News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
Sorted by date Results 1901 - 1925 of 7269
Local doctor Sam Hsieh continues to encourage thinking outside the box using what he calls divine creativity, and he wants to know about people who embody the "eternal struggle between conformity and creativity." Back in May, Hsieh, a surgeon at Coulee Medical Center, shared with The Star the story of a special symbol he designed back in college. Hsieh shared how the symbol, representing divine creativity, evolved into a project in which he printed the symbol on hats, giving them to CMC staff...
Speed limits through Electric City may change, following a recent review by a state highway official working with the mayor. The Electric City Council last week discussed potential speed limit changes along SR-155 on the edges of the city, as well as through the city where it's called Coulee Boulevard. Mayor Diane Kohout explained at the Oct. 13 council meeting that she has been working with Scott Cervine from the Washington State Department of Transportation's North Central Region Traffic...
The outcome of the Ice Age Park levy vote in Electric City may determine if the park is built at all. The Ice Age Park levy on the ballot for Electric City voters will, if passed, tell the city council to go forward with building the park, and will pay for the maintenance of the park for a year, after which park maintenance would simply be included in the city's budget in future years. The one-year levy asks for 14.2 cents per $100,000 in property value, or $14.22 for a $100,000 property, $28.25...
The effort to consolidate local towns together into one has been delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. A consolidation committee had been planning to get the issue put on the ballot for this year to combine Grand Coulee and Electric City, and potentially try to combine with Coulee Dam and Elmer City further down the line. Ben Hughes, who heads the committee, said that he has received “little to no responses” from SCJ Alliance, a planning consultancy that had helped get a discussion started by facilitating an evening community meeting. The eff...
The Grand Coulee Dam School District received approximately $127,000 tax money from the Federal Government under the P.L. 874. You cannot tax the Dam etc. The district will receive at least this amount for this budget year. We are currently paying $3.20 in Levy. The district is asking another $1.00 per thousand for a total of $4.20 per thousand. Don’t forget that the state is obligated to fund education 100%, so the district receives money for “Full Time Equivalent” (FTE) students. The Board of Directors negotiated a $123,500 three-year salar...
Ballots are coming soon. In 10 years of working for John Knodell, I was able to observe a true professional, a master of the art, craft and science of a trial lawyer, brilliant not just at interpreting the law and applying the facts and evidence, but also in advocating for crime victims at trial, but fair to ensure that the accused’s rights were protected. John was also a brilliant defense attorney, having represented many in Grant County; that is why he could always look at both sides, the strengths and weaknesses of a case, and make the t...
The long-anticipated Bureau of Reclamation fire station is expected to be completed in 2021. Construction began on the fire station on SR-155 across from Pole Park back in April of 2017, with a $13.6 million contract originally awarded to Innovative Construction and Design in 2016. The termination of that contract was confirmed by the bureau in March of 2019, and construction resumed in April of 2019 by Northcon Construction, which took over the contract. The bureau would not comment on why they changed construction companies. “There are many f...
Lake Roosevelt Schools will begin the process of re-opening in-person education next week, some eight months after the COVID-19 pandemic closed all schools in Washington state. Beginning Monday, students in the Grand Coulee Dam School District will begin going to physical school again, starting in phases organized by grade levels. The school board Monday night approved for students from kindergarten through second grade to begin school. Superintendent Paul Turner explained new guidelines from local health districts about a phased approach to... Full story
High school student athletes may get to shake off some rust and get back into the rhythm of their sports soon. On Monday, the Grand Coulee Dam School District board approved a plan presented by Athletic Director Tim Rasmussen, who will ask Okanogan County Public Health to approve it. The plan, which won’t include games against other schools, describes a practice schedule beginning with spring sports practices from Oct. 19 through Nov. 7, then fall sports practices from Nov. 9 through Nov. 28, and finally winter sports practices from Nov. 30 t...
Some good news for distance learners came this week related to devices and internet service for students. Superintendent Paul Turner told The Star Monday that an additional 275 Chromebooks should be in this week, enough for every student in the Grand Coulee Dam School District to have a device to use. Turner also said that the school qualified for funding from the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction to pay for internet for up to 100 families through June of 2021. That is about how many families need internet in the district, Turner...
A levy seeking to bring in roughly $600,000 over two years to the Grand Coulee Dam School District will be on the ballot for the Nov. 3 election. Superintendent Paul Turner said the new levy is important to the district because of an “uncertainty of funding” coming from the state this coming spring. The state is required to fund basic education, but the definition of basic education doesn’t include transportation, Turner explained, saying that is one area that could get hit. Turner said that the COVID-19 pandemic created budget problems for t...
The construction of additional campsites at Steamboat Rock has resumed after a nearly four-year delay. The construction of 30 full-hookup RV sites at what will be called Cove Loop at Steamboat Rock State Park is on track to be finished in February of 2021, with the sites likely to be ready for campers in late spring or early summer next year, according to Dennis Felton, area manager for state parks in the Coulee Corridor, including Steamboat Rock, Sun Lakes-Dry Falls, and Potholes. A...
