News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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When Grand Coulee leaders put Proposition 1 on the ballot, they thought a bump in sales tax would be the best way for the city to collect a little extra money needed for street repair. Voters agreed, evidently, as votes tallied up last night yielded an 111-39 win for the idea. The 74-percent approval will raise the sales tax in the city from 7.9 percent to 8.1 percent, with the extra money funding a transportation benefits district. The money raised, which city officials expect to come to about $50,000 a year, will be levied against both...
A Nespelem woman died today (Feb. 15, 2018) in an early morning crash on SR-155, a mile south of Nespelem. Bridget Boyd, 38, was driving a 2005 Buick Rendezvous southbound at 6:43 a.m. when it crossed into the northbound lane and onto the shoulder. She overcorrected to the right, and the vehicle left the road. It hit an embankment, rolled, and came to rest on its wheels at milepost 43. Boyd was ejected during the crash, a Washington State Patrol investigator reported. She was not wearing a seatbelt. The cause of the crash is still under...
The Grand Coulee Dam spilled water over the top last week due to anticipation of spring runoff, combine with minor maintenance being performed on a generator. "Inflows into Lake Roosevelt are up slightly," said Lynne Brougher, Public Affairs Officer for the Bureau of Reclamation. "We needed to continue to move water downstream to prepare Lake Roosevelt for the spring runoff." Brougher also said that generator 24 was undergoing some minor, unexpected maintenance, and that spillage over the dam...
The question of allowing “short-term rentals” in Electric City dominated the council meeting Tuesday night. The city had prepared a draft ordinance, which was for information only, but clearly spelled out that if Electric City eventually allowed the rental issue to stand, then it would be tightly controlled. Terry and Debra Ann Jensen, who live in Edmonds, purchased a residence on Lakeview Avenue in 2016. They asked the city if they could use the residence for short-term residential rentals. A neighbor complained to the council last month of no...
Two people were found dead in a home in Coulee City Monday evening, with carbon monoxide poisoning suspected as the cause of death. The Grant County Sheriff’s Office said investigators Tuesday were looking into the tragic deaths of two people in a trailer park in the 500 block of West Walnut Street after their landlord discovered their bodies about 7 p.m. Monday. Grant County Coroner Craig Morrison stated Wednesday that 68-year-old Roxy Mae Ergler and 72-year-old Kenneth W. Gomez were the two victims. Their families have been notified. The c...
Electric City residents will notice a lot of street repair happening this year in several spots around town. Electric City Council authorized Mayor John Nordeen II to proceed with FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency) grant street repairs at its meeting Tuesday night. The FEMA program was a response to an exceptionally hard winter in 2016-17, when many small cities were hit with unusual street repair needs. The city had received two grants totaling just under $200,000 earlier, and by council action Gray & Osborne was selected to provide...
Morin to chair mayors Mayor Gail Morin of Elmer City will take over the chair position on the Regional Board of Mayors. Each year, the chair position changes in a rotation system between the four mayors. Morin was unable to attend Monday’s meeting, and Elmer City Councilmember Jess Tillman was designated to take her place, and ran the meeting. Fall date set for hazardous waste Grant County Solid Waste coordinator Joan Sieverkropp advised the Regional Board of Mayors that the household hazardous waste collection date for this fall will be F...
Grand Coulee's native son, Shane Proctor, who has made a name for himself riding bulls, is leaving the Professional Bull Riders to pursue another long-held goal. Turning 33 in March, Proctor figures it's about time he tries for an all-around cowboy championship title with the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association. Proctor rode Trick Shot in PBR's Madison Square Garden event Feb. 2 for 81 points, and chose that day in New York City to announce his retirement from PBR to focus all his energy on...
