News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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Grand Coulee Police 6/2 - An officer pulled over a Pontiac Grand Prix near Federal Avenue for having tabs that expired in 2018. The driver said he had been unable to renew the tabs because of COVID-19. The officer explained that wasn’t a problem in 2018. The man was cited for failure to renew the tabs and for driving without insurance. - A man was riding a motorcycle west on SR-174 heading towards the sunset when he turned right into the La Presa parking lot, hitting a curb, falling to the concrete, and sustaining a knee injury of some kind. T...
Public meetings, including those of city councils, school boards, and various districts, will need to continue to be held telephonically, a requirement that might lead to an expanded means of public participation in at least one local city. Gov. Jay Inslee extended proclamations related to COVID-19 restrictions Friday, including proclamations related to public meetings forbidding them from being held in person. "The worldwide COVID-19 pandemic and its progression in Washington State continues... Full story
Recognizing that graduation won't be what anyone had planned for the class of 2020, The Star is offering special rates to parents or others wanting to give greater recognition to their graduating seniors. A half page in next week's special section for graduates costs $179, a discount of 35 percent. A quarter page is $99. An eighth page is $60. Photos and words that you'd like expressed must be emailed to gwen@grandcoulee.com by the end of the day Thursday, June 4. The special section will be... Full story
We created a short survey asking you about your mask wearing habits and what you think about wearing masks during the COVID-19 pandemic. Take the poll at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/25XHPF2... Full story
The Grand Coulee City Council approved a $3.57 million, five-year contract with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation Thursday to continue to use the Grand Coulee Police Department to provide additional security services at the Grand Coulee Dam. The contract, approved and effective as of May 22, expires on May 31, 2025. The city’s old contract with the bureau expired in November 2019, which led to a six-month extension while a new contract was negotiated. The Star was unable to obtain specific details of the new contract but reported in February t...
Even before the order went statewide Friday directing widespread wearing of masks in public and requiring business to mandate it for employees not working alone, Grant County health authorities had already decided that protection was necessary. It is now mandatory to wear face masks in many public situations in Grant County, which recently entered Phase 2 of the Washington’s Safe Start Recovery Plan. “After much consideration, research, and consultation, Grant County Health Officer Dr. Alexander Brzezny is issuing a Health Officer Dir... Full story
As “distance learning” continues at Lake Roosevelt Schools during the COVID-19 pandemic that has kept students out of classrooms, principals weigh in on students’ participation in online classes. During the May 26 school board meeting, held electronically via Zoom, the topic of student participation came up. LR Elementary School Principal Lisa Lakin said teachers are getting participation from about 65% of their students. “Every week that students ‘check in’ with their teacher they are counted as attending,” Lakin’s report to the board, incl... Full story
A statewide health care campaign is urging people not to delay getting treated for any other health problems during the COVID-19 pandemic, emphasizing that hospitals can still treat non-COVID issues. Dr. Sam Hsieh, Coulee Medical Center’s chief medical officer, told The Star in an email on Monday that “there is a national drop of 60% of normal visits for primary and specialty care visits.” The Spokesman Review recently reported on the issue of people delaying their healthcare, reporting that Washington state doctors have cited instances of pe... Full story
Lake Roosevelt’s COVID-19 era graduation should go on as planned despite Okanogan County currently being in Phase 1 of Washington State’s Safe Start Recovery Plan. Graduation is scheduled to be held June 13 at 7 p.m. at the Lake Roosevelt football field where social distancing guidelines will mean limited interaction, attendees staying in their cars, graduates walking on and off the field one at a time to collect their diplomas, and slideshows and speeches being projected onto large screens on the field. Lake Roosevelt Junior/Senior High Sch... Full story
Camping is still closed in the Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area, including at Spring Canyon, and boat launch fees can only be paid by credit card now. The National Park Service said Monday that the closure of campgrounds is continuing until further notice to help quell the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Four of the five counties that border the lake, Lincoln, Stevens, Ferry, and Grant are in Phase 2 of Washington state's Safe Start recovery plan, with Okanogan still being in Phase 1.... Full story
Grand Coulee Police 5/21 - A man was banned from a Burdin Boulevard residence following an argument with another man there. - A woman reported being a victim in the unemployment scam happening recently. - A man said his stepson put a trailer for sale on Facebook without his permission. He said he moved it so it wouldn’t get stolen. A truck bed box with several tools was missing. 5/22 - People turned their music off following a noise complaint on Lakeview Avenue. - An officer on SR-155 pulled a vehicle over on SunBanks Resort Road for having a...
EPHRATA – Grant PUD, in conjunction with Columbia Basin Foundation, has contributed to eight food banks throughout Grant County this spring with Pay-It-Forward grants totaling $11,000. The services of these food banks are greatly needed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many in our communities are struggling to put food on the table for their family and these donations help to provide healthy meals. Food banks receiving assistance include: Coulee City, Grand Coulee, Ephrata, Mattawa, Moses Lake/Warden, Quincy, Royal City and Soap Lake. The P... Full story
With time running out, people with ideas about plans emerging for Spring Canyon, the popular beach and park on Lake Roosevelt just east of Grand Coulee, should make them known to the National Park Service. You have until the end of the day on May 30 to comment on potential changes at Spring Canyon, including the removal of the swim dock, removal of the concession building, and more. The Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area Draft Visitor Use Site Management Plan and Environmental Assessment is available to view online and available for...