So called flushable wipes may flush down the toilet, but they don’t decompose. At the Regional Board of Mayors meeting on Monday, Electric City Mayor Diane Kohout said that the city’s public works director Jarred Armstrong has noted a problem with flushable wipes causing problems with the septic systems due to them not decomposing. Armstrong wasn’t at the meeting to elaborate. “Toilet paper is designed to disintegrate in our pipes and sewage systems, but wipes are not,” an article on the website of the non-profit company Green America r...
The Regional Board of Mayors on Monday discussed the possibility of dump rates going up significantly. The landfill in Ephrata, to where the garbage from the Delano Regional Transfer Station currently ships, hasn’t raised its rates in 12 years. Those rates could go from $28.31 per ton to $46.76 per ton, or $49.93 after tax, Electric City Mayor Diane Kohout said. That would result in about $72,000 more in annual fees, which, unless other ways to absorb the additional costs are found, may need to be covered by raising rates at Delano to s...
After reading last week’s letter submitted by the Bjorklund’s I experienced a few emotions. It is safe to say that any letter in the opinion section which stirs up any kind of feeling is achieving its goal. The emotions I felt were anger, frustration, and a feeling of not being surprised. I am angry anytime somebody takes something that isn’t theirs. That is theft and is illegal. Freedom of speech is arguably the most important of the five rights given in the 1st Amendment of our Constitution. Any attempt to suppress this right is wrong, no ma...
I listened in on the meeting last night. I was appalled by their decision. You have committees to do research and send recommendations to the City, which generally are accepted. I cannot believe that the Boys would rather spend approximately $9,000 a year to do approximately $3,000 of maintenance for a park is not in best interest of the City, especially when there is $22,000 in the Park Budget, so that figures out to be seven years at estimated costs. This is not a Russ Powers Park, the Park generated from a Survey off of Survey Monkey the...
For the past couple months candidate Katie Haven, running for the District 2 Okanogan County Commissioner position, has been reaching out to voters in the County. She has been listening to us – our concerns, hopes, and needs, both individually and for the County’s future. She has done this through phone calls, online chat sessions, and walking neighborhoods to distribute her campaign literature that addresses her priorities, issues, and plans. In every major town, residents have been interested and engaged. They have shared their ideas and ask...
Ballots are coming soon. In 10 years of working for John Knodell, I was able to observe a true professional, a master of the art, craft and science of a trial lawyer, brilliant not just at interpreting the law and applying the facts and evidence, but also in advocating for crime victims at trial, but fair to ensure that the accused’s rights were protected. John was also a brilliant defense attorney, having represented many in Grant County; that is why he could always look at both sides, the strengths and weaknesses of a case, and make the t...
So far, 180 businesses in Grant County have received grants amounting up to $10,000 for economic relief during the COVID-19 pandemic. Grant County’s Economic Development Council doled out the awards in three phases. Phase one awards totaled $438,000; phase two awards totaled $910,000, and phase three awards totaled $339,000 for a total of $1,687,000. The money comes from $2.5 million set aside from the county’s $5 million total they received in federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, Economic Security (CARES) Act funds the county received. Local bus...
Despite a large amount of opposition from the public, the swim dock at Spring Canyon will be removed under a new management plan at the Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area. The National Park Service released a Finding of No Significant Impact for the Environmental Assessment of the Visitor Use Site Management Plan for the park, which includes Spring Canyon among eight other sites. An Oct. 2 statement from the NPS says that "as funding is available," the NPS will implement proposed actions...
Coulee Dam is offering grants to local businesses funded with money from the CARES Act, and applications must be turned in by Oct. 30. The application, first distributed Monday, says businesses are eligible if they: • are a small businesses located in and doing business in Coulee Dam, • have 20 or fewer full-time employees, • had been in business for a minimum of one year as of March 1, 2020 • have a valid UBI number, and • have a Coulee Dam Business License. The business must have been directly impacted by Governor Inslee’s Stay-Home,...
Voting by mail in Washington is safe and secure, Kim Wyman, the secretary of state and the state's top election official has said repeatedly over the last several months. But President Trump's insistence that it's not, as well as changes happening in the U.S. Postal Service lengthening delivery times have concerned the public. That's had Wyman, a Republican seeking her third term in office, also touting the state's system of ballot drop-off boxes. "Our experience in Washington," she wrote in... Full story
For as long as I can remember, political signs have been a staple during the campaign season. And, historically, both parties and candidates have respected the First Amendment rights of one another to support their candidates by displaying campaign signs. These are often displayed in citizens’ yards, on their private property or on public land where allowed. Although, some neighborhoods, such as ours, have a covenant that prohibits yard signs. We were made immediately aware of this fact after putting two Biden-Harris signs and Gov. Inslee s...
TUMWATER — A handful of businesses are facing fines for violations related to lack of mask use by customers and staff. Yet thousands of others that were the subject of complaints are following the governor’s order after numerous contacts and education about requirements from L&I, the agency says. Since mid-July, the Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) has looked into mask complaints concerning more than 4,200 retailers, restaurants and other businesses in the state. In the vast majority of cases, the businesses that were violating the rul... Full story
School district directors did not rush into a decision Monday to reopen Lake Roosevelt Schools sooner than the start of the second quarter, but students who need to will be able to start using the computer labs this week. The Grand Coulee Dam School District board of directors held a Zoom meeting Sept. 28 that included a discussion on reopening school to a hybrid model of distance learning and classroom learning, in which some students would be in the school on Mondays and Tuesdays and others...