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DailyAstorian.com // THURSDAY, AUGUST 4, 2022
150TH YEAR, NO. 15
$1.50
City enters
contract to
improve
emergency
communication
Challenges persist
at dispatch center
By NICOLE BALES
The Astorian
Lydia Ely/The Astorian
Flood control has been a challenge in Warrenton.
Warrenton updates
emergency operations plan
The fi rst update
in 12 years
By ETHAN MYERS
The Astorian
W
ARRENTON — T he city has
made crucial updates to an
emergency operations plan to
help better prepare for emergencies and
natural disasters.
The comprehensive, all-hazards
plan provides the city with a frame-
work for readiness, response and recov-
ery . The plan also details how agencies
and organizations in the region can
coordinate to maximize resources and
assistance.
The eff ort was driven by a state
h omeland s ecurity grant acquired by
Clatsop County in 2018, but the pro-
cess was delayed due to the corona-
virus pandemic. After receiving an
extension, the county tasked Stantec,
an international consulting fi rm, with
performing updates to Warrenton and
Gearhart’s emergency operations plans.
Warrenton’s refreshed plan was
adopted by the City Commission in
July .
Mayor Henry Balensifer said updat-
ing the plan was his No. 1 priority since
he took offi ce.
“It takes a long time in government
to get anything done, but we’ve had a
lot of staff turnover in areas where we
would normally work on (emergency
management),” he said. “I’m just grate-
ful that we’re fi nally doing that.”
The three-month process took feed-
back from several levels of city staff ,
Police Chief Mathew Workman and
Fire Chief Brian Alsbury, as well as
community organizations.
Updating the plan was necessary
to meet state and federal standards,
but also to refl ect the changing needs
of Warrenton since the plan was last
adopted in 2010.
According to the 2020 census, War-
renton was the fastest-growing city in
the c ounty over the p ast decade, with a
25.8% rise in population.
WARRENTON
WAS THE FASTEST-
GROWING CITY IN
THE C OUNTY OVER
THE P AST DECADE,
WITH A 25.8% RISE
IN POPULATION.
“One of the big, critical drivers for
a plan update in a situation like this
is making sure that the document is
pointing to the right tools, the right
resources, the right partners that (the
city) can bring to bear,” Zane Beall, a
senior emergency planner for Stantec,
said.
Coming into compliance with
requirements could also open the door
for receiving funding related to emer-
gency management, Matthew Lieual-
len, a principal planner for Stantec,
added.
Struggles
with fl ooding
In January, heavy rain led to an
overwhelmed stormwater system in
Warrenton, causing widespread fl ood-
ing. City crews covered manholes with
tarps, plastic and sandbags as the sys-
tem reached infl ow limits.
In looking for additional state
resources at the time, Balensifer
declared an emergency.
The mayor said it became clear
during the city’s struggle with fl ooding
that several elements of the emergency
operations plan were outdated, under-
scoring the need for an update.
Since the plan is a playbook for all
hazards, it does not list fl ood mitiga-
tion strategies, Beall said, but the city’s
experience with fl ooding allowed the
consultant to “review some of those
lessons learned and apply them through
an all-hazards lens.”
Moving forward, Balensifer viewed
it as important for the city to familiarize
itself with the plan as it tackles more
frequent emergencies related to fl ood-
ing and levee breaches.
“If I had my perfect world, we’d
update our EOP probably every fi ve,
seven years if possible. … Part of that is
because, when you have a hand in cre-
ating a plan, you have a lot more knowl-
edge about that plan instead of reading
it. Y ou’ve developed it, right?” he said.
“In addition to that, it helps keep fresh
in everybody’s minds how we operate.
... So, being able to focus on making
sure that we know what we’re doing,
and have that muscle memory.”
When a winter storm disrupted mul-
tiple emergency communication sys-
tems across the region, agencies on the
North Coast had to
wait several weeks
MORE
for malfunctions to be
addressed.
