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Rockaway Tree Lighting
Mooks out of playoffs
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Headlight Herald
Tuesday, November 19, 2024 | Vol. 136, Issue 47
www.TillamookHeadlightHerald.com
$2.00
County Vets honored by community weighs alternate to FEMA T flood plain demands WILL CHAPPELL Headlight Editor
WILL CHAPPELL
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Headlight Editor
lawyer representing Tillamook County in its ongoing response to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s attempt to force an update to the county’s flood plain development codes presented a possible alternate approach for the county at a meeting on November 14. Molly Lawrence, a Washington attorney representing the county and Oregonians for Floodplain Protection, said that the county should consider adopting a take avoidance approach to permitting development in areas of special flood hazard while a lawsuit against the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) progresses. Commissioners and members of the planning commission reached a consensus to move forward with the proposal, despite meeting attendees encouraging them to take a more confrontational approach. The meeting occurred at the Port of Tillamook Bay in front of a standing room only crowd and with both the board of county commissioners and planning commission, which hears proposed ordinance updates before the board, in attendance. Background The meeting started with an extended presentation on the winding history of the threatened changes that would require extensive restrictions on development in areas of special flood hazard by Lawrence and Tillamook County Director of Community Development Sarah Absher. Absher started by discussing the areas that would be impacted by the proposed updates, which includes areas in zones impacted by river, stream and creek flooding as well as coastal inundation and floodways. She also clarified that FEMA defines development, which would be restricted by the FEMA-proposed updates, as any human caused change to improved or unimproved real estate, which would include road building and septic tank installation. 31 of Oregon’s 36 counties are being impacted by the demanded updates, as well as 230 cities. In Tillamook County, 17 communities are being impacted, with Manzanita, Idaville, Siskeyville and Oceanside excepted. Lawrence then discussed the legal history behind FEMA’s proposed updates to its National Flood Insurance Plan (NFIP), which began with a lawsuit by the Audubon Society in 2009, alleging that the NFIP caused a take of endangered species in violation of federal law. Eventually, the suit settled, with FEMA agreeing to commission a biological opinion (BiOp) from the National Marine Fisheries Services. When completed in 2016, the BiOp found that the NFIP was causing an illegal take of 16 androgenous fish species, including Coho salmon, as well as Orca whales, and See COUNTY TO, Page A3
illamook County paid its respects to its veterans on November 11, with a large ceremony at Hangar B at the Port of Tillamook Bay in the morning and a complementary dinner hosted by the Elks Lodge in Tillamook in the evening. The morning ceremony was hosted by the Tillamook Air Museum and Tillamook County Veteran Services’ Officer Nick Torres served as the master of ceremonies for the event, which had a special focus on veterans who had served during the Cold War. Joel Baker and Friends played music while more than 100 guests perused Burt Darnell’s Traveling Military Museum and enjoyed a free breakfast hosted in the museum’s lobby, with a flyover occurring around 10:30 a.m. The ceremony began at 11 a.m., with a color guard presenting the flag before the group recited the pledge of allegiance and Kaitlyn Dooher sang the national anthem. Torres then welcomed the crowd to the event and spoke about the service of Cold-War-era veterans, many of whom did not participate in active combat but who Torres said had stood watch to protect America’s freedoms. “Your service helped preserve a fragile peace and pave the way for a safer and more connected world,” Torres said. Tillamook High School’s Chorus then performed a medley of the service anthems from each of the services, with veterans from each standing when their service’s anthem began to applause from the crowd. Baker, who owns Kitty’s Food and Spirits in downtown Tillamook, then discussed his experiences participating in USO tours for more
Photos by Will Chappell
(Top) Tillamook County’s Color Guard retires the flag after the table of memory ceremony at the Elks Lodge. (Bottom) Tillamook High School’s chorus prepares to perform a medley of United States military service anthems at the air museum event.
than a decade. Baker said that he went on his first tour in 1979 in Japan and continued touring until 1992, playing more than 1,000 shows in eight countries. Baker said that he began See VETS TO, Page A3
Tillamook County partners with Genoa Healthcare to bring pharmacy to Tillamook WILL CHAPPELL
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Headlight Editor
ince the 2023 closure of the Tillamook Pharmacy, thousands of patients have been left scrambling to fill their prescriptions in the county, with just three available pharmacies. That shortage will be alleviated when Genoa Healthcare opens a new pharmacy in a countyowned building at 800 Main Street in downtown Tillamook sometime next year. Tillamook County Community Health Centers (TCCHC) partnered in the process for Genoa to secure the lease and will be using the part of the building not occupied by the pharmacy for new clinic space. “It’s just exciting to get the pharmacy agreements in place and to know that we have a plan and a partner to be able to deliver this much needed service for our community,” said Tillamook County Health and Human Services Administrator Marlene Putman. When the Tillamook Pharmacy made the decision to close its doors in September 2023, citing the economics of the industry, it wasn’t long before Putman started hearing from concerned patients and residents. Putman said that the pharmacy had been serving around 8,000 patients in the county and that with only three other options available, many patients were concerned about long wait times and other difficulties in accessing those pharmacies. “It created a lot of stress for the community and our patients were anxious as well as others,” Putman said. In response, Putman reached out to the Columbia Pacific Coordinated Care Organization to ask for advice and was put in touch with several other community health centers in the state. Some said that they successfully ran their own pharmacies, while other partnered with companies, including
IN THIS ISSUE News Opinion Obituaries Sports Classifieds
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Genoa, to administer theirs and were happy with the results. Given the relatively small size of TCCHC and staffing constraints, Putman said that the center’s leadership had opted for the contract option, to avoid potential financial issues. “Our clinical team and our community health council, they said, if we can do something, we want to do something, but we can’t afford to go in the hole to help out the community,” Putman said. After reaching this conclusion, Putman reached out to several companies to gauge their interest and solicit proposals. Several proposals would have required the county to pay a fee for pharmacy management, whereas Genoa will operate at zero cost to the county, helping lead to its selection. On September 18, the Tillamook County board of commissioners approved a lease with TCCHC, and on October 9, a sublease with Genoa Healthcare for the building on Main Street. Putman said that the team from Genoa has visited the site several times and is working on designs to renovate the interior to house the pharmacy. Put-
man said that the exact timing of the opening will depend on the wait for permits and construction, but that she hopes the pharmacy will be open by the spring or early summer of 2025. Once the pharmacy is complete, TCCHC will complete any necessary renovations to the rest of the building to house clinical facilities. Putman said that the centers’ leadership is still working to determine which services will be in the building, but that she does not expect many renovations will be necessary, as the building used to house an optometrist’s office, and its layout is well-suited for medical purposes. The new pharmacy will be available to patients of TCCHC as well as other community members and accept private insurance as well as Medicare and Medicaid. Genoa Healthcare also offers a mail-order program, which Tillamook County residents can already access, and will even pre-sort medications into pill organizers for patients. For more information on Genoa’s offerings or to sign up for their prescription delivery service, visit genoahealthcare.com.
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