News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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A fire at Osborn Bay in high winds Saturday forced two people there to stay in the water for hours as flames came near enough at times that they could feel the heat. The fire near Osborn Bay, south of Electric City burned approximately 30 acres of sagebrush, dry grass, trees, and other vegetation in high winds on Saturday after a bullet ricocheted and started the fire. Electric City Fire Chief Mark Payne said the fire started at approximately 12:55 p.m. when a man shooting in the area reported...
A Lake Roosevelt student-athlete testing positive for COVID has led to students quarantining and basketball games being cancelled, but an outdoor graduation ceremony is still planned for Saturday. Basketball games on June 4, 5, 7, and 8 were canceled as a result of the situation. A June 5 notice on the Raider’s athletic website announced that a student-athlete had tested positive for Covid resulting in the basketball teams quarantining. A June 7th update on the school’s Facebook page explained that in response, the school’s “admin team has been... Full story
Get your passports ready; Koulee Kids Fest is taking place on June 19 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. with lots of free activities for kids to participate in around the town. The “passports” are used by the kids to go to various activities and get their passports stamped at up to 16 local businesses offering fun activities to qualify to win prizes. “My hope for Koulee Kids Fest is for it to draw families outside, support the community, and engage in some safe and fun activities,” Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce Chamber Executive Directo...
Hotter and drier summers seem to be the trend in climate changes locally as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released the new U.S. Climate Normals for 1991-2020. The NOAA is part of the Department of Commerce and updates the climate normals every 10 years using a 30-year range of data. Comparing the 1991-2020 data to the previous 1981-2010 data shows that the Spokane area, like much of the western U.S., is experiencing hotter and drier summers. Including here. "Vegetation drie...
A dozen boat-in campsites at Steamboat Rock State Park in the Ponderosa Campground are now closed to camping as the area becomes designated for day-use only. Washington State Parks announced the closure, which began June 1, in a May 26 press release. The day-use only area has "900 feet of shoreline available for picnicking and exploring," the release says. The press release also shows a satellite map of the now day-use area, located northeast of the boat launch and bordering an area that technic...
THANKS to ALL the local FIRE Responders and Response Teams from surrounding communities for the quick and professional RESPONSE to the Osborn Bay Fire last Saturday. Under the dry, windy conditions this could have been disastrous. Thanks also to the DNR crews for the mop-up. Sincerely, Ronald and Wendy Kosloski...
The Grand Coulee Library has a new librarian, Catherine Matthews, and she's excited to meet you. Matthews moved to Electric City by way of Whidbey Island and started work at the library on May 18. Speaking with The Star by phone, Matthews explained her love of books and libraries. She said that she always went to her local public library as she was growing up and got exposed to different viewpoints and opinions. "I read a lot," she said. "I read very widely, across genres and lots of different...
Grand Coulee 5/29 - Police drove to Osborne Bay for a noise complaint of loud music playing. Police heard music playing somewhere in the area upon arrival, but then it stopped. Police waited to see if the music started again, but it did not. - A catalytic converter was sawed off the muffler of a business’ delivery truck. - Police pulled over a car suspected of being driven under the influence because of some erratic lane travel and sudden braking. The driver did not appear intoxicated but was tired and wearing medical scrubs. She said she w...
A congressman and a state legislator met with several local leaders last week to hear about local needs and ambitions, leaving with a list of to-dos. Congressman Dan Newhouse and Washington State Rep. Mike Steele met with the group at the Grand Coulee Dam School District office in Coulee Dam May 28 to briefed on an introductory course in how the federal and state governments have fallen short in support of the unusual area, where four or five counties come together, with an Indian reservation,...
A fire near Osborne Bay south of Electric City is burning sage brush and other vegetation in high winds. Helicopters from the Department of Natural Resources and the Bureau of Land Management are helping fight the fire along with fire fighters from the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, and the departments from Electric City, Grand Coulee, Coulee Dam, Elmer City, and Lincoln County. Electric City Fire Chief Mark Payne said the fire started at approximately 12:55 p.m. and is suspected to have started... Full story
Grant County health officials are asking people to still wear a mask, even if you’re vaccinated, because too few have gotten vaccinations. The recommendations came Tuesday evening with a list of reasons for the decision. Nationally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has relaxed its recommended safety measures, most notably not requiring masks when outdoors unless in very crowded areas and requiring no masks for fully vaccinated persons, even indoors. But Grant County is lagging the nation in vaccine uptake, with only 35.8% of i... Full story
Voters will decide on about 30 positions up for election in the 2021 elections for local town councils, school boards, and more. The primary elections will take place in August, while the general election will take place in November. Grand Coulee Three seats on the Grand Coulee City Council are up for reelection this year, all to four-year terms. Three candidates have filed their intentions to seek Council Position #1, currently held by Tammara Byers who is not running for reelection. The candidates who have filed are: Ben Hughes, Tracey...
Social media has become such a big part of modern life, to the point that now the Grand Coulee Dam School District has an employee policy about it. The district’s board of directors approved a social media policy during their May 24 meeting. Superintendent Paul Turner explained to The Star that the policy isn’t required by the state but rather “is preemptive” and “also initiated because of some previous issues.” Turner declined to elaborate on the nature of those previous issues. “Without a policy, there is no guidance to stay consistent wh...
