Pictured here is Floyd Holcom being sworn in by the chair of the Clatsop County Commission, Patricia Roberts on May 20, 2008.

New Commissioner, Floyd Holcom
On the 7th vote, Floyd Holcom was selected by the existing commissioners to fill the seat vacated by the resignation of Bernie Bjork. Floyd’s first duty was to sit in on the discussion of the mechanism and timeline for selection of the new executive director. He was sworn in on May 20 and will serve until July 1, 2009. Please log onto the Port of Astoria website, www.portofastoria.com/contactus/staff.html for a complete bio on the new commissioner.


Executive Director Search Update
Applications were received from 24 candidates for the new executive director position at the Port of Astoria. The deadline for application submissions was May 12 and the next steps were to turn in two potential interview questions by 5pm on Monday, May 19. Those were to be approved on the 22nd along with a determination of which candidates were to be interviewed by the commission. The commission interviewed candidates on June 2 and will again on June 6. There is a "meet and greet" open house to be held this coming Friday, June 6 at the Columbia River Maritime Museum to meet the four remaining finalists. The commissioners hope to have a new executive director in place by mid-June.

Back to Top

Two years in the making, the Port of Astoria Regional Airport Master Plan Update is now available.

The Port of Astoria has operated the Astoria Regional Airport since it was turned over to them by the board of Clatsop County commissioners. While airport planning documents related to the layout of the airport facilities have been kept up-to-date, an overall master planning study of airport facilities has not been completed since 1993.

Analysis included general aviation operations, runway length and capacity, airfield layout, and an aircraft class mix forecast, among other considerations.

The updated plan contains an inventory of existing airport conditions, forecasts of aviation activity, an analysis of the capacity and facility requirements for the airport and a 20-year development plan and implementation program. The projects include some already underway, such as the construction of additional of t-hangar buildings; some required maintenance work, such as an airfield drainage system evaluation and airfield pavement maintenance; and other projects which will be implemented as needed, such as improvements to the terminal facilities. Funding for these improvements will include a combination of local, state and federal sources and there is another master plan update scheduled for 2012. The master plan update will be presented to the Port of Astoria Commission in June and then to the Warrenton City Commission. Copies of the plan are available for review at the Port of Astoria office, located at 422 Gateway Street, Astoria, Oregon 97103.

On Thursday, May 15, airport manager Ron Larsen briefed representatives from various security organizations for the airport emergency plan annual update. Present at the meeting were patrol officer John Hankins, Sgt. James Peyok, chief John Hord and maintenance department head Harold Culver representing the Port of Astoria; chief deputy Paul Williams from the Clatsop County Sheriff's office; petty officer first class Jeff Kaschalk, lt. commander Joe McGilley and captain Peter Troedsson from the U. S. Coast Guard; fire chief Ted Ames from the Warrenton Fire Department; Fire marshall Mike Jackson from the Astoria Fire Department; supervisor Duane Mullins from Medix Ambulance Service; and chief of police/city manager Robert Maxfield from the Warrenton Police Department. The training included going through the manual submitted to the FAA covering our plan of action in an emergency -- crash or fires, etc. must be submitted annually - chain of command. The group will meet again at the end of June to reassess the proposal before the update is finalized. This process is required to maintain our airport certification.

Back to Top

Millennium Celebrity arrives at the Port of Astoria

Local leadership joins with ship leadership to commemorate inaugural docking

2008 has been a record year for cruise ship docking at the Port of Astoria. We will have been host to 19 cruise ship dockings by the time this year is over. During that time we saw the inaugural visit of the Celebrity Millennium and and Norwegian Pearl and the first-ever Port of Astoria Cruise Ship Art Contest. The Celebrity Millennium docked at the face of Pier 1 on Wednesday, May 7 bringing 1,680 guests and crew. A VIP contingent including Port cruise ship marketing manager Bruce Conner, Port commissioner Kathy Sanders, county commissioner Ann Samuelson, and Astoria city councilor Blair Henningsgaard met with Captain Zisis Taramas; Leonie Henry,Hotel Director; and Berry Van Veldhoven, Human Resources Manager for the official plaque exchange. The Millennium then returned to the Port of Astoria on Wednesday, May 21. For a listing of all the 2008 blue water and river cruise callings for Astoria, please log onto the port website at www.portofastoria.com. You may click the link labeled, 2008 cruise ship and riverboat information to be taken to the appropriate web page.

Back to Top

Port of Astoria security personnel screen the baggage for a passenger boarding the Seven Seas Mariner

The captain and crew of the Seven Seas Mariner treated more than 300 guests to a catered reception near the Columbia River Maritime Museum. Here chef Chris Holen describes his recipes.

Another first for 2008 was the Sunday, May 18 disembarkation docking of the cruise ship Seven Seas Mariner with a capacity of 700 passengers. For this disembarking passengers were screened both dockside and aboard ship. In addition, some 300 guests attended a wine and cheese reception hosted by the cruise ship company for some of their loyal patrons. “Astoria was chosen for this reception because it is so romantic,” said Port of Astoria Cruise Ship Marketing Manager Bruce Conner. A tent was erected in the plaza next to the Columbia River Maritime Museum and refreshments were provided by Baked Alaska chef Chris Holen.

2009 is shaping up beautifully with 12 cruise ships already having scheduled dates for 2009 and more contacts being made all the time. Check back with us for updates.

