News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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What would happen to North Dam Park if a local group didn’t take care of it? Commissioners for the Coulee Area Park & Recreation District discussed renewal of their contract with the United States Bureau of Reclamation at their April 1 meeting. The bureau owns the land at North Dam Park, but contracts with the district to take care of it. That 10-year contract is coming up for renewal. “Let’s talk about the downside,” said Commissioner Kevin Portch. “If we don’t take this up, then it falls back to where it was 10 years ago before CAPRD, and...
The Colville Tribes will hold their 10th annual Earth Day celebration at the Nespelem powwow grounds on April 19 from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. The event will include over 50 interactive and informational booths concerning things like recycling, natural energy, forestry, plant life, health and nutrition, and more. A raffle at the event has “more prizes than ever,” according to Joaquin Bustamante, who heads the tribes’ recycling program. “Loepps donated a stove, a microwave, and a twin bed,” Bustamante said. “Coulee Hardware donated a Traeger [gr...
The Colville Tribes have entered into an agreement with the state of Washington to sell marijuana, according to an April 8 press release from the tribes. “We are pleased to sign this agreement and look forward to the economic development opportunities it provides,” Colville Business Council Chairman Rodney Cawston is quoted as saying in the press release. “The [agreement] includes appropriate regulation of tribal businesses which sell marijuana, as well as effective enforcement procedures to assure all applicable laws are followed.” A new tri...
A power outage Friday affected about 800 Grant PUD customers in the Grand Coulee Dam area for over seven hours. “The issue that has caused the outage in the area is located on a transmission pole that is within an isolated area without easy access,” a Grant PUD post on Facebook said, updated at 11:05 p.m. that night. The power eventually returned to those in Grand Coulee at about 1:30 a.m. Saturday. The outage affected people from both above and below the Grand Coulee Dam, impacting people in Electric City, Grand Coulee, and Coulee Dam dif...
Before lawmakers wrap up their work in Olympia, they should re-examine their hefty new state spending plan. The budget may not be sustainable, even with a substantial increase in taxes. It may force legislators to return to the State Capitol to cut workers, programs and services; or, even hike taxes yet again. It has happened in the past. For example, in the early 1980s, Gov. John Spellman (R) and a Republican legislature were forced to meet in special session continuously to deal with rapidly d...
We just witnessed an event that is part of the Water Cycle on our home planet — snow melt. Though the quick disappearance of snow is not fully attributed to melt-off. There are other events going on as the snow gradually disappears. Yes, there were waterfalls on the Grand Coulee walls, lots of runoff water dumped into Banks Lake. Those waterfalls were a part, albeit a good part, of the snow disappearance. Let’s also take a look at evapotranspiration (e·vap·o·tran·spi·ra·tion), generally...
Is it right to disrupt school for hundreds of students because of a sport played by a small percentage of them? That was a topic of discussion at the Grand Coulee Dam School District’s Board of Directors meeting March 25. Cathy LaPlace addressed the board in the public-comment section of the meeting. LaPlace is the wife of Director George LaPlace, and the two have students in the district. Cathy LaPlace criticized the school’s last-minute decision to have two half-days of school in March because of the Raiders high school basketball team com...
What an experience it must be to learn bull riding from professionals, including one who is from the same area you are. Local legend Shane Proctor is hosting his 11th annual bull and steer riding school at the Nespelem Rodeo Grounds this week, where 44 kids between the ages of 12 and 18 are learning the ropes, literally. Proctor is a former Grand Coulee resident, Lake Roosevelt High School graduate, and the 2011 National Finals Rodeo World Champion Bull Rider. Proctor is joined by a number of ot...
Some people are cat people. Some people are dog people. Others might be pig or goat people. The Grand Coulee City Council March 19 discussed lifting a ban on hooved animals, such as pigs and goats, within the city limits. “These miniature goats have become a big deal,” Councilmember Tammara Byers said. “I think some people are interested in them for lawn maintenance and a few other things.” Pigs are another animal some people like to keep as pets. “Small pigs,” Byers said, “not the full-sized porker you’re going to slice up and have for dinner...
A school board last week discussed the idea of seeking student input on issues related to the school that students attend. At their March 25 meeting, directors of the Grand Coulee Dam School District tossed around the idea of having a representative from the Associated Student Body attend school board meetings to bring thoughts and concerns from the student body to the board, and to take information back to the student body from the meetings. Superintendent Paul Turner cited Manson School District as having an ASB representative attend their...
Aly Van Geystel, a cosmetologist at Main Street Salon in Grand Coulee, will be traveling to Cambodia for the month of May to help teach the trade of cosmetology to former victims of human trafficking. The Grand Coulee Eagles Lodge helped raise funds for the cause at a March 30 spaghetti dinner, which included a silent auction of items. The spaghetti feed, combined with a yard sale Van Geystel held, raised about $2,500 she said. "A huge thanks to the Eagles," said Van Geystel, who said community...
Electric City is being awarded $300,000 from the state Transportation Improvement Board's Complete Streets Program. The city will use the money to add curb, gutter and sidewalks along Coulee Boulevard, also known as SR-155, from Western Avenue to Electric Blvd. The city was nominated for the award by the Department of Health. TIB chose 47 cities and two counties to receive $17 million total in awards. City Clerk Russ Powers said he thinks the city was nominated because they worked with the...
I am putting together the history of the Colorama/Western Festival/Festival of Lights since the beginning. I have a rodeo picture as far back as 1952. The rodeo had been held in Pleasant Valley, down by the now-Credit Union, and maybe a couple other places before moving to the present location in Delano. During the Western Festival, most of the events were held in the Coulee Dam area, and in later years expanded to Grand Coulee. I need any history you might have in your garage or closet, etc. I would most like pictures of the early queens,...
