Saturday, March 15, 2025
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Opportunities on the Coast

Dear Friends and Neighbors,

 

Over the course of four years, I worked with Dr. Bruce Mate at the Marine Mammal Institute to authorize a Coastal Playground gray whale license plate. Eventually, we developed a strategy to address the new Department of Motor Vehicle requirements and the license plate, which features the image of a gray whale mother and her calf, went on sale on February 1, 2019. The plates cost $40 to order or renew, with approximately $35 of each sale going to OSU’s Marine Mammal Institute based at the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport.

Today there are more than 25,000 Whale Plates in Oregon and more than $1 million has come to the Marine Science Center supporting graduate students and research covering everything from porpoise communications to the effect of wind energy on whale migrations.

 

Saturday, staff, students and donors gathered to celebrate at the Gladys Valley Marine Studies Building in Newport. It was a remarkable in-person opportunity to meet students, visit laboratories, and tour what is emerging as the leading institution of marine mammal research on the planet.

 

We also briefly explored Yaquina Bay aboard the research vessel Pacific Storm. During the pandemic, the vessel could not go to sea or receive research grants. But overhead and maintenance expenses continued. In 2021 I secured $350,000 in ARPA dollars to offset those expenses and continue the good work being done here.

Many portions of the coast are suffering economically, perhaps none more than Coos County where changes in the lumber industry have decimated communities and tax revenues, and where many working-age locals have moved away. Coos County was the sixth poorest county in Oregon, according to 2020 data from the U.S. Census Bureau, with 16.1% of residents living below the federal poverty rate.

 

The Port of Coos Bay is now pursuing a $2 billion plan for a major shipping container terminal that could bring all manner of imports to the Pacific Northwest and then the rest of the continent, and send Oregon crops and other exports overseas. It could employ 2,500 workers to load and unload as many as 1.2 million shipping containers a year.

 

Trips to and from major ports in Asia, like Shanghai and Yokohama, are nearly 700 miles closer to Coos Bay than Los Angeles-Long Beach. Oregon currently offers container shipping at the Port of Portland, but that location has suffered a number of challenges. Coos Bay could support the larger contemporary vessels that cannot traverse the Columbia River from Astoria to Portland.

 

Coos Bay has long been looking for a new line of business to help make up for the timber industry’s decline. Most recently, a proposal for a liquefied natural gas terminal and pipeline failed to win supporters. As the Jordan Cove Energy Project grew less and less likely, priority shifted to the container terminal. Key to the proposal is a short rail line that connects to the national freight network in Eugene.

 

Container shipping forms the backbone of modern global trade. Standardized, stackable boxes go back and forth across the seas, carrying a load of electronics bound for stores one way and agricultural products back.

 

The container shipping site is still waiting on a construction permit from the Army Corps of Engineers, a process that began in 2017. Once approved, project leaders anticipate the terminal would be able to take its first load of cargo within two years.

 

The Coos Bay channel will also need to be widened and deepened to accommodate massive modern cargo ships, the largest of which can be 1,300 feet long. That will cost between $350 million to $400 million.

 

Information for this report was found in this story from the Oregonian.

Affordable housing remains one of our primary challenges across Oregon and acutely here in our district. Oregon has one of the highest homeless rates in the U.S., with more than 14,600 people needing stable housing in 2020, a rate of 2.5%.

 

Josh Lehner, from the Oregon Office of Economic Analysis, told members of the House Interim Committee on Housing on Wednesday that the increased gap isn’t so much because of a big boom in population. Oregon’s population has stayed relatively steady during the pandemic, but household size dropped and the number of households boomed. The new housing units did not meet the increased demand.

 

Lehrer listed items that he said would help close the gap – increasing land availability, turning that land into buildable lots more quickly, allowing more units to be built, and decreasing or stabilizing development costs. But he focused on another issue – increasing the construction workforce, in both the private and public sectors. “If we want to build more units, we have to have more workers,” he said.

 

Oregon needs 13,000 more construction workers per year to help close the housing gap. Finding those workers in a tight labor market will be challenging. City and county planning departments also will need 400-500 additional public sector employees to approve, permit and inspect these additional housing units.

