A2
THE ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, JUNE 10, 2021
IN BRIEF
Gearhart approves new budget
GEARHART — Increased property values, a jump
in building permits and lodging tax and infl ow of federal
dollars drove an expanding city budget.
The City Council approved the budget last week,
showing $2.57 million in general fund resources, up
about 8% from last year’s $2 million budget. With
additional budget funds, appropriations total $7.62
million.
The permanent tax rate is $1.005 per $1,000 of
assessed property value. The city will levy about
$608,000 in property taxes necessary to balance the
budget.
The new budget takes eff ect in July.
Seaside School District adopts new budget
SEASIDE — The Seaside School District approved
next school year’s budget last week. The total of all
funds was $960,000 higher than in the proposed bud-
get, following an adjustment to account for principal and
interest for pension bonds.
After reviewing the budget with the Northwest
Regional Education Service District, the school district
made the change with the goal of being as “as transpar-
ent as possible,” Superintendent Susan Penrod said.
Total revenues and expenditures of $49 million in the
revised budget are about $9 million lower than last year’s
$58.2 million requirements, a result of reduced construc-
tion expenditures with the completion of the new cam-
pus on Spruce Drive.
A CONGRESSIONAL VISIT
ABOVE LEFT: Angela Whitlock, Lisa Habecker and Kelli Ennis with the Haystack Rock Awareness Program point out
puffi ns to U.S. Rep. Suzanne Bonamici. ABOVE RIGHT: Bonamici looks through a scope to see a black oystercatcher
nest on Haystack Rock. The congresswoman visited Clatsop County on Tuesday to discuss conservation and
ocean protection issues in Cannon Beach and to meet with local business leaders and learn about small business
resources in Seaside. BELOW: Bonamici listens to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service volunteer Tim Halloran about his work
observing and counting puffi ns.
Photos by Hailey Hoff man/The Astorian
New commander named for
Coast Guard cutter Alert
A change of command ceremony for the U.S. Coast
Guard cutter Alert was held Friday outside of the Colum-
bia River Maritime Museum in Astoria.
Cmdr. Matthew Kolodica replaced Cmdr. Tyson Sco-
fi eld as the Alert’s commanding offi cer.
“It has been a privilege to lead the Alert crew over the
last two years,” Scofi eld said. “Despite the challenges
of the COVID pandemic, maintenance on a 52-year-old
cutter, or the stormy conditions of the Pacifi c Northwest,
this crew continuously rose to occasion to safely and
successfully execute our missions.”
Scofi eld will report to the Eisenhower School of
National Security and Resource Strategy in Washing-
ton, D.C.
Kolodica moved from the Coast Guard’s Maritime
Force Protection program offi ce in Washington, D.C.
— The Astorian
Long Beach drowning victim identifi ed
LONG BEACH, Wash. — The 14-year-old boy who
is presumed to have drowned off Long Beach on May
31 has been identifi ed by family members as Carlos
Sebastián Quizhpi Valdivieso.
He was caught in a rip current and pulled away from
shore.
His family, whose roots are in Ecuador in South Amer-
ica, have continued searching for him. A GoFundMe
page has been set up by a cousin under the surname
Quizphi, an alternative spelling of his family name.
“His parents Lourdes and Carlos, his brothers
Ines and Bernardo, are completely devastated as well
as the entire family,” according to the GoFundMe
listing.
— Chinook Observer
DEATHS
June 8, 2021
In KELING,
Brief
Howard
LaVerne, 90, of Seaside,
died in Seaside. Cald-
Deaths
well’s Funeral & Crema-
tion Arrangement Center
of Seaside is in charge of
the arrangements.
June 6, 2021
McKNIGHT, Laisane
Ray “Zane,” 64, of Queen
Creek, Arizona, formerly
of Astoria, died in Seaside.
Caldwell’s Funeral & Cre-
mation Arrangement Cen-
ter of Seaside is in charge
of the arrangements.
June 4, 2021
RUSSELL, Gwendo-
lyn Gail, 83, of Astoria,
died in Astoria. Caldwell’s
Luce-Layton Mortuary of
Astoria is in charge of the
arrangements.
