The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current, February 13, 2020, Image 28

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The daily Astorian., February 13, 2020, Page 28, Image 28

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Newspaper Page TextA5 THE ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2020 Oregon looks at gun locks Housing: ‘Talks are proceeding well’ Continued from Page A1 Bill would give violators ﬁ nes By FEDOR ZARKHIN The Oregonian Bills in the Legislature this session would require Ore- gonians to lock up their guns when not in use and allow cit- ies, counties and schools to restrict where people can take their guns. Lawmakers and advocates have tried at least three times to enact what is the most con- tentious of three gun control proposals now before law- makers: that owners store their guns securely or face substantial penalties. But supporters appear bullish that this is the year it will happen. “Kids are dying,” said Hillsboro Democrat Janeen Sollman, one of House Bill 4005’s main sponsors. “And we need to make sure we’re putting public peace, health and safety above all.” Sollman said 22 repre- sentatives have signed on as sponsors, as have six sena- tors. Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum supports the bill, too. It softens some of the tougher aspects of previous bills — it calls for ﬁ nes not criminal charges for viola- tions and gives gun owners more time to tell police if their guns have gone missing. The bill is sufﬁ ciently moderate, Sollman said, that one of Oregon’s particularly vocal gun control groups doesn’t support it, while at the same time it’s sufﬁ ciently strong that Oregon gun rights groups are against it. “I feel like we’re in a very good place,” said co-sponsor Rep. Rachel Prusak, D-West Linn, touting the fact that nei- ther the Oregon Firearms Fed- eration nor Ceaseﬁ re Oregon support the bill. “To me, that’s saying we have good policy.” Even one of the Republi- can minority’s most vocifer- ous opponents to similar pro- posals in the past thinks the storage bill has a good chance of passing. “I just know that these gun bills are a priority for many of the leadership and the major- ity party,” said Rep. Bill Post of Keizer. “So I would assume they’re going to push these through.” Sollman and the other sponsors’ goal is to reduce gun violence and youth suicide. In 2017, 529 people died from gun injuries across the state, according to the Ore- gon Health Authority, about the same rate per 100,000 people as the United States as a whole. About four in ﬁ ve of the gun deaths in Oregon were suicides. A 2019 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association deter- mined that getting adults to lock up their guns could pre- vent as many as 32% of youth ﬁ rearm deaths. Already, people on all sides have submitted hundreds of comments to the Legislature and testiﬁ ed for nearly three hours on Feb. 7 to the House Judiciary Committee, the ﬁ rst stop for the bill. One Oregon woman wrote to recount the grief she has suffered since her daugh- ter killed herself after break- ing up with her boyfriend and turning his unlocked gun on herself. after a violation. Other provisions would require owners to lock their guns before giving them to somebody else and tell authorities if their gun has been stolen or lost within 72 hours of realizing it’s missing. There’s also the possibil- ity that Oregonians will vote on the proposal in November, if it doesn’t become law this session. A prominent Portland gun control advocate, Henry Wessinger, is in process of putting an initiative on the ballot with a similar gun stor- age proposal. Gun rights groups have challenged the initiative, and Wessinger is waiting for the Oregon Supreme Court to make a ruling before he and the organization he leads, State of Safety Action, can start collecting signatures. ‘THE GUN ENTHUSIASTS THINK IT’S VERY DANGEROUS TO HAVE A GUN-FREE ENVIRONMENT. AND PEOPLE LIKE ME — THE MORE GUNS, THE MORE DANGEROUS. UNDER THIS BILL, NEITHER SIDE WOULD PREVAIL.’ State Sen. Ginny Burdick “Those who oppose gun safety regulations are clearly detached from this gut-wrenching agony,” Juliet Peterson wrote. Medford resident Darren Davidson, meanwhile, tes- tiﬁ ed that the bill is ﬂ awed because it “would ren- der ﬁ rearms useless when most needed, in self defense situations.” HB4005 spells out what gun owners must do to pre- vent their guns from getting into the wrong hands and the penalties for violating those rules. With some exceptions, anyone with a gun not in use would have to lock it up with a trigger or cable lock or keep it inside a locked container or a gun room. It will be the Ore- gon Health Authority’s job to set the minimum standards for lock devices under the bill. The punishment for vio- lating the law would be $500. But if someone under 18 gets the gun because of a violation, the maximum ﬁ ne goes up to $2,000. In what would be the biggest penalty, a gun owner would be responsible for any injuries caused by the gun at any point within two years Two other gun control bills this session could be contro- versial but so far are garner- ing far less attention. One would allow schools, cities, counties and other local jurisdictions to set their own rules on where people can carry guns. Now, people with con- cealed handgun licenses are allowed to take their guns into public buildings. Under Senate Bill 1538, local gov- ernment agencies could for- bid that. The core principle behind the bill, chief sponsor Sen. Ginny Burdick said, is to respect the different needs of different communities. “The gun enthusiasts think it’s very dangerous to have a gun-free environment. And people like me — the more guns, the more dangerous,” the Portland Democrat said. “Under this bill, neither side would prevail.” House Bill 4036 would designate Portland Interna- tional Airport’s passenger terminal as a public build- ing, adding it to the state’s short list of places where peo- ple need to have a concealed handgun license to bring a gun. group, now a nonproﬁ t called Copeland Commons, hoped to create affordable and workforce-priced hous- ing in the building. “Our talks are proceeding well,” Garver said. “We’re working through questions that both sides of the part- nership have and we’re moving in a good direction.” All plans