Raider tennis players have been hitting the courts north and south, playing in Liberty Bell and Entiat. In Liberty Bell March 26, the girls lost 2-3, and the boys lost 5-0. Again, members of the small boys’ team won matches that are recorded as losses because players aren’t allowed to compete in multiple games, with Terrie Yazzie defeating Nick Fitzmaurice 8-3, and Tucker Keeley defeating Konnor Doran 8-3. “Three matches stand out from our contest with Liberty Bell,” Head Coach Steve Archer said. “On the girls’ team, Tarissa Clark’s match at th...
The Raider track & field team competed in their first event of the season in Deer Park Saturday. The Glenn Wolf Memorial Invite “was an awesome experience for our athletes,” according to Coach Nancy Kuiper. “The meet was well run and allowed everyone a chance to compete.” Coach Lori Adkins agreed. “This meet gave us a chance to see where our athletes are at right now, a starting point that we can build from,” she said. “The coaches were pleased with the team leadership shown by experienced tracksters helping younger athletes be successful....
Raider golfers started their season at The Oroville Golf Club on March 28, playing nine holes with golfers from Oroville and Omak. “We’re still pretty rusty, but it felt great to finally get some competitive action,” remarked Head Coach Steve Files. Darin Whiteman had the best score on the course with 41 strokes, followed by Daxton Whiteman with 44, Derek Whiteman with 46, and Levi Shanklin-Bob with 51. Almira-Coulee-Hartline golfer Conner Emerson played as well, and had 50 strokes. The next golf event is scheduled for after spring break at ho...
The Lady Raiders' softball team is sitting pretty at the top of the league, starting their season with a 5-0 win-loss record, strongly dominating each game. Lake Roosevelt played in Oroville March 26, defeating the Lady Hornets 14-1 in the first game and 10-0 in the second of the doubleheader season opener. Cassidy Reyes pitched the first game, throwing three strikeouts, and Emma Marchand pitched the second game, throwing eight. Next, the Lady Raiders traveled to Omak March 28 for a non-league...
The Raider baseball team dominated one doubleheader but fell short in another, starting their season with a 2-2 win-loss record. The Raiders demolished the Oroville Hornets at home March 26 in the doubleheader season opener, winning the first game 26-0, and the second 12-0, completely shutting out the Hornets. "I'm glad to be playing games instead of practicing inside," said Head Coach Billy Nicholson. Lake Roosevelt played another doubleheader March 29, this time hosting the Liberty Bell...
Fire Chief Mark Payne doesn't think Electric City should get rid of the Western Avenue branch of the Y-shaped intersection near city hall that currently branches into Western and Stevens Avenue. Part of Electric City's projects to build sidewalks and improve streets in the city involve building a sidewalk that wraps around the front of city hall and would eliminate the Western branch of the "Y" incorporating that space into city hall's parking space in what is visualized as being a city center,...
Grand Coulee wants more government bodies in the state of Washington to stick up for gun rights in response to Initiative 1639, which passed in November 2018, and has been taking effect in stages since the new year. I-1639 took effect on Jan. 1, and raises the age limit for buying semi-automatic rifles from 18 to 21. Beginning July 1, it requires purchasers to pass an enhanced background check, show proof of firearms training, and wait 10 days before getting the gun. The new law also makes gun owners guilty of “community endangerment” if the...
A valve deep in the Third Powerhouse at Grand Coulee Dam was opened last week, partially flooding an elevator shaft and an elevator control room, authorities said. Police Chief John Tufts, of the Grand Coulee Police Department, was called to the Third Powerhouse at about 4 p.m. March 19, his written report states. Tufts was told that sometime between noon and 3 p.m. someone had opened a water valve on the “919 level,” that is, 919 feet above sea level, and that the valve was left open for about three hours, partially flooding the inside of an...
Anyone who has had problems with dangerous dogs in their neighborhoods may have a new reason to hope for improvement. Although it may not be financially practical for local cities to set up their own animal control facility, it’s possible the cities could contract with the Colville Tribes for those services. “The Regional Board of Mayors talked about having the cities basically get together and possibly contract [for animal control],” Grand Coulee Mayor Paul Townsend said at the March 19 city council meeting. “They were proposing to find so...
A bull-riding champion will be teaching kids the daredevil sport of bull riding in Nespelem next week. Local legend Shane Proctor — former Grand Coulee resident, Lake Roosevelt High School graduate, and the 2011 National Finals Rodeo World Champion Bull Rider — is hosting his 10th annual bull- and steer-riding school at the Nespelem Rodeo Grounds next Tuesday and Wednesday, April 2-3. The bull-riding school starts at 9 a.m. A barrel-racing school follows April 4-5. The bull-riding school is all booked up, but is free to watch. Proctor will be...
Wouldn’t it be nice to get to dump anything for free during the annual free spring clean up dump week? It won’t happen this year, but it may happen next year. March 30 to April 6 is the week when area residents can take their yard waste for free to the transfer station. The Grand Coulee City Council, mayor, and city clerk discussed allowing residents to be able to throw away anything for free, not just yard waste, during that week, at their March 19 meeting. “My thing is, we have an opportunity to utilize this to get some of these homes that we...
Wouldn’t it be nice to get to dump anything for free during the annual free spring clean up dump week? It won’t happen this year, but it may happen next year. March 30 to April 6 is the week when area residents can take their yard waste for free to the transfer station. The Grand Coulee City Council, mayor, and city clerk discussed allowing residents to be able to throw away anything for free, not just yard waste, during that week, at their March 19 meeting. “My thing is, we have an opportunity to utilize this to get some of these homes that we...