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 Douglas County female sheriff’s deputy had more than a trying day when she stopped a driver in Bridgeport Sunday for an equipment violation. When she approached the car, she noticed the driver acting suspiciously and suspected that he was under the influence of alcohol, according to Douglas County Sheriff Harvey Gjesdal. The driver, Manuel Pachecio-Pascacio, 41, of Bridgeport, started backing away from the deputy while she was trying to get a field sobriety test. When she tried to handcuff the suspect, he turned and punched her in the s... Full story
OLYMPIA-When a fire broke out in Asotin County last summer, Noel Hardin said a delay in state resources led to a bigger, more costly blaze. The fire chief for District 1 in the county says that by the time the fire was contained it cost $2 million to fight, but could have been much cheaper with faster support from the state. "The helicopter bill at that time would've been somewhere between three and four thousand dollars," Hardin said. One state lawmaker wants to make it easier for local fire...
One mayor is still determined to find a way to consolidate some of the services of two local municipalities. Electric City and Grand Coulee had each indicated last year a willingness to fund a study on the consolidation of those two cities, but did not commit any funds during the budgeting process in the fall. But Coulee Dam Mayor Greg Wilder indicated last week that he still hopes that services such as police, fire and ambulance could someday be consolidated with those of Grand Coulee. “I plan to get together with Grand Coulee Mayor Paul T... Full story
Police and ambulance workers respond to an accident that occurred at 10 a.m. Saturday on Columbia Avenue during a heavy snow. The 32-year-old driver of the Suzuki wagon applied brakes at the bottom of the hill as Highway 155 enters Coulee Dam and slid into a parked car on the right side of the street. The Suzuki's air bags deployed and the car ended up on the other side of Columbia. She was cited for driving too fast for conditions. - Scott Hunter photo... Full story
Electric City took a giant step forward toward building a proposed multi-million dollar walking trail last week when the city council set aside $400,000 of the city’s hotel/motel tax funds to help pay for the project. City Clerk Jackie Perman noted that the $400,000 includes some future contributions to the fund. Currently, Electric City has $344,000 in its lodging fund. The city receives between $60,000 and $70,000 a year from motels and campgrounds that collect the tax, authorized by state law to promote tourism. The resolution passed with a... Full story
Nespelem area voters should have ballots in hand soon for deciding on a school levy that would turn some $34,000 of their tax dollars into an additional $318,000 in state funds. Nespelem School District Superintendent Rich Stewart said the rate of tax on private property would come to about $2.49 per thousand dollars of assessed valuation. The owner of a $100,000 house would pay $249 a year to support the local school, which serves about 120 students. The levy would replace the current levy, which nets the district $32,000 at $2.14 per thousand... Full story
The Colville Tribes are planning a restaurant, lounge and gaming area over the Coulee Dam Casino. Special Projects Manager Carl Jackson said the restaurant is scheduled for an April opening. Currently, contractors are taking out interior office walls where Colville Tribal Federal Corporation offices had been located. Their offices have moved to the new tribal headquarters complex near Nespelem. The final configuration of the floor space is still being worked out, Jackson explained, but it will feature an upscale restaurant and a gaming area... Full story
You can get whatever you want at B Street Bud. The new marijuana store's list of products is like an extensive menu in a large restaurant. The newest retail operation in Grand Coulee, on Burdin Boulevard, is highly regulated and will return some 37 percent of its sales in taxes to the state, says its owner, Jean Comstock. Comstock purchases her marijuana from six licensed growers. Her edible products come from two other vendors, also licensed and controlled by the state. The range of products... Full story
Council retreats to Ephrata this Saturday Electric City council, mayor and city staff will go to Ephrata this Saturday for a city retreat to review procedures and shape plans for the future. The meeting is at 124 Enterprise Avenue and begins at 9 a.m. The public is welcome to attend. Classing up vacuum sales? It was a classic case of two men overdressing for their job. A woman on W. Grand Avenue in Electric City answered the door to find two men dressed in tuxedos trying to sell vacuum cleaners. Police checked the area but couldn’t find the t... Full story
The wrong date for Electric City’s Ephrata retreat for city officials was reported last week. It will be Saturday, Jan. 23 at 9 a.m. The yearly boat launch permits for Lake Roosevelt are not available for sale at the recreation area office in Coulee Dam, as mistakenly reported last week. The permits can be ordered by mail to the address there, however, with a $45 check, to 1008 Crest Drive, Coulee Dam WA 99116. Senior discounts still apply to weekly permits, but not to the annual permits.... Full story
No! That was the result of a formal vote on recycling at the Elmer City council meeting last Thursday night. Councilmembers had earlier, when polled, indicated that they were not interested in a recycling effort. The Regional Board of Mayors met earlier that week and decided to try once again to see if recycling had any future here in the coulee. Traditionally, it only takes one of the four municipalities to say “no” to submarine any effort put forth by the RBOM. Elmer City, as it did when its councilmembers were polled, didn’t want to spend... Full story
A 28-year-old Moses Lake man is jailed after selling two stolen guns to undercover detectives on Monday. Brandon J. Cirame made arrangements to sell three revolvers, a shotgun and a rifle, the Grant County Sheriff's Office reported Tuesday. Two of those guns had been reported as stolen. Unfortunately for Cirame, the buyers he met with were undercover detectives from the Interagency Narcotics Enforcement Team. The meeting happened in the parking lot of the Moses Lake Walmart. Cirame, a convicted... Full story
The Regional Board of Mayors will take another run at looking into a recycling program, they decided Monday. The four mayors in charge of the Delano Regional Transfer Station said they would bring it up again with their respective municipal councils and report back next month. The mayors had already approved the purchase of a $13,000 bin system to collect recyclable items, but each was to get their respective council’s approval for their share of the bin cost. The first municipality to test this plan was Elmer City, whose share was $849.26. I... Full story
OLYMPIA — Teachers' compensation, teacher-shortage, the educational opportunity gap and school districts' operating levies are all on Washington state legislators' agenda this session as the state Supreme Court's McCleary mandate-along with the court's $100,000 per day contempt citation- loom over the proceedings. The 2016 session began Jan. 11, in Olympia. The Washington State Supreme Court in its January 2012 McCleary v. State of Washington decision, determined the state was not fulfilling its constitutional requirement to fund basic e...
