The Columbia Press
1
Clatsop County’s Independent Weekly
www.thecolumbiapress.com
November 6, 2020
Vol. 4, Issue 45
Trunk or Treat draws crowd
Left: Tammy and
Larry Neahring
decorated their
trunk.
Right: Jordan
Burnard walks
the event with her
daughter, Remi, 2.
Below: Children
approach the vari-
ous candy stations.
The Columbia Press
tion between businesses, nonprofit
groups, school districts and munici-
palities.
The lack of high-speed internet in
rural Oregon has been a concern for
Gerald Poe defeat-
ed two opponents in
Tuesday’s election to
win an open spot on
the Warrenton City
Commission.
Poe received 58
percent of the vote
against
challengers
Brandon T. Williams, Gerald Poe
who garnered 31 per-
cent, and Allen Berry, who got 10.5
percent.
Commissioners Tom Dyer and
Mark Baldwin were running unop-
posed for their seats. Commissioner
Pam Ackley chose not to seek re-elec-
tion, so Poe will take over her spot in
January.
“I feel good,” Poe said Wednesday
morning. “I think it showed … that
my experience and the endorsements
I received helped. … I spent time to
hit on all the notes I could. I took it
seriously.”
And there were challenges.
Someone printed up a hit piece
against Poe and pasted it over his
campaign signs. In interviews, Wil-
See ‘Internet’ on Page 4
See ‘Election’ on Page 6
COVID may be helping rural areas get the internet
holds had limited or no internet ac-
cess due to geographic and economic
limitations.
Stories abound of students unable
to access online classes. It formed the
basis for some innovative collabora-
Poe wins seat
on commission
By Cindy Yingst
Cindy Yingst
The Columbia Press
The Columbia Press
and news services
When the pandemic forced schools
across Oregon to go virtual in March,
Clatsop County and other rural areas
faced a special problem: many house-
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