A2
THE ASTORIAN • SATURDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2020
Homeless outreach event canceled
IN BRIEF
King tides return to Oregon Coast
King tides return to the Oregon Coast on Sunday.
These higher-than-normal surges are a seasonal
occurrence that happen due to increased gravitational
infl uence when the sun, moon and earth are in align-
ment and when the moon’s orbit is closest to the earth
and earth’s orbit is closest to the sun.
A sequence of king tides will begin Sunday and con-
tinue through Tuesday. The next sequence will begin on
Jan. 11.
The higher-than-normal high tides that accompany
king tides can be dangerous. Local and state offi cials
recommend people practice extra caution on the beach.
Commercial crabbing to open
on southern Oregon Coast
The commercial Dungeness crab fi shery will open
along the southern Oregon Coast in time to put crab on
the table for Christmas.
Fishery managers announced crab vessels will be
allowed to set gear beginning Sunday from Cape Falcon
near Manzanita south to the California border. The fi rst
pull of ocean crab pots starts Wednesday.
Commercial crabbing is delayed on the North Coast
until levels of the marine toxin domoic acid drop in crab
caught in Washington state. More testing is needed in
Washington to determine crab is safe. The two fi sheries
will start together.
Crab tested in Oregon’s harvest areas have remained
well below alert levels.
The recreational crab fi shery is already open along
the entire Oregon Coast.
Warrenton couple displaced after
driver crashes into their home
A Warrenton couple was displaced Monday night
after an alleged drunken driver crashed into their home.
William Page-Lagerquist, 21, of Warrenton, was
arrested for driving under the infl uence of intoxicants,
reckless driving, two counts of reckless endangering,
driving without a license and driving uninsured.
Police say Page-Lagerquist crashed into the home off
of Pacifi c Drive just after 10 p.m. The vehicle came to a
rest in the master bedroom of the home, where two peo-
ple were sleeping.
The driver sustained minor injuries.
County transfers property
to Camp Kiwanilong
The Clatsop County Board of Commissioners on
Wednesday approved the transfer of 180 acres off of
Ridge Road in Warrenton to Camp Kiwanilong.
The property has long been leased to Camp Kiwan-
ilong Board Inc. for youth activities, but the county said
leasing the property requires a signifi cant amount of
staff time and potential costs.
The property will revert back to the county if it is not
used by the organization for youth.
County to distribute free face masks
Clatsop County will distribute free KN95 face
masks Thursday at multiple locations to combat the
coronavirus.
The drive-thru handout events will take place
between 2 and 4 p.m. at Elsie-Vinemaple Fire Station,
Seaside Fire Station, Astoria Aquatic Center, Cannon
Beach City Hall, Knappa Fire Station, Warrenton Fire
Station and Gearhart Fire Station.
When people drive to the front of the line they will
be asked to stay in their car, hold up fi ngers to show the
number of masks needed and roll down the window to
receive the bag of masks.
— The Astorian
ON THE RECORD
DUII
On
the Sagen,
Record
• Cameryn
19, of Seaside, was arrested
Wednesday on W. Marine Drive and S. Denver Ave-
nue in Astoria for driving under the infl uence of intox-
icants and minor in possession.
PUBLIC MEETINGS
MONDAY
Youngs River Lewis & Clark Water District Board, 6 p.m.,
34583 U.S. Highway 101 Business.
Jewell School District Board, 6 p.m., Jewell School Li-
brary, 83874 state Highway 103.
Seaside City Council, 7 p.m., 989 Broadway.
TUESDAY
United Health District of Clatsop County, 8 a.m., Seaside
Civic and Convention Center, Necanicum Room, 415 First
Ave.
Sunset Empire Park and Recreation District Board of
Directors, 5:15 p.m., 1225 Avenue A., Seaside.
Astoria Historic Landmarks Commission, 5:30 p.m., City
Hall, 1095 Duane St.
Seaside School District Board, 6 p.m., (electronic meet-
ing).
Shoreline Sanitary District Board, 7 p.m., Gearhart Her-
tig Station, 33496 West Lake Lane, Warrenton.
PUBLIC MEETINGS: DEC. 12,
2020
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Social service
help usually
held in January
By NICOLE BALES
The Astorian
Clatsop
Community
Action has cancel ed the
11th annual Project Home-
less Connect over the
coronavirus.
