ASTORIA REGATTA CELEBRATES 125 YEARS
INSIDE
DailyAstorian.com // TuEsdAY, AugusT 6, 2019
146TH YEAR, NO. 16
Transit
district in
search of
bus drivers
$1.50
Showtime for a Knappa fifth-grader
Pressure from a major
expansion, cruise ships
By LUCY KLEINER
The Astorian
The Sunset Empire Transportation
District is under pressure to hire bus
drivers for a major expansion and a crush
of cruise ship visits this fall.
“It’s not just unique to our agency,”
Jeff Hazen, the transit district’s exec-
utive director, said. “It’s a nationwide
issue of finding drivers for transit.”
The expansion, funded by a pay-
roll tax that was part of a transportation
package passed by the state Legislature
in 2017, is scheduled to begin in Octo-
ber. The first project Sunset Empire will
focus on is providing weekend bus ser-
vice in Astoria.
In September and October, Astoria
is expected to welcome 11 cruise ships,
including three on Sept. 26 that could
flood the city with more than 4,450
visitors.
Sunset Empire adds two routes on
days when cruise ships are in town to
accommodate passengers and crew. The
transit district is concerned the lack of
bus drivers and the demands cruise ships
put on bus lines will delay the expansion.
“I’ve got my fingers crossed,” Hazen
said. “But it just depends if we can hire a
few more drivers.”
Hazen needs four drivers before Octo-
ber and 10 within the next year to tackle
the expansion and the cruise ship lineup.
On cruise ship days, Sunset Empire
adds Route 11 and Route 12.
Route 11 is designed to move passen-
gers from the Port of Astoria to down-
town. The bus makes stops at 10th
Street and the Columbia River Maritime
Museum before looping back to the Port.
The second route, Route 12, tar-
gets the cruise ship’s crew. That route
goes from the Port to shopping centers
See Transit, Page A6
SEASIDE
Housing
authority
acquires
apartments
Authority manages
affordable stock
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Astorian
SEASIDE — The Northwest Ore-
gon Housing Authority has taken owner-
ship of more than 40 units at the Clatsop
Shores Apartments in Seaside from Clat-
sop County.
The regional housing authority, which
has managed the county’s affordable
housing stock since 2013, took on more
than $3 million in debt from the Bank
of the Pacific to acquire the properties,
located along U.S. Highway 101 on the
northern banks of Mill Creek.
Rents at the complex are based on
incomes between 50% and 80% of the
region’s median.
The county purchased Clatsop
Shores in 2009 from a private devel-
oper turning the apartments into high-end
condominiums.
A settlement over the sale of the 300-
unit Emerald Heights Apartments in
Astoria to a private developer in the early
1990s tasked the county with maintaining
100 units of affordable housing.
See Seaside, Page A6
Photos by Hailey Hoffman/The Astorian
Mylie Lempea sits with her pigs, ‘Boomer’ and ‘Hank’, before her show on Wednesday.
Lempea took pigs
to the county fair
By LUCY KLEINER
The Astorian
M
ylie Lempea’s largest pig,
“Boomer,” wasn’t like the
other swine at the Clatsop
County Fair. Not every pig knows how
to sit on command.
“I can get him to sit with a marsh-
mallow,” said Lempea, 11. “It’s
hilarious.”
This was Lempea’s second year at
the fair. She came with Hot Iron — her
4-H team from Knappa — and brought
two pigs, Boomer and “Hank.”
The fifth-grader has worked with
the two animals
almost every day
since she first
got them in early
spring. Typically,
breeders
tell
4-Hers about the
pig’s health, weight and vaccination
history before the pigs are chosen, but
the process was different for Lempea.
“Boomer came right up to me,” she
said. “I didn’t even have to pick.”
Back in February, the pigs were “a
little fatter than a loaf of bread and so
cute,” she said. Now, at 5 months old,
Boomer weighs 286 pounds and Hank
weighs 247.
“They grow crazy fast,” she said.
Lempea herself weighs just a frac-
tion of her pigs, and she slid between
the green pig stalls with ease. Her
friend and classmate, Penny Lyles, had
pigs in the neighboring stall. The girls
helped one another keep their animals
clean throughout the fair.
“I help her take her pigs to the wash
racks,” Lyles said. “And she helps me
take my pigs to the wash racks.”
Mylie Lempea shows off her award-winning blueberries.
Lempea kept her pigs extra clean
with intermittent baby wipe baths.
The girls helped each other guide
the animals around the fair, using
small black straps and their own bony
knees to get pigs in and out of their
stalls.
Being part of Hot Iron has taught
Lempea a lot about teamwork and
responsibility. Their year-round meet-
ings hold them accountable for their
duties, which include feeding the pigs
breakfast and dinner, washing them
regularly and taking them on walks to
practice for showing.
Though each 4-Her was only
allowed to sell one pig at the fair, they
can make connections they can sell
their second pig to afterward.The fair
can be bittersweet for Lempea, as she
has to say goodbye to Boomer and
Hank.
“It’s kind of what they’re meant to
do,” she said. “Someone gets to go eat
it.”
The fruits of Lempea’s labor have
paid off outside the pig pen, as well.
This year, she entered the photog-
raphy competition, where two of her
pictures won awards. The first, a photo
of a driftwood teepee she took on the
beach, won a blue ribbon. The second,
her favorite picture, is a close-up por-
trait of her family cat. That picture was
reserve champion.
Lempea also won a blue ribbon
for the yellow dahlias she grew this
spring. Her largest dahlia received a
special honor and was selected for
state, which means it will be recog-
nized at the Oregon State Fair if it
doesn’t wilt before then.
Her apples, blueberries and peas
were also awarded blue ribbons. She’s
especially proud of her peas, which
were named division champions. She
hand-picked the best five pea pods she
could find, and her peas were judged
on size, color and similarity.
“It’s pretty cool this year for my
peas,” she said. “I’ve never had divi-
sion champion before.”
Healthy Smiles increases children’s access to dental care
A five-year grant to
Providence Seaside
By NICOLE BALES
The Astorian
Many dental problems are pre-
ventable, yet they are among the
most common chronic conditions
for children and among the top
reasons kids go to the emergency
room or miss school.
Dental care is available through
private insurance and the Oregon
Health Plan, the state’s version of
Medicaid, however many parents
do not know their children qualify
or how to get help.
Based on community health
needs assessments, The Oregon
Community Foundation provided
a five-year, $300,000 grant to
Providence Seaside Hospital for
school-based outreach to improve
Hailey Hoffman/The Astorian
Students have access to basic dental care supplies provided by
Providence Healthy Smiles
access.
Under the Healthy Smiles pro-
gram, hundreds of students each
school year receive dental screen-
ings, as well as sealants through
the Oregon Health Authority and
information on how to navigate
dental care.
The next school year will
be the last one covered by grant
money, but Providence Seaside
intends to continue the program.
Justin Abbott, the Provi-
dence Healthy Smiles coordina-
tor, works with schools to coordi-
nate care days and helps families
understand the often-complicated
insurance that covers dental care.
“I’m Justin’s biggest fan. He
has done so much for our students
and parents,” said Tobi Boyd, the
Seaside School District’s health
specialist. “He is the bridge that is
able to fill those gaps and make it
possible.
“Dental problems affect your
whole body health and so it’s
incredibly important. It’s prob-
ably one of the most important
things to make sure our kids have
healthy teeth.”
See Healthy Smiles, Page A6