http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/index.php Portland and surrounding area community news and information http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124655615036861700 Summer activities slated at swim pool A number of summer mini camps are scheduled at the Eisenschmidt Pool in St. Helens this summer, and they don’t involve swimming. Camps for 1st-3rd graders include: Flower Power (yard art, plant identification, edible plants, planting seeds and bulbs, ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124655392676699600 East meets West on Pittsburg Road Brad Whisnant has teamed up with a family nurse practitioner Shelly LaFrance and fellow acupuncturist Al Thieme at 36200 Pittsburg Rd., Suite A, to expand area medical services. Whisnant, who most recently practiced acupuncture at the Bowenworks Clinic in St. ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124655359115252400 Last fall, 17-year-old Deniscia Herzberg delivered an armload of umbrellas to the Scappoose School Board along with a message: This is that rainy day. The Scappoose High School junior also gave them a link to a YouTube video urging action to obtain money from Oregon's Rainy Day Fund for the ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124655344065149100 William ‘Bill’ Hammerbeck William “Bill” Hammerbeck of Warren passed away June 28, 2009. He was 79. Mr. Hammerbeck was born Oct. 6, 1929, in Portland. Residing in Warren, he graduated from Scappoose High School in 1947. Following he attended the University of Oregon, and ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124648742443757700 Rent is paid through July for the 285 Columbia, Clatsop and Tillamook county residents who were told that they would lose their Section 8 housing assistance on July 1. The Northwest Oregon Housing Authority board voted Thursday to use reserve revenue funds to pay for the residents’ July ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124648649760411100 On the day after school let out for the summer, contractors showed up early to start developing the site for the new Otto Petersen Elementary School. Scappoose School Super-intendent Paul Peterson welcomed the sight of the workers and their asphalt- and turf-eating equipment. “This is the ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124648693477038800 After weeks of pleading, negotiations and politicking, the Columbia County Commissioners have agreed to add five deputy positions back into the sheriff’s office 2009-10 budget. The decision reinstates three road patrol positions and slightly more than two river patrol positions, just a month ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124648751014050600 Permitting obligations for the proposed $28 million Columbia River Community Hospital have not sidelined plans for hospital revenue to kick in by 2011, a Columbia Health District board member said. In fact, preparation of the Millard Road hospital site in Warren, including pending street ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124648788155638100 One of my favorite discussion topics when it comes to financial and retirement planning is a person’s home mortgage—or any debt, for that matter. Often, people have an inherited urge to be debt free and owe money to no one; quite a normal, healthy emotional indoctrination. ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124648718916369800 Kari Mote rightly figured she was not alone in her frustration at having to swap valuable shopping hours for tedious drive times in the quest for stylish plus-size clothing. So she did what anyone with a quick mind and — here’s the real key — an entrepreneurial spirit would do: ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124647300387470800 For what NBA team did Patrick Ewing play in 1985-86? If you’ve ever flipped through a Trivia Page pamphlet, you probably know the answer. The Trivia Page is an advertising-based booklet placed in restaurants and stores that provides quick conversation-starting trivia for diners, while also ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124604826722520700 Pop icon Michael Jackson was preparing for a rehearsal with Michael Curry Design, a Scappoose-based production design company, just before he died Thursday afternoon. Michael Curry Design has spent the past three months designing the set for Jackson’s 50-concert series in London, Michael ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124603627055427000 A Columbia County man has been sentenced to more than 18 years in prison for holding a friend’s girlfriend in a rental trailer for four days in December 2007, at which time the two men beat her and threatened her life. Patrick Allen McMillan was sentenced June 18 to 220 months in prison for ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124587212888433300 A last-minute scramble is underway by lawmakers and housing advocates to find enough money to keep 285 residents dependent on federal Section 8 housing assistance from the threat of eviction. But the hunt is clouded by questions, some that poke at the competency levels of Northwest Oregon Housing ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124589164016532100 WARRENTON, Ore. – The Northwest Oregon Housing Authority board voted today to pay July’s rent for the 285 Columbia, Clatsop and Tillamook county residents who were told they would lose housing assistance earlier this month. The board will use about $145,000 in reserve revenue funds to ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124587249488884900 Volunteers spent the better part of last weekend trimming shrubs, picking up trash and installing a new bench on the Crown Zellerbach Trail near Scappoose. To some who live on Scappoose Vernonia Highway near the trail, the two clean-up events on June 19 and 20 implied the trail might soon ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124587491822100400 The ball is back in the state’s court after a consultant for the Columbia Health District submitted a fresh round of answers to state regulatory questions about the proposed $22.3 million Columbia River Community Hospital. On June 5, Bob McGuirk, who has been hired by the health district as ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124587328672707800 Dorris Gresho, like many other Columbia County residents, fears a world without sheriff’s deputies. Gresho’s home near Clatskanie was recently broken into, forcing her to install a $1,200 alarm system to prevent future occurrences. In