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About Seaside signal. (Seaside, Or.) 1905-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 25, 2016)
6A • November 25, 2016 • Seaside Signal • seasidesignal.com Workshop to consider Seaside’s next mayor Mayor Larson leaves vacancy By R.J. Marx Seaside Signal Mayor Don Larson stepped down this month as the city’s top official after the second year of his four-year term. How will the next mayor be chosen? A City Council workshop on Nov. 28 could make things clearer. Larson, 80, has served as mayor since 2002, when as a city coun- cilor, he defeated Rosemary Bak- er-Monaghan. He subsequently won re-election in 2006 and 2010. In the 2014 election, Larson garnered 62 percent of the vote, de- feating challengers Angela Fairless and John Dunzer. According to the city charter, a mayor’s four-year term begins at the first council meeting of the year immediately after the elec- tion and continues until a succes- sor assumes the office. The mayor serves as chairman of the council and presides over its deliberation, with authority to enforce rules and determine the council’s order of business. Vacant offices are filled by ap- of residence in Seaside. Will incoming Councilor Tom Horning be part of the council’s decision-making process? “That’s something the council will determine at the workshop,” City Manager Mark Winstanley said. The council workshop is scheduled for 3 p.m. at Seaside City Hall. pointment by a majority vote of the remaining members of the council. The appointee serves immediately after appointment and continues until the January following the next general city election. The appointee will fill the re- maining two years of Larson’s four-year term. Councilors may select any reg- istered voter with at least one year Council seeks safety in cannabis processing Councilors seek to prevent processing accidents By R.J. Marx Seaside Signal Safety first — that was the message in a city code amendment that will allow the inspection of retail mar- ijuana grow sites and pro- cessing facilities. The City Council unan- imously approved the code amendment Monday. The city already can inspect medical marijuana facilities. “This allows us to cover retail activities in an industrial zone and it also puts in some safety factors as well,” City Planner Kevin Cupples said. At a previous meeting, city councilors expressed concern that recreational growing and processing facilities would be properly monitored for safety — including extracts, oils and ether — to prevent incidents like the October explosion and fire at an Astoria process- ing facility. The investigation into the explosion at Higher Level Concentrates continues, Asto- ria Fire Chief Ted Ames said this week. Seaside councilors were especially concerned about the use of butane canisters found in the aftermath of the Astoria blaze. A highly flammable and colorless gas, butane is commonly used to extract THC, the main psy- choactive component in mar- ijuana, to create hash oil and other marijuana concentrates. The rules in Seaside in- clude operational require- ments that all facilities are subject to periodic inspection by the fire marshal to ensure they remain in compliance with fire and life safety regu- lations. Licenses will be valid for one year and a new appli- cation may be submitted each year. Licensed facilities will be reviewed every year, and a license may be revoked at any time if a facility is not in compliance. The fire chief, fire marshal and building official will scru- tinize “what they are doing and how they are doing it,” Cupples said. Violations need not lead to a conviction, according to the rules, “but must establish a reasonable doubt about the licensee’s ability to perform the licensed activity without danger to property, public health or safety.” Without an amendment to include recreational process- ing and production, Seaside would have been ineligible for a share of state marijuana tax revenues. A ballot mea- sure to impose a 3 percent lo- cal tax on marijuana sales was approved by Seaside voters last week. Students to lead Parade of Lights By R.J. Marx Seaside Signal Organizers were con- cerned and dismayed when the health of Mayor Don Lar- son made his appearance at this year’s Seaside Parade of Lights problematic. Larson was scheduled to lead the annual event as the parade’s grand marshal. Because of his health he couldn’t do it, Sandy McDowall of Seaside’s Chamber of Commerce said. “We were thinking, ‘What can we do?’” McDowall said. “Then the lightbulb went on: Let’s make it the children of Seaside School District 10.” The metaphor was appro- priate for Seaside’s annual Parade of Lights, held annu- ally on Thanksgiving Friday, Nov. 25. Children from the high school, middle school and two elementary schools will gath- er at the Seaside Civic and Convention Center and march behind the “grand marshal” banner. “It’s really a thank you to the Seaside area for passing the bond measure,” McDow- all said. “Each school will be send- ing out an invitation to their students in this week’s news- letter,” Seaside School Dis- trict Superintendent Sheila Roley said. “It is a wonderful honor for our students to be invited to be the grand mar- shals of the Parade of Lights.” Roley thanked the com- munity for their “amazing amount of support for our stu- dents.” “With the passage of the school construction bond, our voters have expressed how highly they value our young citizens,” she said. “We are so grateful.” Local Pacific Power em- ployees and their families will participate in the parade this year, Pacific Power’s Region- al Business Manager Alisa Dunlap said. “We will be dec- THE DAILY ASTORIAN/FILE PHOTO Santa waves to the crowd at the Seaside Parade of Lights. Participants are invited to sign up to join in the parade. orating a bucket truck for the festivities. And look forward to handing out our signature glow sticks along the parade route.” The parade formation be- gins at 6 p.m. at First Avenue on Necanicum Drive with participants facing south. The parade ends at the Downing and Broadway pocket park. Noncommercial winners re- ceive a $50 check and com- mercial winners receive a plaque. Following the parade, participants are invited to join tree-lighting, caroling and visits with Santa Claus. Dunlap has an additional advisory this holiday season: For home lighting, make sure you are using an appropriate outlet and check decorations for damage prior to plugging them in. R.J. MARX Seaside councilors applaud Don Larson for his service. ‘We’ve done a lot, you guys’ Larson from Page 1A Councilor Don Johnson served with Larson on the Planning Commission and alongside him as council president. The two men both joined the council in 2003. “You’ve always been my mentor and the guy I’ve looked up to, but most of all, you’ve been my friend,” Johnson said. “I’ve always called you ‘friend,’ and I can talk to you about anything.” Years of service Larson retired in 1991 as a staff training officer for the U.S. Army Reserve. He served on the David Douglas School Board in Portland, the Seaside Plan- ning Commission, City Council and other com- mittees before successfully running for mayor in 2002. In that election, Larson recounted, he knocked on 1,650 doors. A member of Clatsop County’s Public Safety Board, Larson was recog- nized as Mayor of the Year by the League of Oregon Cities in 2009. “We really had some tough council meetings,” Larson recalled, including sessions on short-term rent- als and a new highway to replace U.S. Highway 101. He ticked off a list of ac- complishments: a skate park, a new library and the North Holladay Drive renovation. The boat ramp at Broadway Park. Upgrades to city build- ings. Four bridges, built to tsunami standards at the time they were built, and the Recy- cling Center on Avenue S. “We’ve done a lot, you guys,” Larson said. “We’ve done a lot in this city. I didn’t do these things. This is you guys and staff who did.” A successor will be chosen by the City Council at future sessions, City Manager Mark Winstanley said after the meeting. Councilors may select any registered voter with at least one year of Seaside residence. The appointee will fill the re- maining two years of Larson’s four-year term. “Mayor Larson’s been the mayor for virtually the entire time since I’ve been city man- ager,” Winstanley said. “He’s done a fabulous job. He’s one of the most active mayors I’ve ever known. He’s was always been available for any types of issue we have had. 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