»INSIDE
SPRIN ES G
ACTIVITI
GUIDE
Ideas for
youth, adults
inside
Ken
From left to right:
Crowder and
Brown, Elliott
b ride their
Matt Weintrau
the Cannon
bikes during
Festival.
Beach Fat Bike
Colin Murphey/
The Astorian
WEEKEND EDITION // SATURDAY, APRIL 10, 2021
148TH YEAR, NO. 122
$1.50
CORONAVIRUS
Library
renovation
to go in
stages
Fundraising was
disrupted by pandemic
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Astorian
The renovation of the Astoria Library
will begin with a scaled-back fi rst phase
to kick-start progress amid a pandemic
that has halted fundraising.
City Manager Brett Estes and David
Wark, a historical architect hired to
design a refurbished library, on Wednes-
day presented a proposal to remove a sec-
ond-fl oor mezzanine that does not com-
ply with requirements of the Americans
with Disabilities Act. The library’s entire
collection would be housed on the fi rst
fl oor using tall and movable stacks.
The initial work would replace two
concrete panels along Duane Street to
introduce more natural light. It would
also enhance the children’s areas, replace
bulky furniture with more movable
objects, move the Astoriana historical
collection to the basement for researchers
and install new carpets and paint.
The project is estimated to cost
$750,000, paid for through money from
the sale of carbon sequestration credits
set aside by the city for the library .
“The improvements that we spend
money on now should allow for and be
See Library, Page A2
Gearhart
takes new look
at fi rehouse
location
Proposed land exchange
off Highlands Lane
Charis Kids
A preschool student at Charis Kids colors in a calendar.
Cannon Beach preschool to close
Parents, former teachers disappointed by the loss of Charis Kids
By KATIE FRANKOWICZ
The Astorian
ANNON BEACH — The same
day Ashley Nelson decided
to accept a full-time job, the
preschool where her chil-
dren attended an after-school pro-
gram announced it would close in
June.
Nelson, previously a stay-at-home
mom, had been counting on Charis
Kids in Cannon Beach as she dipped
back into the workforce. Now, she
and more than 20 other families are
trying to fi gure out what to do next.
Charis Kids, owned by the Cannon
Beach Conference Center, is the only
C
Hailey Hoff man/The Astorian
Charis Kids at the Cannon Beach
Conference Center will close in June.
local preschool option in the city and
one of just a few such programs avail-
See Preschool, Page A6
North Coast schools
contemplate another
pandemic graduation
By R.J. MARX
The Astorian
GEARHART — Threats of litiga-
tion at the proposed High Point location
on North Marion Avenue and a reluc-
tant seller are among the reasons Gear-
hart is looking at new sites for the city’s
fi rehouse.
They may have found one at the Cot-
tages at Gearhart, a proposed 30-acre
subdivision off of Highlands Lane, north
of the city. Developers hope to swap part
of the property to the city for a fi rehouse
in exchange for bringing the property into
the urban growth boundary and annexed
into the city.
Peter Watts, the city’s attorney, said at
the City Council’s meeting on Wednes-
day that the developers have indicated
they’re willing to donate a portion of the
property as well as land for a public park.
able across Clatsop C ounty. The main
preschool and after-school programs
will end June 18. It isn’t clear yet if
a summer program will go ahead as
planned.
Charis Kids is a long-standing
community institution with an excel-
lent reputation, Nelson said. When
it closes, her children will not only
miss out on a faith-based curriculum
Nelson values and the care of well-
trained and certifi ed teachers, they
will also lose the community that had
formed around the preschool .
“It’s an incredible hole,” Nelson
said.
Many plans for June still in fl ux
By KATIE FRANKOWICZ
The Astorian
Hailey Hoff man/The Astorian
Sebastian Rivas Guitron Antonio walks across the
fi eld to receive his diploma with the Fishermen
scoreboard displaying 2020 at Astoria High School’s
drive-in graduation in June.
While it takes eff ort to become a grad-
uate, a school graduation ceremony is usu-
ally the easy part.
But as schools approach another
June under the cloud of the coronavirus
See Graduation, Page A6
MORE
INSIDE
County
reports
eighth
virus
death •
A2
See Gearhart, Page A6
Port hopes to save big on loans
Refi nancing a loan for
the Taggart Building
By EDWARD STRATTON
The Astorian
Edward Stratton/The Astorian
The Port of Astoria will save an estimated $550,000 after refi nancing the
loan used to buy the Taggart Building on Pier 1.
The Port of Astoria will save
more than $500,000 by refi nanc-
ing a loan used to buy the Taggart
Building on Pier 1.
The Port took out a $1.7 mil-
lion loan with Clatsop Commu-
nity Bank in 2010 to buy the three-
story offi ce complex, named after
the family of former Port Com-
missioner Glenn Taggart, who
developed the building. The loan
was later transferred to Lewis &
Clark Bank.
The agency worked with David
Ulbricht, an adviser with the Spe-
cial Districts Association of Ore-
gon, to recruit other banks and
refi nance at lower interest rates.
The best proposal came from Kit-
sap Bank based in Port Orchard,
Washington, which off ered a fully
amortized loan running through
June 2035 that Ulbricht said
would ultimately save the agency
around $550,000.
The new loan agreement with
Kitsap Bank will cost the Port
around $110,000 a year, Ulbricht
said, versus around $150,000 a
year with Lewis & Clark. The
agreement will also remove a lien
on the building used as collateral,
he said.
“The bank you’re getting the
funding from is taking just your
promise to pay — no bank fees, no
loan fees, no appraisals, no deeds,
See Port, Page A6