News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
Sorted by date Results 3830 - 3854 of 6880
Anyone who has wondered about the growth of the local widlfire season and of the size of the fires that have struck the region in the last few years may want to catch up on the work of Dr. Paul Hessburg. They’ll have a good chance next week. That’s when Wildfire Project’s “The Era of Megafires” will be presented at the new Lucy F. Covington Government Center Auditorium in Nespelem on Tuesday, March 21. Another presentation is scheduled for the Omak Performing Arts Center the next night. Both presentation begin at 6 p.m. Dinner will be availa... Full story
You've heard it said that "the check is in the mail." Well, this one is in the hand! That check for $250,000 arrived last week for Elmer City's "Complete Streets" project. City Clerk Gary Benton and public works director "Jimmer" Tillman didn't waste any time in moving forward with the grant funds. The town has three years to use the funds. Tillman said Friday the project will likely be done in 2018. The grant is from the state Department of Transportation's TIB (Transportation Improvement Board... Full story
School boards to meet together The boards of Nespelem and Grand Coulee Dam school districts will hold a joint meeting Wednesday, March 22, at La Presa Restaurant, in Grand Coulee, at 6 p.m. The joint board meeting is open to the public. Park board considering bids The Coulee Area Park and Recreation District is considering bids from three companies interested in taking care of North Dam Park. Bids were opened at the commission’s regular meeting March 6, and commissioners are weighing price, experience, proposed work and references in their deli... Full story
An Electric City man has received one of two scholarships offered by the state to study structural firefighting. Joshua Reeding, who recently moved to the area from Victorville, California, won an 11-week training scholarship recently, and will be going to the North Bend Fire Center for instruction. The training runs from April 7 through June 25. "It is a great honor for Joshua and for our volunteer fire department," fire Chief Mark Payne told the Electric City Council last week. Reeding was a v... Full story
City officials in the four towns will be more than happy to see winter end, but they all fear what is going to happen to city streets in the region. Ken Dexter, public works director for Electric City, summed it up last week when he stated, "It has been the worst winter I've seen in 20 years or so." Dexter has been with Electric City for over 30 years and will be retiring at the end of March. City streets there are showing signs of breaking up, with frost heaves just showing up. Typical of... Full story
A former Mosquito District 2 clerk pled guilty to one count of first-degree theft in Grant County Superior Court Monday. A second count of first-degree theft, relating to an alleged misappropriation of funds of just over $129,000, was dismissed under the plea agreement. Under the agreement, Karyn Byam, 41, of Electric City, is to pay $800 in court costs, with restitution to be determined at a special hearing within 180 days. There was no confinement time under the agreement. Byam pled guilty to the first-degree theft charge which had to do... Full story
The Grant County Mosquito Control District #2 is calling an emergency meeting for Tuesday, March 14,at 7 p.m. at the Electric City Hall. They will be entering executive (closed) session regarding bid applications....
Electric City Mayor John Nordine II reads to Jessica Tufts' second grade students at Lake Roosevelt Elementary School last Thursday, Dr. Seuss's birthday, taking part in the Read Across America program. The school brings in community members for the program, which the National Education Association describes as its year-round program for "motivating children and teens to read through events, partnerships, and reading resources." It is now in its 20th year. - Roger S. Lucas ph... Full story
Colorama will have a new carnival this year, Rainier Amusements, out of Portland, Oregon, the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce announced this week. The new carnival is one of the featured attractions for this year’s Colorama Festival, May 12-14. “We are pleased that we have been able to contract with such a highly respected amusement organization,” chamber Executive Director Peggy Nevsimal stated. The final details of the contract with Rainier Amusements were signed late last week. The Portland amusement group stated in its news relea... Full story
A contractor will be on site next week to start work on a new fire station for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, which means two portions of local roads will be closed for that project. Innovative Construction & Design Ltd., a small business based in Post Falls, Idaho, was awarded the $13.6 million construction job last September. The company is scheduled to be on site Monday, March 13, Public Affairs Officer Lynne Brougher said Monday. The portion of B Street from Division Street to Industrial... Full story
The Grand Coulee Dam School District has had its problems with the harsh winter, and will have to repair sidewalk and playground concrete walkway problems when spring arrives. Sidewalks in front of the new school have had surface problems and the same problems have cropped up on playground surfaces, Superintendent Paul Turner advised the school board at its last meeting. The surface in front of the school appeared to partially be because of using snow and ice removal chemicals. Turner said that he didn’t think that personnel used salt. In a... Full story
Next week, thank a classified employee March 13-17 has been proclaimed Classified Public School Employees Week by Washington Governor Jay Inslee. There are 60,000 classified school employees in the state who are involved in nearly every aspect of education, the proclamation says. They are involved in maintaining buildings and grounds, preparing and serving meals, keeping school facilities clean and neat, assisting in the classroom, performing and conducting research activities, and providing information technology and media services. Those... Full story
