c e l n e o b i r t a a t n e s r u O OUR 112th Year July 5, 2019 SEASIDESIGNAL SEASIDESIGNAL.COM $1.00 District addresses disaster readiness Miss Portland Shivali Kadam rides in the Seaside parade Saturday. Later she was crowned Miss Oregon. R.J. Marx A STATE CROWN Miss Oregon moves to Level 2.0 By KATHERINE LACAZE For Seaside Signal A Cascadia Subduction Zone event would impact every family in the community. To prepare, the Seaside School District is working alongside Clatsop County and other entities to develop an updated natural disas- ters plan that bolsters their ability to apply for grant funding and enhance readiness. “Not only is it a good idea to have a plan — so you can respond — but you’re also eligible for grants through FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) to do mit- igation work so you can hopefully prevent some damage from happening,” Superinten- dent Sheila Roley said during the board of directors meeting, Thursday, June 18. The county’s existing plan expires July 23, 2020, and the Department of Land Con- servation and Development has received a pre-disaster mitigation grant to assist juris- dictions with updating the plan. FEMA is shifting focus and funds to incorporate more disaster prevention, as opposed to just response, Roley said. According to the old plan, all the indi- vidual entities — including the school dis- trict — were under the county’s umbrella. The federal recommendation is now for the See School District, Page A7 Seaside approves $67M city budget Katherine Lacaze Miss Oregon 2018 Taylor Ballard passes her crown to Shivali Kadam, Miss Portland, at the 2019 Miss Oregon Scholarship Program’s state competition, which concluded with the crowning Saturday night in Seaside. By KATHERINE LACAZE For Seaside Signal O regon has a new represen- tative: a 25-year-old engi- neer, armed with a passion to demonstrate Miss America Organization and its affi l- iated state and local programs can be an outlet and platform for women with diverse interests. “I’ve been working for this goal for four years, and to fi nally have it come to fruition and to be able to set into action all the plans I’ve been dreaming of for years is so exciting,” said Miss Portland Shivali Kadam, who was crowned Miss Oregon on Saturday night. Kadam and 24 other Miss Oregon candidates competed in preliminary competitions Wednesday through Fri- day before the fi nal contest and crown- ing at the Seaside Civic and Conven- tion Center. Setting, achieving goals For the talent portion of the compe- tition, Kadam sang a rendition of the See Miss Oregon, Page A7 By R.J. MARX Seaside Signal The city of Seaside took care of busi- ness, as councilors approved the 2019-20 city budget. The budget, approved June 24, reaches almost $67 million. Of more than $51 million in appropria- tions, public safety, including police and fi re departments, comprises almost $6 million; community development, which includes building and planning, is budgeted at $1.55 million. Public works, which includes engineer- ing, public works and city parks, is budgeted at a total of about $1.56 million. The general fund, which comprises the business offi ce, library, and community center among other appropriations, totaled $6.26 million. See City budget, Page A7 AUTHOR KARL MARLANTES A SEASIDER RETURNS, WITH A NEW NOVEL By JORDAN BARBOSA For Seaside Signal ‘WE HAVE TO GET OVER DEMONIZING, BECAUSE WE WON’T GET ANYWHERE WITH THAT.’ —Karl Marlantes Karl Marlantes is the author of the bestselling books “Mat- terhorn: A Novel of the Vietnam War” and “What It Is Like To Go To War.” These books come from his intensely personal experi- ences from his time serving in the Marines during Vietnam. He also was born and grew up in Seaside. His most recent novel “Deep River” continues mining his per- sonal history, but in a different way. It’s a family epic centering on Scandi- navian immigrants in the late 19th century as they struggle to adapt to life in a small logging town just off the banks of the Columbia River. Q: You seem to have a lot of per- sonal connection to your writing. After writing about your experi- ences in Vietnam, what inspired you to write about the area where you grew up? Marlantes: Well, there is a whole series of motives. First of all, I just love the area I grew up in and there’s a sense that if you love something you want to share it. I grew up in Seaside when it was logging town. It’s a very different sort of culture today. See Marlantes, Page A10 Devon Marlantes