Inspector Calling: time for fear or learning?

If you're doing your job correctly, surprise visits by "the Inspector" should not be feared

Does the statement, "The inspector is here," send a chill down your spine? If it does, you are probably one of the reasons that we need inspectors. For those of us in the hospitality industry that take the laws and the well-being of our customers seriously, most of the legal aspects of the hospitality business are just common sense. If you don't know an answer, however, new inspectors for our coastal counties are eager to help. Counties in the Lower Columbia have new inspectors for health, agriculture and liquor control.

Oregon Health Division

Erica Van Ess is originally from Monmouth, Oregon. She attended college at Oregon State with an undergraduate degree in biology and environmental science. Erica has a graduate degree in environmental health. "Environmental health is the way that people interact with the environment: How things in the environment can make you sick," she explained. "Food safety, food science, and air quality, are parts of the field."

When asked for how long she had wanted to be a food inspector, she replied the idea had never occurred to her. She had always been interested, however, in the environment and even worked for the Environmental Protection Agency while she was in college. The research aspect of her job with the EPA convinced her that she would rather be involved with people, than paperwork, and her work with the Health Department allows that. She gets to utilize her science background and bring in an education component that makes her job enjoyable.

She worked for the Coos County Health Department, in the environmental health section, for one year prior to transferring to Clatsop County. In Coos County there were two people in her field office, with less facilities to oversee, but more duties within the department.

Since transferring to Clatsop County in November, 1998, she works alone, but now shares an office in Warrenton, Oregon, with the State Agriculture Inspector and the Oregon Liquor Control Commissioner. Erica is responsible for the oversight of 450 facilities, ranging from motels and restaurants to pools and spas, RV parks, and even espresso carts - a daunting task. Add to that schools and daycare facilities and you have one busy gal. "The job is great. I love it," she says. Van Ess teaches the food handler classes that are required of all persons involved in the serving of food to customers. The classes are held for two hours starting at 1:30 or 6:30 at rotating locations in Astoria, Seaside and Cannon Beach. The next set of classes will be Tuesday, April 13 at the South County Center of Clatsop Community College in Seaside. The cost for the class and license is $10.00 per person.

An unexpected benefit of the area that Erica has found is the person she has followed in the job. Hilarie Larson was the previous Clatsop County inspector, who transferred in the fall of 1998. "She was great," said Erica. "Hilarie worked well with people and that has made my job much easier." Both women are working hard to dispel the myths that inspectors are mean, cranky ogres bent on putting business owners out of business. The goal here is to make hospitality businesses safer for all concerned.

Not a bad goal, I say.

Oregon Liquor Control Commission

John Eich was born in Bogota, Columbia, South America, and lived there for 11 years. His family then migrated to North Africa, Spain and other places, as his father worked with the Exxon Corporation. They came to this country in 1964, and John went to high school and college in Ohio. They didn't stop there, however, and John has since lived in California and now, Oregon. He holds a master's degree in education and a law degree from Willamette University. He moved to Oregon in 1986 to attend law school. Following his education, he spent 10 years on active duty with the U. S. Navy and is still a Naval Reservist. In 1990 he applied to become a liquor control inspector, and served his first eight years on the job in the Portland area. Just last November he transferred to the coast.

"My job has a dual role," said John. "I provide licensing during the daytime, and act as the inspector, investigating liquor law violations and premises checks in the evenings and on weekends." He also issues special permits for group functions where one-time liquor handling permits are needed and teaches liquor law orientation classes on a one-on-one basis.

Any time there is an incident where law enforcement officers are called to a bar, or if someone is driving under the influence of alcohol, John gets involved. He tracks police reports and then makes his decision about his next move. "If there is a compliance problem, then I notify the owners of an establishment and go over the liquor laws with them. My primary goal is to educate licensees and the general public as to what the state liquor laws are. Generally enforcement of compliance issues is a last resort," said John. John is one of only 30 inspectors statewide, and they have more than 8,000 establishments to oversee. He does some undercover work so he didn't want his picture taken. "Just tell your readers that I am tall, dark and handsome," he said.

Oregon Department of Agriculture

Both Tillamook and Clatsop counties have fairly new agricultural inspectors. Jon Harrang joined the Tillamook County department in May, 1998, while Barbara Cripe came on board for Clatsop, and parts of both Tillamook and Columbia counties, in November, 1998.

Jon grew up in Banks, Oregon, and attended OSU. He earned his bachelor of food science and technology degree in 1994. His first work was as a food scientist for a small research and development firm in Corvallis, prior to transferring to the Tillamook job. He now works closely with the Tillamook County Creamery Assoc-iation, overseeing 145 dairies, plus he inspects stores, bakeries, meat markets, smokehouses, food processing plants, beekeepers, custom and mobile slaughterhouses and home kitchens - that is if you want to bake or make something out of your home and sell the product to anyone else.

Barbara Cripe complements Jon's work, geographically speaking. Barbara grew up in Portland and has a bachelor of science degree from OSU, and a certificate of public health. She worked for Curry County for 10 years in southern Oregon and Coos County another two and a half years. She operated her own cleaning business in Gold Beach from 1983 to 1986 and then went back to work for the state. She is currently responsible for oversight of more than 300 establishments. LCB

Oregon Health Division

Clatsop County: Erica Van Ess, R.S. Environmental Health Specialist 3

Address: Premarq Centre, 2121 Highway 101, P. O. Box 598, Warrenton, Oregon 97146

Telephone: 503/861-7377

Oregon Liquor Control Commission

Clatsop & Tillamook County: John Eich, Inspector

Address: Premarq Centre, 65Highway 101 N, P. O. Box 967, Warrenton, Oregon 97146

Telephone: 503/861-3912

Fax: 503/861-6074

Toll Free: 800/452-6522

Hours: 3 weeks/month, 8:30a - 5:30p T - W, 8a or 4p Thurs, 7p - 3a Fri

Oregon Department of Agriculture

Food Safety Specialists

Tillamook County: Jon Harrang

Telephone: 503/815-2550

Clatsop/Columbia/Tillamook counties: Barbara Cripe

Telephone: 503/325-8086

Mailing address for both:

635 Capital St. NE

Salem, Oregon 97310-0119

URL: http://www.oda.state.or.us

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