The City of Ocean Shores Information
Written by admin on September 22, 2022
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Good Afternoon,
The following has been posted on the city website, city, police, and fire social media pages:
High Tide Hazard: Video Shows Why Damon Point Remains Closed
A visual reminder of why Damon Point is closed. This video was taken today (April 11th) about an hour before high tide. As you can see, if you are trapped out there it is now impossible to get back without a rescue operation even on a calm, placid, sunny day with little to no wind. The environment has become extremely dangerous.
People risk life and limb at Damon Point despite closure, warnings
Authorities have engaged in multiple rescue operations as visitors find their way to off-limits areas
By Jerry Knaak The Daily World • April 8, 2025 1:30 am
Damon Point in Ocean Shores has been closed since Jan. 27, yet people continue to ignore warnings and barriers, putting themselves and others at risk by tempting fate and Mother Nature.
Authorities responded to another rescue call at Damon Point last Thursday, and multiple agencies were called in to assist.
Ocean Shores City Administrator Scott Andersen said that someone who does not heed the warnings and makes their way out to Damon Point could lose their life. Andersen said people are coming up with creative ways to bypass the city’s barriers.
“It’s closed, that’s why the city has those barricades that are put out there, we’re telling people it’s closed, we’re telling people it’s dangerous, we’re going to have to have the police come to the next city council meeting to reiterate that,” Andersen said. “What they’re doing is trespassing across tribal land, the Quinault RV park, the marina down there, that’s how they’re accessing it and someday someone is going to die out there.”
Andersen said people who continue to ignore the closure will be caught in the wrong place at the wrong time and get stranded or worse.
“They’re going to be out there really at the wrong time and lose cell service and not be able to call and be rescued,” Andersen said. “That’s almost what happened (with the latest rescue), she would not have survived if she didn’t have the ability to call that in.”
Ocean Shores Police Chief Neccie Logan said that it’s not just currents and cold water that puts people at risk.
“Temperatures out there, you get stuck out there and you can’t get back, and depending on the time of day, if the tide isn’t low enough until the following day that is low enough for you to get back, you’re staying out there all night,” Chief Logan said. “The temperatures drop out there and if you’re not dressed appropriately you’re definitely in danger of hypothermia from the ambient temperatures and the winds that are chilling. Most people don’t pay attention to the tide charts. The currents that run through there are incredible.”
Anderson said the city of Ocean Shores is looking to work with the Quinault Indian Nation and the Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to develop solutions.
“We have to talk to Quinault. Everyone keeps saying we’re doing overkill. I have let DNR know repeatedly; they’re supposed to put out some dangerous hazard signs,” Andersen said. “None of that is city property; city property is all blocked off. The Department of Natural Resources owns Damon Point, and of course, the Quinault Indian Nation owns the marina, and that’s what they’re cutting across to get to Damon Point. The problem is it’s ‘Damon Island’ now, it’s not 24 hours a day, but when that tide comes back in, people are getting stranded out there, that’s why we put up signs everywhere. People ignore them.”
Rescue operations, while necessary to assist people in trouble, also put a tremendous strain on local police and fire departments and emergency medical services. Andersen said the city is going to start seeking recompense for these rescue services.
“The next time this happens, this time too, they’re going to have to pay for this, the cost of the rescue,” Andersen said. “We can’t be more obvious; the way we’ve barricaded that area, put out signs, there’s not much more we can do. You’ve got a handful of people who don’t want to listen, that’s life. But one day, someone is going to die out there, unfortunately.”
Chief Logan said using a Sea-Doo for the most recent rescue operation was challenging and dangerous for the rescuer as well. Ocean Shores only has two people trained for Sea-Doo rescue operations.
“We had to use all of our resources, go pick up one of our Sea-Doos and put it in the water, and as soon as that Sea-Doo hit the current of that ‘river’ it was incredible to watch it take the Sea-Doo out into the bay and then have him come back and park on the other side of that spit to get the person we were rescuing and get them loaded up and back in,” Chief Logan said. “People don’t realize how swift that is actually moving and if they tried to cross it themselves, they’re going to be swept out into the bay in very cold temperature water. People just don’t realize how deep it can get, it can get as deep as four or five feet. You can’t tell just by looking at it.”
