A4 The BulleTin • Monday, May 24, 2021
DEAR ABBY
Write to Dear Abby online at dearabby.com
or by mail at P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069
Dear Abby: I’ve been in the
retail business for 12 years;
my husband and I own it. A
customer moved here a few
months ago. He’s retired and
lives with his wife, daugh-
ter and grandchild. He’s
bored and doesn’t want to be
around his family, so he has
started spending every day in
our store, wasting our time.
He bothers customers with
his stories and traps them for
hours at a time. He has pur-
chased some items, so he is
buying from us. But I can tell
he just wants a place to hang
out. He is loud and intrudes
into other people’s conver-
sations when they are at the
counters. He has also taken a
liking to one employee who
works Saturdays and has
started spending four to five
hours every Saturday coming
in and trying to make con-
versation about anything.
I have never had to deal
with this kind of customer. I
don’t know how to tell him
he can’t hang out at our store.
He’s basically using us as an
outlet to talk to people and
keep himself out of his house.
Please help. I want to say it
in a nice way, but I think any
way is going to hurt his feel-
ings.
— Unpleasant Situation
Dear Unpleasant: You
seem to be a compassionate
person. Check out what ser-
vices are available for seniors
in your area. Then explain to
the customer that while you
appreciate his business, you
and your employees have
work to do, limited time to
do it and cannot socialize
with him. Then suggest some
places where he can spend
time, volunteer, etc.
Dear Readers: A group of
distinguished psychiatrists,
the Group for the Advance-
ment of Psychiatry (GAP),
needs help from some of
you. They are seeking to un-
derstand how faith identity
— being spiritual, religious,
spiritual but not religious, or
neither religious nor spiritual
— positively or negatively
impacts mental health and
well-being. Below is the URL
to an online survey, which
will take approximately 10 to
15 minutes to complete. The
questions address the follow-
ing topics:
• Do you identify as reli-
gious, spiritual, both or nei-
ther?
• What religious and/
or spiritual practices do you
participate in, if any?
• What are your current
levels of anxiety, and what is
your current mood?
Readers, your input is im-
portant. Understanding your
beliefs, including how they
affect your mental health,
could benefit individuals who
need help and haven’t got-
ten it. To participate in this
ANONYMOUS survey, you
must be 18 years of age or
older. The URL below will
direct you to the online sur-
vey. For those who have no
internet access but would like
to participate, please send a
letter to:
GAP Religion/Spirituality
Survey
P.O. Box 570218
Dallas, TX 75357-0218
URL: yalesurvey.ca1.
qualtrics.com/jfe/form/
SV_8G4jpAMkF2BDLlb
Thank you in advance for
helping them out. They are
a wonderful, caring group of
doctors.
— Love, Abby
YOUR HOROSCOPE
LOCAL, STATE & REGION
Hailey Hoffman/The Astorian
Bethany Free Lutheran Church has faced opposition from neighbors over plans to develop a 5,000-square-foot annex on this plot of land.
DIFFERENT VIEWS
A church expansion in Astoria revives debate over quality of life
— and what residents can see
BY EDWARD STRATTON
The Astorian
By Georgia Nicols
Stars show the kind of day you’ll have
DYNAMIC | POSITIVE | AVERAGE | SO-SO | DIFFICULT
MOON ALERT: There are no restrictions to shopping or important deci-
sions today. The Moon is in Scorpio.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY FOR MONDAY, MAY 24, 2021: You are
witty, talkative and compassionate. You have a fine analytical mind, yet you
are also intuitive. Because of your imagination, you excel in the arts and mu-
sic. As this year shifts, you will overcome obstacles and make strides toward
the realization of your goals, especially those that involve learning or further
study. Some of you will teach as well.
ARIES (March 21-April 19)
No doubt, you’re already feeling Mercury retrograde impacting your
sign even though it does not technically go retrograde until May 28. (Sym-
bolically, it’s been slowing down since May 16.) Be proactive about your cars
and trucks, because transportation delays are classic. Tonight: Shared financ-
es might disappoint.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20)
Checks in the mail will be late and financial matters will experience
delays because of Mercury retrograde. This influence will intensify in the next
month. The good news is you can swiftly wrap up old business during this
time. Tonight: Be polite with someone older.
GEMINI (May 21-June 20)
Many of you are in contact with ex-partners and friends from your past
because Mercury retrograde will be taking place in your sign. Technically, this
occurs from May 28 to June 22, but in reality, its influence is May 16 to July 8.
Good luck! Tonight: Expect restrictions.
CANCER (June 21-July 22)
Mercury retrograde is generally something like the hounds from hell
for most of us. “What? Not that again?” However, this particular Mercury
retrograde will actually benefit you because it will help you do research and
study the past. You can use this to your advantage! (Each Mercury retrograde
is different.) Tonight: Accept obligations with children.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22)
You are probably hearing from old friends as well as members of
groups to which you might have belonged before due to the influence of
Mercury retrograde. You can use this influence in the next few weeks to
rethink future goals. You might even resurrect an old goal. Tonight: Listen to
an older family member.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22)
This month Mercury retrograde is taking place at the top of your chart.
