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About Seaside signal. (Seaside, Or.) 1905-current | View Entire Issue (May 25, 2018)
6A • May 25, 2018 • Seaside Signal • seasidesignal.com China’s new trade policy impacts local trash rates Pickup rates rise 3 ½ percent By R.J. Marx Seaside Signal Policies in Asia are driving up costs for Seaside Recology customers. Carl Peters, a general man- ager for the company, came to Seaside Monday, May 14, with a 3.5 percent solid waste collection increase. The hike is driven by deci- sions by the Chinese govern- ment to cut payments for re- cycling deliveries, Peters said. R.J. MARX Rates for pickup in Seaside are increasing as a result of activity overseas. “It’s a problem, and it’s a big problem,” he told the City Council. “It was a commodity. It had value. Now we’re pay- ing over double what it costs for disposing the trash.” China has gone from ac- cepting 60 to 70 percent of the world’s recycling down to about 20 percent, he said. Twenty-four items were list- ed as no longer acceptable, including unsorted mixed pa- per, the largest component of recycling. “Ultimately they said, ‘We don’t want any of it anymore,’” he said. Trade disputes have further limited the market. Chinese officials may turn away an en- tire cargo and charge shippers fines of up to $50,000. As a result, recyclers are facing issues finding person- nel to sort conveyor lines and must slow down belts to remove more trash. Invento- ry that used to be accepted is “not so easy to ship,” Peters said. Examples of the impact for residential curbside service show a 32-gallon weekly cart at $16.27 per month will in- crease to $16.54 per month, a difference of 57 cents. A 90-gallon cart weekly cart at $27.12 per month will in- crease to $28.07 per month, a difference of 95 cents. While Seaside customers are seeing a rate hike, it’s less onerous than some changes instituted in cities throughout All come with a fee. “It can be done,” he said. “I would guess on the inexpensive side, you can take it up and dump it at the recycling center in As- toria with a 3 percent increase — about 50 cents a month. But that’s not a lot of service.” Home lawn debris recy- cling service might increase between $2 or $3 a month, he added. “We could have a con- versation about that,” he said. “The economy of scale makes a lot of difference.” The City Council unani- mously approved a resolution adjusting the solid waste col- lection rates, effective July 1. the state, Peters said. Some are passing surcharges on to cus- tomers, adding price increases of 10 to 15 percent or suspend- ing service altogether. “That’s what they needed to do, but I won’t pass judgment on it,” he said. “We aren’t going to do that, but it is more difficult and it is more expensive.” City councilors asked Pe- ters for details on lawn debris and glass recycling. Currently, the options are unavailable to Seaside customers. The city could designate a recycling center, drop-off capability in Astoria or home recycling. Revised flood maps get Seaside review City must act on approval By R.J. Marx Seaside Signal COLIN MURPHEY/THE DAILY ASTORIAN Seaside School Board members recently toured the school construction site that is still in the process of being logged. District hopes for June groundbreaking School from Page 1A with a local subcontractor on the electrical utilities scope, however, that has not been awarded,” Bubenik said. Permits await The new campus, part of the existing Seaside Heights Elementary School with a property addition of about 50 acres to the east, is lo- cated at 2000 Spruce Drive. The 140,000-square-foot K-12 project will include doubling the current elemen- tary school’s size to double the student capacity, and a new middle and high school building with access road, parking, drop-off and track field. Henry said school district representatives were still working with the city’s pub- lic works director Dale Mc- Dowell and city planner Kev- in Cupples in understanding utilities, managing the reser- voir, interagency agreements and bid packages coming up. Some costs, such as road upgrades, pump station and water tank, are yet unfunded, with the water tank estimated at a $6 million cost. The sum is included in the Seaside city 2018-19 budget, but City Manager Mark Win- stanley said he expects the school district will pay some of the costs. “Here is where we start the conversation,” Winstanley said in April. Other site permits await. Wetlands approval from the Department of State Lands and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is expected July 1, Henry said. The corps will determine the type and amount of mitigation neces- sary to offset environmen- tal losses from the proposed project. The district also antici- pates notification from the Department of Environmen- tal Quality. “We’re hoping to have a groundbreaking in June,” Henry said. died in the line of duty, Holt said, including Goodding, the Seaside officer who was shot and killed in the line of duty in February 2016. The annual remembrance began in 1962 when President John F. Kennedy signed a public law that declared May 15 as Na- tional Peace Officers Memorial Day and the calendar week in which May 15 falls as National Police Week. The annual tribute to law enforcement service and sacrifice includes ceremonies throughout the