Every January, the event
brings together over 40 non-
profi t, government and faith-
based agencies on the North
Coast to offer services to the
homeless.
“With heavy heart, CCA
has decided to cancel Project
Homeless Connect 2021 due
to COVID,” Viviana Mat-
thews, the agency’s execu-
tive director, said in an email
to community partners this
month .
“We want to make sure
we promote safety and good
health during these very
diffi cult times. PHC 2022
will be at the end of Janu-
ary, 2022. CCA will have
an informal outreach to the
Joshua Bessex/The Astorian
Boxes of clothing sit on a table for people to take during
Project Homeless Connect.
Clatsop County homeless
population during the cold
months ahead.”
Matthews said the agency
has purchased extra personal
care items, including trav-
el-size soap, dry shampoo,
toothbrushes, toothpaste and
weather blankets.
She is also working on
getting gift certifi cates to
fast-food restaurants. She
is encouraging other agen-
cies and businesses to reach
out if they would like to
participate in the informal
outreach.
Matthews said Clatsop
Community Action’s out-
reach will also include intro-
ducing a new homeless
liaison.
The idea of a countywide
homeless services coordina-
tor was born out of an Astoria
task force on homelessness .
The liaison is intended
to connect homeless people
to social service agencies,
gather data and address gaps .
The position will be funded
by Clatsop County, grants
and other partner agencies.
The position was posted
earlier this week. T he Clat-
sop County Board of Com-
missioners on Wednesday
approved $50,000 to pro-
vide funding.
“I know many home-
less individuals in Asto-
ria already received and are
aware of services, but I can’t
say the same thing about
homeless individuals who
reside in Warrenton and Sea-
side,” Matthews said in an
email.
She said she plans to
introduce the homeless liai-
son to representatives in
Warrenton, Seaside and
Gearhart, and create a stron-
ger partnership with the cit-
ies. She believes two people
will ultimately be needed to
better serve the needs of the
entire county.
The Seaside City Coun-
cil has recently initiated con-
versations seeking to under-
stand and explore options
for the city’s homeless
population .
State hears Astoria hotel appeal
Decision expected
in January
By EDWARD
STRATTON
The Astorian
The future of a contro-
versial four-story hotel
along the Columbia River
in Astoria could be decided
by late January.
Developer Mark Hol-
lander received approval
from the City Council two
years ago to build a Fair-
fi eld Inn and Suites at The
Ship Inn and Stephanie’s
Cabin. Hollander bought
the two former restaurant
properties at Second Street
and Marine Drive for the
project. But he has yet to
break ground.
His two-year building
permits expire this month.
Hollander approached the
city in April for a one-year
extension, arguing the coro-
navirus pandemic had made
fi nancing the project impos-
sible. He shared letters from
lenders describing the diffi -
culty in fi nancing, along
with a market analysis
showing the slumping per-
formance of hotels during
the coronavirus pandemic.
In their denial, city
staff cited other hotel proj-
ects moving forward amid
the pandemic, such as the
Bowline Hotel being built
near Buoy Beer Co. and
the Hilton Home2 Suites
being planned near the New
Hailey Hoff man/The Astorian
Developer Mark Hollander continues to seek approval to build a Fairfi eld Inn and Suites at the
former location of The Ship Inn.
Youngs Bay Bridge.
City s taff also cited new,
more restrictive devel-
opment
rules
adopted
after Hollander’s project
was approved . Hollander
appealed the denial to the
City Council, which sided
with staff, and then asked
the s tate Land Use Board
of Appeals to overturn the
city’s decision.
Hollander’s
attorney,
Steven Hultberg, argued in
front of the appeals board
on Wednesday that the city
exercised too much discre-
tion in denying extension
of the permits. He pushed
back against the city’s argu-
ment that Hollander had 18
months prior to the onset
of the pandemic to start the
project.
“The extension crite-
ria required the applicant
to demonstrate that at the
time of the application,
poor conditions existed in
the market,” Hultberg said.
“It doesn’t ask about con-
ditions 18 months ago, or
conditions at the end or any-
where else in the period.”
