OUR 115th Year
February 11, 2022 $1.00
SEASIDESIGNAL.COM
GEARHART
‘CATS, KOALAS AND KANGAROOS’
Firehouse
bond vote
ahead
Cat show returns to Seaside
By R.J. MARX
Seaside Signal
By R.J. MARX
Seaside Signal
The Gearhart City Council voted to
put a $14.5 million fi re and police sta-
tion bond on the ballot for May 17. The
vote will come after a similar measure
was postponed by a ballot challenge
last September.
Resolution 967, if approved by vot-
ers, would build on 2 acres off High-
lands Lane along U.S. Highway 101.
At an elevation of 65 feet, consultants
say the site would not be inundated
in most tsunami scenarios. The build-
ing would include storage, a day room,
kitchen, restrooms, showers and an
offi ce for the police department.
“We took a look at functions such as
training, kitchen, offi ce space, and that
sort of thing,” City Administrator Chad
Sweet said at last Wednesday’s council
meeting. “We considered them individ-
ually as far as what our needs are. From
there we wanted to make sure that we
had something we could operate now
and into the future.”
If approved by voters, the estimated
tax rate increase will be approximately
$121 per year for each $100,000 of
assessed value of property to be paid
over a maximum 20 years. On a home
Photos by R.J. Marx
Above, Judge Marilee Griswold puts a contestant through its paces Below left, Deana Zittel of Seattle
holds “Miss Fortune,” a Cornish rex. Below right is Abyssinian cat named “Wild Wapta” with Sheryl
Landstrom of North Bend, Washington.
By 1 p.m. Saturday, more
than 200 people had come
through the Seaside Civic and
Convention Center.
The draw was the Cat Fan-
ciers’ Association Cat Show,
an awards show featuring
130 exotic and not-so-exotic
felines, including the “house-
hold pet class.”
Sheryl Landstrom of North
Bend, Washington, presented
Wild Wapta, a rare Abyssinian
ruddy. The rust-colored four-
month-old kitten scored in her
fi rst show, winning second
place out of all the Abyssini-
ans. Landstrom said. He was
“extremely playful,” and was
learning to pose for judges,
who present fi nal awards
for the top cats in the kitten,
championship, premiership
and household pet classes.
Along with the show, Land-
strom enjoyed the opportunity
to get out of the house and take
a trip down the coast. “I love
Seaside,” she said.
Cat Fancier Stephen Heidt,
who checked in visitors at the
entrance, said the last show
was in early 2020. Last year’s
show was canceled due to the
pandemic.
See Bond vote, Page A6
See Cats, Page A6
GEARHART
Jesse steps
down from
City Council
Tomlinson takes seat
for Position 4
‘Trantler’ seeks a new home after sale
Sculpture removed
from Sweet Shop
patio for repairs
By R.J. MARX
Seaside Signal
By R.J. MARX
Seaside Signal
Dan Jesse stepped down from the
Position 4 seat on Gearhart’s City
Council.
“I received a phone call from Dan
Jesse on Jan. 12,” Mayor Paulina Cock-
rum said. “Over the phone we discussed
his resignation from the City Council.
He successfully sold his
home and is moving out
of the area.”
Jesse is president of
Daniel Jesse Construc-
tion Inc. and trained as
a commercial photog-
Jesse
rapher. He served on
the Planning Commis-
sion before being elected to the council
in 2016.
The council selected Austin Tomlin-
son, a planning commissioner, to fi ll the
term.
“Austin’s been on the Planning Com-
mission, was an active member of the
the parks master plan development, and
I thought he did a great job,” Cockrum
said.
A Seaside High School graduate,
Tomlinson earned a bachelor’s degree
in wildland resources with emphasis in
soils and watershed management from
Humboldt State University. He served
on the Planning Commission for four
years. Tomlinson is employed by Colum-
bia Land Trust as a natural area manager,
overseeing and managing the land trust’s
lands within the coast and estuary region
for both Oregon and Washington.
