November 25, 2016 • Seaside Signal • seasidesignal.com • 5A
Mayor Larson: An ambassador amongst us
I
fi rst met Seaside Mayor Don Lar-
son on May 17, 2010. The date is
easy for me to remember because
it was the same day I came to Seaside
from Salt Lake City to interview for
the positon I’ve held since June of
that same year. After participating in a
panel interview earlier that morning, I
was asked to return for a community
gathering with other job fi nalists.
Interviewing with a panel of
fi ve can be tough enough, but now
I was asked to come back and meet
community and tourism leaders later
that day? When I was told about this
process, I’ll admit to some apprehen-
sion. I remember discussing it with
family members and was told to look
at it as an opportunity to interview
them. It was sage advice. As an out-
sider at the time, it was a chance for
me to see if this was a community of
people that fi t what I was looking for
SIDE RAIL
JOHN RAHL
too. Sure, I hoped Seaside would like
me, but I also wanted to make sure
Seaside made sense for me and my
family.
Many conversations were had
that day. Some took 30-60 seconds,
as I shook hands with a relative
stranger, exchanged names and we
both moved on. Others turned into
long conversations. My dialogue
with Mayor Larson was one that
lasted a few minutes and it had a
profound effect on me. I didn’t fully
understand Seaside at that point,
but the fact that the mayor showed
up to say hello and engage with me
and other candidates spoke volumes.
The details of what was said isn’t as
important as the presence of a man
I didn’t know. He simply made me
feel extremely welcome and unlike a
guy that was 1,000 miles away from
home and in a packed room with
nobody I knew. The mayor stood tall
that day, similar to how I remember
nearly all of my interactions with
him. He wore a smile on his face and
told me how much he loved Seaside.
There was genuine admiration for
this community and I came to learn
over time that his love runs as deep
as anyone I know.
Seaside’s mayoral position is
essentially a volunteer position, just
like the six other councilors who
make up Seaside City Council. And
his fellow councilors will tell you
that he took the job as serious as
anything. One of my duties includes
sending out a monthly packet to a
council-appointed Tourism Advisory
Committee. The mayor was under
no obligation to attend my monthly
meeting, but he received my packet
and I know he read every word. He’d
call me from time to time and ask
me to elaborate on something that he
was unclear on or had concern about.
My favorite story involving my
many interactions with the mayor
was the time I was working with a
tour group that was coming through
Seaside. They would be touring
several spots and wondered if the
mayor would say a few words to
them. We arranged to obtain about
four dozen bags of taffy and then he
and I met the tour group’s bus at the
Seaside Cove. As the mayor hopped
on board to welcome them and give
them a brief overview, I handed out
the taffy. Some months later, the
tour group leader provided me with
a complete recap of their trip. In
the recap, I was referred to as “the
mayor’s aide.” It was a comment
that made me smile, and still does
as I refl ect on the six plus years I’ve
known Mayor Larson. He offi cially
retired on November 14 to focus on
his health and family, and I’ll greatly
miss his presence. The mayor taught
me a lot about the ultimate volun-
teerism and embodied the type of
ambassadorship that makes Seaside
such a special place to live and visit.
I wish him nothing but the best.
Have a thought or a question about
tourism in Seaside, or maybe an idea
for a future column? Drop me an
email at jrahl@cityofseaside.us.
Jon Rahl is the director of tourism
for the Seaside Visitors Bureau and
assistant general manager of the
Seaside Civic & Convention Center.
Brown named golf ‘Merchandiser of the Year’
By Gary Henley
EO Media Group
In his own words, “it will be
a crazy week” for Matt Brown,
golf professional at the High-
lands Golf Club in Gearhart.
Because Brown, who was
elected mayor of Gearhart on
Tuesday, is spending his week
in New York City, where he
received the 2016 PGA Na-
tional Merchandiser of the Year
award for public golf courses.
“I’m totally looking forward
to it, and I think it’s going to be
a ton of fun,” Brown said over
the weekend, just before leav-
ing for the East Coast.
He is spending the entire
week in New York, where he was
for Election Day , and the awards
ceremony Wednesday night.
The PGA of America an-
nounced the recipients of their
2016 National Awards in Au-
gust. And for the third year in a
row, Brown’s name was on the
list of winners.
His latest national award
comes on the heels of Brown
receiving the 2014 and 2015
Pacifi c Northwest PGA Sec-
tion Merchandiser of the Year
Award for public facilities.
