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About Seaside signal. (Seaside, Or.) 1905-current | View Entire Issue (June 8, 2018)
June 8, 2018 • Seaside Signal • seasidesignal.com • 5A Bond could add value for Sunset Rec users R ecently I had the opportunity to visit with colleagues from the Chehalem Park and Recreation District, headquartered in Newberg. I was particularly excited to learn from the many successes and positive outcomes that they’ve experienced with the passing of a bond measure for the renovation of their Chehalem Aquatic and Fitness Center. Their experiences could serve as a litmus test for the board and residents of the Sunset Empire Park and Rec- reation District as they move forward with their own proposed expansion. Chehalem Park and Rec was formed at roughly the same time as SEPRD in 1965 and operated. Newberg and Seaside featured a very similar population at the time of the formation of both districts, although the Newberg area has grown signifi- cantly since that time to a population of close to 23,000 today. Chehalem Park and Recreation operated well during those first few years and featured a wide array of programs and facilities. Recognizing the need for more indoor recreation space and a desire to improve their aquatic center, the residents of the district approved a $19.9 million bond to renovate their Aquatic and Fitness Center in 2014. The voters SKY BOX SKYLER ARCHIBALD favored the bond 62 percent to 38 percent, a strong margin. On my visit to their new facility, which is slated to open on June 7, I was thoroughly impressed with the project scope and design. The bond funds went to the development and construction of a completely new aquatic center featuring components for every age group and every type of potential user. Once the new aquatic center is opened, the old one — still in use until that June 7 date — will close and be converted into a fitness center. That fitness center is slated to feature many of the same amenities as those that were deemed “high priority” by district residents here in Clatsop County: indoor walking track, gym- nasium space, group fitness studio and enlarged fitness room space. I was particularly impressed with the design of the aquatic center and its goals of serving their district residents as well as the large groundswell of support that they received both before and after the SKYLER ARCHIBALD Chehalem Park Recreation Center and Pool. bond passed. It’s clear that there is significant positive momentum in that area and that residents had a strong desire to improve the fitness and wellness opportunities for current and future residents. It’s no secret that the Sunset Empire Park and Recreation District is preparing to ask voters to con- sider supporting a bond to expand facilities and provide more indoor recreation space for our residents and guests. While I’m not at liberty to deliver anything outside of neutral informa- tion about the proposed expansion, I can deliver some of the facts regard- ing this project. Fact: There is a shortage of indoor recreation space in our community. That includes gym space that is available for community use, fitness space and a controlled climate environment for walking and running during those wet months. Those are facilities that are either completely or partially unavailable currently. Fact: While the projected cost of the expansion will likely be $16-18 million, and that’s nothing to sneeze at, similar or larger bonds have passed in other Districts throughout the state including: Springfield Bend, Beaverton, Newberg (mentioned above), Madras, Boardman, The Dalles, Hood River and others. Some cities (not special districts) have successfully passed bonds specifical- ly for Park and Recreation facilities including Eugene and Portland. Fact: While it’s unclear how much the expansion project will affect the taxing rate of district resi- dents, we expect the annual tax rate to be somewhere in between $.45 to $.78 per $1,000 of assessed property value. If the bond plays out on the lower end of the range presented, that would be an increase of $90 annually for a home with an assessed value of $200,000, or $7 monthly. That investment would play significant dividends to the resi- dents and guests of the districts and provide increased indoor recreation space for all the community to enjoy. I’m impressed by the leadership and forward thinking displayed by the residents of the Chehalem Park and Recreation District and encour- age each of our district residents to consider the impact that expanded community recreation space might have for this region. Skyler Archibald is executive director of the Sunset Empire Park and Recreation District. Training your dog to be well-behaved at the beach A t last, it’s safe to sport your favorite pair of shorts! Your dog’s excited too, and sans his winter onesie, he’s bounded from the car wearing nothing but his walking harness. He’s ankle deep in sand when you note his eyes locked on