Richard McBride, superintendent of the North Central Educational Service District 171, leads a discussion on developing a strategic plan for Grand Coulee Dam School District in a Lake Roosevelt school library this week. Composed of both school district personnel and community members, the planning team met Monday and Tuesday to shape a plan that will help the administration and school board tackle issues within the district in the future. District Superintendent Paul Turner helped facilitate... Full story
The National Park Service is offering Lake Roosevelt Vacations, Inc., a one-year contract extension. If accepted, it will continue to operate the NPS-owned marina complex at Kettle Falls through April 30, 2018. NPS officials are offering to extend the contract for one year after listening to community and visitor concerns over the announcement of the marina closure. “It’s our hope Lake Roosevelt Vacations will accept this extension offer so reservation holders unaware of a potential closure can enjoy their planned vacation on the lake,” said... Full story
Workers this week are ripping existing sidewalks up at the entrance to Coulee Dam Casino as they get ready to create a new entrance area. The project includes a new restaurant on the second floor, plus added gaming areas. The upgraded facility is expected to open sometime this spring. The project will also feature outside dining during good weather. - Roger S. Lucas photo... Full story
The Grand Coulee Dam School District board had two issues on its agenda Monday night for passage; neither made it in a three-plus-hour-long, marathon meeting. The issues were new high school graduation requirements and a two-year school calendar. The board held the second reading of the graduation requirement policy, which is normally a slam dunk since board members normally get all their questions answered between the first and second readings. It was different Monday night. Seniors graduating in 2019 will need 24 credits, instead of 21. The... Full story
Remember that long, narrow lunchroom at the old middle school? She what the Raiders are using it for now. That second hit would have been at least a base hit. Batting practice from Scott Hunter on Vimeo....
A cool angler sitting amidst the fractured ice and snow, waits for a tug on his line at Crescent Bay Tuesday. Although some high school spring sports started practice with snow too deep to play Monday, highs are predicted to reach into the low 40s over the next week, with lows in the high 20s. Check the weekly forecast on page 8. - Scott Hunter photo... Full story
The Grand Coulee Dam School District met with Grand Coulee’s planning commission Feb. 15 and received first hand some of the options it faces in selling the Center School property. Superintendent Paul Turner stated late last week that the meeting outlined potential roadways to the zoning process. First, if a potential buyer presents a plan that the commission members approve of, it would be possible to get a conditional-use permit. That process would require the city to hire, at the district’s expense, a lawyer to conduct a public hearing to... Full story
Timing is everything, even when it involves a bill between two cities. A billing issue followed a lengthy discussion among Grand Coulee’s city council members last week as they tried to come to grips with a contract agreement between the city and its employees. The last offer employees had made for their contract would cost the city some $17,000. The council discussed where the city was going to find the money to meet the employees’ offer. It lasted about an hour and was pushed off to the next council meeting in March. That’s when the counc... Full story
Volunteers for the AARP Tax-Aide program provide free tax assistance at the Grand Coulee Senior Center on Tuesday, where Birdie Hensley has organized the program for the past 15 years. From left are Ray Spackman, Nora Jenn, Sally McDowell, Marian Spackman and Roberta Haines. The program is open to everyone from 9 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. each Tuesday through April 11. - Jacob Wagner photo... Full story
Dangerous crosswalk discussed Cheryl Hoffman, president of the local senior center, asked Grand Coulee City Council to do something about the dangers of the crosswalk on Federal Way. She said that seniors use this crosswalk and drivers coming down the hill are often speeding, making crossing the street dangerous to older people. She suggested a “hidden crosswalk” sign or putting in a four-way stop sign at the corner of Federal Way and Main Street. Fire and ambulance calls reported Grand Coulee Volunteer Fire Chief Richard Paris reported tha... Full story
Faced with a mid-week holiday date for an expensive festival designed for tourists, the chamber of commerce is planning its “Festival of America” to start on June 30 this year, with the annual fireworks off the dam on Saturday, July 1. Executive Director Peggy Nevsimal approached the Coulee Dam Town Council last Wednesday to broach the idea with the town that hosts the festival and helps fund it with a lodging tax charged on every motel night spent in the town. Nevsimal said the chamber’s board of directors had struggled with the idea, prefe... Full story
Grand Coulee could soon have a park dedicated to world-champion bull rider Shane Proctor. A proposal was made to the Grand Coulee City Council Feb. 21 by Bob Valen, who made the request on behalf of the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce. Valen is a chamber member and also a commissioner of the Coulee Area Park and Recreation District. Valen proposed that Grand Coulee name its city park, on SR-174, “Shane Proctor Park.” Proctor has distinguished himself on the professional bull riding and rodeo circuits, having won the World Cha... Full story
Diana Parrish, Electric City's new deputy clerk is now on the job. She replaces Russ Powers, who will become city clerk later this month. Her husband, Brad Parrish, who was a city council member, resigned from the council to avoid any potential conflict of interest. Diana previously worked for New Paradigm Physical Therapy in Electric City. - Jacob Wagner photo... Full story