News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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The second time was not a charm for that yellow house at the top of the hill on the highway to Wilbur last week after a combine somehow started a fire in a wheat field, the second in three weeks, that totally destroyed the house and tens of thousands of dollars worth of wheat. The Sorenson Road Fire started at the end of that road, near the Herdrick home, Lincoln County Fire Protection District 8 Chief Dennis Pinar said. Pinar said the same three houses threatened in the Highway 174 Fire July...
Documents addressing options for Grand Coulee Dam School District students have been posted on the district website. An Aug. 19 letter from Superintendent Paul Turner to the community, parents, and students touches upon aspects of reopening school, including: • a strict protocol to enter the school, • understanding educational options, • the first day of school being Sept. 8, with student academic participation beginning Sept. 11, and • conferences being held Sept. 8-10 will make sure parents and students are familiar with the online platfor... Full story
Students at Lake Roosevelt Schools will start school Sept. 8, six days later than an earlier plan, after the school board Aug. 12 pressed the administration to delay, fearing not enough time to orient staff, students and parents to the distance-learning plan, using Chromebooks and flash drives. School board members at a special meeting urged Superintendent Paul Turner to allow more time for the training period. Board member Alex tufts said the earlier date “bugs the heck out of me” because he’s gotten input from community members, and he noted...
“If you give it away, they will come” might be one lesson Okanogan County Public Health takes away from its current push to provide Covid-19 testing for free all over the county. The county started its free testing last Thursday, bringing in the National Guard to help in the effort. By Monday afternoon, OCPH Administrator Lauri Jones said, they’d collected testing samples from more than 800 people in three communities: 375 in Winthrop, 80 in Brewster, and 368 in Omak. The health district already received from a Seattle lab the test resul... Full story
Grant County business owners have two more days to apply for up to $10,000 in a second round of COVID-19 relief grant money through Grant County to make up for costs associated with the pandemic, including lost revenue. County commissioners set aside $2.5 million of the county’s $5 million in federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act money to go toward small businesses (20 employees or fewer) and nonprofit organizations. The Grant County Economic Development Council developed the application process for the funds. ... Full story
Citizens of Electric City can have more say in the goings on of the city. The city of Electric City would like local residents to be a part of their planning process in the form of a commission. The city council has discussed in recent meetings forming a planning commission, a new version of a planning “agency” that existed in the past. The commission would consist of the city planner and five local residents and would address situations revolving around rezoning, subdivision, planned unit developments, special use reviews, and site and arc...
Some details on short-term rentals in Grand Coulee will still have to be decided before they are allowed. The Star reported previously that the Grand Coulee City Council approved an ordinance allowing for short-term rentals in residential zones in the city but neglected to report that it will still take some time before people can actually offer the short-term rentals. “The ordinance we passed was the first step in preparation for the updated Comprehensive Plan,” City Clerk Lorna Pearce explained in an email, with the updated comprehensive pla...
Grand Coulee Dam's Third Powerhouse was renamed last week, a press release from the office of Rep. Dan Newhouse, who represents the state's 4th District in Congress, announced. Interior Secretary David Bernhardt said the renaming is in honor of a father-son duo who were "instrumental in the conception, construction and implementation of operations at the dam." The announcement was made during a virtual roundtable event hosted by Newhouse (R-WA) and comes on the heels of Secretary Bernhardt's...
COVID-19 hasn't slowed people from going to Steamboat Rock State Park, which includes the Steamboat Rock area, Northrup Canyon, and Northrup Point boat launch. Statistics from Washington State Parks show a 23% increase in the total number of visitors to the state park in June, compared to last year. In the month of June, Steamboat Rock State Park received 86,566 visitors in 2020, compared to 70,434 in June of 2019, 69,658 in 2018, and 72,590 in 2017. You have to go back to June of 2016, when...
Smoke that could be smelled in the air locally on Sunday night was likely from the Taylor Pond Fire, burning 12 miles east of Yakima, about 150 miles away, and having burned about 35,000 acres of grassland as of Tuesday. There is a helicopter, 16 engines, and 186 personnel working on the fire, which is only at 26% containment according to the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center. Grand Coulee’s fire department was also called out briefly Sunday night to put out a new hot spot on a fire that had burned wheat fields and a house in Lincoln C...
The English language is the best friend while traveling in most countries. In all my travels in Asia, the one most constant thing was that English was spoken and understood in every country. Part of the reason was the influence of English colonialism, and the fact that most people study English as a second language. While English is prevalent in both Japan and Hong Kong, Sometimes natives seek out touring English-speaking people so they can practice their English. This happened to me in both Japan and Hong Kong. In Osaka, Japan, I had walked...
I recently conducted a survey of constituents in Central Washington, asking a question that is on the minds of parents across our district and the entire country: “Do you support doing everything we can to safely reopen schools for in-person instruction in the fall?” The overwhelming response was “yes.” As we all know, on March 13, 2020, Gov. Jay Inslee ordered Washington state schools to close in response to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. As other states followed suit, the governor extended the order several times and, unfortu...
If Americans are to receive all of their electricity without coal and natural gas by 2035, they will need nuclear power. Even if Washingtonians, who already procure over 70 percent of their electricity from hydro, are to be completely devoid of fossil fuel generation by 2045, they must have nuclear. Washington’s Clean Energy Transformation Act passed earlier this year by the Legislature leans heavily on renewable fuels, particularly wind and solar. It calls for electrical generation to be c...
