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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 24, 2019)
PACIFIC NORTHWEST BREW CUP • INSIDE 147TH YEAR, NO. 37 DailyAstorian.com // TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2019 $1.50 City march backs nurses Labor dispute with hospital continues By EDWARD STRATTON The Astorian Photos by Hailey Hoff man/The Astorian Art projects from children hang on the walls at the Shooting Stars Child Development Center. Task force formed to address growing need for child care County still a ‘child care desert’ By NICOLE BALES The Astorian P arents on the North Coast are becoming increasingly frustrated by the lack of child care options, but despite the apparent demand, child care centers continue to close. Soar With Us in Gearhart closed earlier this year and Shooting Stars Child Development Center in Astoria is closing at the end of the month. The closure of Shooting Stars is a signifi cant loss, since the facility’s 50 slots account for 11% of all licensed child care slots in Clatsop County, according to Northwest Regional Child C are Resources and Referral. Like most counties in Oregon, Clat- sop County is a “child care desert,” a designation given when fewer than 33% of children have access to child care . The Northwest Early Learning Hub conducted a survey this year to exam- ine child care and preschool needs in the county. The survey was taken from four different perspectives: parents, child care providers, employers and residents . The lack of child care and preschool is a frustration for parents and employ- ers in particular “and it impacts the overall economy and the health and well-being of the community,” said Amy Lovelace, the e arly c hildhood p rogram specialist and r egional p re- school p lanning lead at the Northwest Early Learning Hub. As a working mom and employer, Amber Hayward-Hill understands the See March, Page A6 Clatsop County is considered a ‘child care desert.’ struggle from both sides. She is the comptroller at Ocean Crest Chevrolet Buick GMC in Warrenton, which her family owns. She has experienced the struggle of fi nding child care, as well as solving schedule confl icts that arise when her employees can’t fi nd child care. It took Hayward-Hill about a year to fi nd child care after her daughter was born. She continued to work and had to piece together child care until she could fi nd full-time day care. During the week, she would juggle between dropping her child off with two different stay-at-home moms, part- time day care and bringing her baby to work. Once she was fi nally able to get her child into the day care full time, the facility closed. Eventually, she found the at-home day care she currently uses. Since Hayward-Hill understands the challenges , she tries to support her employees who have young children and even lets parents bring their kids into work on days they can’t fi nd day care. “I know I am not the norm. B ring- ing a baby to work on a normal basis is not an option for 95% of the people out there,” she said. “So I can’t imagine how much harder that would be.” To support her employees, Hay- ward-Hill allowed the school bus to drop children off at the auto dealer- ship. She is also an emergency pickup resource for her employee’s children. She has paid late fees for employees who were tardy picking up their kids at day care as a result of work. She tries to work with her employ- ees and offer solutions , but she still expects them to be actively looking for child care. See Child care, Page A5 Intern wants public to access outdoors By EDWARD STRATTON The Astorian ARRENTON — Over the next year, Warrenton residents might spot Morgan Murray docu- menting trails and parks or gathering information about the economy. The city’s new planning intern will help staff update the master parks plan and craft economic development strategies. Murray comes from Steuben, a small, rainy log- ging town in upstate New Hundreds of union members and other supporters, including U.S. Sen. Jeff Merk- ley, marched through downtown Asto- ria on Saturday during a rally for Colum- bia Memorial Hospital nurses, who are in a protracted labor dispute with hospital administrators . The Oregon Nurses Association, a union representing more than 120 nurses at the Astoria hospital, and the hospital’s admin- istration have been negotiating to replace a three-year contract that expired in May. The two sides brought in a mediator but have not been able to reach an agreement. Merkley, whose wife is a nurse, arrived Saturday on one of several school buses carrying union supporters from an AFL- CIO convention in Seaside. The Oregon Democrat spoke with supporters and joined the march, which crisscrossed downtown east on Marine Drive and west on Com- mercial Street. “Nurses are the angels in our society,” Merkley said, encouraging outreach on their behalf. Nurses claim the hospital is stockpiling profi ts for a new campus amid dangerously low staffi ng levels, inconsistent schedul- ing and low pay. They point to the hos- pital’s nearly 12% operating margin, the third-highest among small, rural hospitals W York, where her parents are construction workers. She attended the State Univer- sity of New York’s College at Brockport, studying ther- apeutic recreation. “I really enjoy adaptive sports, so getting people that wouldn’t normally engage with the outdoors into the outdoors,” she said. “Some- one who’s quadriplegic, we took them rock climbing, and that was amazing just to see that world open up. So I got into planning because I wanted to make cities more accessible for all people.” Resource Assistance for Rural Environments, an AmeriCorps program administered by the Uni- versity of Oregon, places interns in small towns. Mur- ray wanted to do a year of service before decid- ing what to study in grad- uate school and liked the program’s rural focus. Her adviser, Kevin Cronin, the city’s community develop- ment director, is also a for- mer RARE intern. Warrenton, laced with trails and open spaces, hasn’t updated its park plan since 2008. It recently State AG joins rally for recovery Rosenblum stands with Jordan’s Hope in Astoria By EDWARD STRATTON The Astorian Oregon A ttorney G eneral Ellen Rosen- blum pledged at a Jordan’s Hope for Recovery rally in Astoria on Saturday to continue the state’s lawsuit against Purdue Pharma, the maker of OxyContin. Purdue and its own- ers, the Sackler family, are being sued by around 2,000 governments across Ellen the U.S. that blame the Rosenblum company for fueling a nationwide opioid crisis. Rosenblum and Washington State Attorney General Bob Ferguson were among about two dozen state prosecu- tors who rejected a proposed $12 bil- lion settlement offer from Purdue earlier this month, calling it inadequate. Purdue recently threatened in bankruptcy court to walk away from a separate $3 billion settlement if the state lawsuits are not resolved. “This company and the Sacklers just haven’t offered enough money — yet — to address all the harm that they’ve caused,” Rosenblum said. “And they also aren’t willing to admit any responsibility.” Kerry Strickland, whose son, Jordan, Hailey Hoff man/The Astorian See Intern, Page A6 Morgan Murray is a new planning intern. See Rally, Page A6