March 27, 2025 • 34 mins
Episode Highlights:
Be it in education, healthcare, local government, or non-profits, economics drives much of the ways and means of life on 101. Join Double R and his guests to gain insight into the financial side of many of our local institutions.
- Dr. Majalise Tolan, Superintendent, Lincoln County School District
- Dr. Lesley Ogden, CEO, Samaritan North Samaritan North Lincoln and Pacific Communities Hospitals
- Claire Hall, Commissioner, Lincoln County
- Lucinda Taylor, Executive Director, Habitat for Humanity of Lincoln County
- Double R Show - Visit us online -
- Roger@DoubleRshow.com - Email us today -
- facebook.com/DoubleRShow - Follow us -
- Buy Double R a Donut - A way to support the podcast and local non-profits -
- Join as a Sponsor - Advertise with us to promote your business -
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Jana (00:07):
Welcome to the Double R Show, the podcast that features
everything about North LincolnCounty.
The Double R Show directed andproduced by Paul Robertson and
hosted by the voice of LincolnCity, Roger Robertson.
Son Paul (00:30):
Well, happy spring break.
It is, indeed.
It is happening out there.
RR (00:35):
And this is Double R along with Son Paul.
And today we're going to betalking about schools.
We're going to be talking aboutthe county.
And let's see, an upcomingevent down in Newport.
And what's going on withSamaritan North Lincoln
Hospital.
All of that and more rightafter this.
Jana (00:51):
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RR (00:55):
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RR (01:18):
Lincoln, Tillamook and Yamhill Counties, Northwest
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Dr.
Miley Stolen joins us next hereon the Double R Show, and you
are in the process of explainingto the patrons of the district
what is needed for the LincolnCounty School District.
Am I right?
Dr. Majalise Tolan (01:34):
You are, Roger.
If you remember last time I washere, we were talking about how
the board had embarked on ayear-long study to see what was
really needed for our schools totake us into the next 20, 30,
40, 50 years.
And that study completed inFebruary, and the board said,
yep, we need to go out for arenewal bond.
Our bond is set to expire.
(01:54):
And so they made the commitmentthat we're going to go out and
try to get about $73 million inrepairs that were identified in
a renewal bond.
RR (02:03):
$73 million.
Can you explain
Dr. Majalise Tolan (02:06):
what
RR (02:07):
is in that package?
Dr. Majalise Tolan (02:08):
I can.
Actually, The long-termfacility study was done by Brick
Architecture.
We went with an external firmto help us make those decisions.
And they identified $93 millionin needs.
But one of the board's keyfactors was making sure that we
were able to do what we need todo for our facilities to keep
them healthy, to keep them in asafe space for our students to
(02:30):
learn without having a taxincrease.
And so to do that, we workedwith a committee, multiple staff
feedback surveys of what dopeople really think that we need
to have.
And we were able to narrow downthe $93 million to $73 million
that we would go out for a bond.
RR (02:47):
Now, is this going to be new buildings, re-retrofit?
What are we talking about?
Dr. Majalise Tolan (02:52):
Good question.
For the most part, we'relooking at updating and
upgrading, making sure that ourfacilities are set for progress,
you know, with things that weneed to do, a little bit of
expansion.
We do have an expansion of someauditoriums up in Lincoln City,
Taft, since the build of thatnew high school years ago It has
two theater spaces in it.
The cafeteria turns into a highquality theater, and then it
(03:14):
has the small community roomthat people are able to use.
It seats about 100.
Our other schools do not havethat in the county.
And so this bond does includeauditorium spaces for community
use, much like the ones that wehave up in Lincoln City.
RR (03:28):
How important is that?
Dr. Majalise Tolan (03:30):
I think that it's really important that we
always look at giving thestudents the best quality of
space that they have forlearning.
And so we look at our athleticfield.
in Lincoln City and across thecounty.
You know, over spring break,there are teams from across the
state, actually up fromWashington as well, that are
here playing because during thelast bond, we said that turf
(03:51):
fields so we can have continualoutside play was important.
And then we look at the artsand our band concerts, our choir
concerts are often held ingymnasiums.
And so they don't have the samespace currently for high
quality performance.
And our kids perform at a highquality level.
Our teachers are teaching highquality and our students are
learning high quality.
And so having that space wherethey can bring in different
(04:12):
concert, much like we're able todo in Lincoln City with Sluts
Bay Music Festival, able to usethe space.
We want to be able to providethat same learning opportunity
across the county.
RR (04:21):
And are there other needs that will be addressed?
Building issues, roofs,plumbing, electrical?
Dr. Majalise Tolan (04:30):
Eleven of them.
Eleven of them.
So yeah, there are definitelythings like that.
We could spend years exteriorpainting and interior painting
to to keep our buildings up towhere they need to be.
Same with roof repair.
We look at roof repair.
We look at alarm system repair.
We want to make sure that ourbuildings are equipped with
top-notch alarm systems.
One that we're looking atputting in is, we call it the
(04:53):
blue button, but it's actuallyan alarm system.
Instead of being linkeddirectly to the fire department,
it's linked directly to policedepartments.
And we have that system we gotthrough a grant down at Sam Case
Elementary where if anystudent, any staff member pulls
on an alarm, just like you wouldtrain the learn how to pull a
fire alarm it would notify lawenforcement and put the building
in a lockdown so we want tomake sure that we have that kind
(05:15):
of safety feature across ourdistrict so that's definitely
something that that we'relooking at another area we
looked at and i think we learneda lot during covid is the
importance of outside play theimportance of fresh air of
getting kids out at recesswhenever they can
RR (05:30):
all ages
Dr. Majalise Tolan (05:31):
all it's true all ages you know and some
of our schools at the elementaryand middle level have an
outside area that they could goand get fresh during the day
that's covered, but many of ourschools do not.
So we're looking at coveredplay areas, making sure all of
our schools have that at theelementary level, as well as
turf field for play onplaygrounds.
You know, you look at TaftElementary, if you drive by
(05:52):
Ocean Lake Elementary in thenorth, you will see that it's
not raining, but it has rainedso hard that it's covered in mud
and our children can't gooutside for fresh air.
But if you drive by Sam Case orYaquina View Elementary, those
ones have turf fields paid forin various ways.
that they're able to almostalways have an outside recess,
and we want all of our kids tohave outside play.
RR (06:14):
As Miley's told, and as a doctor and as superintendent of
the Lincoln County SchoolDistrict, you look at what is
going to be proposed.
Is there one thing that reallyrings a bell for Dr.
Tolan?
Unknown (06:26):
Oh.
Dr. Majalise Tolan (06:27):
I don't know.
I want it all.
No, I want our kids to have thebest.
They deserve the best.
Our teachers deserve the best.
Our community deserves to driveby schools they're incredibly
proud of.
And I think that we have done afabulous job, really, in
Lincoln County.
We're on the coast.
We're getting hammered withrain and wind and everything all
the time.
And our facilities departmentis amazing at keeping them up,
(06:50):
keeping them safe, keeping themremodeled when we need to.
Anything we ask for, they dofor us.
But they can't do it all.
And we can't wait forever.
And when we have an opportunityto do what we need to do to
have safe and healthy schoolsthat are giving our students top
notch facilities for learningwithout increasing taxes, I
think the board looked at thatand said this was a time that
(07:12):
they needed to make that.
RR (07:13):
And again, without increasing taxes, how does that
come about?
Dr. Majalise Tolan (07:17):
So they looked at multiple proposals on
how much you could bond for.
