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About Cannon Beach gazette. (Cannon Beach, Or.) 1977-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 14, 2018)
VOL. 42, ISSUE 25 CANNONBEACHGAZETTE.COM December 14, 2018 A HOLIDAY TRADITION Clean water by the numbers Cannon Beach researches solutions to high bacteria readings at outfalls By Brenna Visser Cannon Beach Gazette Cannon Beach Academy teacher Ryan Hull leads students in song at the lamplighting ceremony Saturday, Dec. 1. By Brenna Visser Cannon Beach Gazette H undreds gathered in Sandpiper Square for carols and the annual lamplighting ceremony to mark the beginning of the holiday season in Cannon Beach Saturday, Dec. 1. The lamp lighting tradition began in 1973 amid an oil crisis that drove down the number of vacationers who were coming to visit Cannon Beach. To get back visitors, the town banded together to create a holiday celebration with a Charles Dickens theme. The Coaster Theatre put on productions of “A Christmas Carol” and shop owners dressed in Victorian style. Since then, many of the traditions remain and others have evolved. Bill Steidel and Paul Dueber again performed the town’s offi cial song “Christmas in Our Hometown,” which Steidel composed for the Dueber family when Paul Dueber Sr. died on Christmas Day 1967. “This ceremony is a symbol of light, and love, and hope,” event organizer Margo Dueber said. “We hope you feel that today.” Ultraviolet light may be the answer to addressing high bacteria readings at some Cannon Beach outfalls. After almost 10 years of sporadic high readings, the city hired an engineer- ing fi rm to explore ways to redesign the Gower Street and Chisana Creek outfalls to reduce bacteria readings in the water. This summer saw high readings through the Oregon Beach Monitoring Program and one health advisory issued for the beach. It’s an issue that has drawn ire from environmental groups and per- plexed the city for years, given that read- ings never appeared to have a pattern other than spiking after heavy large rains. This year, the city again started tak- ing regular water samples from as far east as the Ecola Creek Forest Reserve to the beach to create a baseline, Public Works Director Karen La Bonte said, then pur- chased a DNA testing tool to confi rm whether the bacteria was coming from human waste. All results came back neg- ative except one, which the city attributed to waste going into a drainage ditch from a nearby homeless camp. “We know now it’s not human feces, which means there’s no infi ltration issue from our sewer,” La Bonte said. “It’s a See WATER, Page A5 Brenna Visser Bill Steidel and Paul Dueber play music at the lamplighting ceremony. Hundreds gathered at the lamplighting ceremony. A 50-year mystery solved Residents pour over contents of time capsule buried at Tolovana Arts Colony By Brenna Visser Cannon Beach Gazette No one was sure what to expect. On Saturday, Dec. 1, dozens gathered to watch the city unearth what they hoped would be a time capsule buried by the Tolovana Arts Colony. This summer, a resident tipped off the city to the existence of the time capsule, which he said was buried by the Tolo- vana Park Community Club 50 years ago. After some digging, an article marking the moment on Nov. 7, 1968, was found in the Seaside Signal. But past knowing something was sup- posed to be buried underneath the former fl ag pole, the city was fl ying somewhat blind. “I think the mystery and enthusi- asm helped build the momentum,” Pub- lic Works Director Karen La Bonte said. “We had no idea what we were in for, but that’s part of the fun, too.” See CAPSULE, Page A5 A thank-you party for volunteers By R.J. Marx Cannon Beach Gazette There was no better way to have a holiday party for the North Coast Land Con- servancy than to share grat- itude to those who support the organization, executive director Katie Voelke said to about 100 guests to the Can- non Beach Chamber Com- munity Hall on Thursday, Dec. 6. “We’re here to express our gratitude to the whole community for what it takes to support this work,” Voelke said. “It just keeps growing and growing as a community.” Members of the organi- zation presented a “pledge of gratitude” at the event, celebrating the cycles of life, to Mother Earth and its resources, wildlife and habitat. It’s been a “great year” for land preservation, Voelke added. “We’ve made some big headway into our Rain Forest Preserve campaign, and we’re doing some work into the Tillamook County area we’ve wanted to get into.” The Coastal Edge will be a priority for the next four years, Voelke said. The Coastal Edge stretches from Tillamook Head to Nehalem Bay, where the mountains rise sharply from the sea. The conservancy’s Coastal Edge Initiative seeks to link these pockets of conservation into large, connected corridors. Discussions with a land- owner for property at Arca- dia Beach have been a little quiet lately.” The property had been considered as a high-end trailer park before preservation discussions began. “There’s been some amaz- ing donations to the cam- paign,” Voelke said. “Some people who have never pledged before have pledged thousands of dollars for the next few years.” North Coast Land Conservancy volunteers and offi cers Bob Lundy, Ron Logan and Tom Horning at the group’s holiday potluck in Cannon Beach.