The Columbia Press
March 4, 2022
Senior Moments
7
Mayor’s Message
with Emma Edwards
by Henry Balensifer III
Help staying on the rocker Last year’s goals ... to be continued
Not so long ago, someone
referred to a friend of mine
as “off her rocker.”
At first -- because this
particular friend was very
dear to me, perhaps -- I was
somewhat defensive on be-
half of my friend.
And yes, I have a rocker, as
do many of us seniors. I like
my rocker and, admittedly,
occasionally I get off of it.
The phrase first became
common in the 1800s. Vari-
ations are “off one’s noodle”
or “off one’s trolley.”
Sometimes, we detect such
facts in our own selves when
it comes to being a little off.
Some may think they’re on
their way to the dreaded big
A (Alzheimer’s). Not neces-
sarily so!
It’s a good sign when we
interpret our own behavior
as “a little off.” Such an in-
terpretation indicates that
at this stage we have home-
work ahead of us.
What to do first?
For one thing, it is in your
favor if you are computer
literate. And, if not, I urge
you to get one, even just a
“kid’s tablet” so you can
connect to our wonderful
outside world.
Most “off one’s rocker” ex-
periences (I am told by ex-
perts) are centered in the
brain.
OK, maybe it doesn’t take
a brain powerhouse to figure
that out. Maybe you’ve fig-
ured out that you, yourself,
are a little off your rocker.
What to do?
No worry! It’s a good sign
that you haven’t fully “lost
your marbles.”
Look on your computer or
tablet and find some of the
more than 400 brain-related
games and set aside a por-
tion of your day to feed your
brain.
Your brain is never too old
to learn. Part of one’s brain
includes the keen ability to
learn.
Allow your brain to drift to
a favorite subject. Recently, I
did a bit of a study on hum-
mingbirds.
I learned that there is a spe-
cies (Anna’s hummingbird)
that dives toward the ground
at 90 feet per second, or
nearly 400 times their body
length per second.
Then they quickly pull up
and bullet skyward, multi-
plying by 10 the gravitational
pull of the earth. It’s compa-
rable to a G-force that would
knock out human fighter pi-
lots.
By the way, I learned that
this is part of the humming-
bird’s mating process and if
they weren’t built so strong
for their tiny size, their
wings would just break off,
biologists tell us.
“When female humming-
birds are nearby, they per-
form this showy stunt up to
15 times in a row,” according
to biologist Chris Clark in
Science News.
Memorization is also a
good tonic to keep you on
your rocker.
A cute saying should im-
press family and friends.
A good one to memorize:
“Your fingers have finger-
tips, but your toes don’t have
toetips. Yet, you can tiptoe
but not tipfinger!”
If the city of Warrenton’s
goals look familiar, it’s be-
cause they are.
We lost a lot of ground
from 2020 through 2021,
but we’re optimistic in mov-
ing into the upcoming fiscal
year (FY).
Our goals for FY 2022-23
are as follows:
• Research and pursue rev-
enue growth/opportunities
• Improve efficiency by
meeting staffing needs
• Finish the unfinished
• Improve emergency read-
iness
Goal 1: Permanent-rate
property taxes account for
$1.2 million in revenue to
the city’s general fund.
That’s not much with
which to run the 17th larg-
est city by square mileage in
the state. Staff will be put-
ting forth some concepts to
address this goal before the
start of the fiscal year (July
1), but more ideas will be
needed.
We need to be able to sus-
tain the services we have
and increase them to meet
our growing population’s
needs. We began this effort
two years ago, but a lack of
staffing has hindered much
of the implementation. We
intend to remedy this.
Goal 2: The strength of our
city services is in the staff
who provide it.
It’s amazing how much our
current staff does. Per per-
son, we accomplish much
more than many other cities
that have double or triple the
staff we do.
We lack the staffing to ful-
ly address the growth of our
city, but as we implement
Goal 1, we can add staff and
improve the level of service
we provide our residents and
businesses.
Goal 3: Our city was well
on its way to finish down-
town cleanups and continue
major infrastructure proj-
ects in 2020. Then the pan-
demic hit, and labor and ma-
terial became short.
City staff had quite a bit
of turnover in strategic po-
sitions as well, and by next
fiscal year we will have a new
city manager.
It’s imperative that the
commission make clear to
finish what we’ve started and
invested in first before mov-
ing on to new major projects.
High priority projects
within this goal are the
Hammond District Water-
line Project, the North Main
and Seventh Street Phase 1
in the Flavel District, and
improving the intersection
at Ninth Street and South
Main Avenue.
Goal 4: The storm of 2007
and this year’s Jan. 6 flood
were stark reminders that
both our city’s growth and re-
cord-setting weather events
have become frequent chal-
lenges to infrastructure built
a long time ago.
I will be pushing hard for
stormwater investments to
ensure that if we get anoth-
er January like this year, we
can avoid a disaster.
The commission already is
putting in place new storm-
water policies on developers
to address actions that may
exacerbate the problem in
residential areas.
Warrenton Mayor Henry
Balensifer can be reached
at hbalensifer@ci.warren-
ton.or.us or by leaving a
message for him at City
Hall, 503-861-2233.
IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE STATE OF OREGON
FOR THE COUNTY OF CLATSOP
In the Matter of the Estate of JULIE LYNN PONTING OWENS,
Deceased
Case No.: 22PB01681
NOTICE TO INTERESTED PERSONS
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Sarah Owens and Kelly Ow-
ens Purvine have been appointed Co-Personal Representatives. All
persons having claims against the estate are required to present
them, with vouchers attached, to the Co-Personal Representatives
c/o Ashley Flukinger, Attorney at Law, LLC, 3645 Highway 101 N.,
Gearhart, Oregon 97138, within four months after the date of first
publication of this notice, or the claims may be barred.
All persons whose rights may be affected by the proceedings may
obtain additional information from the records of the Court, the
Co-Personal Representatives, or the lawyer for the Co-Personal
Representatives, Ashley Flukinger.
Dated and first published on March 4, 2022.
Ashley Flukinger, OSB No. 120864
Attorney for Co-Personal Representatives
Ashley Flukinger, Attorney at Law, LLC
3645 Highway 101 N.
Gearhart, Oregon 97138