OUR 115th Year
July 15, 2022
SEASIDESIGNAL.COM
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Wright
enters race
for Seaside
mayor
By R.J. MARX
Seaside Signal
Steve Wright is the first candidate in the
November election to file in Seaside, sub-
mitting signatures for a mayoral run. Wright,
the City Council president, hopes to replace
Jay Barber, who is retiring.
“I’ve never been a mayor before,” Wright
said. “Before I came to
Seaside, I had never been a
city councilor.”
Wright, 68, grew up
in Portland. He is married
with three children.
He served as chief
financial officer of an inter-
national grain company,
Steve Wright
with business, computer
and human resources experience. “I dealt a
lot with government, and I never thought I
would get involved with government.”
He and his wife, Patty, bought their house
in Seaside in 2012 and moved to the city in
2014 after Wright’s retirement.
“I have a real passion for Seaside,” he
said. “I wish I could have lived here my
whole life. I’m at heart, I think, a small-town
guy.”
Wright served on the city’s budget com-
mittee and Planning Commission before
appointment to Barber’s council seat after the
death of former mayor Don Larson in 2016.
Wright was unopposed for election in 2018.
R.J. Marx
Drawing the attention of visitors, a sphere composed of hard driftwood at the Seaside Civic and Convention Center by artist
Joshua Blewett.
Art unveiled at the convention center
See Wright, Page A6
By R.J. MARX
Seaside Signal
W
State House
hopeful Gray
canvasses
in Seaside
By R.J. MARX
Seaside Signal
Rick Gray came to Seaside this month
to collect signatures for a run at the vacant
state House District 32 seat. The Cannon
Beach resident, a nonaffiliated candidate,
will join the field of Logan Laity, a Dem-
ocrat, and Cyrus Javadi,
a Republican, who won
their May primaries.
On
Tuesday,
he
received word he has
enough verified signa-
tures to appear on the
ballot.
Rick Gray
“In all due modesty,
I’m pretty well-qualified,
both by education and experience,” Gray
said. “But running without party backing
imposes some challenges. You might say
I’ve been building this airplane while I fly
it.”
hen the Seaside Civic and
Convention Center completed
its remodel in 2019, one aspect
remained to be completed: artwork.
Three years and a pandemic later, the
convention center debuted its collec-
tion at an open house on July 8 featur-
ing Northwest-themed art in mediums
including tapestry, quilts, oil paintings,
prints, glass, jewelry and metal.
Commissioned pieces are placed
on the exterior of the building, Russ
Vandenberg, the convention center’s
general manager, said. “I really hope
you came in with high expectations,
because you’re going to be really
thrilled to get what you’re going to see
inside the building.”
Curator Drea Frost, a Cannon
Beach resident, worked with a team of
judges to distribute the $150,000 bud-
geted for the convention center. For-
ty-five pieces by 30 artists span work
from the past 10 years, including work
by Royal Nebeker, the North Coast-
based painter who died in 2014.
“I felt it was important to include
him because he was so prolific in this
area,” Frost said.
Dave Schaerer lives in Portland and
has a house in Rockaway Beach. He’s
been chronicling the coast in photo-
graphs for 55 years, including collec-
tions of razor clamming, sea gulls and
what he calls “raindance.” Frost saw
his work on his website and he has
three pieces in the show.
R.J. Marx
Visitors admire “Deciduous of Drunken Friends,” by Jeremy Furnish.
See Center, Page A5
Photographer Dave Schaerer in front of his work at the convention center.
See Gray, Page A5
Smith takes Gearhart oath of
office; Gould appointed to council
By R.J. MARX
Seaside Signal
Kerry Smith took the oath of office
as mayor on July 6 and Dana Gould
was selected to fill his Position 1 seat.
Smith fills the role vacated by Paulina
Cockrum, who resigned June 2, citing
personal reasons.
“I never imagined myself to be
in the position of mayor of our city,”
Smith said after being sworn in. “My
original intent in running for city coun-
cilor was to help make a positive differ-
ence. This is still my main goal.”
Vacant seats are filled by appoint-
ment by a majority vote of the remain-
ing members of the council. The
appointee’s term of office begins
immediately on appointment and con-
tinues through the unexpired term of
their predecessor. The Position 1 term
expires this year.
City Councilor Reita Fackerell was
appointed to fill Smith’s former role as
council president.
Smith, 68, is a property owner and
manager.
He was elected to the council in
2014 and reelected in 2018.
“We have a number of challeng-
ing tasks ahead for us, and we all need
to work together to make Gearhart a
healthy environment for us all,” Smith
GREATER SECURITY
Safety remained at top of mind at
the July City Council meeting. Coun-
cilors approved replacing three city
hall doors — front, side and to the
police station — for greater security,
City Administrator Chad Sweet said.
“These doors need to be replaced re-
gardless of the situation to be more
appropriate for exit doors,” he said.
The council budgeted up to $13,000
for the replacement.
said. “To begin with, I would like to
thank the many people here who came
to me expressing interest in serving.
It was a difficult decision to choose
among these qualified candidates. Nev-
ertheless, I thank you and I will keep
See Gearhart, Page A5
Historic mural reaches
fundraising goal
‘A great story of our history’
By R.J. MARX
Seaside Signal
Donations from the city,
the Oregon Coast Visitors
Association and benefac-
tors pushed fundraising for
a cultural history mural on
Broadway in Seaside over
its goal of $20,000.
Funds were raised to
repair the 60-foot mural
mounted on the Ace Hard-
ware building damaged in
November.
The mural, by historical
artist and muralist Roger
Cooke, brings the culture
and heritage of the Clat-
sop and Nehalem people to
downtown Seaside.
Cooke, a Sandy resi-
dent who died in 2012, is
best known for his histor-
ical depictions of North-
west tribes. On the left of
the mural are elders of the
tribe. Among vignettes are
a man carving a canoe and
children playing on the
beach.
See Mural, Page A6