And the board really said fromthe very beginning that they
wanted to maintain as best aspossible the existing tax rate
and so that looks like 65 centsfor a thousand assessed value
and
RR (07:34):
that's what the patrons have been paying
Dr. Majalise Tolan (07:36):
that's the current rate yeah so that was
when the board looked at youknow all of their factors that
was a major factor in theirdecision is what can we do for
our facilities that will notincrease taxes for our tax base
RR (07:48):
and last but not least it'll be on the ballot when
Dr. Majalise Tolan (07:51):
may 20th so may 20th will be election day
and we'll be given all theinformation anybody could
possibly want until May 20th.
RR (08:00):
If you've got a question, talk to Dr.
Majalise Tolan.
And you are available to makepresentations.
Dr. Majalise Tolan (08:08):
Yes.
Yeah.
We have a little road show ofinformation only going out.
So if you would like to have uscome and talk to a neighborhood
organization that you're in, aclub that you're in, anything
across the county, we would loveto just come and share
information.
And really more importantly, wewant to answer questions.
We want people to feelcomfortable asking us questions
and we want to be able to makesure that that we're doing our
(08:28):
part as a district to have theanswers for them.
So if we don't have it at themoment, then we'll make sure
that we get that answer topeople.
And
RR (08:34):
if you wonder how Roger Robertson and the podcast ends,
look at my front yard.
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RR (09:39):
Dr.
Leslie Ogden, Samaritan NorthLincoln Hospital, Pacific
Communities Hospital joins usnow.
And dollars and cents inmedical facilities is getting to
be a hot topic.
Dr. Lesley Ogden (09:52):
It is.
It is a hot topic across theUnited States, I think, but
particularly for rural hospitalsand things like critical access
hospitals, which is what ourhospital is, just there for
really serving the community inthose critical ways that we
need.
And then all of a sudden, sortof finances are tossed on their
(10:14):
ear.
RR (10:14):
And when we're talking about that, it reflects back on...
Medicaid, Medicare, what arethe financial implications here?
Dr. Lesley Ogden (10:23):
Yes, all of the above.
All of the above.
That's exactly right.
You know, we tend in ruralareas to have a higher
governmental payer mix, meaningpeople who rely on the
government for their insurance,whether that be Medicare for
typically those age 65 and olderor Medicaid for those who
(10:44):
either have disabilities or arelow income.
So in our situation, we haveover 50% of the people who seek
care with us are on Medicare,and over 25% are on Medicaid.
So that makes us a vastmajority government pay sort of
(11:04):
system.
And what we've seen happen inOregon, which is something to be
celebrated, but it's alsosomething to be contemplated, is
we've seen more people join theMedicaid rolls, especially the
past few years.
We've gotten it up to about a Athird of our population is
actually on Medicaid across thestate.
So we have more people thatwe're taking care of that,
(11:27):
frankly, are our weakest payers,if you want to say it that way.
And then, of course, we haven'tseen any reimbursement
increases for the work we do foryears and years, pretty much
across the board with governmentpayers.
RR (11:43):
Every time I see a bill from a hospital, I look at it and I
say, well...
My insurance paid X.
My Medicare paid X.
I could never have paid that bymyself.
Dr. Lesley Ogden (11:57):
Absolutely.
And we are blessed, especiallyin the state of Oregon, to have
such a majority of our folks onsome sort of insurance, right?
Whatever it may be across theboard, we're a vast majority.
We're like 96, 97% insured.
And you'd think that would havesolved the problem for really
(12:20):
making those finances work.
But when you throw in theinflation, of everything that
we've seen go up in prices.
Boy, that's affected healthcaredramatically as well.
When you throw in all the laborcosts that have increased
because we've got to increasewhat we pay people if things
cost more.
And we've got to be fair andwe've got to be attractive.
(12:41):
That's another thing.
We've got to be reallyattractive in rural areas.
That's an
RR (12:44):
interesting comment.
Got to be attractive.
What do you mean by that?
Dr. Lesley Ogden (12:47):
Meaning that our salaries have to be
competitive to get people here.
Exactly.
for these jobs.
So we continue to look at themarket like crazy.
So we're, you know, upping ourrates if that's what it takes to
get people.
So again, we're not going tomake people rich coming out here
(13:08):
and working, but it is going tobe a very fair wage and it's
going to be competitive in themarket.
So with all of these things, aswell as some pressures that
have come from the regulatoryside of things like mandated
staffing and some mandatedactual financial qualifications
that we have to put peopleunder.
All of these things arelegislation that has been passed
(13:30):
and become part of ourregulatory milieu.
When we throw that alltogether, all of a sudden the
money we make does not cover allof our expenses anymore.
And what we're seeing is thishappening with hospitals across
Oregon in particular, but thenacross the United States as
well.
And so you'll see things like,of course you see cost increases
(13:54):
for, you know, the servicesthat, you know, we're trying to
pass that on.
But that doesn't always fly inthe hospital industry because
people pay what they pay.
The government payers don't paythe higher rates that we might
increase.
They pay what they have alreadyset.
And that may have been yearsand years and years ago.
(14:15):
So
RR (14:16):
where does the hospital make up for everything that you
don't get reimbursed for?
Dr. Lesley Ogden (14:21):
Well, we're very lucky with a critical
access hospital that forMedicare patients that we serve,
so it's only that part of ourpayer mix, but for those folks,
we can go back and fill outwhat's called a Medicare cost
report.
And that enables us to getreimbursed up to the cost of
(14:46):
what it took to care for thosepatients.
But you can tell already by ourconversation, that's only 50%
of of what we're doing.
And so the remainder, we justdon't get paid for.
And so it's a funny, funnybusiness.
And the math worked for a longtime.
And now the math is starting tonot work anymore.
RR (15:08):
That makes for a tough scenario.
Dr. Lesley Ogden (15:10):
It really does.
It really does.
Because we've been challenged,of course, to come up with,
okay, how are you going to dothis?
How are you going to continueto serve communities?
And so we regrettably have gonethrough two rounds of layoffs.
I think we've managed them verywell, but it doesn't matter if
you're one of those people who'saffected.
(15:32):
It still affects your job.
So we've sort of paredeverything down as much as we
can, but still still deliveringthe services we're delivering.
We've also done some reallyimaginative and strategic sorts
of things to try to cost cutwherever we can in the
background.
And so we're still working onthat.
(15:53):
We actually had a really goodJanuary and we thought things,
maybe things are turning around,but February was not a great
month for us.
So we'll see what March holdsand we'll continue to work on
things.
RR (16:06):
Dr.
Leslie Ogden, Samaritan inNorth Lincoln Hospital, Pacific
Communities Hospital.
Back in a moment.
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RR (16:46):
Our special guest is Claire Hall, and Claire I've known for
a number of years as a co-workerwith the radio stations Equina
Bay Communications, but nowClaire is the county
commissioner, one of threecounty commissioners in Lake
Ducati.
Welcome aboard.
Guilty as
Claire Hall (17:02):
charged, and thank you, Roger.
Always a pleasure to be here.
RR (17:06):
Been a number of years you've sat in the county
commissioner chair.
Well, Believe it or not, thisis
Claire Hall (17:12):
year number 21.
Wow.
Yeah.
Don Loonley probably surpassedyou?
21 and a half.
So I'm within striking distancethere.
And, you know, I never pursuedlongevity on its own as a goal,
but it feels good.
I've been able to get somethings done because I've been
(17:32):
able to stick around as long asI have.
What's the motivation for that,Claire?
I love this county, and thelonger I'm here, I love it more.
I just, I love the people, andin this job, for me personally,
I see I'm able to help so manydifferent people in so many
different ways.
Don't do it on my own.
(17:53):
I work with a cast of hundreds,if not thousands, but you know,
making a difference for thebetter in somebody's life.
It's that simple, and yet Thatprofound.
