A2
THE ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2022
IN BRIEF
State reports dozens of new virus
cases for county
The Oregon Health Authority reported dozens of new
coronavirus cases for Clatsop County over the past sev-
eral days.
The health authority reported 30 new coronavirus
cases for the county on Tuesday and 97 new cases over
the weekend.
Since the pandemic began, the county had recorded
4,116 virus cases and 37 deaths as of Tuesday.
Without ordinance, RV campground
in Seaside can stay
SEASIDE — Without an ordinance providing options
for overnight camping, encampments like the 30-vehicle lot
on Necanicum Drive and 10th Avenue will remain in place.
“I do think that you probably could restrict using that
property, but you’d have to have an alternative,” City
Manager Mark Winstanley said.
At a City Council workshop in late January, council-
ors sought rules for health and safety. How any property
selected for encampments and parking would be managed
would also be a concern, City Attorney Dan Van Thiel said.
“There has to be a sanction or provision in the ordi-
nance that sanctions or allows the court to do something
with those people, if they have violated the ordinance,”
Van Thiel said.
Judge McIntosh recognized as
Juvenile Court champion
Judge Dawn McIntosh, the presiding judge of the
Clatsop County Circuit Court, has received the 2021
Chief Justice’s Juvenile Court Champion Award.
Given annually to a Circuit Court judge, the award
recognizes McIntosh’s work in advocating for children
and bringing attention to cases involving child abuse and
neglect in the state’s judicial system.
— The Astorian
Ilwaco port names new manager
ILWACO, Wash. — Richard Titus has been named
the new Port of Ilwaco manager, taking over from Guy
Glenn Jr., whose last day was Monday .
Like Glenn, Titus will also manage the Port of Chi-
nook under a joint operating agreement in place since
January 2016.
Glenn was named Ilwaco port manager in 2013, tak-
ing over from Jim Neva. He was Ilwaco’s second-lon-
gest serving manager since 1958, behind Robert Peter-
son, who served from 1971 to 1991.
In a letter to the community, Glenn thanked his staff
and other supporters.
— Chinook Observer
DEATHS
Feb. 1, 2022
In W A Brief
HLSTROM,
David Peter, 78, of Ros-
burg, Washington, died
Deaths
in Rosburg. Caldwell’s
Luce-Layton Mortuary of
Astoria is in charge of the
arrangements.
Jan. 28, 2022
BOWERS, Marilyn,
81, of Astoria, died in
Vancouver, Washington.
Hughes-Ransom Mor-
tuary is in charge of the
arrangements.
ON THE RECORD
Theft
Criminal mischief
On
the
• Derrick
Ray Record
Max-
• Denis John Reyn-
himer, 33, of Astoria,
was arrested on Jan. 27 at
Walmart in Warrenton for
theft in the second degree
and criminal trespass in
the fi rst degree.
Unauthorized use of
a motor vehicle
•
Russell
Dean
Brooks, 36, of Astoria,
was arrested on Friday
at Exchange and 12th
streets in Astoria for the
unauthorized use of a
motor vehicle that had
been stolen from Clat-
sop Community College
the day before. A passen-
ger, Hillary Jeanette Bas-
tiaen, 37, of Warrenton,
was arrested on a war-
rant. The vehicle con-
tained property believed
to have been stolen.
olds, 36, of Astoria,
was arrested on Tues-
day on W. Marine Drive
for criminal mischief in
the second degree and
harassment. He was
arrested again later that
day, in the same location,
for criminal mischief in
the second degree.
DUII
• Britnee Rose Tsu-
neo, 28, of Astoria, was
arrested on Monday
at Exchange and 14th
streets in Astoria for driv-
ing under the infl uence of
intoxicants.
• Zachary Lawrence
Spooner, 25, of Can-
non Beach, was arrested
on Friday at W. Marine
Drive and Antwerp Street
in Astoria for DUII.
PUBLIC MEETINGS
THURSDAY
Astoria Design Review Commission, 5:30 p.m., City Hall,
1095 Duane St.
Seaside Parks Advisory Committee, 6 p.m., City Hall, 989
Broadway.
PUBLIC MEETINGS
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‘You Are Loved’
Luke Whittaker/Chinook Observer
A colorful mural with a simple, heartfelt message now greets students inside Ilwaco High School. The ‘You Are Loved’ mural,
designed in bold block letters and latex paint, is the work of artist Alex Cook. It is the latest installment of a nationwide project
to help promote self-worth through art.
Oregon tries to tweak land use
rules to save Highway 101
Cracks threaten
coastal backbone
By KRISTIAN
FODEN-VENCIL
Oregon Public Broadcasting
A couple of miles north of
Newport, U.S. Highway 101
runs above Moolack Beach,
aff ording breath taking views
of the Pacifi c.
The highway is straight
and relatively fl at in this spot,
so not a big engineering chal-
lenge. But the planning direc-
tor for Lincoln County, Onno
Husing, can stand here and
watch bits of tarmac crumble
into the ocean, 80 feet below.
“It’d be pretty hard to
stand here and look at what
we’re looking at, and not be
concerned,” he said recently.
On the beach, waves roll
in constantly, in the process
steadily eroding the land sup-
porting the highway. Thou-
sands of people drive this
stretch to get to work every-
day, or because they live in
Lincoln City or Tillamook.
Highway 101 is a lifeline,
linking communities across
the coast.
“You don’t need to be an
engineer to understand that
the highway is threatened,”
Husing said.
Moolack Beach is just one
of dozens of problem spots
along Highway 101. Hus-
ing and other experts say the
road needs reinforcing, espe-
cially with what’s known in
the engineering world as rip-
rap — placing large rocks at
the base of the road to break
up wave energy and reduce
ocean erosion.