 

Other speakers at Wednesday’s hearing touched on different areas of the housing crunch, such as barriers to developing housing, the importance of preserving existing affordable housing, and programs meant to aid people who are unsheltered.

 

One bright spot statewide and locally is Project Turnkey, which has provided funding to turn underused hotels and motels throughout the state into shelters for the homeless. The project has added 867 units statewide. A second round of funding for the project has been approved.

 

Click here for more information from the Capital Chronicle.

 

Meanwhile, rents are surging across Oregon. A measure passed in 2019 capped annual rent increases to 7% plus inflation. But then came the inflation of 2022. And under the formula of Senate Bill 608, landlords in 2023 may raise their rent up to 14.6%, the state announced last week.

 

The measure also prohibits landlords from terminating month-to-month tenancy without cause. And while it was sponsored by my party leadership, I voted “no”, believing it would discourage new housing investment here and make workforce housing scarcer rather than more affordable.

 

An editorial in the Oregonian this week acknowledges that the long-term solution is increased supply to reduce costs and that Oregon simply needs more housing across the board. “That means we need our state and local governments to amend land-use policies to make housing development easier, streamline notoriously cumbersome permitting processes and lower taxes or unnecessary requirements that depress development.” Oregonians, too, must play a part in easing the housing crisis, most critically by accepting higher-density developments in neighborhoods.

 

Keep in mind that landlords do not have to raise the rent at all, much less to 14.6%. Landlords would be wise to keep increases to the bare minimum necessary.

Thursday I joined recreation volunteers and park users at the site of the Taft Sport Complex in Lincoln City. We brought home $1 million to jump-start the program and more recently, $750,000 from the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department (OPRD) for the continued development of this new 6.71-acre community resource in the historic Taft District.

 

This was one of 18 ports, parks, water and sewer systems, and public buildings we supported across the district in the past two years.

 

A major new recreation space will expand opportunities for our kids, enhance livability, and support tourism by providing space for regional events. I was pleased to see the space already in use as plans for development move forward. Thanks to all involved in this vision.

Monday night I’ll leave the coast with a delegation from Newport and fly to Washington DC. Our goal is to wrap up funding for a new dam and water supply which would replace the Big Creek Dams.

 

Regular readers will know that our earthen dams serving Newport have exceeded their planned lifespan and have weakened to a point where even a minor seismic event could cause catastrophic failure. With a housing community less than a mile downhill and Highway 101 just beyond, a dam breach would cost lives and cut our major transportation route indefinitely. Without water, our tourism industry, fish processing, breweries, and scientific research centers would close. It would take the central coast a generation to recover.

 

The Big Creek Dams are listed as the most fragile and vulnerable in the state. Newport has already committed $6 million. I then convinced our legislature to invest $14 million more in planning, permitting, and a start to the work. But this is an $80 million project and we will need federal help to cover necessary costs.

 

The U.S. House of Representatives voted to approve a bill that includes $60 million in funding for replacing Newport’s Big Creek dams. The bill is now in the Senate, whose Committee on Environment and Public Works earlier approved a version that did not include our dams. Our goal for this trip is to convince Senate leaders to add the House amendments before the end of the year.

 

Wish us well as we meet with key decision-makers in the next few days.

Warm Regards,
Representative David Gomberg

House District 10

To get in touch with my legislative office, please e-mail [email protected]

Depoe Bay dock project stalled

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The “World’s Smallest Harbor” is home to Oregon’s largest whalewatching and charter-fishing fleet. Tiny as it is at just six acres, Depoe Bay harbor has 90 slips threatened by deteriorating docks. (Photo by Rick Beasley)
The “World’s Smallest Harbor” is home to Oregon’s largest whalewatching and charter-fishing fleet. Tiny as it is at just six acres, Depoe Bay harbor has 90 slips threatened by deteriorating docks. (Photo by Rick Beasley)

DEPOE BAY — A $2.9 million grant to repair three dilapidated public docks isn’t nearly enough to do the job, city officials learned this week as a planned October construction date dissolved.

