FESTIVE FOURTH
SUPPORT LOCAL BUSINESS. JOIN THE MOB. CALL 5 P.M. JUNE 29, MEET AT TILLAMOOK CITY HALL 842-7525.
CELEBRATIONS ALONG THE NORTH COAST, PAGES B1, B13 AND B14
Headlight Herald
TILLAMOOKHEADLIGHTHERALD.COM • JUNE 27, 2012
LONGEST RUNNING BUSINESS IN TILLAMOOK COUNTY • SINCE 1888
By stick or by carrot? A look at how other Oregon cities have revitalized downtown BY MARY FAITH BELL
GET A CLUE Newspaper, Tillamook Ford host treasure hunt with $500 prize
Treasure seekers have long heard legends of Spanish gold hidden somewhere on Neahkahnie Mountain. Now, Country Media and Tillamook Ford are giving locals a chance to find a treasure of a different kind. Readers of the Headlight Herald and North Coast Citizen will have the opportunity to search for the “Neahkahnie Treasure” – a small treasure chest hidden somewhere on public property within Tillamook County. Inside the chest will be a notarized certificate redeemable for a $500 cash prize at either newspaper office. Tillamook Ford is graciously sponsoring the contest and the prize. Starting July 4, in each print edition and daily online, readers will find clues about the chest’s location. The clues will be hidden somewhere within the newspaper, and within various online articles at tillamookheadlightherald.com and northcoastcitizen.com.
mfbell@countrymedia.net
Tillamook city officials and volunteers could be seen up and down the downtown blocks on hands and knees June 16, weeding and planting, picking up trash, scraping and sprucing up for the “Company’s Coming” cleanup. The idea was to ask people to pitch in and
help get ready for the busy summer tourist season that typically begins with the June Dairy Parade. The results are noticeable, and a benefit not only to tourists, but to everyone who lives and works here. But it’s the tip of the iceberg in terms of what needs to be done to revive downtown Tillamook. There are a number of vacant buildings, deterio-
rating facades, flecks of peeling paint, empty sign frames, dirty windows and torn awnings. There are plenty of positive things happening downtown, but there is also a long to-do list.
WHERE TO START? We looked at a few Oregon cities that have successfully revitalized their
DAIRYLAND PRIDE
Patriot Guard rider killed in crash near Rockaway BY ERIN DIETRICH edietrich@countrymedia.net
INDEX Classified Ads .........................B6 Crossword Puzzle....................B3 Fenceposts ..............................B3 Obituaries................................A6 Opinions..................................A4 Sports......................................A9 Tides .....................................A10
WEATHER HIGH 68 66 64 62 62 62 57
STATS LOW 42 55 53 51 50 50 51
See DOWNTOWN, Page A8
Jim Burnett, 70, stands at a military funeral as a member of the Patriot Guard. He was on his way to serve at a funeral in Manzanita on June 22 when he was killed in a crash near Rockaway Beach.
See CLUE, Page A5
JUNE 20 21 22 23 24 25 26
downtowns, to find out what they did that worked. Tillamook City Manager Paul Wyntergreen managed the City of Jacksonville for 18 years, and he and his wife, Jeannell, lived there for 25 years. Jacksonville was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1960.
RAINFALL .00 .00 .22 .13 .34 .13 .07
WEATHER COURTESY OF WEATHER UNDERGROUND
1908 2nd St. 503-842-7535 www.TillamookHeadlightHerald.com
Vol. 123, No. 26 75 cents DENISE PORTER/HEADLIGHT HERALD
These baton twirlers accompanied the musical jives of Tillamook’s Dairyland Band during the June Dairy Parade on Saturday. For more color photos of the parade, and winners in the parade judging contests, see page A3.
PIRATES ROCK ROCKAWAY
TWIN ROCKS – A Patriot Guard Rider passed away June 22 following a motorcycle accident while on his way to attend the funeral of a World War II veteran in Manzanita. Oregon State Police troopers are still investigating the fatal crash that occurred at about 7:38 p.m. on Hwy. 101 at Minnehaha Street in the Twin Rocks area. According to the OSP report, James “Jim” Francis Burnett, 70, of Clackamas, was northbound on Hwy. 101, going through the intersection of Minnehaha Street, when a stopped Datsun pickup lurched forward at a slow speed, into the side of Burnett’s motorcycle. Burnett lost control and was ejected from the motorcycle. He was wearing a protective helmet. The driver of the pickup, Pamela Jean LaFontaine of Garibaldi, was not injured. She told investigators her foot slipped off the clutch, causing the pickup to jump forward. OSP has not filed any charges against LaFontaine, and troopers at the scene did not have reason to suspect she was under the influence of intoxicants at the time of the incident. “We will review the case with the DA’s office before we go forward with charges,” said Oregon State Police Sergeant Greg Plummer. “There were no signs of impairment while the investigating officer was talking to her, but we’ve collected blood and urine just to make sure nothing slips by.” Burnett, a veteran himself, had been a member of the Patriot Guard Riders since 2009. The group of more than 40,000 motorcyclists nationwide attends funerals to support U.S. soldiers. The group was originally organized to shield the families of soldiers whose funerals were picketed by the fringe church group, Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kan.
See PATRIOT, Page A5
The cost of cleanup BY PATRICK ALEXANDER For the Headlight Herald
ERIN DIETRICH/HEADLIGHT HERALD
Shiver me timbers! Dan Clark, or Ragnar “Redgoat” MacHaggis, Captain of PDXYAR, a Portland-based troupe of pirate-actors, does some mutinizin’ and keelhaulin’ at the annual Rockaway Beach Pirate Festival June 24.
Tillamook’s Country Store Serving Tillamook County Since 1935
Holds a 3’x5’ American Flag
spokesman Chris Havel said. “We can’t sustain that. Especially if additional debris just washes up.”
See CLEANUP, Page A8
RESIDENTIAL & COMMERCIAL DELIVERY “When we made the switch we saved $1.00 a gallon.” - Tom The Schooner
15 FT. GALVANIZED ALL MENS & WOMENS STEEL FLAG POLE TURNER HATS Reg. $59.99
Suspected tsunami debris spotted by Margie Neilson on Manzanita Beach.
PROPANE
TILLAMOOK FARMERS’ CO-OP
NOW $3999
The arrival of the massive Japanese dock at Agate Beach in Newport and the $84,155 price tag for disposing of it has left coastal residents and officials at all levels of government asking how the Coast will handle further waves of tsunami debris. The cost of dismantling and disposing of the dock will all but wipe out the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department’s budget for debris removal for the entire Coast until July 2013 – with officials unsure about how much more debris will follow. “Right now, it’s coming totally out of our budget,” OPRD
20% OFF
(Western, Gardening, Casual and Straw)
NEW SUMMER HOURS M-F 5-8, SAT 6:30-8, SUN 9-4 503-842-4457 • Fax 503-842-7684 1920 Main Street North • Tillamook, OR
H34062
Commercial & Home Delivery
DeWayne O’Brien Branch Manager
Office (503) 842-6220 Toll Free (877) 339-4572