It is now mandatory to wear face masks in many public situations in Grant County, which recently entered Phase 2 of the state of Washington's Safe Start Recovery Plan. "After much consideration, research, and consultation, Grant County Health Officer Dr. Alexander Brzezny is issuing a Health Officer Directive mandating this use of face coverings in some public settings," a May 27 press release from the Grant County Health District reads. "This is one easy effort to assist with reducing the... Full story
In the face of uncertainty during the COVID-19 restrictions, the chamber of commerce board of directors voted May20 to cancel any planning for the Festival of America over this year’s Independence Day holiday. The annual event, which normally includes vendors and performers in the park below the visitor center at Grand Coulee Dam, draws thousands each year, most to watch the fireworks off the top of the iconic dam. But all of that takes planning and a timeline that has run out. And the host federal agency, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, has n... Full story
People visit over and spruce up the graves of loved ones on the afternoon of Memorial Day at Spring Canyon Cemetery. The Isle of Flags organization had earlier put up American flags to honor fallen veterans, which they do annually, along with offering a ceremony in the morning. The ceremony didn't happen this year due to social distancing requirements, but people still spruced up the graves and visited at gravesites. - Scott Hunter photo...
There is no known timeline yet for opening the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation’s visitor center at Grand Coulee Dam, or for the restart of what is normally the nightly Laser Light Show that begins Memorial Day weekend and plays all summer and most of the fall. The COVID-19 pandemic has kept the Visitor Center closed and postponed the laser show and tours of the dam, said Lynne Brougher, public affairs specialist at Grand Coulee Dam. “The impacts to the schedule resulting from COVID are unknown and still developing at this time.” “The reopeni...
Lincoln County Fire District 9 issued an immediate burning ban Monday and Grant County’s annual ban will start June 1. That’s when District 9 also usually starts the no-burning season, but this year’s “just a little bit dryer,” said the district’s Ron Rosenberg. Grant County passed an ordinance in 2017 on instituting its annual ban on fires within the unincorporated areas of the county. Agricultural and orchard burning are allowed when permitted by the Department of Ecology. Recreational campfires are still allowed in approved devices at... Full story
The volume of police activity for the Grand Coulee Police Department seems to have gone down during the COVID-19 pandemic. In April of 2018, the GCPD had 99 incidents, in April of 2019 116, and in April of 2020 only 67. Data from the Multi Agency Communication Center in Moses Lake, who relays 911 calls to the appropriate agency, shows that the number of calls they received for the GCPD were lower in 2020 than 2019, but higher than 2018. That data does not include calls that the GCPD receives directly. In 2018, from April 1 to May 15, MACC... Full story
Grant County was approved Saturday to move to “Phase 2” of the Washington State COVID-19 Safe Start Recovery Plan, opening many businesses and activities, with some restrictions. Grant County commissioners had voted Friday to move to phase 2 as soon as state authorities approved the application. Phase 2 includes the opening of hair and nail salons, restaurants opening their dining rooms to 50% capacity, retail with restrictions, and more. Grant County Health District was notified May 23 that their application to move to phase two was app... Full story
Coulee Dam firefighter Ben Alling points to where Grand Coulee Chief Ryan Fish examines the empty spot on a wall, missing the siding that now lies left of Alling. Firefighter Nic Alexander was working a construction job a couple blocks away when the call came Wednesday afternoon for the problem at the Spruce Street home, responded quickly and averted more damage. - Scott Hunter photo...
Grand Coulee Police 5/13 - A man is being charged with theft, malicious mischief, and vehicle prowling. A woman parked on Midway Avenue had called police and said her vehicle had been prowled, and the ignition had been damaged. She called police again shortly after the initial call and said that she had confronted a man sitting in her car, who admitted to being the one who’d been in her car earlier. Police spoke to him at Safeway. He led an officer to a garbage can where he had placed stolen items from a car he’d prowled on Van Tyne Ave...
An unemployment benefits scam has been happening in multiple states the past couple of weeks, costing the state hundreds of millions of dollars, and there have even been incidents in the Coulee. In the state of Washington, an additional 369,016 people filed claims for unemployment benefits from May 10-16, bringing the total number of claims to 1,670,580, an increase of about 28% from the previous week. The Employment Security Department “believes some portion of the high numbers from the past week are due to an increase in fraudulent c...
The Star reported last week that the city of Grand Coulee was turning down Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act funds due to restrictions on how to spend it. Subsequently, the city said it still may be able to use some of that $31,650. “The money the City had to turn back was strictly for the ambulance,” City Clerk Lorna Pearce clarified later. “The money you referred to is for the City and we will have to play that one by ear.... Full story
Lake Roosevelt High School staffers Friday hang up 42 banners depicting this year's graduating seniors. Extra efforts are being made to find ways to honor the class of 2020, who will not experience the long tradition of walking across the stage to get a handshake and a diploma in front of a gym full of friends and family. The big vinyl banners are hanging on the fence around the tennis courts, in front of where the graduates and families will park in cars for the ceremony planned for June 13. -...