Otters could be returning to Oregon Coast Page 4
VOL. 45, ISSUE 22 FREE
CANNONBEACHGAZETTE.COM
November 12, 2021
Prepared Food Tax tally separated by two votes Challenge votes still being counted, official results announced Nov. 22 Kathleen Stinson
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For The Gazette
he Cannon Beach prepared food tax election results as of Friday, Nov. 5, morning when The Gazette spoke to the county election office stands at 369 “yes” votes to 367 “no” votes. Voters were asked whether they favored a 5 percent tax on prepared food sold in Cannon Beach. The Gazette interviewed Julia Myers of the Clatsop County Election Office Friday morning about the election process. Myers said the election is “very close.” The ballots have not been fully counted yet. Also, the results are not official until November 22. She said they send out challenged votes, which have not been counted. For example, some voters forget to sign their ballot. The office mails them a post card or letter asking them to sign the card and mail it back to the election office, thereby “curing” their ballot for counting, meaning making the ballot valid. Voters who are sent a challenge have until 5 pm November 16 to respond to the challenge, she said. The election office can declare an automatic recount if the margin is within one fifth of 1
percent of the total votes cast for that race. The election office cannot declare a recount until all ballots have been counted on November 22. After November 16, cured ballots can be counted and change the unofficial results that are posted on the county website, she said. The other special election in Clatsop County was the vote on the Kappa School District 4 bond to increase safety, security and construct updated classrooms and for repairs to existing facilities. That measure passed 684 to 319. All results are unofficial until the election is canvased and certified. Election certification • November 10: Information identifying voters with ballots challenged for missing or non-matching signatures are available for public inspection. • November 16: Last day to resolve ballot challenges.
Karen La Bonte
• November 22: Last day to certify election, prepare and deliver abstracts. • December 8: Last day to file November 2021 Regular Election recount demand. • December 13: Last day to file contest of 2021 Regular November Election if no recount.
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Long haul Conservancy establishes Rainforest Reserve after five-year campaign
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For the Gazette
ocated adjacent to Oswald West State Park and above Cape Falcon Marine Reserve, the Rainforest Reserve is part of an uninterrupted 32-square-mile conservation corridor that community backdrop. Conserving stretches from the summits of 3,000-foot peaks within the Oregon Coast Range to Short Sand Beach and the sandy seabed and rocky reefs of the (Top) The Rainforest Reserve will be part of a vast conservation nearshore ocean. This type of corridor—linking the nearshore protected land-to-sea corridor ocean of Cape Falcon Marine is unmatched in the state of Reserve and shoreline of Oswald Oregon. West State Park to the summits On Oct. 26, on the heels of and headwaters above. a five-year campaign spearPhoto courtesy of NCLC. headed by North Coast Land Conservancy, the Rainforest (Bottom) Conserving the forests Reserve was permanently where headwater streams arise conserved as a place brimfor Cannon Beach and Arch Cape will keep clean drinking water ming with critical habitat for flowing. Photo by Justin Bailie a wide array of wildlife and plant species, to help them adapt to a changing world, while also supporting the surthis land gives us all a chance to rounding communities. be in the right relationship with the “Bringing this land into conland and the people it sustains.” servation allows us to unlock its “The Rainforest Reserve is future,” NCLC Executive Director a remarkable accomplishment Katie Voelke said. “It is a living, that will significantly benefit our breathing, flowing and evolving region in many ways,” said U.S. place. Conservation allows it to Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (D-Ore.). live its most dynamic and abun“I applaud Katie Voelke, the dant life. This is a living museum, entire NCLC team, and the many a living laboratory, a globally rare supporters on the North Coast and precious place, and it’s our for this impressive achievement.