You've got a new
RR (18:05):
budget process starting now, right?
Right.
As you look into that newbudget for next year, what do
you see?
What's the goal of Clare Halland that budget process?
Claire Hall (18:16):
Well, I hate to say it, but it's cloudier than...
It usually is at this time ofyear.
I mean, I think we've got anidea that we're sound on local
revenue, and I think the state'sgoing to be okay, but we've got
some federally dependentprograms, and that's just one
giant question mark right now.
(18:36):
For instance, the county roadsystem, 300-some miles of roads,
22 bridges, and it's local gastax, and then federal money
they've been sending us eversince the spotted owl crisis,
and And if that goes away, Idon't know what that does to
roads.
Medicaid, there's a lot oftalk, nothing definitive at this
(18:59):
point about whether Medicaidgets cut or not.
And our three community healthcenters One here in Lincoln
City, you know, just moved fromDMV to the heart of town, the
old Adventist location.
Plus, we're in Newport.
And then just a couple of yearsago, we were able to get into
Waldport as well, which I love.
(19:19):
The whole county represented.
But anyway, when the Medicaidexpansion happened, we were able
to significantly staff up ourcapacity because those folks had
coverage now or access tocoverage.
And depending on how how big ahaircut or amputation Medicaid
(19:40):
takes.
You know, I would hate it ifwe're no longer able to serve
people that we have been servingwith basic medical care.
I
RR (19:48):
assume you're probably attempting to get the year of
state, or not state, but federalrepresentatives and senators.
Claire Hall (19:56):
Oh yeah, very much so.
And gosh, I'm thinking maybeabout a month ago in Newport at
the community college, JeffMerkley and Val Hoyle were both
there I had asked our departmenthead's elected officials to
come up with a spreadsheet,which they did, and I was able
to give it to both of them insort of a pre-meeting
beforehand.
(20:16):
Just, again, things we don'tnecessarily know.
whether they're going to behere next year or not.
But if they weren't, it wouldbe troubling.
I mean, look at our DA'soffice.
I think we have a well-known,well-respected victims
assistance program and alsochild support enforcement.
That's paid for with a $250,000annual federal grant.
(20:40):
Hate to see that service goaway or have to be trimmed.
But I've been telling people wecan't spend money we don't
have.
That's going to be a bottomline.
Makes it a little difficult tobudget, does it not?
Yeah, I mean, you know, as weall know, the feds can spend and
borrow, but we can't.
And that, in the long, longrun, that's really a good thing.
(21:03):
As
RR (21:04):
you look into that next year, does Claire Hall have a
item out there that you're goingto hang your hat on, so to
speak?
Claire Hall (21:14):
Ah, that's a good question, Roger.
I don't know if I see anythingnew on the horizon, at least not
yet, just kind of more of thesame, try to get more housing
built.
I mean, you know, I was sothrilled that we've been able to
get like right here in LincolnCity, two significant affordable
projects, you know, fordisabled folks, retirees on
(21:38):
fixed income, veterans, folkswho are working but, you know,
can't afford to live there.
Anecdotally, I'm hearing frombusiness owners and others, it's
making a difference.
And when I talk in thecommunity, instead of hearing,
it is absolutely, categoricallyimpossible to find a rental in
(21:59):
Lincoln County.
Now I hear, usually that's thecase, but every now and then
somebody's finding a place.
So, you know, it's kind of likechipping away at an iceberg is
the way it feels like sometimes.
RR (22:12):
You mentioned one of my favorite words because I am one
of veteran.
Claire Hall (22:15):
Yes.
RR (22:16):
Oh, my God.
What's happening there?
Claire Hall (22:19):
Oh, okay.
I got to focus myself here alittle bit because, you know,
folks, as one of your electedofficials, I try to be calm and
focused, dignified.
But I'm mad as hell about whatthey're trying to do to
veterans.
And I never served, but I'vegot a military heritage on both
sides of my family.
(22:40):
And so far, well, Keith Barnes,our Veterans Service Officer,
said a few years ago before VAstarted staffing up, you know,
he has to get on the phone, talkto somebody at the VA.
Wait time was down to sevenminutes.
Guess what's starting to climblike a rocket?
Short-term rental assistanceprogram for veterans that has
(23:03):
kept veterans from ending up onthe street.
That's cut.
We all heard about the VeteransSuicide Line and the possible
threats to that.
So now the latestadministration edict is that
those folks and others in the VAcan't telecommute anymore.
They have to go back to theoffice and work from the office,
(23:25):
which might be fine, except nowthey're discovering they don't
have enough workstations for allthese people to be in the
office.
So...
You know, frankly, my headspins a lot of the time trying
to take all this in, even thoughmostly stuff like that, it's
out of my direct control.
But I know people in thecommunity kind of have come to
(23:47):
trust me, expect that I'm goingto be up on things that are
happening and I'm doing my best.
But strange days indeed, as thesong goes.
Kids
RR (23:58):
and veterans are a couple of items that really, really
tugged my heart appreciably.
And you did mention the name ofone guy that I want to give a
shout out to, Keith Barnes.
Claire Hall (24:09):
Absolutely.
You know, we have been solucky.
We've had good people in thatjob before Keith, but Keith is
absolutely exceptional.
And I don't know if peoplelistening, if they haven't been
in the military or aren't partof a military family, may not
know essentially why Keith...
is so important.
Ask your vet.
Yeah.
(24:30):
Now in an, exactly.
Now in a perfect world for avet to be, or their dependent to
be able to access services, gotto be able to like go online,
fill out a few lines on a formand get the process rolling.
This is such a complex processfor good or ill.
(24:50):
That's the way it is right now.
A veteran service officer hasto go through a full week of
training.
So So without Keith or peoplelike him there, our local vets
and their families are justblocked from service.
RR (25:04):
Our guest has been County Commissioner Claire Hall.
We appreciate you coming up andwant you back again and again.
Anytime you call, I'll be here.
Zeller's (25:14):
Homestyle cooking in a hometown atmosphere.
Hi, I'm Adina from Zeller'sRestaurant in Rose Lodge in
Lincoln City.
Join us daily for good fun andgreat food.
You can even kick up your heelsat Zeller's.
RR (25:26):
If you're looking for great early garden fresh produce, it's
Kenny's IGA in the Bay Area ofLincoln City.
Four generations of Morganscaring for your every grocery
need.
All of your favorite beverages,a full deli, meat, produce, and
of course, groceries.
One of my favorite activitiesand organizations is Habitat for
Humanity.
(25:46):
Habitat for Humanity of LincolnCounty is sponsoring their
third annual Home and GardenShow.
And here to talk about that,Lucinda Taylor, welcome.
Lucinda Taylor (25:55):
Thank you.
It's a pleasure to be here.
RR (25:57):
This is a wonderful fundraising event for Habitat
for Humanity, is it not?
Lucinda Taylor (26:02):
It is.
It is our major fundraiser ofthe year.
We have a fun time putting iton.
And I know the folks who comeand attend, the vendors, the
sponsors, and the folks who comeand visit all of those folks
have a great time.
RR (26:16):
Last two years, been at Chinook Winds up at the casino.
This year, it's going to be inNewport.
Lucinda Taylor (26:21):
Yes, we decided we need to bounce around across
the county since we serve thefull county.
So we'll be at the Rec Centerin Newport on April 26th.
RR (26:31):
As you look around of all the booths already that have
signed up, you also have somemajors sponsors that we need to
give some accolades to.
Lucinda Taylor (26:39):
Thank you.
Yes, absolutely.
Our presenting sponsor isO'Brien and Company.
Love the work that they'redoing in our community.
