By Jerry Keene, Editor The Oceansider
County Announces Hearing on a Proposal to Convert the Surf Shop and Cafe to Transient Lodging
Neighbors of the Three Arch Inn received letters from the county this week containing an Application and Notice of Hearing which indicated its owner seeks permission to replace the Surf Shop and Current Cafe with three additional lodging rooms for visitors. The Planning Commission will consider the proposal at a hearing scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, September 14 at the Port of Tillamook Bay Conference Room, 4000 Blimp Avenue south of Tillamook on Highway 101.
In an interview with The Oceansider, Cafe owners Corey Shields and Tyler McComas indicated they were unaware that the owner/landlord (Duane Baley of Lake Havasu, Arizona) had submitted the application. The most controversial aspect of the application is a request to excuse the owner from providing off-street parking for the new rooms. The county’s original decision in 2004 to permit the Inn to operate without off-street parking set off community protests and extensive litigation. The Oceanside Neighborhood Association and Oceanside Protection Society Boards are currently exploring options for opposing the request.
Paving Completed at Community Hall Parking Lot
It’s finally finished. After months of work to coordinate the scheduling, the parking lot adjacent to the Oceanside Community Hall has received a long-awaited facelift. “We finally got the planets to align for the paving project,” reported Oceansider Jeff Mason, who served as the volunteer project manager. The paving proposal was complicated by the fact that the Oceanside Community Club applied for a TLT grant from the county to pave property independently owned by the State Parks that opens up onto a State of Oregon highway. Oceansider Bruce Jaeger did the legwork necessary to bring the multiple stakeholders together and submit a successful grant application. The lot is scheduled to reopen on Monday, August 21 (tomorrow).
Water District “Glitch” Highlights Usage Concerns at The Capes
Those “Conserve Water” signs last week were not entirely due to the stretch of hot weather, according to Oceanside Water District Plant Manager Christian Anderson. The shortage was actually due to a “perfect storm” of events that may prompt the district to open a conversation with The Capes Homeowners’ Association about watering their landscaping.
Anderson indicated that three factors combined to trigger a temporary drawdown of Oceanside’s reservoir and the posting of conservation signs. One was high water usage in Oceanside during the month of July as part-time homeowners and short-term rental visitors flocked in to escape the valley heat. The second factor was a “glitch” in the district’s pump (since repaired) that usually only draws water from the reservoir tank in 20-minute intervals. The glitch caused it to run an entire night without pausing, flooding the water district building in the process. The third factor, however, was water usage at The Capes, which irrigates its extensive landscaping twice a day. In this case, Anderson estimated that the system could have handled the Village usage and the glitch, but the need to transfer water to The Capes briefly drew the Oceansider reservoir down to alarming levels. This incident was a “wake-up call” according to Anderson. As Oceanside grows, he said, such shortages will recur – even without equipment failures – highlighting the need to work proactively with The Capes on a long-term solution.
COMMUNITY CALENDAR
September 14 Planning Comm. Hearing
Three Arch Inn Conversion Proposal
Port of Tillamook Bay, 4000 Blimp Avenue 6:30 p.m.
And that’s the view from Oceanside!
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jerrykeene@oceansidernews.com