News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 1840
Taking opportunity where they found it, the couple working to create the Coulee Art House hosted a reception for the Washington Supreme Court justices last week as the court happened to schedule one of the court's traveling sessions in Nespelem. Ben and Naomi Dupris have been working to bring together their vision for an artistic hub and resource place for youth. As the old Coulee House Motel was being torn down, they saved as much of the salvageable signs as they could, which are now inside...
Hopefully, the justices of the Washington State Supreme Court came to our community to learn a thing or two, because they probably did, whether they realize it or not. It’s the kind of knowledge that sneaks into your mind quietly, the kind that lets you look back on your former self and realize what has changed in you, that somehow the formerly obvious truth has slipped away in humble retreat before a rising inspiration that is just as true. Those nine already very wise men and women may someday look back to a conversation they had with a d... Full story
People wanting to voice their opinions to the school board may have to be more prepared with their thoughts if the board adjusts its policy for receiving public comment. The Grand Coulee Dam School District Board of Directors reviewed proposed revisions to its public comment procedure Sept. 14, discussing shorter speaking limits, a sign-in requirement and a shift away from answering residents on the spot. The changes to their procedure for audience participation were taken up as a discussion....
Electric City's leaders are wondering if residents want to keep using cameras at the end of town that snap photos of every car passing by, then stores the photos, records its license plate, time, and other information in a sharable online database. The city council on Tuesday postponed a decision on the city's Flock Safety license-plate reading cameras until October, pending information on the cost and filing deadlines for a possible special election to let voters decide. The council took no... Full story
With attendance sharply up and the principals assurance of seeing progress, the school board approved this school year’s School Improvement Plan Monday. The Grand Coulee Dam School District Board of Directors approved the district’s 2026-27 school improvement plan Sept. 14 after hearing from Elementary Principal Lisa Lakin that chronic absenteeism at the elementary school has fallen from 233 students to 61 in a single year. Lakin presented a one-page summary of goals the district set last spring rather than the full 67-page document, tel...
Elmer City officials signaled more utility rate hikes may be unavoidable as they wrestle with mounting attorney fees from the town’s ongoing sewer dispute with Coulee Dam, council members said at Monday night’s meeting. Mayor Jesse Tillman told the council the town is currently covering its basic sewer costs but is falling short once legal bills tied to the court case are added. He estimated Elmer City would need about $30 more per sewer customer per month just to keep up with attorney fees if the legal fight continues through next year. A jud...
She graduated at the top of her class from Lake Roosevelt High four years ago, then earned her bachelor's degree at Western Washington University in Bellingham last spring where she was named an "Outstanding Graduate." "During her time at WWU, Piturachsatit completed a 360-hour internship with Bellingham Public Schools shadowing the International Baccalaureate coordinator at Happy Valley Elementary and Alderwood Elementary," wrote Mary Lane Gallagher of WWU's communications department....
It’s normal that hundreds of tons of trash to be hauled from Grand Coulee to Ephrata in a typical month. Manager Randy Gumm moved roughly 420 tons of solid waste last month on 19 trailer loads from the Delano Regional Transfer Station, according to his report to the Regional Board of Mayors Sept. 2. Asked about how much solid waste he typically hauls to the landfill in Ephrata, Gumm also noted holiday use at Steamboat Rock State Park had pushed volumes sharply higher over the Fourth of July weekend, with park users generating nearly 9 tons o...
America’s collective understanding of itself was mortally injured 25 years ago. What we feel about our nation now, what we live every day breathing about it, is not what it was before September 11, 2001. In the long run, that’s at least as tragic as the thousands of Americans killed when two airliners were turned into giant, flying weapons aimed at the edifices that housed the literal and figurative powers of capitalism and U.S. military might — the Twin Towers and the Pentagon. Much more than physical structures started careening downw... Full story
by Scott Hunter The Coulee Dam Town Council Wednesday night declined to move forward with a request to loosen the town's fence regulations, opting instead to keep its long-standing prohibition on front-yard fencing. Council members considered a request from Michael Dennis to amend Municipal Code 17.85.040 to allow six-foot, open-style fences to extend all the way to the front property line. Dennis, however, after reading The Star's story about the council meeting online, posted his letter, on...
Coulee Medical Center recorded a strong surplus in July, helped by a major estate gift and several one-time payments, the hospital’s chief financial officer told commissioners Monday. Chief Financial Officer Natalie Dennis reported a July gain of $1,457,710, bringing the year-to-date surplus to $2,227,577. She said total cash and investments climbed to $7,040,947 by the end of the month. That monthly gain handily beat CMC’s simple monthly goal of a $50,000 increase. Much of the cash boost came from a $1,385,463 endowment from the estate of a fo...
Residents pressed Grand Coulee city leaders last week to crack down on long-running nuisance and drug problems they say are driving away tenants, scaring off potential homebuyers and damaging the town's reputation. During a council meeting Thursday night, multiple speakers focused on a cluster of problem properties - especially on Dill Street - where people are living in RVs and tents without utilities, dumping waste outdoors and attracting steady drug activity. "I have numerous rentals in...
The Coulee Dam Town Council Wednesday night declined to move forward with a request to loosen the town's fence regulations, opting instead to keep its long-standing prohibition on front-yard fencing. Council members considered a request from Michael Dennis to amend Municipal Code 17.85.040 to allow six-foot, open-style fences to extend all the way to the front property line. Clerk/Treasurer Stefani Bowden reminded the council of the current code. "The fencing can't come beyond ... the front...
