News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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Directors of the two school districts impacted by a recent policy change got together for a meal and sometimes spirited discussion Tuesday night. The full Nespelem School District Board of Directors and two from Grand Coulee Dam School District met at Hometown Pizza, a meeting prompted by discontent at Nespelem over a new policy at GCD that will not allow students from other districts to participate in their sports programs, beginning next school year. Its passage laid bare perceptions that came out during the discussion. Nespelem didn’t a...
A police officer with plenty of local experience has been approved to take over as Grand Coulee’s chief of police. Matt Ponusky, who has worked for Coulee Dam’s police department for three years, will move up to the chief’s spot in Grand Coulee. He had also served as an officer at Grand Coulee for eight years before making a move to Coulee Dam. The Grand Coulee City Council voted to approve the hire Tuesday night by a unanimous vote. Ponusky, who was not present at the meeting, will likely be sworn in this week, City Clerk Lorna Pearce said....
Janet Christy will fill the Position 1 seat on the Grand Coulee City Council following the council's decision Tuesday night. A Roosevelt Drive resident, Christy said she retired from USBR a year-and-a-half ago after 10 years there, following a 27-year career in the U.S. Army, retiring as a master sergeant in 2015. Asked by Councilmember Tom Poplawski if she had experience with budgeting, she said she did in the army. "I don't know everything," Christy said. "I can learn."...
Nearly 50 people walked along Grand Coulee's Midway Avenue Saturday with signs expressing frustration with the direction of the federal government, about twice the size of the group that has been making the gathering a weekly event for weeks. They were joining a national push to make an impression across the country as millions hit the streets in cities large and small carrying signs and conversing about a range of complaints, from President Donald Trump's rapid changes to the federal... Full story
The term “public health” takes in a lot of territory, and even in relatively less populated Grant County it takes a lot to do the job of watching out for the public’s health. This is public health week, and Grant County Health District met with local media last week to encourage some coverage and enhance understanding of just what’s involved. GCHD has a staff of 38 people in several departments, all working to keep our air and water clean, ensure our food is safe, prevent disease, and promote healthier communities. “From ensuring food safety th...
In a sign that there is hope for a better government, a bipartisan bill in the U.S. Senate seeks to reassert the authority over trade granted to Congress in the Constitution. The Congress abdicated (delegated is actually the word they’ll use) that responsibility to the president back in 1934 in the midst of the Great Depression after the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act had deepened it in an attempt to protect American businesses. But that was back in the day when Americans expected and demanded normalcy and decency in a president, not when they c... Full story
Three hospital leaders trekked to the other Washington last week to make the case at Congress for support of Coulee Medical Center. "During our meetings with Sen. Patty Murray, Sen. Maria Cantwell, and Rep. Dan Newhouse we discussed CMC's workforce housing needs, overdose prevention efforts and recent success in increasing breast cancer screening, as well as the significance of federal Medicaid funding to maintaining accessible healthcare services in our region," Chief Executive Office Kelly...
When Sam Peterson got the call, it was already too late. The National Park Service was offering to give him his job back, but he'd taken a job in Oregon and three days earlier signed a lease on an apartment. He needed to follow through on the commitment. "We have bills," Peterson said, "and a dog." Peterson, 26, had just started as a federal employee in June 2024 and was still in probationary status in February when the Trump administration started its Valentine's Day Massacre of federal...
Dozens of local students attend schools out of the Grand Coulee Dam School District, according to numbers compiled for the school board at their request. Director Alex Tufts had asked earlier this year that the district develop an exit interview as a matter of course to track reasons for students choosing to leave. The district has averaged 645 students across all grades this year, but is currently down by 22 students from the beginning of the school year. Director Rich Black asked at the March 24 meeting what reasons are for the migration. “So...
Students at other school districts will no longer be able to participate in Lake Roosevelt’s sports programs following a vote Monday night by the Grand Coulee Dam School District Board of Directors. The new policy takes effect in the next school year. Currently, and for many years, students whose own nearby schools have not offered a sport have been able to arrange to participate in practices and play in Raider sports. But recent changes have drawn attention to the policy. Athletic Director Casey Brewster told the board Monday that the d...
A sixth-grade teacher at Lake Roosevelt Elementary will leave to join her husband in Astoria, Oregon. The school board voted Monday to let her out of her contract to leave before the end of the school year. Ashley St. Aubin-Clark's husband, Sam Peterson, was a first-year National Park Service employee at Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area when the Trump Administration started cutting federal jobs across government services, starting with employees in probationary status. St. Aubin-Clark...
You’ve no doubt noticed them: all the empty commercial buildings in Grand Coulee. Or maybe you’re so used to them you no longer notice. Either way, the city council is talking about a new approach to dealing with the problem of blighted properties — empty buildings that don’t get used but just deteriorate. “I know this could be controversial. I know it could upset some people,” said Councilmember Tom Poplawski. “But on the other hand, I think we need to get it out there and talk about it, because our city has a whole lot of vacant busine...
By Scott Hunter Supporters filled the meeting room at La Presa as the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce hosted a dinner to honor local businesses for their accomplishments in 2024 March 13. Coulee Hardware was voted Business of the Year for being far more than a hardware store. The store "also provides a lot of other services," noted Nancy Zimmerman-Boord, chamber executive director," listing its UPS package shipping center, retail rentals, garden supplies, fresh plants every spring,...