INSIDE
Interim City Man-
• City
ager Paul Benoit said
Council
Astoria’s dispatch cen-
approves
ter had to wait longer
resolution
for its technical sup-
for library
port provider, Day
bond • A8
Wireless Systems, to
• City
respond because the
Council
city did not have a con-
outlines
tract with the provider .
legislative
“One
problem
priorities
with this approach is
• A8
that regardless of the
severity of a partic-
ular issue in the sys-
tem, Day Wireless gives priority service to
contracted agencies,” Benoit told the City
Council during a meeting Monday night.
See Contract, Page A8
Long-term
cleanup of
ferry uncertain
Mayor Jones has asked
for help from the state
By KATIE FRANKOWICZ
KMUN
T he U.S. Coast Guard said it still isn’t
clear what caused the historic Tourist No.
2 to capsize last week at a fl oating dock
west of the Sixth Street v iewing platform
where the vessel had been moored for
some time.
No one was onboard the ferry when
it sank . Good Samaritan boats that
responded when the vessel began to take
on water and passersby have reported
fuel leaks and a strong smell of diesel in
the air.
Petty Offi cer 3rd Class Diolanda
Caballero, a spokesperson for the Coast
Guard, said it isn’t clear if any other pol-
lutants besides diesel have leaked , but the
Coast Guard is still evaluating the pollu-
tion threat.
See Warrenton, Page A8
See Ferry, Page A8
Cannon Beach adjusts Cannon Beach bans electric scooter rentals
camping ordinance to A preemptive move
MORE INSIDE
by the City Council
refl ect homelessness
Overnight stays
from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m.
By NICOLE BALES
The Astorian
CANNON BEACH —
The City Council amended
a camping ordinance Tues-
day night to set parame-
ters for when someone can
sleep on public property.
The city is one of many
across Oregon adjusting
camping ordinances to
respond to federal court
rulings and state legislation
that prohibit police from
enforcing illegal camping
on public property unless
there are adequate shelter
spaces available.
Local governments that
do not have adequate shel-
ter space have the option to
regulate camping by detail-
ing the time, place and
manner people can sleep
outdoors so camping can be
enforced everywhere else.
In Cannon Beach, t he
ordinance allows people
to set up temporary camps
overnight from 9 p.m. to
7 a.m. in their cars, tents or
other temporary structures.
See Ordinance, Page A8
Cannon Beach to impose
restrictions on psilocybin • A8
By NICOLE BALES
The Astorian
CANNON BEACH —
Businesses that rent electric
scooters and other motorized
vehicles will not be allowed
to operate in the city follow-
ing an ordinance adopted by
the City Council on Tuesday
night.
The new rule is an eff ort to
get ahead of electric scooter
rental companies that have
expressed interest in expand-
ing into the city. The ban was
recommended while drafting
the city’s transportation sys-
tem plan, which is expected
to come before the council in
the coming months.
The ordinance prohib-
its the rental of “emerging
Ben Lonergan/Hermiston Herald
Cannon Beach has banned electric scooter rentals.
mobility devices,” which
includes motorized scoot-
ers, skateboards, mopeds and
monowheels. People would
still be allowed to ride per-
sonal motorized vehicles.
Jeff Adams, the city’s com-
munity development director,
said that after the City Coun-
cil requested staff to inves-
tigate hotel rental packag-
ing with emerging mobility
devices, he did not fi nd any.
He said he included lan-
guage that clarifi es they
would not be allowed.
“And that way we do have
some language, which is
good, if somebody’s includ-
ing those, and we don’t want
to see those as included as
part of a rental packaging
deal, we could enforce that,”
Adams said.
E lectric scooter compa-
nies have been rejected by
other cities in the region, as
well.
The Astoria City Coun-
cil unanimously turned down
electric scooter company
Bird on a possible pilot pro-
gram last year. The city does
not allow electric scooters on
the Astoria Riverwalk or on
sidewalks.
The Long Beach City
Council in Washington state
also rejected a trial off er from
Bird in April.