6A • April 15, 2016 • Seaside Signal • seasidesignal.com
‘We need this renovation,’ says civic center head
Center from Page 1A
“We need this renovation
in order to stay competitive
in order to satisfy our clients
needs and maintain our contri-
bution to the economic stabil-
ity of our community,” Van-
denberg said.
Meeting the need
STEELE ASSOCIATES ARCHITECTS LLC
Proposed renovation plans for the main floor of the Seaside
Civic and Convention Center.
The Necanicum Room
would get 40 percent addition-
al space, and room for meal
functions would be up 40 per-
cent. The Riverview rooms to
the east would increase from
1,846 square feet to 3,408.
Architect Scott Steele, who
prepared the 33-page reno-
vation and expansion plan,
showed councilors proposed
enlarged meeting rooms, addi-
tional storage, administrative
area, lobby and staircase alter-
ations.
Goals are to bump out the
existing Necanicum Room,
support larger events, improve
meeting spaces and bring in
renovations under $15 million.
According to Vandenberg,
“a lot of groups try to squeeze
into the center and they try
to maNe it ¿t, but reality is, it
doesn¶t ¿t. ,t doesn¶t satisfy
the needs of these groups.”
Councilors upbeat
Councilors proved recep-
tive to the proposal.
Randy Frank praised it as
“very well done.”
Mayor Don Larson de-
scribed it as one of the best
presentations brought before
the council. “This is amazing,”
Larson said. “Unbelievable.”
Last year, a request for a
40,000-square-foot renovation
from Vandenberg and the con-
vention center stalled when
business owners objected to
tax increases to fund reno-
vations. That project would
have doubled the size of the
convention center and added a
multistory 500-space parking
structure.
Steele said the building
would remain functional and
operational during construc-
tion, “a little tricky, but it can
be done.”
No sales tax
The preliminary design es-
timate stands at $14.6 million,
with “healthy contingencies,”
he added.
He said it was “premature”
to discuss how the project
would be paid for. Last year’s
proposal sought a combination
of lodging and sales taxes, in-
cluding a tax in Seaside’s Busi-
ness ,mprovement District.
Next steps, Vandenberg
said, will be to “take the proj-
ect on the road,” with residents
and civic groups.
“,’m not asking you to
approve the project tonight,”
Vandenberg said. “,’d like
you to consider the project. To
take it on the road, the Cham-
ber of Commerce, the Rotary,
the hotel owners, giving it
some public opinion and hear
and see. ,t’s their downtown,
as well.”
A workshop with the City
Council and the convention
center could take place in two
months, at which time the cen-
ter could provide a ¿nal pro-
posal within 30 days. “At that
point , would come back to
you and ask for you to ¿nance
this project,” Vandenberg said.
He and the team at the
Visitors Bureau hope to at-
tract “generations of people to
come into Seaside,” he added.
DINING
on the
NORTH COAST
Great Restaurants in:
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Proposed design of the BMX track as prepared by the North Coast Trail Alliance.
Bike track coming to Cartwright Park?
Track would host both
young and experienced
BMX riders
By Nancy McCarthy
For Seaside Signal
For kids and adults who
say there’s nothing to do in
Seaside, it’s time to take the
mountain bikes out of the ga-
rage.
A local group of bike rid-
ers proposes to build a BMX
pump track in Cartwright
Park. The 100-foot by 200-
foot track would consist of
a small area for children and
a larger area for adults and
more experienced riders.
Plans for the proposed
track were outlined by local
residents Chris Quackenbush,
Morgan Soller and Steven
Blakesley, members of the
newly formed North Coast
Trail Association, at the Sea-
side City Council Monday,
March 28.
,f approved, the North
Coast Trail Association
would build the track on va-
cant land north of the park’s
boat ramp and behind the
Seaside School District Ad-
ministration Building. The
oblong tracks, placed outside
the riparian zone, would con-
sist of natural soils built up
into berms and hills to chal-
lenge the riders.
Materials, supplies and
labor to build the tracks will
be donated; at least two asso-
ciation members operate con-
struction companies. Land-
scaping will be done by the
Seaside Kiwanis. Construc-
tion could begin this spring.
Organized last July, the
North Coast Trail Associa-
tion consists of 24 members,
many of whom are local surf-
ers. The association’s goals
are to maintain area bike
trails and become involved
in community projects that
support biking, Quackenbush
said. The group “adopted”
the Gnat Creek Trail, east of
Astoria, through a partnership
with the state Department of
Forestry.
Pump tracks provide
something for families to do
while increasing their phys-
SUBMITTED PHOTO
A BMX bike track in use. The proposed track in Seaside would
have a similar design, proponents say.
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Another view of the proposed design of the BMX track as
prepared by the North Coast Trail Alliance.
ical activity, said Blakesley,
who is the health promotion
specialist for Clatsop County.
Bike riding is popular among
visitors to Oregon, he added:
More than 4.5 million visitors
rode bikes while in the state
in 2014.
Oregon’s mountain bikers
brought in $2.3 million reve-
nue in 2014, Blakesley said.
Overnight biking visitors
spend eight times more than
day travelers, he said.
Although several city
councilors appeared to sup-
port the track, the council
won’t take formal action on
the proposal until the Plan-
ning Commission considers
it. Councilor Tita Montero
noted that the track would be
easy to reach by much of the
community since it would be
built in an existing city park.
,n other business, the
council:
• Approved a recommen-
dation by the city traf¿c ad-
visory committee to complete
the design of a new Avenue U
Bridge and have it ready when
funding for construction is
available. ,t is estimated that
replacement of the bridge
could cost nearly $4 million.
The replacement would add
another turn lane and would
bring the 59-year-old bridge
up to current seismic codes.
• Approved an amended
intergovernmental agreement
between the city, the Sun-
set Empire Park and Recre-
ation District and the Seaside
School District involving
funding for the maintenance
of Broadway Field. The
school district agreed to pay
$10,900 annually to main-
tain the ¿eld. ,n the original
agreement in 2012, the rec-
reation district shouldered
all of the maintenance and
improvement costs, but they
were higher than expected,
and the school district was
asked to provide funds. The
school district is the ¿eld’s
primary user.
• Heard a report about the
dryer at the city’s wastewa-
ter treatment plant. Although
several repairs have had to
be made on the dryer, which
the city purchased used, the
dryer is running now, said
Tony Biamont, wastewater
collections supervisor. Treat-
ed sewage put through the
dryer comes out in ¿ne par-
ticles, which enables the city
to reduce the yardage and
weight of the material taken
to a dump in McMinnville by
more than 92 percent. The re-
duction means the city could
save thousands of dollars an-
nually, Biamont said.
• Heard a request by An-
gela Fairless for the public to
attend a screening of “Paper
Tigers,” a documentary about
how Lincoln High School
in Walla Walla, Washington
developed a program for stu-
dents going through trauma.
The free screening begins at
6 p.m. at the Liberty Theatre
in Astoria. ,t will be followed
by a panel discussion. Doors
open at 5 p.m. with food and
information.
• Heard a proposal by John
Dunzer that Paci¿c Pow-
er construct a biomass-¿red
electrical generation power
plant near Main Line Road
and an extension of Avenue
F in Seaside. Energy supplied
by the plant could operate
Providence Seaside Hospital
as well as several city and
school facilities, Dunzer said.
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