In January 1950, a group of community leaders formed the Grand Coulee Dam Athletic Association to fund community athletic teams. To help provide funding, the association booked nationally recognized dance bands to the Coulee Dam high school gym. A member from the association had a close contact within the Music Corporation of America, which was the nation's largest booking agency for famous-name bands. What followed between January 1950 and May 1953 was then described as the "Parade of Bands."...
Craig A. Loe, 60, passed away suddenly on Wednesday, August 12, 2020, in Spokane, Washington. Craig was born on February 13, 1960, in Coulee Dam, Washington, to Wallace and Ruth Loe. He grew up in Coulee Dam and graduated from Lake Roosevelt High School in 1978. While in high school, Craig excelled in sports: running cross country, playing basketball, and baseball. He then attended Wenatchee Valley Community College where he played basketball and received his Associate's degree. He transferred... Full story
This name change is an important part of our ongoing efforts to best serve the communities of North Central Washington. We believe our new name more accurately reflects the geographic area we serve and conveys that we operate many libraries throughout that region. We are proud to call North Central Washington home, and NCW Libraries embraces this unique place that we all have in common. While our name and logo are changing, our services are not! You can still access our online services in the same way. Curbside Pickup has started in Okanogan,...
North Central Regional Library (NCRL) will host bestselling author Ijeoma Oluo on Tuesday, August 18 at 7 p.m. as part of their NCRL Virtual Reads summer series. This event is cosponsored by Confluence Health, the Community Foundation of North Central Washington, and the Icicle Fund. Partners include the Wenatchee Valley Museum and Cultural Center and Wenatchee Valley College. Ijeoma Oluo is the bestselling author of So You Want to Talk about Race, a hard hitting, user friendly examination of ra...
The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted all people. It is a stressful time. Our lives are different. Common reactions to pandemics are fear and worries about what will happen. Social distancing has been instituted to prevent viral spread. Humans are social creatures, and being isolated impacts our health. Everyone responds to stress differently. Some common reactions are: fear about your health, fear about the health of others, changes in sleep patterns, changes in appetite, poor concentration,... Full story
Hannah and Aaron Hand of Almira, Washington, are proud to announce the birth of their daughter Jolie Noelle, born Thursday, July 23, 2020, at Coulee Medical Center in Grand Coulee, Washington. She weighed 6 lbs., 13 oz., and was 20.5 inches in length at birth Siblings include Vedan and Vivienne.... Full story
Amanda Starzman and Tyler Best of Wilbur, Washington, are proud to announce the birth of their daughter Aspen Maye Best, born Friday, August 24, 2020, at Coulee Medical Center in Grand Coulee, Washington. She weighed 7 lbs., 10 oz., and was 21 inches in length at birth Siblings include Coty Best. Maternal grandmother is Cathy Starzman. Paternal grandparents area Terry and Marcy Best. Great-grandparents are Lorraine McKenna, Shirley Groh, Carolyn Whitehead and Carol Koontz.... Full story
Velma Guerrero and Eisael Hernandez of Grand Coulee, Washington, are proud to announce the birth of their daughter, Eva Aleia, born Tuesday, July 28, 2020, at Coulee Medical Center in Grand Coulee, Washington. She weighed 6 lbs., 11 oz., and was 19 inches in length at birth.... Full story
Monica Chartier of Coulee Dam, Washington, are proud to announce the birth of her son, Luca Robert Johns, born Friday, July 31, 2020, at Coulee Medical Center in Grand Coulee, Washington. He weighed 6 lbs., 13 oz., and was 19 inches in length at birth. Grandparents are Dianne Dirk and Roger Johns. Great-grandparents are Jeannette Peightal and Pete Peightal.... Full story
Jordanna Munson and Raymond Atchison Jr., of Electric City, Washington, are proud to announce the birth of their daughter River Michelle Munson-Atchison, born Wednesday, August 5, 2020, at Coulee Medical Center in Grand Coulee, Washington. She weighed 4 lbs., 6 oz. Maternal grandparents are Stephanie Stead and Dennis Munson. Paternal grandparents are Raymond Atchison Sr. and Joyce Atchison. Great grandparents are Linda Clark and Michael Stead Sr. (deceased), Lloyd Atchison and Harriet Atchison.... Full story
Grand Coulee Police 8/2 - Damage reported at the Ridge Riders Rodeo Grounds included broken stable walls and a broken stop sign. 8/11 - A man was banned from the Trail West Motel after harassing tenants there. - A woman on Second Street reported that while doing yard work she had been threatened by another woman who accused her of selling drugs and who said she would beat her up. - A man driving a grey vehicle allegedly intentionally hit a man on a bike in the alleyway behind Jack’s Spring Canyon gas station. A witness estimated the v...
As summer heats up, the Washington State Parks Boating Programurges boaters and paddlers to take important steps to safely and responsibly recreate on the water, including wearing a life jacket at all times. In the last 30 days, 25 recreational boating accidents and five fatalities have occurred across the state. “We are asking all boat and paddlecraft owners and operators to help reduce fatalities and injuries on the water,” said Rob Sendak. “Boaters need to take personal responsibility for their own safety as well as the safety of their... Full story
