News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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If you’ve noticed a bit of smoke in the air, there’s a chance it’s from controlled burns performed by the Colville Tribes. Acting “fuels manager” for the Colville Tribes, John Elliott explained in a phone call to The Star that the burns should be finished before Thanksgiving. “At that time it’s usually getting too cold to have a lot of success burning,” Elliott said. “At the moment we’re probably about half done with what we’re trying to do in the fall.” Elliott said that they are burning some slash piles that were thinned out by loggers....
An independent candidate for the state Legislature visited the Grand Coulee Dam area last Thursday and Friday, knocking on doors and speaking at the chamber of commerce luncheon. Ann Diamond is running to represent the 12th Legislative District, which includes most of the Grand Coulee Dam area. A physician who founded the first family practice clinic in the Methow area, Diamond, said her travels during her campaign have taught her that small towns share in common many issues of concern:...
Grand Coulee Police 10/16 - An officer assisted Colville Tribal Police in standing near while a patient with a history of violence and non-compliance whom they had brought in was treated at Coulee Medical Center. - An Electric Blvd woman complained about a neighbor’s music. The officer asked the neighbor if he could turn down his music, which he did. 10/17 - A woman approached an officer saying she was wanted on a warrant and that she wanted to turn herself in. The officer didn’t find a warrant for her. She said it might be a tribal war...
Salley Bull, who is running for Okanogan County commissioner for District 3, spoke to the Elmer City Town Council at their meeting on Oct. 11. District 3 spans from about Wauconda to Conconully, Bull noted, but everyone in Okanogan County gets to vote in the general election. “My family homesteaded in the Chiliwist Valley,” Bull said. “My relatives were community-minded doctors, nurses, teachers, preachers, council members, and on boards for the school, hospital, and irrigation district.” “I’ve been active in the community on the county level f...
Public Service Employees local union members and others hold signs and encourage drivers to honk in support Monday afternoon in the second of such demonstrations in the last two weeks during the union's negotiations with the Grand Coulee Dam School District. The two sides met Tuesday in another round of talks with an arbitrator. Messages on the signs included "We care about your kids," "Honk in Support of Strong Schools," and "Keep the McCleary Promise." Many cars honked. - Scott Hunter...
A brewing lawsuit between two towns has likely been averted after leaders took legal arguments seriously last week and a desire to work with neighbors prevailed. Coulee Dam has decided to explore options and get cost estimates to build a lift station needed to carry Elmer City's sewage to the new wastewater treatment facility being built. The treatment plant that Coulee Dam is building is about 22 feet higher in elevation than the old one that the towns currently share. That requires extra...
The Coulee Dam council Wednesday approved an agreement with the Colville Confederated Tribes, allowing them to install and maintain 144 strands of fiber optic cables through parts of the town. The tribes still need to approve the agreement before it is official. The fiber could make high-speed internet possible in the town, and be mutually beneficial for the town and the tribes, who are working to bring fiber optics to communities all around the reservation. The new, tribally owned fiber would connect to Grant County PUD’s fiber, which e...
Library adds Saturday to schedule, moves storytime The Grand Coulee Library will be open from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. on Saturdays, in addition to their usual Monday through Friday hours. Additionally, their weekly storytime has been moved to Fridays at 11:30 a.m. Electric City water rates going up The Electric City council voted to raise the water rates by $2.50 in 2019, another $2.50 in 2020, and a dollar per year each year after that. Starting with the January 1, 2019 bill, rates will be $41.49 per month for up to 10,000 gallons for residents...
The North Central Regional Library system, of which the Grand Coulee library is a part, has more opportunities than the public may be aware of, and is working on adding more. Library patrons have the option to borrow movies, music, audiobooks and e-books digitally. "We have Hoopla, the Netflix for libraries," said Executive Director Barbara Walters. "Hoopla can be used anywhere at anytime by our library patrons." Those with a library card can access the Hoopla website and download a limited...
Grand Coulee Police 10/9 - While responding to a call from Plant Protection regarding a man fishing near the canal at North Dam after hours (about 7 p.m.), an officer was informed that the man was leaving. 10/12 - Two women and a man were taken separately to Grant County Jail after an altercation at Coulee Gas. There was yelling and some pushing by those arrested, who had been drinking that night, which prompted someone to call the cops. The man was taken to jail on a misdemeanor warrant, and the two women were taken on assault and obstruction...
As the Coulee Area Park and Recreation District works on a list of projects to help bring North Dam Park into compliance with federal law on providing access for those in wheelchairs, it increases the likelihood of starting other projects, such as a community garden. Still, the list is long. CAPRD manages North Dam Park, which is owned by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. The USBR has a list of items that need to be done to bring the park up to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards, accessibility projects concerning parking, pathway...
The Grand Coulee Dam School District Board of Directors will be holding a Special Board Meeting at 6 p.m., on Monday, October 15, at the high school library.... Full story
A boulder fell onto the highway along Banks Lake sometime in the early hours of the morning Tuesday, blocking the 60 mph northbound lane. Unfortunately, Shaian Gomez found it in her Ford Focus. Gomez, 23, was northbound on SR-155 just before 5:21 a.m. when the Washington State Patrol got a call. Her 2002 Focus hit the rock, which state Dept. of Transportation Maintenance Supervisor Ryan Smith estimated could weigh up to 2,000 pounds. Smith said the rock was about 4 feet across. The big hunk of...