The Highlands Golf Club
is a nine-hole public, execu-
tive-style golf course in Gear-
hart, where Brown has served
as the golf pro since 2007.
MONTANA PRITCHARD/PGA OF AMERICA
Matt Brown speaks with Dave Marr III during the 2016 PGA of America National Awards for the
100th annual meeting held at the Grand Hyatt New York on Wednesday in New York City.
“We took over in 2007, and
we take care of not only the pro
shop, we take care of the greens
crew and the course,” he said.
“It’s been a lot of fun. We have
a great group of people who
work there.”
Meanwhile, his time in New
York will be spent with his
girlfriend, Julie Visser, and his
sister Molly Brown, who works
for CBS Sports and lives in
New York City.
Wednesday’s awards cere-
mony took place at the Grand
Hyatt Hotel in Midtown Man-
hattan.
The Wednesday night
awards are in conjunction with
the PGA’s 100th annual meet-
ing, which takes place at the
Grand Hyatt , and features golf
legend Jack Nicklaus.
“We’re going to get to meet
a lot of the other PGA profes-
sionals,” Brown said before the
event. “It’s a great opportunity
for people in the industry to get
together, talk about the state of
the game and things we can do
to improve the game.”
The Highlands course has a
year-round, 1,500-square -foot
golf shop. With a philosophy of
keeping things simple, Brown
and his staff manage the pro
shop and an active online store,
which has led to an overall 40
percent increase in sales since
2008.
Brown has served previous-
ly at the Astoria Golf & Coun-
try Club, Bandon Dunes Golf
Resort and Pumpkin Ridge
Golf Club.
“I’d like to thank all of our
customers at the Highlands
who come and play every
day, and shop at the shop,” he
said. “Special thanks to our
staff, especially Todd Payne
and Adam Wood, who are
both in the pro shop full time.
They’ve done some great
work this year.”
PUBLIC MEETINGS
MONDAY, Nov. 28
Seaside City Council, 7
p.m., City Hall, 989 Broad-
way.
TUESDAY, Dec. 6
Seaside Community Cen-
ter Commission, 10 a.m.,
1225 Avenue A.
Seaside Planning Commis-
sion, 7 p.m., City Hall, 989
Broadway.
WEDNESDAY, Dec. 7
Seaside Improvement
Commission, 7 p.m., City
Hall, 989 Broadway.
Gearhart City Council, 7
p.m., City Hall, 698 Pacifi c
Way.
THURSDAY, Dec. 8
Seaside Convention Cen-
ter Commission, 10 a.m.,
1225 Avenue A.
Gearhart Planning Com-
mission, 6 p.m., City Hall,
698 Pacifi c Way.
MONDAY, Dec. 12
Seaside City Council, 7
p.m., City Hall, 989 Broad-
way.
THURSDAY, Dec. 15
Seaside Transportation
Advisory Commission, 6
p.m., City Hall, 989 Broad-
way
TUESDAY, Dec. 20
Sunset Empire Parks and
Rec District, 4 p.m., 1225
Ave. A, Seaside.
MONDAY, Dec. 26
Seaside native, Marine veteran now serves students
By Edward Stratton
EO Media Group
ASTORIA — After 18
years in the U.S. Marine
Corps, Billy Eddy got the
chance to continue his fami-
ly’s tradition of public service
on the North Coast.
Eddy was hired over the
summer as the Astoria School
District’s new director of
transportation, maintenance
and safety. He replaced Ryan
Hahn, who left to become
transportation director of the
Gresham-Barlow School Dis-
trict.
Eddy retired from the Ma-
rine Corps at the end of August ,
the same day as the district’s
new food service director, Mi-
chael Kelly, retired from the
U.S. Coast Guard. As an artil-
leryman, Eddy shot and trans-
EDWARD STRATTON/EO MEDIA GROUP
Billy Eddy is the Astoria School District’s new director of
transportation, maintenance and safety.
ported howitzers on tours in the
Helmand province of Afghani-
stan and Anbar in Iraq.
“Everything we did in the
Marine Corps … encompassed
what I do here,” Eddy said of
his new job.
The Marines provided
Eddy with some experience
in transportation, albeit with
more fi reworks. He’s over-
seen the movement of troops
between bases in California
and Afghanistan, hundreds
of vehicles between islands
in the southern Pacifi c Ocean
and Australia and convoys
through war zones.
