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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (May 21, 2020)
A6 THE ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, MAY 21, 2020 County revised reporting timeline for election results County clerk cites virus as reason By NICOLE BALES The Astorian Clatsop County typically releases most results on elec- tion night. But the county clerk revised the reporting timeline for the May elec- tion, citing the coronavirus pandemic as the reason. The county released results shortly after 8 p.m. on Tuesday based on ballots accepted through 2 p.m. The next batch of results — ballots accepted from 2 p.m. through 8 p.m. on Tuesday — were released Wednesday afternoon. The remainder — challenged ballots and ballots dropped off in other counties — will be released later in the week. County Clerk Tra- cie Krevanko said she was using only county staff to open ballots instead of the usual practice of bring- ing in volunteers. She said many of the volunteers are elderly, so she did not want to place them at risk during the pandemic. “We are not staying and working late because of the COVID-19,” Krevanko said Tuesday. “We have opted to process as much as we can today and then continue the process again tomorrow morning.” Andy Davis, the chair- man of the Clatsop County Democratic Central Com- mittee, was understanding of the decision. “While we all want to know the results immedi- ately, the safety of the poll workers is paramount,” he said. “So it makes com- plete sense that the county would be cautious in their approach here and tak- ing account of the health of those volunteers.” In an email, Bob Short- man, the chairman of the Clatsop County Republican Central Committee, thanked county staff. “We wish to thank the (staff) for their hard work, although the sus- pense is great we all wish (an) accurate count in the election,” he said . “Good luck to all those who stepped up to run to make a difference. Even los- ers are winners for having the courage and dedication. We thank them all.” Wage: Councilors agreed child care should be priority Continued from Page A1 “We’re in the middle of the greatest economic cri- sis possibly since the Great Depression, and the last thing we need the state to do is to mandate that our local busi- nesses and local government have to increase wages across the board in a time of declin- ing revenues,” Jones said. City Councilor Tom Brownson concurred with Jones, calling on Astoria to bring the issue up with the League of Oregon Cit- ies . The city can’t absorb increased labor costs by rais- ing prices like private busi- nesses, he said. “I hope that we can help the state go there, and I think that other cities would jump right in on this as well,” said Brownson, who represents Astoria on the League of Oregon Cities . Schools and cities have been partnering to offer free emergency child care for essential workers during the pandemic. But as those ser- vices end in mid-June, the city will need to ramp up its child care offerings through the ‘Lil Sprouts Academy, City Manager Brett Estes said. While child care used to roughly break even, Estes said, it faces the same chal- lenges as the aquatic center with increasing labor costs. Councilors agreed that child care should be the city’s fi rst priority. But they also wanted to see limited reopening of the aquatic cen- ter, the only one in the region aside from the Sunset Pool in Seaside. The state recently approved Clatsop County to begin the fi rst phase of reopening parts of the econ- omy from virus restrictions. Aquatic centers would not reopen until a third phase, and even then at limited capacity. The operation of the aquatic center, like many other public indoor pools across the country, is not designed to be profi table. About half of the operat- ing costs are subsidized by money transfers from the general fund and lodg- ing taxes, which have plum- meted while hotels are closed to prevent the spread of the virus. The rest comes from user fees, which have dis- appeared amid the outbreak and will likely be limited when the pool reopens with reduced operating hours and capacity. The city has furloughed more than 80 part-time employees, mostly in the parks department. Part-time labor costs at the pool alone are more than $300,000, said Jonah Dart-McLean, the interim parks director. The city will have to better under- stand the impact of lodg- ing tax losses on cash fl ow before deciding when and to what degree it can reopen the pool, Estes said. City Councilor Jessamyn West waxed hopeful that some support will come from the federal government in a fi fth coronavirus relief bill after most of the previous municipal relief went to cit- ies of more than 500,000. The U.S. House recently passed the $3 trillion Health and Economic Recovery Grants: Would be available in July Continued from Page A1 “The other piece is that almost a third of business owners in Clatsop County are sole proprietors and women-owned businesses, and those are other groups that have been signifi - cantly impacted by the restrictions and closures related to this pandemic.” The grants would become available in July and help an estimated 60 to 100 businesses and employees remain sol- vent through the pan- demic, fi lling cash fl ow