News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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Grant County PUD plans to switch its Grand Coulee office to a drive-up service sometime early next year. Speaking for the PUD, public affairs manager Thomas Stredwick said Tuesday that there will still be a public presence at the Grand Coulee office, but it will be through contact at its drive-up service window. Stredwick said the target date for the switch over is Jan. 1, 2017. Preparing for the change, the PUD plans some minor communications adjustment for its service window. “It will be somewhat like a drive-by bank service window,” Str... Full story
The proposed sale of Center School failed to receive any bids, school officials stated Monday. That makes twice that the school district has requested bidders to buy the Center School and property. Both times no one offered bids. Deadline for the current bidding cycle was Dec. 1, and school officials had stated that three parties had indicated interest in the property. Former school superintendent Dennis Carlson was named to handle the sale of the property because current Superintendent Paul Turner told the school board that he had a possible c... Full story
A raffle to benefit a new park in Electric City has raised $500, City Councilmember Lonna Bussert said Monday. Bussert has held two picnic celebrations and now the raffle of two bicycles to raise over $4,000 toward development of the new park behind the fire station in Electric City. Winners of the bicycles were Susan Haydock of Coulee Dam and Cody Bright of Wilbur. Bright donated his bicycle back and Bussert gave it to Trees of Sharing, to be given to some child in the area. Bussert had stated that she hoped to get started on the park next... Full story
About 80 children showed up to see Santa Claus and to take part in a "cake walk" program last Saturday at North Dam Park. A number of local citizens provided cakes, some 25 in all, to be passed out to children whose numbers were called. It was a community affair, with the Eagles and Moose lodges taking part, along with the City of Electric City and a dozen members of the community choir. The program began at 3 p.m. and lasted until five, with Santa arriving about 4. There were hot dogs and hot... Full story
Electric City plans to continue its renovation of city hall next year. The 2017 improvements include new windows and doors. The project is being funded in the 2017 budget and is expected to cost less than $20,000. In the last year, city hall was painted, new air conditioning installed and the city’s new logo placed on the front of the building. Previously the city had installed carpets, painted the council chambers and added a new, enlarged table for the council members.... Full story
Electric City’s proposed park, behind the fire department building, may not get developed until sometime in 2018, city officials stated. The council, at its October budget workshop, decided to wait until a grant application to Washington State Recreation Council Office is decided. The application is due in 2017, for funding in 2018. Grants are up to 50 percent matching, and city officials decided to wait for possible funding before starting on the project. The city will have $60,000 budgeted for possible matching money next year. City Clerk J... Full story
The Grand Coulee Dam School District will have enough money in its transportation fund to order another new bus next year, according to the financial report school board members heard Monday night. Already the district has two new 35-passenger buses on order, each costing $63,463, and delivery of those buses could occur almost anytime, bus mechanic George Davis stated Tuesday. Davis is filling in as supervisor of bus personnel since Bill Kemble resigned for health reasons. The report stated that the transportation fund will have $144,000 in it... Full story
The 2017 Coulee Pioneer Museum calendar will feature pictures of the Third Powerhouse at Grand Coulee Dam, Birdie Hensley said this week. The calendar is dedicated to the men and women who worked on the project, the 50th anniversary date of which is Jan. 3, 2017, Hensley stated. Calendars are $10 and are available through Hensley, as well as membership in the museum. The calendar is full of historical dates of the overall Grand Coulee Dam project. Typical of the historic dates is the arrival of 3,000 Coulee Dam souvenir coins on January 25... Full story
Bids on the sale of Center School, and property surrounding it, are due this Thursday. Grand Coulee Dam School District Superintendent Paul Turner said that his understanding was that three parties might be bidding on the old school. But he reminded the school board Monday night that, due to a possible conflict of interest, former superintendent Dennis Carlson is handling the details of the sale. Turner had stated a month ago that he was taking himself out of the process because a relative of his had shown interest in bidding on the property.... Full story
Coulee Dam will get some major road and sidewalk work done as a result of a state grant that will pay for most of it in 2018. The state Department of Transportation announced last week it has awarded a $794,566 grant from the Transportation Improvement Board for work Mayor Greg Wilder called the "centerpiece of several significant projects" the town is planning for the future. The project includes street surface work on Civic Way, Cedar Street, Tulip Street and Crest Drive. The exact elements... Full story
A pickup crashed through a chain-link fence and caused several thousand dollars of damage to a business and residence in Electric City in the middle of the night last Thursday. A police report on the crash stated that the vehicle, a 2009 Toyota Tacoma pickup, was found embedded in the side of the residence at 8 Coulee Boulevard, after hitting the corner of the structure, smashing a dumpster and crashing through a steel fence. The structure houses a tanning parlor and a residence. The collision... Full story
Elmer City was selected to receive a “chip seal” grant from the state Department of Transportation, city officials learned Monday. The Transportation Improvement Board grant is for $82,705, and funds will be available in 2018 for a project on Elmer City Access Road. “We were happy to receive the grant news,” public works director Jimmer Tillman stated. Tillman said there are some extreme cracks on the road, and the grant will enable the town to improve the road condition. Elmer City had asked for $151,000 for the chip seal grant, but was awa... Full story
