2A • October 19, 2018 | Cannon Beach Gazette | cannonbeachgazette.com
For jail bond, a struggle to break through
New jail
competes
with money
for schools,
recreation
By Jack Heffernan
The Daily Astorian
As Clatsop County offi-
cials promote a November
bond measure to relocate the
county jail, a lot of the ques-
tions they’re facing have little
to do with the actual facility.
The $20 million bond
would relocate the jail from
Duane Street in Astoria to the
shuttered North Coast Youth
Correctional Facility in War-
renton. It is the third time
since 2002 that the county has
tried to upgrade the 38-year-
old, overcrowded jail.
If the bond fails this time,
competing priorities could be
the primary reason.
“Well, a jail bond is never
a very popular measure be-
cause it affects a very small
group of people in the com-
munity,” said Clatsop County
District Attorney Josh Mar-
COLIN MURPHEY/THE DAILY ASTORIAN
Clatsop County Sheriff Tom Bergin, far left, visits with in-
mates at the county jail last November.
quis, who supports the bond.
“One of the greatest concerns
is, since this is the third time
we’ve asked in 15 years, why
should I say, ‘Yes?’”
Officials have cited sev-
eral studies over the past two
decades that have highlight-
ed a need for more jail beds.
The studies also pointed to a
cramped, inefficient operat-
ing environment for deputies
at the jail.
Nearly nine people each
week were released early
from the 60-bed jail last year,
according to Clatsop Coun-
ty Sheriff’s Office statistics.
If the bond passes, the new
facility would allow for 148
beds with an ability to expand
in the future.
The jail bond has to com-
pete with other bond mea-
sures on the November ballot.
In the South County, vot-
ers will decide a $20 million
bond for the Sunset Empire
Park and Recreation District.
In Astoria, voters will be
asked to approve a $70 mil-
lion bond for school improve-
ments.
In Warrenton, voters will
weigh a $38.5 million bond
for a new master campus
out of the tsunami inunda-
tion zone and a new middle
school.
“The problem is govern-
ments, local governments, are
always competing for reve-
nue,” Marquis said.
Clatsop County Sheriff
Tom Bergin, one of the lead-
ers of the jail bond campaign,
said the bond cluster has been
the measure’s main detriment.
“The only thing that I tell
them is that people have to
make that decision as to what
they want to support,” Bergin
said. “It doesn’t matter if it’s
one or two.”
Lodging tax
The county is also facing
some blowback over its plan
to offset potentially higher
jail operating costs.
County
commissioners
passed a new lodging tax that
will take effect in January.
Under state law, 70 percent
must be funneled into tourism
promotion. But the rest — an
estimated $420,000 a year —
would go toward the jail.
The higher tax didn’t fly
with some local hoteliers and
CANNON BEACH POLICE LOG
Assistance rendered
On Oct. 14 at 11:38 a.m.
on Cannon Road and Leech
Lane in Arch Cape, Cannon
Beach police assisted Clatsop
County deputies responding
to a female caller who said
she was hiding from unknown
males who she said had en-
tered her residence in Arch
Cape. Troopers responded
from Astoria and were the first
on scene. The complainant is
an elderly female suffering
from mental and medical ill-
ness. Medix Ambulance was
requested to transport the
woman to Providence Seaside
Hospital for evaluation and as-
sistance with new conditions.
Sept. 27
11:27 p.m., W. Gower: Responding
to a noise complaint, police first lo-
cate a lost member of a wedding
party; they tell the revelers having
a bonfire to respect quiet hours and
keep it down.
Sept. 28
Five incidents of overnight camp-
ing are reported.
4:32 p.m., Highway 101 by Seven
Dees: A woman is arrested on a
warrant.
Sept. 29
Four incidents of overnight camp-
ing are reported.
11:19 p.m., Beach and Second Street:
A two-year-old reported missing is
reunited with his grandfather.
Sept. 30
10:17 a.m., Pacific: Police assist the
fire department with a fire call that
turned out to be burnt food.
tourism industry leaders.
“I know there was some
consternation in communi-
ties because of that,” said
Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy
Paul Williams at a Gearhart
City Council meeting last
week. “At that point in time,
we thought it was critical be-
fore we send this out to the
voters, that we have a solu-
tion in hand in regards to the
operating side of the game.”
In addition to the tax, local
hospitality leaders were also
upset over the lack of dis-
cussion of how the revenue
would benefit tourism, said
Jason Brandt, CEO of the Or-
egon Restaurant & Lodging
Association.
Employers such as hotels
and motels account for rough-
ly 7 percent of the county’s
workforce, according to the
U.S. Census Bureau. None-
theless, Bergin downplayed
the tax’s chances of sinking
the bond.
“A couple of those folks
have actually been pretty nice
about it,” the sheriff said.
“They haven’t said ‘yes,’ and
they haven’t said ‘no,’ but
they said they’d take a look
and consider it.”
‘Chicken or fish’
The bond measure comes
at a time when mental health
and substance abuse issues are
top-of-mind across the coun-
try. Some have proposed that,
instead of creating a new jail,
the former youth correctional
facility could become a treat-
ment center.
Amy Baker, the executive
director of Clatsop Behavioral
Healthcare, said the organization
has not considered whether the
facility could feasibly become a
treatment center. While capacity
is an issue for residential pro-
grams locally, long-term treat-
ment is more successful when
people seek help as they go
about their daily lives, she said.
In the previous two jail
bonds, 56 percent and 57 per-
cent of voters rejected the idea.
The vast majority of the coun-
ty’s voting precincts opposed
the bonds each time, save most
of Seaside and Gearhart.
This year’s proposal will
need a wider swath of support,
and Bergin said he has largely
had positive interactions with
people about the jail.
“I see it going in an extreme-
ly positive direction,” the sher-
iff said. “I’m very optimistic.”
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9:53 p.m., 1400 block S. Hemlock:
Responding to a disturbance, police
encounter a juvenile screaming be-
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