to the ocean, and for a moment you panic. It’s not the water you fear, it’s the whir of rubber and its metal tonnage. As you grab the leash, a car horn sounds in the distance, and a woman’s voice, screaming her dog’s name. Those who live in Clatsop County and wish to enjoy beach fun with their dogs have choices, but also challenges. Gearhart and Warrenton residents must share their entire beach strand, 24/7/365, with automo- biles. Luckily, modern dog training offers survival skills to help protect your dog. “Touch” and “loose leash” behav- iors can be trained quickly and built CANINE CORNER RAIN JORDAN & DAHLIA on over time. To prepare for training, cut one cup of unseasoned, unheated turkey hot dogs and hard cheese into pea-sized cubes and place in a non- breakable bowl. Find a private, quiet room in your home, with no other animals in or near the space. Sit on the floor, in a chair, or on a bed. Place the bowl of food near your hand but out of your dog’s reach and view. Have the scent of food on the palm of the hand with which you will be training — that is helpful for the first several touches. Here are the steps for teaching touch: 1. Gently place and hold your open palm in front of dog’s nose, about one inch away. Medicare special enrollment event Those losing their Fami- lyCare Medicare Advantage Plan will be offered a re- view of Medicare supple- ment insurance options to replace FamilyCare Medi- care Advantage Plan that is being canceled July 1. Counselors and local agents will be available to answer questions. The enrollment event takes place in Sea- side on Wednesday, June 13, from 2 to 3:30 p.m. at the Bob Chisholm Communi- ty Center, 1225 Avenue A, Seaside. Registration preferred, call 503-861-4200; drop-ins welcome. NORTH COAST LAND CONSERVANCY Policeman’s helmet growing along the Necanicum River, below Tillamook Head. Volunteers sought to fight invasive species It’s year two of the collab- orative assault on the weed known as policeman’s helmet in the Necanicum River water- shed, and volunteers are being sought for a day of weeding at Circle Creek Conservation Center in Seaside Wednesday, June 13, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Policeman’s helmet (Im- patiens glandulifera), a high- ly invasive non-native plant, has taken hold throughout the Necanicum River watershed, choking out native plants and reducing plant and animal di- versity while increasing the risk of stream-bank erosion. North Coast Land Conservan- cy and the Necanicum Wa- tershed Council are working together to try to rid the wa- tershed of this invader. Four summer stewardship interns have been hired to pull police- man’s helmet for two months this summer, and volunteers will be helping them on June 13 and again on July 21. The plant is easy to pull; the next step is to pile uprooted plants and stomp on them to crush the stems and prevent the seed pods from developing or maturing. Get details on the June 13 stewardship day at NCLCtrust.org/pull-police- mans-helmet. Public engagement is key to getting rid of this weed. Wherever you live in Clatsop or Tillamook counties, keep an eye out for policeman’s hel- met on your property. As soon as you see it, pull, pile, and stomp the plants so they can’t reproduce. Visit NCLCtrust. org/pull-pile-stomp for more details and to report suspected sightings of the plant. RAIN JORDAN Rain Jordan of Elevate demon- strates the “Touch” method with a formerly feral dog. 2. Wait until dog touches palm with nose, then immediately say yes! and retract your hand. 3. Immediately after saying yes, take one tiny piece of food from bowl and deliver to dog’s mouth from your hand, then retract hand. Once dog has eaten it, repeat the first three steps three times. Repeat three more times, but now placing your palm 3 inches farther from dog’s nose. 4. Once your dog is comfortably executing the touch behavior, add the word “touch” as you present your palm. As your dog gains confi- dence with touch, continue increas- ing the distance of your palm several inches at a time, always adding the word “touch” as well. Eventually, this Touch palm cue will become a short-distance recall behavior. The steps for teaching “loose leash” are as follows: 1. Dog is on walking harness and leash; your leash end is against your stomach with one hand; food is in or accessible by your other hand. 2. Walking a slow or normal pace, for every one to two steps your dog does not pull on the leash, say Yes!, then deliver one tiny piece of food as you walk. Repeat as many times as needed depending on your dog. (If the dog begins checking in with you — looking back at you —while walking, that’s a plus! Re- inforce that with a yes! and delivery of food.) 3. Increase goal to three or four steps with leash slack, then five or six, etc. Your dream goal: An entire walk with the leash remaining slack. Rule: No punishments or “correc- tions” as these can negate learning, trust, and confidence. How do these skills help your car-beach