I
RR (26:47):
think a lot of people have never heard of O'Brien and
Company, and they spoke atChamber about all of the
activities they are involved inin Lincoln County.
Lucinda Taylor (26:56):
They've done a number of projects already and
are currently involved.
They're building the OSUhousing down in Newport.
They're doing a lot of things.
They're very involved in thearea.
And one of their employeesactually serves on our board of
directors.
We're thrilled to have RyanMartinson as part of our team.
RR (27:13):
Very good.
So the other sponsors you haveare who?
Lucinda Taylor (27:16):
So RD Construction Services, Northwest
Natural, everybody knows andloves Northwest Natural, Pelican
Garage Doors, and Most WantedPainters, all gold level
sponsors.
We have some silver levelsponsors with Thompson Sanitary,
Charlotte Lado FarmersInsurance, The Otter Radio,
Coastal Marketing Solutions, andNewport Chamber of Commerce.
And then a bronze Now, as
RR (27:38):
people come to the Home and Garden show down in Newport at
the Rec Center, what will theyexperience?
Who else is going to be there?
Lucinda Taylor (27:44):
We take a very broad view of home because
almost everything centers aroundhome.
But we're going to have yourtypical folks that you might
imagine, folks like BuildersFirst Source.
So for your construction needs,they have all things necessary.
We'll have some artists there,some painters.
Most Wanted Painters, Ibelieve, is signed.
(28:05):
We have R&B contracting.
Right,
RR (28:09):
they just finished working my house.
Lucinda Taylor (28:11):
Oh, excellent.
Yes, they do wonderful work.
We've worked with them on someof our home repair projects.
They give Habitat a littlespecial deal when they do work
with us.
So we would certainlyappreciate their support in the
community.
So, you know, really, it'sanything to do with home, you
might see it there.
RR (28:26):
So we've got raffles, silent auction, free admission,
Newport Rec Center, Saturday,April 26, 10 to 3.
Those are the highlights.
What's the underlines?
story for this event.
It does what for Habitat forHumanity?
Lucinda Taylor (28:40):
So this event helps us raise funds to support
our organization so that we cando what we do in our community,
and that is affordable housing.
We support affordable housingin two different ways.
One, we develop homes, we buildthem, we raise the money, we
build the homes, and then wesell them to income qualified
households through an affordablemortgage.
The other thing we do is we dohome repairs for folks who
(29:01):
already own their homes.
Low-income homeowners are ableto get home repairs and help
maintain their home so that theycan stay in it and live in it,
age in place, be in a healthyenvironment.
Maybe what we're doing ishelping with accessibility
needs.
Maybe we're helping preservethe home.
Maybe the hot water heater wentout.
You know, we can help withthese things.
It's not an instant fix.
(29:22):
It takes time because it's aprocess, but we can help with
those fixes.
We also provide access tomatched savings accounts for
down payment assistance and homerepairs.
So that's through theindividual development account
funded ultimately by the state.
So we really, our goal is tohelp increase the affordable
housing inventory here inLincoln County and help preserve
(29:45):
the existing affordable housinginventory.
Zantello Law Group (29:47):
Zantello Law Group has moved.
I'm Josh Zantello and our lawfirm is now located across from
the Lincoln City CommunityCenter on Northeast 21st.
Our law firm of knowledgeableprofessionals stand ready to
assist you in life's matters.
Bob's Beach Books. (30:02):
You'll find a book for every occasion at
Bob's Beach Books.
Something to read as you'rerelaxed by an open fire?
We have it.
Studying a particular topic?
We have that too.
Traveling to a far-off land?
Discover it first by reading.
Bob's Speech Books in the OceanLake area of Lincoln City?
Come discover.
RR (30:17):
Well, a special thanks to a number of special guests today,
Dr.
Leslie Ogden, Claire Hall,Miley Stolen, and Lucinda
Taylor, all coming by with adifferent slant on a different
topic, Paul.
Son Paul (30:30):
Yeah, a lot of things covered this episode as we march
into the second weekend ofOregon Spring Break.
And, of course, Washington andIdaho and California, they're
all coming up here soon, too.
now you've been down whalewatching yeah I went down to the
beach or down to the wall therelast week and the same day that
the orcas were seen in the baywe ourselves didn't see them but
(30:52):
my mother-in-law and I wentdown for coffee and heard about
all the good news whales outthere and then a classmate of
mine Craig Calkins runs a boatdown there he actually posted a
photo of some of the orcas thathe saw when he was out there on
the
RR (31:07):
sport fisher and we remind all of our visitors that are
here for spring break.
Enjoy your stay, but don't turnyour back on the ocean.
Son Paul (31:14):
Yeah, the ocean is always a dangerous place, and
particularly when the sun's out,you know, you've got to really
be mindful.
RR (31:22):
And as you're here enjoying your spring break now, remember
to come back in April, April 18,19, 20.
It's the Great Oregon CoastGarage Sale happening.
And for more information aboutthat, go to the Lincoln City
Chamber of Commerce.
And it's my understanding theNewport Chamber of Commerce has
joined in this year as well.
So it is a countywide garagesale.
(31:45):
Huge.
Magnifying it.
Son Paul (31:46):
That's great.
Yeah, and that's going to bethe same kickoff of Mudflat
Golf, right?
18th of April?
Yeah, absolutely.
Which you'll play in.
Yeah, you too, hopefully,right?
Which I'll be there.
Get your 9-iron
RR (31:57):
out.
Yeah, get my 9-iron out and ashotgun.
Easter Egg Hunt, sponsored bythe Lincoln City Kiwanis Club,
is forthcoming.
It's going to be down in theBay Area in that beautiful,
beautiful new park that the cityhas used to be
Son Paul (32:12):
a school.
Yeah, yeah.
You know, we had Miley's ontoday and thinking about the
reuse of different properties.
But yeah, that school, longtime, served its purpose and I
look forward to this bondrenewal in May.
RR (32:27):
And that is a ballot measure that people will have an
opportunity to find out moreinformation about that.
Dr.
Tolan has been out and aboutaround the county along with Liz
Martin from the Lake CountySchool District Board of
Directors willing to come toyour organization and talk about
what is all involved with thisballot measure.
(32:49):
Nature Conservancy SeekingVolunteers volunteer naturalist
at the Cascade Head Preserve.
I bet you know aboutvolunteering up and down the
beach, do you not?
Son Paul (32:59):
Yeah, well, we've got our own volunteer program
outside of what the NatureConservancy is doing, but
they're always looking fordocents and the like to help
support their programming upthere on the headland and to
protect that space.
Speaking of Cascade HeadBiosphere Collaborative, we
actually have an event coming uphere on April 3rd, too, at the
(33:20):
Pelican, and it's a warm WarmingPlanet is the title.
Warming Planet.
Warming Planet.
And we've got Oregon's leadmeteorologist or climatologist
coming in.
So come down to the Pelican onApril 3rd from 6 o'clock and
register at caskethead.org forthat event.
RR (33:38):
And finally, I'd like to reemphasize Habitat for
Humanity's third annual Home andGarden Show.
One thing that we needed toreinforce again from Lucinda
Taylor is that you still have anopportunity to buy a booth.
Son Paul (33:52):
Right, yeah.
Get a booth there and show yourwares at the Home and Garden
Show.
RR (33:56):
It's quite an event, and it raises money for Habitat for
Humanity.
As Lucinda told us, it is theirmajor fundraising event for the
year.
Anything else you said at thetable?
That's going to do it for here.
Thanks.
That'll do it for the Dunes andthe Double R Show.
Remember to like and share soyour friends and neighbors
around the world and across thestreet can join us right here in
(34:17):
the Double R Show.
