Two more candidates have emerged in the race to be Astoria’s next mayor, including a former city councilor. Earlier this month, it looked like combat veteran Sean Davis might run unopposed after incumbent Mayor Sean Fitzpatrick announced he would not seek a second four-year term. Now Tom Brownson, a former Ward 2 city councilor who…
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U.S. Representative Suzanne Bonamici and Oregon Attorney General Dan Rayfield say they are still fighting to land federal money for a major hospital expansion project in Astoria. At a press event with other officials at the Columbia Memorial Hospital construction site Wednesday, Bonamici said the Trump administration is “playing games with people’s lives” by delaying…
A man has been arrested following a stabbing late Wednesday night at the Helping Hands Reentry Center in Seaside. Mark Warren, 41, faces charges of assault in the second degree, unlawful use of a weapon and felon in possession of a restricted weapon. According to Helping Hands, a nonprofit that works with homeless populations in…
Supporters say tax will support housing; critics aren’t so sure. An initiative that would tax vacant homes with the goal of supporting long-term housing opportunities in Astoria will go to voters this November. At a meeting Monday night, the Astoria City Council faced several options when it came to the citizen-led initiative, including adopting the…
An Astoria-based nonprofit that provides advocacy and support to survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault is expanding. The Harbor announced Monday it has purchased a building on Exchange Street that, until recently, housed The Astorian newspaper. The building is only several blocks away from the nonprofit’s current location. The Harbor outgrew its space off…
Most of the seats on the Seaside City Council will be up for election this November. All except one. City leaders had hoped to appoint someone to the vacant Ward 3 seat this summer in time to also get that seat on the ballot in November. Whoever was appointed would serve through the end of…
An investigation into a police shooting in Seaside earlier this month that resulted in the death of a Washington man concluded that officers were justified in returning fire. Officers shot and killed 24-year-old Hayes Miles McCloud of Eatonville, Washington in the Cove area in Seaside on July 8. McCloud was a suspect in two homicides…
After announcing his intent to run for mayor of Astoria earlier this year, Sean Davis will officially be on the ballot this November. City officials say Davis has gathered enough verified signatures to proceed as a candidate. He was required to submit a petition signed by 48 registered voters living inside Astoria’s city limits. The…
Voters will get to make the call this November on whether the Astoria City Council expands from five members to seven. At a meeting this week, a majority of the Astoria City Council approved resolutions for three amendments to the city charter, including an amendment to expand the city council and include at-large positions. The…
A suspect in two homicides in Washington state is dead after a shoot out with police in Seaside Wednesday evening No other injuries were reported and the officers involved in the shooting have been placed on administrative leave. Oregon State Police is leading an investigation into the incident. According to the agency, the man shot…
Changes to Astoria’s camping ordinance won’t go into effect until July 15, but work is already underway to prepare people camping on city streets. Earlier in June, Astoria City Councilors passed amendments to the city’s camping ordinance as part of a new multi-pronged “shelter first” policy. Among other things, the changes councilors approved spell out…
Clatsop County is set to distribute $1.6 million in state funds for county-wide shelter response, but one shelter says its cut of that money won’t be enough to keep the doors open going into next month. The possible closure of LiFEBoat Services’ 22-bed shelter in downtown Astoria comes as the city is launching a new…
Clean up of an oil spill from a long unused pipe at the Port of Astoria is complete as of this week and the state will not require follow-up remediation at this time. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality and the U.S. Coast Guard will continue to monitor affected areas over the next two weeks,…
Port of Astoria leaders say staff who allowed federal immigration enforcement officers to access fenced-off property at the port on June 7 followed state law and did the right thing in a tricky situation. ICE officers claimed it was an emergency when they asked for access to the property, Port Commission President Dirk Rohne told…
Longtime St Helens City Administrator John Walsh is presumed dead after he fell into the Columbia River Saturday night. Walsh reportedly slipped and fell into the river while moving from a boat to the St. Helens City Docks. He was swept downriver and not seen to resurface. Search and rescue efforts were ongoing Sunday. The…
Federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials have confirmed that two men were arrested on Oregon’s North Coast on June 7 in an operation that triggered additional concerns about a possible violation of Oregon’s sanctuary law and resulted in one Astoria woman being pepper-sprayed. In a June 11 email an ICE spokesperson called concerns about…
Local immigration advocates say the use of Port of Astoria property by federal immigration officers during an operation Sunday morning in which it is believed three people were detained may have violated Oregon’s sanctuary law. This law prohibits local and state police as well as state agencies from participating “directly or indirectly in immigration enforcement…
Astoria leaders are moving forward on two key pieces of a new “shelter first” policy intended to address homeless camping downtown. The policy, presented by City Councilors Andrea Mazzarella and Elisabeth Adams at a recent meeting, came after months of public meetings and discussions and several stalled attempts at other policies and approaches. The shelter…
An Astoria man jumped from the Astoria-Megler Bridge Friday night. He was recovered from the Columbia River nine minutes after he jumped, but could not be revived. Because of the nature of the incident, the Astoria Police Department has said it will not be releasing the 35-year-old man’s name. Police responded to the bridge after…
In contested races for seats on the Clatsop County Board of Commissioners, candidates endorsed by incumbents led the pack Tuesday night According to preliminary unofficial results, Mike Brosius, a retired Costco executive, held 64% of the vote as of Wednesday for the District 3 seat, a four-year term representing the Astoria area. His opponent Mitra…
A question with a long and contentious history in Cannon Beach is being asked again, and it’s causing a stir. What, if anything, should the city do about dunes on the city’s north side? Cannon Beach resident Tim Ramey and Tommy Thayer, lead guitarist for the rock band KISS, are pushing for an initiative that,…
Homeless advocates and police say an illegal noisemaking device was used against unhoused campers in downtown Astoria in early May. The incident comes after efforts to establish an official campsite stalled and as city leaders are set to continue discussions about how to address concerns and issues tied to Astoria’s most visible homeless residents. On…
Oregon’s valuable commercial Dungeness crab fishery has seen significant changes in recent years as the state looks to minimize and monitor whale entanglements involving gear used in the fishery. Now more changes are on the horizon. And looming over everything is uncertainty around the details of a federal permit the state is seeking that would…
The Seaside City Council is looking to fill two vacant seats sooner rather than later, setting the stage for an interesting situation in the November general election. Officials hope to fill the vacancies on the City Council before July 25, hitting a deadline that would then put those seats on the November 2026 ballot so…
The Seaside City Council is down two councilors after one was recalled and another resigned. At a council meeting on March 23, City Councilor Heidi Hoffman announced she was resigning effective April 15 because she is moving to Astoria. “No, I am not resigning in protest of the recall vote,” she said, referring to the…
Amid an ongoing Department of Homeland Security shutdown and heightened tensions over immigration enforcement, newly confirmed U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin stopped in Astoria Wednesday and toured Coast Guard facilities at the mouth of the Columbia River. Mullin visited U.S. Coast Guard Air Station Astoria in Oregon and the Cape Disappointment Motor Lifeboat…
4/13/26: This story has been updated to clarify the relationship between the Astoria Housing Alliance and the Astoria Housing Initiative. A group looking to address housing shortages in Astoria hopes to get a measure on the November ballot that would tax vacant houses. The group behind the Astoria Housing Initiative announced this week that it…
A retired corrections officer who previously ran for state office is vying for a seat on the Clatsop County Board of Commissioners. Glenn Gaither is the second candidate to file for the District 5 seat held by Lianne Thompson. Thompson is not running for re-election, but Gaither will face an opponent in the May 19…
Clatsop Community College leadership laid off five full-time positions in March, moved other positions to part-time and has proposed suspending three programs going into the next academic year, citing low enrollment and a $700,000 budget deficit due to rising costs. The programs facing suspension include the automotive technology program, computer aided design and drafting, and…
While recent efforts by President Donald Trump to limit voting ahead of the midterm elections likely won’t impact Oregon’s primary next month, election officials on the coast say they are seeing confusion among voters. Recently, Clatsop County Clerk Tracie Krevanko fielded calls from people who seem unsure about what efforts by the Trump administration have…