News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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Electric City has changed the way it will do its municipal planning. Mayor John Nordine, in responding to a person interested in being on the planning commission, said that he has decided to bring planning in-house with a professional planner working with city staff. The old planning commission was down to a single person, Merle Kennedy. The other members of the planning commission, Monty Fields, Carl Russell and Ray Clover, had resigned in protest because the city council disregarded recommendations on how to deal with the height and size of a... Full story
Grand Coulee will have a new mayor, and a number of former council members from at least two cities have filed to return to municipal government, according to election filings posted by county auditors Friday. Grand Coulee Mayor Chris Christopherson decided not to run again for his office, but Mayor Pro Tem Paul Townsend filed for the four-year mayor’s term. Filings for Grand Coulee City Council seats saw Tom Poplawski, position 2; Erin Nielsen, position 4 and David Tylor, position 5, all filing. The position currently held by Townsend is o... Full story
The chamber of commerce and Ridge Riders Saddle Club each made a pitch for more hotel/motel tax money at the Electric City council meeting last Tuesday night. Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Peggy Nevsimal had earlier asked for another $10,000, just to match what the chamber was given by the city for 2014 operations. She asked for the $10,000 again Tuesday and pointed out that it was urgent that the city act on the request so marketing issues for the remainder of 2015 could be addressed. The chamber was coming off... Full story
A Grand Coulee business couple has asked the city council to grant them a business license for a marijuana retail store near Coulee Medical Center. Jean Comstock and Jim Pachosa appeared before the council last Tuesday night and requested support in getting the business license in the city. Comstock has one of the Grant County state permits created by the passage of Initiative 502, which legalized recreational marijuana, and is seeking an OK from the city council. Earlier the couple had visited Electric City council with the same request but... Full story
Self confidence, even in dogs, has a lot to do with how well they perform. Take the case of "Crystal," an 11-year-old Sheltie, owned by Janice Elvidge of Elmer City. Elvidge had given up on Crystal after the registered Sheltie injured nerves in her shoulder during a training exercise. That had made Crystal afraid of certain obstacles in her agility training routine, Elvidge explained. Then something happened, the dog started to shake loose its mental block and it wasn't long until Elvidge had it... Full story
A severely beaten man who had been attacked by several people giving him a ride out of Nespelem was taken to the hospital here Sunday. Victor Conrad, 47, was found in a Main Street apartment after police officers here were led to the site by dispatch. Officers Dan Holland and Chris McClanahan arrived at the Main Street apartment and found Conrad, who was having trouble breathing, and called for an ambulance. Police learned that Conrad had been walking from Nespelem to Safeway here in Grand Coulee when a vehicle stopped and he was offered a... Full story
All the incumbents running in the Colville Tribes’ primary election last week made it into the general election June 13. Only one incumbent received fewer votes than the person challenging him. When the votes were all in, Allen Hammond, incumbent in the Inchelium Position 2 race who got 108 votes, was surpassed by challenger Elizabeth L. “Susie” Allen, who received 138 votes. Also receiving votes in that race were Doug Seymour, with 57; and Brian S. Seymour, with 34. In the Nespelem Position 1 race, a number of challengers received signi... Full story
An Electric City man has been indicted in the United States District Court, Eastern District of Washington, on four counts of theft of government property while an employee of the Bureau of Reclamation. Charged was James M. Barry, who has not been detained and has agreed to a deferred prosecution plan. Barry declined to comment. Barry is charged with taking valuable metal parts from the government’s inventory and selling them to a Spokane recycling firm. Taken, according to the indictment, were an unknown number of ring seal gate upper hub b... Full story
