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About Cannon Beach gazette. (Cannon Beach, Or.) 1977-current | View Entire Issue (March 22, 2019)
A6 • Friday, March 22, 2019 | Cannon Beach Gazette | CannonBeachGazette.com Escape Lodging, city maintain RV partnership By CARA MICO For Cannon Beach Gazette Imagine what Cannon Beach would have expe- rienced if the Rajneeshees had settled in Cannon Beach. After a renewal of the contract between the city and Escape Lodging to manage the city-owned RV Park, on Wednesday, March 6, members of the City Council met with rep- resentatives of the lodging company for a look back and update of the RV Park and how it went from a potential cult site to a thriv- ing visitor destination. Escape Lodging Pres- ident Patrick Nofi eld dis- played a 1985 Eugene Reg- ister-Guard article about how the Rajneeshees were scoping land in rural Can- non Beach for their center which prompted the city’s quick purchase of the 52 acres for $2 million. The RV Park’s his- tory was a part of Escape Lodging’s annual report in preparation of their con- tract renewal with the city. Nofi eld brought key mem- bers of his team to discuss how the RV park fared over the last year, and shared the parks storied history as well. The city later pur- chased the land and con- tracted with Escape Lodg- ing in 2002 to manage the RV park and resort. Since that time, the city has reimbursed the private business for any expenses incurred while income goes directly into the city bank accounts. Nofi eld said that there were “no regrets” in the site purchase and shared wisdom from the Steve Martin, his business part- ner and mentor in the ven- ture. Martin died in 2000. “Steve said that the money is a ‘report card’ as to how well we’re serving people,” Nofi eld remembered. In exchange Escape Lodging gets a small monthly fee and a per- centage of the profi ts, and during the winter months sometimes those profi ts are slim to none. This past year the net profi t for the site was close to $500,000, although January and February bookings were “extremely low.” The city put prof- its to use, Nofi eld said. Recent upgrades included improvements to sanita- tion, electrical and wire- less communications. The park has also recently added an electric vehicle charging station which is being used one to two times per day. Bigger projects com- ing up will need council approval, Escape Lodg- ing CFO Becki Filan said, but the park needs con- stant maintenance. Small ongoing needs like a new HVAC unit for the pool and picnic table repairs are on the list, but the roadbed needs major repairs and that won’t be a cheap fi x. “We take expenditures over a certain level to the council,” Filan said. City Councilor Nancy McCarthy asked Nofi eld’s input regarding the ongo- ing discussions of alterna- tive uses for the site. The city has added land adjacent to the RV Park as a possible location for a future city hall or pub- lic safety building. The land has also been consid- ered as a site for affordable housing. Nofi eld said Escape Lodging would like “a seat at the table,” whether future uses on neighboring land include tiny homes or a new city hall. Warren Way reconfi guration ahead Safer intersection is sought By CARA MICO For Cannon Beach Gazette The Warren Way Hem- lock intersection has been problematic since the instal- lation of the candlestick bar- riers, considered eyesores by many. Public Works Director Karen LaBonte is hoping to provide a remedy that will satisfy residents and help visitors to make safer traffi c choices. After the intersection was redesigned in 2013 by Lancaster Engineering, the City has received a num- ber of complaints. A single point in time assessment by the engineering fi rm sug- gested that the intersection was working as designed, but the major complaints are around aesthetics and con- gestion out of Tolovana Inn. While the latest cross- walk additions are an improvement, and ample street lighting and low speed limits minimize accidents at the intersection, it’s still an issue from a public safety perspective. Police Chief Jason Scher- merhorn said at the March 12 City Council work ses- sion meeting that a lot of the traffi c accidents at the inter- section are from confusion, “people treat the intersec- Google Maps The Warren Way/Hemlock intersection is getting a fresh look. tion like it’s a four-way stop, even though it isn’t.” Those familiar with the intersection know that on peak summer days, the intersection is a problem. In addition to speeding cars exiting the highway, wan- dering pedestrians trying to navigate poorly placed crosswalks and blocked traffi c out of Tolovana Inn make the intersection one of the most dangerous inter- sections in town. Public Works asked Lancaster Engineering to reevaluate the situation to determine if the candlestick confi guration was the only option for traffi c control and engineer Brian Davis brought a few example solu- tions for the council to con- sider, including extend- ing the south crosswalk on Hemlock, narrowing the right hand turn off east- bound Warren with paint or planters, and a roundabout or a four-way stop. “This is a great example of things that keep engineers awake at night. There’s a lot of asphalt and not a lot of guidance,” said Davis. According to Davis, the intersection currently is considered functional by engineering standards, even though a 2016 evaluation gave it only a passing grade. “There is slight conges- tion at peak hours and vol- ume to capacity is about half full,” Davis said. But traffi c volumes at this intersection have grown over the past two years, largely thanks to economic growth, and if that trend continues Cannon Beach will have six years at most before major changes will have to be made. There was general coun- cil support for a four way intersection, as it would require the fewest resources to solve one of the major safety concerns, but Davis believes that a four way stop has the potential to cause more traffi c on Hemlock making operations worse, adding that safety concerns were an overriding factor. Doug Neely of the Tolo- vana Inn weighed in and suggested that extending the southern crosswalk would help people cross more con- fi dently. He also offered to extend irrigation into the tri- angle in between the Inn’s driveway and Hemlock should the city decide to remove the asphalt and plant the strip with landscaping. LaBonte will get esti- mates for the proposed work and bring the project back to the council for consider- ation sometime in the near future. Dining on the North Coast Excellence in family dining found from a family that has been serving the North Coast for the past 52 years Great Great Great Homemade Breakfast, lunch and pasta, Clam dinner steaks & Chowder, but that’s not all... menu,too! seafood! Salads! Seaside • 323 Broadway • 738-7234 (Open 7 Days) Cannon Beach • 223 S. Hemlock 436-2851 (7am-3pm Daily) Astoria • 146 W. Bond • 325-3144 239 N. 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