A2
THE ASTORIAN • SATURDAY, APRIL 25, 2020
Sunset rec proposes $3M budget amid virus
IN BRIEF
Laid off 50 employees
Authorities investigate
man’s death after arrest
By R.J. MARX
The Astorian
Authorities are investigating the death of a Warren-
ton man at the Clatsop County Jail.
Alexander Jimenez, 34, was arrested on April 17
by Warrenton police for disorderly conduct and resist-
ing arrest. He was reportedly out of control and police
used a stun gun to gain control and make the arrest,
District Attorney Ron Brown said.
Following the arrest, offi cers took Jimenez to
Columbia Memorial Hospital in Astoria for medical
clearance before taking him to jail.
After Jimenez arrived at the jail, offi cials said he
experienced a medical emergency in the sally port and
medical staff and deputies tried to save him. He was
taken to Columbia Memorial, where he later died.
An autopsy ruled out homicide as the cause of
death. The man had underlying health problems and
methamphetamine in his system, which may have con-
tributed to his death, Brown said.
— The Astorian
Fourth virus case tied to Pacifi c County
LONG BEACH, Wash. — A fourth person with ties
to Pacifi c County was diagnosed with COVID-19 and
was being treated and isolated in an out-of-area med-
ical facility.
A contact tracing investigation began after the
county was notifi ed about the new case and health
offi cials do not believe the person was out in the pub-
lic while contagious. Close contacts of the person are
being found, notifi ed and told to quarantine. Anyone
with symptoms will be able to get tested for the virus.
If the case investigation reveals exposure to the
general public, that information will be released,
said Katie Lindstrom, director of the Pacifi c County
Department of Health and Human Services.
The medical staff involved in transferring the
patient out of the area used personal protective equip-
ment. They are being treated as potentially exposed
and are being quarantined and offered testing.
The fi rst coronavirus case attributed to Pacifi c
County was reported on April 10, though the person
involved was not living in the county when diagnosed.
Notifi cation about a second case was announced on
April 18 and a third on April 19. Both those patients
are isolating at home in the county. After conduct-
ing contact tracing investigations, the county does not
believe the public was exposed to the virus prior to the
two people isolating.
— Chinook Observer
Steadfast returns home
after counternarcotic patrol
The crew of the U.S. Coast Guard cutter Stead-
fast returned to Astoria after a 65-day counternarcotic
patrol of international waters off the coasts of Mexico
and Central America.
While patrolling, the crew apprehended three sus-
pected smugglers and seized 1,252 pounds of pure
cocaine worth about $21.5 million.
The Steadfast crew also participated in the Colum-
bia River Maritime Museum’s Miniboat Program,
which connects students from local Oregon elemen-
tary schools with students in Japan. The program is
designed to teach students about the signifi cance of
ocean currents and weather, while building miniature
boats to send across the ocean.
During this patrol, the Steadfast crew launched two
boats, Boat-A-Lahti and Philbert, about 200 miles off
the southern tip of Baja, Mexico.
— The Astorian
DEATHS
April 20, 2020
In SMITH,
Brief
Joyce, 92, of
Astoria, died in Longview,
Washington. Hughes-Ran-
Deaths
som Mortuary is in charge
of the arrangements.
April 17, 2020
JIMENEZ, Alexander,
34, of Warrenton, died in
Astoria. Hughes-Ransom
Mortuary is in charge of
the arrangements.
April 16, 2020
HUGHES,
Arthur,
70, of Seaside, died in
Wheeler. Hughes-Ran-
som Mortuary is in charge
of the arrangements.
ON THE RECORD
Theft
On
the
Record
• Marilyn
L. Mobley,
54, of Ocean Park, Washing-
ton, was arrested Wednesday at Fred Meyer in Warren-
ton for theft in the second degree and criminal trespass
in the fi rst degree.
PUBLIC MEETINGS
MONDAY
Seaside City Council, 7 p.m., (electronic meeting).
TUESDAY
Clatsop Diking Improvement Co. No. 7, 10:30 a.m., annu-
al meeting, Brownsmead Grange, 42880 Fish Lane, Astoria.
Warrenton City Commission, 6 p.m., City Hall, 225 S. Main Ave.
