News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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Local scouts collected about 1,200 pounds of food for the local food bank this past week. "The food bank is now very well stocked," said Carol Nordine, manager of the Care and Share Food Bank. Nordine said the collection was lower than normal. The drives usually bring in around 2,500 to 3,000 pound of food, Nordine said, but she also noted that there were two drives this year. She also expressed gratitude for cash donations of about $120 that she said are being used to purchase meat from...
People living near the cryptocurrency mining building on Coulee Boulevard in Electric City might have a point when they complain about the noise. Decibel meter readings performed by the city seem to justify the claim made in multiple complaints that the noise from exhaust fans on top of the building is too loud. The building manager’s own readings are lower, however, although he says he’ll do what’s necessary to keep the city happy. People have reported having difficulty sleeping because of the noise, Mayor Diane Kohout told The Star previously...
For Betty Davis, a day on the golf course isn't about keeping score, it's about getting to a place free of cares. "When I'm out here, I think of nothing behind me," she said recently beside a tee at Banks Lake Golf Club. "I mean, my house could be burning when I left and I probably wouldn't even think about it." At 96, Davis still golfs three times a week through most of the year with a group of friends, and there are stories. There's the one about she and Sally McDowell herding cows off the...
There have been 21 new cases of COVID-19 reported for local towns by local counties since The Star’s last update two weeks ago on Nov. 3, with 12 of those new cases being located in Nespelem. According to Grant County Health District data last updated Nov. 16, the Grand Coulee and Electric City area of the county has seen 155 total cases since the pandemic began, up by five in the past two weeks, with new cases reported on Nov. 8, 9, 10, 12, and 16. Ranging in age from their 30s to 90s, 16 people are hospitalized in Grant County with Covid, d... Full story
Grand Coulee Police 11/9 - A Lincoln Avenue man reported finding his cat in his neighbor’s trap. The neighbor was confrontational when the reporting party confronted him about it. The neighbor told police that neighborhood cats spray where he parks his boat and RV. Police told the neighbor that what he was doing wasn’t illegal, but he should use caution as his neighbors do have pets. - A man was reported as staring inside the Lakeside Fitness gym windows, in one instance displaying a knife. The man was banned from the gym. 11/10 - Police loo...
District Music Director Gabriel James leads middle school students in a class and practice last week as they prepare, along with high school students, for an assembly to honor veterans this Friday, Nov. 12, at 8:45 a.m. in the high school gym. The assembly is open to all. - Scott Hunter photo...
The National Weather Service in Spokane has increased the urgency of its language regarding this current wind event, warning "winds will blow down trees and power lines" (emphasis ours) and that "widespread power outages are expected." A "wind advisory" from the National Weather Service, originally set to expire at 8 p.m. Monday, was extended then until midnight. Gusts up to 70 mph are expected among 30-40 mph winds. Keller Ferry is out of service again because of the winds. In 2013, with wind... Full story
High winds have prompted the closing of Keller Ferry on Sunday until further notice. The Washington state department of transportation issued a notice just after 11 am Sunday that the ferry was closed: "The Keller Ferry that crosses the Columbia River is temporarily out-of-service due to high wind on SR 21 at milepost 106.5 just North of Wilbur, beginning at 11:06 am on November 14, 2021 until further notice." The National Weather Service out of Spokane issued a wind advisory through 7 pm... Full story
With an estimated 300 ballots left to count before another vote count update Monday, incumbents in local elections still appear to be keeping their seats, according to Grant County’s website, which also states that 38.41% of the county’s voters turned out. In the race for Grand Coulee Council Position #1, Ben Hughes leads 92 votes to 58 over Tracey Wright, with there additionally being 40 votes for write-in candidates. For Grand Coulee Council Position #2, incumbent Tom Poplawski leads 133 votes to 52 over challenger Cameron Whitney, with the...
Local veteran Fred Long served in Okinawa, Japan, among other places, during World War II, and has stories from his time there that you can read. And he shared more with us last week. Long, who last Saturday turned 99 years of age, wrote a series of short stories in 1999 that are still on the internet. He had been approached by J.A. Hitchcock, a woman whose father had also been in Okinawa. She wanted to honor him and asked Long to contribute a story from there. One story turned into more, and...
Two levies with a combined tax rate of $4.20 per thousand dollars of assessed property value will be on the ballot in February to replace expiring levies of the same combined rate. On Monday, the Grand Coulee Dam School District Board of Directors approved two resolutions containing the language of the levies for the upcoming ballot. Together, the levies are expected to raise between $1.4 million and $1.7 million annually from 2023 through 2026. The Educational Programs and Operations Levy seeks an estimated $2.50 per thousand dollars of assess...
Coulee Dam’s city council will consider a proposed vaccine mandate for employees tonight as part of its regular meeting at 6 p.m. in a meeting open via phone or an online service only. The issue was raised a council meeting a month ago and discussed again two weeks later. Tonight (Wednesday) the council has a drafted resolution to pass, reject or alter. The city of just over 1,000 must grapple with some of the same possibilities other agencies have: that requiring vaccination against the coronavirus, which has been made into a political hot top...
Grand Coulee Police 11/2 - A Banks Avenue property owner observed through a camera system someone measuring things on her property like a construction worker would do. She is submitting the video to police and just wants to know why they were measuring things on her property. - A television found outside Coulee Boulevard storage units, in the box, was not stolen as was thought by the man who found it, but rather was delivered there by mistake. The man who found it, along with an officer, delivered it to the man and woman who ordered it and live...
