SEASIDESIGNAL.COM
OUR 112th YEAR • October 12, 2018
Gearhart
council
candidates
take on
key issues
Smith, Zimmerman vie
for council seat
By R.J. Marx
Seaside Signal
Position 1 City Council candidates Ker-
ry Smith and Jack Zimmerman offer differ-
ent perspectives while sharing the goal of
maintaining Gearhart’s character and being
a vigilant watchdog for the taxpayer.
Smith, who was
elected to the City
Council in 2014,
describes himself
as a 33-year Gear-
hart resident. With
a background in
construction, after
working on the Alaska pipeline, he became
a contractor.
“I have tried to be a voice for the res-
idents of Gearhart that I know, as well as
tried to use some of my communication
skills to ask tough questions and help facil-
itate the conversations,” he said in a can-
didate statement for The Daily Astorian’s
voters guide.
JEFF TER HAR
See Candidates, Page 7A
The Times Theatre returns to Broadway and Columbia in Seaside.
Theater returns after
after three-decade hiatus
By R.J. Marx
Seaside Signal
or moviegoers, the wait for a theater
on Broadway in Seaside has been
too long.
This week, the hallowed Times
Theatre officially reopened its doors
after a hiatus of nearly 30 years.
Inside the theater, manager Kerri
Lambert presides over the excite-
ment. “We were able to keep the shape of
the building, and some contractors will tell
you we kept the ghosts, but besides the light
fixtures in the theater and in the west stair-
well, everything else is new,” Lambert said.
The theater, originally built by Seaside’s
legendary B.J. Callahan in 1940, entertained
thousands of residents and visitors through-
out its years.
The Times Theatre is “unusually attrac-
tive,” wrote the Signal in 1940, “built in the
modern style of architecture. The interior is
finished in bands of two shades of tan on the
walls, with bands of green and rose on the
ceiling. Indirect lighting effects will add to
the beauty of the interior.
For decades, the theater was considered the
place where parents could drop off their kids
and feel safe that their kids were going to be
safe, recalled Robin Knoll, who worked as a
projectionist at the original theater.
But changes in viewing habits and the rise
of home video cut into business.
“Parenthood” finally played as the the-
ater’s last show on Oct. 12, 1989.
R.J. MARX
Popcorn at the movies, one thing that
never changes.
At Monday’s City Council
meeting, Councilor Randy Frank
praised the renovation as own-
er Mark Utti sought and won
authorization of a building sign.
The new sign extends four feet
out from the building above the
existing marquee.
“You’ve taken a corner that
was sort of a blight and you’ve
resurrected the Times Theatre,
a historic piece of Seaside, and
I love what you’ve done there,”
Frank said. “I appreciate the extra
time and money it took to keep
the character of the building.
This is really going to add to our
corner.”
“I just want to echo Randy’s
comments,” Councilor Seth
Morrisey added. “It’s such a great
addition to Seaside. Good job.”
Cut to 2018. Mark Utti, president of Dam-
arkom, presided over the remodel and refur-
bishing of the theater at the corner of Broad-
way and Columbia.
With a soft opening this summer, for
weeks, residents and those in the know
have been slipping in to catch vintage flicks,
Ducks’ games and for tastes of the theater’s
homemade Sisu Beer developed by brew-
master Vince Berg. The name is inspired by
the Finnish word “Sisu,” which is loosely
translated as “spirit,” symbolizing national
pride.
Executive chef Sean Whitaker is the latest
acquisition, joining the theater’s team after a
distinguished career at Fulio’s, Astoria Cof-
fee and Bridgewater Bistro.
Table service is available downstairs
served to guests in theater-style chairs and 10
to 12 four-top tables. The seating capacity for
theater seats is 254 but total capacity is about
340.
Upstairs is self-service and guests can
purchase food at the concession area, said
Lambert, Films are projected digitally onto
the 22-by-30-foot screen.
Knoll retains a role in the new Times
Theatre, Lambert said, “as a consultant and
a lifesaver.”
“I do not know how we would do this
without him,” Lambert said. “He has booked
every movie for us, and is working on our fu-
ture movies. He has had a great knowledge if
the history of the theater, the way the business
works and great at telling me what to expect.”
This week, the Times Theatre will present
“The Princess Bride. From Oct. 19-24, “E.T.
The Extra Terrestrial” will be shown, fol-
lowed by “The Rocky Horror Picture Show”
with three 9 p.m. and three midnight show-
ings. “Beetlejuice” follows Nov. 1.
New program
offers trauma
victims a path to
recovery, safety
By Eve Marx
For Seaside Signal
Victims of domestic violence and trau-
ma experience life differently. Survivors of
trauma, in particular women with a history
of Intimate Partner Violence, have 42 per-
cent higher health costs, and are 80 percent
more likely to have a stroke; they are 70
percent more likely to have heart disease;
60 percent more likely to have asthma; and
70 percent more likely to drink heavily.
They are three times more likely to have
a sexually transmitted infection and are at
high risk for unwanted pregnancies. It’s a
sad comment on our society that being mur-
dered by an intimate partner is the number
one cause of death for pregnant and post-
partum women in the United States.
A new group called Seeking Safety is
starting up at Providence Seaside Hospital
in cooperation with the Harbor, an interven-
tion, recovery and support group based in
Astoria for survivor’s of domestic violence.
“We’re very excited to expand our services
into the south county for survivors and to be-
gin meeting with clients where they are,” said
Amy Lewis, a Harbor healthcare advocate.
For non-English speaking clients, Paula
Bartheld is the Spanish speaking bilingual
advocate.
PAID
PERMIT NO. 97
ASTORIA, OR
PRSRT STD
US POSTAGE
See Trauma, Page 6A
Former public works director takes to the rails
Neal Wallace goes from
public works to Astoria trolley
By Rebecca Herren
Seaside Signal
From public works to trolley storyteller, Neal Wal-
lace is enjoying his retirement. “I am the perfect kind
of busy. It’s been very enjoyable so far and doing what
I can to make sure it stays that way.”
Staying involved with outside influences and com-
munity organizations keeps Wallace’s social needs
fulfilled.
Wallace, who joined the all-volunteer trolley team
in August, has lived in Seaside for 25 years. Before
retiring in 2015, he was Seaside’s Public Works di-
rector.
He arrived in Seaside during the spring break quake
in 1993 and went to work as a surveyor for the plan-
ning firm HLB, then in Manzanita. A little more than
a year into his job, HLB opened an office in Gearhart,
where Wallace remained for the next five years.
In 1998, Wallace was hired to do land surveys,
engineering and project management for the city of
Seaside.
“I didn’t have anyone to supervise and only one
person to answer to,” he said. “It was perfect.”
Five years in, the Public Works director position
became opened, and after a discussion with his wife
Lisa, he decided to “throw his hat into the ring.” The
rest is history.
Before retiring, Wallace finished his commitment
to the food bank board and felt fortunate to have
helped with the new building’s completion. He then
took time to refocus and redirect his interests.
“After a while I had enough of that. There’s only
so much inner focus I could do.”
Still, he wondered if he could let go of the job. “I
really enjoyed my time with the city. It was the best
job I ever had.”
Wallace said being in the buzz during the early
stages, working with the council and “bringing the
seeds of ideas collected enough to actually form a
project, develop it and find funding for it is what I
enjoyed the most, and will always miss that.”
See Trolley, Page 7A
COLIN MURPHEY
Seaside’s Neal Wallace operates the Astoria
Riverfront Trolley.