News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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1 Years Ago The tenure of the Grand Coulee Dam School District's Superintendent, Dennis Chambers, came to an abrupt end Wednesday when he received notice to clear out his office. With two years remaining on his contract the $82,500 a year left on his contract was bought out. Grand Coulee Dam Area firefighters have been busy this last week with more than 5,000 acres burned within a thirty mile radius. Each fire was caused by lightning, fireworks or unknown causes. 20 Years Ago Only one real bid... Full story
Grand Coulee 7/7 - A man reported that he found a motorcycle off the roadway on O”Sullivan Road. Police traced the registered owner to a man living on Hill Avenue and the legal owner a man from Moses Lake. The motorcycle was not stolen but belongs to a person who has a felony warrant out for him. The motorcycle was impounded. - A woman who struck another woman’s vehicle near the post office in Electric City received a citation for failing to yield. - A businessman in Grand Coulee reported that employees had found a bundle of clothes near the st... Full story
We just spent our vacation at Keller Ferry Campground, and what I saw when I arrived was a travesty. The grass was burned to a crisp. The camp site was full of debris. The fire ring had garbage in it. The outlets in the restrooms were not working. The men’s room sink did not work the entire time we were there. What appeared to be two teenagers were trying to keep up with the yard work without the proper equipment. The lawn went without mowing in our section for the entire two weeks. Some in our party managed to acquire some sprinklers and s... Full story
Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission invites the public to celebrate the unique geologic heritage of Sun Lakes/Dry Falls State Park near Coulee City at the annual Flood Fest. The festival is from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, June 28 at the Dry Falls Visitor Center. Flood Fest also celebrates the remarkable Ice Age floods that carved the channeled scablands of eastern Washington. Visitors will find a variety of educational stations staffed by event partners, including the National Park Service, Ice Age Floods Institute, Coulee... Full story
The Bureau of Reclamation is planning to build a new fire station. It's the "where" that's in question. The Bureau is seeking public comment to identify issues to be addressed in an environmental assessment, due out this fall. The Bureau is looking at two locations for the new fire station: one, on land it owns, near the intersection of SR-155 and "B" Street; the other on land managed by the National Park Service at Crescent Bay, uphill from the boat launch and adjacent to the access road. A... Full story
Biographies of five local women will be featured along with a "Rosie the Riveter" quilt at the Visitor Center soon. The five are: Ida Bartels, Toby Ann Levy, Lynda G. Nutt, Barbara Ann Meyer and Roberta "Birdie" Hensley. The five have all made a number of contributions to community life here. Ida married Sid Bartels in 1940, and the two purchased the Deppman Mill at Belvedere just a few days later, only to see it go up in smoke from a fire that someone had set. She served many years on the Grand... Full story
Grand Coulee Police 5/2 - Police received a call that there was a kidnapping in progress on Hill Avenue. The officer learned that the call was in error, and that the suspect did not contact the child in question. - A caller at Electric Place in Electric City reported that the rear window of a vehicle had been shot out. The officer learned that a child had tossed a rock that broke the window. There was a child in a car seat at the time of the incident. 5/4 - A Grand Coulee Avenue driver was stopped for failing to signal and the officer found... Full story
Explosive material has been found in the bed of the drawn down Lake Roosevelt at the north end of the reservoir behind Grand Coulee Dam, and authorities think more may exist. The National Park Service was notified April 22 that explosive material had been found on the west side of the lake, near milepost 243 on state highway 395 north of Kettle Falls, WA. The material was contained in tubes, about a foot long and several inches wide, labeled “Senatel Magnafrac.” The Spokane Bomb Squad responded and destroyed the materials. On April 24, 2014 the...
Betty Lou Grandorff, 83, went to meet her Lord Sunday afternoon, March 23, 2014, from Grand Coulee, Washington. Betty Lou was born June 27, 1930, into the Grand Island, Nebraska home of Alfred and Mary E. Grandorff. A faithful member of the Zion Lutheran Church family of Grand Coulee for many years, Betty Lou worked for and retired after fourteen years with the National Park Service in Grand Coulee. Betty Lou loved reading her Bible, enjoyed writing letters to her many friends and her... Full story
[Editor’s note: The National Park Service closed the entire Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area during last fall’s government shutdown. The following is a letter to NPS from Lincoln County commissioners (and submitted as an opinion to The Star) arguing for a different kind of solution if such a funding shortfall happens again.] Director Jarvis, We are writing to request a modification to the National Park Service Contingency Plan that becomes effective upon a lapse in appropriation from congress. In light of the recent government shu... Full story
A recent study by the National Park Service shows how a strong visitor base pumps money into local economies. A report on the 2012 season showed that the Lake Roosevelt National Recreational Area had nearly 1.8 million visits in 2012. That resulted in more than $71 million being spent in nearby communities, the report stated. The LRNRA stretches from Grand Coulee Dam almost to the Canadian line, a 151-mile stretch that follows the Columbia River. That spending in communities within 60 miles of t... Full story
The all new laser light show is still on schedule for a late May showing this year. Bureau of Reclamation Public Affairs Officer Lynne Brougher said this week that LumaLaser, the firm designing the show, has made revisions to the story line, graphics and text, and is progressing through the project, the development of which is “well along.” LumaLaser, a Eugene, Oregon firm, landed the $1.6 million contract and has been working with a stakeholder group here as the work on the project continues. The project was supposed to be off and running las... Full story
The chamber of commerce named two of its own to awards last Thursday night as the "Achiever of the Year," and "Business of the Year." The awards are made by the vote of members of the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce. Named "Achiever of the Year" was Bob Valen, the chamber's own vice president and a retired National Park Service employee. Valen served over 35 years with the NPS, and in retirement has been as busy as ever. He also now serves as chairman of the Coulee Area Park &... Full story