Moreover, a key government agency has declined to sign-off on the project, citing environmental concerns. Those roadblocks were revealed Tuesday, Sept. 20, at a joint meeting of harbor commissioners and city councilors who struggled to figure a way around the obstacles.

The boat docks have become so dangerous that Mayor Kathy Short once declared she couldn’t sleep at night over worries that someone might be hurt. So the harbor community rejoiced last year when Depoe Bay received $2.9 million to rebuild them with funds from the federal American Rescue Act. State Rep. Dave Gomberg and State Senator Dick Anderson were key figures in directing the money to Depoe Bay.

Councilor Jerome Grant sparked a round of handwringing when he suggested scaling back the scope of work to repair just one or two of the docks pitted by corrosion and decades of wear.

“I hope it works out and we end up constructing the whole thing, but realistically, it’s not there,” Grant asserted. “We’re a million short.”

A federal agency, the National Marine Fisheries Service, has also declined to approve the project over concerns about the up-sized dock design. To mitigate the effects of on marine life, the city would have to shrink the project by 3,750 sf or remove a nearby check dam that slows accumulation of silt in the harbor. In 2021, a dredging company removed 2,000 cubic yards of silt behind the dam.

“Three porous docks are replacing three non-porous docks that have been there for 50 years and that should be enough, but NMFS doesn’t like it that way,” fumed Harbor Commissioner Jack O’Brien.

Some officials remained hopeful a solution can be found. There was agreement to contact the state’s Congressional leaders to eliminate the impasse with the federal agency. Councilor Fran Recht asserted the city could trade the environmental requirements by working on regional wetlands or paying for dike removal along the Siletz River. Harbor commissioner Liz Martin claimed the USDA was awash in money and could close the funding gap with another grant.

“We know we have challenges but we’re not ready to build just one or two,” countered Liz Martin of the harbor commission. “If we have more positive input, more will happen. “I’m not letting go until we get more funding.”

Instead of starting construction next month, the group will meet again Oct. 4 to sort out the predicament.

Puny profits fuel harbor gas debate

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Whalewatching Zodiak boats pull up to the city-owned fuel dock in Depoe Bay. (Photo by Rick Beasley, Beacon Media)
Whalewatching Zodiac boats pull up to the city-owned fuel dock in Depoe Bay. (Photo by Rick Beasley, Beacon Media)

DEPOE BAY — A miniscule profit for selling thousands of dollars of fuel to boaters caught the eye of a city councilor during a routine motion to approve the monthly finances Tuesday, Sept. 20.

Councilor Claudia Crum, who earlier supported high-tech meters to track unexplained activity at the municipal fuel dock, questioned how the city paid $121,000 for gas and diesel, then brought in just $122,000 in sales receipts. “The actual profit is only $1,200?” she wondered at the slim net and reasons given. “So we can find out at the next meeting?”

“We’re looking into all that,” said Mayor Short, seeking to calm Crum’s concerns. “We’re watching expenses very carefully, following the budget to the letter here. We’re not in any financial straits.”

Fuel prices are a sore point between boat operators and City Hall, which closed a $300,000 shortfall in the harbor’s current $1 million annual budget with transfers from the urban renewal and overnight room-tax funds. Even with the highest marine fuel prices at the coast, a 2020 study of harbor fuel prices found the city barely broke even on “hard” costs and personnel.

“The public push-back was immense, mostly from the charter boat owners to whom most of the fuel is sold…” wrote Grant of the city’s $1.34-per-gal. mark-up.

The report concluded the city should turn the operation over to a private operator, such as Carson Oil, or to the charter fleet to be operated as a “co-op.”

Council to consider downsizing planning commission

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Lincoln City City Council

PUBLISHER’S NOTE: This article has been updated with comment from Councilor Sydney Kasner who reached out to us. 

At the upcoming Lincoln City City Council meeting a proposal from the planning department to reduce the number of planning commissioners from seven to five will be discussed and possibly voted on. 

