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About Seaside signal. (Seaside, Or.) 1905-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 4, 2019)
A6 • Friday, January 4, 2019 | Seaside Signal | SeasideSignal.com Cannon Beach Academy could close because of financial woes By BRENNA VISSER Seaside Signal CANNON BEACH — The Cannon Beach Academy could close before the end of the school year if a $75,000 shortfall is not addressed in the next few months. The public charter school’s financial situation is due to lower-than-expected enrollment and uncollected pledges. “The board of directors is committed to keeping Can- non Beach Academy oper- ating. We will make a con- centrated effort to secure our pledges and, if neces- sary, to conduct fundraising activities,” Kellye Dewey, the school board president, and Barb Knop, the trea- surer, wrote in a joint state- ment. “The board sincerely hopes that our donors who have pledged their financial support of the school through pledges are able to honor their commitments to the Brenna Visser/Seaside Signal Students from Cannon Beach Academy glue marine plastics to a mural of a sea star. Cannon Beach Academy.” As of last week, the char- ter school had received only about $35,000 of the expected $100,000 pledged for the school year, leav- ing more than two-thirds of pledged money outstanding. Additionally, about $10,000 outside of pledges will need to be raised to close the gap. “I don’t know how to impress upon the board the importance of getting our pledges,” Amy Fredrickson, the academy director, said at a December board meeting. “I don’t know if people truly understand how urgent it is that we need their money.” Close by April Without the money, the school likely will be unable to pay its staff through the end of the school year and would have to close its doors by April. What that would mean for students or for teacher con- tracts is unclear. “I do not have answers for you,” Fredrickson said in an email. “I am focused on get- ting our pledges so this won’t happen.” The charter school has struggled since its inception. The effort to open it began after Cannon Beach Elemen- tary School was shuttered in 2013 due to financial issues and tsunami safety concerns. After securing a charter through the Seaside School District in 2016, the acad- emy had to find a new loca- tion four months before opening for the 2017-2018 school year. A cost estimate for the new location came in $150,000 over what was budgeted for construction at the original location on Sun- set Boulevard. While the academy was able to secure a home at the former children’s cen- ter building, first-year enroll- ment was lower than antic- ipated. Fredrickson has attributed the enrollment challenge to the perception that the school’s status was “up in the air” during the last-minute location change. Confusion about the fact the school is tuition-free and not a private school also played a part. The academy faced lower than expected enrollment again this school year, falling 17 students short of its 50-stu- dent goal. Having fewer stu- dents ultimately impacts how much funding the charter school receives from the Sea- side School District. Doubts Pledges could also be stalling because of doubts some people in the commu- nity have about the acade- my’s sustainability. One major donor, who has remained anonymous, has told the board they will not give their $33,000 pledge until the school proves it can make it through two full years. Because of how long it took the academy to open its doors, the loss of some momentum from initial donors could be contribut- ing to the problem, Fredrick- son said. {p class=”p1”}“Some of these pledges were made so long ago. The amount of time that went by between the pledge being made versus when we’re asking for our money may have impacted this, as well,” she said. In the short term, the board hopes to solidify a fundraising committee in January and collect as many pledges as possible. “We can’t be complacent. We can’t be passive any- more,” John Molyneux, a board member, said. Sunset Rec considers reinstatement program A second chance at rec center By R.J. MARX Seaside Signal About “two or three” patrons a year are trespassed from Sunset Park and Rec- reation District each year, banned from use of the pool, skate park, commu- nity center and other district facilities. At the district’s Decem- ber board meeting, members considered developing a pol- icy that could provide a path for reinstatement for unruly patrons seeking return. A policy for reinstatement will give staff grounds to make decisions, said board presi- dent Alan Evans. Blatant violation of the code of conduct, extremely disrespectful behavior, using crude language, physical altercations with staff are all conduct that could get users of the district’s facilities tres- passed from the Sunset pool, Broadway Field, skate park or Bob Chisholm Community Center, the