News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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Michael Somday passed away Wednesday, April 26, 2017, in Grand Coulee. A complete obituary will be in next week's Star. Visitation will be held at Strate Funeral Home, Grand Coulee, on Saturday, April 29, from 3 - 7 p.m. No other services will be held at this time. Please sign his online register book at stratefuneralhome.com... Full story
What would you have done? James A. Fox, from Grand Coulee, turned in to put some gas into his car last Tuesday at Coulee Gas and found a wad of cash totaling $1,000. Fox promptly went to the Grand Coulee Police Department across the street and gave the money to officer Tom Johnson, who promptly put it into found property. Later, police sgt. Gary Moore went to Coulee Gas to review the firm’s security tape and saw that Everett Leishman (Mr. E) had dropped the money while gassing up his vehicle. Leishman went to the police station to describe h... Full story
A high speed chase ended on Peter Dan Road when two vehicles, a car and a truck, both crashed into the landslide that spans the road. A woman, apparently a nearby resident, told The Star that two suspects then took off on foot, and that police were going to houses looking for them. The resident also said that a SWAT team was on the scene in full uniform with guns drawn. No further info is yet available. A witness in Coulee Dam said a car speeding down the hill at Grand Coulee Dam hit the bottom... Full story
Update: The driver of the vehicle, Phil Grunlose, was having a heart attack at the time of the incident, and as of Thursday was still hospitalized, his wife confirmed. Turf flies behind a pickup on the Lake Roosevelt Junior/Senior High School baseball field Tuesday as the driver spins brodies after crashing through the fence. People at a high school tennis game nearby heard the crash and witnessed the event at about 5:30 p.m., including the photographer, there to photograph the athletics. The... Full story
Coulee Dam’s new wastewater treatment facility got big push ahead last week as the town council approved interim financing to get the project started, then approved the bid to build it for more than expected, but with more cost-saving features. The council awarded the construction bid Wednesday to McClure and Sons Construction of Spokane, which bid $5,609,399.07. That award was contingent on the approval of supplemental funding from the US Dept. of Agriculture for extra work engineers deemed prudent to lower long-term operating costs. The t... Full story
Electric City’s park plan got a boost April 11, when the city council looked favorably on recommendations from the Parks and Recreation Committee (PARC). The council agreed to move forward on hiring an engineering or landscape firm to draw final plans for both the McNett Avenue Park and the Grand Avenue Park, both new to the city. Council members specified that the city should use funds other than hotel/motel money to pay for the completed plans. The council had voted a year ago to set aside $40,000 from its hotel/motel fund to pay for e... Full story
Jeremy Miller was unanimously selected last Tuesday night to fill the vacancy on the Electric City council. He was one of three candidates that submitted a letter of interest in serving on the council to replace Brad Parrish who resigned about six weeks ago. Others who submitted letters were Ken Anderson and Lisa Lyngar, who attended Tuesday night’s meeting. After council members selected Miller, Mayor John Nordine II thanked Anderson and Lyngar for their interest and said that the city often seeks local residents to serve on committees. He s... Full story
The Bureau of Reclamation is asking for comments from interested parties on a planned overhaul of 18 generators in the left and right powherhouses of Grand Coulee Dam. The generators have been in service for some 70 years and need repair, the bureau has said. Doing the work would keep them making electricity for another 30 years. In a draft environmental analysis, the bureau lays out its preferred of three alternatives: Do the upgrades on two generators at a time and complete the work between 2018 and 2029. Another alternative would extend the... Full story
Parish on parks The Electric City Council selected former city councilman Brad Parrish to serve on the city’s Parks and Recreation Committee. Parrish had been active as a council member in getting the city’s Revitalization plan started and is a promoter of the city’s two new proposed parks. Elmer City hiring building inspector firm Elmer City Mayor Gail Morin was authorized by the council to sign an agreement with Northwest Code Professionals to provide building inspector services for a year. The NCP group, out of Eugene, Oregon, bought out t... Full story
Firefighters cut holes in the side and roof of a house at 111 Washington Place in Electric City Thursday, but saved it from burning down. A bathroom light-ceiling fan combination unit caused the fire. Firefighters from Electric City, Grand Coulee and the Bureau of Reclamation were on scene at the mid-morning fire. Grant County lists Amelia Stanger as the owner. - Scott Hunter photo... Full story
Elmer City residents will see a 2-percent increase in their power bills as a result of an increase in electric costs from Nespelem Valley Electric, town council members learned last Thursday. The town was advised by NVE that its power rates would go from $0.07 per kilowatt hour to $0.0714 per kilowatt hour, the result of an increase from its supplier, Bonneville Power Administration. It was estimated that the increase to Elmer City residents would be about $22 a year. Dan Simpson, general manager of Nespelem Valley Electric, said in a letter... Full story
The Colville Confederated Tribes is hosting their 8th Annual Celebration of Earth Day on Friday, April 21st, the day before Earth Day, at the Colville Agency powwow grounds near Nespelem. The event is scheduled to last from 10 a.m. until 1:30 p.m., and is free to the public. The event is expecting 57 interactive and informative booths, with people travelling from as far as Seattle to participate. One booth, presented by the Colville Tribes Fish & Wildlife department, includes what is called a “Swoosh Machine,” a vacuum-based fish tra... Full story