A lot was different in the unofficial final game of the basketball season last Friday at the Lake Roosevelt High School gym, where the school staff put on a shocker of close-call overtime game against the class of 2025, complete with state-class varsity basketball players. The ambulance backed up right in front of the gym exit as a precaution might have been a clue, but it wasn't necessary. In fact, a planned 20-point advantage the seniors thought they'd spot the elders wasn't needed either,...
Some students might get to ride on a battery-powered bus sometime next year, if a grant application is accepted by the bus manufacturer. Grand Coulee Dam School District Transportation Director Wade Magers presented the school board Monday with the option to go electric with one bus in a little over 10 months. Magers said there are pros and cons to getting one, but the financial aspect of the application makes it attractive. Magers said the IC Electric School Bus (ESB) should go about 130 miles on a charge and recharge fully in about eight...
We’d all gain a great deal if we could just talk with people of a different opinion, calmly and rationally. During simultaneous rallies for opposite political viewpoints Saturday along Midway Avenue in Grand Coulee, some people carried signs that could have worked for the other side verbatim: “Stop the Lies” is a common cry both for supporters and detractors of President Trump and his policies. And both sides are full of people who just want what’s best for the country. The difference, it was apparent Saturday, is that they take in informa... Full story
The Lake Roosevelt Raiders ended their post-season basketball quest March 5 at the Spokane Arena in the Round of 12 at state tournament with a loss to Tri- Cities Prep. With eight players over 6 feet, the Jaguars won 64-33, effectively limiting the Raider offense, shooting 48% to the Raiders' 24%. Tri-Cities' Bryson Wilde scored 21 points. Ivan Alejandre led LR scoring with 17. The Raiders dropped in 11 of 32 two-point attempts and 11 of 16 free throws, but not one of 14 trey attempts, making...
Bureau of Reclamation employees at Grand Coulee Dam who had accepted the “fork in the road” offer of deferred retirement, expecting to stop working on March 7, instead got a memo Monday morning telling them to clear out by the end of the day, March 3. No reason was given for the rush, but the emailed instructions from Boise, the Columbia Pacific Northwest Region headquarters, had an air of resignation about it: “Big change in the DRP rules as of 10:37am this morning,” the email began, explaining that all Deferred Resignation Program participant...
People with concerns and picket signs can gather on Grand Coulee's Midway Avenue (SR-155) from noon to 1 p.m. Saturday, March 8. The march will take place on the same day as a nationally advertised march for women, but it will be the fourth in a series of local, loosely organized events for expressing solidarity with others concerned about the recent changes in the federal government, including layoffs, forced resignations and coming RIFs, abolishing entire agencies established by Congress, and... Full story
Lake Roosevelt on Tuesday sent off the Raider boys' basketball team to the state tournament at the Spokane Arena. "We knew we're going to be tough this year," Coach Ed Wolfe told the assemble student body. "Here we are. We put in a lot of work from summertime till now. We believed in ourselves from the very start." Scheduled to play Tri-Cities Prep in game 11 of the state tournament, they'll meet the Jaguars at 12:15 in Wednesday's "Round of 12" in a loser-out contest to see who goes on to the...
A couple months after she and her husband John, moved here in 2010, Carol Nordine had found the local food bank. She's been volunteering at the Care and Share Food Bank ever since, the last seven years as its manager. Just in time to see a growing need. A roomful of volunteers and friends gathered at La Presa Saturday to honor that service, eat, and enjoy each other's company. Shawn Neider also volunteers at the food bank, as well as pastoring the Zion Lutheran Church. He recalled the growth...
Coulee Dam’s police chief published a statement Monday asking people to report crimes to police, not just post it on Facebook. “If we don’t know about it, we can’t do anything about it,” noted Chief Paul Bowden. Bowden said the don’t consider Facebook posts as a proper way to report police issues. “This is a reminder to PLEASE report any criminal or suspicious activity such as thefts, car prowls, break- ins, etc. directly to the Police Department by calling MACC Dispatch at 1-888-431-9911.” Bowden also addressed comments he’s heard that there...
After a vandal hit Grand Coulee City Hall Jan. 4, the city was left with cleanup and repairs. Those are coming in at about $74,000 to fix broken windows, damaged floors and walls, office equipment and police cars parked outside. The city council Tuesday night OK’d spending $13,450 on new windows, including a couple not damaged in the incident but old enough to be replaced with more energy-efficient windows. The council also voted to declare surplus five of those now-unused police vehicles outside, which had served the police department when it... Full story
Ice fishers and other recreators are urged to stay off the ice on Banks Lake, which will soon become unstable if it isn't already. The Bureau of Reclamation at Grand Coulee Dam will begin pumping water into Banks Lake, beginning Saturday, Feb. 22, at 10 p.m. This influx of water may result in unstable ice conditions that present serious safety risks to all ice fishers and recreationists, Reclamation announced this week. The change in operation will conclude on Monday, Feb. 24, at 6 a.m.... Full story
Elmer City residents may notice their city bill gets a boost next month. Effective March 1, each service will cost another $1, following the passage Thursday of an ordinance increasing the monthly fee for garbage, water and sewer service by a dollar each for the bill that comes due in April. The council also passed an ordinance instituting an ongoing, planned utility rate rise of 1.5% every year, beginning in 2026. Both the $1 rise this year and the future 1.5% annual increase starting next year were discussed during council budget discussions...