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Kilchis Pumpkin Patch and Corn Maze Opens
Cheesemakers Tame Lions Page A8
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Headlight Herald
Tuesday, October 8, 2024 | Vol. 136, Issue 41
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www.TillamookHeadlightHerald.com
Community discusses proposed mountain bike trail complex WILL CHAPPELL
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Headlight Editor
standing room only crowd gathered at the Kiawanda Community Center on October 1 to offer input on a 35-mile, mountain bike trail system proposed for Buzzard Butte in the Siuslaw National Forest. Staff from the United States Forest Service detailed the project’s status as it nears the end of a federally mandated environmental review and along with representatives from the Tillamook Offroad Trails Association, responded to community members’ questions and concerns. After a brief introduction by Tillamook County Commissioner Doug Olson, who convened the meeting, Traci Merritt, Recreational and Lands Staff Officer and District Landscape Architect for the Hebo Ranger District, detailed the project’s history. Progress on the Sand Lake Restoration Project started in 2018, when United States Forestry Service (USFS) staff started looking at projects to improve the forest around Sand Lake in south Tillamook County. Staff recommended vegetation and habitat management and conservation projects as well as the addition of a mountain bike trail complex. The plan envisioned a fourphased project that would provide bikers with a skills
Andy Davis
Photo by Will Chappell
Commissioner Doug Olson addressed the packed Kiawanda Community Center at the beginning of the meeting about bike trails at Buzzard Butte.
park, ocean views and yearround riding opportunities in an 18,000-plus-acre patch of forest between the unincorporated communities Beaver, Sand Lake and Tierra Del Mar on Buzzard Butte, and a trail connection to Pacific City. Merritt said that the project was designed in a phased
approach to allow the USFS to evaluate its impacts on the forest and neighboring communities before committing to the entire project. After creating the preliminary plan for the trail system, the next step for the USFS was completing a review of
the proposal under the National Environmental Planning Act (NEPA). That review began in 2018 and will be completed in the coming months with a final review and approval decision SEE TRAIL PAGE A2
Sheriff, DA discuss drug recriminalization, deflection WILL CHAPPELL
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Headlight Editor
ollowing hard drugs’ recriminalization on September 1, Tillamook County officials are working to stand up a deflection program for those caught in possession of hard drugs going forward. While the program itself will be the purview of healthcare and mental health providers, both Tillamook County Sheriff Josh Brown and District Attorney Aubrey Olson will have to sign off on the program. Brown’s deputies will also be in charge of determining whether individuals should be referred to the program or face charges, with Olson and her staff in charge of prosecuting those charged. House Bill 4002 was passed by the Oregon legislature this spring and recriminalized the possession of hard drugs in the state after Measure 110 decriminalized it in 2020. The bill gave counties the opportunity and funding to set up drug deflection programs that would prioritize treatment over prosecution while also creating a new class of drug enforcement misdemeanors. Tillamook County is working to establish its deflection program, with the Local Public Safety Coordinating Committee leading the development. Once the program is set up, those found in possession of drugs will be referred without being arrested or charged based on law enforcement officers’ judgement. Brown said that his deputies would have the option to refer those in possession of hard drugs
kicking their addiction,” Brown to the program, but they would said. “That’s the whole point of also have the option of taking this so if we’re not working tothem to jail or issuing a citation. wards that there’s no point.” Making that determination Tillamook County District Atwill be left to individual deputies’ torney Aubrey Olson will also be judgment and Brown said that his asked to sign off on the program, staff will be well-informed of the but her office will have no direct program’s specifics and use that involvement once it launches, knowledge and their training and since participants will be deflected experience to decide how to proaway from prosceed in each situation. “We trust “I want a program that ecution. Nonetheless, them to do their has accountability so that Olson’s office will job, we train them those that do get entered once again have to do their job, a role to play for they have ethical into it have the greatest opportunity to be success- individuals who guidelines that ful at kicking their adput them in this law enforcement diction. That’s the whole position where officers determine making a decision point of this so if we’re are not good canlike that is going didates for deflecnot working towards that to be second tion. House Bill there’s no point.” nature to them,” 4002 instituted