Electric City residents, by participating in a confidential income survey as soon as possible, can help the city pay for its deteriorating main sewer line. “The main sewer line running along Hwy 155 in Electric City is deteriorating and needs repair before a collapse occurs,” reads a statement from Mayor Diane Kohout to The Star explaining the significance of the survey. “The City is in the process of researching grant possibilities and is working with the Department of Ecology and Rural Community Assistance Corporation to conduct an income sur...
Families gather around the flags about to be dedicated in the name of their loved one, each a veteran being remembered on Memorial Day at the annual Isle of Flags dedication ceremony at Spring Canyon Cemetery. At least 17 more flags were dedicated this year at the ceremony which displays more than 500 each year. - Scott Hunter photo...
The City of Grand Coulee would like a couple of questions addressed before extending their B Street closure agreement with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. One end of B Street has been blocked off near the bureau’s fire station construction site since 2017, and numerous delays in that construction project have kept the road closed. B Street connects to SR-155 through the bureau-owned Industrial Road, with the area between B Street and SR-155 being closed off. At their May 18 council meeting, the council discussed wanting emergency access t...
Grand Coulee Police 5/18 - Police located the owner of a vehicle abandoned along SR-155 where a new fog line was being painted. The owner moved the vehicle. - A man thought a trailer hitch was stolen off of his truck, but later told police he found it and that it must have fallen off the truck. 5/19 - A man suspected of illegal dumping was actually just removing parts from a truck on property that he owns. - A man who went into North Cascades Bank was acting unusual and spoke about wanting to be violent towards people. Police located the man...
(Nespelem, WA) — The Colville Tribes announced today that it is immediately lifting all public safety measures previously instituted to protect the community from COVID-19. A Resolution first passed on March 25, 2020, which imposed multiple public safety measures to stop the spread of COVID-19, including the closure of the Colville Reservation and limits on gathering sizes. These safety measures have been extended on multiple occasions as the pandemic continued to remain a threat, but they are all now lifted, effective immediately. The C... Full story
To my kid brother, Raymond George Rinard This is a synopsis of my service time in World War Two. I hitchhiked from Boone to Des Moines, Iowa on October 6th, 1942 to enlist and was sent back home with four papers to be filled out. One was for my mother giving her permission to me to enlist, one with signatures of three businessmen at Boone, one to be signed by the police chief showing I had no arrests, and one by the pastor of our church. I got them signed and hitchhiked to Des Moines again on...
Lake Roosevelt High School’s Class of 2021 graduation is slated for June 12 on the football field in Coulee Dam, with more details still being developed. “Seniors voted to have graduation outdoors on the football field and so we are moving forward with developing plans,” Principal Kirk Marshlain wrote in his report to the Grand Coulee Dam School District Board of Directors for their May 24 meeting. “This will allow for graduates to have more guests present for the ceremony. More details to come as we finalize the plans.” During the meeting,...
The annual Memorial Day Isle of Flags ceremony will take place at 11 a.m. Monday, May 31 at Spring Canyon Cemetery. The event, which displays over 500 United States flags, will dedicate 17 more this year in honor of Michael R. Bradley, Jerome W. Bussert, Paul G. Dailey, Timothy R. Ehde, Larry Fredin, Benjamin Ross Goetz, Roscoe Goetz, Edward “Peanuts” Haven, Charles Arthur Hayward, Richard “Dick” Jarret, Earl Mustard, Nicholas Newby, Donald V. Richardson, Richard “Dick” Ross, James A. Stansfield, Gerald “Jack” Thune, and Steven Wiyrick. The ce... Full story
The Grand Coulee Dam Visitor Center and laser light show will begin on Saturday in time for Memorial Day weekend. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation announced the re-opening for the visitor center and the "One River, Many Voices" laser light show in a statement May 19. "To safely re-open the visitor center and return the laser light show, Reclamation will be following the recommended guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention," the release states. "Fully vaccinated visitors are...
Located along SR-174, Grand Coulee City Park, also known as Shane Proctor Park, has experienced incidents of vandalism this spring and the mayor would like citizens to keep an eye out for that type of destructive behavior and report it. This spring, someone smashed the seats of the teeter-totters in the park, and in a separate incident someone crammed the toilet full of toilet paper, a plastic jug, and other garbage. “It’s just a shame,” Mayor Paul Townsend told The Star on Tuesday. “I don’t even know what’s wrong with people. It makes me si...
Vroom vroom! You can see a variety of cars or show off your own at a car show in Grand Coulee on June 19 in a car show being held on Main Street. The Diversity Divine Auto Show, held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., will be held by Coulee Medical Center’s Chief Medical Officer Dr. Sam Hsieh through his organization The Divine Appeal. “The MO at The Divine Appeal has always been breaking boundaries and challenging the status quo,” a description for the show reads online. “One group that carries this loud and proud is no other than our car scene enthusi...
The demolition of a condemned building on Spokane Way that once belonged to a local inventor seems likely to happen this summer after about three years of delays. The Grand Coulee City Council approved a bid for the demolition of the “Vlachos” building at their May 18 meeting, as well as for an asbestos survey to be conducted prior to the demolition. The building, once belonging to inventor and mechanic Constantinos Vlachos, has been boarded up and abandoned for years. In 2018, the Coulee Pioneer Museum recovered some items from the premises, i...