According to the posted agenda for Sept. 26:

Background: Planning staff has requested that the number of Planning Commissioners be reduced to five in order to facilitate having a quorum for the conduct of city business. There appears to be no requirement in state law to maintain seven members. The change would go into effect in January 2023. 

City council has had no shortage of applicants for planning commission vacancies yet seemed, at times, reluctant to fill them. There are currently no vacancies on the commission. Calls to council members, city manager and mayor for insight into the issue were not immediately answered, with the exception of Councilors Riley Hoagland and Sydney Kasner.

“I’m really waiting for staff to present their thoughts as to what is wrong with having seven commissioners.” Hoagland said.

“This information is new to me as well,” Kasner said. “although it sounds like the change has been recommended to make it easier to obtain a quorum.”

Planning director Anne Marie Skinner stated: 

“We’ve had to cancel some meetings because we couldn’t raise a quorum and I thought it would make things much simpler.”

At this point there has been no public discussion or input from the planning commissioners on the matter.

According to the city’s website: 

The Lincoln City Planning Commission is a seven-member citizen advisory body appointed by the City Council. Planning Commissioners are registered voters and generally live inside the city limits; however, up to two members may live outside the city limits but inside the urban growth boundary. No more than two members may have the same occupation. Commissioners serve for 4-year terms.

If the ordinance change passes it will go into effect January of 2023.

Sept. 26 Meeting Agenda

The Siletz is hot!

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fishing lincoln city
A happy young man carefully displays his prize (photos by James Scrutton)

In the early morning mist on the Siletz river dozens of small fishing boats glide quietly past each other.  The boat’s passengers seek the prize of all fishermen; salmon.  And they are finding them.  Trolling slowly, dangling shiny flashers and succulent shrimp or deceptive lures, the anglers hope to strike silver and bring home not only dinner but bragging rights.

From ODFW website: 

Summer steelhead fishing has slowed down with the low water conditions but there are still fish holding throughout the system, especially in the upper river sections of the gorge. Summer steelhead will be around to be caught throughout September and October. The peak for summer steelhead is typically June-August.

Fall Chinook fishing has picked up on the Siletz estuary and there are some nice fish being caught every day. Fishing will continue to improve through September as more fish move into the system on each tide.

Wild coho retention is allowed on the Siletz River from Sept. 15 – Oct. 15. The daily bag limit is one adult wild coho per day and one for the season. This is another “one and done” season for wild coho. Meaning you can only keep one adult wild Coho from the Siletz River for the entire 2022 season.

Cutthroat trout are also abundant and available throughout the Siletz basin, check the regulations for open areas and bag limits. Trout fishing in streams closes on Oct. 31.

Many boats are landing limits while some also indulge in crab fishing by placing their pots nearer the bay and returning to retrieve their crustation booty later in the day.

 

For more information about fishing in Oregon go to:

https://myodfw.com/recreation-report/fishing-report

 

City races set for November

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Lincoln County Voter's Pamphlet

All eligible candidates for this year’s election have filled out their required forms and gathered needed signatures to appear on the November 2022 ballot for Lincoln City’s upcoming mayoral and city council races.

Open positions include mayor, one seat in Ward 1, one seat in Ward 2 and one seat in Ward 3. 

Vying for mayor will be incumbent Susan Wahlke and Ward 2 councilor Riley Hoagland.

Ward 1 shows Mitch Parsons once again running unopposed. 

Ward 2 will have Incumbent Sydney Kasner running against Carolyn Nguyen.

Ward 3 pits Incumbent Rick Mark against Mellissa Sumner.

County commissioner position one offers Carter McEntee facing Casey L Miller.

Also up for voter’s consideration is ballot measure 21-213, a request from the Devils Lake Water Improvement District for five years of  funding for its continuing fight against invasive weeds in Devils lake.

City of Lincoln City’s sponsored ballot measure 21-215 seeks to amend the City Charter To Increase Lodging Tax From 9.5% To 12%.

Election day is November 8, 2022.

Lincoln County Voters’ Pamphlet

Domino’s Pizza to open in Lincoln City

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Dominoes Pizza Lincoln City

A new Domino’s Pizza location will soon serve Lincoln City’s pizza-eating population with an expansion of the longstanding national franchise.