City Attorney Blair Hen-
ningsgaard argued that Hol-
lander and the lenders he
used for expert testimony
never said the Fairfi eld Inn
and Suites project didn’t
have fi nancing.
“He testifi ed that … they
were unwilling to offer
loans for a new construc-
tion,” Henningsgaard said.
“He never said that his proj-
ect lacked funding, or that
he was unable to obtain
funding for this particular
project.”
The appeals board is
expected to rule on Hol-
lander’s appeal by Jan. 19.
Hollander must win the
appeal to extend his build-
ing permits or shrink his
hotel concept to conform to
new development rules his
project helped inspire.
Amid public concern
about losing river views
to large buildings, the City
Council updated devel-
opment rules to limit new
buildings along the water-
front to two stories instead
of four. New buildings
would also require a north-
south orientation to pro-
tect views, which would cut
down the number of hotel
rooms facing the river.
Warrenton planners skeptical of
expanding marijuana processing
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Astorian
WARRENTON — The
Planning Commission on
Thursday unanimously rec-
ommended rejecting an
attempt to conditionally
allow marijuana growing
and processing on all indus-
trial lands.
The
recommenda-
tion now heads to the City
Commission for a fi nal
determination.
Jason Palmberg, Jeff
Canessa and Paul Kujala
own a building complex
through their company,
King Fish LLC, on indus-
trial land along Fifth Street.
A marijuana processor was
interested in renting one of
the warehouses at the com-
plex, bounded by other
industrial properties, the
city’s sewage lagoons and
a fi eld.
Warrenton
voters
approved the recreational
sale of marijuana in Novem-
ber 2014. But the city in
2015 banned any marijuana
growing, processing, retail
and wholesale businesses
west of U.S. Highway 101,
worried about their proxim-
ity to residential areas.
The majority of avail-
able industrial land lies east
of Highway 101 in Clat-
sop County’s North Coast
Business Park, the Astoria
Regional Airport and along
Dolphin Avenue. The city
allows marijuana businesses
outright on those indus-
trial lands, as long as they
are at least 1,000 feet from
any public or private school,
church, public park or child
care center, and must be the
sole occupant of a building.
Mike Morgan, a consul-
tant for King Fish, asked the
Planning Commission to
amend city code and make
marijuana businesses a con-
ditional use on all industrial
lands. He argued the city
would ultimately have more
control with the ability to
review and place conditions
on each new business. His
argument rested in part on
new residential areas east of
the highway that could end
up close to marijuana busi-
nesses because of the city’s
codes.
But Morgan’s argument
appeared to be a nonstarter
among planning commis-
sioners, who said the Plan-
ning Commission put a lot
of time and thought in part-
nership with the City Com-
mission into the 2015 ban
on marijuana businesses
west of the highway.
“I think it should remain
as it is, and I would not want
to see it on Fifth Street,”
Commissioner
Christine
Bridgens said of marijuana
businesses. “There’s also
very offensive odors from
processing marijuana …
you’d smell it down by the
Port (of Astoria) when they
were doing that there. It
smells like a skunk. It’s just
very offensive.”
Commissioner Ken Yuill
cited the fi re that engulfed
a marijuana processor on
Portway Street in Astoria
several years ago. Workers
there allegedly consumed
butane hash oil using open
fl ames in a highly fl amma-
ble environment.
Commissioner Tommy
Smith sided with other com-
missioners, but said they
need to keep personal feel-
ings out of decisions and
look at what’s best for the
community going forward.
Paul Mitchell, the chair-
man of the Planning Com-
mission, said Warrenton
cannot separate marijuana
businesses from residen-
tial areas like in Astoria,
where most homes are on
the hillside.
“As far as what people
voted for, we know what
people have voted for,” he
said. “And that’s not part
of this issue. This issue is
about what’s right for the
city of Warrenton … there’s
plenty of places still in Asto-
ria, and I’d never say ‘no’ to
a business if they want to
stay within the codes.”
Commissioners
asked
staff to create language that
could make marijuana busi-
nesses a conditional use east
of Highway 101, as well.
Scott Hess, the commu-
nity development director,
said the City Commission
could consider the Planning
Commission’s recommen-
dation on King Fish’s pro-
posal as soon as January .