district’s execu- tive director Skyler Archibald said at the meeting. Others are trespassed by staff for vandalism on the field or basketball court. “There are kids, but adults too,” Archibald said. About “eight or 10” indi- viduals are currently tres- passed, he added, with two or three of those seeking to return. “One thing I would like to seek potential input from the board on, is how do we reinstate those individu- als?” Archibald asked board members. “Is there a pro- cess, do they come before staff, do they write a letter of contrition, do they come before the board?” Staff now handles rein- statement on a case-by-case basis, but “some of those decisions are a little tricky,” he said. Board member Jeremy Mills said he sought a stan- dard in place that is “solid” and “the same process for everyone. … It gives us a fallback for why we did what we did.” Evans, founder of the Helping Hands Re-en- try Outreach Centers, said the centers impose 30-day, 60-day, 90-day trespasses for those violating policies, “depending on what the incident was. It works out very well.” Board member Edward Hassan suggested those trespassed could volun- teer with the district to earn reinstatement. Volunteering time at dis- trict facilities could provide them a new perspective of the staff experience, he said, instilling a sense of respon- sibility and leading to better behavior. Objections came from the need to devote personnel to watch or “babysit” tres- passed individuals. Legal considerations could also limit a forced volunteerism. “I agree with the con- cept of it,” Evans said. “But when we put an expectation or a requirement, it’s no lon- ger volunteering, it’s ‘vol- un-tolding.’ We’ve attempted to do that with our own cli- ents (at Helping Hands), and it did not work out.” After the meeting, Archibald said the policy will be firmed up in weeks to come, with the option of reinstatement likely to remain in hands of rec dis- trict staff. “That’s the mes- sage I drew out of it,” he said. Barber: A happy addition to the heart of Seaside Continued from Page A1 Toward the back of the shop, in the waiting area, the television series “Supernatu- ral” with no sound but subti- tles plays on the screen. For customers and their friends who are 21 and over, Jacob offers gratis liba- tions from his drinks table and the mini-fridge. Kids are offered appropriate kid- friendly drinks. On a rainy Friday morn- ing between Christmas and New Year’s Eve, Greg Navratil, a landscape art- ist, was getting his volumi- nous hair cut and his beard trimmed in anticipation for a getaway he’s taking with his wife to celebrate their anni- versary. The gospel music of William McDowell was playing on the sound system. Eve Marx Greg Navratil, a landscape artist working in acrylics, gets his hair and beard cut and styled by Jacob, Victory Barbershop’s operator and proprietor. The conversation was easy. You get the feeling Jacob is comfortable talking to just about anyone. “I don’t care who you voted for,” he said. After working in sev- eral different trades, includ- ing bartending, he said he became a licensed barber in 2010 and never looked back. “I only cut short hair,” he said. “I like the mechanical aspects of barbering.” Comparing barbering to sculpture, he said, “With short hair you just keep tak- ing it down until it looks like what you see.” Although he doesn’t get a lot of requests for shaves these days, hot towels are a specialty. And boy do they feel good. Hot towels are part of his classic barbering expe- rience. Trust me, you want it. It’s like getting a bonus soothing, relaxing treatment. On social media, Victory Barbershop gets high marks for great haircuts, comfortable seating, and a friendly atmo- sphere. And after your fifth haircut, your next one is free. Victory Barbershop is open Friday through Mon- day 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. They’re located at 10B N. Holladay Drive. The phone number is 503-994-2237. Drop by or text for next availability. Gulls: Gulls beat Thurston for 5A championship Continued from Page A1 6A teams the previous two days, the Gulls (the real- life “Hickory Huskers”) can now make a strong case to be placed among the Best in State at any level, as Seaside topped Thurston 49-45 in the tournament’s title game. The Gulls should cer- tainly be back atop the 4A coaches poll this week, as they rallied from a 31-22 deficit in the third quarter to defeat Thurston in “a classic game,” said Seaside coach Bill Westerholm. Needless to say, the Gulls have not had many weeks like that in their history. “Never like that,” Wester- holm said. “It’s pretty rare for a smaller school to even play the big schools. It was a pretty historic week for our program. “I called the Summit coach last summer and asked if we could get into their tournament,” he said. “I didn’t know how we would do, if we’d go 0-for-3 or what, but I wanted to push the kids, and I knew we’d get three