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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 5, 2019)
WEEK 5 OF HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL • SPORTS EXTRA • INSIDE 147TH YEAR, NO. 42 WEEKEND EDITION // SATURDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2019 $1.50 Astoria rejects Grocery Outlet design Tells developer no Marine Drive access By EDWARD STRATTON The Astorian The Astoria Design Review Commission voted unanimously Thursday night against a new Gro- cery Outlet near the Mill Pond neighborhood. Commissioners cited access off Marine Drive and the challenges it could pose to pedestrians as central issues in their denial. The Texas-based developer, Main & Main Capital Group, can come back with a revised design for the discount grocery project or appeal the commission’s decision to the City Council. “To me, this isn’t about telling ‘TO ME, THIS ISN’T ABOUT TELLING GROCERY OUTLET TO GO AWAY. IT’S ABOUT GETTING A GOOD DESIGN FOR THE SITE.’ Ian Sisson | commissioner Grocery Outlet to go away,” Com- missioner Ian Sisson said. “It’s about getting a good design for the site.” The d eveloper wants to build a 16,000-square-foot building on a constricted, triangle-shaped lot where Commercial Street runs into Marine Drive. The back of the store would face 23rd Street, across from the new Astoria Co+o p slated to open in December. The developer proposed access to the store directly off Marine Drive, with pedestrians on Marine Drive and in the store’s parking lot having to cross a driveway on striped paths to reach the entrance. Neighbors and supporters of the co-op argued that the access on Marine Drive would pose a dan- ger to pedestrians and complicate traffi c. Rosemary Johnson, a city plan- ning consultant, said the pedestri- an-oriented focus of the Gateway Overlay zone discourages build- ings with drive-up facilities and massive parking lots people have to Hailey Hoff man/The Astorian See Grocery Outlet, Page A8 A developer wants to build a Grocery Outlet on a triangular-shaped lot. Thousands of cranberries fall into the truck bins. FALL HARVEST Hailey Hoff man The Astorian SEE MORE PHOTOS ON PAGE A5 Tobacco fl avor ban goes back before cities Talks to clarify issue By NICOLE BALES The Astorian Edward Stratton/The Astorian Bill Blackler, co-owner of Nisa’s Thai Kitchen in Warrenton, hopes to build out an ethnic food hub in the former Port of Call Bistro and Bar in Astoria. Ethnic food hub planned downtown Remaking the Port of Call By EDWARD STRATTON The Astorian Bill Blackler, the co-owner of Nisa’s Thai Kitchen in Warren- ton , is planning an ethnic food hub in the former Port of Call Bistro and Bar at Ninth and Commercial streets. Blackler and a group of inves- tors recent bought the build- ing housing Port of Call and the Astoria Event Center from Rose Marie Paavola’s company, Luot- tamus Partners. He hopes within six months to have the former Port of Call space divided into smaller storefronts with several ethnic restaurants, including a Mexican bakery, Lebanese restaurant and others. He and his wife, Nisa, opened Nisa’s Thai Kitchen in the former Kim’s Kitchen Korean restaurant on Harbor Drive in Warrenton in 2014. “I’d like to stay (with) ethnic food, because I’ve seen such suc- cess out at Nisa’s,” he said. There are plenty of places with burgers and fi sh and chips, while ethnic food shows strong growth nationally, he said. A previous analysis by the Astoria Down- town Historic District Associa- tion found a lack of ethnic food options. See Food hub, Page A8 Clatsop C ounty is taking a t obacco r etail l icense ordinance back to the cities, this time giv- ing more attention to a ban on fl a- vored tobacco . Last month, county commis- sioners delayed action until Jan- uary after hearing from local tobacco retailers and the elec- tronic cigarette company, Juul, that the process was not transpar- ent. The ordinance would give the county the authority to license and inspect tobacco retailers, as well as ban fl avored tobacco . The county would be the fi rst in the state to ban fl avored tobacco products. The discussion with cities, which had initially supported the ordinance, comes in the midst of a national focus on vaping-re- lated illnesses and deaths . Gov. Kate Brown on Friday announced a six-month ban on MORE INSIDE Gov. Brown issues ban on fl avored vaping products Page A7 fl avored vaping products after two deaths and several illnesses reported in Oregon. Washing- ton State Gov. Jay Inslee has also called for an emergency ban . John Harper, a regional ciga- rette and marijuana store fi nan- cier, asked county commissioners to convene tobacco retailers and cities to discuss the fl avor ban, saying he believes cities were not fully aware it is a component of the ordinance. The Clatsop County Public Health Department took the ordi- nance before Astoria, Warren- ton, Seaside, Gearhart and Can- non Beach, but some city leaders don’t recall mention of the ban . See Ban, Page A8