SOAP LAKE, Wash. (19APR2017) – Two people are in jail today after a home burglary just north of Soap Lake. For two nights in a row, a home in the 22000 block of State Route 17 North had been burglarized. That prompted a Grant County sheriff’s deputy to stake out the house this morning. Around 6 a.m. the deputy saw a car pull up, open a secured gate and drive up to the home. A short time later the deputy stopped the car as it was leaving the home. The car’s driver, Brenda Starcher, 44 of Soap Lake, was arrested. The passenger, 26-year-old Danie... Full story
Okanogan County commissioners declared a state of emergency Monday, due to threat of flooding and debris problems on county roads. Commissioners passed the resolution after county roads suffered damage from heavy precipitation recently. They acknowledged the continued threat of heavy rain has created a danger to public health and the safety of those using county roads. The Charlton Complex and other wildfires stripped vegetation from hills in the county, resulting in flash floods with mud and debris being swept over roadways. Commissioners... Full story
Fire destroyed a home at 323 Roosevelt Drive in Grand Coulee late Saturday evening. A family of four were away at the time of the fire; however, two dogs died in the blaze. The Jesus Llamas family rented the mobile home that was owned by the Loretta Bingham family. Firefighters from Grand Coulee and Electric City volunteer fire departments and the Bureau of Reclamation responded. Grand Coulee Volunteer Fire Chief Rick Paris stated that fire and smoke was coming from the mobile home when... Full story
As some 203,000 cubic feet of water per second flows downstream of Grand Coulee Dam Sunday evening, about 58,000 cfs comes down the spillway through seven outlet tubes while the Bureau of Reclamation coordinates river flow for flood control. The current forecast calls for Lake Roosevelt to be lowered to 1,222.7 feet above sea level to accommodate expected high snow melt runoff, which has not actually started down the river yet. - Scott Hunter photo... Full story
A landmark court ruling in Nelson, British Columbia. states that members of the Arrow Lakes (Sinixt) tribe are now allowed to hunt on their traditional lands, where their ancestors had hunted for thousands of years prior to European contact. The ruling also established that the Sinixt tribe is not extinct, which they never were. Richard Desautel, who lives in Inchelium on the Colville Indian Reservation and is a member of the Sinixt tribe, also known as the Arrow Lakes tribe, was acquitted of charges in Canada on March 27 of hunting without a l... Full story
Grant County Health District reported this week that officials there are investigating what might be a single case of tuberculosis. The person in question was treated in several health care facilities in Grant County during the course of the illness. Officials at the county said it is the lone case now being investigated. Health officials have found some 200 persons, residing in Grant, Lincoln and Adams counties, who have been in contact with the person. All have been contacted by Grant County health officials and are being monitored for possib... Full story
Two community Easter egg hunts are planned for the area this year. The Lions Club will hold its 80th community Easter egg hunt on Saturday, April 15, at the former middle school field in Grand Coulee. It is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m. and is for kids up to 10 years of age. And the town of Elmer City will hold its Easter egg hunt at the park near Town Hall on Sunday, April 16. That event begins at 1 p.m. It is the second straight egg hunt in Elmer City, beginning a new series, Mayor Gail Morin stated. Elmer City last year had a turnout of... Full story
There will soon be new management at the Care and Share Food Bank. Fern Blaylock is retiring from that position after taking care of people's food and other needs for decades. Fern, 81, plans to retain her other job, as a volunteer at Lake Roosevelt Schools, where she gives more than a few hugs a day. With a glint in her eye, and probably regret in her heart, Blaylock took this writer on a tour of the various rooms at the Church of the Nazarene, where the food bank is located. In each room, she... Full story
Parade forms went out this week to those wanting to en ter the Colorama Parade, May 13. You can enter by filling out parade forms found online at grandcouleedam.o y a cr/parade. Peggy Nevsimal, executive director of the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce, said the parade will have eight categories: Community entry; Organization/club entry; Business entry; School band; Classic car; Hot rod; Equestrian and Junior entry. This year’s Colorama event will be the community’s 61st. Colorama this year will include a three-day carnival, three-day... Full story
It might sound a little fishy — that’s because it is. Here’s your opportunity to win an Achilles four-person inflatable boat and Yamaha outboard motor. All you have to do is place first in the 5th Annual Triple Fish Challenge tournament, April 22 and 23. The place: Banks Lake, boating from Coulee Playland. Entry fee is $20 for those up to 14 years old, $60 for those 15 years and older. You can submit your entry form online until midnight April 20, or in person from 5-7 p.m. on Friday, April 21, and registration will continue during boat inspect... Full story
A Grand Coulee man was sentenced in Grant County Superior Court Monday to 29 months imprisonment for possession of stolen property. According to the Grant County Prosecutor’s Office, Melvin Toulou, Jr., 43, still faces three additional Grant County felony charges. The three additional charges are 1) a charge of possession of stolen property in the 2nd degree, and possession of a firearm 2nd degree, often referred to as possession of a firearm by a felon; 2) possession of stolen property 2nd degree, and trafficking of stolen property in the 1... Full story
Workers clean off the surface of drum gate 3 on top of Grand Coulee Dam last week. Maintenance on the drum gates, which let water over the dam when necessary, occurs annually as lake levels allow. - Scott Hunter photo... Full story
After years of court dates and a life put on hold, a former Lake Roosevelt High School Spanish teacher had a burden lifted by Okanogan County Superior Court Monday, when it dismissed charges of identity theft and forgery. After receiving a call from a woman in California four years ago, Coulee Dam police checked the Social Security number Guillermo Guzman-Romo had used to apply for the Spanish teacher job at Lake Roosevelt High School. It was the same number he'd used as he worked to put... Full story