Rockaway Beach Chamber of Commerce & Community Education Events at the Ocean’s Edge Wayside, pg 7
Spring
Our Time 55+
Spring/Summer 2025
Monday Musical Club of Tillamook honors beloved member and talented pianist, the late Joan Petty, pg 7
Special Section Inside
Special Section Inside
2025
Photo by Katherine Mace
Spring Unveiling
Our Time 55+
Home Improvement | Decor Real Estate | Construction
Check out these booths & so much more at the 2025 Tillamook Headlight Herald Home & Garden Show
2025
TR Russell Photography, pg 8
Monkey Business 101, pg 4
Headlight Herald
Bay City Pearl & Oyster Festival, pg 4 Old House Dalias, pg 4
Citizen North Coast
Headlight Herald
Citizen
Friday, April 4, 2025 | Vol. 49, Issue 4
North Coast
www.cannonbeachgazette.com
Elementary renovation option budgets presented to council WILL CHAPPELL Gazette Editor
Members of the team working on the Cannon Beach Elementary School rejuvenation project presented the budgets of various options for the site to city council at a meeting on March 4. Councilors were still uncertain about the path forward after the presentation, with several asking city staff to look into the feasibility of surveying city residents to gauge their opinions. The meeting began with the presentation on the budgets for various site configurations requested by the councilors at a meeting in February. The first option examined what size facility could be built for a budget of $5.6 million, the debt incurrence limit proposed in a voter-backed initiative on the ballot in May. Demolishing the buildings on site would cost around $500,000 and necessary site and infrastructure improvements would cost around $1 million. Planning and other soft costs would eat up around $700,000-850,000, leaving $2.65-2.87 million for construction. With an estimated persquare-foot cost of $800-1,000 based on other municipal buildings that are architecturally designed, the $5.6 million budget could support the construction of a 2,700- to 3,400-square-foot building. The second option examined was the cost of demolishing the school’s classroom building and renovating the Quonset hut gymnasium. De-
Gazette Editor
The Cannon Beach Elementary School is the subject of ongoing discussions after a proposed renovation was rejected in an advisory vote in November 2024.
molishing the school building would cost $200,000-250,000 and removing the slab would cost a further $131,000150,000. Renovation of the gymnasium would cost between $550 and $650 per square foot, bringing the renovation budget for the 7,400 square foot building to $5.4-6.2 million, and the total cost for demolition and renovation to $6.9 to $8.2 million.
Demolishing the gymnasium and renovating the classroom building would have a total budget between $5.1 and $6 million, with $335,000 to $395,000 spent on demolishing the gym and removing the concrete slab and $2.7 to $3.1 million spent to renovate the 4,880 square foot structure. The final option evaluated by the project team was not requested by council but given the high cost of demolition the
team provided a cost estimate for renovating the gym while leaving the classroom building standing in its current state, which would cost $6.5 to $7.7 million. After the presentation, the council discussed how they should proceed, with Councilor Erik Ostrander kicking off the discussion by saying that he would like to see a survey sent out with monthly water bills to gauge citizen
sentiment on the path forward. Ostrander said that he wanted to see if citizens would prefer to work on the project now or focus on the other projects currently underway. Councilor Gary Hayes said that the first question for the council to consider going forward needed to be funding. Hayes said that the council needed to determine if citizens See ELEMENTARY, Page A3
Cannon Beach prepares for a full summer event schedule
for the Gazette
There’s always something to look forward to in Cannon Beach and with the days lengthening and the temperatures rising, there are plenty of events on the horizon to keep visitors and locals engaged.