In addition to having to pay for their own rescue, Chief Logan added that trespassers also run the risk of prosecution if they ignore the warnings and barricades and continue to find their way out to Damon Point.
“If we have to expend our resources to get you back, we’re going to be filing charges and we are going to be charging you with the expense of all those resources being used to rescue you,” Chief Logan said. “When you’re committing a crime by trespassing to get to that point to begin with we are absolutely going to be charging you when we get you back across. You need to consider your safety and the rescuers’ safety if it comes to that, it’s not just you that you’re putting at risk, it’s the people who are coming out to save you who are also at risk.”
In recent weeks, numerous people have posted on Facebook about their plans or desires to visit Damon Point as the spring and summer vacation season ramps up. Andersen says the city will look at additional ways to get the word out about the Damon Point closure but admits it’s difficult to reach people who are traveling any distance to Ocean Shores.
“It’s hard. We have put it on our Facebook, we’ve put it on our social media. We’ve pulled Damon off the convention center website, we’ve taken it out of all our advertising, but it’s really hard to communicate with tourists,” Andersen said. “Possibly (a sign) at the city gates, a lot of people won’t even know it’s called Damon Point, some do. We can always do more.”
Chief Logan’s message to those who choose to defy the warnings: “Don’t do it.”
Sara D. Logan | Finance Director
City of Ocean Shores
P: 360.940.7498 | F: 360.289.0376
PO Box 909 | 801 Minard Ave NW Bldg A
Ocean Shores WA 98569
The Ocean Shores Police Department completely supports an individual’s right to exercise their First Amendment rights regarding free speech as well as the right to participate in peaceful protests, demonstrations, or rally’s. As a reminder, there are Washington State Laws that do restrict activities that have the potential to infringe on others’ rights or safety. As we have seen more national and local demonstrations take place, we felt that it would be beneficial to provide several RCW’s related to laws that if crossed would be considered engaging in criminal activity opposed to simply exercising civil rights.
RCW 9A.84.030 Disorderly Conduct (misdemeanor)
A person is guilty of disorderly conduct if the person; (a) Uses abusive language and thereby intentionally creates a risk of assault; (b) Intentionally disrupts any lawful assembly or meeting of persons without lawful authority; (c) Intentionally obstructs vehicular or pedestrian traffic without lawful authority
RCW 9A.76.020 Obstructing a Law Enforcement Officer (gross misdemeanor)
Obstructing a law enforcement officer occurs when a person willfully hinders, delays, or obstructs any law enforcement officer in the discharge of his or her official powers or duties.
RCW 9A.84.010 Criminal Mischief (gross misdemeanor)
Criminal mischief occurs when a person; 1) acts with three or more people; and 2) knowingly or unlawfully uses or threatens to use force. It also occurs if a person participates in any way in the use of such force against a person or property.
RCW 9A.76.180 Intimidating a public servant (class B felony)
Intimidating a public servant occurs when they use a threat to influence, or attempt to influence, a public servant’s vote, opinion, decision, or other official action as a public servant. Public servant means, among other things, any person who presently occupies the position of any officer or employee of government. A threat can occur in a number of ways including, but not limited to, direct or indirect communication of the intent: 1) to immediately use force against any person who is present when the threat is made; or 2) to subject the person threatened or any other person to physical confinement or restraint. Indirect communication might include conduct such as blocking a person when they attempt to leave.
RCW 9A.40.040 Unlawful Imprisonment (class C felony)
Unlawful imprisonment occurs if a person knowingly restrains another person. Restrain means to restrict a person’s movement without consent and without legal authority in a manner in which interferes substantially with his or her liberty. Restraint is “without consent” if it is accomplished by physical force, intimidation, or deception.