Managing school transpor-
tation involves fewer external
pressures, such as getting shot
at, he said, “but it has it s own
complications. It’s making sure
kids are safe.”
The district transports
more than 560 students to and
from school on any given day,
roughly one-third of enroll-
ment. Eddy oversees more than
25 bus drivers, mechanics and
groundskeepers.
With so many areas to cov-
er, Eddy said he has to trust his
employees to make informed
decisions. “It’s really allow-
ing people to make decisions
on their own, and just keeping
me informed. I give them guid-
ance.”
Eddy is one of many vet-
erans employed by the school
district.
“I think it’s great for the
community,” he said. “They’re
still able to give back to the
community and have that civil
service mentality. Big picture,
we can’t do enough for our vet-
erans.”
Eddy, a Seaside native, said
his family has a history of local
public service. His father, Bill
Eddy, is chief of the Gearhart
Volunteer Fire Department,
and his grandfather — also Bill
Eddy — was the city’s chief of
police. His wife, Astoria native
Melissa Eddy, is an instruction-
al assistant in special education
at Astoria Middle School. His
son, Will, is a freshman at As-
toria High School.
Seaside City Council, 7
p.m., City Hall, 989 Broad-
way.
TUESDAY, Jan. 17
Sunset Empire Parks and
Rec District, 4 p.m., 1225
Ave. A, Seaside.
TUESDAY, Feb. 21
Sunset Empire Parks and
Rec District, 4 p.m., 1225
Ave. A, Seaside.
TUESDAY, March 21
Sunset Empire Parks and
Rec District, 4 p.m., 1225
Ave. A, Seaside.
TUESDAY, April 18
Sunset Empire Parks and
Rec District, 4 p.m., 1225
Ave. A, Seaside.
TUESDAY, May 16
Sunset Empire Parks and
Rec District, 4 p.m., 1225
Ave. A, Seaside.
TUESDAY, June 20
Sunset Empire Parks and
Rec District, 4 p.m., 1225
Ave. A, Seaside.
Last expansion was in 1991
Center from Page 1A
The tax increase could be
approved by January, but the
hikes would not go into effect at
least until July, Winstanley said.
“I’m very excited about the
process,” Vandenberg said. “It’s
been a long journey, but we’re
certainly looking forward to
the completion of the project,
which we’ve been working
on for the last seven or eight
years.”
If the city OKs the tax hike
in second and third readings,
the convention center will go
forward with the bonds.
“Then we’re going to hire
a design architectural fi rm and
then a construction fi rm,” Van-
denberg said. “We’ll be start-
ing that process as soon as the
bonds are sold.”
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Proposed renovation plans for the exterior of the Seaside Civic and Convention Center.
Federal funds are unavailable to offset local school relocation costs
Continued from Page 1A
Doug Dougherty wrote supporters
in a post-election email. “Seaside
School District will also receive $4
million of additional capital funding
from the state of Oregon.”
The state funds come after the
school district was unable to access
funding through the Seismic Rehabil-
itation Grant Program to use to retrofi t
or relocate its schools because three of
the district’s schools are sited within
the tsunami inundation zone, Dough-
erty said this summer.
The Legislature last year autho-
rized $125 million in state matching
bonds to provide incentives to school
districts seeking approval for capital
projects. Estacada School District,
Vernonia School District, and Gresh-
am-Barlow School District — three
of the school districts ahead of Sea-
side — did not pass their bonds,
Dougherty said Wednesday.
Seaside was fi rst on a waiting list
to receive the matching funds, which
were contingent on the district pass-
ing a bond in November.
As a result of this week’s bond
vote, Gearhart Elementary School,
Seaside High School and Broadway
Middle School will relocate to a new
campus location in the East Hills ad-
jacent to Seaside Heights Elementa-
ry School.
Federal funds are unavailable to
offset local school relocation costs
because of a ban on federal ear-
marks, Dougherty said.
Dougherty said Wednesday the
district’s fi rst step will be to work
toward expanding the city’s urban
growth boundary for development of
the campus. The state requires cities
to maintain a line around their pe-
rimeters to moderate urban sprawl. If
more land is needed, such as for the
new school campus, land is zoned
and annexed into the city.
Earlier this year, the city ’s Plan-
ning Commission tabled discus-
sions on a plan to increase the urban
growth boundary for future residen-
tial housing. Seaside School District
was purposely excluded from this
plan so they could pursue an urban
growth boundary expansion specifi -
cally to relocate its schools out of the
tsunami inundation zone.