Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Cannon Beach gazette. (Cannon Beach, Or.) 1977-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 15, 2016)
4A • January 15, 2016 | Cannon Beach Gazette | cannonbeachgazette.com Views from the Rock Haunting images from 20 years ago relived M ore than 20 years ago I received an assignment to go to Oklahoma City after the bombing of the Alfred E. Murrah Federal Building. Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols con- spired to destroy a symbol of gov- ernment power — without regard for human life. One-hundred-sixty-eight peo- ple were killed and 680 injured in that incident. The people of Oklahoma City asked themselves, “Why?” and es- pecially, “Why here?” Jannie Coverdale lost her two grandchildren, Elijah and Aaron, in the blast. Jim Denny could only identify his 3-year-old son Brandon by a birthmark on the boy’s thigh when he arrived at the hospital. One of the victims, Rebecca Anderson, was a licensed practi- cal nurse who rushed to the bomb site immediately after hearing the explosion. “She was probably the ¿QHVWZRPDQ*RGHYHUSXWRQWKLV earth,” her husband, Fred Ander- son, said. In the weeks that followed, in- vestigators determined that the killers had links with militia groups throughout the country. The mili- tias and paramilitary organizations sought a New World Order and to create division within the country based on racial heritage or country of origin. All in the name of our “constitutional freedoms.” Scenes of bloodshed also played out in Waco, Texas, and Ruby Ridge, Idaho, where extrem- ists and the federal government dueled in deadly standoffs . tal lawsuits and regulatory and legislative changes — is largely CANNON SHOTS responsible for draining that life- R.J. MARX blood.” On the c oast, we may be far from Harney County, but many Little has changed since that of the same issues prevail. We time — in fact, some militia mem- have thousands of acres of timber bers have been emboldened by and coastal land. We have a fed- rhetoric in Congress. eral government overseeing and Oregon’s Rep. Greg Walden, in considering approval of a billion urging clemency for Dwight and dollar pipeline over the will of Steven Hammond — the ranchers impassioned citizens of all politi- jailed for arson on federal proper- FDOSHUVXDVLRQV:HKDYHFRQÀLFWV ty — spoke angrily on the House between Native Americans and ÀRRURIKLVFRQVWLWXHQWV¶³WHQVLRQ´ management of their tribal lands. “frustration” and “anger” over fed- Fishermen face national and inter- eral land management policies. national regulations that may, to 7KHVH DUH ZRUGV WKDW LQÀDPH their eyes, defy logic. emotions, not soothe them. Any All these issues must be vigor- sympathy for armed rebellion in ously debated and legislated. Harney County is misplaced. But nuance doesn’t play well in The lesson I’m learning in Or- a crisis. egon is many good people want The words “good” and “evil” to help the Hammonds but not the DUHVRVWULFWO\GH¿QHGE\HDFKRIXV Bundys. in our own way that it’s almost im- Our sister paper, t he East Ore- possible to accept shades of gray. gonian, wisely notes residents in Extremism triumphs. the sparsely populated high desert Events like the Malheur Na- DUHD DUH ³ODUJHO\ UHEXI¿QJ´ WKH tional Wildlife Refuge occupation militant Ammon Bundy and his only set back the conversation — followers. there is little value to legislation “The real question is how that from the barrel of a gun or in the land should be managed and how aftermath of tragedy. grazing and natural resource ex- The bombing of the Murrah traction will remain viable and Federal Building seems long ago part of the multiple use doctrine and far away, but the lives lost in that historically governed pub- Oklahoma City in 1995 are irre- lic lands,” t he East Oregonian placeable. writes. “Government policy once “The Oklahoma City blast had fostered the timber, livestock and repercussions that went far beyond mining industries that became the the death toll,” we wrote in 1995. economic lifeblood of rural West- “The American people suddenly ern communities. Current poli- got a glimpse of a new terrorist cy — the result of environmen- threat — a threat from within.” AP FILE PHOTO BY CHRIS CARLSON Ammon Bundy, son of rancher Cliven Bundy, stands outside Metropoli- tan Police Department headquarters, Friday, May 2, 2014, in Las Vegas. Bundy was in town to fi le a criminal complaint against the Bureau of Land Management. “The antigovernment move- ment has experienced a resur- gence since 2008, when President Obama was elected,” writes the Southern Poverty Law Center. Factors fueling the movement include changing demographics driven by immigration, a strug- gling economy and the election RI WKH ¿UVW $IULFDQ$PHULFDQ president. The “inspiration” provided by many in the militia movement is no more of a divine message than that of the jihadists. We conclude with this mes- sage from the Oregon State Po- lice, who issued this statement last Wednesday, on behalf of all VKHULII RI¿FHV LQ WKH VWDWH “The sheriffs of Oregon are united in the support of Harney County and its residents. We are supplying logistical