The city of Grand Coulee has signed an impound agreement with Moses Lake Towing. Mayor Paul Townsend said Tuesday that the city now has the ability to get rid of abandoned cars on city streets. The agreement allows Moses Lake Towing to pick up reported abandoned vehicles and charge the registered owners any fees connected to the impound. The notification for impound service will come from the city’s code enforcement officer or the police department, Townsend said. Under the agreement, Moses Lake Towing will be free to pursue collection of c... Full story
Grand Coulee Volunteer Fire Chief Richard Paris advised the council last week that ambulance calls will likely hit 400 for the year. He said that as of Nov. 15 the department had answered 347 calls, about normal. Paris also reported that during the month of October the department had 34 calls, including five in Coulee Dam and 21 in Grand Coulee. He said the ambulance had eight calls to transport patients. The department had three fire calls: a trailer fire, a fuel spill and an active-shooter drill at Coulee Medical Center. Paris said the... Full story
A major project at a local state park is on hold while a less extensive upgrade will move forward. A project to replace three of Steamboat Rock State Park’s five wet/dry pit sewer stations will begin late in November and continue through the winter, park spokesman Tony Ratoco said last week. An East Wenatchee firm, KRCI, successfully bid the $675,300 project. Three of the old pit stations date from 1973-74, when the park first opened. Two other pit stations are newer and are not included in the upcoming project. The project will not i... Full story
A 2017 Coulee Pioneer Museum calendar will feature pictures of the Third Powerhouse at Grand Coulee Dam, museum promoter Birdie Hensley said this week. The calendar is dedicated to the men and women who worked on that huge project, the 50th anniversary for which is Jan. 3, 2017, Hensley stated. Calendars are $10 and are available through Hensley, as is membership in the museum. The calendar is full of historical dates of the overall Grand Coulee Dam project. Typical of the historic dates is the arrival of 3,000 Coulee Dam souvenir coins on... Full story
American Legion Post 157 will give away winter clothing this Saturday, Nov. 19, from 9 a.m. to noon at the Vets Center in Electric City. The Vets Center has collected and repaired over 100 winter coats during the summer and these will be available free to those coming on Saturday. Legion Adjutant Shawn Neider said Tuesday that winter hats and gloves also available free. The Legion gathers these articles through donations made by local citizens who give articles to the Vets Center for sale during the Legion’s Saturday garage sales during the s... Full story
The Veterans Day "free" breakfast last Friday raised some $1,200 toward upgrades on the Lake Roosevelt High School football scoreboard, and a new banner to go with it, officials reported Monday. Lake Roosevelt had about $1,000 already raised for the scoreboard work, and Friday's contributions at the free breakfast raised another $1,200, said Shawn Neider, pastor of the Zion Lutheran church, himself a veteran and adjutant of American Legion Post 57, which put on the breakfast. Frank Ayers, on... Full story
A former Electric City man and owner of local exercise facility, Body by Dam, reportedly turned himself in at the Grant County Sheriff’s Office last Thursday after charges were filed alleging he assaulted local police last April. He had been listed as a fugitive and had disappeared, along with his 7-year-old daughter, after charges were filed against him for alleged assault on three Grand Coulee police officers. Grant County authorities asserted that Lyle A. Floyd, 47, had been having some mental health issues and had made threats against l... Full story
John Nordine is living proof that the third time is the charm. That's how many times he tried to enlist in the Army before he was accepted. The first two times, John was rejected because he was just under 5 feet tall and just under 100 pounds. The third time John tried, he had a little help from a helpful doctor who measured his height while he was wearing cowboy boots and weighed him with all his clothes on, of which he had plenty. "I measured five feet and a quarter inch and just over 100... Full story
Jess Ford in Grand Coulee has purchased Damskov Auto Sales in Omak. This will be the third auto store under the Jess family name. The Omak location is 707 Okama Drive, and will eventually become Jess Auto. “We have taken over operations of the Omak agency while all the final details are concluded,” Wade Jess said Monday. The Jess family purchased its Grand Coulee operation from L.F. “Buss” Carlson in 1991, and the Ford dealership on Grand Avenue in Pullman, Washington, in 2004. Speaking of the Damskov purchase, Wade Jess said that his son, Co... Full story
A 100-year-old Odessa man, who was the oldest living man known to work on Grand Coulee Dam, has died. Edwin Kerns, who in his latter years, returned to Grand Coulee Dam on his birthday, May 25, passed away Nov. 3. His full obituary is on page four in this week’s Star Newspaper. Employees at the Visitor Center honored Kerns each year when he returned to view Grand Coulee Dam, and especially last May 25, on his 100th birthday. Kerns worked on the dam from 1935 to 1939. While here on his 100th birthday, Kerns received best wishes from the VC s... Full story
’Tis the Season for the Trees of Sharing of 2016. The Trees of Sharing program is a way for area residents to anonymously provide Christmas gifts to local children who might not receive a gift overwise. Children’s names may be submitted on slips and dropped off at collection boxes at Safeway Pharmacy, Coulee Medical Center, or Harvest Foods. Names will be collected through Sunday, Nov. 13. Following the collection of names, trees with ornament tags will be placed at selected locations in the community by Nov. 18. Those wishing to provide gif... Full story
A notice went out this week seeking sealed bids for the purchase of Center School in Grand Coulee. The elementary school was declared surplus after students there were transferred to the new school in Coulee Dam. The school board had advertised for bids on the school earlier, but at the time no one was interested in bidding. At the school board’s last meeting, it was determined to seek bids again since three parties had indicated interest in the property. Sealed bids will be received until 2 p.m., Dec. 1. The school property includes the b... Full story
There’s a big stink at the new school. A sewer smell is upsetting students and proving to be a headache for Lake Roosevelt Schools officials. For maintenance director Randy Bowman, it means getting up above the classrooms frequently to treat the coolers, mainly on the elementary side of the new school. The complaint came up at the recent school board meeting. The problem isn’t new; in fact, it is a carryover from last year. School district Superintendent Paul Turner said that he thinks the problem centers around “hard water” and may cause t... Full story