For Paul, Jenna, I'm Double R.
Have a happy day.
You've
Jana (34:23):
been listening to The Double R Show.
Join Roger and Paul Robertsonas they explore everything about
North Lincoln County.
The Double R Show produced byAlways Productions and hosted by
Roger Robertson.
Have a story?
Email contact atalwaysproductions.com or call
458-201-3039.
For The Double R Show, I'm JanaGrahn.
Welcome to the Double R Show, the podcast that features
everything about North LincolnCounty.
The Double R Show directed andproduced by Paul Robertson and
hosted by the voice of LincolnCity, Roger Robertson.
Son Paul (00:30):
Well, happy spring break.
It is, indeed.
It is happening out there.
RR (00:35):
And this is Double R along with Son Paul.
And today we're going to betalking about schools.
We're going to be talking aboutthe county.
And let's see, an upcomingevent down in Newport.
And what's going on withSamaritan North Lincoln
Hospital.
All of that and more rightafter this.
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RR (00:55):
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RR (01:18):
Lincoln, Tillamook and Yamhill Counties, Northwest
Septic Service.
Dr.
Miley Stolen joins us next hereon the Double R Show, and you
are in the process of explainingto the patrons of the district
what is needed for the LincolnCounty School District.
Am I right?
Dr. Majalise Tolan (01:34):
You are, Roger.
If you remember last time I washere, we were talking about how
the board had embarked on ayear-long study to see what was
really needed for our schools totake us into the next 20, 30,
40, 50 years.
And that study completed inFebruary, and the board said,
yep, we need to go out for arenewal bond.
Our bond is set to expire.
(01:54):
And so they made the commitmentthat we're going to go out and
try to get about $73 million inrepairs that were identified in
a renewal bond.
RR (02:03):
$73 million.
Can you explain
Dr. Majalise Tolan (02:06):
what
RR (02:07):
is in that package?
Dr. Majalise Tolan (02:08):
I can.
Actually, The long-termfacility study was done by Brick
Architecture.
We went with an external firmto help us make those decisions.
And they identified $93 millionin needs.
But one of the board's keyfactors was making sure that we
were able to do what we need todo for our facilities to keep
them healthy, to keep them in asafe space for our students to
(02:30):
learn without having a taxincrease.
And so to do that, we workedwith a committee, multiple staff
feedback surveys of what dopeople really think that we need
to have.
And we were able to narrow downthe $93 million to $73 million
that we would go out for a bond.
RR (02:47):
Now, is this going to be new buildings, re-retrofit?
What are we talking about?
Dr. Majalise Tolan (02:52):
Good question.
For the most part, we'relooking at updating and
upgrading, making sure that ourfacilities are set for progress,
you know, with things that weneed to do, a little bit of
expansion.
We do have an expansion of someauditoriums up in Lincoln City,
Taft, since the build of thatnew high school years ago It has
two theater spaces in it.
The cafeteria turns into a highquality theater, and then it
(03:14):
has the small community roomthat people are able to use.
It seats about 100.
Our other schools do not havethat in the county.
And so this bond does includeauditorium spaces for community
use, much like the ones that wehave up in Lincoln City.
RR (03:28):
How important is that?
Dr. Majalise Tolan (03:30):
I think that it's really important that we
always look at giving thestudents the best quality of
space that they have forlearning.
And so we look at our athleticfield.
in Lincoln City and across thecounty.
You know, over spring break,there are teams from across the
state, actually up fromWashington as well, that are
here playing because during thelast bond, we said that turf
(03:51):
fields so we can have continualoutside play was important.
And then we look at the artsand our band concerts, our choir
concerts are often held ingymnasiums.
And so they don't have the samespace currently for high
quality performance.
And our kids perform at a highquality level.
Our teachers are teaching highquality and our students are
learning high quality.
And so having that space wherethey can bring in different
(04:12):
concert, much like we're able todo in Lincoln City with Sluts
Bay Music Festival, able to usethe space.
We want to be able to providethat same learning opportunity
across the county.
RR (04:21):
And are there other needs that will be addressed?
Building issues, roofs,plumbing, electrical?
Dr. Majalise Tolan (04:30):
Eleven of them.
Eleven of them.
So yeah, there are definitelythings like that.
We could spend years exteriorpainting and interior painting
to to keep our buildings up towhere they need to be.
Same with roof repair.
We look at roof repair.
We look at alarm system repair.
We want to make sure that ourbuildings are equipped with
top-notch alarm systems.
One that we're looking atputting in is, we call it the
(04:53):
blue button, but it's actuallyan alarm system.
Instead of being linkeddirectly to the fire department,
it's linked directly to policedepartments.
And we have that system we gotthrough a grant down at Sam Case
Elementary where if anystudent, any staff member pulls
on an alarm, just like you wouldtrain the learn how to pull a
fire alarm it would notify lawenforcement and put the building
in a lockdown so we want tomake sure that we have that kind
(05:15):
of safety feature across ourdistrict so that's definitely
something that that we'relooking at another area we
looked at and i think we learneda lot during covid is the
importance of outside play theimportance of fresh air of
getting kids out at recesswhenever they can
RR (05:30):
all ages
Dr. Majalise Tolan (05:31):
all it's true all ages you know and some
of our schools at the elementaryand middle level have an
outside area that they could goand get fresh during the day
that's covered, but many of ourschools do not.
So we're looking at coveredplay areas, making sure all of
our schools have that at theelementary level, as well as
turf field for play onplaygrounds.
You know, you look at TaftElementary, if you drive by
(05:52):
Ocean Lake Elementary in thenorth, you will see that it's
not raining, but it has rainedso hard that it's covered in mud
and our children can't gooutside for fresh air.
But if you drive by Sam Case orYaquina View Elementary, those
ones have turf fields paid forin various ways.
that they're able to almostalways have an outside recess,
and we want all of our kids tohave outside play.
RR (06:14):
As Miley's told, and as a doctor and as superintendent of
the Lincoln County SchoolDistrict, you look at what is
going to be proposed.
Is there one thing that reallyrings a bell for Dr.
Tolan?
Unknown (06:26):
Oh.
Dr. Majalise Tolan (06:27):
I don't know.
I want it all.
No, I want our kids to have thebest.
They deserve the best.
Our teachers deserve the best.
Our community deserves to driveby schools they're incredibly
proud of.
And I think that we have done afabulous job, really, in
Lincoln County.
We're on the coast.
We're getting hammered withrain and wind and everything all
the time.
And our facilities departmentis amazing at keeping them up,
(06:50):
keeping them safe, keeping themremodeled when we need to.
Anything we ask for, they dofor us.
But they can't do it all.
And we can't wait forever.
And when we have an opportunityto do what we need to do to
have safe and healthy schoolsthat are giving our students top
notch facilities for learningwithout increasing taxes, I
think the board looked at thatand said this was a time that
(07:12):
they needed to make that.
RR (07:13):
And again, without increasing taxes, how does that
come about?
Dr. Majalise Tolan (07:17):
So they looked at multiple proposals on
how much you could bond for.
And the board really said fromthe very beginning that they
wanted to maintain as best aspossible the existing tax rate
and so that looks like 65 centsfor a thousand assessed value
and
RR (07:34):
that's what the patrons have been paying
Dr. Majalise Tolan (07:36):
that's the current rate yeah so that was
when the board looked at youknow all of their factors that
was a major factor in theirdecision is what can we do for
our facilities that will notincrease taxes for our tax base
RR (07:48):
and last but not least it'll be on the ballot when
Dr. Majalise Tolan (07:51):
may 20th so may 20th will be election day
and we'll be given all theinformation anybody could
possibly want until May 20th.
RR (08:00):
If you've got a question, talk to Dr.
Majalise Tolan.
And you are available to makepresentations.
Dr. Majalise Tolan (08:08):
Yes.
Yeah.
We have a little road show ofinformation only going out.
So if you would like to have uscome and talk to a neighborhood
organization that you're in, aclub that you're in, anything
across the county, we would loveto just come and share
information.
And really more importantly, wewant to answer questions.
We want people to feelcomfortable asking us questions
and we want to be able to makesure that that we're doing our
(08:28):
part as a district to have theanswers for them.
So if we don't have it at themoment, then we'll make sure
that we get that answer topeople.
And
RR (08:34):
if you wonder how Roger Robertson and the podcast ends,
look at my front yard.
Chinook Winds (08:42):
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(09:35):
Casino Resort, where concertsare better at the beach.
RR (09:39):
Dr.
Leslie Ogden, Samaritan NorthLincoln Hospital, Pacific
Communities Hospital joins usnow.
And dollars and cents inmedical facilities is getting to
be a hot topic.
Dr. Lesley Ogden (09:52):
It is.
It is a hot topic across theUnited States, I think, but
particularly for rural hospitalsand things like critical access
hospitals, which is what ourhospital is, just there for
really serving the community inthose critical ways that we
need.
And then all of a sudden, sortof finances are tossed on their
(10:14):
ear.
RR (10:14):
And when we're talking about that, it reflects back on...
Medicaid, Medicare, what arethe financial implications here?
Dr. Lesley Ogden (10:23):
Yes, all of the above.
All of the above.
That's exactly right.
You know, we tend in ruralareas to have a higher
governmental payer mix, meaningpeople who rely on the
government for their insurance,whether that be Medicare for
typically those age 65 and olderor Medicaid for those who
(10:44):
either have disabilities or arelow income.
So in our situation, we haveover 50% of the people who seek
care with us are on Medicare,and over 25% are on Medicaid.
So that makes us a vastmajority government pay sort of
(11:04):
system.
And what we've seen happen inOregon, which is something to be
celebrated, but it's alsosomething to be contemplated, is
we've seen more people join theMedicaid rolls, especially the
past few years.
We've gotten it up to about a Athird of our population is
actually on Medicaid across thestate.
So we have more people thatwe're taking care of that,
(11:27):
frankly, are our weakest payers,if you want to say it that way.
And then, of course, we haven'tseen any reimbursement
increases for the work we do foryears and years, pretty much
across the board with governmentpayers.
RR (11:43):
Every time I see a bill from a hospital, I look at it and I
say, well...
My insurance paid X.
My Medicare paid X.
I could never have paid that bymyself.
Dr. Lesley Ogden (11:57):
Absolutely.
And we are blessed, especiallyin the state of Oregon, to have
such a majority of our folks onsome sort of insurance, right?
Whatever it may be across theboard, we're a vast majority.
We're like 96, 97% insured.
And you'd think that would havesolved the problem for really
(12:20):
making those finances work.
But when you throw in theinflation, of everything that
we've seen go up in prices.
Boy, that's affected healthcaredramatically as well.
When you throw in all the laborcosts that have increased
because we've got to increasewhat we pay people if things
cost more.
And we've got to be fair andwe've got to be attractive.
(12:41):
That's another thing.
We've got to be reallyattractive in rural areas.
That's an
RR (12:44):
interesting comment.
Got to be attractive.
What do you mean by that?
Dr. Lesley Ogden (12:47):
Meaning that our salaries have to be
competitive to get people here.
Exactly.
for these jobs.
So we continue to look at themarket like crazy.
So we're, you know, upping ourrates if that's what it takes to
get people.
So again, we're not going tomake people rich coming out here
(13:08):
and working, but it is going tobe a very fair wage and it's
going to be competitive in themarket.
So with all of these things, aswell as some pressures that
have come from the regulatoryside of things like mandated
staffing and some mandatedactual financial qualifications
that we have to put peopleunder.
All of these things arelegislation that has been passed
(13:30):
and become part of ourregulatory milieu.
When we throw that alltogether, all of a sudden the
money we make does not cover allof our expenses anymore.
And what we're seeing is thishappening with hospitals across
Oregon in particular, but thenacross the United States as
well.
And so you'll see things like,of course you see cost increases
(13:54):
for, you know, the servicesthat, you know, we're trying to
pass that on.
But that doesn't always fly inthe hospital industry because
people pay what they pay.
The government payers don't paythe higher rates that we might
increase.
They pay what they have alreadyset.
And that may have been yearsand years and years ago.
(14:15):
So
RR (14:16):
where does the hospital make up for everything that you
don't get reimbursed for?
Dr. Lesley Ogden (14:21):
Well, we're very lucky with a critical
access hospital that forMedicare patients that we serve,
so it's only that part of ourpayer mix, but for those folks,
we can go back and fill outwhat's called a Medicare cost
report.
And that enables us to getreimbursed up to the cost of
(14:46):
what it took to care for thosepatients.
But you can tell already by ourconversation, that's only 50%
of of what we're doing.
And so the remainder, we justdon't get paid for.
And so it's a funny, funnybusiness.
And the math worked for a longtime.
And now the math is starting tonot work anymore.
RR (15:08):
That makes for a tough scenario.
Dr. Lesley Ogden (15:10):
It really does.
It really does.
Because we've been challenged,of course, to come up with,
okay, how are you going to dothis?
How are you going to continueto serve communities?
And so we regrettably have gonethrough two rounds of layoffs.
I think we've managed them verywell, but it doesn't matter if
you're one of those people who'saffected.
(15:32):
It still affects your job.
So we've sort of paredeverything down as much as we
can, but still still deliveringthe services we're delivering.
We've also done some reallyimaginative and strategic sorts
of things to try to cost cutwherever we can in the
background.
And so we're still working onthat.
(15:53):
We actually had a really goodJanuary and we thought things,
maybe things are turning around,but February was not a great
month for us.
So we'll see what March holdsand we'll continue to work on
things.
RR (16:06):
Dr.
Leslie Ogden, Samaritan inNorth Lincoln Hospital, Pacific
Communities Hospital.
Back in a moment.
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RR (16:46):
Our special guest is Claire Hall, and Claire I've known for
a number of years as a co-workerwith the radio stations Equina
Bay Communications, but nowClaire is the county
commissioner, one of threecounty commissioners in Lake
Ducati.
Welcome aboard.
Guilty as
Claire Hall (17:02):
charged, and thank you, Roger.
Always a pleasure to be here.
RR (17:06):
Been a number of years you've sat in the county
commissioner chair.
Well, Believe it or not, thisis
Claire Hall (17:12):
year number 21.
Wow.
Yeah.
Don Loonley probably surpassedyou?
21 and a half.
So I'm within striking distancethere.
And, you know, I never pursuedlongevity on its own as a goal,
but it feels good.
I've been able to get somethings done because I've been
(17:32):
able to stick around as long asI have.
What's the motivation for that,Claire?
I love this county, and thelonger I'm here, I love it more.
I just, I love the people, andin this job, for me personally,
I see I'm able to help so manydifferent people in so many
different ways.
Don't do it on my own.
(17:53):
I work with a cast of hundreds,if not thousands, but you know,
making a difference for thebetter in somebody's life.
It's that simple, and yet Thatprofound.
You've got a new
RR (18:05):
budget process starting now, right?
Right.
As you look into that newbudget for next year, what do
you see?
What's the goal of Clare Halland that budget process?
Claire Hall (18:16):
Well, I hate to say it, but it's cloudier than...
It usually is at this time ofyear.
I mean, I think we've got anidea that we're sound on local
revenue, and I think the state'sgoing to be okay, but we've got
some federally dependentprograms, and that's just one
giant question mark right now.