Gresho’s mind, a county without deputies ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124587411180862000 Members of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 4362 in Scappoose are certainly not the type to back down from a challenge. So when the economy started taking its shots at the local populace, the VFW members decided it was time to do something. But they also admit they can’t fight the good fight ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124587384861635400 When Dr. Normund Auzins drove past an old rundown house for sale on St. Helens Street last year, he saw more than cracking paint and a weathered roof – he saw inspiration. During that time, the Portland resident knew he wanted to expand his oral surgery business out from his north Portland ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124578542865821200 The fruit set on apples and most other fruit is great this year. As a consequence, thinning should be considered. Apple trees respond well to having some of their fruit load removed. Commercial growers practice fruit thinning (often with some specific chemicals) as a routine part of orchard ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124535782343263000 Sheriff Jeff Dickerson is sending out a final plea to the Columbia County Commissioners today, just in time for a rescheduled budget committee public hearing at the County Courthouse at last night. He is hoping to shave off about $350,000 from this year's budget in order to save five of the 10 ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124526206037674600 A 15.48-month absorption rate – a factor of how long it would take to sell off the existing inventory of 511 homes on the Columbia County real estate market – in May is hardly a cause for jumping jacks. Still, it’s a far cry better than earlier this year, leading some realtors ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124526140084524500 Close to two-dozen department heads sit around a table and discuss their budgeting priorities each spring: which county programs should be cut, and which programs should be saved? That’s the way the beginning of Lincoln County’s budgeting process works. In comparison to Columbia ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124526334002654700 Both Vernonia and Columbia City were awarded $94,000 from the Oregon Department of Transportation’s Small Cities Economic Stimulus Program. The program dedicated $5 million of the state’s federal stimulus funding to be divvied up – on a competitive basis – to Oregon cities ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124526312386200900 Cascade Grain Products could emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy if all goes well during the next few months in discussions over the company’s reorganization plan. The company filed an initial version of the reorganization plan on May 28 with U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Portland. It calls for ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124526285335019200 Bradbury talks global warming in St. Helens Former Oregon Secretary of State Bill Bradbury will present a slideshow on the localized impact and opportunities of global warming at the Kozy Korner restaurant and bar, at 371 Columbia Blvd., on June 30 starting at 7 p.m. Bradbury completed a training ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124526220747792500 Opening The Hot Spot tanning salon in St. Helens has been a learning experience for Chris Singelstad. The 37-year-old Columbia City man has had to learn how many hours you can put on a tanning bulb, how to maintain and clean hair-washing stations and other info about nails, perms and oils. It is ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124526163852311500 St. Helens’ love affair with softball will be further romanced this summer with the installation of field lighting at the two McCormick Park adult softball fields. Getting the funding for the project wasn’t easy, and installing the lights in the basalt rocks just underneath the field ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124526089407905300 Like so many revolutions, the rise of the three-wheel bike craze at Springlake Community in Scappoose started four years ago with one person, Chris White. “I think they all thought I was weird because I rode it all the time,” White recalls. Her comment is followed by a chorus of ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124508985720826000 Oregon’s unemployment rate hit 12.4 percent in May, a jump from April’s revised 11.8 percent. That’s the highest unemployment rate that the state has recorded since 1976, higher than the 12.1 percent set in November 1982. In May, 240,615 Oregonians were unemployed, more than ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124467804427104300 The same year the nearly 500 foot-cooling tower at the Trojan Nuclear Power Plant was blown to pieces, something else was built nearby: an 18-hole, professional-grade disc golf course. Disc golf is basically what it sounds like: golf. But instead of using clubs to knock balls in tiny holes, disc ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124468215933780000 A recent incident involving a missing alligator in St. Helens is an example of the reason state legislators are pushing for a law that would make owning some exotic animals illegal. Senate Bill 391 would prohibit private ownership of crocodiles, alligators, monkeys and other exotic animals. The ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124468197810477500 Nearly $600,000 from a federal grant will help pay back money spent for the professional training of workers who lost their jobs during the mass layoff of Boise Inc. last November. Now, 150 people of the 350 total Boise layoffs are enrolled in the training program at MTC Works’ St. Helens ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124468033306309100 In response to growing population and demand for greater police coverage in Columbia City, the town’s first full-time police chief will take office on July 1, a change that city officials say will greatly benefit the city. Michael McGlothlin, 40, will come from North Carolina to Columbia ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124467984351442900 Monday the Scappoose School District Board voted unanimously to renew its contract with food-service giant, Sodexo Inc. The renewal came after district and Sodexo officials reached new accountability terms following kitchen staff criticisms