Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 23, 2021)
A2 THE ASTORIAN • SATURDAY, JANUARY 23, 2021 IN BRIEF Astoria woman injured in crash on Highway 101 Business AN ASTORIA SUNRISE An Astoria woman was injured Wednesday evening after a head-on collision on U.S. Highway 101 Business. Police, who were called to the scene at about 7 p.m., say a man driving an Chevrolet Aveo was heading south- bound when he did not follow the path of the roadway at a sharp curve and crossed the centerline into a Hyun- dai Sonata. The people in the Aveo were not injured. A pregnant 23-year-old Astoria woman, who was a passenger in the Sonata, was injured and taken to Columbia Memo- rial Hospital in Astoria. She was later fl own to Oregon Health & Science University Hospital in Portland. Police investigating break-ins at Astoria food carts Police are investigating break-ins at the three food carts in front of Reach Break Brewing in Astoria. Doors on the food carts were found pried open on Thursday morning. Some had personal property and money taken. Anyone with information is asked to contact Offi - cer Alex Whitney at awhitney@astoria.or.us or 503-325-4411. New Seaside campus ready for students SEASIDE — Seaside School District campus build- ings are ready for in-person class instruction, proj- ect manager Jim Henry said at Tuesday’s school board meeting. Construction is mostly complete, waiting a “few punch list items” and a completion of exterior remedia- tion to the eastern side of the building. “We wish a ribbon was wrapped on top of the build- ings, but we can have students in school,” Henry said. In December, members of the construction team con- tinued work on exterior remediation, fi nishing replace- ment of 22,000 linear square feet of weather barrier after the fi rst application failed to meet specifi cations. Work on the west side of the high school and middle school is near completion with the removal of scaffold- ing and installation of metal panels, Henry said. On the east facade, masonry work remains. “We’ve been seeing good progress. All of the tests have been thumbs up,” he said. The work is expected to continue through February. County offers surveys to help with vaccine rollout Online surveys are available for anyone who wants to receive a coronavirus vaccine. The Clatsop County vaccine task force will use the information submitted in the surveys to notify people when they are eligible to register for a vaccina- tion event. Visit the county’s website to fi ll out a survey. People can email the task force at covid19vaccine@ clatsopeoc.com with any questions. As of Wednesday, the county has administered 2,087 vaccines. County seeking volunteers for COVID-19 call center Clatsop County is seeking volunteers for its coronavi- rus public information call center. Volunteers will be asked to do several tasks, including test scheduling, answering questions and assisting people to make appointments for vaccination events. Training will be provided. A criminal background verifi cation is required. Volunteer shifts are 1.5 to 2 hours from 9 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. The call center adheres to federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines, including mask-wearing at all times, social distancing and multiple cleanings of the workspace. Visit the county’s website to volunteer. For more information email hr@co.clatsop.or.us. — The Astorian DEATH Jan. 18, 2021 CROW, Joe Luis, 26, of Aberdeen, Washington, formerly of Westport, Oregon, died in Spokane, Wash- ington. Caldwell’s Luce-Layton Mortuary of Astoria is in charge of the arrangements. Death PUBLIC MEETINGS MONDAY Jewell School District Board, 6 p.m., Jewell School Li- brary, 83874 Highway 103. Seaside City Council, 7 p.m., (electronic meeting). TUESDAY Sunset Empire Park and Recreation District Board of Directors, 5:15 p.m., (electronic meeting). Astoria Planning Commission, 5:30 p.m., City Hall, 1095 Duane St. Seaside Airport Advisory Committee, 6 p.m., (electronic meeting). Warrenton City Commission, 6 p.m., City Hall, 225 S. Main Ave. PUBLIC MEETINGS Hailey Hoff man/The Astorian Sunrise at the Astoria Column on Wednesday morning. Legislature cranks up 2021 session after two-day delay SALEM — After a two- day delay caused by FBI reports of possible right- wing attacks on state capi- tals, the Oregon Legislature got down to the business of the 2021 session. On Thursday, 12 commit- tees kicked off with virtual hearings. About 46 House members held a 20-minute fl oor session to move along the fi rst batches of bills onto the political conveyor belt of readings and assignment to committee. State Rep. Ron Noble, R-McMinnville, gave what was offi cially the opening prayer, but was more a plea for cooperation amid the cri- ses