As we address the climate crisis, strategic, community-driven conservation efforts like this project can help mitigate the most serious risks to plants, fish and wildlife while preserving the ecosystems we cherish for future generations.” Onion and Angora peaks, the main fixtures of the Rainforest Reserve, were once rapidly chilled lava dikes and sills nestled 3,000 feet deep in the ocean. Over time, a submarine lava flow rose out
of the ocean to become isolated nearshore islands. As a result, an unusual mixture of plants and animals evolved on those islands. They continued to evolve in isolation as the islands rose to be the high peaks forming the backdrop of the northern Oregon Coast skyline. Some of the species found on these “The
n See RAINFOREST, Page 6
Seaside district joins ODT’s Safe Routes to School program Kathleen Stinson
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For The Gazette
or students who live within a one-mile radius of Pacific Ridge Elementary, Seaside Middle School and Seaside High School, the city, the school and the community are embarking on a plan to improve ways to walk and roll to school. As part of the Oregon Department of Transportation Safe Routes to School Program, the city wants to identify street improvements near Pacific Ridge Elementary, Seaside Middle School and Seaside High School. At 7:15 am on November 17, the city and school will host a “socially-distant community walk audit to observe student arrival and document the walking and biking conditions
around the school area,” as stated in a city news release. The purpose of the walk is to “identify barriers to safe walking and biking, as well as potential improvements.” Participants in the audit should meet at the bike rack at Pacific Ridge Elementary at the audit time. Face masks are required. Another way to participate is by going on the interactive online map at http://odotsrtsprojectid.com/. District Superintendent Susan Penrod told The Gazette on Tuesday parents and community members can come to the audit and observe the walking and biking patterns the students are taking. Students within a one-mile radius of the school cannot take the bus, Penrod said. The city first applied to the program because
City reimburses public works director after ethics investigation
the school is in a new location since it has recently been constructed, she said. “The city has already done certain things such as added extra crosswalks and done the obvious things,” she said. They added some turn-only lanes to improve the traffic flow. This safe routes program is valuable because it brings the parents, community, the city and the school together to collaborate, she said “As soon as you bring more people into it – more creative minds together – you work better together.” The audit participants will spend 30 to 40 minutes at the elementary school and then move on to the secondary school, she said. An estimated 25 to 18 percent of students
n See SCHOOL, Page 2
Hilary Dorsey Staff Writer
annon Beach City Council passed a resolution Tuesday, Nov. 9, to support Public Works Director Karen La Bonte and reimburse her for legal expenses for defending allegations related to her position with the city. The Oregon Ethics Commission approved a Stipulated Final Order on Oct. 22 to close out a series of ethic complaints filed against La Bonte. An investigation by the commission found La Bonte had violated conflict of interest laws after the City of Cannon Beach hired Cannon Beach Design Company, which La Bonte co-owns with her husband, for COVID-19 signs during the pandemic. According to the investigation, La Bonte had verbally disclosed knowledge that she and her husband owned and operated the design company to her supervisors and coworkers, and it common knowledge with the City of Cannon Beach that she co-owned the company. The conclusion in the order stated although La Bonte had verbally disclosed her relationship with the company, she did not disclose a conflict of interest in writing prior to participating in ordering from the company. La Bonte indicated that she wished to settle the matter by agreement to terms and conditions without completing the investigative process. Under the settlement, La Bonte will pay a fine of $1,000. “The city under Bruce St. Denis and Karen La Bonte directed payments 111 times for purchases of goods and services to her and her husband’s company,” said Rusty Morris, who filed the complaints against La Bonte. “None of these purchases were open to competitive bidding. No public official should ever financially benefit from his or her position. Karen La Bonte pled guilty to 13 ethics violations. She abused the trust of the community. I call for her immediate resignation. Any attempt by the city to pay $14,000 in legal fees on behalf of Karen La Bonte will be met by stiff local opposition.” In a statement provided to the Gazette, La Bonte said, “What began as a personal issue escalated into an effort by one individual to use my position as a public servant as a tool to harass me. I enjoyed a long successful corporate career, as well as being a small business owner and winemaker before coming to Cannon Beach to live full time. When retirement did not satisfy my energy for life, I came to work for the city. Never in my wildest imagination would I have thought that I would experience such vengeful behavior from a non-Cannon Beach resident.” “However, despite this nightmare, it has not changed my love for my job, or the community in which I live,” La Bonte added. “Like anything else in life right now, we find a way to weather these storms of hate.” Cannon Beach City Council had planned to consider at their Nov. 2 council meeting, a resolution for the purpose of supporting La Bonte and reimbursing legal expenses. The reso-
n See LA BONTE, Page 4