(18:36):
For instance, the county roadsystem, 300-some miles of roads,
22 bridges, and it's local gastax, and then federal money
they've been sending us eversince the spotted owl crisis,
and And if that goes away, Idon't know what that does to
roads.
Medicaid, there's a lot oftalk, nothing definitive at this
(18:59):
point about whether Medicaidgets cut or not.
And our three community healthcenters One here in Lincoln
City, you know, just moved fromDMV to the heart of town, the
old Adventist location.
Plus, we're in Newport.
And then just a couple of yearsago, we were able to get into
Waldport as well, which I love.
(19:19):
The whole county represented.
But anyway, when the Medicaidexpansion happened, we were able
to significantly staff up ourcapacity because those folks had
coverage now or access tocoverage.
And depending on how how big ahaircut or amputation Medicaid
(19:40):
takes.
You know, I would hate it ifwe're no longer able to serve
people that we have been servingwith basic medical care.
I
RR (19:48):
assume you're probably attempting to get the year of
state, or not state, but federalrepresentatives and senators.
Claire Hall (19:56):
Oh yeah, very much so.
And gosh, I'm thinking maybeabout a month ago in Newport at
the community college, JeffMerkley and Val Hoyle were both
there I had asked our departmenthead's elected officials to
come up with a spreadsheet,which they did, and I was able
to give it to both of them insort of a pre-meeting
beforehand.
(20:16):
Just, again, things we don'tnecessarily know.
whether they're going to behere next year or not.
But if they weren't, it wouldbe troubling.
I mean, look at our DA'soffice.
I think we have a well-known,well-respected victims
assistance program and alsochild support enforcement.
That's paid for with a $250,000annual federal grant.
(20:40):
Hate to see that service goaway or have to be trimmed.
But I've been telling people wecan't spend money we don't
have.
That's going to be a bottomline.
Makes it a little difficult tobudget, does it not?
Yeah, I mean, you know, as weall know, the feds can spend and
borrow, but we can't.
And that, in the long, longrun, that's really a good thing.
(21:03):
As
RR (21:04):
you look into that next year, does Claire Hall have a
item out there that you're goingto hang your hat on, so to
speak?
Claire Hall (21:14):
Ah, that's a good question, Roger.
I don't know if I see anythingnew on the horizon, at least not
yet, just kind of more of thesame, try to get more housing
built.
I mean, you know, I was sothrilled that we've been able to
get like right here in LincolnCity, two significant affordable
projects, you know, fordisabled folks, retirees on
(21:38):
fixed income, veterans, folkswho are working but, you know,
can't afford to live there.
Anecdotally, I'm hearing frombusiness owners and others, it's
making a difference.
And when I talk in thecommunity, instead of hearing,
it is absolutely, categoricallyimpossible to find a rental in
(21:59):
Lincoln County.
Now I hear, usually that's thecase, but every now and then
somebody's finding a place.
So, you know, it's kind of likechipping away at an iceberg is
the way it feels like sometimes.
RR (22:12):
You mentioned one of my favorite words because I am one
of veteran.
Claire Hall (22:15):
Yes.
RR (22:16):
Oh, my God.
What's happening there?
Claire Hall (22:19):
Oh, okay.
I got to focus myself here alittle bit because, you know,
folks, as one of your electedofficials, I try to be calm and
focused, dignified.
But I'm mad as hell about whatthey're trying to do to
veterans.
And I never served, but I'vegot a military heritage on both
sides of my family.
(22:40):
And so far, well, Keith Barnes,our Veterans Service Officer,
said a few years ago before VAstarted staffing up, you know,
he has to get on the phone, talkto somebody at the VA.
Wait time was down to sevenminutes.
Guess what's starting to climblike a rocket?
Short-term rental assistanceprogram for veterans that has
(23:03):
kept veterans from ending up onthe street.
That's cut.
We all heard about the VeteransSuicide Line and the possible
threats to that.
So now the latestadministration edict is that
those folks and others in the VAcan't telecommute anymore.
They have to go back to theoffice and work from the office,
(23:25):
which might be fine, except nowthey're discovering they don't
have enough workstations for allthese people to be in the
office.
So...
You know, frankly, my headspins a lot of the time trying
to take all this in, even thoughmostly stuff like that, it's
out of my direct control.
But I know people in thecommunity kind of have come to
(23:47):
trust me, expect that I'm goingto be up on things that are
happening and I'm doing my best.
But strange days indeed, as thesong goes.
Kids
RR (23:58):
and veterans are a couple of items that really, really
tugged my heart appreciably.
And you did mention the name ofone guy that I want to give a
shout out to, Keith Barnes.
Claire Hall (24:09):
Absolutely.
You know, we have been solucky.
We've had good people in thatjob before Keith, but Keith is
absolutely exceptional.
And I don't know if peoplelistening, if they haven't been
in the military or aren't partof a military family, may not
know essentially why Keith...
is so important.
Ask your vet.
Yeah.
(24:30):
Now in an, exactly.
Now in a perfect world for avet to be, or their dependent to
be able to access services, gotto be able to like go online,
fill out a few lines on a formand get the process rolling.
This is such a complex processfor good or ill.
(24:50):
That's the way it is right now.
A veteran service officer hasto go through a full week of
training.
So So without Keith or peoplelike him there, our local vets
and their families are justblocked from service.
RR (25:04):
Our guest has been County Commissioner Claire Hall.
We appreciate you coming up andwant you back again and again.
Anytime you call, I'll be here.
Zeller's (25:14):
Homestyle cooking in a hometown atmosphere.
Hi, I'm Adina from Zeller'sRestaurant in Rose Lodge in
Lincoln City.
Join us daily for good fun andgreat food.
You can even kick up your heelsat Zeller's.
RR (25:26):
If you're looking for great early garden fresh produce, it's
Kenny's IGA in the Bay Area ofLincoln City.
Four generations of Morganscaring for your every grocery
need.
All of your favorite beverages,a full deli, meat, produce, and
of course, groceries.
One of my favorite activitiesand organizations is Habitat for
Humanity.
(25:46):
Habitat for Humanity of LincolnCounty is sponsoring their
third annual Home and GardenShow.
And here to talk about that,Lucinda Taylor, welcome.
Lucinda Taylor (25:55):
Thank you.
It's a pleasure to be here.
RR (25:57):
This is a wonderful fundraising event for Habitat
for Humanity, is it not?
Lucinda Taylor (26:02):
It is.
It is our major fundraiser ofthe year.
We have a fun time putting iton.
And I know the folks who comeand attend, the vendors, the
sponsors, and the folks who comeand visit all of those folks
have a great time.
RR (26:16):
Last two years, been at Chinook Winds up at the casino.
This year, it's going to be inNewport.
Lucinda Taylor (26:21):
Yes, we decided we need to bounce around across
the county since we serve thefull county.
So we'll be at the Rec Centerin Newport on April 26th.
RR (26:31):
As you look around of all the booths already that have
signed up, you also have somemajors sponsors that we need to
give some accolades to.
Lucinda Taylor (26:39):
Thank you.
Yes, absolutely.
Our presenting sponsor isO'Brien and Company.
Love the work that they'redoing in our community.
I
RR (26:47):
think a lot of people have never heard of O'Brien and
Company, and they spoke atChamber about all of the
activities they are involved inin Lincoln County.
Lucinda Taylor (26:56):
They've done a number of projects already and
are currently involved.
They're building the OSUhousing down in Newport.
They're doing a lot of things.
They're very involved in thearea.
And one of their employeesactually serves on our board of
directors.
We're thrilled to have RyanMartinson as part of our team.