and chaos — with an “amen” at the end. “We must fi gure out a way to climb out of the mire, and the time is now,” Noble said. “Is it naive to think we can create a vision forward and people with differing options can engage without vilifying each other? Maybe. But I’m willing to try.” Noble said the alternative of remaining in the political mire would destroy families, communities, the state and nation. A lot of trees died to churn out the 1,500 bills and reso- lutions submitted by House and Senate members for the 2021 session. But Rep. Julie Fahey, D-Eugene, tweeted a simple truth: “Just because there’s a bill about something, it doesn’t mean ‘the L egisla- ture’ or ‘the Democrats’ want to pass it. At this point, it means one legislator had an idea.” If history is a guide, recy- cle bins around the Capitol will fi ll up fast with much of the legislation. In normal years, about 20% of bills make it to the full House and Senate for consideration. House Speaker Tina Kotek, D-Portland, and Sen- ate President Peter Courtney, D-Salem, are eager to cap the time lawmakers are in Salem and the hours staff in the Capitol have to work on preparing bills and support (USPS 035-000) Published Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday by EO Media Group, 949 Exchange St., PO Box 210, Astoria, OR 97103 Telephone 503-325-3211, 800-781-3211 or Fax 503-325-6573. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to The Astorian, PO Box 210, Astoria, OR 97103-0210 DailyAstorian.com Circulation phone number: 800-781-3214 Periodicals postage paid at Astoria, OR ADVERTISING OWNERSHIP All advertising copy and illustrations prepared by The Astorian become the property of The Astorian and may not be reproduced for any use without explicit prior approval. COPYRIGHT © Entire contents © Copyright, 2021 by The Astorian. MEMBER OF THE ASSOCIATED PRESS MEMBER CERTIFIED AUDIT OF CIRCULATIONS, INC. Printed on recycled paper Subscription rates Eff ective January 12, 2021 MAIL EZpay (per month) ...............................................................................................................$10.75 13 weeks in advance ...........................................................................................................$37.00 26 weeks in advance ...........................................................................................................$71.00 52 weeks in advance ........................................................................................................ $135.00 DIGITAL EZpay (per month) .................................................................................................................$8.25 Capitol security Nathan Howard/Getty Images The state increased security around the Capitol over concerns about right-wing protesters. materials. That’s a formula for an extra high attrition rate on legislation not fast- tracked from the beginning. Along with the offi cial crises in front of the Legis- lature, the House and Sen- ate committee on redistrict- ing will be closely watched. Every 10 years, the new c ensus numbers are used to re draw 60 state House dis- tricts, 30 state Senate dis- tricts and fi ve c ongressional districts. Oregon could get a sixth congressional district. The fi nal numbers on which redistricting decisions will be based won’t be released until April 1. If the Legislature can- not agree on the new district lines, the mapping of state legislative districts goes to Secretary of State Shemia Fagan, while congressional lines go to a federal panel. There are often court chal- lenges. But the new bound- aries will be in place for the 2022 elections. Virus precautions State political reporters recently held an online meet- ing with legislative leaders and Gov. Kate Brown to get a preview of politics and pol- icy agendas for 2021. The Capitol has been closed to the public since Brown declared a state of emergency in March as COVID-19 began its spread through Oregon. The Leg- islature has held three short special sessions to deal with emergency measures tied to the pandemic, wildfi res and police reform. Senate Minority Leader Fred Girod, R-Stayton, said the regular session of the Legislature should not con- tinue with the public only able to take part via online testimony. “You do what you can to make it so that the public has a right to come in and tes- tify,” Girod said. “There are billions of dollars that are going to be spent.” Girod, 70, said he knew that with many older mem- bers and those with health issues, the Legislature included people who were in high-risk categories for seri- ous illness and even death. But he argued a year of Oregonians being limited to virtual involvement was not acceptable in a transpar- ent democracy. Opening the Capitol in some form was “worth