We're all in this together
We're all in this together
Elmer City leaders Thursday heard their consulting engineer give a rough estimate of $8 million to build an evaporative lagoon system to treat their sewage instead of sending it to Coulee Dam's new facility. Nancy Wetch, of Gray and Osborn, estimated the overall cost at around $8 million, and the cost of all the planning involved could be as high as all the funding available to Elmer City through the state Public Works Board - $800,000, half of it in grant, half loan. A separate facility plan...
Boys’ basketball coach Ed Wolfe, left, gets a pie in his face, while Maddy Carman wipes some from hers, and Caden Portch, right, laughs at both of them. The losing team was supposed to suffer the cream in the Seniors vs Staff basketball game at Lake Roosevelt Jr/Sr High Thursday night, but you knew it wouldn’t end there. Wolfe got his from Ezekial Broadnax despite being on the winning team. More photos and details are on page 6. — Scott Hunter...
Electric City officials are waiting for a formal proposal from the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation after an initial discussion about a possible interlocal agreement for permitting and inspections at the tribal golf course area. Mayor Blake Martin reported to the council March 10 that he and another city representative met with tribal officials at the golf course in early March. In that meeting, the Tribes expressed interest in an arrangement that would allow them to issue their own permits and conduct their own inspections for...
An American bald eagle circles near three workers on top of Grand Coulee Dam Monday, where they are beginning to work on maintenance of the drum gates, the large, curved area behind the workers. - Scott Hunter...
Solveigh Chaffee has been trying to buy the dilapidated building next to her Voltage Coffee House for 10 years. Tuesday night she asked Grand Coulee's City Council to reject a bid to tear it down that would cost much more than it's worth, likely leading to more liens against it. Instead, Chaffee said she would like to bid on the property at auction when the county puts it up for sale for overdue taxes. It was once a little museum that showed people the work of Constantine Vlachos, a local...
In our current social climate, it is too easy to allow political concerns to overpower the sway of the most important values that hold us together. As The Star’s deadline day this week falls on St. Patrick’s Day, a remarkably pertinent message for us comes by way of a bit of timeless Irish wisdom, in a toast, as written in 1908. Come, send round the wine, and leave points of belief To simpleton sages, and reasoning fools This moment’s a flower too fair and too brief, To be wither’d and stain’d by the dust of the schools. Your glass...
First off, hello Grand Coulee and surrounding area; I would like to introduce myself. Tony Jaksa is my name and Safety/Environmental officer on a large project over at the Dam is my game. I’ve been working in this capacity for more years than I would like to admit but keeping workers healthy, injury free and alive is my Mission. The sad facts are that as hard as I and other safety folks work at an injury-free workplace, we still lose some 5,000 workers a year to incident fatality, for too many years. There is nothing more impactful and...
When I was a kid growing up in Palouse, someone built a gym on Main Street. I was more interested then in what was scheduled in the gym than who built it. Lately have wondered who built the gym. My interest was in the events that were scheduled there. We had a town basketball team. All the towns had one, and they traveled around playing each other. I always thought that the members of our Palouse team financed the building of the gym so they could control how it was used. And most of them were farmers, so they could secure a loan for the...
Protecting the people’s right to know in Washington state is a constant battle that is getting even harder. That’s a tough message to deliver, especially during Sunshine Week. Sunshine Week is recognized nationwide from March 15-21 this year. It’s meant to educate, recommit and celebrate the fight for openness in government, believing it is the best way to ensure accountability and preserve public trust. It coincides with the birthday of James Madison, March 16, 1751. Madison was a driving force behind the constitutional convention in...
March 23, 1776, Patrick Henry delivered a speech to Virginia’s Second Revolutionary Convention. He argued for his resolution to raise a militia to defend the colony. Henry said, “This is no time for ceremony. The question before the House is one of awful moment to this country. For my part, I consider it as nothing less than a question of freedom or slavery…” Henry, in part, closed his speech with, “Gentlemen may cry, Peace, Peace but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! Is...
Area AA Meetings In Electric City, the New Hope group now holds its meetings Monday thru Friday @ 6 pm every night, at the Vets Center in Electric City. Wa. Need more info? Call Betty at 509-429-7817 . In Nespelem, the group Bound and Detemined holds its meetings Monday evening at 7 p.m. at the Catholic Church. Contact Myrna at 634-4921. Food Bank Hours The food bank regular hours are Fridays from, 1-3 p.m. Questions call Pastor Shawn at...
How Women Won the Marathon and Changed Our View of Gender will be presented on Thursday, March 26 at 6 p.m. This online presentation takes a closer look at the nearly 20 years between when Bobbi Gibb first tried to enter the Boston Marathon in 1966 to when the women’s marathon was added to the 1984 Olympics. Register for this program at www.ncwlibraries.org on the online calendar to get the Zoom link. When Gibb tried to enter the renowned marathon, she was told that women were not physically able to run 26 miles. Even when she snuck in and...
Koy Griesse happened on to this gigantic tumbleweed on Sunny Drive in Electric City March 11 about 8:30 p.m. after a windstorm. - Lazelda Foster...
Grand Coulee Police 3/2 - An officer ran the plates of a vehicle getting gas across the street from the police station and saw that the registered owner had a suspended license. Police matched the photo of the driver on file with the person pumping gas, saw them pull out of the gas station, and pulled them over on Midway Avenue. The driver was cited for driving with the suspended license. The passenger took control of the vehicle. 3/4 - Police saw a vehicle spin its tires as it turned onto Midway Avenue from a side street. It had an expired...
Kachane Piturachsatit passed away February 15 at home surrounded by family. Born in Tha Lo, Thailand, to a poor family, Kachane came to Spokane in his 20s to pursue the American dream of opportunities. He first worked as a dishwasher at the Cathay Inn. In Spokane he met Cheryl Browning of Coulee Dam and they were married in May, 1973. Together they opened the Siam Palace in Grand Coulee in 1975. Over the years through hard work and dedication, Kachane built the restaurant into a local success...
There is a $50 charge for obituaries published in the Star. This includes a photo and up to 500 words. Reminders for Celebrations of Life and Death Notices are $25. Articles must be either e-mailed, faxed or dropped off at the Star office. They will not be accepted over the phone. The deadline to submit an article is Monday by 5 p.m. For more information, call 509.633.1350 or visit our website at...
The height differential was obvious from the start, but it didn't matter. Thursday night's Seniors vs Staff Basketball Game at Lake Roosevelt Jr/Sr High gym was more about having fun while beating the other team than just beating them. The fundraiser for the senior class drew lots of community support and winded their teachers and coaches several times, although staff coach Brad Oliver kept his team rotated and fairly fresh for a bunch of old folks. The first quarter turned out to indicate the...
The Lady Raiders softball team started the season with a win against Brewster Monday night, 8-7. The game in Grand Coulee was close all the way. LR was ahead in the sixth inning when their pitcher was injured but maintained their two-point lead in the league game through to the end. Brewster gets a rematch on Friday, however, in Brewster. The game starts at 4 p.m. Lake Roosevelt heads to Manson on Saturday for a doubleheader at 11 and 1 and Singleton...
Notice of Date Change for the GCDSD School Board Meeting Please be advised that the Grand Coulee Dam School District’s Board of Directors has moved their regularly scheduled meeting from Monday, March 23rd to Tuesday, March 24th. Monday, March 23rd the board will hold a Board Work Session at 5:30 p.m. at the Jr./Sr. High School Library. (Publish March 18, 2026) Public Notice Irrigation operations begin for the Columbia Basin Project In preparation for the 2026 irrigation season, the Bureau of Reclamation released water on March 2 at Dry...