ON THE RECORD
Assault
DUII
On
the
Record
• Robert
Weaver,
57,
• Joshua Michael
of Astoria, was arrested
Monday on state High-
way 202 for resisting
arrest, misuse of 911 and
assaulting a public safety
offi cer.
Theft
• Jarret Dean Gleason,
43, of Warrenton, was
arrested Monday near
28th Street and Marine
Drive in Astoria for theft
in the fi rst degree.
Daugherty, 35, of Long
Beach, Washington, was
arrested Monday for driv-
ing under the infl uence of
intoxicants and reckless
driving following a crash
on U.S. Highway 101.
• Carmen G. Ricker,
61, of Warrenton, was
arrested on June 3 in War-
renton for DUII, reckless
endangerment and reck-
less driving.
PUBLIC MEETINGS
THURSDAY
Seaside Parks Advisory Committee, 6 p.m., 989 Broadway.
PUBLIC MEETINGS
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Warrenton debates spending
on tourism promotion
Budget committee
decided to zero out
funding for eff ort
By NICOLE BALES
The Astorian
WARRENTON — David
Reid, the executive direc-
tor of the Astoria-Warren-
ton Area Chamber of Com-
merce, appealed to the City
Commission Tuesday night
to reconsider defunding a
committee tasked with mar-
keting tourism in Astoria
and Warrenton.
The Lower Colum-
bia Tourism Committee
was formed about 30 years
ago to combine the eff orts
of Astoria and Warren-
ton in marketing the cities
as a combined destination.
Reid said the committee
has built a strong brand for
the region , leading to lon-
ger stays and more spending
year-round.
The committee is funded
by a portion of lodging
taxes from both cities and
is made up of 15 members
who serve fi ve-year terms
and represent various tour-
ism related industries .
In May, Warrenton’s
budget committee decided
to zero out funding to the
committee and instead fun-
nel the revenue into the
Hammond Marina c apital
r eserve f und.
The city distributes 6.8%
of the lodging taxes it col-
lects to the Lower Columbia
Tourism Committee. About
19% of revenue is distrib-
uted to the m arina f und.
“The chamber is the
Astoria-Warrenton
Area
Chamber of Commerce.
We are still and always
interested in the economic
well-being and the livabil-
ity of this combined com-
munity,” Reid said.
Edward Stratton/The Astorian
Warrenton is debating whether to continue to fund the Lower Columbia Tourism Committee.
“It does make things
awkward. LCTC is again,
the de facto destination man-
agement organization, and
there are growing organiza-
tions on the coast. There’s
a countywide group called
Oregon’s North Coast that is
funded in part by LCTC that
really is taking that concept
that we’ve had here for 30
years, which is combining
destinations so that we can
get people to spend longer
here, get fewer cars on the
road and increase the eco-
nomic impact to our com-
munities, and expanding
that countywide.
“And so now we’re look-
ing less at daytrippers and
more at three- and- four-
day stays by combining the
assets of countywide com-
munities so that people
have more things to do and
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WANTED
Alder and Maple Saw Logs & Standing Timber
Northwest Hardwoods • Longview, WA
Contact: John Anderson • 360-269-2500
more reason to stay longer.
So with a withdrawal from
Warrenton from the LCTC,
that would eventually cre-
ate sort of a gap in that mar-
ket, right? We’re marketing
everything but Gearhart and
Warrenton in that Oregon’s
North Coast thing, just in
terms of where the money
comes from. That said, I
don’t think that the LCTC
could or would or should
ignore what is available in
Warrenton. It’s just a ques-
tion of emphasis.”
Reid argued that it is
important for the city to
continue marketing so it
can maintain and continue
to grow its income stream
from the lodging tax.
“And without any fund-
ing in the LCTC, with-
See Tourism, Page A5
FINNISH BROTHERHOOD
LODGE AUXILIARY
RICE PUDDING/
FRUIT SOUP
“TO GO”
Call to preorder by June 17
Pick up Saturday, June 19, 11-3
behind
Suomi Hall
244 W. Marine Dr.
Astoria, Oregon
503-440-9002