Incumbents in local positions appear to be keeping their seats as election results come in. Although there will be more votes to count, including 1,300 Grant County ballots, 1,760 Okanogan ballots, plus those arriving by mail postmarked on or before Nov. 2, vote counts so far for local elections have been posted. According to Grant County’s website, 25.35% of the county’s voters turned out. In the race for Grand Coulee Council Position #1, Ben Hughes leads 74 votes to 39 over Tracey Wright, with there additionally being 29 write-in votes. In th...
The Electric City council is prioritizing how they would like to spend $278,000 in federal American Rescue Plan Act funds. City Clerk Peggy Nevsimal told the council at their Oct 12 meeting that the guidance “is really loosey goosey” on how the money can be spent and how the city needs to report its spending. She and city engineer Steven Nelson, she said, have never seen money that is so “unstructured” regarding how to spend it, but there still must be a record of how they intend to use the money and how they ultimately do spend it. The cit...
The National Commander of the American Legion recognized two local veterans of World War II Monday at a luncheon at the local legion post in Electric City. Elmer Rinard and Fred Long will both celebrate their 99th birthdays this month. National Commander Paul E. Dillard and Washington State Department Commander Rick Sucee visited with veterans at their Grand Coulee Dam Post 157. Dillard is making a tour through the state and had several stops before and after the lunch. But he made a point of sh...
Locally, there have been six new cases of COVID-19 in the past week, with two new cases in Grand Coulee and Electric City, one each in Coulee Dam and Elmer City, and two in Nespelem. According to Grant County Health District data last updated Nov. 2, the Grand Coulee and Electric City area of the county has seen 150 total cases since the pandemic began, up by two in the last week, with new cases reported on Oct. 28 and 29. Twenty-five people are hospitalized in the county ranging in age from their 30s to 90s. There have been 185 deaths in... Full story
The intersection of Electric Boulevard and Crest Avenue in Electric City was never perfect, and the city has considered its fourth change to its stop signs in three years. The cross sections of streets that make up the intersection never quite lined up. Electric Boulevard, which runs southeast to northwest, lines up. However, the section of Crest Avenue that runs down a hill from the southwest, comes into it in an off-kilter, caddy-wompus way in relation to the other forks of the intersection....
Grand Coulee Police 10/25 - A woman reported her 2018 Ford Taurus was hit in the Safeway parking lot where her son had parked it for work. There was front end damage and the license plate had fallen off. The incident was documented for insurance purposes. 10/26 - Police observed a cut lock on a storage unit at B Street and Second Street, where the door to the unit was open. The items didn’t appear to have been rifled through. The renter of the unit said nothing seemed to be missing and put a new lock on the unit. 10/28 - While a vehicle p...
Community members like their spring and fall cleanups, a survey reveals, and expressing that may help pay for the cleanups. The cleanups involve free dumping of yard waste at the Delano Regional Transfer Station for residents of Electric City, Grand Coulee, Coulee Dam, and Elmer City, and sometimes curbside pickup conducted by local cities. Last week The Star reported that the Regional Board of Mayors was applying for a roughly $30,000 air quality grant from the Department of Ecology to pay for spring and fall cleanups in 2022, and a spring...
You can vote for your favorite scarecrow out of 17 total placed outside of local businesses and some residences in the Coulee community. The Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce is holding the scarecrow contest, which has had "a great outcome," according to Executive Director Rachelle Haven. Haven said she would like the event to be a regular thing depending on community feedback. "The scarecrows have all turned out awesome and very creative!" she told The Star in an email. The chamber has...
Some workers in Washington state, faced with the ultimatum to get the jab or lose their jobs, have chosen to quit or retire instead of receiving a COVID-19 vaccination. With employees in various fields, including school, health care, and state government required to receive a COVID-19 vaccine as a requirement for their employment by Oct. 18, many workers in the state have opted to retire early or simply quit their jobs. Locally, council members for the city of Grand Coulee, as well as the mayor, expressed support for city employees to make...
Grand Coulee and Electric City have seen at least five new COVID-19 cases in the past week, while Coulee Dam has seen one more and Nespelem has seen two. According to Grant County Health District data last updated Oct. 26, the Grand Coulee and Electric City area of the county has seen 148 total cases since the pandemic began, up by five in the last week, with new cases being reported on Oct. 20. GCHD reported 103 new cases in the county on Oct. 25, and 65 on Oct. 26, but did not say where the cases occurred. Twenty-six people are hospitalized... Full story
If your Halloween plans include trick or treating, remember these simple safety tips. • Stick with members of your own household and distance from others when in crowded indoor and outdoor spaces. • Wear a cloth mask and remember: a plastic costume mask is not a suitable substitute. • Wash your hands before and after trick-or-treating. • Bring plenty of hand sanitizer. If you give out treats: • Limit candy to individually wrapped treat bags. This reduces the number of people who would typically... Full story
Grand Coulee PTA will be hosting their second Trunk or Treat event on Thursday, Oct. 28, from 5-7 p.m. Services, businesses, and community folks will be passing out treats to kids in cars as they drive around the school on the bus-loading route. No walkers please, say organizers. At the end, in the elementary parking lot, there will be a contest for the best-decorated car trunk. The winner will be decided by donation, and a trophy will be given to the winning car.... Full story