News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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Electric City struck down its own “longevity pay schedule” at its meeting last week. The city had passed a resolution in 2002, initiated by then-mayor Ray Halsey, affirming the benefits of attracting and keeping key employees by giving them a longevity pay raise after 25 and 30 years employment. Halsey at the time wanted a method to keep key employees on the job, and thought that a bump in pay was the way to do that. The resolution grandfathered in employees who had 10 years in at the time of the resolution. Two employees have benefited fro... Full story
Police and school officials followed up on what they thought was a threat against Lake Roosevelt Schools last Friday. According to a police report, Vice Principal Paul Turner received a call from a person in Bridgeport who said he had overheard what he thought was a threat against the school. He had attended a volleyball match Thursday evening and recounted to Turner what he overheard between two male students. Police were called and school personnel locked outer doors to make sure they knew who was in the building. Meanwhile, security camera... Full story
Residents of Coulee Dam will have an opportunity to get to know at least some of their candidates for town council positions in the Nov. 3 election. The forum will be held beginning at 6 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 22, at the community room at city hall. Scott Hunter, publisher of The Star newspaper, will serve as moderator of the event. Candidates, six of whom are running for the three open council positions, have been invited to participate in the forum, but only three plan to attend. Candidates will have an opportunity to provide information about t... Full story
The Regional Board of Mayors’ limited recycling project never made it out of the chutes before it was shot down by Elmer City’s town council. The RBOM had proposed the purchase of a 30 cubic yard, $13,000 recycling bin. The four mayors were to take the proposal to their councils. The first to try to do so was Mayor Gail Morin, who explained to her council that Elmer City’s prorated share of the bin’s cost was $780. The council said “no.” The proposal had Sunrise Disposal hauling recyclables to Okanogan’s recycling place for a charge of $74 an h... Full story
A house fire Sunday at 228 B Continental Heights that did major damage to the interior is still under investigation, according to Grand Coulee Volunteer Fire Chief Richard Paris. The alarm sounded at 9:12 p.m. and fire units from Electric City, Grand Coulee, Coulee Dam and the Bureau of Reclamation responded. The house is owned by J & G NW Enterprises of Stanwood, Washington. It was rented to Crystal Adolph and family. No one was home at the time of the fire. Paris said the cause of the fire is... Full story
Grand Coulee’s ambulance rates are going up. But it isn’t as bad as it sounds, volunteer Fire Chief Richard Paris told the Grand Coulee city council last Tuesday night. He explained that, while the rates are going up, the new rates will include some services that had been charged separately before. Paris said a third-party billing company that handles some 150 ambulance accounts said Grand Coulee is the only one that breaks out supplies and charges separately for them. “We are folding the break-out charges into the basic charge, which will... Full story
A 26-year-old Nespelem man was arrested and jailed in Grant County after a high-speed chase through parts of four counties on Saturday night. Arrested was Jory L. Vallee, who was driving a car police said was stolen. He was able to avoid multiple police cars at speeds up to 80 mph, police reported. Police say it was the second such occurrence for Vallee, who on Aug. 12, was able to outrun police while driving a vehicle and ending up somewhere above Keller on a logging road. Police said they are recommending that the prosecutor’s office c... Full story
A 43-year-old Grand Coulee man is set to appear in Grant County Superior Court this month, accused of molesting a 7-year-old girl. Charges were filed against Charles E. Johnson, who was seen entering a field April 20 with the girl. He was followed by a neighbor who reported hearing her scream. He confronted Johnson and held him while he called 911 for police. The incident had been under investigation until charges were filed by the Grant County Prosecutor’s Office last week. Prosecutors filed a charge of child molestation in the first d... Full story
Early next year, many businesses and some homeowners can expect a modest decrease in the cost of their fire insurance. Grand Coulee Volunteer Fire Department Chief Rick Paris said this week that the city has improved its fire protection classification from a seven to a six, effective Feb. 1, 2016. Monday, insurance broker Jerry Kennedy stated that the new rating will definitely save local businesses money on their next fire insurance policy. “Many homeowners may also see modest decreases in their fire policies,” he said. “Policyholders shoul... Full story
One of the Grand Coulee Dam School District’s trucks was stolen last Tuesday and recovered a few hours later at Crescent Bay. A school employee, Dean McPherson, was working on the roof at Center School and looked down to see his truck being driven away by an unidentified man. McPherson immediately called police, who combed the area but were unable to locate the truck. McPherson said when he looked down, the suspect appeared to be changing his shirt and then took off, heading east on SR-174. The truck had recently been filled with gas, so o... Full story
The Eagles Club was broken into sometime early Sunday morning. A burglar entered by breaking through the back door. Security cameras showed that a male intruder ransacked the place and stayed inside the lodge for about half an hour. Dispatch notified police that the Eagles’ security alarm was going off, and officers Adam Florenzen and Sgt. Gary Moore both responded. The officers searched the building and photographed potential evidence, which was then turned over to the Washington State Crime Lab. Several interior doors had been forced open, a... Full story
Coulee Dam police are investigating a break-in at the Riverview Bowling Alley that occurred Sept. 15. Owner Pat Zlateff told police that he had arrived to do some work and found a number of items lined up at the back door. The burglar had gone through the business area and taken small change from vending machines and then stacked up items to take when exiting the building. Zlateff said a Craftsman three-drawer tool box was missing. Officers found cigarette butts scattered throughout the building, suggesting the intruder had been in the place... Full story