Brown said. Tillamook County Sheriff several penalties Brown clarifor drug possesJosh Brown. fied that a referral sion, with the to the program most basic being would deflect a a new unclassified person away from the criminal jus- misdemeanor specifically geared tice system but that if they failed at drug enforcement. to begin or complete the program, Olson said that people charged charges could still be brought later. with this misdemeanor will be While Brown said that he eligible for a diversion program, agreed with Measure 110’s aim of similar to the deflection program addressing substance use disorders but with more stringent condioutside of the criminal justice tions, akin to those for probation, system, he believed the lack of attached. The diversion program accountability it created had will offer treatment to participants, rendered law enforcement toothand they will face up to 180 days less. Consequently, Brown said in jail and 18 months’ probation that for the deflection program should they fail to complete it, to receive his approval, it would though Olson noted that in her need to require ongoing accountexperience, judges give particiability through completion of the pants considerable leeway if they program. experience setbacks or relapses in “I want a program that has acsimilar programs. countability so that those that do “The court system today is get entered into it have the greatest designed to give people as many opportunity to be successful at chances as reasonably possible,”
IN THIS ISSUE News Opinion Obituaries Sports Classifieds
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Olson said. So far, Olson said that she hasn’t seen any drug enforcement misdemeanor cases come across her desk and that she expects many of the cases that she sees involving those charges will also involve other, more serious alleged crimes. Initially, Olson said that she was doubtful that her office would be able to prosecute misdemeanor possession charges because of severe limitations staff time and the ongoing public defender shortage in the state. She said that she was wary of taking on too many drug possession cases and ending up in a situation where a more serious crime could not be prosecuted because of a lack of attorneys available to represent the state and defendant. But after more consideration, Olson said that she plans to prosecute whatever cases are referred to her and reevaluate if there is a deluge of drug possession charges. Much like Brown, Olson said that she felt Measure 110 had compromised her ability to address issues related to drug usage in the county. In her office’s case, the absence of charges to bring against those in possession prevented attorneys from working with defendants to investigate and prosecute those higher up the supply chain. “I felt like measure 110 took the table legs out from under law enforcement,” Olson said. With penalties back on the table, Olson said that she hopes to be able to go after the sources of drugs entering the community to turn the tide on what she feels has been a rising tide of assaults and violent crimes since Measure 110 passed.
Davis focused on cost of living in state legislature run WILL CHAPPELL
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Headlight Editor
storia City Councilor and Democratic candidate for Oregon House District 32 Andy Davis stepped into the race late and is focusing his campaign on addressing the high cost of living in the district, with a special focus on housing costs. Davis said that if elected he would look for legislative opportunities to streamline the state’s land use appeals process to speed development, enact policies to encourage increased density in cities and reduce administrative costs in healthcare to increase funding for treatment. “I think as someone who cares about policy and cares about governance, you know, that there’s some attractiveness to the position because it makes a big difference,” Davis said about his motivations for running. Davis was born and raised in Guthrie, Indiana, a small town just outside of Bloomington. He and his wife moved to the Portland metro area in 2014, to be closer to a sister with young kids, but relocated to Astoria in 2015, after finding that the big city life wasn’t for them. Following the 2016 election, unhappy with Donald Trump’s election to the presidency, Davis determined to get involved in local politics in whatever way he could and began volunteering on local boards and committees. He served on the budget committees for the City of Astoria and Clatsop County, participated in the county’s comprehensive plan update process and volunteered on several nonprofit boards. One of the nonprofits for which Davis was serving as a board member was working on a project to redevelop a building in Astoria to affordable housing and going through that process inspired Davis to run for city council to further address the issue. “I joined that nonprofit before I ran for city council and running for council was sort of an extension of that,” Davis said. “I wanted the city to be actively doing things to try and create more housing in the community.” Since his election in 2022, the council has passed an ordinance SEE DAVIS PAGE A2
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