Thank you for your interest in reading The Astorian. Here are a few stories that you might have missed this week:

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This month, Clatsop County Circuit Court saw a record number of defendants unable to aid and assist in their legal defense against criminal charges due to incapacitating mental health issues.

With a persistent shortage of space at the Oregon State Hospital in Salem and a federal court order limiting the amount of time defendants can stay at the psychiatric facility, the increase in what is known as the fitness-to-proceed docket has presented significant challenges statewide.

As of May, 27 defendants were on the docket in Circuit Court in Astoria. When the docket was initially established in January 2020, there were 12.

See the story by Jasmine Lewin by clicking here.

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Clatsop County commissioners will soon vote on two franchise agreements that could bring curbside recycling to unincorporated areas of the county for the first time.

Earlier this year, the county received proposals from Waste Management and Recology Western Oregon — two waste collection companies that provide trash pickup services in unincorporated areas of the county. Under the proposed agreements, new recycling fees would be embedded into existing garbage collection rates.

The Board of Commissioners has extended the public comment period on the agreements and plans to cast a vote on May 22.

While the added recycling services will increase monthly rates for residents, Assistant County Manager Monica Steele said she anticipates many residents being able to lessen the financial impact by reducing the frequency of garbage pickups.

“If somebody is currently receiving a weekly garbage service, it is highly likely that because they are now putting a lot of garbage that previously was going into the garbage can … into the recycling can, they can reduce their garbage service to every other week or a monthly basis,” Steele said at a Board of Commissioners meeting this month.

Read the story by Olivia Palmer by clicking here.

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As the president of Columbia River Pilots, Jeremy Nielsen is no stranger to the narrow and sometimes unforgiving waters that flow between Astoria and Portland.

The river is a designated marine highway — and as on any highway, Nielsen said, travelers need stops to rest, fuel and do maintenance out of the flow of traffic. For commercial ships, anchorage grounds have long served that purpose. But as vessel traffic and size have increased in recent years, anchorage capacity has lagged, spurring concerns for safety along the waterway.

A series of U.S. Coast Guard proposals could put three more on the map.

The proposals, which were originally published in late December, seek to establish federally designated anchorage grounds near Rice Island just northeast of Astoria and near Port Westward and Crims Island near Clatskanie.

“Having federalized anchorage grounds designated by the Coast Guard significantly reduce the risk of grounding and collision, which could result in significant environmental and economic impacts,” Petty Officer 1st Class Travis Magee, a Coast Guard public affairs specialist, said in an email.

Take a look at the report by Olivia Palmer by clicking here.

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— Derrick DePledge