and opera- tional support to the community while the FBI works for a peace- ful resolution with the militants at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge,” they said. “We want the good people of Harney County and the state of Oregon to know that we will always unite to pro- vide support and assistance to ensure the safety of our residents, for any length of time, whenever criminal activity or an emergen- cy, fractures the peace and secu- rity in our communities.” It is those men and women, and all those on the front lines of our nation’s defense, who are our real constitutional heroes. Group presents its top reader picks for the year ahead A s we head into 2016, hope- fully feeling invigorated and determined to keep our resolutions, many of us are inter- ested in trying something new — and we at the library would like to suggest joining Cannon Beach Reads, our book reading and dis- cussion group. The group is beginning its 10th year this month. Long-time mem- ber Marjorie MacQueen explains that “Cannon Beach Reads was in part started in order to have a winter activity for avid readers at the library. The mission was to provide a place where people who love to read could come and share their ideas and comments about in- teresting books.” Eventually, what began as a winter activity became year-round. For 2016 the group has selected seven novels, two histories, a bi- ography, a memoir and an account of medicine’s potential to enhance quality of life for dying patients. “The group selects each year’s reading list by ballot from pop- 2016 Book List AT THE LIBRARY CARLA O’REILLY ular titles members nominate,” explains Joe Bernt, the group’s current coordinator. The books to be read this year include: Jan. 20: “All the Light We Cannot See,” by Anthony Doerr Feb. 17: “The Heart is a Lone- ly Hunter,” by Carson McCullers. March 16: “Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End,” by Atul Gawande. April 20: “A New Life,” by Bernard Malamud. May 18: “Go Set a Watch- man,” by Harper Lee. June 15: “West With the night, by Beryl Markham. July 20: “Cat’s Cradle,” by Kurt Vonnegut. Aug. 17: “The Wright Broth- ers,” by David McCullough. JAN. 20: “All the Light We Can- not See,” by Anthony Doerr JULY 20: “Cat’s Cradle,” by Kurt Vonnegut. FEB. 17: “The Heart is a Lonely Hunter,” by Carson McCullers. AUG. 17: “The Wright Brothers,” by David McCullough. MARCH 16: “Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End,” by Atul Gawande. SEPT. 21: “Falling from Horses,” by Molly Gloss. APRIL 20: “A New Life,” by Bernard Malamud. MAY 18: “Go Set a Watchman,” by Harper Lee. JUNE 15: “West With the night, by Beryl Markham. Sept. 21: “Falling from Hors- es,” by Molly Gloss. Oct. 19: “Amsterdam: A His- tory of the World’s Most Liberal City,” by Russell Shorto. Nov. 16: “Death Comes for the Archbishop,” by Willa Cather. Dec. 21: “Dead Wake: The OCT. 19: “Amsterdam: A Histo- ry of the World’s Most Liberal City,” by Russell Shorto. NOV. 16: “Death Comes for the Archbishop,” by Willa Cather. DEC. 21: “Dead Wake: The Last Crossing of the Lusitania,” by Erik Larson. Last Crossing of the Lusitania,” by Erik Larson. The group meets from 7 to 8:30 pm. on the third Wednesday of each month at the Cannon Beach Li- brary, 131 N. Hemlock. New mem- bers will be welcomed warmly! Stop by the library to pick up your copy of the schedule, along with a description of each book. We keep one copy of each book at the li- br ary, and the Cannon Beach Book company has the books available to buy. Come join us for 2016! And why not ring in the new year with an eBook? Drop by the front desk for instructions on how to join, DQG RXU RZQ LQFRPSDUDEOH 2I¿FH Manager Buddie Anderson Deni stands ready to give assistance. The Cannon Beach Library is also a wonderful source of informa- tion. We sponsor free programs for all ages. There are special speak- ers, a lecture series, and various children’s programs throughout the year. We also feature books on eating a healthier diet, getting or- ganized – for whatever new year’s resolutions you’ve made! Feel free to drop by and explore some after- noon or to pick up a book or two from our used book sale room. The staff of the Cannon Beach Library would like to wish a very happy 2016 to each and every res- ident and visitor to our little town. LETTERS Nicholson proposal must meet code Andrew Tonry’s “Plan- ner Deems Nicholson PUD ‘Complete’” did a good job depicting some of Friends of Cannon Beach members’ objections/frustrations, but stopped short of indicat- ing why the application is incomplete and why that matters. The applicant simply didn’t want to follow the rules governing steeply sloped lots, threatened the city legally and was offered a call-it-something-differ- ent solution (i.e., Planned Unit Development or PUD). But now, he doesn’t want to follow the PUD rules ei- ther. Other developers must follow the rules, so should this one. For example, his plan states that he intends to build one house on a sand dune with an underground garage, using only conven- tional shallow reinforced concrete foundations. His preliminary geo-tech report says this is