RCW 9A.36.041 Assault in the forth degree (gross misdemeanor)
(1) A person is guilty of assault in the fourth degree if, under circumstances not amounting to assault in the first, second, or third degree, or custodial assault, he or she assaults another. An assault is an intentional touching or striking of another person that is harmful or offensive regardless of whether any physical injury is done to the person.
If you are organizing or plan to participate in such an event, please review what the ACLU has published online regarding knowing your rights to protest prior to heading out the door to join in on the event. (https://www.aclu.org/know-your-rights/protesters-rights)
Again, we support your rights to get your message out there but not at the expense of the civil rights and safety of others.
Thank you all for your support and understanding,
- Logan
Chief of Police
***Press Release***
At the Regular City Council meeting on Tuesday, March 25, 2025, during the Public Communication to Council portion of the meeting, a citizen named Maria Van Horn, who identifies as a member of the Steering Committee for the political group, Indivisible Ocean Shores (IOS), made an open public comment and distributed a written document titled; Letter Regarding Free Speech Violation, Sand and Sawdust Festival 2024. Please find a response to these allegations below. The italicized text is taken directly from the letter referenced above.
Background on the Allegations and a Response:
Early this spring, the IOS Steering Committee started making inquiries with the coordinators of various Ocean Shores Convention Center events for opportunities to have a nonpartisan voter registration table free of charge. (Vendor fees for a booth or table are usually in the range of $200.) Many of the events stated they were already full, but approval was received from Ocean Shores Mayor Frank Elduen to have a free table at the Sand and Sawdust at the end of June and Hog Wild at the end of July, which are events sponsored by the Convention Center and City.
• Prior to the Sand & Sawdust Festival, a citizen named Jeni Cate who also identifies as a member of the Steering Committee for Indivisible Ocean Shores (IOS), reached out to the City Clerk’s Office to schedule a meeting with the Mayor with the goal of obtaining a voter registration booth at the Ocean Shores Convention Center during upcoming City festivals. As noted above, the normal practice is to charge for these events. However, the Mayor both afforded a table and waived this fee on the condition that the event be a nonpartisan voter registration drive effort.
There was, however, a caveat to his approval. IOS had to allow people from, in the Mayor’s words, “the other side” to also work the tables. We agreed, even though we had already done all the organizing and filled the roster of volunteers to work the tables. No IOS nonmember reached out to us to say they were interested in working the voter registration table and Sand and Sawdust. Rather they showed up unannounced. When we questioned Mayor Elduen about why they were present without advance notice, he said we should have called him to find out who would be joining us.
• At the initial meeting for the voter registration drive event, the City Clerk, Mayor, and Ms. Cate discussed the requirements for a voter registration booth on City property. At the time there were no booths available. Mayor Elduen, however, went out of his way to try to both find a booth and offer it at no charge to help citizen register to vote at the Ocean Shores Convention Center.
• The Mayor wanted to utilize this opportunity to get different groups to work together for a greater outcome in the community and to build respectful relationships between neighbors, regardless of their personal feelings or political opinions. This is how the Community Engagement Committee was designed to operate and that has proven to be an overwhelming success.
• Since Indivisible Ocean Shores (IOS) supports the Democratic Party, the Mayor then approached a group who were supporters of the Republican Party and asked if they would participate in a nonpartisan voter registration drive. The fact that the Republican leaning group was there, even if they did show up unannounced, should not have come as a surprise since this condition was agreed upon at the initial meeting.
During the Sand and Sawdust event, things of a contentious manner began to unfold. 1) IOS displayed our “Register to Vote, Democracy Depends on It!” banner as always, but there was objection to the word “Democracy” on the banner and Mayor Elduen and Sara Logan, City Clerk, required us to fold the bottom of the sign up to hide the words “Democracy Depends on It!”. Saying “Democracy” was a code word used by Democrats; 2) The Convention Center staff took a copy of our handouts at the table for no known reason. Later we learned that there was apparently a complaint about the word “democracy” in the documents; and 3) After objection to the contents of the banner were voiced, we asked Mayor Elduen if we would have the freedom to display the banner if we had paid for the table and his answer was that he would have to “think about it”. Most notable in this situation is that the city was touting the premise that the word “democracy” was a partisan expression and disallowed its appearance on the banner.