Lake Roosevelt’s alternative education program has a new name and, soon, a new home. The district is moving ahead with a disputed plan to relocate the ALE program from the old middle school campus miles away to a controlled classroom in the CTE building on the main Lake Roosevelt campus, even as staff raise safety and supervision concerns. The Grand Coulee Dam School District board on Aug. 24 unanimously approved renaming the district’s ALE program the Lake Roosevelt Alternative Learning and Online Alternative Learning Experience, a change req...
We don’t have all the comforts of city life in this community, but we don’t always realize what we do love about life here. When we lose one little aspect of it, even temporarily, we can get cranky. That’s been the experience of many since the emergency repair work began on the SR-155 bridge over the Columbia River as our little region has suffered the absolute injustice of the addition of traffic lights. The horror! Probably, when engineers were faced with an emergent need to specify the deck repairs on the bouncy, clanking bridge surfa...
The Grand Coulee Dam School District board on Tuesday approved a one-season agreement allowing Nespelem high school students to join Lake Roosevelt High School’s football and girls’ volleyball teams this fall. Nespelem’s board had yet to vote on it. GCD board members voted unanimously to adopt the Interdistrict Athletic Combine Agreement with the Nespelem School District for the Fall 2026 season. The agreement covers only high school football and high school girls’ volleyball, and will expire at the end of the season unless the distric...
Ben Dupris outlined an ambitious vision last week for transforming the former theater space into the Coulee Art House, telling the Coulee Dam Town Council that renovations are underway and aimed at creating a year-round community hub for youth, families and elders. Dupris, who is renting the former Village Cinema space from the city, said they have been addressing long-standing maintenance issues in the building, including holes in upstairs drywall and areas in the lobby that appeared to have mold or water damage. They have stripped problem...
Elmer City council members tightened local parking rules and updated rental and utility service fees Thursday night, then heard from an Okanogan County District Court judge making a rare outreach visit to the small town. Parking overhaul replaces 1950 ordinance The council unanimously adopted Ordinance 394, a major update to the town’s parking regulations for vehicles, on city streets, sidewalks and alleys. The new law repeals a 1950 parking ordinance and largely brings Elmer City in line with state standards. It: • bars parking within 30 feet...
Following Tuesday’s inspection of their school buildings by their insurance company, environmental consultant, and property restoration team, Nespelem School Superintendent Linda McKay announced the district had been informed that they “will need to delay the first day of school until Tuesday, September 8.” The school’s buildings were inundated with thick smoke during the recent wildfires, and McKay told the school board July 27 that she would have the inspection done. Air Quality Index measurements inside the school remained elevated on Tues...
With no takers for Electric City’s police services contract and a November deadline looming, the city council on Tuesday agreed to modify and reissue its request for proposals while also beginning a deeper look at the cost of creating its own police department. Mayor Blake Martin told council members the city had received no formal bids on its current police contract RFP, which closes Aug. 15. Grand Coulee and Soap Lake have both declined to submit proposals, citing staffing and short-contract concerns, while the Grant County Sheriff’s Off...
Grand Coulee Dam School District directors Tuesday accepted and countered an offer for the sale of the old middle school to a local company, but the sale is contingent on successful negotiations of specifics. “I think the biggest comment is that we are still trying to do this for what’s best for our students,” noted Director Alex Tufts in a special board meeting called mainly to approve the offer. “We’re not going to make the sale of this if it’s going to harm our students.” Superintendent Rod Broadnax agreed. “Just going to negotiate, and if i...
Sue Dickey, right, accepts an ice cream bar from Harlan Holt as Harvest Foods and Variety gave out ice cream, lemonade and hot dogs to customers to celebrate the store's 50th anniversary Friday. Ray Duclos, center, sips a lemonade instead of working. The founder is now retired but showed up for the day and visited with patrons, including Dickey. She was there when they opened five decades ago, too, and won a drawing. At left Kota and his mom, Sarah Holt help Stephanie Duclos staff the welcoming... Full story
Grand Coulee Dam School District Directors will meet in a special meeting, online only, at noon Tuesday, Aug. 11, to discuss the sale of the old middle school in Grand Coulee. The Zoom link to the meeting is https://gcdsd.zoom.us/j/89474772041?pwd=Zk5pNnB6MWovOUNLMEtUcTR1MEsyQT09 Or you can go to the district homepage at https://www.gcdsd.org and scroll to the bottom for the link and directions. The school board had planned last Monday to meet online in the next few days to vote on the sale,... Full story
Staff, community and school board members heard and voiced concerns during a hearing July 27 about the proposed upcoming sale of the old middle school that the Grand Coulee Dam School District seeks to sell. Most of the debate centered on longterm access to the gym and safety for student athletes. Athletic Director Casey Brewster urged the board to slow down until a clear plan is in place for replacing the facility, saying the gym and adjacent spaces are heavily used yearround by school and community programs. Brewster said losing the building...
The National Night Out street party in Coulee Dam scheduled for Aug. 4 was postponed Monday due to smoke-related health concerns. The Coulee Dam Police Department's annual participation in the nationally promoted community get-together, always scheduled for the first Tuesday in August, was coming up at a poor time to hold a celebration, the city said in a broadcast text message and in an email to The Star. "We feel it would be unsafe to have people out in these smoky conditions," explained City...