the risk.” Courtney sharply disagreed. “I am not willing to play God with this stuff,” said Courtney, 77. Nationwide, over 150 state lawmakers have become infected with COVID-19, according to the Ballotpedia political website, and seven have died. Oregon’s fi ve short days of special sessions since March had avoided any infections. But the regular session would require many more gatherings in Salem. Reopening the Capitol would increase the viral exposure on each person inside. “You may be willing to take the risk, but I am not,” Violent assaults on the Capitol on Dec. 21 and the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6 are driving an aggressive review of security in Salem. Oregon is one of 20 states that does not require visitors to pass through metal detec- tors to enter the Capitol. It’s one of 45 states that allow some form of open carry of fi rearms, including AR-15 semi-automatic rifl es and other long guns. It’s even one of about 20 states that allow the guns to be carried into the Capitol. Senate Minority Leader Christine Drazan, R-Canby, said most proteste rs would say they carry the guns as an expression of their Second Amendment right to bear arms. An incredulous House Majority Leader Barbara Smith Warner, D-Portland, vigorously disagreed. The recent attacks show that the presence of armed proteste rs has a different motivation: “It’s to intimidate,” she said. All aspects of security are under review, but any changes would be announced in public in advance and any change to gun laws would likely require legislation. Courtney lives in Salem, represents a Salem district and has worked in the Cap- itol since he was fi rst elected to the Legislature in 1981. Surveying the reality today — the Capitol shut- tered for 10 months, the attack on the Legislature, concrete blocks placed in front of the entrance, lower outside windows shielded against future riots by ply- wood, yards of fencing and National Guard troops on the grounds — makes Courtney immensely sad. “This is really a traumatic thing to have Oregon, which is the most open Capitol in the nation, about to become a fortress,” he said. “I never thought I’d see that. I t breaks my heart.” The Oregon Capital Bureau is a collaboration between EO Media Group and Pamplin Media Group. Brown gives unusual State of the State address By PETER WONG Oregon Capital Bureau Established July 1, 1873 Courtney said. By GARY WARNER Oregon Capital Bureau Gov. Kate Brown gave an unusual S tate of the S tate talk, her next to last as Ore- gon’s governor. The virtual address Thurs- day wasn’t unusual. It’s become commonplace in the 10 months since the coronavi- rus pandemic swept through the world and health proto- cols call for social distancing. Brown noted that Thurs- day was exactly one year ago, when the federal Cen- ters for Disease Control and Prevention confi rmed the fi rst COVID-19 case in the United States, that she convened a state team to prepare for a potential outbreak. The gov- ernor issued her fi rst execu- tive orders on the pandemic March 8 . What was unusual was that Brown invited four other speakers to join her virtually for 45 minutes to discuss her priorities of ending the pan- demic and promoting vac- cinations, recovering from the Labor Day wildfi res and advancing racial equity. They were: • Dr. Antwon Chavis, a pediatrician at Oregon Health & Science University’s Doer- nbecher Children’s Hospital in Portland, who spoke about how the pandemic affected children and families. • Chief Christiana Rain- bow Plews of the Upper McKenzie Rural Fire Pro- tection District, who directed efforts against the Holiday Farms fi re even as her own home burned. • Reyna Lopez of PCUN farmworkers union based in Woodburn and Paul Solomon of Sponsors Inc. of Eugene, both members of the gover- nor’s Racial Justice Coun- cil, which recommended steps toward racial equity that Brown included in her pro- posed 2021-23 budget. Echoing the “Build Back Better” campaign theme of President Joe Biden, Brown said it was not enough for Oregon to recover from the pandemic, the resulting eco- nomic downturn and the wildfi res. “We must recognize that going back to the ‘way things were’ will not move us for- ward,” the Democrat said. “Every diffi cult turn of this past year has only proven this point, further exacerbating existing disparities … The fi rst step to creating oppor- tunity is recognizing that rac- ism is endemic to our sys- tems, impacting every part of our culture and our economy. I am committed to ensuring that the world we build as we emerge from this last year is a more equitable one.” Brown has two years to go in her second term. She leaves offi ce on Jan. 9, 2023. The Oregon Capital Bureau is a collaboration between EO Media Group and Pamplin Media Group.