• On the day of the Sand and Sawdust Festival, members of the group Indivisible Ocean Shores, (IOS) put out a sign that stated, “Voters Registration Booth” and at the bottom of the sign is read, “Democracy Depends on It”. At the initial meeting, Ms. Cate, the Mayor, and the City Clerk all uniformly agreed to apply the rules outlined in the official “Vote WA Guide to Registering Voters” for “partisan materials”. A heated electoral talking point during the recent presidential campaigns was the issue of whether or not Donald Trump intended to dismantle certain democratic principles. It was not the word “democracy” itself that was in anyway questionable; it was one party at the booth implying that the other party would govern undemocratically. The phrase “Democracy Depends on It!” in this context was clearly a partisan political talking point. The nonpartisan agreement for the free voter registration booth was designed to avoid exactly this. The whole idea was to bring the community together, not divide it. This phrase had direct political implications and was therefore asked to be covered up.
• Likewise, the City Clerk and Convention Center General Manager requested these things be removed to keep the neutrality of the voter registration table. On the first day of the Sand and Sawdust event the General Manager of the Convention Center and the City Clerk witnessed partisan political materials promoting Indivisible Ocean Shores, (IOS) and expressing opposition to then former President, Donald Trump. These materials are prohibited at voter registration booths: “Partisan materials cannot be handed out or displayed if your organization is a 501(c)(3)” Which the republican group was. (See Vote WA to Registering Voters Guidelines).
• Once again, as stated above, the word “democracy” was not the issue. It is the phrase “Democracy Depends on It”. Implying that one of the two political parties would not govern in a democratic manner that violated the spirit of the neutrality agreement.
• Regarding the contention that Mayor Elduen would have to “think about it” if Indivisible Ocean Shores had paid for the table, the City would have to research if there were different rules if the booth was a paid partisan political activity. A paid partisan political event would likely have a different set of legal rules than a non-paid nonpartisan political event and that would require at least some research. Hence the need to “think about it”.
The experience at Sand and Sawdust precipitated our paying for a table at the Hog Wild event, but we were informed that paying vendors had to carry liability insurance. We were unable to meet the entity profile to qualify for affordable insurance, so we canceled that reservation. We did ask the Mayor to waive the insurance requirement but he declined to do so.
• This is a standard practice for all events carried out in Ocean Shores on City property. This is a provision followed by all municipalities in the State of Washington. In no way shape or form was this targeting. Liability Insurance would be and is required for any vendor or nonprofit seeking to host an event in Ocean Shores on City property.
We initially contacted the League of Women Voters, the Grays Harbor County Auditor, and the Secretary of State’s office and all reported that as far as their jurisdiction was concerned, there was nothing wrong with our banner, the handouts, or using the word “democracy” in any way at an event sponsoring nonpartisan voter registration.
• The City was relying on the guidelines laid out in the Vote WA to Registering Voters Guidelines. “Partisan materials cannot be handed out or displayed if your organization is a 501(c)(3)”.
Sara D. Logan | Finance Director
City of Ocean Shores
P: 360.940.7498 | F: 360.289.0376
PO Box 909 | 801 Minard Ave NW Bldg A
Press Release – Mayor & City Administrator’s Official Statement / Harbor Regional Health
Below you will find the PDF and Word online links to the agenda for our Regular City Council Meeting Tuesday, April 8, 2025 at 6:00 p.m.
https://oceanshores.civicweb.
https://oceanshores.civicweb.
