DailyAstorian.com // THURSDAY, JULY 25, 2019
147TH YEAR, NO. 11
COAST WEEKEND
$1.50
INSIDE
THE GEARHART HOTEL
COMES ALIVE IN
NEW MUSICAL
A RICH RESOURCE FOR
SERVICES, BUSINESS
AND AMENITIES
DRIVERS WANTED
County
sheriff
aims to
retire
Bergin was elected in 2004
By NICOLE BALES
The Astorian
Photos by Hailey Hoffman/The Astorian
The Peterbilt semitruck was sold to the college program for $10,000 for students to practice driving large commercial vehicles.
The 48-foot refrigerated trailer was donated by the Tillamook Creamery.
Trucking school responds
to industry demand
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Astorian
C
ars lined up behind Aus-
tin Rieck as he idled just off
U.S. Highway 101 Busi-
ness on Monday, waiting for a clear
stretch of road to pull out in his Peter-
bilt semitruck, pulling a refrigerated
trailer.
His instructor, James Crowe, rode
shotgun and preached patience in the
slower-moving big rig.
“Once you accept you can’t just pull
out and go fast, it makes everything
easier,” Rieck said.
Rieck, a former meter reader for
Pacific Power, is in the second class of
See Drivers, Page A6
Austin Rieck, left, drives a semitruck under the supervision of retired long-haul driver
James Crowe. The four-week course is run by Clatsop and Tillamook Bay community
colleges, providing students the opportunity to get a commercial driver’s license.
‘RIGHT NOW, THERE’S PROBABLY A SHORTAGE OF 50,000 TRUCK DRIVERS
IN AMERICA. THERE ARE TONS OF JOBS OUT THERE.’
James Crowe | instructor and retired long-haul trucker with 34 years and 4 million miles under his belt
Clatsop County Sheriff Tom Bergin-
plans to retire at the end of the year.
The sheriff, who was first elected in
2004, had announced last year that he
would not seek another
four-year term.
Bergin said he would
ask the county Board
of Commissioners to
appoint Lt. Matt Phillips,
the jail commander, as
interim sheriff. The elec-
tion for a new sheriff will
Tom Bergin
be held in 2020.“Well the
time has come to provide the informa-
tion as to my departure so the rumors and
unknown can be resolved,” Bergin, 61,
wrote in an email to his staff on Monday
afternoon. ”I will be leaving at the end of
December this year.”
His decision came after a trying time
of dealing with personal matters. Bergin
was diagnosed with kidney cancer last
year and said he became more reliant on
his staff.
“It feels like I was living two lives,
trying to take care of all my personal life
and take care all of this place and it’s not
fair to either side so it’s kind of like, ‘OK,
it’s time,’” he said in an interview. The
sheriff acknowledged he has received
some criticism for his absences, but said
he has always been involved.
“After going through cancer, dou-
ble knee surgery, divorce and several
other issues these last two years I know
it has been hard on this office but I am
proud how all of you have held this place
together,” Bergin said in his email to
staff.
Bergin explained in the interview that
he has “taken some extra time for myself
because you come to the realization, it’s
like, there’s more to life than being a cop.
Even though I swore and raised my right
hand to this job, but it’s come to the point
where it’s time to move on and people
can say what they want, that’s OK.”
See Sheriff, Page A6
Coffee, waffles at food cart pod
Menu expands at 11th and
Duane streets near City Hall
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Astorian
Add waffles and coffee to the menu
at the 11th Street food cart pod.
Joshua Jensen, a worker in the local
coffee and marijuana industries, recently
opened his new business, Coffee OR
Waffle, in a small yellow cart in the pod
developed by Michael Bruhn at 11th and
Duane streets across from City Hall.
Jensen has split time between coffee
shops and marijuana stores over the past
several years. The thought of starting
a cart or truck first came to him while
working at Dutch Bros. in Astoria. In
November, he bought a cart that came
with an espresso machine.
He first thought of making a sand-
wich cart alternative to Subway, but
switched his idea to waffles after visit-
ing other regional shops.
“I thought about what I could offer
other than coffee that was a little differ-
ent,” he said.
He parked his cart in between Sas-
quatch Sandwich and Pizzuti’s Wood-
fired Pizzeria, part of the growing offer-
ings at the pod that now include tacos,
soul food, ramen and sushi.
Jensen mixes his waffle batter from
scratch and tops them with syrups,
creams, fruit and other spreads. He will
soon add vegan and gluten-free options,
as well as savory waffles, starting with
pepperoni pizza this weekend and a
spinach feta with balsamic glaze soon
after.
Jensen experiments with his waf-
fle-maker at home and imagines grilling
macaroni, grilled cheese, mash potatoes,
brownies, cake mix and countless other
ingredients.
“After that … gosh, the menu’s end-
less,” he said.
Coffee OR Waffle opens from 7 a.m.
to 2 p.m. every day.
Astoria planners
reverse course on
building heights
Restrictions on
the riverfront
By KATIE
FRANKOWICZ
The Astorian
Edward Stratton/The Astorian
Joshua Jensen recently opened Coffee
OR Waffle in the food cart pod at 11th
and Duane streets.
The Astoria Planning
Commission has reversed
course on how tall buildings
can get along a section of
the riverfront.
In June, the commission
reached consensus — but
did not vote — to cap build-
ing heights at 28 feet with
exceptions to 35 feet for
water-dependent projects
in Bridge Vista, a section of
the city’s Riverfront Vision
Plan between Portway
Street and Second Street.
On Tuesday night, com-
missioners voted 6-1 in
favor of an amendment
that would allow for taller
buildings — up to 35 feet
— across Bridge Vista, but
with a floor area ratio pro-
posal from staff that means
the higher a building goes,
the narrower it must be to
maintain views.
The Planning Commis-
sion’s
recommendations
will likely go to the City
Council for a public hearing
in August.
The commission also
approved plan district
options for the Port of Asto-
ria and Astoria Warehous-
ing, potentially providing
See Planners, Page A6