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Fall Home Improvem dlightHerald.com

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HOLIDAY EDITION 2023 FAMILY OWNED BUSINESSES SHOPPING LOCAL & EVENTS INSIDE

23 Holiday Edition 20

d Businesses Family Owne l & Events Shopping Loca

Inside: Jetty Store, pg18-19

• Barview op, pg16 • Beach Bakesh Print & Ship, pg3 • Beach Beagle pg8 • Brittney Bakes, • Cannon Beach rce, pg9 Chamber of Comme Kitchen, pg12-13 • Country Squire pg6 Dance Center, • Oregon Coast Living Senior e Prestig • Five Rivers, pg7 pg10 Lilies, • Sesame + • The Fern, pg15

2023 Celebrate ays the Holid t Highlights Special Even

Weekend Thanksgiving through Weekend New Year’s Day Pages 4-5

Citizen North Coast

d Headlight Heral

North Coast

Citizen Serving North Tillamook County since 1996

NORTHCOASTCITIZEN.COM

NOVEMBER 30, 2023

$1.50 VOLUME 30, NO. 24

Manzanita council updated on city hall work WILL CHAPPELL Citizen Editor

anzanita City Manager Leila Aman and the project team working on a new city hall project presented a detailed update on recent work to the city council at a meeting on November 15. After the council approved moving into the second stage of the project in June, much of the work completed in the last five months took place behind the scenes but the project is now nearing the end of the design phase. There has been a slight increase in the projected budget since the last update in June, but a financing source has been secured and the project is set to move into construction next year. Design The meeting started with Aman and Chris Keane, from Bearing Architecture, telling the council about progress made on the design of the project. In February, after hazardous material studies revealed a high cost of remediating asbestos and

mold concerns in the Quonset hut and disused school building at Underhill Plaza, the council voted to demolish the buildings in favor of new construction. In June, they approved a scheme for the design that would site the combined city hall and police station in one corner of the site, at the corner of Classic and Manzanita Avenues. Since then, the team was forced to rethink placing the police station and city hall facilities in the same building after a geotechnical report showed that it would greatly increase the cost of foundation construction. The police station is being designed to serve as the emergency operations center for the city and must be built to a risk category IV specification. That means the structure must be capable of withstanding a maximum Cascadia subduction zone earthquake. Keane said that more detailed geotechnical reports completed since June showed that achieving that resiliency would require boring foundation pilings 60 feet through sand and loose dirt into bedrock.

The cost of doing so for the combined building would be prohibitive with the project’s budget, as would designing a two-foundation schematic for one building, so the team recommended separating the functions between two buildings. Councilors said that they appreciated the reasons for the separation and gave a consensus on moving forward with the plan. The police station will be slightly to the north of the city hall building with a covered pergola connecting the two. The plan still shows the building with a cedar exterior to match with community feedback indicating that it would fit better with the town’s aesthetic, though the team found that vertical siding was a significantly cheaper alternative to the initially envisioned shingles. Councilors asked about the lack of feedback on recent project developments and Aman said that the team had relied on the extensive feedback gathered at town halls and online in 2022 to inform their decisions. She also said that once the land use approval process has been completed, hopefully

Olson talks commissionership, life, county fairs

WILL CHAPPELL Citizen Editor

oug Olson was selected in October by Tillamook County Commissioners Mary Faith Bell and Erin Skaar to complete the final year of Commissioner David Yamamoto’s term following his retirement at the end of this year. Olson recently sat down with the Headlight Herald to discuss his background, philosophy as an appointed commissioner and plans for after his tenure, among other subjects. Olson said that he will not bring an agenda to the office and instead rely on his judgment to address issues that come up. “I don’t have an agenda that says I’m going to introduce this or I want to do that, I want to change this or modify that, I don’t have that,” Olson said. “I will deal with whatever comes along and use my background and experience to say, ‘well, this sounds great to me,’ or, ‘have you thought about this?’ or, ‘this doesn’t make sense to

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me.’” Olson brings a breadth of experience to the position after a long life working in both the private and public sector, owning small businesses and volunteering and winning election to the boards of numerous charitable and civic organizations across the county. Olson was born in Hood River, and experienced a childhood beset by difficulties, with his father dying when Olson was four and his mother passing when he was 11. His grandparents took him in for several years before their own infirmity forced them into an assisted living when he was a sophomore in high school. Three different families in the Mormon community took him in for a year apiece during his final high school years. “That’s probably why I’m so darned independent, I’ve quite literally been on my own for a very long time,” Olson said. After graduating high school, Henson worked his way through college, starting at Pacific University in Forest Grove, before finishing his studies at Portland State University, graduating with a business degree and a minor in journalism in 1970. Olson started his professional career working for Montgomery Ward in their catalogue house in Portland, managing a department that handled catalogue distribution for, among other things, women’s undergarments. A promotion took Olson and his family to Chicago for several years, but the Pacific Northwesterner found that the cold winters, snow and long commutes didn’t agree with him and started looking to return to the region.

A job with May Department Stores in downtown Portland fit the bill, but the 70-hour work weeks also began to wear thin for Olson, whose three young kids were starting to play sports, and he again looked for a new job. The listing for the newly created contracting officer position with the Evergreen School District in Vancouver, Washington, caught Olson’s eye and he applied and worked for the district for several years. While in that position, Olson had his first exposure to public servants who were enthusiastic about their jobs and found purpose in them. “I found that I really enjoyed it because the people there, the teachers and administrators, had a different outlook on life,” Olson said. “It wasn’t all about the bottom line and the dollar, although you’re mindful of your budgets but they wanted to educate the kids and it was a calling.” Olson gained experience working with state legislators and other government entities and contractors in the role with Evergreen School District and in 1984 moved on to become the contracting officer for Washington County. There, he helped to write contracting rules for the county, finance bonds for and build a new county headquarters in downtown Hillsboro and began forming relationships with legislators in Salem. In 1992, Olson’s second wife, Patty, received an early retirement buy out from the United States Postal Service. The couple decided to take advantage of the stability provided by her pension to sell several investment properties they owned and make a major lifestyle change by becoming ownerSEE OLSON PAGE A3

The latest design for the new city hall and police station project, showing two separate buildings at Underhill Plaza. in December, the team plans to do more engagement to gather citizens’ feedback on the designs. Budget Aman then transitioned into a discussion of updated budget projections for the project. Since June, the total projected budget of the project has increased from

$5.79 to $6 million dollars. The increase in budget came primarily from a $500,000 increase in the project’s hard costs. The bulk of that increase came from the recent, planned transfer of $319,000 from the city’s budget to the project budget to pay for impending remediation and demolition work on the existing buildings. Consequently, those funds

were removed from the city’s projected contributions on the balance sheet to the hard costs line item. Aman told the council that the remediation work is expected to begin sometime in the weeks after Thanksgiving. The geotechnical reports’ results and upward revisions to estimates of constructing the police station’s foundation were the other SEE CITY HALL WORK PAGE A6

USACE preparing for south jetty repair

The view of the south jetty from the grassy area where stones will be weighed and stationed before their final transport and installation on the jetty. WILL CHAPPELL Citizen Editor

embers of the United States Army Corps of Engineers are preparing to offer technical assistance during the twoyear, $52.7-million repair of Tillamook Bay’s south jetty by Trade West Construction Company. Project Manager Matt Craig and Project Engineer Colter Bennett recently gave the Headlight Herald an exclusive tour of the project site and discussed the project and its impacts on recreation at Bayocean Peninsula Park. Craig and Bennett said that the purpose of the repair project is to reinforce the root section of the jetty near the shore and repair around 490 feet at the jetty’s end, which will include the addition of a new 150-foot head. They said that the project’s goal is to restore the jetty’s functionality and that it will not have a significant impact on the navigability of the bar, stressing that those improvements could only be accomplished by dredging.

The repair project is being funded through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act that was passed with support from Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley and Representative Kurt Schraeder in 2022. The total award for the project was for $62 million, with around $10 million allocated for design and oversight costs by the corps and the remaining $52.7 million going towards the construction contract with Trade West Construction Company. Preparatory work at the site is set to begin in the coming months to lay the groundwork for major work to begin once adverse weather passes in the spring. Stones weighing up to 40 tons and seven to eight feet in diameter will be transported to Kincheloe Point on barges, where they will be offloaded at a temporary staging area. From there, they will be loaded into large transport trucks and transported around a mile to a second staging area at the beach near the root of the jetty.

At that staging area, they will be weighed to determine their value for reimbursement to the supplier before being taken for placement on the jetty. The repairs near the root will utilize relatively smaller stones, while the largest will be used further out. Repairs to the trunk of the jetty will add around 340 feet of stone and a bull-nose shaped head at the end. The head will be significantly taller than the rest of the jetty at 40 feet as compared to 18 and help to prevent erosion pulling the jetty back. Once the project is complete, the jetty will be around 7900 feet in length, although there will still be a section of around 500-feet submerged after engineers determined the shorter length was sufficient to achieve the jetty’s purpose. Bennett said that the repair is expected to move the location of the large sand bar that forms at the mouth of the bay to the new endpoint of the jetty, but that the repair SEE SOUTH JETTY PAGE A2

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SOUTH JETTY CONTINUED FROM PAGE A1

The grassy area at Kincheloe Point where stones arriving on barges will be stored before their transportation to the beach on a temporary, onemile road. Offload at the beach is impracticable due to the surf, requiring the utilization of the second staging area.

will not have an impact on its size or the shoal it creates. He said that dredging work would be the only way to decrease the size of the bar and shoal. Bennett, Craig and John Morgan, a public affairs specialist, stressed that the corps could not undertake dredging work at Tillamook Bar with current conditions

and restrictions. The bar at Tillamook Bay is just over 18 feet beneath the surface, failing to meet the corps’ 18-foot-or-less requirement for dredging projects. Tillamook Bay’s designation as self-scouring also prevents the corps from doing maintenance work to the channel between the jetties that continues to the

Port of Garibaldi. Enabling dredging work would require legislative action to either fund a project or expand the corps’ dredging mandate. Work will begin with improvements to Bayocean Dike Road past the parking lot for Bayocean Peninsula Park and access is expected to be closed completely to the public for two to three

A stone left as a memorial during the initial construction of the south jetty in the 1960s. Bennett estimated the stone to weight around 22 tons.

days during that work. After that, construction of a new road from Kincheloe Point to the jetty’s confluence with the ocean, which will require crossing a small inlet, will be undertaken. Once repairs to Bayocean Dike Road are completed Craig said that the team plans to leave it open to public access up to a point near

Kincheloe Point, which will be clearly marked. Between 10 and 15 cars are expected to access the site via Bayocean Dike Road daily during the project. Restrictions to access began on November 27 and members of the public interested in receiving updates on work commencement, road

closures and other project progress should email cenwp-construction@usace. army.mil. The project is scheduled to be completed by October 2025, despite a delay due to a legal challenge to the contract award by a competing bidder preventing planned work this summer.

Neah-Kah-Nie Robotics competes in second meet KATHRYN HARMON Library Media Specialist and Robotics Coach at Neah-Kah-Nie Middle and High Schools

KN Robotics attended their second meet of the season at Hillsboro High School on Saturday, November 9th. Many thanks

to Hill High and ReVamped Robotics for hosting and letting NKN make a quick exit at the end of the competition so we could get home before it got too dark. The Menacing Muffin Dragons continue to lead the NKN teams with a 4th place finish this time around. Their

ability to quickly pick up pixels and deliver them, and skillful driving by Josiah and Jay resulted in high scores in nearly every round. Round 8 turned out to be a particularly strong round - MMD was paired with the Argonauts and together they were able to get two mosaics on the board for the win.

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It is a delight when NKN teams get to be in the same alliance and work together. NKN might be three teams, but it is one program, and it is important that teams work together and support each other, so, every practice ends with a loud cheer of “NKN ROBOTICS!” This year teams talked

out some of the strategies they wanted to implement including negotiating which chassis they wanted to use. Over the first 6 weeks - the robots kept shrinking as builders refined what they needed to be effective. NKN continues to have some of the smaller robots in the field. In this round

that meant that the two NKN robots could place pixels on the backdrop side by side, which was a real advantage. The World’s smalllest Team also had a standout day finishing in 7th place out of 18 teams. They finally folded a paper airplane drone that is heavy enough at the nose that to fly high into the air, and then dive directly down into the landing zone. Their first round saw them launch perfectly into the end zone - just one foot to the right of the scoring area - they went back and made some changes to their launcher and in the second round the drone launch went perfectly. Dahlia and Alex were a great drive team - and they worked together so well all day. This team had 6 rounds at competition instead of the normal 5, but they took it in stride and had a very successful day. The Argonauts rallied after a difficult first round. Karsten, brave backup driver for the day, hit the stage door. This is a normal part of moving around the Centerstage field. However when your power button is at the exact height as the stage door bar, you have a problem. The power switch was flipped 7 seconds into teleop, cutting power to the robot for the remainder of the round. Unfortunately, the Argonaut’sop alliance partners were also incapacitated and the alliance to ended the round with a score aft on of only 7 points. Directly after the match, sou the team immediately moved jum pu their power switch to a Pa safer location and worked fish their way back to tenth place by the end of the day. I was so proud of this ow team - they really exhibited op gracious professionalism and bef didn’t get stuck in a negative can par mindset. They just got to the work. in Recently we have been very lucky to get financial kn old support from both the Eugene Schmuck Foundation on and the Tillamook County Creamery Association. We foc wo are very thankful for the app support. We also have wonderful bo Ol mentors and parent Pa volunteers that make the club run so smoothly. Thank Bo you, James Johansen, David thr Hummel, Kirk Dickey, Evan the com Solley, Tiffany Craft, and Carla Neahring. This season Wa has been such an amazing to success because of your Pe support. ap

Tillamook library to consider closer integration with Lincoln County system WILL CHAPPELL Citizen Editor

he Tillamook County Library Board heard a presentation about the possibility of switching the system they use to manage their collection to the same one as is used in Lincoln County District Libraries on November 15. Lincoln County Library District Director Bryan Miyagishima said that the move could lead to a large cost savings and would give patrons a better experience, allowing more seamless transfers of materials between the two systems. Integrated library software (ILS) is the technology that libraries use to manage their e. collections, handling patron’s search queries, the library’s inventory, bill payments and r other aspects of the library experience. Currently, Tillamook County libraries are a ng

November 30, 2023

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member of the Oceanbooks Consortium, which also includes Newport and Lincoln City libraries and uses an ILS called Sierra. Sierra is a proprietary, commercial ILS and Tillamook County Library Director Don Allgeier said that the libraries spend about $180,000 annually to use it. Meanwhile, the rest of Lincoln County’s libraries, which Miyagishima oversees, use an opensource alternative offered by Bywater Solutions called Koha. Those libraries are part of the Chinook Consortium, which also includes Tillamook Bay Community College and Clatsop Community College. While the two consortia cooperate to allow access to each other’s collections, the different ILSs employed require patrons to have a library card with each system and incur a higher cost for the libraries when

intersystem transfers occur. The previous director of Lincoln County District Libraries applied for a grant from the state of Oregon in 2020 through the Library Services and Technology Act to evaluate their services and ways to integrate them with other libraries on the coast. The consultant found that the library’s patrons were interested in creating a unified system for the whole coast. The consultant recommended against pursuing that strategy immediately because of the geographic divides that exist between the various communities. The consultant instead said that the library should start with smaller steps, with a priority on integrating all the libraries in Lincoln County. Miyagishima said that given his libraries’ longtime relationship with Tillamook County libraries he and his board had wanted to offer

Tillamook the opportunity to participate in that integration. Perhaps the biggest advanatage of switching software for Tillamook County Libraries would be the cost savings. Miyagishima said that their research had estimated that Tillamook would spend $18,150 annually to use Koha, just a tenth of what they spend on Sierra. It would also allow patrons in either county to search and borrow from the collections of any of the libraries in the counties, as well as those at Tillamook Bay Community College and Clatsop Community College. The downside of the open-source Koha software is that it comes with less technical support from the company that designed it, requiring librarians to configure the system. This concern was what led Tillamook libraries to choose Sierra when Lincoln

libraries first switched to Koha and necessitated the two-consortia setup in the counties. However, Allgeier said that the software has become more developed in the intervening years and requires less technical expertise now. Miyagishima noted that numerous other library systems across Oregon, including those in Corvallis, Jackson County and all libraries south of Newport on the coast, use Koha and their librarians would be a valuable resource if questions arise. Miyagishima said that Lincoln County libraries plan to apply for another state grant next March to fund the costs of migrating information from their Sierra libraries to Koha. He said that he hoped Tillamook’s board would choose to join them in the migration and that he would be willing to

forestall the grant application for another year if necessary to facilitate that. The planned application will also request funding for the first year of operations, two years of training and travel funding to help librarians get up to speed on the integrated system and a proposal to include Yachats, which currently has no online catalogue. Allgeier said that he was excited about the proposal and believed the integration would give Tillamook libraries the chance to amplify their impact by accessing a wider array of materials. The board asked Allgeier to investigate the matter fully and develop a report and recommendation for the board’s December or January meeting so they could decide on whether to join in the grant application.

Tillamook County Criminal Convictions STAFF REPORT

n August 31, Gwendolyn Kay McGuire was found in violation of her probation for failure to perform the duties of a driver relating to property damage. McGuire was sentenced to 5 months in jail. On October 3, Andre Tito Pascua, 41, pled no contest to one count of disorderly conduct in the second degree, a class B misdemeanor, committed on or about September 22. Pascua was sentenced to 60 days in jail. On October 19. Thor Odysseus Hendrickson, 33, pled no contest to one count of luring a minor, a class C felony, committed on or between July 1 and August 30, and one count of sodomy, also a class C felony, committed on or about August 18. Hendrickson was sentenced to 30 days in jail and three years on probation. On October 20, Seth Michael Jacobs, 31, pled no contest to one count of theft in the second degree, a class A misdemeanor, committed on or about July 27. Jacobs was sentenced to one year on probation. On October 23, Jamie Louise Scire, 43, pled no contest to one count of theft in the second degree, a class A misdemeanor, committed on

or about August 4. Scire was sentenced to two days in jail and one year on probation. On October 24, Brian Lee Hazeldine, 42, pled guilty to one count of assault in the fourth degree constituting domestic violence, a class A misdemeanor, committed on or about October 4. Hazeldine was sentenced to 180 days in jail. On October 26, Michael Brian Haynes, 56, pled guilty to one count of theft in the third degree, a class C misdemeanor, committed on or about February 2, 2022. Haynes was sentenced to time served in jail. On October 26, Jacob James Fowler, 28, pled guilty to one count of criminal trespass in the first degree, a class A misdemeanor, committed on or about September 2. Fowler was sentenced to 18 months’ probation and ordered to pay $468 in fines and attorney fees. On November 8, Fowler was back in court and pled guilty to one count of stalking constituting domestic violence, a class A misdemeanor, committed on or about October 28. On that charge, Fowler was sentenced to 30 days in jail and two years’ probation. On October 27, Ronald Brent Rhoades, 55, pled no contes to one count of failure to perform the duties of a driver

relating to property damage, a class A misdemeanor, committed on or about August 23. Rhoades was sentenced to one year on probation, his driver’s license was suspended for 90 days and he was ordered to pay $468 in fines and attorney fees. On October 27, Merlin Garcia Ramirez, 21, pled guilty to one count of theft in the second degree, a class a violation, committed on or about August 15. Garcia Ramirez was ordered to pay a $440 fine and $153 in attorney fees. On October 27, Justin Victor Wood, 27, pled no contest to two counts of criminal driving with a suspended or revoked license, a class A misdemeanor, committed on or about May 15 and May 21. Wood was sentenced to 45 days in jail and three years’ probation. On October 30, Eldon Warren Herder, 29, pled no contest to one count of disorderly conduct in the second degree, a class A violation, committed on or about July 25. Herder was ordered to pay a $440 fine. On October 30, Donald Louis Aufdermauer, 72, pled no contest to one count of unlawful entry into a motor vehicle, a class A violation, committed on or about June

16. Aufdermauer was ordered to pay a $440 fine. On October 30, Bryant Logan Cole Graves, 29, pled guilty to one count of unlawfully purchasing a firearm, a class A misdemeanor, committed on or about February 22. Graves was sentenced to two weeks in jail. On October 30, Christopher James Tibball, 52, pled guilty to one count of criminal driving with a suspended or revoked license, a class A misdemeanor, committed on or about August 25. Tibball was sentenced to two days in jail. On November 1, Jacob E Goodwin, 30, pled no contest to one count of failure to appear in the second degree, a class A misdemeanor, committed on or about August 28. Goodwin was sentenced to 20 days in jail and one year on probation. On November 1, Michael Lane Boisa, 25, pled no contest to one count of criminal driving with a suspended or revoked license, a class A misdemeanor, committed on or about September 21. Boisa was sentenced to 30 days in jail. On November 3, Mariah Marie Leaverton, 37, pled no contest to one count of attempting to commit the

class A felony of burglary in the first degree, a class B felony, committed on or about June 6. Leaverton was sentenced to ten days in jail and two years’ probation. On November 3, Brandon Scott Clark, 37, pled no contest to one count of driving under the influence of intoxicants, a class A misdemeanor, committed on or about September 15, 2022. Clark was sentenced to two years on probation and his license was suspended for one year. On November 6, Dondi Leann O’Connell, 44, pled no contest to one count of aggravated harassment, a class A misdemeanor, and one count of harassment, a class B misdemeanor, both committed on or about April 20. O’Connell was sentenced to 30 days in jail. On November 7, Riva Marie Hilby, 51, pled no contest to one count of theft in the second degree, a class A misdemeanor, committed on or about June 11. Hilby was sentenced to 20 days in jail. On November 13, Aimee Nicole Denson, 49, pled no contest to one count of harassment, a class B misdemeanor, committed on or about May 25. Denson was sentenced to time served in jail. On November 13, Donald

Lee Vanwormer, 54, pled no contest to one count of failure to drive within a lane, a class B violation, committed on or about May 28. Vanwormer was ordered to pay a $135 traffic fine. On November 17, Tammy Woodring, 50, pled no contest to one count of attempting to commit the class C/unclassified felony of theft in the first degree, a class A misdemeanor, committed on or between August 1, 2020, and January 30, 2021. Woodring was sentenced to five years on probation and ordered to pay $33,000 in restitution to the Tillamook Rental Center. On November 20, Jack Thomas Dierking, 23, pled guilty to one count of theft in the second degree, a class A violation, committed on or between May 21, and August 2. Dierking was ordered to pay a $440 fine and $2,200 in restitution to Fred Meyer. On November 20, Brad Francis Martin Allan, 43, pled guilty to one count of criminal driving with a suspended or revoked license, a class A misdemeanor, committed on or about July 2. Allan was ordered to pay a $1,000 traffic fine.

He updated his resumé and filled out the necessary paperwork but was on the fence about submitting it until a call from State Representative Cyrus Javadi on the deadline day for submissions swayed him and he submitted. As a commissioner, Olson said that he plans to support ongoing projects and advocate for Tillamook County interests, like slowing down and lessening the blow of updates Federal Emergency Management Agency’s flood insurance plan and accounting for the county’s financial health in ongoing state forest habitat conservation plan developments. Olson will take over liaison duties to the Economic Development Council, Northwest Area Commission on Transportation, Northwest Oregon Economic Alliance, Columbia Pacific Economic

Development District and Tillamook Lightwave. He will also serve as the commissioner liaison to the county’s assessment and taxation, clerk, information technology and parks departments, the county surveyor’s office and the Tillamook County Fair Board. The assignments reflect Olson’s long-standing ties in the business community and his strong connections in that community across the county and state. The fair board assignment is particularly exciting for Olson, who described himself and his wife as “county fair junkies.” He said that they had used to go to two to three fairs a week during the summer and have been to every fair between Sacramento and Seattle. “The number one county fair is here by far and we figured that out way before we moved here and we’d

always come here because of the Pig n’ Ford and horse races,” Olson said. While he is not bringing an agenda of items to the position, Olson plans to employ a dynamic approach and will not shy away from addressing problems that come up. “Anywhere I’ve been for any length of time something comes up that’s not on the agenda and so you use your logic and resources to fix it,” Olson said. Olson will not seek election in 2024 and after stepping down from other positions to serve as commissioner does not plan to run for elected office again in the future. He said he will remain engaged in civic life in some capacity, however, musing, “I don’t own a rocking chair.” Olson said that if he becomes involved in the process of seeking bonds for the new emergency radio system or other major

projects requiring resident buy-in he will see them through to the end, even if it comes after the end of his term. An unwavering belief in and commitment to citizens is core to Olson’s modus operandi in public service and he promised to retain that commitment in his term as commissioner. He said that he will always offer reasoning for any decisions he makes and not be afraid to approach voters for support for county initiatives, believing in their ability to make wise choices for the county. “I always believe that the citizens are much smarter than you give them credit for,” Olson said. “They understand stuff, they understand money. They know what it costs them personally and they know what they want their government to do.”

OLSON CONTINUED FROM PAGE A1 operators of a small business. The Olsons decided to purchase a motel, and after looking at properties on Mount Hood and the southern OregoncCoast, jumped at the opportunity to purchase a 15-room inn in Pacific City, where Doug had fished for years. The couple assumed ownership of the motel and operated it for 23 years, before selling in 2016. “You can make a living and it’s partly lifestyle and we had the underlying real estate but in 2016 we said, ‘well, you know, we’re getting a little older, time to retire and move on,’” Olson said. Since then, Olson has focused on his volunteer work on elected and appointed committees and boards across the county. Olson was first elected to the Pacific City Water District Board in the 1990s, serving three terms on the board and the board of its successor, the combined Pacific City Joint Water-Sanitary Authority. In 2005, Olson was elected to the board of the Tillamook People’s Utility District, a position to which he has

been reelected three times and from which he will step down when he takes over as commissioner in January. Olson has also served on the boards of the South Tillamook County Chamber of Commerce, Adventist Health and Tillamook Lightwave for more than a decade, and has been an appointed member of Tillamook County’s Budget Committee for a similar amount of time. Olson had mulled a run for commissioner in the past and been encouraged by friends and acquaintances but demurred because of his hotel ownership and other commitments. “I’ve never done anything that I didn’t give it a hundred percent, that’s just not how I want to do things, and so I didn’t, but I thought about it,” Olson said of running. When Commissioner David Yamamoto announced his plan to retire before the end of his term in August and the county announced the appointment process for a candidate to serve the final year of the term, Olson was again intrigued.

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Neah-Kah-Nie boys’ basketball team looks to build on success By MIKE WEBER For the North Coast Citizen

year ago, the NeahKah-Nie High Pirates boys basketball team began their first season at the OSAA Class 3A level after moving up from the 2A classification. Generally, when teams move up a level, the expectations for having a successful season are lowered because they’re facing stronger competition. However, Pirates completely defied those expectations, enjoying an outstanding year with an experienced squad of nine seniors. The Pirates finished with a 7-5 Coastal Range League record and a 14-10 overall mark. The Pirates finished in third place in the seven-team

league, ranked No. 17 and advanced to a first round state playoff game. The Pirates faced the Sisters High Outlaws (14-14 last year) and lost a close home game, 41-37 at Neah-Kah-Nie High School in Rockaway. It marked their first state playoff appearance since 2011. The Pirates will certainly look much different this year without their nine graduated seniors. But that doesn’t necessarily mean the Pirates won’t enjoy another successful year. The Pirates, guided by Coach Erick White, will be focused on contending in the league for a second straight year and aiming to make the playoffs again. White and assistant Coach Corey Douma welcomed a group of 20 players to the first day

of practice November 13, and the group will form both the varsity and junior varsity teams. “We lost a lot of seniors from last year, but only a couple of them were a big part of our major rotation,” said White, the Pirates fourth-year coach. “We had a pretty good summer league and we also played really well in some fall league games too, so I’m actually pretty excited about the season.” Three of the Pirates five starters from a year ago return this season, including senior wing Anthony Allen, junior wing Ethan Hanson and senior Ivan Dante, a 6-foot-6 post. Hanson is the only junior on the team, which also includes sophomores Clayton Dante, Jordan Lewis and Brady

Douma. The senior trio of Allen, Dante and Jonathan Dana will help provided key leadership for the Pirates. Allen and Dante are expected to be the top scorers for the Pirates. Dante is expected to lead the team in rebounding and blocked shots while he’ll also provide an intimidating presence in the post area that will be a key factor in the Pirates defensive scheme. “It was pretty cool making the state playoffs for the first time at the 3A level, but unfortunately, we lost a close game,” said White. “Overall, we definitely had a very successful season and we have pretty high hopes again this year. We have a very realistic goal of hopefully winning the league title and it’s been a very long time since that’s happened. It will

be tough though since Banks is a very good team too. I feel like the two of us should battle it out for first place in the league standings.” The defending Coastal Range League champion Banks Braves had a 12-0 league record and they were 23-5 overall. However, Banks lost nine seniors from last year’s squad, which should open the opportunity for another school to make a run at the title. “Honestly, it would be a real disappointment if we don’t reach the state playoffs again,” said White. “The eight-player rotation of guys that we have played a lot of summer league games and some fall tournaments too. The five starters each averaged in double figure scoring. They’ve all been working hard throughout

the year and that’s exciting. The first day of practice was one of the smoothest ones that we’ve ever had. We’re flying through things and they’re looking ready to play basketball, so I’m pretty excited about the season.” The Pirates open their 25game schedule on the road with a 7:30 p.m., November 29, nonleague contest versus the Class 2A Knappa High Loggers (16-10 last year). The Pirates play their first home game December 5 versus the Taft High Tigers (7-17 last year). Neah-KahNie begins its 12-game CRL regular season January 3 on the road versus the YamhillCarlton High Tigers (7-5 CRL, 14-11 overall last year).