Because its influence has already begun, you might be hearing from parents,
bosses and authority types you haven’t seen in a while. Might this be a help-
ful reconnection? Tonight: Don’t succumb to worry. (It’s a habit.)
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22)
You are one of the signs that can actually benefit from the frustrating
impact of Mercury retrograde, because this particular Mercury retrograde
will help you study the past, especially history, and it also will help you finish
important papers or manuscripts. Yes! Tonight: Money shortages.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21)
Although Mercury retrograde will create delays in business negotia-
tions, especially with banks or about shared property, it also can smoothly
expedite old business from the past — like insurance issues that might be
dragging on. This could be helpful! Tonight: Don’t be discouraged.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21)
You will soon hear from ex-partners and old friends from the past
due to the influence of Mercury retrograde. Sometimes this is an unnerving
experience. Nevertheless, it could be an opportunity for closure. Tonight: You
might feel isolated or alone.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19)
You will feel the brunt of Mercury retrograde at work or in any task that
you set for yourself. Expect delays, mixed-up communications, lost paper-
work, missed appointments and shortages. Cope as best you can, because
what choice do you have? Tonight: Someone might criticize you.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18)
Many of you will be thinking about, dreaming about or in contact with
old flames now or later this month because of the influence of Mercury ret-
rograde. Some of you will deal with old business related to kids and sports as
well. Tonight: Your wishes might be blocked.
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20)
Stock the fridge, because relatives might be camped on your doorstep.
This is because Mercury retrograde will attract family you haven’t seen in a
while. However, Mercury retrograde will also help you do home repairs. To-
night: Rules might limit your behavior.
A
family is threatening to take a fight
against a proposed church annex in As-
toria to the state to protect the family’s
views of the Columbia River.
The argument has revived the issue of how
Astoria, a city known for panoramic views, bal-
ances quality-of-life with property rights.
Members of Bethany Free Lutheran Church
want to build a 5,000-square-foot annex in
a vacant lot the congregation purchased in
the 1980s. The building, gabled to mimic the
church, would rise to 34 feet in an east-west ori-
entation.
The church annex would block the view of
Vincent Tadei, who has lived next door for 88
years, and whose family built the home in 1904.
The family has installed yard signs decrying the
potential expansion and has hired a lawyer to
fight the project.
After failing to convince the Historic Land-
marks Commission and City Council to deny
the project’s design, the Tadei family filed a no-
tice of intent with the state Land Use Board of
Appeals to intervene.
Carrie Richter, the lawyer for the Tadei fam-
ily, has argued that the landmarks commis-
sion improperly compared the church annex to
large commercial buildings along U.S. Highway
30 and a nonhistoric church built in the 1980s
when determining neighborhood compatibility,
rather than accounting for the nearby historic
homes it would dwarf.
City councilors commiserated with the Tadei
family over concerns with the size of the church
annex. But they backed the commission’s deci-
sion, agreeing with the argument that the neigh-
borhood includes larger buildings.
Regulating views
Members of the Tadei family argue that while
the Riverfront Vision Plan created by the city has
protected views and minimized development on
the water, historic properties like theirs south of
Highway 30 in Uppertown have not been pro-
vided the same protections.
Peter Tadei, a commercial real estate agent, re-
called the proposed Fairfield Inn and Suites off
Second Street. The four-story hotel, since denied
building permit extensions by the City Council,
spawned amendments to city code that shrank
the allowed height and mass of buildings on the
waterfront to protect views.
“How is it OK for everybody to shout down
the hotel, but when it comes to the Tadeis’ house,
there’s not such a concern by City Council, by
(the Historic Landmarks Commission)?” he
said. “Nobody seems to be ready to stand on our
side of that issue.”
Daryl Moore, the president of the Planning
Commission, said there has been a long his-
tory of property owners assuming their views
are protected, getting angered when they real-
ize they aren’t and wondering why the city does
nothing.
Commissioner Brookley Henri called the
discussion timely, given the red-hot real estate
Edward Stratton/The Astorian
The Tadei family is battling a proposed annex by
Bethany Free Lutheran Church because it would
block the Columbia River views of patriarch Vincent
Tadei.
Hailey Hoffman/The Astorian
A photo of Vincent Tadei’s family at the house in the
early 1900s hangs on the wall.
market and the importance of views to property
value.
“I think we have a responsibility to help peo-
ple protect their property values, or at least have
some way to address it, if it comes up as a con-
cern,” she said.
Commissioner Chris Womack cautioned that
the city needs to balance the value of a view ver-
sus the value of a property that should be build-
able based on city code and zoning rules. But a
majority of planning commissioners showed in-
terest in asking the City Council and City Man-
ager Brett Estes whether they should discuss
codifying the value of viewsheds.
Estes also questioned whether protecting
viewsheds citywide would hinder efforts to de-
velop more affordable housing. View protections
in other cities have often been enacted in high-
end, affluent neighborhoods and resulted in ex-
pensive legal challenges, he said.
“One that I can think of specifically is in the
Puget Sound and Seattle where there were law-
suits between neighbors over this whole issue,”
Estes said. “I would ask that if these are set up in
a similar situation in Astoria, would we have a
similar set of circumstances?”