The Columbia press., December 07, 2018, Image 1

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 49
December 7, 2018
Finding something for you this Christmas
B y C indy y ingst
The Columbia Press
There’s something local for nearly every
mood this Christmas.
Those who love animals, Warrenton stu-
dents and classical music will find activities to
boost their spirits this year.
There are things to do for those who need to
get that lovin’ holiday feeling back and those
who prefer to give to others.
Following are some of the best holiday
events, with many of them free.
Above: Astoria Tuba
Quartet performs
in last year’s Tuba
Christmas in Ilwaco.
This year’s concert is
this weekend.
Right: Celebrating
pets and helping
strays is the theme
of Clatsop Animal
Assistance’s holiday
party and fund-raiser
this weekend.
F eaturing W arrenton Choirs
The Columbia River Symphony’s annual hol-
iday concert features Warrenton High School
and Warrenton Grade School choirs this year.
Organizers promise inspirational holiday
music the audience can listen to or sing along
with.
The symphony, led by Conductor Cory Ped-
erson, is an all-volunteer nonprofit perform-
ing arts group.
The concert begins at 7 p.m. Saturday, Dec.
8, at the Liberty Theatre, 1203 Commercial
St., Astoria. Doors open an hour before show
time. The free concert is popular, so organiz-
ers recommend attendees arrive early.
See ‘Holiday’ on Page 4
Home-stay lodgings to play by new rules in 2019
The Columbia Press
Those offering home-stay lodging
within the city of Warrenton will
need to abide by new rules in 2019.
City leaders recently approved put-
ting an ordinance in place that they’ve
been working on since summer. It
governs how home-stay lodgings are
run and what types of residences can
be used.
A home-stay lodging business is de-
fined as a short-term rental within an
owner-occupied single-family home.
The classification wasn’t previously
found in Warrenton’s housing code.
“The whole idea isn’t to ban them,
but to get them allowed in the code,”
Mayor Henry Balensifer explained
when the issue came up at a City
Commission meeting in October.
The city also wants to monitor them
so large numbers of housing units
don’t go toward vacation rentals at
a time when there’s a severe housing
shortage.
The city has other types of short-
term rentals currently allowed in the
housing code:
• Vacation Rental Dwelling: A
single-family home rented on a
short-term basis that has no own-
er occupant. These must be within a
commercial zone and have an owner
or off-site manager running them.
• Bed and Breakfast Inn: An owner-
or operator-occupied dwelling with
no more than five rooms available for
short-term lodging and with a morn-
ing meal provided. These can be in
residential districts and must have
an owner or manager on site. There
must be one parking space per guest
bedroom.
• Boarding, Lodging or Rooming
House: A residence or portion of a
residence in which lodging is provid-
ed for no less than two people but not
more than 10, excluding members of
the owner and the owner’s family.
These are allowed in high-density res-
See ‘Home-stay’ on Page 8
Schools chief
to resign at end
of school year
B y C indy y ingst
The Columbia Press
Superintendent Mark Jeffery, who
has been at the helm of
Warrenton-Hammond
schools for eight years,
announced his retire-
ment at the end of the
school year.
“I’ve got this phenom-
enal
administrative
team, the right people in
Jeffery
the right places,” Jeffery
said. “The district is in a good place. I
feel good about handing it over.”
Jeffery, 63, was hired in 2010, after
the district had struggled through a
couple years of bad news stories and
legal problems. A former superinten-
dent, Craig Brewington, had com-
munication issues with some of the
school board members and the Ore-
gon Government Ethics Commission
had determined several board mem-
bers had violated open meeting laws
regarding Brewington’s evaluation.
“The goal when I arrived was to
make this the best district in the
state,” Jeffery said. “We’re not there
yet, but we’re getting there. Every-
body is in place to make that happen.”
Last year, test scores for Warrenton
students improved in English, math
and science. It was the only district in
the county to best the statewide aver-
age in any subject.
Programs put in place to help stu-
dents transition from grade school
to high school have substantially de-
creased the dropout rate.
“Mark has provided such solid lead-
ership to this district and, personally
speaking, I’m so sad that he’s retiring
but I completely understand,” School
Board President Debbie Morrow said.
“He has brought the district to where
See ‘Jeffery’ on Page 8