News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
Sorted by date Results 1249 - 1273 of 1807
The folks who put together last Friday’s “mock crash” did a great service to the whole community. The event, designed to give young drivers a taste of the reality of a car crash, not something depicted neatly for a television scene, probably left an impression even on the Lake Roosevelt Junior/Senior High kids who tried not to be impressed, the way kids often do. Judging by the looks on most of their faces, the drama was enough to deliver the message, just as a gripping drama in any medium often does when it elicits a tightness in your throa... Full story
Approached by someone who knew nothing about the area you live in, how would you answer them if asked for the most important facts they should know before or during a visit to the area we call home? That’s the essence of a question asked by Kate, who plans to bicycle through the area in August on a cross-country trek with a large group of bicyclists — all the way from Providence, Rhode Island. “I was wondering if there was any information you think visitors should know about Grand Coulee,” Kate wrote in a recent email to The Star. That’s... Full story
A sale of used items on the sidewalk outside of Harvest Foods and Variety in Coulee Dam today (Saturday) has drawn huge support from contributors. The sale is to give support to the family of Justin Arnold in their efforts to bring him closer to home from a New York care facility. Arnold suffered a critical brain injury when he was struck by a car in New York, where he was pursuing his education as a chef. Transporting him across the country will require a special flight. The sale today is...
A man involved in many local causes who helped with the sound system heard at Saturday’s parade died driving his Harley later that night just east of Grand Coulee. Walter H. Nuehring, known locally as Steve Nuehring, was riding his white 2007 Harley Davidson motorcycle toward Wilbur on highway 174 at milepost 23 when he left the road to the right, then tried to correct it and rolled the bike, the Washington State Patrol reported. He was 59. Nuehring had lived in the Grand Coulee Dam area for a couple years, he had told The Star last year, s... Full story
Lest we get into the “it will never happen here” mood, let’s remind ourselves that the existence of this community was preceded by a very nutty idea that was laughed at by the whole nation. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt was derided for supporting the building of Grand Coulee Dam. That is, until he looked like a genius when the nation suddenly needed its hydropower to fight World War II. But big dreams are easy for those of us with noses to the grindstone to dismiss. Grasping their particulars often requires more time and energy than... Full story
If you live in Grand Coulee, Coulee Dam or Elmer City, you should have gotten a plastic bag in the mail on Thursday. That's to put food in for the Care and Share Food Bank. Add some non-perishable food item to the bag and your postal carrier will pick it up on Saturday. Or you can drop it off at the Grand Coulee Post Office, where they're also putting on a barbecue from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the parking lot. You can just drive through to drop off your donation, if you like. This volunteer...
County officials discussed with the Coulee Dam Town Council Wednesday a plan county commissioners are considering to house juvenile offenders out of the county at a privately-run facility in Medical Lake. Juvenile Court Administrator Dennis Rabidou, Superior Court judges Christopher Culp and Henry Rawson, and others attended. Rawson said he does not understand why the county commissioners are even considering a proposal that will be more expensive and serve the community more poorly, but he suggested the town council consider passing a... Full story
There is no disputing that any organization has a right to control who speaks for it, but that doesn’t translate into a right to censor speech. Birdie Hensley was officially admonished by her colleagues on the Electric City Council last week for doing her own research on questions she has about the city’s direction. It seems that she is free to research on behalf of herself as a city councilmember, but not on behalf of the city council. … Got that? That comes pretty close to being a hair split by semantics. It’s probably not couth for members... Full story
The state Dept. of Transportation said Monday afternoon that drivers on highway 155 should expect delays for pavement maintenance this Tuesday through Thursday. The work is scheduled to take place between Elmer City and Nespelem from 6 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and drivers should expect delays up to 20 minutes where the DOT maintenance crew is applying asphalt pavement patches from four miles north of Coulee Dam to Nespelem. Drivers are directed to follow the directions of the flaggers and slow down through the work zone.... Full story
A Coulee Dam man arrested in February on charges related to his alleged relationship with a 14-year-old girl in Wisconsin found himself in federal court Monday in Spokane, not a state court in Okanogan. Nate Piturachsatit, 37, pleaded not guilty to one count of producing child pornography. The girl’s mother contacted Wisconsin police when she found a package containing a T-shirt mailed to her from Piturachsatit from a Spokane address. He is suspected of sending and receiving sexually-explicit pictures with the girl via an Instagram account. A... Full story
State Sen. Linda Evans Parlette visited the community last week to fill in schools Superintendent Dennis Carlson on changes in the capital budget staff in Olympia, which could affect the Grand Coulee Dam School District. Parlette spoke at the Rotary Club on Wednesday. Parlette, who has served on the Senate Ways and Means Committee for 20 years, managed to get the state to fund the district's new school complex, which it could not do on its own because of the high amount of non-taxable federal... Full story
by Roger S. Lucas & Scott Hunter It took three officers to finally subdue a man originally pulled over on a traffic stop who now faces a handful of charges, including third-degree assault of the officers and resisting arrest. Floyd denies the charges. Arrested and taken to Grant County Jail Saturday was Lyle A. Floyd, 46, who owns the Body by Dam gym in Grand Coulee. In addition to giving an Electric City address, Floyd also lives in Nine Mile Falls, near Spokane. At 9:40 p.m., an officer got a call from a concerned motorist who had seen a... Full story