are preliminary at this point, and funding will determine what can be created. Innovative Hous- ing is waiting for the state to publish its guidelines for key grants. Bill Van Nostran, the pas- tor of First Presbyterian who spearheaded the effort to buy the property, estimates it will cost nearly $3 million just to refurbish the building. But Van Nostran said they have also discussed the possibility of applying for permitting and funding to build a second structure next door to the east. “It could almost dou- ble the number of units,” he said. “That just sounds intriguing to me.” The building — often referred to as the State Hotel — already includes 50 units on its second and third ﬂ oors. Copeland Commons hopes to make around 40 units available, but Van Nos- tran said even more space may be opened up on the ground ﬂ oor and in the base- ment in partnership with Innovative Housing. Some retail space will remain at the street level and there are no plans to make existing businesses move. “We’ve tried to assure (Terry Erickson , the owner of Mallternative) it’s busi- ness as usual,” Van Nostran said. Renovating the building and operating it for housing is a massive undertaking, and one the board of Cope- land Commons discovered may be beyond them alone, Van Nostran said. Innovative Hous- ing would bring import- ant resources, oversight and expertise to the project, he said. For Innovative Housing, it would make sense to have another housing project in Astoria. The nonproﬁ t plans to create 40 new studio and one-bedroom apartments in the former Waldorf Hotel, also known as t he Merwyn. “We always wanted to have a companion prop- erty to the Merwyn,” Garver said. “The Merwyn on its own is a little bit small to operate at an optimal level. It’s nicer when you have companion properties so you can share management services and maintenance.” Not only has First Pres- byterian attracted the inter- est of Innovative Housing, but they have ﬁ elded calls from other churches in the region about starting simi- lar projects. They have also received offers of volunteer work groups. “The bottom line for me is that we, this small group of interested Presbyterians, set out to be a catalyst to see if we couldn’t stimulate interest enough and create available, affordable hous- ing,” Van Nostran said. Sullivan: Campaign kickoff on Feb. 23 Continued from Page A1 This year, a Knappa teacher, Courtney Bangs, is vying for the position. Bangs has been endorsed by #Tim- berUnity and has received campaign contributions from the timber industry, includ- ing Hampton Lumber. Sullivan said one of her central goals is a balanced and sustainable approach to forestry management. Her other goals include expanding the county’s workforce and local eco- nomic opportunities, increas- ing the county’s supply of affordable housing and pro- tecting water resources. “Working together, we can keep Clatsop County a great place to live, to raise worked in the local families, and to hospitality industry. retire. I will use my Her sister and broth- experience and lead- er-in-law, Iris Sulli- ership at the county van and Joe Garri- level to ﬁ nd com- son, are founders of mon ground to deal the Blue Scorcher with the opportuni- Kathleen Bakery and Cafe. ties and challenges Sullivan Sullivan grew up facing Clatsop in a small farming County, especially District 4,” Sullivan said in community in Michigan. She earned a degree in second- an email. Commissioners selected ary education from Michi- Sullivan in January to be the gan State University and a board’s chairwoman after master’s degree from Ham- she served as vice chair last line University in St. Paul, Minnesota. She worked as year. Sullivan moved to Clat- a teacher in Brownsville, sop County in 2007 from Texas, St. Paul, Minnesota, Portland, where she managed and in rural Michigan. Sullivan is hosting a cam- an 80-unit affordable hous- ing building for the Housing paign kick off party from 2 to 4 p.m. on Feb. 23 at the Authority of Portland. Since moving, she has Wickiup Grange in Svensen . SWEET VALENTINE DEAL FOR THAT SPECIAL SOMEONE IN YOUR LIFE! NEW PRICE AND MOVE IN READY! 364 Alpine Street Seaside, OR 97138 RMLS 1943177 CMLS 19-1386 $419,000 3 br | 2 ba | 1924 sq ft Providence’s North Coast cardiology team invites you to celebrate your healthy heart. We’re proud to welcome Gary Greenberg, M.D. to Providence’s cardiology team. From left to right: Gary Greenberg, M.D.; Zach Caverley, PA-C; Robert Morse, D.O.; and Masud Ahmad, M.D. Join us as we celebrate National Heart Month with these fun and free heart-healthy offerings. ♥ Women’s Healthy Heart Tea Join Providence Seaside registered dietitian, Beth Schwenk, RD, LD to learn heart-smart eating habits. Light luncheon provided. 12:15 p.m., Friday, Feb. 14 Providence Seaside Hospital, Education Room A, 725 S. Wahanna Road ♥ Know Your Numbers Knowing your numbers is important for heart health. This heart health screening will help you identify your blood pressure, pulse, height, weight and body mass index (BMI). 1-4 p.m., Friday, Feb. 28 Providence Seaside Clinic, Suite 101, 725 S. Wahanna Road Desirable Sunset Hills neighborhood on a beau- tifully landscaped lot above the City of Seaside within a mile of the new school campus. Original brick fireplace with a new Lopi wood stove insert and a pellet stove plus electric zonal heat. Lovely backyard territorial views with multiple flowering varieties for a serene ambiance. Create your own space in the office/artist studio adjoining the newly remodeled master ensuite bath. Features include updated flooring carpeting, wood work, newer roof, garage door, recently updated kitchen w/spacious dining area and views of designer courtyard patio. All in a single level plan! ♥ Heart Talk and Walk Providence cardiologist, Robert Morse, D.O., and Zach Caverley, PA-C invite you to join them for a presentation on heart health followed by a walk on the prom. 10 a.m., Saturday, Feb. 29 Best Western Plus Ocean View Resort, 414 N. Prom Pam Ackley, Broker Tim Regan, Broker Real Estate Broker 503-717-3796 pamackley@gmail.com pamackley.com Real Estate Broker 503-738-2419 TimRegan@usa.net timregan.withwre.com Providence.org/northcoast Lot size, price measurements, etc. based on information available from the MLS. Buyer to verify. EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY