SHC1019

Groundbreaking ceremony set for waterfront redevelopment

JEREMY C. RUARK jruark@countrymedia.net

HERB SWETT chronicle1@countrymedia.net

City officials are pre paring to break ground in November for the City of St. Helens first major infrastruc ture project as part of the ongoing efforts to redevelop and transform the St. Helens waterfront.

First step

The Streets and Utilities Extension Project is focused on improving key streets and intersections that already ex ist in the city’s historic Riv erfront District and extend ing utilities onto the City’s 24-acre Riverfront Property, according to a release from the city.

The project, which was launched in 2021, will set the groundwork for future public amenities and private development on the River front Property. The City is interested in partnering with private developers who can build a mix of commercial and residential uses on the site.

The project will im

Tis the season, county tax statements coming

chroniclenews@countrymedia.net

prove the safety of existing intersections, create inviting pedestrian connections in the Riverfront District, and increase parking in the area, according to St. Helens Pub lic Works Director Mouha mad Zaher.

“This project is a gamechanger for our beautiful city,” Zaher said. “It will transform our commu nity in three major areas: infrastructure, transporta tion, and livability. Ag ing infrastructure will be addressed by upgrading our water and sewer systems, in addition to installing a new pump station. The safety of pedestrians and commuters will be enhanced by rede signing intersections and sidewalks and improving rights-of-way. Finally, we are connecting and enhanc ing the community’s access to the St. Helens waterfront through a safe and innova tive engineering design.”

Columbia County Economic Team Executive Director Paul Vogel said the City of St. Helens leadership has been very intentional, open, and transparent about the downtown and water front master planning.

“This first phase is a long time coming, with a

lot of valuable input from citizens and experts alike,” Vogel said. “This first phase will provide the canvas upon which private invest ment can paint a robust mix of retail, commercial, and residential uses – all framed in the context of an histori cal district with wonderful public access to one of our most treasured assets, the Columbia River. The most important priority is to de velop a community “place” that local residents love, and love to be. What attracts and excites locals will attract and excite visitors, adding greater tourism and hospital ity to a balanced and produc tive economy.”

What’s ahead

Construction efforts will first be focused on the South 1st Street and St. Helens Street intersection. This intersection serves as a gateway to the city’s historic Riverfront District, welcom ing residents and visitors to local businesses, govern ment buildings, and the sites of major community events, the release states. The in tersection’s new design will improve traffic flow, create safer pedestrian crossings,

sion Project will also:

• Redesign South 1st Street and Cowlitz Street intersection

• Extend Cowlitz Street onto the Riverfront Property with a roundabout feature which will connect seam lessly to the upcoming Riv erwalk Project and Colum bia View Park improvements scheduled to begin later, in 2023

the River

• Extend South 1st Street to the Tualatin Street stairs and create a pedestrianfriendly intersection which will serve as a trailhead for a bluff trail

• Create a bluff trail along the west side of the Riverfront Property that ex tends from South 1st Street to Nob Hill Nature Park and Plymouth Street

• Extend underground

front Property to prepare the landscaping

The Streets and Utilities Extension Project is antici pated to take two years to complete. Construction will take place in a phased ap proach over the two years to allow for street detours and to minimize construction impacts to area residents and

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Paid for by Brandon Sundeen for City Council

See WATERFRONT Page A7

Courtesy from the City of St. Helens

This flyover shows the proposed St. Helens waterfront redevelopment site.

Insight into the race for Oregon governor

JEREMY C. RUARK jruark@countrymedia.net

President Joe Biden com pleted his two-day campaign swing to Portland Oct.15, to attend a fundraising event for gubernatorial candidate Tina Kotek.

In July, The Chronicle discussed the three-way Oregon gubernatorial race with Jim Moore, Pacific Univer sity associate professor and director of political outreach at the Tom McCall Center for Civic Engagement. In that published interview, we looked for insight about the three candidates, Democrat Kotek, Republican Christine Drazan and independent candidate Betsy Johnson.

In this latest update, Moore provides additional insight into the race for Oregon governor.

The Chronicle: From your insight, how will President Biden’s visit to Oregon and campaigning for Tina Kotek help her and other Democrats running for office in Oregon. Will he sway voters?

Jim Moore: Pres. Biden’s visit will excite Democrats and antagonize Republicans. It is a classic get-out-the-vote move to bring in a national figure to energize voters. In Oregon with Democrats outnumber ing Republicans by about 300,000, this is a pretty good strategy. Kotek’s team prob ably made the same analysis that John Kitzhaber’s election team made in 2010 when Pres. Obama visited in a very close

race for governor.

A presidential visit will be more helpful than hurtful, and any voters who are motivated to vote by the visit will out weigh those who are antago nized. The wild card: Oregon’s 1 million+ unaffiliated voters. Kotek’s team might have evi dence that more of them will respond positively to a Biden visit as well.

Will it help other Demo crats in Oregon? They will all have to make their own calculations. In some districts, Biden will be so unpopular that being associated with him during the visit would be bad for Democratic chances in the election. In others, the opposite. I would bet we will see several Democratic con gressional candidates with the president. My guesses (aside from the uncompetitive races in CD1 and CD3) would be Andrea Salinas in CD6 and Ja mie McLeod Skinner in CD5.

Val Hoyle in CD4 might come up as well. An endorsement by Biden of McLeod Skin ner would be significant since Biden endorsed her defeated opponent Kurt Schrader in the primary.

The Chronicle: At least one poll showed Republi can Drazan leading in the three-way race over the past week. How has she been able to advance and what is she offering that voters appear to appreciate?

Moore: Drazan has two things going for her right now. The first is that Betsy Johnson has change the dynamic of the

race. This gives any Republi can candidate a better shot at winning. The second, though, is that Drazan’s message that Democrats have been in power too long, and that has led to Oregon declining, is resonat ing with about a third of voters (oddly, she emphasizes the past decade, not the past 36 years—this is because Kotek was speaker for that decade). This same message has been tried by every statewide Re publican candidate since about 2000, but it is working better in 2022.

This may be because of the message itself; it may be because Johnson’s candidacy is moving enough voters that Drazan just has to convince a smaller percentage of the electorate than past candidates have had to.

The Chronicle: From your insight, what impact does the $2 million to Betsy Johnson and the $1 million to Drazen from Phil Knight have on this race? Does it matter to voters?

Moore: Given the amount of money that both Johnson

and Drazan have raised, Knight’s large contributions are interesting, but not game changers. At this point, another $1 million is helpful, but there probably aren’t that many ad vertising opportunities left out there to buy. Both campaigns need to shift to get-out-thevote efforts—that is where the money will come in handy. Does Knight’s contribution matter to voters? It may. But Knight has given big money to campaigns in the past, and there is no evidence it has moved voters to support those candidates.

Once again, the dynamics of a three-candidate race are different than past statewide races, so if Knight’s support can move a small number of voters, that may be enough to push a candidate to a win.

The Chronicle: Going forward to Nov. 8, what can we expect from the three can didates? Any surprises?

Moore: What surprises me a bit is that the three candidates have had the same campaign themes and strategies since the

Animation to be used to reach voters

STAFF REPORT chroniclenews@countrymedia.net

A new statewide public service campaign is being launched designed to “prebunk” false election informa tion by proactively reaching voters with accurate informa tion from an official, trusted source.

Oregon Secretary of State Shemia Fagan, calls the campaign Voting in Oregon Feels Good.

“This campaign is as fun as it is informative, with Oregon-focused animations that stand out from other government messages. When you see the videos and social

media posts, I hope you’ll take a moment to remember why Oregonians are very proud of vote-by-mail.”

The target of the cam paign is low turnout voters.

The campaign is animated in a 1970’s style, featuring dozens of Oregon landmarks, characters and scenes from across the State.

“Research shows that

once a person forms a belief about elections it’s very hard to change their mind,” Fagan said. “That’s why it’s critical for elections officials to get ahead of false information by sharing the fact that Oregon has had free and fair elections through vote-by-mail for over 20 years. When Oregonians know all the steps elections workers take to protect the integrity of our elections, it completely undercuts the conspiracy theories from proponents of the Big Lie.”

The budget for the project is $350,000 — allocated from one-time funding ap proved during the 2022 short session by the Oregon Legislature.

night of the May primary. It has resulted in a tie between Drazan and Kotek, and John son is not far behind. That tie has persisted for months. I would suggest that a change in strategy would be useful. For instance, instead of pummel ing each other over stances on issues (all very predictable), talking about actual leadership qualifications to be governor. What hard decisions have each made in government? When do they stand on principle, no matter what? How do they work with people with whom they disagree and actually dis like? All these are situations in which governors find them selves many times.

The Chronicle: Overall, do you see heavy voter partici pation in this election, and if so, why. If not, why not?

Moore: I expect a normal turnout for this off-year elec tion. In Oregon, that means about 70% voter participation.

Four years ago, we had 67.8% turnout (a bit low) but almost 2.8 million voters (a record by about 600,000). This

is because our automatic voter registration system brings a lot more voters into the system; this lowers our percent age turnout a bit but greatly increases the overall number of voters. The general pattern is that registered Republicans and Democrats vote at very high rates (e.g., 90%+ in presiden tial year 2020), and unaffiliated voters turn out at a much lower rate (65% in 2020).

Given the record spend ing on this election, I fully expect the normal strong turnout across the state. I will be looking carefully to see if unaffiliated voters turn out in higher rates than they have in the past. Unaffiliated voters are now the largest single group (surpassing Democrats by a few thousand)—if they vote at higher rates, they will sway election results.

The Chronicle: Feel free to add any other comments you might have.

Moore: This is still a three-candidate race. Any one of them can win. The time for voters to cast their ballots, to change roles from consumers of campaign information to decision makers determining the leadership of our state, is approaching quickly. Let’s do our homework and play our role in the election.

Follow this developing story here online and in the Wednesday, print editions of The Chronicle. View the can didates televised debates and read more background stories at thechronicleonline.com.

Courtesy from the Oregon Newspapers Publishers Association

Republican Christine Drazan, Democrat Tina Kotek, and Independent Betsy Johnson during a previous televised debate.

Courtesy from the Oregon Secretary Of State’s Office

The campaign is animated in a 1970’s style, featuring dozens of Or egon landmarks, characters and scenes from across the State.

“Local jobs matter,” Port of Columbia County Ex ecutive Director Sean Clark said in his State of the Port address at the Columbia River Receptions & Events building in St. Helens.

The event included an address by Christopher Efird, chief executive officer of the Houston-based NEXT Renewable Fuels, Inc., which is seeking to produce renew able diesel and sustainable aviation fuel at the Port. About 40 people were in the audience.

“I worked at Trojan,” Clark said, “and have seen the nuclear plant closed and the jobs that left with it.” He mentioned other jobs that have departed, such as those of county residents who worked at the lumber mills and Reynolds Aluminum plant in Longview, Washing ton, and spoke of the impor tance of replacing them.

“Local workers spend money here,” he said. “Local companies pay taxes. The port itself is also a taxpayer.”

Clark, a longtime Goble resident, said the port’s 2022-23 budget is $14.9 million, which he said was a slight decrease from previous

years because of a smaller projected capital outlay.

Business attracted recently Clark then reviewed the business the 2,400-acre port has been attracting recently. Calling the Scappoose Bay Marina “the number one tourist destination in Co lumbia County,” he said the port is working to improve access there for people with disabilities.

Regarding St. Helens, he then spoke of the mainte nance shop to be built at the Multnomah Industrial Park, where ORPET has received recyclable plastic bottles for 10 years, and the McNulty Business Park.

Turning to the Port Westward Industrial Park near Clatskanie, Clark spoke of the Beaver Dock, which was built during World War II to support the efforts in the Pacific theater, as an example of a place where business is needed to replace previous business. Port Westward now has several power generation plants.

Other accomplishments this year, he said, have included an industrial land inventory and a rail safety and mobility study. The latter has drawn attention because trains often stop traffic in

St. Helens and Scappoose and cars sometimes stop on tracks. Building bridges over rails has been proposed.

“We’ve marketed them to a wide audience,” he said.

The opportunities ahead, Clark noted, include the renewable fuels plant that NEXT projects would reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 7 million tons a year.

Top projects

Clark has said the top Port project for this year and next is rezoning. Port West ward has 837 acres zoned for agriculture. The Port wants industries in the area and for 12 years has been seeking a rezoning to resource industri al plan development (RIPD) zone. Port Westward has direct access to the 43-foot navigation channel in the Columbia River, which it has said would address the need for industrial land.

The Oregon Court of Appeals last year upheld a Land Use Board of Ap peals (LUBA) rejection of a contention by environmental group Columbia Riverkeep er, that LUBA’s decision to uphold Columbia County’s alternative sites analysis was “unlawful in substance.”

Port officials have said that a rezone would gener

CRPUD’s warming tree will help community again this winter

ate economic development increase and that several companies had shown inter est in the area and could create hundreds of jobs.

However, some neigh boring property owners have said a rezone and expansion would threaten water quality needed for farming. Their contention has been backed by Columbia Riverkeeper and 1000 Friends of Oregon, both environment-oriented organizations.

Also on the list of proj ects are renewal diesel fuel production (see below) and sustainable aviation projects. Scappoose Airport is the second busiest non-towered

airport in Oregon, and the Port is trying to get new han gar buildings leased out.

NEXT CEO speaks

“Here you have to follow the rules,” Efird told the audience. His company is appealing rejections by the Oregon Department of Envi ronmental Quality of plans to build a plant on the site of a former plant in St. Helens.

“I’m very, very comfort able that the procedure we’re going through (with the port) is going to succeed,” he said.

“Looking at the other side of the negotiation, I am very impressed.”

He referred to an article in Biofuels Digest that said something to the effect that obtaining a permit in Oregon is “something like rowing in a lake of peanut butter.”

Efird said NEXT is working with the Army Corps of Engineers and Oregon’s congressional del egation on an environmental impact statement. He called the dock at Port Westward “a gem in the rough” and said he thought Port Westward “has the ability to show this can be done.”

Clark and Erird gave their addresses Thursday, Oct. 13.

MICHAEL J. SYKES Sponsored content

We are continuing our holiday tradition of helping to warm the community once again this year. For the fifth year, we will be collecting warming items to donate to members of the community.

We’re asking employees, Board Members, and custom ers to bring in hats, coats, blankets, gloves, and other warming items. They can be new, handmade, or gently used.

These items will be donated to a local nonprofit organization to distribute to community members.

This is a tradition that was started in 2018, when we do nated items to the St. Helens

Kiwanis Club. It has con tinued each year since then, with items going to SAFE of Columbia County, the St. Helens Elks Lodge Holiday for Hope program, and Com munity Action Team.

Last year we established a new record with 1,260 items collected. With your help, we hope to eclipse that number in 2022.

Over the four years we have done this, we have collected more than 3,000 individual items. Clearly, the Warming Tree has been a sustained success. The vol ume of donations that come through our doors is over whelming, and we appreciate every one of you who helps this effort be successful year after year.

Commitment to commu

nity is one of our core values. Providing these items to those who need help is one of the ways we demonstrate our commitment.

If you wish to donate items to the Warming Tree, please bring them to our office during regular busi ness hours, Monday through Thursday, 7:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. We ask that all donations are turned in by December 8 to ensure they are delivered in time for Christmas.

Columbia County’s trusted local news source

Michael J. Sykes General Manager, Columbia River PUD

Courtesy photo

PUD employees Rachel Swanson and Debbie Esterline with some of the 1,260 items collected last year.

Courtesy from the Port of Columbia County.

Port Westward has access to the Columbia River.

Opinion

Viewpoints

A new era begins for St. Helens waterfront

RICK SCHOLL Chronicle Guest Column

After almost a decade of behind-the-scenes work, the first phase of construction is about to start on the St. Helens Waterfront Redevelopment Project.

I hope you are as excited as I am about this amazing project. From the beginning, the city’s goal has been to reconnect you to the waterfront and reimagine the economic future of our community, and we are about to see that start to take place.

Mills and industry were the heart of our city for decades. When the mills closed in the early 2000s, St. Helens lost many local living-wage jobs and vital tax dollars. Over 200 acres of riverfront property sat vacant and remained fenced off from public access as the properties continued to be privately-owned.

The St. Helens City Coun cil and city staff recognized that this was not the best use for those properties. In 2015, the City of St. Helens purchased the properties and started a planning process that would take seven years to finally move to the construction phase.

You’ve probably heard me say it before. Government can be very slow sometimes and that can be frustrating for a lot of people but projects the size of our Waterfront Redevelop ment Project are complex and have many moving pieces.

The process

Our staff and Council have spent years gathering commu nity feedback and working with consultants who are experts in their fields. We have been working with regional, state, and federal agencies, apply ing for grants and receiving funding to study the sites and develop big-picture plans, and

finally, creating detailed render ings that make sense for differ ent areas of the waterfront. This has taken time to ensure that we get it right.

This has brought us to where we are today: about to break ground on phase one of the Streets and Utilities Extension Project. This specific project will act as the gateway to everything else that’s to come. The Streets and Utilities Extension Project will improve existing streets and intersec tions in our Riverfront District, build better infrastructure for pedestrians, increase parking in the area, and extend utilities onto the old Boise Veneer Property, what we are now call ing the Riverfront Property.

Construction is scheduled to start in November 2022 on this project and will take about two years to complete. Moore Excavation, Inc. is our contrac tor for the first phase of work. The City is currently working with the contractor and the

Voices of the community

sharing deal with Republicans over congressional redistrict ing, mean she has challenges ahead in rebuilding trust.”

This Sunday The Orego nian endorsed candidate Tina Kotek although they admitted “She leans toward supporting a state education department recommendation to perma nently remove a requirement that high school students prove proficiency in math, reading and language arts –opening the door for students to earn diplomas with no more than Ds on their report cards.”

I remember teaching remedial English and math classes in the evenings so my students could pass their army vocational training classes the following day. What good is an education when a “graduate” can not read or understand spoken English, nor give change for a $20 bill?

The Oregonian also mentioned about her “broken promises, such as her abrupt cancellation of a power-

After nearly four months of democrat commercials shoving abortion down vot ers’ throats when in fact it’s not on the ballot; or how their opponents are “too” far right, what about the fact that the majority of Oregonians are not even members of a politi cal party? It’s the economy, stupid.

Joe Turner Columbia City

Send Kotek to Salem

If you watched the debate between the 3 candidates for governor last night 10/4/2022 you got a real glimpse of who they are not who their adds say are.

First of all, it should be clear to any rational thinking person Drazan is out of touch with reality. Really arrest

doctors who perform abor tions and no exception for rape or incest. She is aligned with the far-right Trump sup porters.

One key fact that may have gotten by listeners is the fact that Johnson and Drazan are both anti-union. Think about that if you belong to a union and have to fight for better wages and benefits every few years.

Don’t think for one-min ute Oregon wouldn’t become a right to work state under the leadership of either of them. You could say good-bye to fair wages and benefits then. Am I 100% in favor of all of Tina Kotek’s ideas? No, but of the three she seems the most compassionate and reasonable. She is not some AR 15 toting give guns to ev erybody radical or a mid-evil lock everyone up that gets an abortion wingnut. Send Drazan and John son home and Tina Kotek to Salem.

Patrick Klein St. Helens

various utility providers to cre ate a timeline of construction that makes the most sense and is the least disruptive to area businesses and residents.

Public engagement

City staff will be on foot the week of October 17, going door-to-door to residences and businesses in the project area to invite people to two special meetings on October 24. We will be hosting a busi ness meeting at 1 p.m. and a neighborhood meeting at 5 p.m. so that people in the area can hear information about the project, learn how we will communicate with them about construction impacts and detours, and find out ways we plan to support businesses dur ing construction.

No matter what, we know that construction is going to be disruptive and will have impacts to everyone who lives, works, or visits the area. But

we also know that if we can all work together through this phase of construction, the longterm benefits of our waterfront redevelopment efforts will be huge. Look around the region and you will see riverfront communities in places like Camas, Hood River, and Vancouver transform vacant waterfronts into thriving areas that attract new business and provide public spaces with boardwalks, parks, and other amenities that are a destina tion for their community and visitors.

The Streets and Utilities Extension Project will set the infrastructure groundwork for our upcoming Riverwalk Project and eventual private development on the Riverfront Property. The Riverwalk Proj ect should begin construction later in 2023. This is the project that will bring us an expanded Columbia View Park, new am phitheater stage, and the start of a public river walk that runs

along the edge of the Columbia River.

Exciting things are happen ing in St. Helens. I invite you to join me in celebrating this new phase at our upcoming groundbreaking ceremony on November 2 at 3 p.m. at the intersection of South 1st Street and St. Helens Street.

Finally, if you’re interested in staying informed about all our waterfront efforts, we’ve created a new newsletter for you. You can sign up for the City’s waterfront newsletter at www.sthelensoregon.gov/wa terfront/page/waterfront-rede velopment-newsletter. We will be using this newsletter to send out updates about construction timelines, road detours, and other project information, as well as announcements and information about future water front projects.

Rick Scholl is the Mayor of St. Helens. He may be reached at 503-397-6272.

community eVents

October 22 Garden Club Sale

The St. Helens Garden Club Sale from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the St. Helens Public Library, 375 S 18th Street. Trees, berries, shrubs, succulents, home grown plants.

October 28 Trick-or-Treat the Blvd. 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Looking for a great trick-or-treating experience? The businesses of the upper boulevard will be transforming into a fun Halloween course for kids of all ages! Start off at Heather Epperly Agency’s American Family Insurance office and follow the course up the Bou levard, cross over to Chris tina’s Chest and continue to follow the course back down the boulevard.

October 29 Kiwanis Day breakers 31st Annual Chil dren’s Fair

The Kiwanis Daybreakers Children’s Fair will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at McBride School. There will be children’s activities and pro grams all day long, including a hayride, petting zoo, and K-9 dog. This is a free event.

October 29 Little Trick or Treaters Costume Parade

Presented by The St. Helens Chronicle. It’s kids, cos tumes, and a whole lot of fun. Assemble at 12:30 p.m. at 1st and St. Helens Streets. Please bring a bag for candy. Parade begins at 1 p.m. Sponsored by The Chronicle in partner ship with the Grocery Outlet Store in St. Helens.

October 29 Monster Bash

Poll Last Week’s Results

Open to the public. Drinks starting at 4 p.m., dinner service from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. and listen to Steelhead from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. Participate in the costume contest, prizes will be awarded for best couples costume and best single costume. St. Helens Elks Lodge: 350 Belton Av, St. Helens, OR *All proceeds stay local towards “Kids Christmas”. RSVP at the bar or on the website by Oct. 22.

October 31 3rd Annual Columbia County Sheriff’s Office Trunk or Treat 5 to 8 p.m., Columbia County Fairgrounds: 58892 Saulser Rd, St. Helens, OR 97051. A safe, fun, free Halloween alternative for the whole

family! This is intended to be a wail-in event; however, this will depend on the weather and condition of the parking lot.

November 8 Annual Veterans Breakfast 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. at Scap poose High School (SHS), 33700 SE High School Way in Scappoose. Food and live music by the SHS Band and Choir to be featured. RSVP requested to khagen@scap poose.k12.or.us or call SHS at 971-200-8005.

November 12 Arts & Crafts Faire

The 48th Annual Arts & Crafts Faire will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Christ Episcopal Church, 35350 E. Division Rd., off Hwy 30, in St. Helens. This faire features unique handcrafted items and a bake table with cookies, pies, breads and more.

November 12 Autumn Bazaar hosted by Mizpah OES

The Autumn Bazaar will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Columbia County Shrine Center, 315 N. 18th St. in St. Helens.

November 12 and 13 Caples House Museum Holiday Bazaar

The Caples House Museum Holiday Bazaar will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 1925 First St. in Columbia City.

November 19 St. Helens Senior Center Christmas Bazaar

The St. Helens Christmas Bazaar will be held from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 375 S. 15th St., in St. Helens.

Ongoing Events

Vaccine Clinics

Columbia County Public Health is providing primary and booster COVID-19 vac cinations from Moderna, Pfizer, and Novavax, as well as monkeypox. Vaccines also will be available at times to be determined Oct.19, 20, and 27; Nov. 10; and Dec. 1 and 15. Vaccines are available from noon to 7 p.m. today through Friday at the Columbia County Fair grounds 4-H Building, 58892 Saulser Road, St. Helens.

People needing transporta tion may call 503-366-0159

or email CCRiderinfo@ columbiacountyor.gov.

Lower Columbia River Watershed Council Meets at 7 p.m. every other second Tuesday. Meetings are currently held elec tronically by Zoom. For more information, contact Council Coordinator Allan Whiting at E-mail: allan@whitingenv. com, or call 503-789-9240 Visit the council’s website for agenda postings and Zoom at www.lowercolumbi ariver.org/events-page.

Resonate Recovery Meets at 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday - Sundays. This is a Bible based, Christcentered spiritual recovery meeting for those struggling with addictions and compul sive behavior at 220 S. 1st St., St. Helens. Everyone is loved and welcomed. Free childcare available. For more information call Debbie at 503-560-0521 or check the Resonate Facebook page.

Columbian Toastmasters

Promoting positive learn ing and leadership through public speaking. Anyone is welcome! Meeting virtu ally via Zoom from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. every Thursday. Call 503-369-0329 for more information.

Overcomers Outreach

Meetings are held every Sat urday at 9 a.m. at Creekside Baptist Church, 51681 SW Old Portland Rd., Scap poose. Call Fred 971-7576389.

Celebrate Recovery

For anyone struggling with addiction, hurts, habits, and hang-ups. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. for coffee, snacks, and fellowship. The meet ing starts at 7 p.m. The first Monday of each month at 6 p.m. the doors open for a free dinner. Yankton Com munity Fellowship, 33579 Pittsburg Rd., St. Helens. 503-396-7091. Childcare is available. www.yanktoncom munityfellowship.com

To list an event in the Com munity Calendar, email details with a phone number that may be published for anyone that might have questions, to chronicleclas sifieds@countrymedia.net, or call 503-397-0116.

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inflation continuing to rise, are you spending more and saving less?

you be passing out candy from your home on Halloween?

It’s the econo my, stupid

How Oregon’s Asian trade mission will help

JEREMY C. RUARK jruark@countrymedia.net

Gov. Kate Brown’s trade mission to South Korea and Japan, the first such effort since 2019, could mean ef fective benefits for Columbia County.

The trade mission will focus on promoting foreign investment and business expansion in Oregon as the two countries reopen fully to tourism, trade, and business travel, according to Brown.

Oregon leaders represent ing the agriculture, tourism, higher education, apparel, technology, and manufactur ing industries have joined the delegation.

“While many states are seeking to expand trade opportunities as Asia begins to fully reopen, we know that Oregon’s businesses, products, and tourism op portunities are second to none,” Brown states in a release. “Oregon has strong relationships in South Korea and Japan that have been built on decades of trade and the shared values of eco nomic growth, environmental stewardship, and a desire for a better tomorrow. As we cel ebrate these partnerships and the successes they’ve brought in growing Oregon’s exports and expanding business development in our state, we are planting the seeds of the future for the next chapter in our economy’s growth.”

By the numbers Asian trade and tour

ism are critical drivers of Oregon’s economy and job growth, according to Brown. South Korea is a key and expanding export market for Oregon, and Japan is one of Oregon’s largest foreign investors. South Korea and Japan are Oregon’s fourth and sixth largest markets, respectively, for export goods overall, and two of the top markets for the state’s agricultural exports. To gether, they represent 11% of Oregon’s $29.9 billion global export market, Brown said in a release.

Over the past five years, Oregon ranks seventh in the U.S. for largest export growth, growing significantly at 37%. During the pan demic, Oregon was one of only six states in the country to see positive export growth between 2019 and 2020.

Nearly 6,000 Oregon com panies export internationally, and 83,000 Oregon jobs are supported by exports. Travel and tourism in Oregon is a $10.9 billion industry that directly employs 100,000 Oregonians and generates $1.2 billion in state and local tax revenue.

Columbia County view Columbia Economic Team Executive Director Paul Vogel was a member of a state delegation in a prior governor’s trade Mission to Asia.

“That experience taught me that there’s a distinct dif ference between these mis sions’ value in theory and in practice,” he said, adding that

after a couple of consecutive years of global isolation, it’s important, at least symboli cally, to renew these relation ships in person.

“There is value simply in restoring the personal connections in these long standing trade and economic relationships,” Vogel said. “Face to face means some thing, particularly in other cultures. Half of the value is in just showing up. I tend to want to rely more on busi nesses and the private sector to make these relationships work and flourish, but the reality is that governmental leadership engagement and partnership counts for a lot, and perhaps more, in many other countries. Asian coun tries personify that.”

Vogel said this trade mission “seems quickly put together.”

“Once you’re there, be ing explicitly prepared is critical.,” he said. “Our hope would be that the businesses participating have had time to fully prepare, because while half of it is just show ing up, the other half is truly having your act together and being fully prepared to do business their way, on their patch. “

No Columbia County businesses were invited to participate, according to Vogel, although there are a number, he said, that would be well-positioned to do so.

Benefits for Columbia County

In the case of a trade mis sion such as this one, Vogel

said the hope is to benefit in the most general of terms: reinforcement that “Oregon is open for business”; elected and administrative gov ernment leaders equipped and knowledgeable about advanced manufacturing (OMIC and PCC/OMIC), and even clean, sustainable fuel production Vogel ex pects that would be establish through the proposed NEXT Renewables facility.

“And, also as a tourism partner in the Portland region and with Travel Oregon, restoring air travel levels –especially from traditional high-visitor countries like Japan will be welcome,” he said. “Visitors to the Portland area, like Portlanders, are discovering outdoor recre ation in Columbia County

and love the existence of the Crown Z Trail and the fact we have 62 mils of Co lumbia River shoreline and are focused on destination development providing river access.”

Vogel said that overall, the county should benefit from increased visibility as an entire state; awareness and attraction that comes from outreach.

“The current position of the yen versus the dol lar will likely not result in the type of Japanese reverse investment we’ve enjoyed in the past, but being open for business, sustaining cur rent trade relationships that keep agricultural and other commodities moving on the Columbia River – we benefit as a county from the prosper

ity of the entire state,” Vogel said.

As a new governor takes office in January, Vogel said he is hopeful for an even more robust understanding of business and economic development in a new admin istration.

“And one which doesn’t rely on trade missions more than it does making it sim pler, easier, and more posi tive for existing local busi nesses to operate successfully – and cost-effectively, hire locally – and contribute to a balanced economy and traded sector that includes countries like Japan and South Korea, but doesn’t overly rely upon them,” he said.

The Oregon trade mission was scheduled from October 14 to October 26.

Garden Plots: Fall, winter in the garden

Winter gardens should be covered, either with a tarp, mulch or a cover crop. All will add organic matter and improve soil tilth.

Cover crop roots can break up soil “plow pans.” The roots and leaves trap and hold nutrients and legumes in the mix fix nitrogen. How ever, cover crops grow very lushly over the winter and often are 3-4’ tall by the midspring, especially if you plant grain along with legumes. I generally recommend just legumes like crimson clover, Austrian winter peas, or hairy vetch for most situations.

You may have to wait for a dry spell next spring before you can till the cover in and start gardening. Gardeners are also experimenting with tarps combined with mulch and/or compost as a winter treat ment. This reduces weeds and allows you to manage soil moisture for early planting.

Mulches may add as much organic matter, though they can’t trap nutrients and fix ni trogen. Worms are stimulated by a mulch blanket and do great work in aerating the soil profile under the mulch. The biggest advantage to mulches is that they can be pulled back in the spring and transplants put in with a minimum of fuss.

If you till or spade your garden area at all in the fall, add some lime. A good ap plication rate is 10-15#s per 100 square feet of vegetable

garden. Lime takes about six months to fully react with the soil so the benefits will be ready when you start spring gardening. Gardens only need to be limed once every four years.

With as dry as it has been, it may not be too late to plant a lawn but get right on it.

Most grass seed mixtures are sown at the rate of five pounds per 1000-square-feet. Add one pound of seed for each week past Sept. 15 to ensure a solid stand. This would also be an excellent time to fertilize your lawn. Use lawn products with a mix of slow and quick release nitrogen.

Copper is a great fall fungicide for fruit and berry plants. There are several trade names commonly available and the list of diseases slowed by this treatment is impres sive. Apples, pears, cherries, peaches, blueberries, mari onberries and boysenberries, and other species benefit. The copper should be applied before the fall rains and prior to leaf drop.

What are those large holes?

One day, you notice some large holes in the ground that weren’t there before. You see nothing coming out of them or going in. But it isn’t comforting. So, what might be making these holes? There are several possibilities, two more likely than the others.

Rats make holes that are two and a half to four inches wide. The holes generally connect to a modest tunnel

system, sometimes old mole runs are used, or end under a protective concrete slab. Rats need three things in life: food, water, and shelter. But these items don’t need to be on the same property.

Since rats are active at night, you might never see them. I advise my clients to look carefully for food sources, first on your property and then to adjacent proper ties. Rat project success often involves good neighborhood communication. Compost piles, with fruit and vegetable waste, and bird feeders are often their menu. When food is removed, rats may leave on their own. If not, trapping or baiting are really the only options and you have to be so careful not to injure wildlife, humans, or pets. Call me for more information on how to do either or both safely.

The next possibility is ground squirrels. These squir rels live in the ground though they can climb trees. But tree climbing is not generally how they find food, which includes succulent vegetation, fruit, seeds, insects, carrion, and other odd things. Their

15 years. They make holes similar in size and location as rats. You may see them, if you observe stealthily, going in and out of the holes during the day. Their tunnels are more extensive that rats and have been known to under mine house supports and especially concrete blocks that hold deck posts.

This is a native species, unlike the rat, and used to be common in Columbia County. But since they can affect crops, farmers (with the help of the Extension office from the 1940s to the late 60s) baited them aggressively and knocked the population back to almost nothing. For the first 15 years I was here, I rarely saw them. But they are back with a vengeance. Their main control now is coyotes. For homeowners, control measures are basically the same as for rats, i.e., ap propriate baits and traps with proper safety measures.

Two other possibilities are rabbits and mountain beaver. Rabbits seem to be increasing and do make holes, but the

holes are commonly hidden in dense brush. Mountain bea ver, also known as “boomers” and they are not true beavers, are only found on properties nestled next to forests.

Local events

Hazardous Waste Col lection Day from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 22, at the Columbia County Transfer Station, 1601 Railroad Ave in St. Helens. Will take house hold quantities of pesticides, paints and stains, cleaners, old oil, brake fluid, etc. For details, go to https://www. columbiacountyor.gov/depart ments/SolidWaste/householdhazardous-waste-1.

Columbia County Beekeepers event 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 3. The CCOB will host a hybrid meeting on zoom and in person at the OSU Extension Office. The topic will be winter clustering and how honeybees survive winter. Everyone is welcome. For information about joining by Zoom, email Columbia CountyOregonBeekeepers@ gmail.com.

Food Preservation: You can get up-to-date and ac curate answers to your food preservation questions by calling our office at 503 3973462 and asking to speak to Jenny Rudolph.

Important notes

• The OSU Extension Of fice is fully open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Pet of the Month

Meet Toby

• Donate extra garden produce and/or money to the food bank, senior centers, or community meals programs. It is greatly appreciated.

• The Extension Service offers its programs and mate rials equally to all people.

Have questions?

If you have questions on any of these topics or other home garden and/or farm questions, please contact Chip Bubl, Oregon State Univer sity Extension office in St. Helens at 503-397-3462 or at chip.bubl@oregonstate. edu. The office is open from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Free newsletter

The Oregon State Uni versity Extension office in Columbia County publishes a monthly newsletter on gardening and farming topics, called County Living, written/ edited by yours truly. All you need to do is ask for it and it will be mailed or emailed to you. Call 503-397-3462 to be put on the list. Alternatively, you can find it on the web at http://extension.oregonstate. edu/columbia/ and click on newsletters.

Contact resource Oregon State University Extension Service – Colum bia County 505 N. Columbia River Highway St. Helens, OR 97051 503-397-3462

Toby

classic,

right around

going

car rides

bark

people walking

playful,

toys

chew. Probably

good

kids

Courtesy photo

Gov. Kate Brown tours a Japanese store displaying Oregon products while on an Oregon trade mission to Asia in 2017.

CHIP

Metro Creative Connection

Classifieds

CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Columbia 9-1-1 Communications District (C911CD) is conducting a hir ing process for a Chief Financial Of ficer. Apply online at www.columbia911.com/careers. Additional informa tion can be found on our website or by calling 503366-6978.

CADC1s and Milieu Coordinator NARA is urgently hiring a Mental Health Profession als at our Resi dential Treatment Center. 17645 NW St. Helens High way Portland, OR 97231. We are in need of: CADC1s

($21- 25k DOE/ yr + Benefits) Mi lieu Coordinator ($21 -25k/yr + Ben efits). To inquire, please contact us: jobs@naranorth west.org

Residential Assistants

NARA is urgently hiring a Mental Health Profession als at our Resi dential Treatment Center. 17645 NW St. Helens High way Portland, OR 97231. We are in need of: Resi dential Assistants - ($20k/yr + Ben efits) Housing Recovery Mentors ($20-24k/yr + Ben efits) To inquire, please contact us: jobs@naranorth west.org

Full-time Maintenance Workers

NARA is urgently hiring full-time maintenance work ers at our Resi dential Treatment Center. 17645 NW St. Helens High way Portland, OR 97231 $25/hr + Benefits To inquire, please contact us: jobs@naranorth west.org

The City of Scappoose is accepting applications for a Utility Worker SALARY: $20.94 - $35.06 per hour depending on experience. RE QUIREMENT: See

full position de scription at www. ci.scappoose.or.us/ jobs BENEFITS: The City of Scap poose provides a complete pack age of employee benefits. APPLICA TION DEADLINE: Open Until Filled. First review of application: Oc tober 24, 2022 Applications can be picked up at Scappoose City Hall, 33568 E. Columbia Avenue or down loaded from our website at http:// www.ci.scappoose. or.us//jobs. The City of Scappoose is an Equal Oppor tunity Employer.

Apartment for rent 55+ in St. Helens. 1 bedroom. Quiet, very clean, no smoking, no pets. $970/month. 971-757-5235.

Got Cedar and Noble trees?

so, we want your boughs! Paying 17 cents per pound.

with over 20 years

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BOTH DAYS: CASH ONLY:

Huge Curated Antique and Vintage 3 Generation Estate Sale. Estate has been in storage for decades. Southern Kentuckyborn, Civil War Great-Grandmother, Plantation Proper Linens and House wares, Handmade Cypress and Cherry Wood Furniture, Dining Room Sets, Beautiful Original Wooden Dental Cabinet, Persian Rugs (Cleaned), Crystals and Rocks, Porch Rockers, Quilts, Antique Ice Cream Molds, Hoosier, Wedgewood, Blue Peony Service for 30, Pottery, Glassware, Art, Costume Jewelry, Holiday, Vintage Christmas, Mid Century Modern Alumi num Christmas Tree, Thanksgiving & Holiday Serveware Galore, Antique Dolls, and

Waterman Garage Doors

Scott Waterman Owner

Public Notices

PROTECTING YOUR RIGHT TO KNOW

Trustee’s Notice of Sale

The Trustee under the terms of the Trust Deed described herein, at the direction of the Beneficiary, hereby elects to sell the property described in the Trust Deed to satisfy the obligations secured thereby.

Pursuant to ORS 86.771, the following information is Provided: 1: Parties Grantor: Stanley B. Meyer Trustee: Ticor Title Company of Oregon Successor Trustee: Robert P. Van Natta Benefi ciary: Ronald L. Russell 2: Description of Property: Lot 3, Block 8, Central Addi tion, In the City of Vernonia, Columbia County, Oregon.

3: Recording: The trust Deed was recorded as follows: Dated recorded: April 21, 2016 Recording No: 2016002839 Official Records of Columbia County, Oregon 4: Default: The Grantor or any other person obligated on the Trust Deed and Promis sory Note secured thereby is in default and the Ben eficiary seeks to foreclose the Trust deed for failure to pay: Monthly payments of $400.00 for each of 9 suc cessive months beginning with January 2022 through and including September 2022 due on the 21st of each month; plus late charges and unpaid real unpaid property taxes, or liens, plus inter est. 5: Amount Due: The amount due on the Note which is secured by the Trust deed referred to herein is 28,615.68, Together with in

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terest at 5% per annum from December 21, 2021, Plus advances, late charges, and foreclosure attorney fees and costs. There are also 3 years outstanding property taxes Amounting to $4984.47 plus interest. 6: Sale of property: The Trustee hereby states that the property will be sold to satisfy the obligation secured by the Trust Deed. A trustees notice of Default and election to Sell under the terms of the Trust Deed has been recorded in the Of ficial Records of Columbia County, Oregon. 7: Time of Sale Date: February 13, 2023, Time 10:00 A.M. 8:

Right to reinstate: Any per son named in ORS 86.778 has the right at any time that is not later than five days before the Trustee conducts the sale, to have this foreclo sure dismissed and the Trust Deed reinstated by payment to the Beneficiary of the Entire amount then due, other than such proportion of the Principal as would not be then due had no default occurred, by curing any other default that is capable of being cured by tendering the performance required under the obligation of the Trust Deed and by paying all costs and expenses actually incurred in enforcing the ob ligation and the Trust Deed and by paying all costs and expenses actually incurred in enforcing the obligations and Trust Deed, together with the Trustee’s and Attorney’s fees

not exceeding the amount in ORS 86.778 Notice regard ing Potential Hazards (This notice is required for notices of sale sent on or after Janu ary 1, 2015) Without limiting the trustee’s disclaimer of representations or warran ties, Oregon law requires the trustee to state in this notice that some residential property sold at a Trustee’s sale may have been used in manufacturing meth amphetamines, the chemic components of which are known to be toxic. Prospec tive purchasers of residential property should be aware of this potential danger before deciding to place a bid for this property at the Trustee’s Sale. You may reach the Oregon State Bar’s Lawyer Referral Service at 503-6843763 or toll free in Oregon at 800-452-7636 or you may visit its website at www.os bar.org. Legal assistance may be available if you have a low income and meet federal poverty guidelines. For more information and a directory of legal aid programs, go to http://www.oregonlawhelp. org. Any questions regard ing this matter should be directed to Robert P. Van Natta, Attorney at Law, P.O. Box 748, St. Helens, OR 97051. Phone 503-397-4091.

Dated September 28, 2022.

Signed by Robert P. Van Natta, Successor trustee.

Dates of Publication: Oct. 5, 2022; Oct. 12, 2022; Oct. 19, 2022 & Oct. 26, 2022.

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IN THE COUNTY COURT OF THE STATE OF OREGON FOR THE COUNTY OF COLUMBIA

Probate Department In the Matter of the Estate of: Sheri J. Bean, Deceased. Case No. 22PB08066 NO TICE TO INTERESTED PERSONS Notice is hereby given that Steven C. Kai has been appointed as the personal representative of the above estate. All persons having claims against the

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estate are required to pres ent them to the personal representative in care of his attorney David B. Brown hill at: 8555 SW Apple Way, Suite 300, Portland, OR 97225, within four months after the date of first publication of this notice, as stated below or such claims may be barred. All

persons whose rights may be affected by the proceedings in this estate may obtain additional information from the records of the Court, the personal representative, or the attorney for the personal representative. Dated and first published October 5, 2022, October 12, 2022, and October 19, 2022.

CIRCUIT COURT OF OREGON FOR COLUMBIA COUNTY Estate of BARRIE M. WINDELL, Deceased. No. 22PB07611 PROBATE NOTICE TO CREDITORS ORS 113.155

The Personal Representa tive named below has been appointed as Personal Repre sentative of this estate. Any person having a claim against the decedent must, before the time the claim would be barred by any otherwise applicable statute of limita tions, present the claim in the manner as provided in ORS Chapter 115 by serving on or mailing to the Personal Repre sentative or the Personal Rep resentative’s attorney at the address stated below a copy of

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the claim and filing the origi nal of the claim with the court.

All persons having claims against the estate must present them within four months after the date of the first publication of the notice to the Personal Representative at the address designated in the notice for the presentation of claims or they may be barred. All persons whose rights may be affected by the proceeding may obtain additional information from the 3records of the court, the Personal Representative, or

the attorney for the Personal Representative. Date of First Publication: October 12, 2022. KELLIE M. HENDERSON, Personal Representative, 209 E Midway Avenue, San Jacinto, CA 92583. Attorneys for Personal Representative: SEONAÍD A. BARNGRO VER (OSB #215097) WAL STEAD MERTSCHING PS, Civic Center Building, Third Floor, 1700 Hudson Street, PO Box 1549, Longview, Washington 98632-7934. Telephone: (360) 423-5220.

PUBLIC LIEN SALE U-STORE SELF STORAGE

Auction to be held online at Storageauctions. com. Auction will run from 10/11/2022 10:00 am & end on 10/21/2022 10:00 am. Unclaimed storage lockers

to be sold by competitive bidding. 1st Location: Scap poose 53567 Columbia River Hwy. James Smith E022. 2nd Location: St. Helens 445 Port Ave, Suite D, Julie Crawford

0-017, John Freeman R-144, Jadi Porter G-054, Katelyn Louise Taylor C-011. GOODS OF EVERY DESCRIPTION SOLD BY STORAGE LOT. Cash and Credit Cards.

Reference is made to that certain Trust Deed made by, BRIAN CLINE, AN UN MARRIED MAN as Grantor to TICOR TITLE as Trustee, in favor of MORTGAGE ELECTRONIC REGIS TRATION SYSTEMS, INC. (“MERS”), as desig nated nominee for BANK OF ENGLAND, Beneficiary of the security instrument, its successors and assigns, dated as of March 30, 2016 and recorded on March 30, 2016 as Instrument No. 2016002311 of official records in the Office of the Re corder of Columbia County, Oregon to-wit: APN: 9580 || 4N1W03BC00408 LOT 18, JOHN GUMM SUBDIVI SION, IN THE CITY OF ST. HELENS, COLUMBIA COUNTY OREGON. Com monly known as: 300 S. 4TH

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Plaintiff, v. PAUL’S TREE SERVICE, LLC, an Oregon limited liability company; and RONALD P. WITSCHEN, Defen dants. No. 22CV18286

SUMMONS FOR SER VICE BY PUBLICATION

Date of First Publication: 10/19/2022(response must be filed within 30 days of this date) Financial Pa cific Leasing, Inc. has filed a Complaint for breach of contract and replevin asking the court to order money judgment of $40,134.10

ST, SAINT HELENS, OR 97051 Both the Beneficiary, U.S. Bank National As sociation, and the Trustee, Nathan F. Smith, Esq., OSB #120112, have elected to sell the said real property to sat isfy the obligations secured by said Trust Deed and notice has been recorded pursuant to Section 86.735(3) of Or egon Revised Statutes. The default for which the foreclo sure is made is the Grantor’s failure to pay: Failed to pay payments which became due Monthly Payment(s): 3 Monthly Payment(s) from 12/01/2021 to 02/01/2022 at $1,389.75 7 Monthly Payment(s) from 03/01/2022 to 09/01/2022 at $1,399.56

Monthly Late Charge(s): By this reason of said default the Beneficiary has declared all obligations secured by said

Trust Deed immediately due and payable, said sums being the following, to-wit: The sum of $170,798.46 together with interest thereon at the rate of 4.50000% per annum from November 1, 2021 until paid; plus all accrued late charges thereon; and all Trustee’s fees, foreclosure costs and any sums advanced by the Beneficiary pursuant to the terms of said Trust Deed. Wherefore, notice is hereby given that, the under signed Trustee will on Janu ary 24, 2023 at the hour of 01:00 PM, Standard of Time, as established by Section 187.110, Oregon Revised Statues, Front Entrance, Columbia County Court house, 230 Strand Street, St. Helens, OR 97051 County of Columbia, sell at public auction to the highest bidder

for cash the interest in the said described real property which the Grantor had or had power to convey at the time of the execution by him of the said Trust Deed, together with any interest which the Grantor or his successors in interest acquired after the ex ecution of said Trust Deed, to satisfy the foregoing obliga tions thereby secured and the costs and expenses of sale, including a reasonable charge by the Trustee. Notice is further given that any person named in Section 86.753 of Oregon Revised Statutes has the right to have the foreclo sure proceeding dismissed and the Trust Deed reinstated by payment to the Beneficia ry of the entire amount then due (other than such portion of said principal as would not then be due had no default

occurred), together with the costs, Trustee’s or attorney’s fees and curing any other default complained of in the Notice of Default by tender ing the performance required under the obligation or Trust Deed, at any time prior to five days before the date last set for sale. Without limiting the Trustee’s disclaimer of representations or warran ties, Oregon law requires the Trustee to state in this notice that some residential property sold at a Trustee’s sale may have been used in manufac turing methamphetamines, the chemical components of which are known to be toxic.

Prospective purchasers of residential property should be aware of this potential danger before deciding to place a bid for this property at the Trust ee’s sale. In construing this

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and return of the equipment consisting of 2020 Vermeer BC1000XL Chipper VIN 1VRY11190L1029872. You must “appear” in this case or the other side will win auto matically. To “appear,” you must file a legal Response, Answer, or Motion. Forms may be available through the court above or online at www.courts.oregon.gov/ forms. Talk to a lawyer for information about appearing by motion. NOTICE TO DE FENDANT: READ CARE FULLY! Your response must

be filed with the court named above within 30 days of the date of first publication (noted above), along with the required filing fee (go to www.courts.oregon.gov for fee information). It must be in proper form. You must show that the other party’s lawyer (or the party if they do not have a lawyer) was formally served with a copy of your response according to the service rules. Service rules are in the Oregon Rules of Civil Procedure (ORCP) Rule 9. If you have

questions, see a lawyer im mediately. If you need help finding a lawyer, you can call the Oregon State Bar’s Lawyer Referral Service at 503.684.3763 or toll free in Oregon at 800.452.7636, or go to www.oregonstatebar. org. DATED: September 22, 2022. KILMER, VOOR HEES & LAURICK, P.C. James P. Laurick, OSB No. 821530 2701 NW Vaughn St, # 780, Portland, OR 97210 971-634-1132 phone; jlaurick@kilmerlaw.com Of Attorneys for Plaintiff.

local businesses.

“We want to create a co hesive riverfront that unites the core of our existing Riverfront District to new development,” St. Helens City Administrator John Walsh said. “By doing so, we can support our existing local businesses while build ing a strong foundation for future development.”

The Streets and Utilities Extension Project is one of two infrastructure projects

that are focused on redevel opment of the Riverfront Property. The other project is the Riverwalk Project. Phase I of the Riverwalk Project is expected to break ground in the summer of 2023. Phase I will expand Columbia View Park onto the Riverfront Property, construct a new amphithe ater stage in the park, and construct the first phase of a public walkway and board walk along the edge of the Columbia River.

A brief sampling of Riv erfront District businesses revealed strong support for the project.

“I’m 100% for it,” said Molly Matchak of Molly’s Market.

“I don’t know much about it,” Jodi Tupper of Scandalous Hair Design told The Chronicle. “They’ve been talking about it for years. I’m all for it. I’m for improvement 100%.”

Andrew Bliss of Bemis Printing said, “I don’t know much about it, but it’s about time.”

Groundbreaking ceremony

The public is invited to attend the groundbreaking

ceremony for the Streets and Utilities Extension Project at 3 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 2. The ceremony will be held at the South 1st Street and St. Helens Street intersec tion. More information will be available closer to the date of the event. Follow developments at thechroni cleonline.com.

Local impacts

The City of St. Helens is committed to supporting lo cal businesses and residents impacted by this project, according to a release from the city.

notice, the masculine gender includes the feminine and the neuter, the singular includes plural, the word “Grantor” includes any successor in interest to the Grantor as well as any other persons owing an obligation, the perfor mance of which is secured by said Trust Deed, the words “Trustee” and “Beneficiary” includes their respective successors in interest, if any. Dated: 9/22/2022 By: Nathan F. Smith, Esq., OSB #120112 Successor Trustee Malcolm & Cisneros, A Law Corporation Attention: Nathan F. Smith, Esq., OSB #120112 c/o TRUSTEE CORPS 17100 Gillette Ave, Irvine, CA 92614 949-2528300 Order Number 85851, Pub Dates: 10/5/2022, 10/12/2022, 10/19/2022, 10/26/2022, CHRONICLE.

In the Matter of the Estate of: ROGER WARREN LAIN, Deceased. Case No. 22PB08214

NOTICE TO INTER ESTED PERSONS NO TICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that Jennifer Bowen has been appointed personal representative. All persons having claims against the estate are required to pres ent them, with vouchers attached, to Jennifer Bowen, 441 Wyeth Street, Saint Hel ens, OR 97051, 503-3692844, personal representa tive of the estate of ROGER WARREN LAIN, within

In partnership with the St. Helens Main Street Al liance, City staff will begin direct outreach to area busi nesses and residents in midOctober. The City will host business and neighborhood meetings before and during construction to share infor mation about the project and listen to concerns. Any area residents or businesses with questions can email water front@sthelensoregon.gov.

Stay informed

The City of St. Helens has launched a Waterfront Redevelopment newsletter

four months after the date of first publication of this notice, or the claims may be barred. All persons whose rights may be affected by the proceedings may obtain additional information from the records of the Court, the personal representa tive, or the lawyer for the personal representative, Aaron Martin, 272 South 1st Street, Saint Helens, Oregon 97051. Dated and first pub lished on October 19, 2022.

to keep community mem bers informed about project information, construction impacts, and timelines. Subscribe to the newslet ter on the city’s website at www.sthelensoregon.gov/ waterfront/page/waterfrontredevelopment-newsletter.

Project information can also be found on the city’s website at www.sthelens oregon.gov/waterfront/ page/streets-and-utilitiesextension-project. Follow the development at the chronicleonline.com and in the Wednesday print editions of The Chronicle.

IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF THE STATE OF OREGON FOR THE COUNTY OF COLUMBIA FINANCIAL PACIFIC LEASING, INC.

Wildlife collisions rise in Oregon during fall, winter

JEREMY C. RUARK jruark@countrymedia.net

Encounters between driv ers in Oregon and wildlife often cause human injuries and even death.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reports 24 people in Oregon died in vehicle collisions with ani mals between 2011 and 2020.

The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) documents an average of more than 6,000 vehicle collisions with deer and elk each year. The actual number of collisions is likely higher, as many are not reported if there is minimal damage or no human injuries.

The vehicle collisions peak in October and No vember, when migration and breeding (the “rut”) puts the deer and elk on the move, making them more likely to be crossing roads. Fewer daylight hours and rainy weather also reduce driv ers’ visibility, increasing the danger of collision.

The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) and ODOT are urging Oregonians to Watch out for Wildlife this time of year and follow these tips:

• Be careful when driving in areas that have special signs indicating the possible presence of wildlife. These signs are posted for a reason.

• Be alert in areas with dense vegetation along the road or while going around curves. Wildlife near the road may not be visible.

• If you see one animal, stay alert. There may be oth ers nearby.

• If you see wildlife on or near the road, slow down and stay in your lane. Many seri ous crashes are the result of drivers losing control as they swerve to avoid wildlife.

The same advice applies for smaller wildlife like rac coons; try to stay in your lane and do not swerve for these animals. They are less dan gerous to vehicles than big game animals, and maintain

a statement from the county department.

Columbia County will collect $93,852,753 in taxes from businesses and private landowners this year. But most of that amount does not get added to the county budget; only 9.44 percent, or roughly $8.9 million, goes into the county’s general fund. An additional 3.89 per cent, or $3.6 million, goes to the Jail Operation Fund from the local option levy ap proved by county voters.

Tax dollars disbursed to the general fund largely pay for county law enforcement and public safety, including the Columbia County Sher iff’s Office, jail operations, and the district attorney’s of fice. The remainder pays for general county administra tion, including the assessor’s office, land development services, juvenile services, and the county commission.

More than 85 percent of property tax funds col lected are distributed to local schools, cities, and special districts, such as those that manage 911 services or soil

ing control of your vehicle is most important.

• Always wear your seat belt. Even a minor colli sion could result in serious injuries.

ODFW, ODOT and partner organizations are working to reduce the risk of vehicle-wildlife collisions by building wildlife cross ings. The crossings allow wildlife to safely follow their migration patterns over or under a road. Data shows wildlife crossings on Hwy 97 near Sunriver have reduced vehicle-wildlife collisions by nearly 90 percent.

The bipartisan infra structure bill passed by Congress in 2021 is provid ing $350 million in competi tive grants to the states for wildlife crossings and other mitigation. ODFW, ODOT and other partners will be working to secure grants for projects.

Oregon drivers can also show their support by pur chasing a Watch for Wildlife license plate. The revenue generated from license plate sales will benefit projects that help wildlife move within their range and between habitat patches. Originally developed by the Oregon Wildlife Foundation, the license plate is now available at the DMV.

Roadkill salvagers: CWD testing is mandatory

As wildlife-vehicle col lisions peak, so does partici pation in ODFW’s roadkill salvage program. Since 2019, salvaging deer or elk struck by a vehicle has been legal in Oregon. Salvagers are required to fill out a free online permit available at https://myodfw.com/articles/ roadkill-salvage-permits

Since the program kicked off in January 2019, 5,027 permits have been issued. The most permits have been issued for black-tailed deer in Western Oregon, where there are more drivers.

Salvagers are also re

and water conservation. The fire districts that protect the entire county, from Vernonia to Clatskanie to Scappoose, receive more than 19 percent of the total. But the vast majority of taxes (47 percent) go towards education, includ ing five school districts, one educational service district, and Portland Community College.

Here’s the breakdown:

• Schools: $44,623,284 –47 percent

• Fire Districts: $17,594,630 – 19 percent

• Columbia County Gov ernment: $12,509,900 – 13 percent

• City Governments: $9,001,087 – 10 percent

• Special Districts: $6,831,596 – 7 percent

• Urban Renewal: $1,729,950 – 2 percent

• Drainage/Special As sessments: $1,562,306 – 2 percent

Total: $93,852,753

Columbia County has 91 tax code areas that are com prised of various combina tions of taxing districts that serve that area. Therefore, your property’s location dictates the rate and type of taxes you pay. City dwellers can often pay more than rural

quired to bring the head and antlers of all salvaged deer and elk to an ODFW office for testing within five days. This is so ODFW can test the animal for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD), a fatal neu rological disease that ODFW has been on the lookout for since it first appeared in the late 1960s in Colorado.

The disease has never been detected in Oregon’s wildlife. But CWD testing regulations have taken on new urgency after it was detected in several wild deer and elk in northwest Idaho, about 30 miles from Or egon’s border, late last year.

Infected animals can spread the disease for several years before showing symp toms (which include loss of balance, drooling, emacia tion or wasting and eventual death). Testing apparently healthy deer and elk early in the course of the disease when they are not show ing symptoms is the most effective method to catch the disease before an animal has spread the disease across the landscape and to other animals.

“With the disease now much closer to the state’s borders, we just want to remind roadkill salvagers about the mandatory testing requirements.” explained ODFW wildlife veterinarian Dr. Colin Gillin. “The more animals the state tests, the more certain ODFW can be that the disease is not in the state. If it is detected, ODFW can implement its response plan to contain the spread of the disease.”

Test results are expected to take up to a month. If an animal ever tests positive for CWD, a biologist or veteri narian will phone the person who salvaged that animal directly.

Negative test results will be posted for roadkill salvag ers to individually check online at https://www.dfw. state.or.us/wildlife/health_ program/CWD-testing. To find your result, enter RSP before your permit number (e.g. RSP5001)

Columbia River PUD is located at 64001 Columbia River Highway in Deer Island. The PUD may be reached at 503-397-1844.

Local PUD makes ‘Best’ list

STAFF REPORT chroniclenews@countrymedia.net

Columbia River PUD is recognized on the 100 Best Nonprofits to Work for in Oregon list, compiled by Oregon Business Magazine.

CRPUD placed No. 30 among medium-sized organi zations.

“We are really honored to be receiving this recogni tion,” Columbia River PUD General Manager Michael Sykes said. “At Columbia River PUD, we put a high value on collaboration, teamwork, and meeting the needs of our employees. We

have learned that by working together, we can truly make a difference!”

The list showcases orga nizations that have commit ted to best-in-class workplace practices and is based on scoring of surveys sent to the employees themselves. Em ployees were asked to rate their satisfaction with five features of the workplace: work environment, manage ment and communication, mission and goals, career de velopment and learning, and benefits and compensation.

Organizations are also independently scored based on the benefits they provide,

as well as the percentage of employees who took the survey.

“We want to thank our employees for all of their valuable input as we con tinue to try to make the PUD a great place to work,” Columbia River PUD Human Resources Manager Sonia Wendelschafer said.

The PUD is the only elec tric utility recognized on the Business Oregon list. This is the first year PUD employees participated in the anony mous survey.

View the Oregon Business list at oregonbusiness.com.

Top InRoads officials retiring

InRoads Credit Union President/CEO Brooke Van Vleet-Pearson and InRoads Chief Lending Officer Robin Balza will retire in 2023.

The two represent over 70 years of industry expertise and leadership, according to a release from InRoads.

Van Vleet-Pearson began her credit union career at First Tech Federal Credit Union, quickly working her way into leadership roles, including interim President/ CEO. The InRoads board of directors hired Van VleetPearson in 2012. With her leadership and insight, the credit union more than doubled in size, from $166 million to over $360 million in assets. In addition, she helped oversee the expansion of the credit union’s charter and name change. Today, InRoads Credit Union, for merly St. Helens Community Credit Union, now serves Columbia, Cowlitz, Clatsop, Multnomah, and Washington Counties.

“I’m so honored to have been part of the InRoads family,” Van Vleet-Pearson said. “I’ve seen so many positive changes at InRoads over the last decade that have allowed the credit union to remain financially strong and sustainable. I’m confident our growth will continue as we serve more families and local businesses with the fi nancial products and services they want and deserve. That includes the addition of our recent CDFI certification providing access to funding that will be used to gener ate economic growth and opportunity throughout the community.”

Balza, who will retire after 43 years at the credit union, has been instrumental in making InRoads one of the premier lending institu tions in the region. During her time at the credit union, she has served in nearly all facets of the organization and has been an adaptable, proven leader. In 2020, com mercial loans, home loans, and consumer loans all saw record growth thanks to her guidance.

“During my career I’ve seen a lot of changes at the credit union,” Balza said “One thing that has never changed is the impact this credit union has had on the families and businesses that have relied on us over the decades. They’re the reason we do what we do. I’m proud of our many successes, most recently the execution of our PPP loan program, helping small businesses survive dur ing the pandemic. We were able to help 173 businesses save over 600 jobs in our lo cal communities.”

“On behalf of the entire board of directors and all InRoads employees, I want

to thank Brooke and Robin for their dedication and leadership.” Board Chair Lea Chitwood said. “Both women are an inspiration. InRoads is poised for growth and prepared to better serve our current and future members thanks to their guidance.”

Van Vleet-Pearson and Balza said they plan to spend their retirement traveling and spending time with family and friends.

The InRoads board of directors has worked over the last year on a comprehensive succession planning process and will conduct a search to find its new president/CEO, according to a release from the credit union. Van VleetPearson will work with Balza to recruit and identify a new Chief Lending Officer.

InRoads Credit Union (in roadscu.org) describes itself as a not-for-profit, com munity-focused, memberowned financial cooperative that’s open to anyone who lives, works, attends school, volunteers, or worships in Columbia, Clatsop, Cowlitz, Multnomah, and Washington Counties.

property owners because of the local taxes that fund parks, libraries, or local voter-approved bonds, among other benefits.

In May of 2020, voters within the St. Helens School District boundary approved a $55 million bond to ad dress “health, safety, build

ing systems, and education programs” at the high school. The tax collection to pay this bond was delayed until 2022, as promised to taxpayers when the bond was approved.

Taxpayers will see this on their property tax statements this year. This bond is in ad dition to the $49 million bond

that was passed in 2016. The increase in tax for those in this district is roughly $1 per thousand of assessed value.

For example, if your assessed value is $100,000, you would see an additional $100 in tax.

Taxpayers can find their property tax statement code number on the top left

corner of the document. To see the exact charges for your specific code, go to the county assessor’s webpage at columbiacountyor.gov and open the 2022-23 Summary of Assessment & Tax Roll. The document contains a list of all agencies in the county that receive the taxes.

Courtesy photo

Courtesy photo

Robin Balza and Brooke Van Vleet-Pearson.

STAFF REPORT chroniclenews@countrymedia.net

Courtesy photo

Drivers are urged to watch for close encounters with wildlife along roads and highways.

Courtesy from Columbia County

Law enforcement, citizen receive plaques for deadly shooting heroics

Law enforcement officers and a citizen have received recognition for their involve ment in March 31 incident in which a murder suspect was fatally shot at a Scappoose towing company.

Columbia County Sheriff Brian Pixley and Oregon State Police (OSP) Sgt. Chad Drew received the Medal of Valor; and OSP Troop ers Chris Cowen and Grace Davey were presented with the Medal of Meritorious Service. Jay White, an em ployee of Grumpy’s Towing, received the Distinguished Citizen Award.

The awards were pre sented during the Columbia County Board of Commis sioners regular public meet ing Oct. 12.

OSP Superintendent Terri Davie presented the award to Pixley.

“You were the first re sponder that day,” she said. “You may have known that some cavalry was coming but you didn’t know how many or when. It was you that took the initial. You ran the action. You were there for Mr. White and any other community member that may have been there. That is huge, and it is amazing what your leadership to this county has brought. And

when I say that, very unso licited, my team has let me know what it means to have you as a leader in Columbia County. And for that I want to thank you for being a wonderful partner but the leader that this county needs and deserves.”

The shooting

The March 31 incident involved a disturbance at Grumpy’s Towing. The sus pect, identified as 39-yearold Michael Stockton, fired several shots at Pixley and Drew, and both returned fire without being injured themselves, according to investigators. Stockton suf fered fatal wounds during the incident.

Other law officers ar rived at the scene. Officers administered cardiopul monary resuscitation and rescue breathing to Stockton until medical personnel took over, until Stockton died.

The Washington County Sheriff’s Office investigated the shootings and returned its findings to the Columbia County district attorney.

In late August, Columbia County District Attorney Jeff Auxier ruled that the shoot ing was justified. Following the investigation, The Chron icle conducted an exclusive interview with Pixley about the deadly event. He told The Chronicle that it was the first time in his 20 years of law enforcement that he had shot a person.

Pixley’s description of the shooting as it happened.

“I immediately drew my firearm and called ‘Shots fired!’ over the radio. I fol lowed the suspect outside. Once outside, I turned to my right and saw the suspect standing about 10 feet away from me with two guns pointed at me. He started shooting and my body camera fell to the ground. I ordered him to drop his gun, but he didn’t, so I fired my gun. He turned to run away but continued firing at me, so I continued to fire back, striking him.

The suspect fell to the ground on the opposite side

ued firing at me. I radioed to dispatch that the suspect was down but still shoot ing. While on the ground, he continued firing. I moved to get into a better position to engage him but couldn’t locate a direct line of fire and realized that any further shots from me would be fired towards the highway, so I chose not to shoot. Instead, I continued to yell “Drop the gun!” and “Put your hands up!”

Over two minutes later, OSP troopers arrived. The suspect continued to fire so one of the troopers raised his rifle and fired several shots at the suspect. At that

his guns. The troopers and I approached the suspect to take him into custody and render aid.”

Read the full interview with this story at the chronicelonline.com.

After receiving his award, Pixley presented the other four plaques.

Following the award presentation, Pixley told The Chronicle:

“Today I was honored to recognize these heroes in our community with special awards for their bravery,” Pixley said. “They ran towards danger when the bullets were flying and put their lives on the line to pro

tect the citizens of Columbia County. I am honored to be able to call them my friends and to work alongside such amazing people.”

Drew also commented to The Chronicle following the ceremony.

“I would like to extend a thank-you for all the sup port from the community, my family and friends,” Drew said. “I know that my Columbia County law enforcement partners would have done the same had our situations been reversed.”

Read a series of stories about the officer-involved fatal shooting with this story at thechronicleonline.com.

K9 Ryder helps find, capture theft suspect

HERB SWETT chronicle1@countrymedia.net

Ryder of the St. Helens Police Department (SHPD) just took a big bite out of crime.

K-9 Ryder is credited with helping officers find and arrest an alleged knifewielding theft suspect.

At approximately 4:21 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 15, St. Helens police were dis patched to the St. Helens Walmart at 2295 Gable Road on the report of a theft in progress.

Reports alleged that the suspect swung a knife at a customer while fleeing store employees at the location. Witnesses reported seeing the suspect leave the scene in a stolen vehicle prior to officers’ arrival.

Officers set up a perim eter and conducted a search. A male subject was located near Gable Road who of ficers believed was involved in the theft. The suspect fled from officers on foot, jump ing over several fences. Of ficers continued their search but were unable to locate the suspect, according to a release from SHPD.

Officers found the stolen vehicle involved in the incident abandoned on the railroad tracks near Port Av enue. A search of the vehicle was conducted, leading to the identity of 35-year-old Paul Costello.

Later that day, at ap proximately 11:26 p.m., a St. Helens officer was on routine patrol when he spotted an in dividual matching Costello’s description near 373 S. Co lumbia River Highway. The suspect fled from the officer, and a K-9 unit was called to conduct a search. St. Helens K-9 Ryder conducted a track, and Costello was located hid ing in blackberry bushes.

Costello was taken into custody and lodged at Columbia County Jail on charges of first- and seconddegree robbery, unlawful use of a weapon, resisting arrest, menacing, possession of a stolen vehicle, criminal trespass, and multiple other charges, the release states.

Oregon State Police, Columbia County Sheriff’s Office, Scappoose Police Department, and Rainier Po lice Department assisted the St. Helens Police with both searches.

Investigators are ask

ing anyone who may have additional information about this case to contact the St. Helens Police Department at 503-397-1521.