Franchise owners are expanding into Lincoln City after running successful locations in Astoria, Warrenton and Newport.

“We are very excited to be coming to Lincoln city,” Newport Domino’s General Manager Deirdra Stuart said in a telephone interview. “Getting to be involved in the community is going to be wonderful.”

The new Domino’s is under construction at 3691 NE Highway 101 in what was once Coast Property & Investment and is directly across the highway from Nyla’s Cup of Jo. Workers said they were making great progress and have had no major setbacks.

Domino's Lincoln City

With the opening recently of O’Reilly Auto parts and Domino’s new offering, it appears corporate confidence in Lincoln City is on the rise, however, staffing issues still persist for business owners and Domino’s will likely face the same problems.

“Staffing is an issue but we do our best,” Stuart said. “We have a ton of room for promotions and our franchisee one hundred percent takes care of employees.”

Stuart said they are working on staffing in Lincoln City right now and also spoke of the “company’s flexible upward mobility.”

“I started out as a driver and now I manage my own store,” she said. “There are other stories too, like in Portland where someone who started out as a customer service rep now owns two stores — and she’s not even 30-years-old.”

Domino’s Pizza has been around since 1960 and is led by CEO Russell Weiner. As of 2018, Domino’s had 15,000 stores across the globe with 5,649 in the United States, 1,500 in India and 1,249 in the United Kingdom. The company has stores in over 83 countries.

A grand opening date has not been set as construction continues, but Stuart said it would definitely be open by end of the year and she alluded to an earlier opening if things went right.

Lincoln County is ‘ready’ for anything

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2022 Get Ready Lincoln County

The 2022 Get Ready Lincoln County emergency preparedness event was a wealth of information for those seeking how to prepare and plan for disaster.

A “big turnout” showed up at North Lincoln Fire & Rescue’s St. Claire Station in Taft, where goodie bags were handed out and event goers loaded up on handy survival items, first aid kits, candy, stickers, lanyards and other “swag,” while asking questions and checking out the latest emergency preparedness plans, gear and personnel. The raffle and scavenger hunt added a community vibe to the event.

Jenny Demaris
Lincoln County Emergency Management’s Virginia “Jenny” Demaris talks with Lincoln City residents about tsunami evacuation routes at 2022 Get Ready Lincoln County

Lincoln County Emergency Management head Jenny Demaris spoke about different kinds of disasters and how the county is prepared to handle them. She touched on how agencies are working seamlessly together to disseminate information and make sure the “whole community” is informed on what to do and what to have on hand in the event of a wind storm, wildfire, Cascadia Subduction Zone event or other disaster.

Demaris has led Emergency management for 11 years and has seen programs and events grow and evolve over the years. Those who work closely with Demaris speak highly of her and attest to her capabilities as the emergency manager.

Multiple CERT volunteers staffed learning kiosks as well as businesses and organizations who have a big impact on what happens during a crisis, such as Pacific Power, Oregon State Fire Marshal, Department of Forestry, City of Lincoln City and Lincoln County School District.

Get Ready Lincoln County
Do you know where your main water shut off valve is?

LCSD’s Sue Graves was there showing off the districts safety drills, disaster caches and how kids would be kept safe if the worst happened. Graves was instrumental in putting together a manual laying out how to set up shelters, restrooms, and how to dole out food and water from the caches. She also was proud to announce all LCSD schools have a disaster cache now and they are adding supplies to them all the time.

Gomberg and Graves
House Rep. David Gomberg and LCSD’s Sue Graves pose for a photo op

People attending the event were able to see Oregon House Rep. David Gomberg making the rounds and were treated to fresh-cooked hamburgers compliments of the main sponsor, Northwest Natural Gas.

Lincoln Alerts is the text, email and call system in place to deliver emergency notifications and community information. A computer was set up where people who had not already signed up could do so and begin receiving alerts.

