News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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Around 70 people gathered to rally against the Trump Administration Saturday afternoon in Grand Coulee as part of the larger No Kings Movement, a protest mirrored across all 50 states and parts of Europe. Grand Coulee has been persistent, as demonstrators gather most Saturdays along highway 155, the main road through all local towns, centering across from the local Safeway in approximate groups of 20-30. Saturday's event was the third countrywide protest in the last 10 months. This time it...
Coulee Dam is preparing for what organizers say will be its biggest Festival of America yet, stretching to two and a half days and expected to draw between 20,000 and 25,000 visitors. Speaking to the Coulee Dam Town Council Wednesday, Chamber representative Krystal Fillis said last year’s oneday festival drew about 15,000 people. But with the Fourth of July falling on Saturday this year, the decision was made to expand after securing bigger-name entertainment and additional support. The festival will run Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, with T...
When I read the Star article about the Vlachos building slated for being torn down, it brought a flood of GCHS memories. Not many people will remember the name Constantinos Vlachos, but many people will remember his Tri-Phibian automobile, though — the invention of Vlachos back in the mid 1930s that was purported to be able to driven, flown, and was boatable. His demonstration of the craft was in 1935 in Washington DC, as he was hoping to draw the attention of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who was already immersed in what was to be the secon...
Kathleen Audrey Wallace, 96, passed away at home on March 18, 2026, with her loving family by her side. She was born to Maurice and Doris Galpine on February 18, 1930, in Seattle, Washington. Kathleen was an incredible self-taught pianist starting at the early age of 5 years old. Her music was her passion, and she shared it with all throughout her life. Kathleen's early education and high school graduation took place in Seattle, WA. In her younger life she worked as a checker for Safeway, howeve... Full story
KISSed Quilts in Grand Coulee hopes a successful region wide cross-shopping promotion will pull in customers and even provide one more attraction for out-of-area shoppers to visit locally. During 2025’s “Shop Hop,” Grand Coulee’s KISSed Quilts shop brought in over 200 people to the area during the months of April and May. With the addition of Idaho to the event this year, they are hoping for even more visitors. Typically, Shop Hoppers collect stamps or stickers at each store they visit. They can also win prizes or earn discounts. Shop Hops ca...
Coulee Dam Police 3/22 - Police responded to Coulee City where a man was reportedly pointing a rifle at a man on a boat who was causing problems. A gunshot was also heard. The man on the boat was reported to have been waving a pistol around. Due to the severity, a Coulee Dam officer responded as well as other agencies. The man on the boat was reported to have left it at the boat launch and taken off, intoxicated, in his vehicle. The vehicle was located at the RV park in Coulee City by a Soap Lake officer and a Grant County sheriff’s deputy. T...
Grand Coulee Dam Area Senior Center REQUESTING BIDS The Grand Coulee Dam Area Senior Center is requesting bids to paint the exterior concrete block walls of our building located at 203 Main Street, Grand Coulee Washington. Scope of Work includes : (1) Traffic Management, (2) Pressure Washing and Painting approximately 4,500 square feet of exterior walls, (3) Pressure Washing and Painting approximately 265 lineal feet of metal hand rails and (4) Repairing or Replacing five vinyl covered, plywood sheathed stud wall window panels. Bids are due no... Full story
Several people were honored Thursday as the chamber of commerce threw a bash to hand out community awards and celebrate its own 90th birthday, with cake. Gathered at the Siam Palace for the annual awards dinner, kudos went out for the Nonprofit of Year, the Business of the Year, the Start-Up of the Year, and the Legacy of the Year. It was that last one that had some eyes a little wet. The Legacy of the Year award was presented posthumously to Kachane Piturachsatit via his son, Mark, who now owns...
Lake Roosevelt Schools will lose at least six teachers, and up to eight, after this school year to a reduction in force (RIF) authorized by the school board Monday night following reports and deliberations on how the school district “got here” and what the way forward will be. Unlike the federal government, school districts must run on a balanced budget, so when revenue falls, so must expenses, most of which is in salaries and benefits mandated by the state, but not necessarily paid for by it. The deficit before adjustments are made is pro...
By any military metric, the actual ones not the rosy ones released to the media, we were winning the Vietnam war. Right up to the moment we lost. The problem was the North Vietnamese were fighting a different war than we were. It’s a shame that all Vietnam vets have aged out of the military, we could use a few. Daniel Wixman Grand Coulee...
Area AA Meetings In Electric City, the New Hope group now holds its meetings Monday thru Friday @ 6 pm every night, at the Vets Center in Electric City. Wa. Need more info? Call Betty at 509-429-7817 . In Nespelem, the group Bound and Detemined holds its meetings Monday evening at 7 p.m. at the Catholic Church. Contact Myrna at 634-4921. Food Bank Hours The food bank regular hours are Fridays from, 1-3 p.m. Questions call Pastor Shawn at 633-2566. Attention Vets A Veterans Service Officer will be at the Electric City Post every 2nd Tuesday of...
Coulee Dam Police 3/16-3/22 - Reports filed without additional details related to: threatening or intimidation on Diamond Street in Electric City; harassment on Spruce Street in Coulee Dam; a traffic accident on Elmer City Access Road; theft at the gas station in Coulee Dam; a citizen assist on Crest Avenue in Electric City; assault at the elementary school; and a verbal disturbance at a Coulee City address. 3/17 - A school employee requested a welfare check on a young child who hadn’t been to school in 20 days. An officer went to the f...