K-9 Ryder’s history in St. Helens

K-9 Ryder is a purebred male German shepherd. He was born in Hungary and began his duties in St. Helens in 2016. He is handled by St. Helens Police Sgt. Jon Egg ers. Ryder is the department’s fifth K-9, replacing former K-9 Lycos, who retired from service in November 2014. Ryder is the department’s only K-9.

The SHPD acquired the dog through Vohne Liche Kennels West in California. Ryder comes to St. Helens with training in bite work.

“K-9s must attend a 10-week academy to test workability, obedience, tracking, and bite work,” City of St. Helens Communi cations Officer Crystal King said. “Training depends on certification in areas such as drug detection, tracking, or cadaver recovery. Ryder is specialized in tracking and bite work.”

King said K-9s contribute

to the police department’s public safety efforts because they have special skills and qualities that police officers do not possess.”

“Depending on their specialized training, a police canine can use scent detec tion in numerous situations ranging from drug detec tion to locating a cadaver or tracking a missing person or a suspect,” King said. “Police canines are also useful in gaining the peaceful surren der of a suspect. Knowing that a police canine is on the scene, many suspects will voluntarily surrender without officers having to use any physical force. This improves the safety of both our officers and the suspect and is a tool that can be used to de-esca late a situation.”

King said St. Helens po lice canines are particularly useful in tracking suspects who are on foot and travel ing through wooded areas or dense brush.

Ryder has assisted in 10 to 12 captures in the last 18 months along with three or four article finds. Eggers and Ryder have been deployed 10 to 25 times in that time period, according to King.

Pet parenting style influences dog behavior,

SEAN NEALON Chronicle Guest Article

Dogs with owners who have high expectations and are highly responsive to their dog’s behavior and needs are more social, more secure when away from their own ers and more persistent prob lem solvers, an Oregon State University study found.

“We found that pet parenting style does predict patterns of dog behavior and cognition,” said Monique Udell, an associate profes sor at Oregon State and an expert on dog behavior.

“This an important finding because it suggests that dog owners who take the time to understand and meet their dog’s needs are more likely to end up with secure, resil ient dogs.”

The behavior and cogni tion of dogs have drawn increasing scientific interest during the past several de cades, with a lot of research focused on how dog be havior is influenced by the home environment and prior experiences of the dog. Now researchers are beginning to study the bond owners have with their dogs and how this influences dog behavior. Many pet care companies have picked up on this bond and are now marketing their products to “pet parents” instead of pet

owners.

In many ways, research on human-dog relationships parallels human psychol ogy research, said Lauren Brubaker, a co-author of the paper who earned her doc torate in 2019 while working in Udell’s lab.

Parenting behavior is considered an important fac tor in a child’s development and has been found to influ ence many things, including mental health, intellectual success, social cognition, attachment and job perfor mance, said Brubaker, who now works as a behavioral scientist.

The researchers’ study, published in the journal Ani mal Cognition, is one of the first to look at how the qual ity of a human-dog relation ship may influence a dog’s performance on behavioral and cognitive tests.

For the study, Udell and Brubaker recruited 48 dog owners and gave them a pet parenting style survey. Using the survey data, dog own ers were divided into three categories, which are similar to those used in human par enting research: authorita tive (high expectations, high responsiveness), authoritar ian (high expectations, low responsiveness) and permis sive (low expectations, low responsiveness.)

The dogs were then brought to Udell’s Human-

Animal Interaction Lab, where they participated in three behavioral tests.

the dogs’ attachment to their owner. First, the owner and the dog were situated in the same room, with the owner interacting with the dog when it came close. Then the owner left the room and finally returned, reuniting with the dog.

The second tested socia bility by having the owner and an unfamiliar person in the room with the dog and studying the interactions.

The third test involved

• Dogs with authoritative owners were the most likely to have secure attachment styles, were highly respon sive to social cues, showed a proximity-seeking prefer ence towards their owner compared to an unfamiliar person and were more independently persistent in the puzzle task. Finally, only dogs in this group success

fully solved the puzzle task.

ian owners were more likely to be insecurely attached to their primary caretaker when compared to dogs in the authoritative group.

These dogs also spent more time seeking the proximity of their owner compared to the unfamiliar person in the sociability test.

• Dogs with permis sive owners followed the social cues of the unfamiliar person but not their owner.

The dogs spent comparable time in proximity with their owner regardless of whether their owner was attentive or

finds

less persistent at the solvable task in the human-neutral condition.

“This research shows that the pet dog-human caretaker bond may be functionally and emotionally similar to the bond between a human parent and their child,” Brubaker said.

Sean Nealon is a news editor at Oregon State University’s University Rela tions and Marketing Depart ment. He may be reached at sean.nealon@oregonstate. edu.

Columbia County’s trusted local news source

Courtesy from SHPD K-9 Ryder

Courtesy photo from OSU

The researchers’ study is one of the first to look at how the quality of a human-dog relationship may influence a dog’s performance on behavioral and cognitive tests.

Courtesy photo from OSU Researchers are beginning to study the bond owners have with their dogs and how this influences dog behavior.

Herb Swett / The Chronicle

Displaying the awards are, from left, Columbia County Commissioner Casey Garrett, Grumpy’s Towing employee Jay White, OSP Trooper Chris Cowen, Trooper Grace Davey, Sheriff Brian Pixley, Columbia County Commissioner Margaret Magruder, OSP Sgt. Chad Drew, OSP Superinten dent Terri Davie, Columbia County Commissioner Henry Heimuller.

Cost of Living Increase for SNAP clients

Resources to help meet basic needs

• Find a food pantry: foodfinder.oregonfoodbank. org

• Learn about government programs and community resources for older adults and people with disabilities: Ag ing and Disability Resource Connection of Oregon at 1-855-673-2372 or www. adrcoforegon.org

• Dial 2-1-1, or text your zip code to 898-211, www.211info.org

• Find local resources and support by contacting your local Community Action Agency: www.caporegon. org/find-services/

Columbia County residents and those across the state who use Oregon Supplemental Nutrition As sistance Program (SNAP) food benefits will receive a permanent cost of living increase of approximately 12 percent starting this month.

This means people who use the SNAP program will start receiving more food benefits when they receive their October benefits.

Every October the federal government makes cost of living adjustments to SNAP maximum allotments. These adjustments are based on changes to the amount of money needed to support a basic standard of living.

Maximum SNAP allotments are the maximum amount of food benefits that a house hold may receive based off its size.

“As communities in Oregon continue to be im pacted by COVID-19 and the

rising cost of food, we know that many individuals and families are experiencing hardship and rely on SNAP food benefits to get enough healthy food for themselves and their families,” Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS), Self-Suf ficiency Programs Interim Director Jana McLellan said. “We are glad that our federal partners have made this cost-of-living increase to help people get enough healthy food. We also know that many people in Oregon are still struggling to meet their basic needs, and we en courage them to contact our partners at 211, the Oregon Food Bank and their local Community Action Agency for support during this dif ficult time.”

SNAP recipients do not have to take any action to receive the increased benefit amounts.

More information about

SNAP is available at https:// www.oregon.gov/dhs/AS SISTANCE/FOOD-BENE FITS/pages/index.aspx.

If you receive SNAP, questions about your SNAP benefits should be directed to the ONE Customer Service Center at 1-800-699-9075.

If your household receives SNAP and your income or the number of people in your household has changed, it could impact your benefits. It is important to make sure ODHS has the most up-to-date information. You can report any changes to your income or household in many ways:

• Online at: ONE.Oregon. gov

• By mail at: ONE Customer Service Center, PO Box 14015, Salem, OR 97309

• By fax at: 503-3785628

• By phone at: 1-800699-9075 or TTY 711

• Oregon Department of Human Services COVID-19 help center

Learn more at https:// www.oregon.gov/dhs/ben efits/Pages/index.aspx .

For local resources in your area, such as food or shelter, please call 2-1-1 or reach out to the state’s Aging and Disability Resource Connec tion (ADRC) at 1-855-OREADRC or 1-855-673-2372.

Fast facts

• Oregonians who receive SNAP food benefits will see their food benefits increase approximately 12 percent starting in October

• The maximum food benefit for a household of two has increased from $459 to $516

• The maximum food benefit for a household of four has increased from $835 to $939

Traumatic injuries triggered in hot weather

MOLLY ROSBACH Chronicle Guest Article

Rates of traumatic injury among workers in the Oregon agricultural and construction sectors are significantly higher dur ing periods of high heat compared with periods of more moderate weather, ac cording to an Oregon State University (OSU) study.

The results underscore the importance of providing robust safety protections for outdoor workers, especially as extreme heat events become more common with climate change, researchers said.

“The big take-home message I want people to get from this is that, if the temperature is high and you have workers out there, they’re more likely to be injured, whether it’s due to dehydration, reduction in mental capacity or exhaus tion,” said Richie Evoy, lead author on the paper and a recent doctoral gradu ate from OSU’s College of Public Health and Human Sciences.

The study, published earlier this month, examined Oregon workers’ compensa tion data from 2009-2018. Researchers looked at nearly 92,000 injury claims in which workers suffered temporary disability, per

manent disability or death.

They focused on injuries that occurred in the months of April through October because the average heat index was above 55 degrees for that period.

In addition to heat, researchers also investigated the impact of wildfire smoke on worker injury rates.

They matched injury records with meteorologi cal data to estimate heat exposure based on the heat index, which combines the effects of temperature and humidity in the air, along with environmental satellite data to estimate exposure to wildfire smoke.

They found that workers in agricultural and construc tion jobs were significantly more likely to suffer a trau matic injury on days when the heat index was above 75 degrees, compared with a baseline of 65 degrees or less.

The effect worsened when the heat index climbed to over 90 degrees, with an increased risk of 19% to 29% over baseline as the index ranged from 90 to 119 degrees.

“These results support the need for occupational safety practitioners to in clude protections for work ers during extreme heat,” said Laurel Kincl, co-author on the study and an as sociate professor in OSU’s

College of Public Health and Human Sciences.

“While our study is based in Oregon, this is true in other states and regions since these conditions will likely become more frequent with climate change.”

The impact of wildfire smoke was less clear. When researchers looked at smoke by itself, it was strongly associated with an increased risk of injury, but when they also incorporated heat index data into the analysis, the effect of wildfire smoke was no longer significant.

There are several potential reasons for this, researchers said. It could be that because wildfires happen more frequently in hot conditions, the smoke is coincidental to the heat; but smoke can sometimes also block the sun and reduce overall temperature.

Future studies should obtain more precise smoke exposure data to better understand the potential impact, researchers said. In using satellite imagery and data recorded from each day’s peak smoke exposure by ZIP code, Evoy said they couldn’t parcel out exactly how much wildfire smoke individual workers were exposed to, or what was in that smoke, because of shifting winds and changes in what was burning at any given time.

“The way things stand now, wildfires are only go ing to increase in frequency and duration in Oregon and in the West, so the more we can do to understand the risks to our outdoor workers who are going to be experi encing these climate effects first, the better off those workers are going to be in protecting their health and staying productive,” Evoy said.

Just this summer, Or egon’s Occupational Safety and Health division adopted new standards regarding wildfire and excessive heat stress. Employers are now required by law to provide workers with shade areas when the heat index exceeds 80 degrees, along with access to drinking water, a specific work-rest schedule and several other safety measures. A coalition of Oregon business groups is suing the state over these new rules, which were praised by worker advocacy groups.

Other co-authors on the OSU study included Perry Hystad and Harold Bae, both in the College of Public Health and Human Sciences.

Molly Rosbach works at the OSU Department of Marketing and Research. She may be reached at molly.rosbach@oregonstate. edu.

Scappoose takes the historic game and the trophy

districts created a trophy that Wes Bigham, former Lions head coach, was to present to the winning team.

Opal Emma Werings

On Mon., Oct. 10, 2022

Opal Emma (Dworschak) Werings, beloved grandmoth er and friend to many, passed away at age 98.