PUBLIC MEETINGS
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SEASIDE — The Sun-
set Empire Park and Recre-
ation District’s proposed $3
million budget for the next
fi scal year comes with many
caveats.
Be prepared for every
scenario, Skyler Archibald,
the district’s executive
director, told board mem-
bers during a Tuesday bud-
get session.
With a likely decrease in
revenue because of closed
services due to the corona-
virus, the district will freeze
employee wages and there
will be less expenses for
administration, the pool,
recreation and the commu-
nity and youth centers. The
spending plan is slightly
lower than this fi scal year,
which ends in June.
The district laid off 50
of 57 employees in March
because of coronavirus.
The district lost between
$100,000 to $120,000 in rev-
enue since the facilities were
closed in March because of
Gov. Kate Brown’s execu-
tive order and could continue
to bleed $100,000 monthly
during the shutdown.
All part-time program
and maintenance staff with
the exception of the meal site
coordinator have been laid
off , he said. That includes
lifeguards, youth recreation
leaders, patron relation spe-
cialists, special event leaders
and others.
Three of those laid off in
March have been rehired, he
said .
“We are predicting a
decrease in our ability to
generate revenue, particu-
larly for the fi rst and sec-
ond quarters of the fi s-
cal year,” Archibald said.
“There’s a lot of concern.
We don’t have any revenue
coming in. The majority of
our operations are funded
by the residents of the dis-
trict through their taxes.
That’s pretty stable for this
fi scal year and moving for-
ward for the short term, but
after that period, and given
our inability to generate rev-
enue, we’re taking a really
cautious approach.”
More than 50% of reve-
nue comes from taxpayers,
amounting to around $1.7
million. Additional revenue
comes from program fees,
timber taxes, donations and
special events.
The pandemic comes at a
period when the district had
the “most well-funded bud-
get to date,” Archibald said,
as property values contin-
ued to grow within district
boundaries.
“The district is in good
shape,” Archibald said.
“We’re still able to invest
in infrastructure and capital
expenses.”
“Essentially we had the
budget down about the mid-
dle of February, to have it
be able to be presented with
small adjustments as we saw
fi t,” Archibald said. “Then
in the middle of March, life
changed and things got a
lot different, we essentially
scrapped that budget and
presented the budget here
today.”
Personnel expenses stand
at $1.8 million in the g eneral
f und, which includes money
for administrative, aquatic,
the youth and community
centers, recreation and spe-
cial events funding.
The Sunset Pool, which
operates at a cost of just over
$1 million, is the district’s
most expensive facility.
“We’re taking a cautious
approach but a hopeful one,”
Ronald Bline, the budget
committee chairman, said.
“But as things come back
in this town, as we build
slowly, this pool is going
to be an important compo-
nent as long as people are
assured that it’s going to be
a safe experience, it’s going
to be an important contri-
bution to us feeling about
everything.”
Employees will not
receive
cost-of-living
increases in addition to fro-
zen wages. Travel and train-
ing will also be curtailed or
prohibited, Archibald said.
“We try to be prepared
for every scenario. U nfortu-
nately, we have to present a
budget. If we have to adjust
as we go on, we’ll adjust,
we’ll do a supplemental
budget, we’ll look at other
things to make sure we’re
accounting for other things
are happening,” Archibald
said.
Legislators table $50M hospital relief plan
Lawmakers want it
to include forgivable
loans or grants
By DICK HUGHES
Oregon Capital Bureau
Oregon legislators balked
Thursday at loaning $50 mil-
lion in federal money to rural
hospitals reeling from the
coronavirus pandemic.
Members of the Legisla-
tive Emergency Board tabled
the proposal so it could be
reworked to include for-
givable loans or straight-
out grants. Several legisla-
tors said hospitals would be
unable to take out loans, even
at zero percent interest for the
fi rst year as Gov. Kate Brown
has proposed, and the allow-
able uses were too restrictive.
“This was federal money
given to us to pass on to our
rural hospitals. Why are we
making it a loan program as
the state?” asked state Sen.
Bill Hansell, R-Athena. “It’s
wrong. It’s morally incorrect
in my opinion. This money
should be grants from the
beginning. In that way, we
could actually help our rural
hospitals.”
