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Creatures of the night Where to get goosebumps in Newport Page B1

75 CENTS | VOL. 85 | NO. 42 | 2 SECTIONS YOUR WEEKLY COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER SINCE 1927

OCTOBER 17, 2012 | WEDNESDAY

www.TheNewsGuard.com

LINCOLN CITY, OREGON

ODOT attempts to hold the line PATRICK ALEXANDER The News Guard

North Lincoln County tourists and residents will be in search of a taste of Italy with the Sunday, Oct. 14, closing of the Italian Riviera Restaurant and Piano Bar at 3400 N. Highway 101. Opened 27 years ago, the DiBlasi family and their Italian dining and night club-style entertainment establishment closed its doors late Sunday night as renowned local pianist and restaurant owner Ric, his wife, Valerie, her 95-yearold mother, Anna, and Ric and Valerie’s 12-year-old, seventh-grade daughter, Cesarina, laid down their last plate of spaghetti and meatballs to wide-eyed customers.

Of all Oregon’s 8,000 miles of highway, perhaps none is perched as precariously as Highway 101, whose cliff-top route leaves it exposed to the furious power of the Pacific Ocean. Now, erosion at Beverly Beach, midway between Lincoln City and Newport, has caused the highway to start crumbling away as the cliff erodes beneath it, causing concerns for one of the county’s major road users.

Chinook Winds; Roby’s Furniture; Price ‘N Pride; Walgreens; Sears; Safeway; Rite Aid; Bi-Mart

JIM FOSSUM The News Guard

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aft Elementary School has received recognition as one of two Model Schools in the 16-school Lincoln County School District, according to the 2011-2012 report card issued Thursday, Oct. 11, by the Oregon Department of Education (ODE). “We are extremely pleased that we have two Model Schools in our district,” LCSD Superintendent Tom Rinearson said. “Taft Elementary has just been added to the list, joining Sam Case Primary. That means that these schools have excellent student outcomes and will be a resource to e are extremely other schools in pleased that we have the state.” Model schools two model schools are defined as high in our district ... That means poverty schools these schools have excellent that are rated in student outcomes... the top 5 percent of Title I schools - Superintendent Tom Rinearson in Oregon based on new rating formula. Model schools are showcased as examples of successful student outcomes and will help support other schools through Continuous Improvement Networks. “Taft Elementary staff definitely earned recognition as a model school,” Taft Elementary Principal Chris Sullivan said. “We have the best teachers, amazing kids and fantastic families. All staff, education assistants, specialists, teachers, cooks, custodians and parents are responsible for our impressive student growth. As we continually strive to improve, it is important to reflect on how far we take kids each year at this school.” The ODE rates schools as “Outstanding,” “Satisfactory,” or “In Need of Improvement” based on factors that include student test results and participation in testing. “Our other schools, for the most part, are also performing well,” Rinearson said. “The recent state assessment [Oregon Assessment of Knowledge and Skills, or OAKS] shows that the majority of our schools are trending upward, even with the academic bar being raised. We see that our students are continuing to improve.”

WEATHER GUIDE PRECIPITATION AMOUNTS High Low Prec.

48 46 44 43 38 55 54

PATRICK ALEXANDER/THE NEWS GUARD

Erosion on Highway 101 near Beverly Beach is causing conSee LINE, Page A2 cern for road users. The damage is beyond the white line.

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She said drivers have noticed the cliff edge creeping closer and closer to the highway for several years but that the company assumed the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) would deal with it when they replaced the nearby Spencer Creek Bridge in 2008. “This is one of those things where you keep thinking ‘of course they are going to do something,’” she said.

Making the

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Tues., Oct. 9 Wed., Oct. 10 Thurs., Oct. 11 Fri., Oct. 12 Sat., Oct. 13 Sun., Oct. 14 Mon., Oct. 15

“It’s beyond the white line,” North Lincoln Sanitary Service (NLSS) President Tina French said. “There’s a big sinkhole beyond Beverly Beach. There’s a big drop off this side of Beverly Beach. That whole area is pretty unstable.” French said NLSS drivers travel that section of highway regularly, both to pick up trash and recycling from homes in Beverly Beach and to transport loads of cardboard and woodchips to the Georgia Pacific plant in Toledo.

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Weekly Rainfall: 5.6 inches Yearly Rainfall: 62.2 inches

WEEKLY OUTLOOK In case you haven’t noticed, it’s been wet and wild on the Central Coast. This trend should change to showers and partly cloudy days. The sun could peek out on Sunday. Weather data provided by Roads End Weather Watcher Sheridan Jones

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Losing Italy

See GRADE, Page A3

City stretches supply by plugging leaks PATRICK ALEXANDER The News Guard

Four years ago, whenever a Lincoln City resident used 20 gallons of water to take a shower, another 13 gallons of water would disappear from the system, largely without trace. Now, that same shower results in the loss of less than five gallons thanks to an aggressive program of leak repair aided by new, high-tech leak detection equipment. At Lincoln city Council’s Oct. 8 meeting, City

Open 8a-7p Mon-Fri, 8a-6p Sat

Manager David Hawker revealed that a flurry of recent leak repairs has seen the City’s unbilled water rate drop from more than 40 percent in 2008 to less than 20 percent. Leading the hunt has Water Distribution Supervisor Dave Scheib, who told councilors that the recent purchase of an AC Digital Correlation System has helped him and his team track down leaks they could not find with their old equipment.

PHOTO BY ALEX FRANCE @ MORGUEFILE.COM

By cutting its lost water rate to less than 20 percent, Lincoln City See LEAKS, Page A2 is on course to stretch its existing water supply to cope with a population growth for at least 25 years.

Fire destroys restaurant A fire has destroyed the premises occupied by the Puerto Vallarta restaurant at 3001 N.W. Highway 101 in Lincoln City. Doug Kerr, fire marshal with North Lincoln Fire & Rescue District #1 (NLFR), said the blaze was reported just before midnight on Tuesday, Oct. 9, with NLFR sending three fire engines and a heavy rescue vehicle to the scene. Depoe Bay Fire and Rescue also sent an engine to help attack the fire while Nestucca Rural Fire Protection District moved one of their engines to the Bob Everett Fire Station in Oceanlake to provide cover. Kerr said the fire caused an estimated $200,000 worth of damages to the building and another $40,000 to $50,000 of damage to its contents. He said the fire most likely started in an electrical panel.

Council hears bike/ped proposal PATRICK ALEXANDER The News Guard

A draft plan laying out potential biking and walking improvements for Lincoln City received a generally warm welcome from city councilors at their Oct. 8 meeting. The plan, developed by consultants with the help of a pubic advisory committee, sets out a range of improvements including bike lanes, sidewalks and traffic calming measures — making recommendations for what types of facility might be appropriate for each type of street. See PLAN, Page A2

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