Lincoln Alerts

LINCOLN ALERTS

The Confederated Tribe of Siletz Indians, Samaritan North Lincoln Hospital, Oregon State University, Lincoln County Animal Shelter, Lincoln County Public Health, Newport Emergency Management and others all had booths up for the public to engage with.

An interesting booth was comprised of volunteer HAM radio operators who make up Lincoln County’s Auxiliary Communications. The group can send emails over radio, which will be highly valuable if other telecommunications infrastructure is not available due to a disaster.

OSU showed their free online training programs and have a plethora of information concerning wildfires.

OSU WEBINAR GUIDE

The event was a great way to meet people in the know about all things preparedness and could help keep loved ones alive should the unthinkable happen.

Successful water rescue near Chinook Winds Casino Resort

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Chinook Winds Water Rescue
A man was rescued after being swept out to sea Saturday afternoon (Photos by Don Williams)

A man was taken out to sea by a riptide near Chinook Winds Casino Resort around 1:45 p.m. Saturday after being thrown from his kayak in the breakers.

The victim was in the ocean with a kayak when waves knocked him out of the craft. He was not wearing a life vest.

Kayaker Chinook Winds Water Rescue Lincoln City

The man was spotted drifting a few hundred yards out to sea by North Lincoln Fire & Rescue personnel. Rescuers relayed his position to a waiting water rescue unit that deployed a jetski that brought the man safely back to shore.

People familiar with the man said he would be okay and that he was a “strong person.” He was transported by ambulance to Samaritan North Lincoln Hospital.

A Coast Guard helicopter coming from North Bend was cancelled.

Lincoln City Police also responded.

Don Williams contributed to this report.

Lincoln City receives additional $750K for new park

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Soccer players and coaches thanking Rep. Gomberg
Soccer players and coaches thanking Rep. Gomberg (Photos by Lincoln City Parks and recreation)

Lincoln City Parks and Recreation will receive $750K from Oregon Parks and Recreation to continue development of a new 6.71 acre park in Taft.

The funding will allow the first community park to be built in south Lincoln City’s historic Taft District where the old Taft Elementary School once stood. Features of the new park will include turfed and surfaced multi-sport fields and courts, a large covered outdoor special event area, picnic shelters, restrooms, playground and an accessible walking path around the park.

“We are so excited,” Lincoln City Parks and Recreation Director Jeanne Sprague said. “Thank you to OPRD for understanding the value and need of a new community park in Lincoln City. This new park will offer health, wellness and many other benefits to our residents, visitors, and local economy. This OPRD funding is getting us to our goal of park construction.”

Site of the future park in Taft
Site of the future park in Taft

The needed new funding for the park by Oregon Parks and Recreation compliments the existing $1 million in State of Oregon funding State Rep. David Gomberg helped secure with House Bill 5202.

“I’m convinced the new Community Park in LC will become a staple of this community, providing much-needed recreational space, opportunities for our kids, and new business opportunities for the Central Coast,” Gomberg said. “This is a visionary use of the space and we’ll see the results for decades to come.”

“The voices in our community have asked to have this park built, we’re listening and we’re moving towards the goal line,” Sprague said. “The building of this community park in Taft is needed, public sports fields, sports courts and special event areas are needed, all of which will support our local economy.”

Lincoln City bought the land from Lincoln County School District for $422K in December 2020, having been in talks since 2008. Lincoln City Urban Renewal Agency built a 61-space parking lot in anticipation of the new park.

Phased steps in preparation of the final design will see Lincoln City parks and Rec working with Public Works to complete land surveys and the final demolition of the decommissioned Taft school maintenance shop. Landscape designs are slated to start this winter and the public will have a chance to have a say in park amenities.

Construction is planned to begin late 2023/early 2024.

These park funds come from a voter approved, State lottery funded grant program administrated by the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department. Typically, the program awards over $5 million annually to qualified projects, and has awarded over $60 million in grant funding since the program began in 1999. This year, OPRD allocated $25.2 million in grant funds for 24 proposals from cities, counties and parks districts from across Oregon. Lincoln City’s project ranked 13th of the 47 applications.

New community park development in Lincoln City