A number of school employees, and personnel from other agencies, plan on spending a week-long training session at the FEMA Emergency Management Institute in Emmitsburg, Maryland, beginning the first week in March, Superintendent Paul Turner advised the Grand Coulee Dam School District board Monday night. The plan, Turner said Tuesday, “is to get the same training for all the emergency responders that we depend on in this area so everyone is on the same page.” Going from the school district in addition to Turner are Lisa Lakin, elementary princi...
Police are looking for a Grand Coulee man who eluded them after they tried to arrest him Sunday on a warrant out of Grant County. Local police are asking the county prosecutor’s office to add a charge of “escape in the 3rd degree” to the outstanding warrant issued on Tom Waters, of 221 Bowen Street, Grand Coulee. Officer Matt Ponusky thought he saw Waters walking north on SR-155 near Snyder Road and called in fellow officer Adam Florenzen. Ponusky stopped in front of Waters near the intersection of SR-155 and Spokane Way and yelled at him t...
Sometime this spring, Elmer City residents, along with town visitors, can take a hike from their doorsteps along a new interior trail system that leads to the Downriver Trail along the Columbia River. The bid that will allow this to happen was awarded last Thursday night by the Elmer City Council. Council members awarded a $159,726 contract to DW Excavating, Inc., of Davenport, Washington, for a 2,300-foot trail that borders the Lower River Road. Two crosswalks and signage are included in the Transportation Improvement Board grant. It’s all p...
Fireworks over Grand Coulee Dam will be on Wednesday, July 4, this year, Peggy Nevsimal of the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce said Tuesday. The chamber board and Nevsimal returned from a retreat at Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, over the weekend and made several decisions that affect activities here during the year. Last year, because July 4 fell on a Tuesday, the chamber set the annual fireworks show for Saturday, July 1. “It didn’t go over well, and we all decided to hold it on the traditional day,” Nevsimal stated. Fifteen people attended...
Immediately after joining the board, a new commissioner with decades of experience in the skateboard industry said he’d like to arrange a competition for the local skatepark for this summer. The Coulee Area Park and Recreation District board had just appointed Ben Hughes and Kevin Portch to fill vacant positions on the board at the Feb. 5 meeting. CAPRD, which extends through a wide swath of the four-county area, manages North Dam Park, which is owned by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. Hughes proposed adding features to the skatepark and planni...
A vote on a boost to the Grand Coulee sales tax that passed on Tuesday will add a bit to the bottom line of most non-food retail sales made in Grand Coulee. The city council showed good sense in allowing the public to vote on it as a solution to the problem of crumbling city streets in need of repair. Ideally, a sales tax wouldn’t be the first solution you’d think of for fixing streets. It’s not directly tied to the problem and so shifts some of the burden to another part of the economy (consumers buying things, not cars and trucks weari...
The right to an individual’s life, liberty, and private property underpins any free society. It is a well-established principle enshrined in the Constitution’s 5th Amendment that under a limited government, no individual can be deprived of private property without just compensation. Back-door methods of federal regulation, without titles or deeds ever changing hands, effectively result in the seizure or “taking” of private lands and violate of the spirit of law protecting private property. President Obama’s 2015 Clean Water Rule, also called “W...
It would be a huge mistake for me to let a day go by when the paper comes out on Valentine’s Day and not write about my love. Plus, it is a huge opportunity for brownie points. Oh, by the way, this very paper wrote about us way back then; “Fire Ignites a Spark,” I believe, was the headline, with us sitting on a fire truck. A long time ago, 21 years in May, she said yes. She said yes to a skinny, troubled and enthusiastic boy. We were at Katie’s Wild Rose Inn, located in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, and I was in love. I remember the dress she was w...
Have you carefully checked your utility bills lately? Most people don’t unless they are monsters like the ones for garbage in Scranton, PA, and Los Angeles. In Vancouver, WA, our garbage and recycling bill now has an added 3.6-percent refuse tax. It costs us $1.29 more every two months. However, according to the Wall Street Journal, in Scranton, residents started receiving a $300 annual trash collection fee, which is a 68-percent increase since 2014. In LA, an assisted-living operator’s bill was less than $500 a month, but jumped to a who...