gaps as they scale down, reduce expenses and try to survive. The city, hav- ing received previous block grants and met their administrative require- ments, would administer the program for the entire county. Astoria is also applying on behalf of the county for a $50,000 block grant to buy protective equipment for emergency respond- ers, and to help cover the cost of testing for low-in- come residents. City Man- ager Brett Estes said the supplies would be distrib- uted to the county when emergency responders and other essential services reach out with a need. The City Council on Monday also voted to give event organizers who had to cancel because of coro- navirus restrictions until the end of the year to use their remaining cultural grants from the city to reschedule events. The events would need to be geared toward tour- ists and would likely hap- pen in the fall, with the state banning large gath- erings through September. The City Council had pre- viously voted to forgive the grant amounts used by events that had to cancel, allowing them to roll over the unused funds to next year. Consult a PROFESSIONAL is a good way to Q: What organize my favorites? (Edge browser) Katie Frankowicz/The Astorian LEO FINZI Part-time labor at the Astoria Aquatic Center costs the city more than $300,000 and would increase by more than $60,000 under a minimum wage increase in July. Omnibus Emergency Solu- tions Act, which would include more support for state and local governments. But the bill faces stiff oppo- sition in the Republican-con- trolled Senate. “I think that’s something that we’re all hoping for, is that direct relief at the fed- eral level, so we don’t have to hopefully have conver- sations about not increasing minimum wage,” West said. “I know for myself, I’m hop- ing to see that relief come from up above, and not down below, so to speak.” Go to your desired web site. Click the 3 dots at the top right of your screen. Fast, Friendly & Affordable! We’re here to help. Mon-Fri 10-6, Sat/Sun CLOSED 77 11th Street, Suite H Astoria, OR • 503-325-2300 The Astorian wants to hear from you. the “Edge” browser (tap Windows Key A: Start on keyboard and type Edge) AstoriasBest.com Tell us your COVID stories At the top of your screen, you’ll see a long rectangle, with “http.... etc.) That is called the “address bar.” Click (and hold down the left mouse button) just to the left of that address (the cursor will show a grey rectangle) Move the pointer down about a ¼ inch, and you will see a “+” appear. Now let go. You will have added the website to your “Favorites” bar. should I use Q: What to clean my baby’s teeth? A: JEFFREY M. LEINASSAR DMD, FAGD L E I NA S S A R DENTAL EXCELLENCE 503/325-0310 1414 MARINE DRIVE, ASTORIA www.smileastoria.com Remember baby’s teeth are not only important but part of their health and development. Cleaning baby’s teeth can be done by gauze, a finger swipe, or a small brush. Make it quick and fun!! Remember that a night-time bottle with milk has lactose (milk sugar) and juice has fructose or sucrose (sugar) and if it sits on teeth day after day problems are going to develop. Baby teeth are small with thin enamel so they are important to keep clean. Q: What is video/teletherapy? is providing therapy A: Teletherapy through a live video connection, The Astorian is partnering with the Astoria Public Library to publish weekly audio stories of how residents in Clatsop County are experiencing the COVID-19 pandemic. Share your story with us. Here’s how: 1. Call 503-325-5590 2. Tell us your first and last name, age, area of residence, profession and the best way to reach you 3. Then tell us your story in 1-2 minutes on the recording Rory Gerard-Govea LPC,LMHC,CADC Therapist North Coast Counseling 818 Commercial St., Ste. 303 Astoria, OR • (503)515-2545 northcoastcounseling@outlook.com The Astorian and Astoria Library may follow up with some voicemails for news stories and extended interviews. IS it safe? YES. It meets all state, federal and professional guidelines for secure communication and is HIPPA compliant. Will my insurance cover it? YES, in most cases. way to get results from my limited advertising dollar? Lisa Cadonau Advertising Representative 503-325-3211 www.dailyastorian.com 949 Exchange St., Astoria, OR Questions? E-mail Jonathan Williams at jwilliams@dailyastorian.com IS it effective? YES. Research shows it as effective as face-to-face therapy. Q: What is the best Your story will be included in a weekly audio digest published on The Astorian’s website. The Astoria library will preserve the audio file in a local history archive accessible to library users. We want to hear from everyone — essential workers in health care, food service, financial, cleaning, logging, fishing and construction, to business owners, care-center residents, educators, graduating high school and college seniors and those sheltering at home — on how you are experiencing the pandemic. over the internet. You receive the same treatment as in person, it’s just done on your streaming device! It is like Skype, FaceTime or Video Calling. A: The combination of a print and online audience is recession proof. We have an excellent print and online special for this time of year. Give your sales representative a call today to hear more about it!