Neah-Kah-Nie girls shooting for state tourney By MIKE WEBER For the North Coast Citizen

he Neah-Kah-Nie High Pirates girls basketball team had a strong season a year ago, finishing with a 13-9 overall record and 6-6 mark in league play. They finished fourth in the seven-

team Coastal Range League, just behind the Riverdale High Mavericks (8-4 league, 19-9 overall), who earned a state playoff berth. The Pirates had a chance to reach the state playoffs last year for the first time since 2016, advancing to the district playoffs for a shot at a state playoff spot in a

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Deadline Noon Mondays for Advertising, News, Classifieds, Legals/Public Notices, Obituaries Editor Will Chappell, email headlighteditor@countrymedia.net Advertising Katherine Mace, email headlightads@countrymedia.net Classifieds & Legals/Public Notices Due by Noon on Mondays the week of publication. Send notice to classifieds@orcoastnews.com or call 503-842-7535 for more information. Ad Production Steph Baumgart PHONE 503-842-7535 • FAX 503-842-8842 EMAIL editor@northcoastcitizen.com WEBSITE northcoastcitizen.com The North Coast Citizen (15503909) is published biweekly by Country Media, Inc. 1906 Second Street, P.O. Box 444, Tillamook, OR 97141 Publisher: David Thornberry SUBSCRIPTION RATES $60.00 annually in-county; $72.00 annually out-of-county. $50.00 for online only. Periodicals Postage paid at Tillamook, OR. POSTMASTER Send address changes to P.O. Box 444, Tillamook, OR 97141 Member Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association (ONPA) © 2023 by the North Coast Citizen. All rights reserved. LETTER POLICY The Citizen welcomes letters that express readers’ opinions on current topics. Letters may be submitted by email only, no longer than 300 words, and must be signed and include the writer’s full name, address (including city) and telephone number for verification of the writer’s identity. We will print the writer’s name and town of residence only. Letters without the requisite identifying information will not be published. Letters are published in the order received and may be edited for length, grammar, spelling, punctuation or clarity. We do not publish group emails, open letters, form letters, third-party letters, letters attacking private individuals or businesses, or letters containing advertising. Deadline for letters is noon Thursdays. The date of publication will depend on space. Obituaries The North Coast Citizen has several options for submitting obituaries. • Basic Obituary: Includes the person’s name, age, town of residency, and information about any funeral services. No cost. • Custom Obituary: You choose the length and wording of the announcement. The cost is $75 for the first 200 words, $50 for each additional 200 words. Includes a small photo at no additional cost. • Premium Obituary: Often used by families who wish to include multiple photos with a longer announcement, or who wish to run a thank-you. Cost varies based on the length of the announcement. All obituary announcements are placed on the North Coast Citizen website at no cost.

matchup versus the Mavericks. Unfortunately, the Pirates lost 49-31 to Riverdale in Portland in mid-February, ending their season. Neah-Kah-Nie, guided by 19th year Coach Corey Douma, started practice November 13 with 19 players comprising the varsity and junior varsity squads. The Pirates play their varsity

PUZZLES

season opener Wednesday on the road in a nonleague contest versus the Class 2A Knappa High Loggers (15-12 last year) at 6 p.m. at Knappa High School. “I always like to start the season with a bunch of optimism, practices have been going well, the girls are working hard and that’s all I can ask for,” said Douma.

“It’s always hard to tell how good the team is going to be until you start playing games, but we’ve been looking good at practice and we’ll see how everything goes. Every year our goal is to extend the season as long as we can. That’s the same thing we’re shooting for this year. Hopefully, everyone will stay healthy so that hopefully we’ll continue

to enjoy some success and go to the district playoffs.” Despite losing three graduated seniors from last year, the Pirates have a solid group of players returning to lead the push for the 2024 state playoffs. The senior trio of Kailynn Stinnett, Madison Graham and Kennedy Fletcher will provide leadership for the Pirates, and are also expected to lead the team in scoring and rebounding. Some of the younger players will also be asked to contribute offensively for the Pirates, including juniors Ashley Perez, Lorelai Keefauver and Payton White. “The seniors have played together a long time, they know our system and I think they will provide some good leadership,” said Douma. “With the good group of juniors, seniors and sophomores on the team, I think we’ll get have good leadership qualities from all of them.” The Pirates have some height courtesy of sophomore Acacia Christensen, a 6-foot center. Their other players are average height, but they can utilize their quickness to play solid defense and disrupt their opponent’s offense and create turnovers. The Pirates will continue their season against the Class 2A Vernonia High Loggers (11-14) in a nonleague match up on December 4 at 6 p.m. at Vernonia High School. They’ll follow with the first home contest of their 24game schedule on December 5 at 6 p.m. against the Taft High Tigers (12-12 last year) at Neah-Kah-Nie High School in Rockaway. The Pirates will begin their 12-game league schedule January 3 on the road against the Yamhill-Carlton High Tigers (2-10, 4-16 overall last year). The Corbett High Cardinals (11-1, 25-4) and the Banks High Braves (11-1, 28-2) were co-champions of the CRL last year. The Cardinals are in a strong position to repeat as league champions as they return their entire roster from a year ago, save one graduated senior. The Braves look set to take a step back after losing five seniors to graduation.

November 30, 2023

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You’d Better Watch Out, You’d Better Not Cry: A Christmas Story Is Coming to Town PICTURED LEFT TO RIGHT: AnaBelle Davis, Bentley Davis, Julien Anctil, Oliver Arnold, Colbie Conner, Chloe Ward

ates: Friday, December 1st through Sunday, December 17th. (Note: There are just nine performances and tickets are going fast!) Location: North County Recreational District Performing Arts Center at 6155 9th Street in Nehalem. Tickets and more details are at www. RiverbendPlayers.org and can be purchased for $25, $20, and $10 (12 and under). Performances: Friday and Saturday, beginning at 7 p.m., and a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday.