1 Years Ago Pleasants tops 1,000 points: Matt Pleasants has amassed some 1,021 points in his high school career, an average of 12 points per game in 85 outings. 20 Years Ago Flavors of old Mexico will grace the coulee: Eisael Hernandez opens his new restaurant, La Presa, in Grand Coulee. 30 Years Ago State senate energizes support for laser light show at Grand Coulee Dam: The likelihood of one day seeing laser lights dance across Grand Coulee Dam received a boost this week when the state senate approved a resolution asking the United States...
Eugene D. "Gene" Downing, age 83, passed away on Wednesday, February 7, 2018, after a short illness. His home was Electric City, Washington. Gene was born June 6, 1934, in Absarokee, Montana, to Donald and Helen Downing, the eldest of three children. He attended Creston High School, graduating in 1952. He excelled in high school sports, with baseball and basketball being his favorites. Gene went on to play baseball for Eastern Washington College. During high school and after graduation, he...
Matthew J. Vincent, 78, of Grand Coulee, Washington, formerly of Minneapolis, Minnesota, passed away Monday, January 29, 2018, after a short battle with cancer. After graduating from South High School Minneapolis in 1957, Matt joined the Army, servicing three years. In April 1962, Matt joined the Minneapolis Police Department. During his 27 years of proud, distinguished service, he received numerous commendations and the rare privilege of being awarded both the Medal of Honor and the Medal of...
William C. (Bill) Miller Jr. passed away Thursday, February 8, 2018. He is survived by his wife, Claire McKay Miller, and his immediate and extended family. A graveside service will be held on Saturday, February 17, 2018, at 10:30 a.m., at the LaFollette Cemetery, Almira, Washington, followed by a memorial services at 11:30 a.m. at the Almira Community Church, Almira, with Pastor Dan Stone, Officiating. Please sign the online guestbook at www.stratefuneralhome.com. A complete obituary will run...
Jolene Bowler Pickett passed away on Monday, February 8, 2018, in Murray, Utah. She was born on April 8, 1929, in Idaho Falls, Idaho, to Joseph M. and Lulu Bowler. Jolene spent her early years in Shelley, Idaho. She enjoyed singing and playing the saxophone. She married Victor R. Pickett on February 17, 1950. They were later sealed with their children in the Salt Lake City Temple. Jolene was a hard worker and held various jobs in her lifetime. She spent many years working for the Grand Coulee...
Mervin and Mary Jo Monteith of Spring Canyon Alpacas spent last week at the Ag Expo in Spokane. They, with five other farms and Alpaca Culture Magazine, spent three very full days sharing the joy of alpaca farming, Mary Jo reported. The Ag Expo is the Inland Northwest's largest machine show, with 300 other farm service business showing products. Above, she uses a pair of huge knitting needles at the show on some very thick yarn. - Submitted photo...
Joining the Arbor Day Foundation is an ideal way to get in the mood for spring planting. Anyone who joins the Foundation in February 2018 will receive 10 free Norway spruce trees or 10 free redbud trees to plant when the weather turns warm. The free trees are part of the nonprofit Foundation’s Trees for America campaign. “These trees will help beautify your home for many years to come,” said Matt Harris, chief executive of the Arbor Day Foundation. “The trees will also add to the proud heritage of your state’s existing Tree City USA communiti...
Chamber to Meet The Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce will meet at La Presa Mexican Restaurant in Grand Coulee at noon this Thursday, February 15. Lynda “Cat” Stead will speaking about dream building. Lions Club to Meet February 20 The GCD Lions Club will be meeting at 6 p.m., on Tuesday, February 20, at the Melody Restaurant in Coulee Dam. Retirees to Meet Okanogan County School Retirees Association meets at 11 a.m. Friday, February 23, for a general meeting and no-host luncheon at Koala Street Grill, 914 Koala St., Omak. Okanogan Hig...