Ten Years Ago Riding the ski slopes and keeping good grades have been combined in a program for students from Nespelem and Grand Coulee Dam School Districts. The club of 89 kids have academic requirements intended to keep their English skills, overall grades and attendance up. In return they get a day on the Loop Loop Slopes every Saturday for five weeks. A local man wants the stray cat problem in his neighborhood solved. Fred Long counted 14 stray cats near the Senior Manor recently, he lives just down the street from where the cats are... Full story
Ten Years Ago The Grand Columbian Triathlon is being organized by Jonathan Hopkins. He recently met with the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce to go over the event details and description. Organizers foresee over 500 athletes participating. Lake Roosevelt Boys’ Basketball began Caribou League play last week with a 62-32 win at Tonasket and a 52-41 home loss to state-ranked Brewster. Coach Brad Wilson said the player of the game for Tonasket was Nick Barnaby who only turned the ball over one time, very impressive for a point guard at t... Full story
Grand Coulee Police 12/27 - A man reported a suspicious car parked in the “train wreck” area on Kruk Road and that there was no one around it. He said when he went by the area again, the car was gone. The car was traced to a resident on Sunset Drive. - An officer went to a residence on Electric Boulevard on a domestic call and a man told him that his wife came home drunk and he wanted her out of the house. The officer told the man he couldn’t do this without a court order. There was no evidence of violence. 12/28 - Police got a report that... Full story
January: • The Nez Perce Longhouse burned in a fire in Nespelem the day after Christmas. An electrical malfunction was the initial cause reported. The longhouse had been a part of the community since 1975 when it was built as part of a bicentennial project. • Grand Coulee’s Council settled pay issues with Police Chief Mel Hunt by buying his 787 compensatory hours for $42,922.50. • The public was invited to view the final plans for the new K-12 school complex. • Elmer City was divided about what to do regarding Coulee Dam’s proposed wastewater... Full story
A Grand Coulee man was found dead on the Crescent Bay boat ramp Sunday. The police report stated that James Carol Arbaugh, 68, of 37 Division Street, had been fishing and apparently left the edge of the water to return for something above the ramp, collapsing on the way up its steep slope. He was found by Larry Rehn of Electric City who was in the area with his dog about 1:45 p.m. Rehn said he was in the area to wash his dog off and found Arbaugh laying on his back on the ramp. The man’s wife, Christie, told police that her husband had a h... Full story
Ten Years Ago The man who threatened to blow up Grand Coulee Dam was released last week from Spokane County Jail. Richard Vialpando was released after five months in jail. Laura Dick, of Nespelem, won a statewide contest on anti-drugs at the Washington State Substance Abuse Prevention Summit in Yakima. Laura’s motto was “Show the world that we can be drug free.” A team of four freshman isfinding out that academics can be cool. James Harrington, Sam Rise, Wade Roberts and Steve Henke qualified for the state math finals this week. Super... Full story
The National Park Service (NPS) reopened all 401 national parks, including Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area, LRNA announced Thursday. Visitor facilities normally open during this time of year including campgrounds, boat launches, and the Kettle Falls Information Center will be open as quickly as possible. All park programs and special events scheduled to take place will go forward. In addition, National Park Service websites, including Lake Roosevelt’s, will be available again for information. “We are proud to be a part of this area and... Full story
The National Park Service (NPS) has reopened all 401 national parks, including Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area, LRNA announced Thursday. Visitor facilities normally open during this time of year including campgrounds, boat launches, and the Kettle Falls Information Center will be open as quickly as possible. All park programs and special events scheduled to take place will go forward. In addition, National Park Service websites, including Lake Roosevelt’s, will be available again for information. “We are proud to be a part of this are... Full story
The National Park Service has awarded a 15-year concession contract to Dakota Columbia Rentals, LLC to operate at Keller Ferry and Seven Bays within Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area. Dakota Columbia will operate a full service marina, including houseboat and other boat rentals, moorage, retail/grocery, marine fuel and oil sales, pump-out services, and related services at the Keller Ferry and Seven Bays Marinas. The firm will also operate the Keller Ferry campground, according to a Sept. 30 press release from NPS.... Full story
Cross country races at Can Am by John R. McNeil II After a week off, Raider cross country returned to the races at Colville High School for the 2013 Can Am race Oct. 5. Normally the race is held in Kettle Falls at the National Park Service’s Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area, but with the government shutdown, the race had to be moved to Colville High School. Head Coach Gary Darnold said that, unlike in football, the bye week is not an advantage in cross country. “Having an extra week doe...
The latest failure of Congress to compromise has shuttered two local branches of federal agencies but not affected operations at Grand Coulee Dam. The federal government went into shutdown mode Tuesday as the U. S. Senate and the House of Representatives failed to compromise on a continuing resolution that would allow the government to pay the bills already spent and approved by Congress. Locally, barricades and recorded messages greeted many who tried to contact federal agencies or receive... Full story
Ten Years Ago A spaghetti dinner and auction was held at the Electric City Vets Center to raise money for Cindy Corpe to help pay her medical bills from a recent accident at work. $8,000 to $9,000 was raised for her medical bills and Cindy said she cried when she saw how many people showed up. It was standing room only and nearly 100 items were auctioned off. Raiders Cross Country took first at Connell Invitational last Saturday. The team consisted of Victor Camarena, Shane Marchand, Johnny Berg, Nick Barnaby, Chancy Cawston and Vernon Reyes.... Full story