The meeting will be “live Streamed” on the City website where citizens will be able to see the meeting. Please find link below:
https://www.osgov.com/
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Thu, Apr 3, 12:57 PM (1 day ago) |
Good Afternoon, The following information has been posted to the city website and social media: **Press Release** A statement from Ocean Shores Mayor Frank Elduen and City Administrator Scott Andersen on last night’s Ocean Shores Clinic and Harbor Regional Health Town Hall meetingLast night, Harbor Regional Health came to the Ocean Shores Convention Center to present their vision and afford the public an overview of their activities throughout Grays Harbor County at a Town Hall. In attendance from Harbor Regional Health were Tom Jensen, Chief Executive Officer, Anne Marie Wong, Chief Medical Officer, Elizabeth Tschimperle, Executive Director Habor Medical Group, Christopher Majors, Director of Marketing and Public Relations, and Lynn Csernotta, Commissioner of Hospital District 2. The City of Ocean Shores was represented by City Administrator Scott Andersen, Fire Chief Brian Ritter, and Finance Director Sara Logan. Ocean Shores Mayor Frank Elduen, who had previously scheduled priority appointment, was unable to attend the meeting.After the presentation by Harbor Regional Health there was an open microphone question and answer session. During that session questions arose about the hours, schedule, and services that would be made available to walk-in patients at the Ocean Shores clinic. Both the audience and the City were taken aback by comments that the clinic would not be offering walk-in services. During conversations between the City of Ocean Shores and Harbor Regional Health the City was informed that the clinic would be classified as “Rural Health Clinic” as defined by the United States Department of Health and Human Services https://www.ruralhealthinfo.org/topics/rural-health-clinics. The Ocean Shores clinic would therefore afford scheduled primary care services, but it was clearly understood by both parties that the clinic would also offer walk-in clinic services to the public. In correspondence from both the Mayor and the Project Manager the clinic is referred to as a “walk-in clinic”. In correspondence drafted by City Administrator Andersen and sent by Mayor Elduen to CEO Tom Jensen on December 18, 2024, the opening includes the following: “Hello Tom, I truly appreciate everything you are doing at Harbor Regional Health to facilitate the introduction of a walk-in clinic in Ocean Shores. Our community has longed for this development for many years, and I anticipate this service will prove to be exceedingly popular.”After the meeting, City Administrator Andersen and Finance Director Logan debriefed Mayor Elduen on what had been said and what transpired during the meeting. The Mayor immediately put in a call to Harbor Regional Health CEO Tom Jenson. CEO Jensen returned the Mayor’s call this morning. On that call Mr. Jensen promised Mayor Elduen that walk-in services would be available at the Ocean Shores clinic. Mr. Jensen noted that the level of services would be determined by the volume of visitors and that hours and times walk-in services would be afforded to the public would ultimately need be decided based on usage, a position the City finds acceptable, but when asked directly if he could openly be quoted as stating for the record that the Ocean Shores clinic would categorically make walk-in services available he said “yes, you can quote me on that”, “we will get this done”, and that he “regrets any confusion that was caused last night”. The City of Ocean Shores respectfully looks forward to next steps with Harbor Regional Health on staffing, hours, and the types of walk-in services that will be made available to our community and guests…
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The following has been posted to the city alert system and social media:
Important Update: Permit Office Hours Change
Beginning on March 31, 2025, our new office hours will be:
Monday – Friday: 8:00 AM – 3:00 PM
Please make note of the new schedule and reach out during these hours if you need assistance.
We appreciate your understanding and look forward to continuing to serve you!
Thank you!
City of Ocean Shores Permitting Staff
Driving on the beach is NOT recommended and is not for everyone especially if you have not driven on sand before. If you decide to drive on the beach, you do so at your own risk.
The beach is a state highway; all licensing, registration and rules of the road apply the same as city streets.
Things to remember:
No parking on any beach approach.
4-wheel drive is STRONGLY recommended.
The speed limit is 25 MPH.
Do not drive in the sand dunes.
ATV’s are not allowed on beach approaches or on the beach (OSMC 10.32.030.)
Stay ON hard-packed sand.
Stay OFF clam beds and soft “sugar” sand.
Be aware of tides.
Be aware of pedestrians, pets, wildlife, seal pups, and debris like large logs.
Areas Closed to Vehicles Apr. 15 – Labor Day are south of the Chance Ala Mer entrance and north of Pacific Ave entrance.
Visit the city website for more information
https://www.osgov.com/visitors/beach_safety___rules.php
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