She was born May 27, 1924, in Yankton, Oregon. She attended the Yankton School and was a devoted lifelong parishioner of the Yankton Church. After gradu ating from St. Helens High School, Opal was married to Charles “Chuck” Wer ings and they had one son, Glen Charles Werings. Opal spent the majority of her life in Yankton and was very in volved in the community that she loved. Family and friends were the most important things to her.

Opal worked for Pope & Talbot in St. Helens before going to work for Steinfeld’s in Scappoose. She retired from Steinfeld’s and in retire ment Opal spent time travel ing with Chuck. They visited family in Canada, friends in California, and many national parks.

In her free time Opal enjoyed crocheting. She made beautiful baby blankets, and she made hundreds of stocking caps for the home less. In her later years she enjoyed making dishcloths and doilies. She never kept anything she made; she was very generous with her gifts.

She also taught many people to crochet over the years.

She loved helping people and loved her family and her friends very much.

Opal is survived by brother Don Dworschak; daughter-in-law Susie Wer ings; grandson Charley Wer ings (Becky); granddaughter Alisa Werings (Dan Niemi); and great-grandchildren, Anna and Evan.

She was preceded in death by parents, William and Ha zel Dworschak; sister Veryl (Dworschak)Trotter; and son Glen Charles Werings.

A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. on Oct. 22, 2022, at Yankton Commu nity Fellowship. Her favorite cookies and beverages will be served after. Opal will be laid to rest at Yankton Hillcrest Cemetery.

Charles Joseph Carsner Aug. 30, 1933 ~ Sept. 17, 2022

Charles Joseph Carsner died Sat., Sept. 17, 2022, at Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center in Portland, Oregon, at the age of 89. He was born in Portland on Aug. 30, 1933, to Wanneta “Nita” Maxine Tyler and Charles Andrew Carsner.

Charles grew up in Rainier, Prescott, and Goble. After his parents divorced, he spent his re maining high school years living with his Aunt Judy, Uncle Marion, and cousin Ronnie Veberes on their houseboat in Portland.

After graduating from Benson High School, he joined the Navy, serving as a boiler operator dur ing the Korean War on the USS Gen. William Mitchell and the USS Breckin ridge. Later he worked at Boise Cascade for 39 years, retiring in 1995 as a Shift Millwright.

Charles married the love of his life, Yvonne Marlene Vincent, on Aug. 14, 1953. Together they raised five children in St. Helens and Warren. He was the very proud grandfather of six, great grandfather of 11, and great-great grandfather of three. He loved hunt ing, fishing, gardening, Westerns, and homemade

death by his son Jeffrey and grandson Samuel. He is survived by his beloved wife Vonnie of Columbia Care Center in Scappoose; brother Mark Cooper (Roseann) of St. Helens; and children, Michael (Jean) of Kelso, Shelly (Woody) of Vancou ver, Christopher (Shelby) of Banks, and Jacob of the home.

A memorial service will be held at 2 p.m. on Fri., Oct. 28 at Yankton Com munity Fellowship Church, with a graveside to fol low at Yankton Hillcrest Cemetery. Please sign our online guestbook at www. columbiafh.com.

crossword solution

The St. Helens High School Lions football team went into the 100th-anni versary home game against Scappoose with high hopes.

But in the end, it would be Scappoose High School Indians taking the game and the specially designed trophy.

Final score was 41-6 in the Oct. 14 sports matchup.

The Lions now have a 3-4 season record, 1-2 in Cowapa League play. The Indians are 6-1 for the season, 3-0 for the league.

In the fourth quarter, a 10-yard touchdown run by Ethan Smith saved St. Helens from being shut out.

“We had to focus,” Lions Coach Cory Young said, “but on the film we saw some self-inflicted wounds.”

The Indians coach was unavailable for comment.

To mark the centennial, leaders from both school

Before the historic con test, The Chronicle reached out to both schools for com ments.

“St. Helens and Scap poose are separated by ap proximately seven miles and have been competing against each other since the 20th century,” St. Helens Athletic Director Michael Lady said.

Scappoose Athletic Direc tor Dale French called the coming game “an identifier of a history of rivalry and a celebration of a heritage of of sports and community that we share with our neigh bors.”

“St. Helens and Scap poose have a storied history of rivalries in many differ ent activities, he said. “This game presents an opportunity to celebrate our relationship as neighbors and come to gether in the name of friendly competition.”

Solution for the Oct. 12, 2022 crossword puzzle sports

Courtesy photo

Scappoose wins this trophy following the historic 100-year football contest.

STAFF REPORT chroniclenews@countrymedia.net

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SNAP is a federal program that provides food assistance to approximately 1 million eligible, low-income families and individuals in Oregon, including many older adults and people with disabilities.

Featuring event guides and

Parades highlight Halloween in St. Helens

JEREMY C. RUARK jruark@countrymedia.net

Each September and October the City of St. Hel ens dresses up in all things Halloween to highlight in the spirit of the season.

Businesses, residents and visitors join together in parades, festive street events

and other traditions.

On Saturday, Oct. 1, The Big Halloween Parade returned with a variety of themed-floats that slowly traveled along Columbia Boulevard to the Columbia River waterfront. Dozens of floats, various groups and individuals participated in the parade.

A more kids-sized parade is set for later this month. The Boulevard Trick-orTreat, an event that started last year is designed to en gage children and businesses along Columbia Boulevard. Watch for children along the boulevard beginning at 3 p.m. Oct. 28 for the family and community fun event.

A nearly 100-year tradi tion, the Little Trick or Treat ers Costume Parade, pre sented by The Chronicle and sponsored by the St. Helens Grocery Outlet, is also part of Halloweentown 2022. The Oct. 29 parade assembles at 12:30 p.m. at 1st and S. Helens streets and begins at 1 p.m. and travels down S.

1st to Cowlitz Street to the riverfront. Children and their families are encouraged to dress in Halloween costumes and bring a bag for trick-ortreating.

The Columbia County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO) is holding its annual Trunk-orTreat from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Oct. 31 at the Columbia

County Fairgrounds, 58892 Saulser Road, St. Helens. Trunk-or-Treat is one of several ways for the Sheriff’s Office to connect with the community, particularly the youth, and to build positive relationships, according to CCSO. Games and activities are planned at the Trunk-orTreat.

Columbia County’s trusted local news source

Courtesy photo

Participants dressed for the season during the Big Halloween Parade in St. Helens.

The Chronicle

Children have the opportunity to trick-or-treat up and down Columbia Boulevard during the 2nd annual Boulevard Trick-or-Treat at 3 p.m. Oct. 28. Local businesses hand out candy to the visiting children.

The Chronicle

The annual and original Little Trick or Treaters Costume Parade presented by The Chronicle and sponsored by the St. Helens Grocery Outlet begins at 1 p.m. Oct. 29 at 1st and St. Helens Street.

Activities until October 31

Attractions open at 10 a.m. On weekends, Spirit of Halloweentown offers a merriment of activities for the season. Please note that most attractions close between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. unless stated. All tickets, unless you receive notifi cation to the contrary, are available at the Pumpkin Plaza on S First Street. Look for the big banners and signage in the middle of the street.

The main plaza with the pumpkins, The Vendors Village and the pirate area are open every weekend.

The plaza with the pump kins is open every day of the week to take photos. The Vendors Village is also open for shopping, dining, face painting, and more on weekends.

The local pirates reside on the riverfront and will entertain and delight each weekend with cannon fire and fun. Fires and seating are available on the river front on weekends. Look for professional strolling entertainers in the city as well. Witches are famous for dancing, and the Spirit of Halloweentown’s King and Queen of Halloween and their court will have you all sweetened up as

you enjoy your chosen activities. Captain Jack Sparrow and others are present for photo ops as time allows. The St. Helens Witches dance weekends on Saturdays and Sundays at 12:30 p.m. and 2:30 p.m.

Each weekend day at 1:30 p.m. a costume contest is conducted. Anyone may participate in categories of Adult, Family or Child. Cash prizes in each cat egory.

Street Strolling Performers

• Oct. 8 Coupe de Fou dre and Rys Thomas and

Izohnny

• Oct. 9 Coupe de Foudre, Circus Lumines cence and Rys Thomas

• Oct. 15

Circus Luminescence and Curt Carlyle

• Oct. 16

Leapin’ Louie and Circus Luminescence

• Oct. 22

Curt Carlyle and Cir cus Luminescence and Izohnny

• Oct. 23

Super Nova, Curt Carlyle and Izohnny

Oct. 29

Super Nova, Heather Pearl and Izohnny

Oct. 30

Super Nova, Rhys Thomas and Izohnny

by Dr. Rachael

Columbia County’s trusted local news source

Oct. 21 Scary Good Sale!

St. Helens Public Library Books, CD’s, DVD’s, Audio Sale

10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Shrieking Stables

Shoestring Community Players presents a original scare... Take a walk around the stables and enjoy your visit... while you can. 7 p.m., 8 p.m., 9 p.m., at the Columbia County Fairgrounds, The Goat Barn, 58892 Saulser Rd, St. Helens.

Oct. 22 “The Haunted Hot Rods” Start your engines and join the fun 11 a.m. – 3 p.m.

King and Queen of Halloween Children and Family Parade At 2 p.m., Courthouse Plaza.

Izohnny Wauna Credit Union Stage presents Izohnny at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.

Una the Mermaid appearance

Inside Pumpkin Puzzle Area from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

St. Helens Public Library Scary Good Sale Books, CD’s, DVD’s, Audio Sale 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Bag of Books Sale 1 p.m. -2 p.m. Garden Club Sale 9 a.m. on Library porch.

Shrieking Stables

Shoestring Community Players presents a original scare...

Take a walk around the stables and enjoy your visit... while you can. 7 p.m., 8 p.m., 9 p.m., at the Columbia County Fairgrounds, The Goat Barn, 58892 Saulser Rd, St. Helens.

Oct. 23 Izohnny Wauna Credit Union Stage presents Izohnny at 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Una the Mermaid appearance

Inside Pumpkin Puzzle Area from 10 a.m. - 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Oct. 28 Trick-or-Treat the Blvd. 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Looking for a great trick-or-treating experi ence? The businesses of the upper boulevard will be transform ing into a fun Halloween course for kids of all ages! Start off at Heather Epperly Agency’s American Family Insurance office and follow the course up the Boulevard, cross over to Chris tina’s Chest and continue to follow the course back down the boulevard.

Little Trick or Treaters Costume ParadeThe Original

It’s kids, costumes, and a whole lot of fun. Assemble at 12:30 p.m. at 1st. and St. Helens Streets. Please bring a bag for candy. Parade begins at 1 p.m. Presented by The Chronicle and sponsored by the St. Helens Grocery Outlet.

Ashley Greene a.k.a. Alice Cullen from Twilight Paid Photos and autographs available.

Monster Bash

Open to the public. Drinks starting at 4 p.m., dinner service from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. and listen to Steelhead from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. Participate in the costume contest, prizes will be awarded for best couples costume and best single costume. St. Helens Elks Lodge: 350 Belton Av, St. Helens, OR *All proceeds stay local towards “Kids Christmas”. RSVP at the bar or on the website by Oct. 22.

Una the Mermaid appearance Inside Pumpkin Puzzle Area from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Izohnny Wauna Credit Union Stage presents Izohnny at 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Oct. 30

Peter Facinelli a.k.a. Doctor Cullen from Twilight Paid Photos and autographs available.

Una the Mermaid appearance Inside Pumpkin Puzzle Area from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.

Izohnny Wauna Credit Union Stage presents Izohnny at 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Oct. 31

3rd Annual Columbia Co Sheriff’s Office Trunk or Treat 5-8 pm, Columbia County Fairgrounds: 58892 Saulser Rd, St. Helens, OR 97051. A safe, fun, free Halloween alternative for the whole family! This is intended to be a wail-in event, however, this will depend on the weather and condition of the parking lot.

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