Back to Top

Cruise Ship Art Contest winners going on board for their ship tour and lunch with the captain.

The first-ever Port of Astoria Mercury Cruise Ship Art contest was conducted with the winners enjoying lunch aboard the Celebrity Mercury on Wednesday, April 30. 107 entries were submitted for the contest and four winners and four runner-up winners were selected by the Celebrity officers and the Port staff, respectively. For more details and photos of the winning submissions, please log onto the Port website, www.portofastoria.com/portfacilities/cruise/cruiseinformation/cruiseshipartcontest.html. The contestants and winners represented a wide range of county communities.

Back to Top

Approximately 30 people attended a maritime cluster meeting held April 15 in the conference room of Englund Marine & Industrial Supply on Port of Astoria property. The meeting was facilitated by Lee Curtis as part of the Columbia-Pacific Economic Development District’s Northwest Oregon Works (NOW) Project of the Oregon Employment Department with a goal of gathering stakeholders in the following mission: “To become a hub for high quality marine services for both commercial and recreational boats.”

The group identified area assets for the maritime cluster as well as what is missing or potential opportunities for the region. Existing assets include (among many others!) natural resources such as the Columbia River, Pacific Ocean and our central location on the west coast, as well as developed amenities like the Astoria Airport, U.S. Highway 101 and the hospital, followed by personnel assets such as trained fishers, the U.S. Coast Guard, the Columbia River Bar Pilots and small business services. Lifestyle amenities such as the Crab & Seafood Festival and the Astoria Regatta were named.

What is missing included commercial airline service, better highway access, rail service, a long term solution for dredging and dredge spoils and a representation and understanding of tribes and their impact, among others. The group established some long and short-term goals as well as some next steps and what they wanted to see happen by 2013. By 2013, the group would like to see more family wage jobs, business growth, higher wages, a community that supports the maritime industry, diversity, an expansion of recreation-based customers/ boating to the area, and tying together services that are available.

The next maritime cluster meeting is tentatively scheduled for July 15th, from 3 -5:00 at Englund Marine.

For more details, please contact Shawna Sykes at Shawna.L.Sykes@state.or.us. You may also contact Mary McArthur at 503.397.3099 or via e-mail at mbmcarthur@att.net.

Back to Top

David Reid (Guest) practicing his skills with the robotic arm on a new WOW truck - with Scott Miethe (Route Supervisor) standing by.

Ginger Emrick (Sales and Marketing Mgr) and Laura Leebrick (Government Affairs Mgr) Co-Cut the ribbon, officially marking the opening of the Warrenton hub of WOW's garbage and recycling collection Operations.

According to Laura Leebrick, Governmental & Corporate Affairs Manager for Western Oregon Waste, approximately 130 people attended the WOW ribbon cutting and open house/ chamber after hours held Thursday, April 17. Beginning with the move-in of the mechanics in 2006 and finishing up with the arrival of office staff and administration in 2008, WOW now occupies 29,000 square feet of space in the former Ag Bag Building at the Astoria Regional Airport. “We were pleased that guests came from all over our coastal service area,” said Laura, “from a good 60 miles away: From Tillamook, Manzanita, Cannon Beach, Seaside, Gearhart and points north.” There were tours of the facility, refreshments, prize drawings and a chance to operate the new robotic collection arm of one of their route trucks. Joe Cook, CFO said, "We were very happy to see so many representatives of local Chambers of Commerce at the event. Our employees were proud to have the opportunity to show off our trucks and our new facility. We hope people had a good time, and learned something new and interesting about what we do..." For more details, log on to the Western Oregon Waste website at www.westernoregonwaste.com

Back to Top

Former president Bill Clinton arrives at the Astoria Regional Airport just in time to scratch Leah's tummy.

Astoria Mayor Willis Van Dusen with Oregon State Senator Betsy Johnson and former president Bill Clinton at a gathering at the Columbia River Maritime Museum

Former president Bill Clinton landed at the Astoria Regional Airport at 8:30am on Monday, May 12 for the start of his tour down the North Oregon Coast. Mr. Clinton’s visit was a surprise to many in the community and he was greeted by more than 900 persons for his speech at the Columbia River Maritime Museum, his first stop of the day. Mr. Clinton is pictured here disembarking from his plane at the Astoria Regional Airport. He is being greeted by John Overholser of Astoria Flight Service and Interim Port Director Ron Larsen.

Back to Top

Developers Jason Palmberg and Jeff Canessa are wrapping up construction of yet another all-steel clear-span building on the Port of Astoria property near the Port offices. The development is called Gateway Business Park. Of four buildings, three will be for commercial/light industrial/business services purposes and the fourth will be a 13-unit commercial storage facility. The buildings range in size from 6,000 to 18,000 square feet and space for new tenant P& L Johnson is planned for completion in August. The partners are available to work on other developments and you may contact Jason at 503-791-1603.

Back to Top

On Friday, May 16, the a contingent from the Newport area visited the Port of Astoria to learn how our systems are set in place to accommodate cruise ships. Their goal is to foster smaller ships than are currently visiting the Port of Astoria and Bruce Conner said, “There is no competition here. We are wanting to be as helpful as possible to the Newport area people, because bringing more visitors to the region can only help us all.”

Back to Top