The Columbia Press
1
Clatsop County’s Independent Weekly
www.thecolumbiapress.com
Pandemic cases
climb, county now
vaccinating teens
The Columbia Press
Oregon became the No. 1 state in
the nation for new COVID-19 cas-
es during the past week, with an in-
crease of 58 percent.
The more contagious B.1.1.7 variant
is now the dominant strain in Ore-
gon, which is fueling a fourth surge of
coronavirus cases despite four out of
every 10 Oregonians having received
at least one dose of vaccine, accord-
ing to health officials.
“You may be wondering why cas-
es have been on the rise recently, es-
pecially as we see an increase in vac-
cination across the state,” officials
at Oregon Health Authority wrote
in a recent daily briefing. “There are
two answers to this question – vari-
ants that are more transmissible and
increased social gatherings without
face coverings.”
Much of the increase in cases is in
younger people. The fact that variant
B.1.1.7. has become Oregon’s domi-
nant strain is intensifying the spread
at social gatherings.
OHA and the Centers for Disease
Control are closely monitoring vari-
See ‘COVID’ on Page 3
May 7, 2021
50 ¢
Vol. 5, Issue 19
Assessing Warrenton’s economic future
The city won a grant to
analyze its economic
opportunities and goals
By Cindy Yingst
The Columbia Press
Fishstix fish market (above, left) opened last year as did Arnie’s Cafe’s
new location downtown (bottom, right). A brewpub is planned in the
Fenton building (above, right), although structural problems have delayed
opening. A utility crew (below) works to install improvements at Airport
Industrial Park, where a fish processing plant will be built this year.
A good fish market? Check. Grocery
stores? Check. Enough jobs for the skilled
and unskilled? Maybe.
But what about a cozy sit-down brewpub
or a trendy little doughnut shop?
There certainly are economic opportuni-
ties in the city of Warrenton. And the state
is going to try to help the city find them.
“Economic growth is a bit like the
we221ather – while we never know what
will happen for sure, knowing the forecast
helps us plan for the most likely situation,”
says the Department of Land Conservation
and Development on its website promot-
ing economic opportunity analyses.
The DLCD selected Warrenton for an
See ‘Economy’ on Page 4