PRESORTED STANDARD
U.S. Postage Paid
Vernonia, OR 97064
Permit No. 37
Vol. 25, No. 6
THE
INDEPENDENT
The Voice of the Upper Nehalem River Valley for Over 25 years
March 18, 2010
White named to head county
Emergency Management
Vernonia school marching band was a welcome addition to the St. Patrick’s Day Parade.
Scope of tunnel repair is decided Schorzman fourth
The Oregon Department of decided to design a specific in Hearst college
Transportation (ODOT) an- public awareness campaign, in-
nounced March 16 that they corporating the tourism indus- journalism awards
have decided to remove the
vertical clearance component
from the needed repairs to the
Dennis L. Edwards Tunnel on
Hwy 26.
The agency had not planned
to make a decision on the proj-
ect until mid-April. However, af-
ter a strong, consistent outpour-
ing of public input at a series of
public meetings, ODOT recog-
nized concerns about the fragile
economic conditions along the
coast, and potential impacts to
tourism-dependent communities
from a public perception of a
lengthy road closure.
“While we must ensure that
the structure is safe and benefi-
cial for all users,” Region 1 Man-
ager Jason Tell said, “we also
understand and appreciate the
concerns of all who have con-
tributed to this conversation.
This decision allows us to move
forward with the relining work,
which must take place soon.”
Construction needed for the
reline is expected to begin at
the end of this year. ODOT has
FREE
try, to remind the public that the
coast is open for business.
“We thank the public for the
time and effort to share its
views, comments, feedback
and suggestions in helping
ODOT make this decision,” Tell
concluded.
For more information on the
project, go to www.Dennised
wardstunnel.org and www.Get
ToTheCoast.org.
Most state offices
will close on Friday
Oregon’s state government
sent out this reminder that due
to budget reductions, most state
agencies will be closed on Fri-
day, March 19, for an unpaid fur-
lough day. This closure day will
save the state about $2 million.
The closure does not affect
the state court system, univer-
sities, corrections, or public
safety agencies.
A complete list of open and
closed agencies is available
online, at Oregon.gov.
Ben Schorzman of Vernonia
was recently named as the
fourth place winner in college
sports writing in the 50th annu-
al William Randolph Hearst
Foundation Journalism Awards
Program. Fifty-six universities
participated in the sports writing
competition.
Schorzman, who attends the
University of Oregon and is
sports editor for the school pa-
per, was named fourth out of 97
entries in the sports writing divi-
sion. He will receive a $750
scholarship, and the university
received a matching grant for
the journalism department.
Schorzman started his sports
reporting career with The Inde-
pendent while attending Ver-
nonia High School.
The first place winner was An-
drew Astleford from the Universi-
ty of Missouri, who received a
$2,000 scholarship. Another Uni-
versity of Oregon sports reporter,
Patrick Malee, won fifth place
and a $600 scholarship.
The Columbia County Board
of Commissioners has appoint-
ed Derek White to the position
of Emergency Management Di-
rector for the Columbia Coun-
ty’s Emergency Management
Department.
White began working in the
Emergency Management De-
partment as a temporary exer-
cise and training grant employ-
ee in October 2008, and was
then hired as Emergency Man-
agement Coordinator in De-
cember of 2008. While at Co-
lumbia County, White has been
involved in a number of proj-
ects, from holding training exer-
cises around the county to
reaching out to citizens and
businesses through the depart-
ment’s blog, Facebook and
Twitter accounts.
Derek has also been in-
volved in a number of major
emergencies, including three
presidentially-declared disas-
ters in the course of his current
and previous emergency man-
agement career.
White’s experience includes
working as emergency man-
agement director for Carroll
County, Iowa, and prior to that,
in state park law enforcement
and hospital public safety, also
in Iowa. He has a Bachelor’s
degree in criminal justice/politi-
cal science from Buena Vista
University and a Master of Pub-
lic Administration (MPA) from
Iowa State University. He and
his wife, Samantha, live in St.
Helens.
Town Hall tonight for update on schools
Vernonia Schools will hold a Town Hall tonight, March 18, at
7:00 p.m. to discuss the latest on the new schools project, in-
cluding the newest cost estimates.
The Town Hall will be held in the Vernonia Middle School
cafeteria (the green building).
Be sure Census representative is
an actual government employee
Better Business Bureau
warns that law enforcement in
several states has issued warn-
ings that scammers are posing
as Census Bureau employees
and knocking on doors asking
for donations and Social Secu-
rity numbers.
“Scam artists know the pub-
lic needs to share information
for the 2010 Census and will try
to take advantage of the situa-
tion,” said Robert W.G. Andrew,
CEO of BBB serving Alaska,
Oregon and Western Washing-
ton. “Education about the Cen-
sus process can help protect
your identity and finances.”
Participating in the 2010
Census is required by law, but
to learn how to identify legiti-
mate Census workers and
avoid con artists, BBB offers
the following tips:
Avoid e-mail scams. Census
workers may contact individu-
als by telephone, mail or in per-
son at a home. However, they
will not solicit personal informa-
tion by e-mail. Never click links
or open attachments in an e-
mail supposedly from the U.S.
Census Bureau. Forward fraud-
ulent messages to the Census
Bureau at itso.fraud.reporting
@census.gov.
Know what questions to ex-
pect. The U.S. Census Bureau
will ask questions concerning
household residents including
name, date of birth, gender,
race, phone number, house-
hold relationship, and owner or
See Census on page 5