Cannon Beach Fat Bike Festival, May 16 to 18 Just the name “Fat Bike Festival” is intriguing enough, but many will enjoy exploring Cannon Beach on two wheels this May. The wheels will be fat — thicker than the typical bike wheel, allowing people to ride on all surfaces, including sand. There will be guided group tours and a beach party. For more information: https://www.cannonbeach. org/events-and-festivals/annual-events/fat-bike-festival/
Ride the Dirt Wave, June 7-8 In addition to the Fat Bat Festival, Ride the Dirt Wave will be hosting events at Klootchy Creek. If mountain biking is your speed, this weekend at Klootchy Creek will be packed with adventure. There are appropriate trails for all experience
City borrowing proposals on May ballot WILL CHAPPELL
Lots to Look Forward to
PIERCE BAUGH V
Special Section Inside
Tillamook Beekeepers’ Bee Days will feature a demonstration hive as well as a fundraising raffle for a hive constructed by Rick Stelzig and painted by local youth, pg 7
Haystack Rock Awareness Program’s Spring Events, pg 10. Photo by Bob Kroll
Welcome Home
levels, from heart-pumping adrenaline rides to familyfriendly trails. For more information: https://oregonridesevents. ticketspice.com/ride-thedirt-wave-
Puttz On Tuesday, June 13th, grab your clubs — mini golf clubs, that is. Cannon Beach Putz is a citywide mini golf tournament that will be followed by a silent auction. One of the biggest fundraising events of the year, you don’t have to be Arnold Palmer or Happy Gilmore to enjoy yourself during Puttz. For more information, reach out to tolovanaartscolony@gmail.com
Cannon Beach Sandcastle Contest, June 21 You don’t have to go to an art museum to see great works of art. On Saturday, June 21, mesmerizing sculptures can be found on the beach made entirely of sand when the annual Cannon Beach Sandcastle Contest returns. There will be a master’s division exclusive to pros who are seasoned sand sculptors and other divisions open to those of all skill levels. In addition to sand sculp-
tures, there will be a concert, bonfire and 5K event. The Cannon Beach Sandcastle Contest is one of the most special events of the year. For more information: https://www.cannonbeach. org/events-and-festivals/ sandcastle-contest/ Independence Day Festivities, July 4, While Cannon Beach celebrates Independence Day sans fireworks, there
are still plenty of activities for a memorable holiday. There will be a parade — a staple for many small-town communities to celebrate independence. While Cannon Beach doesn’t have fireworks, it does have something that many places can’t claim, puffins. The Great Puffin Watch will allow visitors to observe the unique birds that make Cannon Beach their home for part of
the year. There will be a free hotdog grill at the Cannon Beach Fire Station For those wishing to see fireworks, there will be fireworks displays at Seaside and Long Beach, WA. For more information on Cannon Beach’s Independence Day celebrations, visit: https://www.cannonbeach.org/events-and-festivals/annual-events/fourthof-july/
Cannon Beach voters will weigh in on two initiatives relating to the city’s ability to incur debt on the May 20 ballot. One, written by members of Cannon Beach Together (CBT), the group that successfully opposed the city’s proposal for the elementary school rejuvenation project last year, seeks to force a vote by residents to approve the city borrowing more than half the amount of government activity revenues. The competing measure, put forward by the city and approved by council last September, would codify the council’s ability to incur debt without voter approval. Supporters of the initiative limiting debt incurrence argue that with the city receiving so much of its revenue from the transient lodging tax, it is necessary to amend the charter to give voters a say in large projects. “Basically, the initiative, well, we learned our lesson,” said Randy Neal, a member of CBT, “maybe we need something a little bit more formal in our city charter to make sure that we get a better say in how future projects, you know, big, future, critical projects get handled.” City staff and some councilors, however, argue that restricting the city’s ability to incur debt without a vote of the people would hamstring its ability to successfully apply for and receive state and federal grants and low-interest loans, seriously impeding the ability to achieve large projects. “A lot of the projects that we do or have in the hopper to do rely on grants, and they rely on low-interest loans,” said City Councilor Lisa Kerr, “and if you have to go to a vote, you’re not going to get your low-interest loan because they’re competitive.” The idea for the proposed charter amendment arose during CBT’s fight against the proposed $7.8-million renovation of the Cannon Beach Elementary School last year, which eventually culminated in the defeat of an advisory question on the project in last November’s election. During that process, Neal and Robin Risley, a former city councilor and member of CBT, said that they became convinced that they needed to take action to ensure that voters would have input on long-term debt incurrence for other projects in the future after council approval of $25 million in bonds for a new city hall and police station. “In the summer of 2024 it was clear the city was not going to allow a vote on any one of the multimillion-dollar projects each being financed by long-term debt,” Risley said. “A citizens’ initiative was drafted to update the city charter to require a vote in the future on critical items like these.” Neal argued that with the city receiving so much of its revenue from the transient lodging tax, its resulting ability to finance projects without seeking bonds requiring voter approval removed voters from the decision-making process. “Something like 80-85% of the city is run on tourism See BALLOT, Page A3