Justin Arnold, a chef behind many of the recipes at the Fusion Café in Electric City, was pursuing his passion in New York at the Culinary Institute of America when he was hit by a car in February. Arnold suffered traumatic brain injury, and his family now needs help to get him flown to a rehabilitation center in Spokane from New York. “Please come and show your support to bring Justin and his mom, Gina, back home,” reads a poster about a fundraising dinner planned for this Saturday, April 23, at the Fusion Café and Espresso, from 4 to 8 p.m.... Full story
Engineers and officials from government agencies gathered at Coulee Dam's town hall Tuesday to announce the financing package for the town's new wastewater treatment plant. Mayor Greg Wilder said the package through the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture's Rural Development agency includes a $4.7 million loan, a $1.53 million grant and $200,000 from the town's coffers. "I'd like to believe what we have right now is the best of all alternatives that we've analyzed over time," Wilder said. The $6.4... Full story
A spaghetti dinner set for Saturday will help fund a project that brings together sixth graders from Coulee Dam and Nespelem schools to pave their way as eventual classmates in high school. The Grand Coulee Dam Rotary Club chose to work with the sixth graders for the annual fund raiser, possibly instilling an early lesson in community service. The sixth-graders help by serving at the dinner, giving them experience in working in volunteer community service and working with the public. And the... Full story
Charlie Long was honored as the Grand Coulee Dam Senior Center's volunteer of the year at a dinner there Saturday. "If anyone deserves recognition, it is Charlie," Way and Means Committee Chairman Maggie Stewart said, reading a nomination letter. "So much of what he does is behind the scenes, helping Darla (Orr) and others without anyone even knowing he makes himself available for so many things." Long said the award took him by surprise, saying that all the real work is done by others. But the... Full story
Citizens would do well to continue their skepticism regarding a curious study underway by Okanogan County commissioners on whether to ship out to other locations juvenile offenders in its justice system, rather than house them in county. The advantages of doing so are anything but clear, at least based on documents The Star requested that outline a cost study already completed. If shipped to Martin Hall, a privately run facility in Medical Lake under consideration, the annual extra cost would easily clear a quarter of a million dollars, not... Full story
From far and near, 23 young riders attended The Ridge Riders Saddle Club's barrel racing clinic last week. Taught by Jackie Jackson-Gudmundson, the clinic brought students from as far away as Snohomish, Washington, who wanted to learn from a champion in the popular rodeo event. Handing out certificates and prizes, and commenting on each student's attributes at the close of the clinic April 5, Jackson-Gudmundson, now of Monroe, had each participant sign a promise as to how they will conduct... Full story
While law abiding citizens often find it frustrating to learn that those accused of crimes against them are arrested but very soon released, that doesn’t mean the system doesn’t work. Sometimes it just means it’s slower than we might like, certainly. But in America, the scales of justice are not fixed for a certain outcome. The police often have an uphill battle to gather the burden of proof of wrongdoing. And if you know that’s the guy who stole from you, watching him walk can be infuriating. But neither individuals nor the justice system... Full story
Exercise equipment has been taken from a gym that has been open to community use for years, and school district officials are hoping someone will bring it back. “It is disturbing and frustrating to think that people would take valuable equipment that is available to everyone, at no charge,” noted Grand Coulee Dam School District Athletic Director Rich Black. Black said the equipment still housed at the former middle school in Grand Coulee was noticed missing last Monday, March 21, apparently taken over the weekend. There was no sign of forced e... Full story
An alumni group that wants past mascots memorialized at the new school in Coulee Dam is working toward a new sculpture and collecting money to have it made. The Grand Coulee Alumni Association has opened an account at North Cascades Bank in Grand Coulee to collect funds for such a statue commemorating the three school districts of the past that comprise the current system. The association is encouraging participation from Coulee Dam, Grand Coulee, and Nespelem alumni. Local artist Keith Powell... Full story
Local kids can work on basketball and more in a clinic with retired basketball great Gary Payton next week. Athletic Director Rich Black said Tuesday afternoon he had just learned the high school gym had been scheduled for a clinic hosted by Payton, who played point guard for the Seattle Sonics for 13 years and won the National Basketball Association championship in 2006 with the Miami Heat. Known as “The Glove” for his uncanny ability on defense, Payton will be featured in the “Rise Above” clinic April 7 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. A poster says th... Full story
Tourism interests expressed heated frustration with Electric City's council in a meeting last Thursday at Sunbanks Resort, frustration to the point of hiring a lawyer. The meeting, organized by the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce, included members of its board of directors and several lodging businesses in the area that collect a tax on tourists, which the city has decided to spend on a pathway project. The purpose of the meeting was to find a way to get Electric City to use its... Full story
Two examples glare in the news this week, showing why consolidating local towns into one city would make so much sense. It’s far from clear that consolidation would actually cut down on personnel or save as much money as one might assume, but freeing oneself from a doomed mindset isn’t about the money it would save. Such a mindset currently steers the actions city councils in Grand Coulee and Electric City must believe they have to follow. It’s a mindset that draws needless distinctions between the two, when in truth, the people could be serve... Full story
Elmer City's volunteer firefighters are preparing to put on their 55th Annual Pancake Feed Saturday, and they're hoping you'll attend. There's a good chance of that, judging from the past experience of the popular fundraiser. Firefighter Brad Dudley said the folks who man the fire engines at Okanogan County Fire District No. 2 usually feed more than 300 people at the event. "It's huge support," Dudley said, noting that more than 50 businesses have donated items for a raffle and silent auction... Full story