But the Oregon Depart-
ment of Transportation isn’t
allowed to use riprap along
Highway 101, because back
in 1977, the Oregon Land
Conservation and Develop-
ment Commission adopted
Goal 18 as part of Oregon’s
comprehensive land use plan-
ning eff ort. That rule blocked
the use of riprap for any new
development, unless there’s
an exception.
This was near the begin-
ning of the environmen-
tal movement. Goal 18 was
a way of ensuring Oregon’s
coast didn’t come to resem-
ble California — with hun-
dreds of miles of oceanfront
riprapped against erosion.
Many people don’t like
the way riprap looks. And it
can cause waves to scour the
beach of sand. That means
that eventually, there’s no
more beach left for the public
to enjoy.
But developers are an
imaginative bunch. As soon
as Goal 18 was adopted, they
started pushing back against
the defi nition of “develop-
Kristian Foden-Vencil/Oregon Public Broadcasting
Onno Husing, the planning director for Lincoln County, can stand on U.S. Highway 101 and
watch bits of tarmac crumble into the ocean.
ment” in the state rules. In level rise and storm surges.
1984, the state offi cially As coastal residents know, it’s
defi ned the term to include not uncommon for stretches
“… houses, commercial of 101 to be closed for days,
and industrial buildings, and weeks or even more. In some
vacant subdivision lots which spots, closures mean travelers
are physically improved have to drive all the way into
through construction of streets the Willamette Valley to reach
their destination.
and provision of utilities.”
So in response, state lead-
Meg Reed, a coastal spe-
cialist with the Oregon Land ers decided it was time to
Conservation and Devel- rewrite Goal 18 so the high-
opment Commission, said way can be repaired. Sug-
the new defi nition has gaps: gestions were put forward by
“That defi nition does not developers and environmen-
include public infrastructure,” talists. Public meetings were
she said. “Roads, sewer lines, held. Reed said in the end it
campgrounds, lighthouses: became very controversial.
“It
got
it
doesn’t
pretty
far
until
include any
THE
it came to our
of that in the
defi nition.”
COMMISSION commission
for its fi nal
In
other
IS EXPECTED hearings, and
words, using
then there was
riprap to pro-
TO VOTE ON
a big public
tect Highway
THE ISSUE
outcry from
101
hasn’t
many diff erent
been allowed
IN JULY.
sides,” Reed
for 45 years.
said.
And that’s a
In the end, the state
challenge for a road that runs
right up against the coast for decided not to touch Goal
18, so Highway 101 remains
many of its 362 miles.
unreinforced.
Backbone
Fast forward another 20
Highway 101 is the back- years, and those 25 areas
bone of Oregon’s coastal of concern identifi ed by the
transportation system. It offi - transportation department are
cially became U.S. High- now more like areas of alarm.
way 101 back in 1926, as cars
The transportation depart-
were becoming more com- ment has bolted rulers across
mon. Squeezed between the some cracks to check for
ocean and the steep slopes of movement. They’re also
the Coastal Range, the high- digging wells to monitor
way has never been as import- the groundwater. A change
ant to interstate commerce as, in groundwater levels can
say, Interstate 5. But it is key predict or even cause a
to linking coastal communi- landslide.
ties together.
The problem is so bad
It’s also a testament to the state has decided to try
engineers that Highway 101 to re write Goal 18 again.
has lasted close to 100 years But this time, they’re limit-
with relatively few upgrades. ing themselves to one small
But in 2002, the Oregon tweak.
Department of Transporta-
“We’re going to put in a
tion identifi ed 25 sites of con- specifi c exception for pub-
cern. They included areas of lic roads along the oceanfront
the highway being under- that were developed as of Jan-
cut by erosion, or in danger uary 1, 1977,” Reed said.
from landslides, fl oods, sea
Geoff Crook, with the
transportation
department,
said Highway 101 defi nitely
needs work. “ODOT very
much welcomes any change
to the current Goal 18 excep-
Alder and Maple Saw Logs & Standing Timber
tion process,” he said.
But rewriting Goal 18 wor-
Northwest Hardwoods • Longview, WA
Contact: John Anderson • 360-269-2500
ries environmental groups.
WANTED
Development
concerns
Briana Goodwin, with the
Surfrider Foundation, said
advocates understand High-
way 101 needs to be safe.
But they’re worried chang-
ing Goal 18 might allow more
development and add to the
scouring of beaches.
“We know that develop-
ers are waiting to see what
happens with Highway 101,”
Goodwin said. “And we do
expect that if the law is loos-
ened up at all or any loopholes
are opened, that there will be a
lot more applications for Goal
18 exceptions.”
Meanwhile, bits of High-
way 101 continue crumbling
into the sea. Husing, the Lin-
coln County planner, said if
the road gave out underneath
his feet, emergency rules
would allow diggers on-site
within hours to shove rip-
rap into place and reopen the
highway.
“ODOT would be in here
on an emergency basis,” Hus-
ing said. “It’d make your head
spin. They’ll come in here and
they’ll fi x that.”
He said local authorities
think Highway 101 is just too
important to fall into disre-
pair. They also think there are
better ways of maintaining an
important road than waiting
for emergency repairs.
The Oregon Depart-
ment of Land Conservation
and Development has put
together an advisory com-
mittee to come up with draft
rule language. The commit-
tee is made up of small busi-
nesses representatives, envi-
ronmentalists, someone from
the Department of Transpor-
tation, a Tillamook County
public works representative,
a Coos County commissioner
and others.
Their language will be
fi nalized by staff and legal
counsel at the state. A sev-
en-member
commission,
appointed by the governor
and confi rmed by the state
Senate, will then have a series
of public hearings this sum-
mer to talk about the proposed
rule.
The
commission
is
expected to vote on the issue
in July.