Peninsula Players stage a Clairvoyant comedy
COAST WEEKEND • INSIDE
147TH YEAR, NO. 8
DailyAstorian.com // THURSDAY, JULY 18, 2019
$1.50
Census Bureau
stresses need for
accurate count
Data used to distribute federal money
By NICOLE BALES
The Astorian
A
Hailey Hoff man/The Astorian
The U.S. Census Bureau’s once-a-decade population count launches next year.
U.S. Census Bureau
s the United States
prepares to launch a
once-a-decade pop-
ulation count next year, one
focus is fi nding people who
are traditionally diffi cult to
locate.
Seniors, younger chil-
dren, renters, the homeless,
immigrants and migrant
workers are in what the U.S.
Census Bureau calls the
“hard-to-count community.”
The census, required by
the U.S. Constitution every
10 years, is used to draw
seats in Congress and infl u-
ences how federal money
is distributed for a range of
social service programs.
“We only have one oppor-
tunity to get this right,” said
Sarah Bushore, a partner-
ship specialist in Oregon for
the Census Bureau. “Right
now we are living off 2010
data.
“When 2020 happens, if
we cut ourselves short and
we don’t get a complete and
accurate count, we are going
to have to live with those
results for the next 10 years.
So we really need to make
sure we get a complete and
accurate count.”
The government is rais-
ing awareness about why
self-reporting is important
and reminding people the
information they share will
remain confi dential, Bush-
ore said.
“This is a really big issue,
particularly for people who
are not U.S. citizens and
other minorities who may
be concerned about what
we do with that informa-
tion,” Bushore told Clat-
sop County commission-
ers during a presentation in
June. “It is very important
that we make sure everyone
understands that what we do
is private and confi dential.”
Census questions include
a person’s name, address,
birthdate, race and gender.
The Trump administra-
tion sought to add a citizen-
ship question to the census
for the fi rst time since 1950,
but dropped the effort after
legal challenges. President
Donald Trump has instead
directed
federal
agen-
cies to compile citizenship
information from existing
databases.
Opponents of the citizen-
ship question argued that it
would lead to an undercount,
particularly in the Latino
community, where undoc-
umented immigrants have
been the targets of federal
immigration enforcement
sweeps.
See Census, Page A6
‘WE ONLY HAVE ONE OPPORTUNITY TO GET THIS RIGHT. RIGHT NOW WE ARE LIVING OFF 2010 DATA.’
Sarah Bushore | a partnership specialist in Oregon for the Census Bureau
Apartment
complex
moves
forward
Project with 66 units near
the Astoria Riverwalk
By KATIE FRANKOWICZ
The Astorian
A planned apartment complex near
the Astoria Riverwalk that will combine
workforce housing and vacation rentals
passed its fi nal city hurdle Tuesday.
The city’s Historic Landmarks Com-
mission unanimously approved devel-
oper Walt Postlewait’s proposal for the
four-building, 66-unit NorthPost Apart-
ment complex near Safeway. It was the
fi nal public hearing the project had to
weather, a review triggered by the pres-
ence of a historic net shed on the Colum-
bia River known locally as “Big Red.”
Commissioners said they appreciated
the attention to detail displayed in the
complex’s design, which Postlewait said
was intended to pay homage to the old
net shed .
“I really think that the team under-
stood the area, understood Astoria and
what we’re trying to do,” he said.
The NorthPost Apartments had
already landed approval by the Design
Review Commission at a hearing last
week .
Postlewait, the executive vice pres-
ident for nonprofi t lender Craft3, plans
to begin pulling permits from the city
soon, with the goal of breaking ground
in September.
See Apartments, Page A6
A clear improvement
for the Liberty Theatre
By LUCY KLEINER
The Astorian
The Historic Landmarks Commis-
sion approved exterior alterations to the
Liberty Theatre on Tuesday night.
The unanimous decision authorizes
construction of an enclosed glass ves-
tibule outside of the theater’s main
entrance.
The Liberty is working with Harka
Architecture of Portland on the project.
The theater has been raising money for
the project since last year .
The addition is expected to boost
ticket sales, make customer fl ow more
effi cient and enhance the audience expe-
rience. Because the glass structure will
seal and waterproof the area, show goers
will be protected from outdoor elements
like rain and wind, and the space will be
guarded from street pollution, dust and
illegal activities such as vandalism.
Construction will also repurpose the
existing ticket booth door and convert it
to a window, which will allow for three
distinct places for ticket purchase or
pickup indoors.
The vestibule is expected to decrease
noise pollution that enters the theater
from the street and distracts performers
and the audience .
“Overall, it’s going to be a real uplift
to the space,” said Patrick Donaldson,
the project’s principal architect.
The renovation will also re-create a
historic poster display from the theater’s
original design.
“It’s something the theater has needed
for a long time,” said Michelle Dieffen-
bach, the commission’s vice president.
The glass will be clear and tint-
free — despite suggestions to utilize
darker glass to keep temperatures mild
within the vestibule — in order to cre-
ate an entry that does not obstruct the
See Liberty Theatre, Page A6
Construction of an enclosed glass vestibule at the
Liberty Theatre was approved by the city Tuesday.
Lucy Kleiner/The Astorian
Warrenton
subdivision
project stalls
City fi nds deed does not
match plans for property
By KATIE FRANKOWICZ
The Astorian
WARRENTON — A controversial
subdivision project may have to start over .
T he deed that developer and former
Warrenton M ayor Gil Gramson holds for
land near Clear Lake does not match his
plans to create a 15-plot subdivision .
“This is something they obviously
missed when they bought (the property)
back in 2017,” said Kevin Cronin, the
city’s community development director.
Following an appeals hearing in June
in front of the City Commission , where
doubts over whether the parcel had ever
been partitioned into a legal lot fi rst sur-
faced, Cronin confi rmed with the Clat-
sop County surveyor that, no, it had not.
Without this important step in place, the
property cannot be subdivided.
Cronin will recommend the City Com-
mission reject Gramson’s project during a
hearing next week. The project had been
approved with conditions by the Planning
Commission in April, but was appealed to
the City Commission.
If commissioners agree with Cronin,
Gramson will need to obtain the correct
type of deed and resubmit a subdivision
application to the city if he wants to con-
tinue with the project.
Gramson could not be reached for
comment. Skip Urling, a retired city plan-
ner who has been representing him, said
they will likely not challenge Cronin’s
fi ndings or his recommendation. Urling is
not sure what Gramson plans to do next.
“There are a couple of variables that
will probably play into (Gramson’s) deci-
sion for what to do with the property,” he
said.
See Warrenton, Page A6