RR (27:13):
Very good.
So the other sponsors you haveare who?
Lucinda Taylor (27:16):
So RD Construction Services, Northwest
Natural, everybody knows andloves Northwest Natural, Pelican
Garage Doors, and Most WantedPainters, all gold level
sponsors.
We have some silver levelsponsors with Thompson Sanitary,
Charlotte Lado FarmersInsurance, The Otter Radio,
Coastal Marketing Solutions, andNewport Chamber of Commerce.
And then a bronze Now, as
RR (27:38):
people come to the Home and Garden show down in Newport at
the Rec Center, what will theyexperience?
Who else is going to be there?
Lucinda Taylor (27:44):
We take a very broad view of home because
almost everything centers aroundhome.
But we're going to have yourtypical folks that you might
imagine, folks like BuildersFirst Source.
So for your construction needs,they have all things necessary.
We'll have some artists there,some painters.
Most Wanted Painters, Ibelieve, is signed.
(28:05):
We have R&B contracting.
Right,
RR (28:09):
they just finished working my house.
Lucinda Taylor (28:11):
Oh, excellent.
Yes, they do wonderful work.
We've worked with them on someof our home repair projects.
They give Habitat a littlespecial deal when they do work
with us.
So we would certainlyappreciate their support in the
community.
So, you know, really, it'sanything to do with home, you
might see it there.
RR (28:26):
So we've got raffles, silent auction, free admission,
Newport Rec Center, Saturday,April 26, 10 to 3.
Those are the highlights.
What's the underlines?
story for this event.
It does what for Habitat forHumanity?
Lucinda Taylor (28:40):
So this event helps us raise funds to support
our organization so that we cando what we do in our community,
and that is affordable housing.
We support affordable housingin two different ways.
One, we develop homes, we buildthem, we raise the money, we
build the homes, and then wesell them to income qualified
households through an affordablemortgage.
The other thing we do is we dohome repairs for folks who
(29:01):
already own their homes.
Low-income homeowners are ableto get home repairs and help
maintain their home so that theycan stay in it and live in it,
age in place, be in a healthyenvironment.
Maybe what we're doing ishelping with accessibility
needs.
Maybe we're helping preservethe home.
Maybe the hot water heater wentout.
You know, we can help withthese things.
It's not an instant fix.
(29:22):
It takes time because it's aprocess, but we can help with
those fixes.
We also provide access tomatched savings accounts for
down payment assistance and homerepairs.
So that's through theindividual development account
funded ultimately by the state.
So we really, our goal is tohelp increase the affordable
housing inventory here inLincoln County and help preserve
(29:45):
the existing affordable housinginventory.
Zantello Law Group (29:47):
Zantello Law Group has moved.
I'm Josh Zantello and our lawfirm is now located across from
the Lincoln City CommunityCenter on Northeast 21st.
Our law firm of knowledgeableprofessionals stand ready to
assist you in life's matters.
Bob's Beach Books. (30:02):
You'll find a book for every occasion at
Bob's Beach Books.
Something to read as you'rerelaxed by an open fire?
We have it.
Studying a particular topic?
We have that too.
Traveling to a far-off land?
Discover it first by reading.
Bob's Speech Books in the OceanLake area of Lincoln City?
Come discover.
RR (30:17):
Well, a special thanks to a number of special guests today,
Dr.
Leslie Ogden, Claire Hall,Miley Stolen, and Lucinda
Taylor, all coming by with adifferent slant on a different
topic, Paul.
Son Paul (30:30):
Yeah, a lot of things covered this episode as we march
into the second weekend ofOregon Spring Break.
And, of course, Washington andIdaho and California, they're
all coming up here soon, too.
now you've been down whalewatching yeah I went down to the
beach or down to the wall therelast week and the same day that
the orcas were seen in the baywe ourselves didn't see them but
(30:52):
my mother-in-law and I wentdown for coffee and heard about
all the good news whales outthere and then a classmate of
mine Craig Calkins runs a boatdown there he actually posted a
photo of some of the orcas thathe saw when he was out there on
the
RR (31:07):
sport fisher and we remind all of our visitors that are
here for spring break.
Enjoy your stay, but don't turnyour back on the ocean.
Son Paul (31:14):
Yeah, the ocean is always a dangerous place, and
particularly when the sun's out,you know, you've got to really
be mindful.
RR (31:22):
And as you're here enjoying your spring break now, remember
to come back in April, April 18,19, 20.
It's the Great Oregon CoastGarage Sale happening.
And for more information aboutthat, go to the Lincoln City
Chamber of Commerce.
And it's my understanding theNewport Chamber of Commerce has
joined in this year as well.
So it is a countywide garagesale.
(31:45):
Huge.
Magnifying it.
Son Paul (31:46):
That's great.
Yeah, and that's going to bethe same kickoff of Mudflat
Golf, right?
18th of April?
Yeah, absolutely.
Which you'll play in.
Yeah, you too, hopefully,right?
Which I'll be there.
Get your 9-iron
RR (31:57):
out.
Yeah, get my 9-iron out and ashotgun.
Easter Egg Hunt, sponsored bythe Lincoln City Kiwanis Club,
is forthcoming.
It's going to be down in theBay Area in that beautiful,
beautiful new park that the cityhas used to be
Son Paul (32:12):
a school.
Yeah, yeah.
You know, we had Miley's ontoday and thinking about the
reuse of different properties.
But yeah, that school, longtime, served its purpose and I
look forward to this bondrenewal in May.
RR (32:27):
And that is a ballot measure that people will have an
opportunity to find out moreinformation about that.
Dr.
Tolan has been out and aboutaround the county along with Liz
Martin from the Lake CountySchool District Board of
Directors willing to come toyour organization and talk about
what is all involved with thisballot measure.
(32:49):
Nature Conservancy SeekingVolunteers volunteer naturalist
at the Cascade Head Preserve.
I bet you know aboutvolunteering up and down the
beach, do you not?
Son Paul (32:59):
Yeah, well, we've got our own volunteer program
outside of what the NatureConservancy is doing, but
they're always looking fordocents and the like to help
support their programming upthere on the headland and to
protect that space.
Speaking of Cascade HeadBiosphere Collaborative, we
actually have an event coming uphere on April 3rd, too, at the
(33:20):
Pelican, and it's a warm WarmingPlanet is the title.
Warming Planet.
Warming Planet.
And we've got Oregon's leadmeteorologist or climatologist
coming in.
So come down to the Pelican onApril 3rd from 6 o'clock and
register at caskethead.org forthat event.
RR (33:38):
And finally, I'd like to reemphasize Habitat for
Humanity's third annual Home andGarden Show.
One thing that we needed toreinforce again from Lucinda
Taylor is that you still have anopportunity to buy a booth.
Son Paul (33:52):
Right, yeah.
Get a booth there and show yourwares at the Home and Garden
Show.
RR (33:56):
It's quite an event, and it raises money for Habitat for
Humanity.
As Lucinda told us, it is theirmajor fundraising event for the
year.
Anything else you said at thetable?
That's going to do it for here.
Thanks.
That'll do it for the Dunes andthe Double R Show.
Remember to like and share soyour friends and neighbors
around the world and across thestreet can join us right here in
(34:17):
the Double R Show.
For Paul, Jenna, I'm Double R.
Have a happy day.
You've
Jana (34:23):
been listening to The Double R Show.
Join Roger and Paul Robertsonas they explore everything about
North Lincoln County.
The Double R Show produced byAlways Productions and hosted by
Roger Robertson.
Have a story?
Email contact atalwaysproductions.com or call
458-201-3039.
For The Double R Show, I'm JanaGrahn.
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