The latest round of cuts by the Trump administration has sparked concerns about the future of a project under way at Columbia Memorial Hospital in Astoria that would provide refuge for the community in the event of an earthquake or tsunami.
Among the disaster-preparedness grants cut Friday was a $14 million one that hospital leaders had been counting on— and now they are talking to county and state officials about potential impacts to the project.
The hospital broke ground on a $300 million expansion in October to more than triple the size of the facility, making room for additional services while upgrading it to withstand natural disasters and serve as a tsunami or earthquake refuge.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency had selected Columbia Memorial to receive funds under theBuilding Resilient Infrastructure and Communities program.
The cancellation follows other cuts by the Trump administration that have sparked alarm.
A Columbia Memorial spokesperson did not elaborate on what the cut could mean for the project, but told The Lund Report in an email that hospital leaders are meeting with the state Office of Emergency Management and the Clatsop County Emergency Management “to understand the impacts this will have.”
Coastal hospitals vulnerable to earthquakes
Most of Oregon’s hospitals were built before the dangers of the Cascadia subduction zone were understood and building codes reflected the risk of seismic activity, according to a state report. Coastal hospitals are particularly vulnerable to earthquakes and tsunamis, and state officials have made it a goal to improve their safety.
Columbia Memorial planned to use the federal grant to construct a “deep pile foundation” that would extend deep into the earth to help the hospital withstand an earthquake and continue providing services. It also planned to use the money to build a vertical evacuation structure for a tsunami that could serve as a refuge for 1,900 people along with generators and a helipad.
The expansion at the hospital is broadly supported locally and by area Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici.
However, FEMA announced on Friday that the agency was cancelling grants under the Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities awarded between the 2020 and 2023 fiscal years. The agency’s announcement called it a “wasteful and ineffective” program that “was more concerned with political agendas than helping Americans affected by natural disasters.”
Hospital was looking for project’s ‘last dollars’
Before FEMA cancelled the grant, hospital leaders had turned to lawmakers to chip in a smaller amount.
Last month, the Legislature’s budget-writing committee held a hearing in Astoria to get public input on state spending. Erik Thorsen, Columbia Memorial’s CEO, told lawmakers that the hospital had secured 97% of the funding for the project.
However, he asked the state to contribute $6 million, just 2% of the project’s total cost, that he said was needed as a match to receive the $14 million in federal funds.
Mark Kujala, chair of the Clatsop County Board of Commissioners and head of the hospital’s foundation, told lawmakers that the project has been “cheered along every step of the way.” He held up the letter with the logos of 44 organizations that supported the project.
“The state of Oregon can be the last dollars in to complete the project,” he said.
The federal grant cut comes at a time when Oregon lawmakers are cautious about new spending as they anticipate further federal cuts. It’s unclear when or whether the state could provide funds to fill in for the $14 million cut.
Correction: An earlier version of this article mischaracterized Columbia's finances due to an editor's mistake. The Lund Report regrets the error.
You can reach Jake Thomas at [email protected] or at @jthomasreports on X.