There are a number of closets in the coulee area that are missing some shoes. The Coulee Medical Center Guild reported last week that its collection of shoes, which started last July, has netted the organization some 3,375 pairs of shoes. Guild President Clea Pryor thanked the many community members who gave shoes to the local drive. The local shoe drive is part of a national drive to acquire shoes for people living in developing nations. A collection truck was at the hospital last Wednesday to... Full story
Electric City is retreating so it can move forward. The city plans a retreat for its council, mayor and staff next Saturday, Jan. 23, in Ephrata. The retreat is scheduled as a refresher, reviewing policies and procedures, and planning for the future — moving ahead. The council’s newest member, Birdie Hensley, took issue with the city’s attorney, Katherine Kenison, being moderator of the meeting. “I am not sure why you were picked as moderator; nothing personal, but I think some more neutral person should do this duty. I consider you as staff,... Full story
A proposed trail system in Electric City will get an airing from a number of organizations next Wednesday, Jan. 20, at 1 p.m., in the Coulee Medical Center conference room. The proposed trail would eventually reach from the entrance to Sunbanks Lake Resort to the city of Grand Coulee, and beyond. The trail idea was hatched by Electric City Councilmember Brad Parrish, who has been working on the idea since early spring last year. Coordinating the meeting will be Deputy City Clerk Russell Powers,... Full story
School district to offer proposed levy info The Nespelem School District is hosting an informational night at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 20, in the multi-purpose room. The purpose of the meeting is to share information about the Maintenance and Operations Levy the district is having on Feb. 9. Superintendent Rich Stewart and board member Nancy Armstrong-Montes will be available to answer questions. Transfer station took in over $433,000 last year The Delano Regional Transfer Station’s revenue for 2015 exceeded the previous year by $9,247.82, the R... Full story
The demise of the Alcoa aluminum plant in Wenatchee has led to a change in the location of the union lodge for machinists and a Bureau of Reclamation worker is now president. Wallace "Peewee" Pleasants was appointed president Thursday night, Jan. 8, of the Grand Coulee local lodge of International Association of Machinists. "We're all nervous, but at the same time, it's exciting," said Pleasants, a hydromechanic at Grand Coulee Dam. The development could spur more participation locally on the pa... Full story
So you think you live in a normal environment? Electric City Mayor John Nordine II told members of the Regional Board of Mayors Monday that Grant County’s Solid Waste Advisory Council’s report shows otherwise. Nordine sits on the council as the Electric City representative. He recently attended the council’s meeting and, among other things, brought back a report for 2015. The Regional Board of Mayors, made up of mayors from Electric City, Grand Coulee, Coulee Dam and Electric City, meets once a month at city hall in Electric City, with oversigh... Full story
OLYMPIA — When wildfires ignited around Twisp last summer, Meg Donohue said her coffee-roaster business shifted from being a popular gathering spot for the community to a place for up-to-the-minute news. “We found ourselves kind of being a hub for information, and a way for people to connect with each other, and find out what’s going on,” said Donohue, a Twisp resident and co-owner of Blue Star Coffee Roasters. The coffee retailer is one of many locally-owned businesses in Twisp that felt the impact of last year’s wildfire season – Washington... Full story
A bicyclist, sporting an ice mustache grown from his frozen breath, rides in the 15-degree Fahrenheit weather the day after New Year's Day on Highway 155 along Banks Lake. – Scott Hunter photo... Full story
A Wilbur man, who was arrested by Grand Coulee police on Dec. 20, for animal cruelty in the first degree, was jailed in Grant County after appearing Dec. 31, in Superior Court. Police had been looking for James E. Goodlake, 22, since Dec. 13, when a caller to 911 and another witness reported seeing him abuse a puppy. The caller reported witnessing Goodlake kick the puppy and then slam it to the ground multiple times. Police responded, but at the time couldn’t find the suspect. About 2 a.m. Dec. 20, an officer saw Goodlake walking on Federal A... Full story
The overhead covering that has shaded rodeo fans for decades collapsed sometime Sunday night or Monday morning, presumably a victim of a heavy snow load and its age. Much of it is lying in a heap on the seating area it used to cover, or hanging tenuously just above it, and will until the snow melts. "I figured it would be there forever, but I was wrong," said George Kohout, president of the Ridge Riders Saddle Club, which owns the rodeo grounds. It was built in the late 1950s or early '60s,... Full story
Police have sent a number of items to the state crime lab in an effort to identify the person who broke into a residence on Miller Avenue in Electric City and made off with several guns. Weapons taken, according to a police report, included two Winchester model 100 .284 guns, one with a scope; a Winchester model 100 .308 with a scope; a Savage .250 3000 lever action with a scope; a 12-gauge Ruger over-under shotgun; two or more .22 caliber pump guns; a Colt revolver pistol; a .22 Derringer over-under pistol; two double-barrelled 12-gauge... Full story