Echoes of the Season: A Musical Solstice Celebration Sat. Dec. 16 • doors at 6:30 • Bay City Arts Center 5680 A Street • Bay City, Or 97107

hare an ancient tradition and pass another long dark night in good company with music, stories and poetry while we wait for the winter solstice and the promise it holds. Lauren Sheehan and Steve Cleveland celebrate this season with guitars, accordion, banjo, piano, exploring themes of darkness and light with repertoire that includes modern and very old pieces; Celtic, bluegrass, early jazz and blues, modern and hippie folk, some originals. Expect some sing along opportunities and even an old Carol or two. Lauren Sheehan “A One-woman Americana jukebox” - Huffington Post, is a semi-retired Roots Americana touring musician and multi-instrumentalist and vocalist who plays finger style guitar, mandolin and banjo. She has a fondness for vintage guitars and currently teaches at Pacific University. https://www.laurensheehanmusic.com Steve Cleveland is a Portland based musician and plays piano and accordion with a variety of musicians and bands in the area. https://steveclevelandmusic.com/bio $20 tickets at https://checkout.square.site/buy/2NEUKPUURCWRU3KP3I5YPTWS

Synopsis: A Christmas Story is humorist Jean Shepherd’s memoir of growing up in the Midwest in the late 1930s. The play, a theatrical holiday treat, follows 9-year-old Ralphie Parker in his quest to get a genuine Red Ryder BB gun under the tree for Christmas. A determined Ralphie pleads his case before his mother, his teacher, and even Santa Claus himself at Higbee’s Department Store. The constant response: “You’ll shoot your eye out!” All the elements from the beloved motion picture – which this year celebrates its 40th anniversary – are here, including the family’s temperamental exploding furnace; Scut Farkas, the school bully; the boys’ experiment with a wet tongue

on a cold lamppost; the Little Orphan Annie decoder pin; Ralphie’s father winning a lamp shaped like a woman’s leg in a net stocking; Ralphie’s fantasy scenarios, and more. “A Christmas Story is a story about hope, family, and the magic of the holiday season,” reflected Director Frank Squillo. “It’s a story that will stay with you long after you leave the theater.” Squillo, who still finds time to fulfill his passion for directing, in spite of the many hours he puts in as owner of Wanda’s Cafe + Bakery, has assembled an extremely talented cast and crew to bring this poignant story to life. Ralphie will be played by Oliver Arnold, with Bryonie Arnold (Oliver’s real-life mom) as his mother, and actor Dawson Carter as his father. The cast in this holiday classic includes seven children: four from Nehalem Elementary School, one from Neah-Kah-Nie Middle School, and two who are home-schooled. “I’m so proud of the cast and crew for their hard work and dedication,” said Squillo. “They’ve brought this story to life in a funny and heartwarming way. A Christmas Story will surely be a holiday treat for the whole family. It’s story that will stay with you long after you leave the theater.”

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Headlight Herald • Cannon Beach Gazette • North Coast Citizen • Lincoln City News Guard

CITY HALL WORK CONTINUED FROM PAGE A1 major driver of the increase in hard costs. The projected cost of building permits also rose slightly while an

anticipated $15,000 needed for traffic considerations was removed. Project Manager Jessie

Steiger told the council that with design nearing completion and work starting on the site, the budget is becoming more certain. Steiger said the two largest risks remaining for cost overrides were the remediation work and the police station’s foundation. While the project team believes that the included $500,000 contingency will account for any discoveries made once work begins, unexpected hazardous materials or the need for deeper foundations could push the budget up. Financing Finally, Aman moved into a conversation about the financing of the project.

In June, in addition to approving the design scheme, the council also voted to finance the project through a special public works fund loan from Business Oregon, approving Aman to execute a loan of up to $4 million. In October, Business Oregon approved a $5.1 million loan to the city from the special public works fund, which will require council approval for Aman’s execution. The loan is structured to issue payouts as work is completed and only in the amount necessary to complete the project, meaning that the full $5.1 million should not be issued. Interest will only accrue on the money that is actually borrowed.

During construction interest will accrue at a 2.1% rate and once the project is complete the debt will be sold to a bond bank, which will set a permanent rate for a repayment schedule of ten years. Aman said that she estimated the long-term rate would be around 4%. The latest budget projects that the city will need to borrow just over $4 million from Business Oregon to complete the project. The city has already spent around $375,000 on the project, received $207,000 in grants that can be applied to it, the city hall fund has a current balance of $250,000 and Aman plans to ask the council to apply $634,000 from the sale of the old city hall to the project.

The city council will need to approve an increase in the limit of the loan that Aman is authorized to execute, which Aman plans to seek in January or February. The design team is currently working through construction documents for the project, finalizing designs and obtaining necessary permits. Steiger said that they plan to complete that phase in January, at which point they will put the project out for bid. After a thirty-day window for companies to submit bids, the team will recommend a selection to the city council at their meeting in March. If approved, work is expected to begin shortly thereafter and to be complete by spring 2025.

2024 Tillamook County Almanac

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Winner receives a free advertisement in the 2024 Tillamook County Almanac which is inserted into the Tillamook Headlight Herald and photo credit. Send us your images by December 1, 2023 We are looking for bright and colorful high-quality vertical photos from Tillamook County at least 300 dpi and 8 inches wide.

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