The topic of animal control was brought up at the Regional Board of Mayors meeting on Monday, a problem all the towns have in common. Electric City Clerk Russ Powers said Electric City has issues with dogs running at large, feral cats, unlicensed animals, and other animal-related issues. He said that Lorna Pearce, city clerk in Grand Coulee, told him the problems are the same in Grand Coulee. Elmer City has their share of dog issues. Mayor Pro Tem Don Bonertz cited an incident of dogs scaring a little girl in Elmer City. Coulee Dam Mayor Pro...
CAPRD approves future kiosk at park Kiosks to tout the features along the Coulee Corridor are looking like they will finally get put up after about 10 years of effort, if a paper discussed at the Coulee Area Park and Recreation District is an indication. A local kiosk will detail the history and geology of the area and be placed at North Dam Park in Grand Coulee. It will be one of a total of five along the Coulee Corridor National Scenic Byway, joining others in in Coulee City, Soap Lake, Othello, and Warden. Total cost for the project going...
A fire that destroyed four homes in Elmer City last week left the fire chief thankful for his neighbors, who he said likely prevented a larger catastrophe. Okanogan Fire District 2 Chief Dave Finch said some 41 firefighters from every local department were in Elmer City Tuesday night to fight the fire that started about 6 p.m. in high winds in the Grand View Trailer Park just below SR-155. The first trucks had just arrived on scene when the wind blew the fire across the highway, he said. Finch s...
Two candidates for leadership of the public electric utility in Grant County laid out their cases for election last Thursday at the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce luncheon at Siam Palace. Nelson Cox and Judy Wilson both feel the Grant County PUD has amassed too much debt while serving large industrial users of power, such as server farms. And they take issue with some of the top management living out of county. Cox, a Warden area farmer, said the PUD has done great things but its finances are out of control. “I really don’t und...
Electric City council Tuesday night approved the details on how to distribute the city’s lodging tax revenue. On the recommendation of the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee, Councilmembers Lonna Bussert and Rich McGuire, the council voted to distribute $48,100 to the city itself for the construction design of Ice Age Park, pending approval of a grant, as well as for general tourism advertising. Electric City is distributing $15,000 to the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce for general operations and advertisements of all area events, p...
Grand Coulee 10/1 - A woman reported her chop saw, used to cut wood, went missing from outside the Trail West Motel. - A driver, pulled over for having a tail light out, was cited for the light and for driving with his license suspended. The man said he had ordered the light and was going to replace it. 10/2 - At the request of the manager, police told a woman sleeping in her car around 9 p.m. in the Safeway parking lot to leave. The woman said that wouldn’t be a problem. - A man was cited for speeding on SR-155, going 45 mph in a 30 mph zone n...
Fire fought north of Nespelem A wildland fire broke out last Wednesday north of Nespelem, burning some 247 acres before being contained Saturday, the Northwest Interagency Management Team 2 said. Gherke Windmill Garden gets faraway visitors There were 35 entries in the sign-in sheet at the Gherke Windmill Garden at North Dam Park for the month of September, many of them families or pairs of people. Entries came from as far away as Australia, and ranged from British Columbia to Iowa, Minnesota, and more. Electric vehicle charging station...
High winds threw an Elmer City fire across Highway 155 last night after a blaze started in the Grandview Mobile Home Park below the highway. Details were sketchy last night, but one person with an emergency channel radio said at least three mobile homes had burned. From a vantage point a couple miles away, the fire apparently had burned up a ravine that skirts the town to its south, threatening houses on the hillside. A fire truck drove up to one home near the top of the street that a woman watc... Full story
More than 50 people gathered at the Wine Bar in Grand Coulee Thursday to discuss the idea of consolidating some or all local towns into one. SCJ Alliance, a consulting firm for municipal planning, engineering, transportation and landscape architecture, sent four representatives to attend and lead the discussion, which was organized by the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce. The firm's Dan Penrose led most of the discussion and passed out an illustration of the "Path to Consolidation"...
"I need some new socks." That is a common experience among human beings in the 21st century. But with the closing of The Variety Store last year, where does a Coulee-ite buy something as basic as socks? Local area residents seem to all make regular trips to Spokane, Moses Lake, or Omak to purchase things they can't buy in the area. Either they buy those things in another city, or they order them online from a business such as Amazon. Those The Star asked all said they make regular trips to one... Full story
The city of Grand Coulee was presented with a plaque commemorating perfect compliance in regard to their wastewater treatment plant. The award was presented Sept. 18 before the city council by Kim Prisock of the Department of Ecology, the fourth year in a row Grand Coulee has won the award. “As far as our region goes,” Prisock said, “you’re one of the few that has achieved perfect compliance, which means there were no violations, you operated within your permit limits the entire time, and that you didn’t miss a single sample.” Prisock est...
Emergency responders work to extract a Selland Construction worker from a scraper on Peter Dan Road Sept. 19, where the company was doing construction. "We had an operator error, the machine shut down, and he lost control of it, ended up down the hill," said Michael Hoven of Selland Construction. "The operator is fine, no injuries except a slight swelling in his bicep." - Ralph Rise photo...
