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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 12, 2022)
149TH YEAR, NO. 97 WEEKEND EDITION // SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 12, 2022 $1.50 Crab fest to return after virus disruption In-person event set for late April By ABBEY McDONALD The Astorian Photos by Lydia Ely/The Astorian New signs, lighting and a Portland Loo-style outdoor bathroom are planned for the Astoria Riverwalk. Astoria approves design for Riverwalk wayfi nding signs By NICOLE BALES The Astorian N ew signs , lighting and a Port- land Loo-style outdoor bath- room are in the works for the Uniontown and downtown portions of the Astoria Riverwalk . The city expects to have new way- fi nding signs, interpretive maps, trol- ley-stop maps and mile markers installed by spring. New lighting and an outdoor bathroom will follow. The Oregon Parks and Recre- ation Department awarded the city a $428,408 grant in 2021 to carry out improvements. The city pro- vided a 40% match from urban renewal and tourism promo- tion funds to bring the proj- ect total to $717,345. The City Coun- cil on Monday approved the design for the signs. “I think it’s an excellent eff ort,” Mayor Bruce Jones said. “The signs are really good. I’m appreciative of the fact that each of the neighbor- hoods have something, whether it’s a full interpretive wayfi nding sign or the trolley stop signs.” W ayfi nding trailhead signs are planned near the Maritime Memorial in Uniontown, the Sixth Street view- ing platform and the Barbey Mari- time Center near the Columbia River Maritime Museum off Marine Drive . See Signs, Page A2 The Crab, Seafood & Wine Festival will be held in person this April for the fi rst time in three years. The popular event, which regularly sees over 10,000 attendees, serves as a fundraiser for the Astoria-Warrenton Area Chamber of Commerce and com- munity groups. First held in 1982, the festival was canceled in 2020 due to coronavirus pan- demic safety measures. Last year’s virtual event featured an online marketplace allowing participants to chat with vendors and watch live music from their screens. It also included Festi- val Feast p assports, encouraging trips to participating businesses and restaurants around town. See Crab fest, Page A6 CORONAVIRUS State passes the crest of omicron wave Risk remains over next several weeks By GARY WARNER Oregon Capital Bureau One of the wayfi nding trailhead signs is planned near the Sixth Street viewing platform. Oregon has passed the crest of the omi- cron wave of COVID-19, but still faces a dangerous time before levels drop back to where they were in June, state health offi - cials said Thursday. “The number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 has peaked and will steadily recede until reaching pre-omi- cron levels by the end of March,” accord- ing to the forecast Thursday by Oregon Health & Science University. But the wave is not over. See Omicron, Page A6 Lawmakers look to make child care more aff ordable ‘MY STORY IS THE SAME AS COUNTLESS OTHER PARENTS STRUGGLING TO FIND AFFORDABLE CHILD CARE. I AND SO MANY OTHER PARENTS SHOULDN’T HAVE TO CHOOSE BETWEEN CARING FOR A CHILD AND WORKING.’ Gov. Brown calls for a $100 million boost By JULIA SHUMWAY Oregon Capital Chronicle As Jasmine Casanova-Dean spoke to state legislators at a hear- ing about child care this month , her 67-year-old grandmother watched her 2-year-old daughter in another room. Casanova-Dean can only aff ord professional child care two days a week, so every other day she’s left to shift her work schedule, seek help from family or friends or tell her daughter to be patient while she fi n- Jasmine Casanova-Dean | Portland resident who spoke at a recent hearing about child care ishes an important work meeting. “My story is the same as count- less other parents struggling to fi nd aff ordable child care,” Casano- va-Dean, of Portland, said. “I and so many other parents shouldn’t have to choose between caring for a child and working.” Lawmakers and Gov. Kate Brown are trying to help, though they acknowledge that the state can’t do enough to make sure every fam- ily that needs child care can aff ord it. For state Rep. Karin Power, the Milwaukie Democrat who leads the House Early Childhood Commit- tee, it’s a personal issue. She has two young children in child care. “It’s really expensive, and it’s really expensive for everybody,” Power said. “I’m hearing right now too from families who can aff ord care and still can’t get it because pro- viders have closed.” Brown has called for $100 million in new spending. The Legislature’s budget writers haven’t yet decided how to spend the roughly $1.5 bil- lion in extra state money, but there’s broad support among Democrats in the majority to spend at least some on child care. Child care advocates back a plan that would spend about half of the $100 million sum on grants for new child care providers and existing facilities that plan to hire more staff or otherwise expand their programs. A San Francisco model ment Fund, which reported spend- ing $168 million to create 273,000 new child care slots between 1984 and 2020. In total, that $168 million resulted in $29 billion in monetary benefi ts to families and communities, according to the organization. Oregon would use another $21 million for direct payments to child care workers as incentives to stay in the workplace. Child care work- ers are paid an average hourly wage of $14.95, according to the Oregon Employment Department, slightly more than the minimum wage but lower than the starting salaries many retailers and fast-food establish- ments are off ering because of staff shortages. The last $4.3 million would go to administrative costs associated with combining the work of two state Supporters pointed to the San Francisco-based Low Income Invest- Feb 19th & 20th Saturday: 9 am- 3 pm ◆ Sunday: 10 am- 3 pm Seaside Convention Center You Never Know What You’ll Find At A Collectors West Gun & Knife Show! 415 1st Avenue, Seaside collectorswest.com See Child care, Page A6 $ ADM 8 ISSIO N