Thirty-three rural hospi-
tals would be eligible. But
Sen. Betsy Johnson, D-Scap-
poose, said the plan envi-
sioned by Brown’s staff was
the equivalent of throw-
ing only a 6-foot rope to
someone drowning 10 feet
offshore.
“We would look so
incredibly foolish if we
allowed hospitals to go broke
on our watch during a global
pandemic,” Johnson said.
“But there is all kind of stuff
wrong with what the gover-
nor’s folks have written.”
House Speaker Tina
Kotek, D-Portland, noted
that some hospitals are get-
ting federal assistance, with
Congress approving addi-
tional funding this week.
“I think we want to be cau-
tious about how we don’t just
unilaterally say everybody
needs, frankly free money,”
she said, “because there are
a lot of businesses and a lot
of places around the state that
need that money, too.”
After a recess, Senate
President Peter Courtney,
D-Salem, called for tabling
the proposal, saying Brown’s
Tech Sgt. Aaron Perkins/Oregon National Guard
Federal money designated for rural hospitals could have helped areas like Seaside and Astoria.
‘WE WOULD LOOK SO
INCREDIBLY FOOLISH IF WE
ALLOWED HOSPITALS TO GO
BROKE ON OUR WATCH DURING
A GLOBAL PANDEMIC. BUT THERE
IS ALL KIND OF STUFF WRONG
WITH WHAT THE GOVERNOR’S
FOLKS HAVE WRITTEN.’
Sen. Betsy Johnson, D-Scappoose
staff agreed with that move.
No date was set for when
the board would take up the
issue again.
The board did approve
coronavirus-related
fund-
ing for rent assistance, small
businesses, domestic vio-
lence resources, COVID-19
testing for workers in long-
term care facilities and aid
to jobless workers, such as
undocumented immigrants,
who are ineligible for unem-
ployment insurance.
Many of the details have
yet to be worked out. Leg-
islative Fiscal Offi cer Ken
Rocco told the board , which
for the fi rst time was meeting
by video conference, that it
remained unclear how much
federal aid Oregon was get-
ting and what restrictions
accompanied the money.
Hospital offi cials from
across the state had told leg-
islators earlier in the week
that hospitals cumulatively
were losing $13 million a day
due to the costs of COVID-
19 equipment, a state ban on
nonurgent surgeries, fewer
people receiving care in
emergency rooms and other
factors. More than 30,000
Oregon workers in the health
care and social assistance
fi elds have applied for unem-
ployment since March 15.
Oregon Health & Science
University announced Thurs-
day that it was substantially
reducing salaries and making
other cutbacks to deal with a
projected revenue loss during
the next 28 months of $1 bil-
lion to $1.4 billion.
“It is not just the rural
hospitals that are struggling,”
Sen. Elizabeth Steiner Hay-
ward, D-Beaverton, who is
a physician at OHSU, told
her colleagues on the board .
“Every single health system
in the state is struggling as a
result of this.”
Brown announced Thurs-
day that as of May 1, she was
lifting the ban on elective
medical and dental proce-
dures. Steiner Hayward said
that would help, but hospi-
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tals would take time to ramp
up and have lost signifi cant
income in the meantime.
The board approved the
11 items on its agenda, all
on a bipartisan basis and
most of them unanimously.
Much of the discussion cen-
tered on fi scal accountability
for how relief money is spent
and ensuring that rural areas
benefi t.
Legislators approved a
new program under which
businesses employing 25 or
fewer workers could be eli-
gible for state grants or loans
if they have not received fed-
eral aid.
Rep. David Gomberg,
D-Otis, said he had been
concerned that coronavi-
rus assistance had not been
going to the smallest of small
businesses, which are the
economic backbone of his
district.
“People are hurting every-
where,” he said. “Accord-
ing to the state economist,
they’re hurting particularly
hard in my part of Oregon.”
The state will contract
with community develop-
ment fi nancial institutions
to run the program, but
Gomberg noted those institu-
tions primarily are along the
Interstate 5 corridor.
“I worry that it’s not going
to support everyone equally,”
he said, “that perhaps we’re
focused on helping the most
people rather than people
who are hurt the most.”
The Oregon Capital
Bureau is a collaboration
between EO Media Group
and Pamplin Media Group.
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