A town council meeting at Coulee Dam that was designed to discuss consolidation of services such as police, ambulance and fire departments with other cities and towns was essentially postponed until Oct. 7, because only three of five council members were present last Wednesday. Mayor Greg Wilder said he didn’t want to get into serious discussion on consolidation until all members of the council were present. Wilder has indicated on numerous occasions that he favored some type of consolidation of services in the area for greater efficiency and s... Full story
Elmer City has a new clerk. Garrett Benton, an Elmer City resident, takes on his new position at the town hall this Thursday. Garrett said Tuesday that he is looking forward to his new role as the chief number cruncher for the town. The new town clerk grew up in the Seattle area, and has a degree in agronomy from Washington State University. “I wanted a background in agriculture because I wanted to go into the Peace Corps,” he said. Benton spent two years in the Peace Corps in Nepal, where he helped local farmers in a remote area to dev... Full story
Coulee Dam is looking for grant money to hire a school resource officer (SRO). Should the U.S. Department of Justice grant come through, at least the police officer in the schools would have wheels. The town council approved a budget amendment last Wednesday night for $35,000 to purchase a squad car. Mayor Greg Wilder, early on as the town’s chief executive officer, said one of his goals was to get a grant to support hiring of a school resource officer. The grant would provide $238,970 to cover the cost of an SRO for the first three years. T... Full story
Grant County Port District 7 commissioners passed a resolution last Thursday adopting any future rules developed by the Federal Aviation Administration concerning drones flying near the airport. The rule being considered may allow unmanned aerial vehicle flights within up to three miles of an airport when they have permission, but no flights higher than 500 feet. A commercial operator who wants to fly a UAV near the airport to take pictures would first have to get permission from airport officials. Recently a commercial drone operation was... Full story
The town of Coulee Dam hopes to have the position of superintendent of public works filled by the first of the year, Mayor Greg Wilder informed the council last Wednesday night. Wilder said the town continues to get applicants for the position, both from western Washington and eastern Washington. He said that the town will review applicants Oct. 6, and begin the process of selecting a new superintendent. The former superintendent, Barry Peacock, retired at the end of August after serving 29 years with the town. Wilder was asked if any of the... Full story
Grant County Port District 7 officials produced a preliminary budget for 2016 at their meeting last Thursday. The budget shows income of $216,500, with $127,000 coming from the Banks Lake Golf Course in membership dues and playing fees. Other revenues in the new budget come from general property taxes, $47,000; investment fund interest, $500; airport grants from FAA, $14,200; airport fees, $2,800; golf pro shop and restaurant, $24,000; and cash on hand, $1,000. The port district will hold a public hearing on its 2016 budget at 4:30 p.m.,... Full story
A new doctor has been added to the Gillespie Eye Care team. Dr. Galen Schmidt has joined the eye care firm in Grand Coulee after some 30 years in private practice. Schmidt, and his wife, Pam, who is originally from the Omak area, come to the area from Spokane. The doctor is well versed in treatment and management of eye diseases, including glaucoma, macular degeneration, cataracts, dry eyes and diabetic retinopathy. Originally from Cozad, Nebraska, Schmidt served in the U.S. Army during the... Full story
Grand Coulee came very close last week to changing local law to allow the licensing of a marijuana retail store in the city. An ordinance before the city council Sept. 15 originally would have restricted any such license if it was illegal under state or federal law. But that quickly changed when Councilmember David Tylor made a motion to remove the reference to “federal law” from the ordinance. Voters passed Initiative 502 in November 2012, making it legal in the state of Washington to open such stores. Although it is still against federal law,... Full story
A Grand Coulee couple has indicated an interest in purchasing Center School and its property. Mervin and MaryJo Monteith, who represent the North American Wool Cooperative, told Grand Coulee city officials last week that they will seek a rezone of the Center School property so they can purchase it for a fiber mill and education center. The Monteiths have an alpaca operation in Lincoln County and also own an airplane parts operation in Grand Coulee that supplies small parts for both commercial and military operations. The Grand Coulee couple... Full story
The members of the Regional Board of Mayors are trying to wrap their arms around recycling again. This time they are talking about budgeting for a recycling program of sorts for 2016. First, the mayors of the four towns making up the board will need to go to their respective councils to get an OK to spend some $13,000 for a recycling bin. All four councils need to approve the expenditure before the RBOM can purchase a bin. Or, as Electric City’s clerk, Jackie Perman, pointed out, the RBOM might be able to rent a bin. Recycling dominated M... Full story
Coulee Dam has a code enforcer. Mayor Greg Wilder told the council last Wednesday night that Gary Haven has been hired to enforce the town’s civil ordinances, all except for those concerning dogs. Haven also is the code enforcer for Electric City, and has had a number of successes in getting people to conform to that city’s codes. Haven will work 25 hours a month for Coulee Dam, receiving $22 an hour. He will work to get people to clean up tall grass and garbage piled around their buildings. The dog issue won’t come into play, at least for now,... Full story
Coulee Dam police Chief Pat Collins has retired. “I would like to thank you all for the many years I have been with Coulee Dam,” Collins stated in a brief letter of resignation. “It is now time for me to move on. I have been offered another position and, after careful consideration, I have decided to accept the new position.” Collins stated that his final day would be Sept. 25. Mayor Greg Wilder put Collins on paid administrative leave through the remainder of his time. Collins has been with the town for 26 years. The town started adverti... Full story
Devon Beekler is in awe of coulee country. She hails from Lancaster County in Pennsylvania, a garden of sorts. Lancaster is right in the center of Amish country, where farmland is tailored, farm buildings are kept better than houses, and people in old-fashioned buggies may have the right of way. By education, Beekler is a landscape architect, a graduate of Penn State, and is locked into a year-long position with the National Park Service here to help the agency promote its 100th anniversary.... Full story