WEEKEND EDITION // Saturday, June 5, 2021
148tH year, nO. 146
$1.50
CORONAVIRUS
A STUDENT SALUTE
Hailey Hoffman/the astorian
Astor Elementary School students hold signs
and cheer on Astoria High School seniors as
they made their first stop of grad walk on
Thursday. The seniors graduate Saturday.
Hotelier turns sights to apartments County urges
Gov. Brown to
drop vaccine
requirement
More than 80 units
of housing in Seaside
By R.J. MARX
The Astorian
SEASIDE — Masudur
Khan owns five hotels in
Seaside — and could build
more. But the hotelier is
turning his sights to devel-
oping two apartment com-
plexes with more than 80
units aimed at stemming a
lack of affordable housing.
“I’m excited for the proj-
ects,” Khan said. “I could
build a hotel, but I prefer
to do the housing because
that’s most important for the
city at this moment. At this
moment, we have enough
hotels.”
Khan, who serves as
chairman of the Oregon
Restaurant & Lodging Asso-
ciation, is considering using
some of those apartments
for his own employees,
engineer Mark Mead said
at Tuesday night’s Planning
r.J. Marx/the astorian
By NICOLE BALES
The Astorian
Looking west at where the proposed River Run apartment complex would stand.
Commission meeting.
“I do know that part of
the units will be some of his
employees, because he has
100-and-something employ-
ees between all the different
hotels in Cannon Beach and
Seaside area,” Mead said.
On S. Holladay Drive,
Khan plans to replace four
old retail and storage build-
ing with a three-building,
28-unit complex. The site is
located in the city’s general
commercial zone. It also
contains parking and open
space.
Building A will include
a small, 875-square-foot
office space to be used for
management and mainte-
nance of the project, along
with a possible small office
space to be rented out. The
second and third floors
will provide four two-bed-
room and two one-bedroom
apartments.
Commissioners
call it a burden
on businesses
Building B will provide
parking on the ground floor.
The second and third floors
will provide four one-bed-
room apartments.
Building C will pro-
vide parking and two one-
bedroom ground floor
apartments. The second
and third floors will pro-
vide three one-bedroom
apartments.
See Hotelier, Page A6
The Clatsop County
Board of Commissioners
has called on Gov. Kate
Brown to end a policy
requiring businesses and
churches to verify coro-
navirus vaccination status
before allowing people to
take off their masks.
In a letter to the gover-
nor on Thursday, commis-
sioners said the mandate
places an unfair responsi-
bility and burden on busi-
nesses and churches.
“The notion of a ‘vac-
cine passport’ is not
included in the federal
guidance,” the letter said.
“Requiring this type of
validation process creates
risk, liability and expense
to businesses and churches.
Placing the burden of veri-
fication on businesses and
churches already reel-
ing from the devastating
affects of COVID is unrea-
sonable, unnecessary and
prone to conflict.”
Major retail groups and
political opponents have
See Vaccines, Page A6
Cannon Beach public works State, adult foster home provider reach settlement
director facing ethics probe Agreement reached
According to Sherryll Hoar, a tal Disabilities Services licenses
Two complaints
against La Bonte
By KATIE FRANKOWICZ
The Astorian
CANNON BEACH — An eth-
ics complaint alleges Karen La
Bonte, the city’s public works direc-
tor, may have violated state conflict
of interest laws after the city hired a
company she co-owns to make signs
during the coronavirus pandemic.
A second complaint alleges La
Bonte also inappropriately dis-
posed of surplus city property.
La Bonte declined to comment
when contacted by The Astorian.
City Manager Bruce St. Denis
described the complaints as part
of a campaign of harassment.
“There is a concerted, ugly
effort to harass and discredit
Karen La Bonte and the city by
implying (with no proof, only
allegations) that bad things are
going on in the town and nothing
is being done about it,” St. Denis
wrote in a letter to the City Coun-
cil outlining the situation.
A preliminary review by state
investigators for the Oregon
Government Ethics Commission
found La Bonte may have vio-
lated several of the state’s con-
flict of interest provisions after
the city hired the sign company
she co-owns with her husband for
two different jobs last year.
See Probe, Page A6
just before trial
By NICOLE BALES
The Astorian
The state Department of Human
Services and KC Care LLC have
reached a settlement to resolve
a dispute over abuse and neglect
findings at foster homes for people
with developmental disabilities.
The state substantiated reports
of abuse and neglect at KC Care
foster homes and moved to revoke
the provider’s licenses. KC Care,
based in Seaside, challenged the
state’s findings.
The settlement was disclosed
just before a trial was set to begin
in Clatsop County Circuit Court in
late May.
spokeswoman for the Department
of Human Services, Ken Biamont,
the registered agent for KC Care,
is resigning.
Cravalynn Weber, Biamont’s
partner, will take over the corpora-
tion and will be licensed subject to
passing a background check, Hoar
said.
Hoar said Weber will not apply
for or be licensed for any adult
foster home or provide services
to anyone in foster care funded
through the state Office of Devel-
opmental Disabilities Services for
five years.
KC Care does not currently
operate any foster homes, accord-
ing to the state, but is licensed
to provide community living
supports.
“The Office of Developmen-
and monitors programs supporting
people with intellectual and devel-
opmental disabilities (I/DD) to
ensure the safety of each person in
the program,” Hoar said in a email.
“We can confirm that we reached
an agreement on terms for a settle-
ment that will protect people with
I/DD who receive services from
KC Care.”
Biamont and his attorney could
not be reached for comment.
In court filings, Biamont’s
attorneys had denied the state’s
abuse and neglect findings and
See Settlement, Page A6