Softball The Lady Raiders are off to a blazing start in their early season fastpitch play with a 3-1 record. After their 8-7 win over Brewster at home March 16, the Bears got even when they hosted LR Friday for a Brewster win, 16-14. Lake Roosevelt won two more on Saturday at Singleton Park as they handed Manson two losses, 29-5 and 26-1. LR will head to Liberty Bell to play the Mountain Lions at 4:30, then welcome them to Grand Coulee for a game on April 1 at 4:30, when they’ll see who gets fooled. Tennis The Raider tennis teams, boys’ and...
An American bald eagle circles near three workers on top of Grand Coulee Dam Monday, where they are beginning to work on maintenance of the drum gates, the large, curved area behind the workers. - Scott Hunter photo... Full story
Solveigh Chaffee has been trying to buy the dilapidated building next to her Voltage Coffee House for 10 years. Tuesday night she asked Grand Coulee's City Council to reject a bid to tear it down that would cost much more than it's worth, likely leading to more liens against it. Instead, Chaffee said she would like to bid on the property at auction when the county puts it up for sale for overdue taxes. It was once a little museum that showed people the work of Constantine Vlachos, a local invent...
First off, hello Grand Coulee and surrounding area; I would like to introduce myself. Tony Jaksa is my name and Safety/Environmental officer on a large project over at the Dam is my game. I’ve been working in this capacity for more years than I would like to admit but keeping workers healthy, injury free and alive is my Mission. The sad facts are that as hard as I and other safety folks work at an injury-free workplace, we still lose some 5,000 workers a year to incident fatality, for too many years. There is nothing more impactful and s...
Kachane Piturachsatit passed away February 15 at home surrounded by family. Born in Tha Lo, Thailand, to a poor family, Kachane came to Spokane in his 20s to pursue the American dream of opportunities. He first worked as a dishwasher at the Cathay Inn. In Spokane he met Cheryl Browning of Coulee Dam and they were married in May, 1973. Together they opened the Siam Palace in Grand Coulee in 1975. Over the years through hard work and dedication, Kachane built the restaurant into a local success wh... Full story
Grand Coulee Police 3/2 - An officer ran the plates of a vehicle getting gas across the street from the police station and saw that the registered owner had a suspended license. Police matched the photo of the driver on file with the person pumping gas, saw them pull out of the gas station, and pulled them over on Midway Avenue. The driver was cited for driving with the suspended license. The passenger took control of the vehicle. 3/4 - Police saw a vehicle spin its tires as it turned onto Midway Avenue from a side street. It had an expired reg...
The Lady Raiders softball team started the season with a win against Brewster Monday night, 8-7. The game in Grand Coulee was close all the way. LR was ahead in the sixth inning when their pitcher was injured but maintained their two-point lead in the league game through to the end. Brewster gets a rematch on Friday, however, in Brewster. The game starts at 4 p.m. Lake Roosevelt heads to Manson on Saturday for a doubleheader at 11 and 1 and Singleton Park....
Notice of Date Change for the GCDSD School Board Meeting Please be advised that the Grand Coulee Dam School District’s Board of Directors has moved their regularly scheduled meeting from Monday, March 23rd to Tuesday, March 24th. Monday, March 23rd the board will hold a Board Work Session at 5:30 p.m. at the Jr./Sr. High School Library. (Publish March 18, 2026) Public Notice Irrigation operations begin for the Columbia Basin Project In preparation for the 2026 irrigation season, the Bureau of Reclamation released water on March 2 at Dry F... Full story
One person visited with the Grand Coulee Dam School District Board on Monday regarding district plans for handling their budget emergency. "After reading some of the letters to the editor in The Star this week, I wanted to come and just kind of get an understanding from the board as to what cuts are being made and why," Sam Halvorsen said. Halvorsen visited on a day the board had just put off a discussion on an upcoming emergency budget resolution, opting to discuss it at a "workshop" on...
by Scott Hunter Grand Coulee officials are disputing charges Electric City billed them for water-related charges. Mayor Blake Martin said he, City Clerk Peggy Nevsimal and Public Works Director Travis Irwin had met with Grand Coulee officials Feb. 25 to discuss an old balance Grand Coulee was disputing on bills for water systems maintenance items from 2024 and 2025. One item for removal of sludge from a tank for $3,126 was disputed as “not related to treatment, operation or maintenance, in the opinion of Grand Coulee, and we would need to do i...
Protesters on Midway Avenue in Grand Coulee hold signs and collect food for the food bank Saturday while showing their opposition to Trump administration policies. - Scott Hunter photo...
All four local towns are suing each other. You could be forgiven if you didn’t know this; the biggest beef between them involves the spectacularly uninteresting subjects of their shared sewage treatment plants, which are spectacularly expensive by your and my standards. Which is sad, because that’s who has to pay for them. That seems obviously unavoidable, as sewer plants are one thing we don’t want to do without. But making them even more expensive than they already are by deciding to sue each other over disagreements regarding them just rubs...
City Of Grand Coulee NOTICE OF MEETING LOCATION CHANGE The location for the Regular Meeting of the Grand Coulee City Council scheduled for March 17th 2026, has been changed to the Grand Coulee City Fire Barn. The meeting will be held at 201 Spokane Way at 6pm. Lorna Pearce, Clerk Treasurer (Publish March 11, 2026)... Full story