tough games.” The Gulls opened with a win Dec. 27 over South Eugene (enrollment 1,371), ranked seventh in the latest 6A poll, followed by a win over 6A Bend (1,558). “South Eugene took us lightly,” Westerholm said. “They were sitting on their bench watching us before Thursday’s game, and you could tell they had that ‘who do these guys think they are?’ look. But Bend was ready for us, and Thurston knew who they were getting. It was fun visiting with their coach (Blaine Liberatore) before the game, having the 4A champions play the 5A champions.” In Saturday’s game, the Colts just did not have the horses to stay with the well-conditioned Gulls, who trailed the entire third quarter and half the fourth. While Thurston went cold from the field, Sea- side heated up with back-to- back 3-pointers from Payton Westerholm with just under four minutes left in the third period, cutting the deficit to 33-32. Chase Januik connected on a trey in the opening min- ute of the fourth, then hit another at the 3:25 mark to give the Gulls the lead for good, 42-40. While the 6A and 5A schools had trouble shoot- ing free throws throughout the tournament, the Gulls did not. Specifically, Ryan Hague. The junior wing — who scored 23 the previous night in the win over Bend — scored nine points in the fourth period in Saturday’s win, including 7-for-8 at the free throw line (5-for-6 in the final 36 seconds). “Ryan had a big week, and with Chase and Pay- ton in there, teams have to defend all three,” coach Westerholm said. “It’s kind of like ‘pick your poison.’ All three can score, and they do a nice job of sharing the ball.” The Seaside players “wanted to win this tourna- ment,” said the coach. “Our hope was to get through to the championship game and play Thurston. We figured they would be there.” And once there, “we wanted to hold them under 50 points,” he said of the Colts. “We wanted to score 70, but that didn’t quite work out.” The 45 points is the few- est the Colts have scored this season. While Hague, Januik and Westerholm get the points, Duncan Thompson had the tough job of defend- ing the bigger players, which included a 6-foot-8 post from South Eugene, and 6-7 Mason Miller from Thurston. “Duncan really battled hard inside for us in all three games,” coach Westerholm said, “and coach (Nick) Smith did a nice job of put- ting together a defensive game plan.” The board positions of Edward Hassan and Alan Evans will go before voters this spring. Two seats open for Sunset Rec board By R.J. MARX Seaside Signal Two seats on five-mem- ber Sunset Empire Park and Recreation District Board of Directors will come up for election this spring. “Over the past 12 to 18 months, the board has served in a continuous and steady fashion and that has resulted in stability in growth for the district,” the district’s executive direc- tor Skyler Archibald said at Tuesday’s meeting of the Sunset Park and Recreation District. He asked potential can- didates “to be proactive in their planning.” Board president Alan Evans owns property and a business in Seaside, but will be changing his local residence outside the city. He said he hopes to qual- ify for the May 21 election, but is uncertain about his eligibility. “I’m very inter- ested in staying involved,” Evans said. “I’d like to do a bit more research and find out before the next board meeting.” Board vice president Edward Hassan will not be pursuing another term as he is leaving the district, he said. Evans represents Dis- trict 5 and Hassan holds the District 4 seat. Candidates must declare by March 21, Archibald said. Michael Hinton, Jeremy Mills and Veronica Rus- sell fill the remaining three positions. Their terms end in spring 2021. Financing: City to borrow $5M for water tank Continued from Page A1 reservoir site to the city for $1. “The only thing we’re talking about with the city is the land where the tank will sit on,” Winstanley said in December. “We’re hoping the school district will virtually donate that land.” The city plans to borrow $5 million from the state’s Infrastructure Finance Authority, with the addi- tional $1 million tank cost to come from the city’s system development fund. Along with the tank, the city will seek easements across school district property in the Southeast Hills where infrastructure may be needed for future development. About $1 million of sewer upgrades and more than $1 million in road upgrades are also planned, bringing the city’s invest- ment to about $9 million. Once the reservoir is built, older pump stations currently serving the area — including nearby com- munities like Sunset Hills and Whispering Pines — will be decommissioned. Winstanley said he antic- ipates the tank will be in service by the school’s opening in 2020. For now, the next step is with the state’s infrastruc- ture loan agency. “We’ll sign loan documents, then the money’s made avail- able to us on a reimburse- ment basis.” powered by music fi rst