challenge? Touch-recall increases off and on-lead, visual, and voice guidance while Loose Leash training creates a habit and mindset that reduces the risk of your dog yanking the leash away and ending up in front of a car. Teaching, combining, and positively reinforc- ing these good behaviors will keep your dog safer and provide you with greater peace of mind. Rain Jordan of Elevate Dog Training & Behavior is a certified professional dog trainer and behav- ior specialist in Gearhart. Tools to address public health crisis First responders carry naloxone for opioid overdoses By Susan Cody For Seaside Signal Oregon Gov. Kate Brown has declared that the opioid epidemic is a public health crisis. “The ripple effects of addiction devastate families, preventing thousands of Oregonians across the state from living healthy, productive lives,” she said in a statement. Opioids include heroin, oxycodone, codeine, hydrocodone and fentanyl. Clatsop County is among the com- munities facing this crisis. In 2016, there were five accidental or undetermined drug overdose deaths in Clatsop County, according to the Oregon Health Authority. Warrenton Police Chief Matthew Workman says, “I am saddened by the young people in our county who have died.” Opioid prescriptions can lead to addic- tion and misuse of drugs. Workman says many illicit opioid users have families where a child might get into the drugs and overdose on only a small amount. Prescribed medication can be a hazard to children if not proper- ly stored. Additionally, many people who accidentally overdose on opioids are pa- tients using the medications appropriately for pain management. Because of this, first responders in Clatsop County carry naloxone, also known as Narcan, a drug that can restore normal breathing to someone whose breathing has slowed or stopped from an opioid overdose. Naloxone comes in mul- tiple forms, including an injectable form typically used by first responders and na- sal spray called Nasal Narcan. “By administering naloxone to some- one who overdoses, we can perhaps help them out and get them on the way to re- covery,” says Workman. Due to the rural nature of Clatsop County, first response can take much longer to arrive at the scene of an overdose, which is why living in a rural location carries a much higher risk of overdose death. Police and laypeo- ple carrying naloxone can save precious minutes and restore breathing while wait- ing for first responders to arrive. What is the level of need? OHA statistics show in 2016 there were 78 medical calls in which nalox- one was administered in Clatsop County. From January to September 2017, 43 calls included using naloxone. Those reports are voluntary and do not include laypeo- ple using naloxone. Knappa’s Kerry Strickland does not want to see another family suffer as she did after her son died of a heroin over- dose. She started Jordan’s Hope for Re- covery as a way to reach out to people and their families who are dealing with addiction. Oregon allows private citizens to carry and administer naloxone. It is available from pharmacists and medical profession- als. Jordan’s Hope for Recovery received a grant from a drug company to distribute Naloxone for free. Fresh Oregon Hood sTRAWBERRIES Available Now! During Clatsop County’s needle ex- change in Astoria, Seaside and Warren- ton, Jordan’s Hope for Recovery offers auto-injectable naloxone and training. Along with the drug, Strickland adds a little bag with a bottle of water, some snack bars and a bracelet with the Jor- dan’s Hope for Recovery website on it. The website lists recovery meetings and links to services throughout Clatsop, Til- lamook, Columbia and Pacific (Washing- ton) counties. At the needle exchange, people have returned for a naloxone refill, so lives have been saved, Strickland says. The needle exchange, education and training have been a success. More than 30,000 needles have been exchanged in Clatsop County. “We are here saving lives, giving peo- ple another opportunity to recover from addiction,” Strickland says. Clatsop County first responders, in- cluding Medix Ambulance Service and local fire departments carry Narcan to revive patients who have overdosed and as a precaution to protect responders in case of accidental exposure. Warrenton and Gearhart police also carry Narcan be- cause they may be the first on scene. Workman says, “Narcan can be used for those who purposely overdose and for those who accidentally overdose. Offi- cers, could be exposed to drugs such as carfentanyl, which is a powder, and can get in the air and absorbed by the skin. It is extremely dangerous.” The Way to Wellville and its sponsor, Columbia Pacific Coordinated Care Or- ganization, support healthy activities and community safety. powered by Monday - Saturday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Watch for us at the corner of Marlin & 101 in Warrenton at the Putman Pro-Lube Center Call 503-359-5204 for more info. Picked Daily! music fi rst