All incumbents made it into the general election in the Colville Tribes’ primary poll vote held last Saturday. Now they will have to wait until absentee ballots are counted on Thursday to see if the numbers hold up for them. In Nespelem’s District Position 1 race, incumbent Ricky Gabriel received the highest number of votes with 60, followed by former councilman Brian Nissen with 56; Harvey Moses, Jr., with 38; Deb Louie with 34; Jon Batten with 29; and Marietta “Etta” Grunlose with 24. Nespelem’s Position 2 saw incumbent Andrew C. Joseph, J... Full story
The Colorama rodeo queen's future probably won't take her very far from animals. Emma Gunderson, a junior at Ephrata High School, would like to become a veterinarian's assistant after she graduates from high school. Her love of animals has always been a draw towards that goal, she said this week. Queen Gunderson will reign over the Ridge Rider Saddle Club's Colorama Rodeo this year, and then prepare for a full season of appearances throughout the Northwest. A community college or a pursuit of hi... Full story
There's some big bucks to be made Saturday, May 23. All you have to do is ride a few bulls. It's the Third Annual Cleatis Lacy Memorial Bull Ride at the Ridge Rider rodeo grounds in Delano. Action begins at 3 p.m. This year, rodeo officials have added $3,000 to the prize money making the bull riding event attractive to some pretty good professional cowboys. The event is named after Grand Coulee's own Cleatis Lacy, a rodeo cowboy of the first degree. When he wasn't competing, Cleatis was one of... Full story
An appraisal of Center Elementary School and the surrounding property came in surprisingly low, the Grand Coulee Dam School District board learned Monday night. Superintendent Dennis Carlson said an independent appraiser valued the school building and the overall 7.43 acres at $190,000. Earlier, the layout had been listed at 8.5 acres, but the appraiser found an error in the property calculation. “It won’t go for that, and we expect it to be much more,” Carlson said. He pointed out that many of the lots above the school have excellent views... Full story
Grand Coulee’s sidewalk project for Main Street and Federal Avenue will go out for bid in May, city officials said last week. The project is largely funded by a $436,905 grant from the state’s Transportation Improvement Board. Members of the board were in Grand Coulee last year to help city officials shape the project. City Clerk Carol Boyce said bid packets will be ready early in May with the potential bid opening by the end of May. Completion of the project is scheduled by the end of the year. City council members received the breakdown of... Full story
American Legion Post 157 officials presented a plan to provide food for children of need in Grand Coulee Dam District schools. Appearing for Post 157 were its commander, Cindy Jane, Jim Brakebill, and John Nordine, Sr. Brakebill made the presentation at Monday’s school board meeting Post officials pointed to a similar food plan being conducted in Wenatchee schools. The plan would call for certain students to pick up food furnished by the Post as they leave to go home Fridays after school. Brakebill said at a Rotary Club presentation on the s... Full story
Colville tribal members will go to the polls Saturday, May 2, to shape the June 13 general election for seven seats on the business council The Colville Business Council is made up of 14 members, seven elected each year. The two seats on the Nespelem District are the most crowded for those running for council seat. In Position 1, Ricky Gabriel, the incumbent, is being challenged by five people: Jon Batten, Marietta Grunlose, Deb Louie, Harvey Moses Jr. and Brian J. Nissen. In the Position 2 Nespelem race, three are challenging incumbent Andy... Full story
It’s time to take those cowboy duds out of the closet and get ready for the 59th running of the Colorama Rodeo. There’s a little bit of everything for young and old at this year’s Pro-West Rodeo. There’s excitement, some laughs and memorable events. There’s the laughable mutton busting event (picture time); the McMillan Family Trick Riders are back (don’t try this unless you are a seasoned horseman); the Skagit Rein Riders Drill Team, the Whiskey Run, and all the traditional rodeo events. The mutton busters who ride those wooly sheep are u... Full story
Some 15 volunteers showed up recently to help golf course officials at Banks Lake punch and sand the greens. Golf officials praised the steady number of volunteers that have showed up this spring to help get the course in shape. Those helping with the greens work were: Rich Gerard, Kevin Tipps, Gary Haag, Jerry Birdwell, Dick Brockway, Darrel Dick, Herb Sherburne, Mike Higgins, Tom Ball, Gary Carden, Tag Grier, Pat Zlateff, Billy Desautel, Lowell Bowman, and Kent Hoffmeyer. Course Manager Mike Parisien said special thanks went out to Birdwell,... Full story