week in Wash- ington, D.C. The 129 national deaths in 2017 followed a year in which 159 lives were lost. “It’s a continuing effort to make sure fallen offers across the nation, as well as in Or- egon, are remembered and never forgotten,” Holt said. “We take time out to pause and reflect on a life that was taken and what that means to other survivors, family, co-workers and friends.” Seaside Police Chief Dave Ham said the event was an opportunity to remember the fallen officers who are gone. “We’re trying to honor those CLATSOP COUNTY LAND USE PLANNING Seaside joined other coast- al cities in approving FEMA revised flood maps. certain building standards. Failure to recognize the map would result in the sus- pension of the city from the National Flood Insurance Program and prohibit feder- ally insured mortgage loans. The council approved first and second readings of the ordinance, and will vote again at the next meeting, Monday, May 28. The pub- lic is invited to provide in- put. Maps must be adopted by June 20. Meet the contractor Local contractors are invit- ed by Hoffman Construction Co. to a “meet the contractor” event. Hosted by Hoffman, with the Clatsop Economic Development Resources and the Seaside Chamber of Com- merce, the event will provide local subcontractors and busi- nesses specifics about the proj- ect, timetables, and subcontrac- tor and bidding opportunities. The event takes place at the Clatsop Community College South Campus Tuesday, 1455 N. Roosevelt Drive, on June 5, from 6 to 8 p.m. To attend, con- tact cary-bubenik@hoffman- corp.com or call 503-329-1002. Memorial has ‘special meaning’ in Seaside Vigil from Page 1A Like other Clatsop Coun- ty communities, Seaside con- sidered an ordinance amend- ing the city code update the flood damage prevention ordinance. The change is re- quired by the Federal Emer- gency Management Agency, City Planner Kevin Cupples said May 14. The new maps change some flood plain locations, with more taken out of the flood plain than those added, Cupples said. “This is the updated version of that with the required changes.” The maps are used by insurers to price flood insur- ance and by cities and coun- ties to identify flood-prone areas for regulatory purpos- es. They can also affect new development by requiring who gave the ultimate sacri- fice,” he said. “It’s a very spe- cial meaning to the department and me personally losing Jason over two years ago. It means everything. It’s a time to come together.” The 183 who have died while serving in Oregon are recognized each May at the Or- egon Fallen Law Enforcement Memorial in Salem. CITY OF SEASIDE Area of a proposed retail development in Seaside. Winstanley: City would be unlikely to vacate Street from Page 1A In the early 2000s, vaca- tion of the two streets was accomplished twice, but the property never built on. Per- mits eventually expired. City Manager Mark Win- stanley said the city would be unlikely to vacate unless a development was in place. “The city has jumped twice and nothing has happened. I’m not sure the city wants to jump this time.” The public has a right to know what is going into the site as a development, Van Thiel added. “People could look at it and say, ‘I was com- fortable with it before, but I’m not comfortable with it now.’ Those are hard things to solve at this stage. The city needs some direction as to what you intend to do with it.” Memorial Day events Memorial Day stands as a remembrance of men and women in the military fallen in war. The Legion is giving out poppies at Safeway, May 24-27, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. In Seaside, Seaside American Legion Post #99 hosts a ceremony at 11 a.m. Monday. A free spaghetti lunch follows. The 56th annual Gearhart Fireman’s Ball and Game Night takes place at the firehouse, 670 Pacific Way, on Satur- day, May 27, from 8 a.m. to midnight, offering music, games, beverages and more. Tickets may be purchased at the door. The Legion Riders raise the flag on the Turnaround at noon. Say cheese! Museum presents Terrible Tilly tales The Tillamook Rock Light- house, aka Terrible Tilly, is as iconic a North Coast landmark as Haystack Rock. Construc- tion of the lighthouse took 500 days and was completed in January 1881. It was de- commissioned in 1957 yet the lighthouse structure remains. Standing 134 feet tall it has withstood the winds, storms and waves for 137 years, creat- ing a history of its own. Family history with Ter- rible Tilly drove Brian Ratty to write his most recently re- leased book “Tillamook Rock Lighthouse: History and Tales of Terrible Tilly.” In Decem- ber 2015, Ratty shared some of those stories-in-progress at one of the first History and Hops events presented by the Seaside Museum. Now Ratty returns to History and Hops, book recently published, to share more of his research, ex- panding with more tales and historical facts. This month’s History and Hops will be held at 6 p.m. on Thursday, May 31, at the Sea- side Brewing Co. History and Hops is a series of local history discussions hosted by the Sea- side Museum on the last Thurs- day of each month, September through May, at Seaside Brew- ing Co., 861 Broadway. All our members have dental coverage. A healthy mouth is part of a healthy life. Creating health together. colpachealth.org M @columbiapacificcco A CareOregon Company