leveled against the French-based corporation that it ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124466262883208400 While there is no shortage of finger pointing after a decision by a Clatsop County nonprofit housing authority to cut federal rental assistance to 285 northwest Oregon residents, few solutions have been pitched to replace the jeopardized subsidy. Two weeks ago, the Warrenton-based Northwest ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124404717219711400 Joe Oliver knew he had hit a crossroads in his budding career when the Autobahn car dealership in Scappoose closed its sales and technician services in September. And like many people suddenly finding themselves out of a job in the current economy, Oliver took his fate in his own hands and started ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124414232843144800 St. Helens police have a brother-sister duo in custody believed to be responsible for the April 30 placement of an explosive device near a baseball field dugout in a city park. Acting on a tip, Officer Lisa Faulker began an investigation that led police late Wednesday night to a travel trailer ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124413272783077200 The city of St. Helens distributed a notice Thursday morning announcing that residents no longer are being asked to boil drinking water. Tests conducted on the city's water, which was believed to have possibly been contaminated, came back negative. The Spotlight Web site will have more ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124404932860247600 Portland’s SP Provisions has recalled about 39,973 pounds of ground beef that could be contaminated with E. coli O157:H7, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service. The products subject to recall include five- and 10-pound bags of Cascade ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124405026212608700 Two neighbors stood face-to-face May 9 in St. Helens, one holding a gun and the other a samurai sword. Allegedly, Todd E. Marchant shot his friend, Everett L. Briley, in the chest, causing a wound that eventually killed Briley. Police said the men had an argument while they were coming home from a ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124404768321548700 A gap opened up in Columbia County’s Sheriff’s Office budget when Multnomah County decided to increase the number of U.S. Marshal prisoners it holds in its jail from 125 to 200, according to Columbia County Commissioner Tony Hyde. The Marshal’s office has a priority list of ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124404687093543400 West Lane Road in Scappoose became the focus of two separate events resulting in calls placed to the Scappoose Police Department late last month. On the afternoon of May 24 police responded to a domestic disturbance call that resulted in the arrest of Clarance Leroy Porter, 48, on assault and ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124404623122023900 Columbia County officials hope that Jay Sullivan’s 26 years in Washington D.C. as a political insider and lobbyist can help them secure federal money to, in part, rebuild the city of Vernonia. Leaders from Vernonia, Vernonia schools and Columbia County will be spending about $6,000 a month ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124404609080525700 Sheriff Jeff Dickerson has cut 10 road and river deputies out of the office’s 2009-10 budget in order to manage a $1.2 million deficit – a move that would leave Columbia County without road or river patrol. But Dickerson has a plan that could reinstate six of them. In an e-mail ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124397030417859300 Residents of St. Helens are being advised to boil drinking water before using it following a break in a major water mainline Monday evening. Columbia City residents and businesses were unaffected. Officials there say they had pumped water to the city prior to the break, and can maintain their own ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124344632555565100 A man accused of fatally shooting his next door neighbor pleaded not guilty to murder and unlawful use of a weapon charges in Columbia County Circuit Court Tuesday morning. Todd Edward Marchant, 43, through his attorney entered a not guilty plea related to his alleged shooting of Everett Lawrence ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124344730547362400 Patricia Austin, owner of the new Damma’s Pastry Shop in St. Helens, tries to bake life experience into every sticky bun and bear claw that crosses her counter. “This has been my dream for 40 years, and it’s finally coming true,” Austin said. At the age of six she would ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124344801451352200 Edward Conrad-Waggoner, the Port of St. Helens new property and operations manager, grew up on an emu farm in Lafayette, La. As a child he accompanied his parents on road trips to Oregon to buy emus. “I remember Oregon as being a very beautiful place,” he said. Conrad-Waggoner will ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124344762650913000 The former Columbia County drug court coordinator who has been arrested three times on charges related to drugs was sentenced to 20 days in jail and 36 months of probation. Emily Davis Cayton, 30, already served jail time after her arrests, which counts toward her 20-day sentencing. Cayton, of ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124344717514803700 Defying speculation by some Columbia County workforce specialists that county unemployment hit rock bottom with a 14.1 percent showing in March, numbers released Tuesday by the Oregon Employment Department show April unemployment at 15.4 percent. The rate is the highest the county has seen since ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124344662446922600 Meet Andrew Mallory and he’ll likely tell you his thoughts on St. Helens: drugs and unemployment are cancers that are ripping the city apart. The 44-year-old will also tell you about his plan for change. Mallory, who has lived in Columbia County for three years, wants to establish a workers ... http://www.spotlightnews.net/news/story.php?story_id=124344548376225900 Janette had spent her whole life in a Portland northeast neighborhood, yet she knew nothing about Columbia County, and little about herself, until domestic violence drove her north four years ago in search of shelter. Today, she is a proud St. Helens resident enrolled in nursing assistant classes, ...