149TH YEAR, NO. 66
DailyAstorian.com // TuEsdAY, NOvEmbER 30, 2021
$1.50
State parks
land funding for
improvements
Money for
Fort Stevens,
Nehalem Bay
By KATIE
FRANKOWICZ
The Astorian
State parks on the
North Coast are getting an
upgrade.
The Oregon State Parks
and Recreation Commis-
sion has approved an ini-
tial list of capital improve-
ment projects that could
funnel as much as $19
million to projects at Fort
Stevens State Park and
Nehalem Bay State Park.
The money comes after
the state Legislature this
year approved $50 mil-
lion in general obligation
bonds to fund state park
facility improvements.
Funds will not be
released until next year
and some plans could
be subject to change or
adjustment,
cautioned
Justin Parker, the parks
department’s North Coast
district manager. But the
money could arrive at an
important time as visita-
tion to the coast continues
to soar and the tourist sea-
son is no longer confined
to just the summer months.
“In a lot of cases, there
are parts of the parks that
are overdue for mainte-
nance,” Parker said, add-
ing, “We’re trying to pre-
pare the parks for the next
100 years.”
Park managers at Fort
Stevens could expect to
see up to $3 million to
rehabilitate a rare historic
military guardhouse and
as much as $8 million to
address aging utilities.
Staff plan to relocate a
restroom and shower facil-
ity at the Peter Iredale
shipwreck day-use area
that dates from the 1950s.
The restroom, which sits
on top of a dune, is near
the end of its useable life,
difficult to maintain and
actively sinking into the
sand, Parker said. A new
restroom will be built far-
ther east and off of the
dune.
The park also plans to
upgrade four campground
loops with improvements
to electrical, water and
wastewater utilities.
Money could flow to
Nehalem Bay State Park
beginning in 2023, though
that funding is not certain.
West Coast seafood Processors Association
A fish fillet is cut in Astoria. The seafood industry today uses just 30% to 40% of what it harvests for human
consumption, while the rest is either made into fishmeal or discarded in landfills.
Researchers aim to turn seafood
byproducts into source of nutrition
See State parks, Page A3
A multiyear project at Oregon State’s
Seafood Research and Education Center
By GEORGE PLAVEN
Capital Press
A
Hailey Hoffman/The Astorian
State bond money could help finance improvement
projects at Fort Stevens State Park.
research project led by Ore-
gon State University has
the potential to reduce
food waste by utilizing sea-
food byproducts as a cheap,
high-quality source of protein.
Oregon State has received a
$333,777 grant from the Foun-
dation for Food and Agriculture
Research to study whether pro-
tein from byproducts such as fish
heads, bones and skin left over
after processing can be recov-
ered and used as an ingredient in
food or dietary supplements.
The seafood industry uses just
30% to 40% of what it harvests
Bowler is a full-time volunteer
‘Honorary Norwegian’
spins music for KMUN
wo years without an Asto-
ria Scandinavian Midsum-
mer Festival? Forgive the Scan-
dinavian residents on the North
Coast if they’re experiencing any
lefse and rice pudding withdrawal
symptoms.
T
Park district finds role
in homeless services
By R.J. MARX
The Astorian
Janet Lien bowler
Lloyd Bowler, recording a radio show for KMUN.
also answer the call whenever and
wherever volunteers are needed.
In addition to the hours he gives
to KMUN, Bowler has worked for
the Old Barn Society and volun-
teers at the Columbia River Mar-
itime Museum and most things
Scandinavian.
“I like to think I help out here
and there,” said Bowler, who
retired after spending 30 years as
a special education teacher for the
Knappa School District. “Since
I’m retired, I like to do other vol-
unteer stuff around town.”
The couple, who have been mar-
ried almost 40 years, has joined the
Finnish Brotherhood. Janet Bowler
is involved with the Cultural Coa-
lition, serves as the entertainment
director for the Scandinavian Fes-
tival, plays flute in local music
groups and is one of the chief fund-
raisers for the Astoria Nordic Heri-
tage Park project off Marine Drive
downtown.
See Bowler, Page A2
See Seafood, Page A2
SEASIDE
New shelter set
to open this week
By GARY HENLEY
The Astorian
Festival organizers managed
to stage a drive-by Midsummer
Optog parade as opposed to the
normal parade and a festival court
was selected for 2020 and 2021.
But what about the ever-popular
music that comes with the festival?
Well, that’s where Lloyd Bowler
comes in.
Bowler co-hosts the “Scandi-
navian Hour” and “Celtic Aire”
every other Saturday — spinning
three straight hours of Scandina-
vian and Celtic music beginning at
2 p.m. for two of the more popular
shows on KMUN, Astoria’s public
radio station.
Bowler and his wife, Janet,
for human consumption, while
the rest is either made into fish-
meal or discarded in landfills.
“This research exemplifies a
‘no stone unturned’ approach to
increasing global food and nutri-
tional security through limit-
ing food waste,” said Lucyna
Kurtyka, the senior scientific
program director with the Foun-
dation for Food and Agriculture
Research.
SEASIDE — In December, a
15-bed low-barrier shelter opens
on S. Roosevelt Drive, a com-
bined project between Helping
Hands Reentry Outreach Cen-
ters, the city, Clatsop Community
Action and the Sunset Empire
Park and Recreation District.
Skyler Archibald, the execu-
tive director of the park district,
said the goal is to provide a solu-
tion for the homeless population,
especially during the cold and
wet months.
“The district’s position is that
this is a good thing for lots of
different reasons,” he said at a
board meeting last week. “And
I’m really happy that they found
a great location for it.”
Last winter, a warming cen-
ter proposed at the former Broad-
way Middle School — now the
Sunset Recreation Center — was
rejected by the board.
“It was challenging because
I think we all wanted to sup-
port this opportunity or support
this movement,” he said. “Given
the status of the SRC and of the
locker room space, we weren’t
really comfortable with that as a
good fit right now.”
With the approach of another
winter, a shelter remained a prior-
ity. Archibald said there are over
500 homeless people in the com-
munity, and possibly a “signifi-
cant amount more.”
“It’s hard to know this time of
year exactly how many there are
because of the transient nature of
that lifestyle, unfortunately, so
I know that the need will likely
exceed what we have available,”
he said.
The warming center, which
will open in winter months
during inclement weather, is fully
See Homeless, Page A2
‘THE DISTRICT’S POSITION IS THAT
THIS IS A GOOD THING FOR LOTS
OF DIFFERENT REASONS. AND I’M
REALLY HAPPY THAT THEY FOUND
A GREAT LOCATION FOR IT.’
Skyler Archibald | executive director of
the Sunset Empire Park and Recreation District