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essJournal.com
CoastRiverBusin
Volume 16 •
FREE
Issue 12
ia-Pacifi c Region
Chronicling
Published Monthly
December 2021
ss in the Columb
the Joy of Busine
ight:
Industry Spotl
t
r’s marke
hot
A selle t hous
ing market stays
Inside:
Page 8
North Coas
ds
Cidery expan
to new space
Reveille Ciderworks moves
Page 3
pooch
A gleaming Astoria
Dog washing services
Page 4
in
ABBEY McDONALD
Homes in the Mill
A store for little
hood in Astoria.
Pond neighbor
Home prices across
the North Coast
ive for buyers.
remain competit
ones
New baby store opens
Page 6
Departments
149TH YEAR, NO. 72
DailyAstorian.com // TUESDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2021
$1.50
Lydia Ely/The Astorian
Job coaches Kai Webb, left, and Jessica
Moon work in the Bridge City Mentors offi ce
downtown.
Advocacy
group works to
lower barriers
to employment
Bridge City Mentors helps
with job placement
By ABBEY McDONALD
The Astorian
There’s a new matchmaker in town, spe-
cializing in long-term relationships between
businesses and job applicants.
Bridge City Mentors, a Portland-based
employment advocacy program, has opened
a second location in Astoria. It expands the
North Coast’s limited resources for voca-
tional rehabilitation and job placement.
The job development organization off ers
free job preparation, mentorship, applica-
tion assistance and advocacy for people with
disabilities, veterans and others facing barri-
ers to employment.
The mentorship begins with applica-
tion assistance and job placement, and they
work with employers to support employees
through the fi rst few months after hiring.
Dee Norbury, the group’s director, said
the decision to expand to Astoria came after
she found out the area did not have a job
development agency.
“I knew that this was an opportunity to
assist our business in growing, but also to
really make an impact on this community,”
Norbury said. “People need jobs and that’s
our specialty. We’re matchmakers. We can
totally match employees and applicants with
employers who are seeking specifi c skills.”
The organization has contracted with the
Oregon Department of Human Services’
Vocational Rehabilitation branch , which has
a small team in Clatsop County.
Its vocational counselor, Jen Munson,
worked for 2 1/2 years to bring Bridge City
to Astoria. She said that the contract will
allow her to better serve people in the com-
munity who have disabilities and address
the backlog of applications.
“Prior to Bridge City, I was doing all that
sort of partnership myself,” Munson said.
“Bridge City will do the boots on the ground
work.”
T he business is networking with employ-
ers in the community. They have been
involved in chamber of commerce events
and are meeting with potential clients.
“What we’re fi nding is that everybody
is hiring, so we just have to continue meet-
ing with people,” said Kai Webb, a men-
tor at Bridge City. “And I think the best
See Mentors, Page A2
Photos by Lydia Ely/The Astorian
The receptionist window of Clatsop Behavioral Healthcare’s new Rapid Access Clinic is decorated for the holiday season.
Rapid Access Clinic provides
‘mental health fi rst aid’
By ERICK BENGEL
The Astorian
Last summer, an older home-
less man approached Clatsop Behav-
ioral Healthcare’s new Rapid Access
Clinic on W. Bond Street, asking for
a cigarette or some change. The staff
off ered him snacks and coff ee.
He kept showing up, a few times a
week, striking up conversations with
the staff , who would ask him how he
was doing. It took about a week for
staff to get the man’s name from him,
so disordered was his speech.
Eventually, he started asking ques-
tions. He wanted to know what they
did at the clinic.
Weeks after their fi rst interac-
tion, he was in the offi ce of Dra-
gosh Negrea, the clinic manager, who
assessed the man, asking him ques-
tions to get him enrolled in services.
Negrea was able to connect him
with case managers and get him
started on mental health medications.
He managed to fi nd the man’s family,
who hadn’t heard from him in about a
year. And he learned that, until a few
years ago, the man had been fairly
high-functioning.
The Rapid Access Clinic, which
operates weekdays from 9 a.m. to
3 p.m., is a low-barrier drop-in center
for adults 18 and older seeking men-
tal health care or treatment for drug
and alcohol addiction. No appoint-
ment needed, no insurance necessary
The clinic is a low-barrier drop-in center.
— though the staff can help clients
sign up .
The clinic provides what Meghan
McKee, the outpatient services direc-
tor, called “mental health fi rst aid.”
As long as someone isn’t being vio-
lent or needing immediate medical
care, that person can be seen .
Housed in a former Social Security
offi ce, the c linic had a soft opening
last month but has been quietly open
since July. When the current phase
of the coronavirus pandemic passes,
staff may hold a community event,
See Clinic, Page A3
Native American entrepreneur opens vintage collective
Crowchild’s vibrant new
space is just through the store
and down the stairs.
A vibrant new store
on Commercial
By ETHAN MYERS
The Astorian
C
urious shoppers who peered
into an old building down-
town over the years can now
venture inside —and buy an
affordable, vintage shirt while
they are at it.
Interest in the new store has
built just on the mystery of the
building alone, said Nathan
Crowchild, the founder of Rain
Town Vintage Collective. The
location, which formerly housed
Abeco Office Systems on Com-
mercial Street, now holds a num-
ber of items from Portland’s
Nathan Crowchild stands at the counter of Rain Town Vintage Collective in Astoria.
Hollywood Vintage.
Some people wander in with
stories of what the place used
to be, while others venture in
as eager customers who saw the
handmade sign out front.
See Store, Page A2
Lydia Ely/The Astorian