OK, when Publisher Steve Forrester Editor R.J. Marx Advertising Manager Betty Smith it obviously won’t work. Moreover, his preliminary plans imply that he intends to build another two-story house with a garage under- neath but intends to start measuring the house height DW WKH ¿UVW RFFXSLHG OHYHO — which could be 20 feet in the air on piling support — instead of adhering to the code like other develop- ers are required to do. This house could be as tall as 48 feet making it the tallest building in Cannon Beach! It makes one wonder if the councilors who voted for this reviewed the full-sized plans to see the small print details and realized what they were preliminarily ap- proving. The code requires PUD applicants to provide de- tailed building plans, de- tailed landscaping plans and elevations. He has pro- vided none of these. More- over, he has not submitted the required homeowners’ association, required per- formance bond, required development schedule or Production Manager John D. Bruijn Circulation Manager Heather Ramsdell Advertising Sales Laura Kaim required driveway/parking details. 7KLVLVWKHFLW\¶V¿UVWDW tempt to use the code sec- tion for PUD and it doesn’t appear to be well thought through. Decisions made IRUWKLV¿UVW38'ZLOOPRVW certainly set precedent for future PUD’s. The PUD code is very different from that of a reg- ular housing development. $OORZLQJ VRPH ÀH[LELOLW\ upfront, there is more scru- tiny and more requirements IRU ¿QDO DSSURYDO RQ WKH back end. This developer clearly wants to have the best of both worlds and JHW WKH ÀH[LELOLW\ RI EXLOG ing on his steep slopes, but avoid the back end dili- gence by not submitting the UHTXLUHGLWHPVIRU¿QDODS proval. Instead, he simply wants to get approved and make whatever changes he wants later. That’s not the way the PUD code works. If he applied as a PUD, he should be required to fol- low the code for a PUD. Why should other devel- CANNON BEACH GAZETTE The Cannon Beach Gazette is published every other week by EO Media Group. 1555 N. Roosevelt, Seaside, Oregon 97138 503-738-5561 • Fax 503-738-9285 www.cannonbeachgazette.com • email: editor@cannonbeachgazette.com SUBSCRIPTION RATES: and appearance of the de- velopment.” The submitted plans do not provide any of this. There are no building elevations only “conceptual Nicholson plan footprints” and no detailed not complete landscape plans. Landscape Andrew Tonry in his Jan. Plan L1.0, as listed on the 1, Cannon Beach Gazette cover sheet, is missing. No article headlined “Planner elevations are provided to deems Nicholson project show what the houses would ‘complete’” captured well look like, where the two ve- the spirit of citizens’ opposi- hicles per house would park, tion to the project. However or how they would gain ac- he failed to mention that the cess to the parking spaces. plan is indeed not complete. The Zoning Code also re- Friends of Cannon Beach quires the creation of a non- are dismayed that the appli- SUR¿W KRPHRZQHUV DVVRFLD cant, after gaining prelimi- tion. Since the four houses nary approval by the Cannon will have common areas, an Beach City Council to create organization of homeown- a Planned Unit Development ers is essential to determine consisting of four houses, is responsibility for mainte- now failing to follow the re- nance. Can, for instance, the quirements that the Zoning owner of house one create a Code has in place for a PUD. garden on the common area Section 17.40.040 C.1 of belonging to the lot where the Zoning Code requires house four is to be built? “detailed building and The applicant is claiming he landscaping plans and ele- won’t need a homeowners vations.” Further, it states, association, but the code re- ³7KH¿QDOSODQVKDOOEHVXI quires one. ¿FLHQWO\GHWDLOHGWRLQGLFDWH In addition, a perfor- fully the ultimate operation mance bond is required by opers be required to follow the rules but not this one? Jeff Harrison Cannon Beach Annually: $40.50 in county, $58.00 in and out of county. Postage Paid at: Cannon Beach, OR 97110 POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Cannon Beach Gazette, P.O. Box 210, Astoria, OR 97103 Copyright 2015 © Cannon Beach Gazette. Nothing can be reprinted or copied without consent of the owners. the Zoning Code in order to “ensure that a development proposal is completed as ap- proved and within the time limits agreed to.” Again, the applicant claims he doesn’t need one, but the code re- quires one. Why City Planner Mark Barnes has declared these ¿QDO VWDJH WKUHH SODQV DV ‘complete’ is a mystery un- less he is afraid of the law- suit that the developer con- tinues to have pending as leverage over the city. %HFDXVH WKLV LV WKH ¿UVW Planned Unit Development ever granted to a developer in Cannon Beach, Friends of Cannon Beach are anxious to see that it is done right. Otherwise, the precedent set by sloppy planning policy will present problems that are easy to anticipate. We urge all who are concerned about effective planning practices in Cannon Beach to attend the Planning Com- mission meeting at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 28. Diane Amos Cannon Beach THE NATIONAL AWARD-WINNING