You may soon be able to “putter” around in Electric City. No, they aren’t turning the city into a putt-putt golf course, although some might argue it’s a good idea; but last Tuesday night the city council voted in favor of allowing golf carts and ATVs (all-terrain vehicles) to be used on city streets. Don’t head out to purchase your golf cart just yet. The devil is always in the details. One councilman, Brad Parrish said that the city’s ordinance on the matter should reflect the state law on the use of such vehicles on city streets. Si... Full story
A turkey hen, that was getting tamer by the day, was hit by a vehicle a week ago and taken by Tribal officers in an effort to heal the bird. Jessica Redmon, at 1029 River Drive in Coulee Dam, had the turkey in her yard most of the time, and she said, “It would come right up to you.” “I never tried to touch it because it was a wild bird, but it attracted a lot of attention in the neighborhood,” Redmon said. It had a habit of stopping traffic on main road through town, which is State Route 155, but was lucky for a time. She had been “really... Full story
An extension of the current police contract between Grand Coulee and Electric City is getting closer, both city council committees agree. Currently, Grand Coulee provides police services to Electric City for $115,000 annually. That likely will change when the new package is finalized. Council members Erin Nielsen and David Tylor have been negotiators for Grand Coulee, with former councilmember John Nordine and Councilmember Aaron Derr for Electric City. With Nordine’s recent move to mayor, his assignment falls to council newcomer Rich M... Full story
Electric City has received about 20 letters from residents giving public comment on a number of zoning changes proposed by the city’s planning commission. The main item of controversy is the size of accessory buildings. The planners had recommended 1,728 square feet as the maximum size, and the city council bypassed the work of the commission and lifted the square footage restriction completely. That prompted three of the four members of the planning commission to resign in protest. Citizens still have until May 26 to submit comments to city h... Full story
You can save some big bucks this year by purchasing Colorama Carnival tickets early. Chamber of Commerce officials, the sponsoring agency for the event, said advance daily tickets are now on sale at seven locations: The Credit Union, Chamber of Commerce office, Coulee Hardware, Coulee Medical Center, H & H Grocery, Loepp Furniture and The Star newspaper. Advance session tickets are $25. If you wait until the event, the session ticket costs go to $30. But the value of purchasing early is even greater. With your $25 advance purchase you get five... Full story
You can still be part of the big Colorama Parade, May 9. All you need to do is stop by the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce office or go online to grandcouleedam.org for your parade entry form if you want be part of the parade and dazzle your family and friends along the parade route. The chamber of commerce is still accepting entries in eight different categories: Community entry, Organization/club, Business, School band, Classic car, Hot Rod, Equestrian, and Junior. Pick a category... Full story
A Spokane man was rescued Saturday through the efforts of a number of agencies after injuring his leg while climbing high on the rocks behind Osborne Bay. Nicholas Vange, 21, who had been camping in the area, along with another man, Nicholas Largent, also of Spokane, had been hiking high in the rocky ledges on the coulee hillside above Banks Lake when he ran into trouble. The Grant County Sheriff’s Office said it received a call at 11:15 a.m. but was unable to immediately respond. Grand Coulee police officer Chris McClanahan was on the scene u... Full story
About a dozen people turned out to hear Washington State Department of Transportation engineers talk about Four Corners traffic last Tuesday night at Grand Coulee’s city council meeting. One of these was Ray Wells, the man who started it all with a petition signed by nearly 1,200 local people. “I thought they were pretty thorough,” Wells said later. “They offered up some suggestions, and I think they learned some new things about the intersection.” Wells has taken it personally because he is one of the victims at the intersection of highways... Full story