Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The Columbia press. (Astoria, Or.) 1949-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 30, 2018)
T he C olumbia P ress 1 50 ¢ C latsop C ounty ’ s I ndependent W eekly n eWspaper www.thecolumbiapress.com Vol. 2, Issue 48 November 30, 2018 Please stand by City considers changing status of two properties The Columbia Press for an important Two potential property transac- county message tion were on the agenda Tuesday Clatsop County Emergency Man- agement will conduct a countywide test of the ClatsopALERTS! emergen- cy notification system Friday, Nov. 30. The test will occur between noon and 3 p.m., and will go out to all resi- dential and business landline phones, as well as to all cell phones and email addresses whose users have regis- tered for ClatsopALERTS! ClatsopALERTS! is designed to pro- vide residents with immediate infor- mation and warnings about storms, floods and tsunamis, water contam- ination, missing persons, road clo- sures and other events. In the event of these or other sce- narios, ClatsopALERTS! will issue re- corded voice or text messages, alert- ing people that there’s an emergency and providing important response information. See ‘Test’ on Page 4 Above: Warrenton Kia has asked to buy a triangular shaped parcel the city owns that makes up a piece of Kia’s car lot that’s farthest left in the photo. Left: A stream runs through property on Southwest Ninth Street that the county wants to turn over to a land conservancy. Cindy Yingst The Columbia Press night. One piece the city might sell to a local auto dealer and the second in- volves placement of county-owned property into a land conservancy. Warrenton Kia approached the city about purchasing a parcel that’s owned by the city but is leased to the business as part of its new vehi- cle parking area. Warrenton Kia pays $225 per month to lease the triangu- lar-shaped parcel, which runs along Highway 101 south of Marlin Ave- nue. “We basically own a piece within a large puzzle,” Mayor Henry Balen- sifer said. “I’d rather put it back on the tax roll.” City Commissioners voted unan- imously, with Commissioner Mark Baldwin absent, to hire an apprais- er to determine real market value. See ‘Properties’ on Page 4 Warrenton Warming Center finds itself homeless this winter, develops new plan South Main Avenue. But the church has a licensed day care now and those Warrenton won’t have a warming who may have criminal records can’t center with cots and blankets on the mix with young children. coldest nights this winter, but those “We don’t have a facility we can op- needing help still can find it. erate out of,” Warren said. “But Volunteers with Warrenton we know there’s still a need.” Warming Center have devel- Volunteers spent the summer oped more of a helping net- regrouping and working on work this year to meet the ways to help those who need it needs of homeless residents most. where they are. Their plan this winter is to “There’s a lot of things take help directly to those who changing this year,” said Dar- are struggling. lene Warren, board president. They’re helping support Cal- Warren “This would be our full-on open vary Assembly of God’s soup time if we were doing an over- kitchen, which runs from noon night lodging this year.” to 2 p.m. Tuesdays, the same day the For the past two years, Warrenton adjacent food bank is open. Warming Center has operated out of J&S Appliance donated a freezer Calvary Assembly of God Church on to the county food bank, which the The Columbia Press How to help Donations can be sent to Warrenton Warming Center, PO Box 174, Warrenton OR 97146. To volunteer, call 971-601-0884. If you need help Contact the group through its Facebook page or call 971-601- 0884. warming center was able to move to the church at 1365 S. Main for use in the soup kitchen. The church also is a place to pick up clothes, blankets and other supplies donated to the warming center. The group also is working with As- toria-based Riverfolk, the VFW Aux- iliary, Warrenton-Hammond Healthy Kids and Thankful Hearts, the group that has put on the annual community Thanksgiving dinner. “The key to it is being consistent so homeless people know where we’re at,” Warren said. While Warrenton Warming Center is nonsectarian and nondenomination- al, its mission is to provide a warm, safe place with food, love and support, based on principles of the Good Sa- maritan story found in Luke 10:25-36 of the Bible. The group recently helped a couple who’d been stranded in the area to get home to Austin, Texas, and is helping a woman with stage 4 cancer, who’d been evicted from her home, by de- livering clothes and warm food to her. They’re looking for a toaster oven for her.