“Much of my time is focused on
See Gearhart council, Page A6
In June 2020, Gearhart wel-
comed its fi rst piece of public art,
“Trantler,” by Keri Rosebraugh.
The 12-foot-high blended
form of an elk antler and tree was
positioned and installed in the
garden area of the Sweet Shop.
The sculpture was removed for
scheduled repairs. The new own-
ers of the Sweet Shop, Andre
Allen Anjos and Ireland Bald-
win, hope that it will remain in
Gearhart.
“We’ve been working with
OCVA (Oregon Coast Visitors
Association) and the artist to
move Trantler to a public loca-
tion within Gearhart,” Anjos said
Tuesday.
Two years ago, owner Traci
Williams and Gearhart artist Har-
old Gable teamed to approach
Rosebraugh with the idea of
bringing public art to Williams’
patio space. They applied for and
won funds from the Oregon Cul-
tural Trust, Travel Oregon and
Travel Portland to promote pub-
lic art.
The name “Trantler” came
from a tree and an antler put
Kathleen Piner Zimmerman
See Trantler, Page A6
Trantler is removed from the former Sweet Shop. Its next destination
is yet to be decided.
Sgt. Jason Goodding is remembered in Seaside
By R.J. MARX
Seaside Signal
In February 2016, Jason
Goodding, 39, was patrolling in
downtown Seaside on the night
of Feb. 5, 2016, when he was
slain while attempting to serve a
warrant on a known felon.
Every year on Feb. 5 since,
the Seaside Police Department
has kept Goodding’s mem-
ory alive. The
annual
vigil
brings members
of the commu-
nity together for
refl ection at the
police station,
Jason
this year held
Goodding
both
virtually
and in-person.
Many knew Goodding in dif-
ferent ways, Seaside Lt. Guy
Knight said Saturday, at the
sixth annual memorial of Good-
ding’s death. Some know him as
“Jason from Sherwood,” Knight
said. He was known as “Coach
Goodding” by many kids for his
involvement in youth sports. For
the offi cers he led and mentored
throughout his career, he was
Sgt. Goodding.
“My predecessor lieutenant
made his mission every year
to fi nd something new to focus
on to make our lives better and
the lives of our community bet-
ter,” Knight said. “And that
one thing was our goal for the
whole year. So every year, he
tried to fi nd something new and
try to build on what we already
started.”
Knight stressed Goodding’s
communications skills, enabling
the Seaside Police Department
and neighboring agencies to
improve relationships.
“I remember a time in Sea-
side Police Department’s history
where relationships with other
agencies were lacking,” Knight
said. “Like when you call some-
one an acquaintance instead of a
friend. Today, I believe the Sea-
side police department can call
the agencies and our commu-
Seaside Signal
Lt. Guy Knight leads a memorial
for Jason Goodding.
nities and they would call us
‘friends.’”
Goodding was instrumental
in building those relationships,
Knight said. “How could you
not just light up when he saw
that big smile? His personal-
ity made you want to be around
him. The genuine care he had
when talking with you, listening
to your stories and asking about
how you and your family were
doing.”
The memorial came a week
after the shooting death of Van-
couver police offi cer Donald
Sohota, the fi rst line-of-duty
death for the Vancouver Police
Department since its inception.
“Hold his family in your
thoughts as they navigate his
loss last weekend,” Knight said.
Bruce Holt, a Seaside police
lieutenant who retired in 2020
from the department after 37
years, asked for a moment to
pause, refl ect and remember the
diff erence that responders can
make one call at a time.
“It’s not our ambition to
become heroes,” Holt said. “But
it’s a job and we want to make a
diff erence.”
Feb 19th & 20th
Saturday: 9 am- 3 pm ◆ Sunday: 10 am- 3 pm
Seaside Convention Center
You Never Know What You’ll Find At
A Collectors West Gun & Knife Show!
415 1st Avenue, Seaside
collectorswest.com
$
ADM
8
ISSIO
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