening the bus agency’s proce- dures to avoid such situations, while digging into metrics to see where it can best serve riders. “I think that technology will defi nitely help,” Gaebel said of increasing ridership. “If we had Wi-Fi on the bus, I think that’s something people would defi nitely like to have.” Golden Star RESTAURANT LUNCH & DINNER SPECIALS AVAILABLE Banquet Room for up to 50 people s r r TM ATM O PEN 7 DAYS M O N -TH URS 11A M -10PM FRI-SAT 11A M -11PM SUN N O O N -10PM D OWNTOWN A STORIA % 5 1 COUPON OFF M OTHER ’ S D AY M AY 12 TH 325-6260 599 BO N D ST. A STO RIA 1 block south of M cD onald’s Dine-in or to-go One coupon per party with Mom H onoring each m other w ith a flow er for M other’s D ay only WHILE SUPPLIES LAST
