Newsbriefs

Powwow starts Thursday night

The 133rd Annual Fourth of July Celebration Powwow will take place at the Nespelem powwow grounds from July 12 through July 15.

Tribal council oath of office Thursday morning

The Colville Business Council oath of office ceremony will take place on July 12 starting at 9 a.m. in the auditorium of the Lucy Covington Government Center at the Colville Indian Agency.

No local fires July 4

July 4 was blessedly boring for most local firefighters, who are used to responding to fireworks-related incidents on the national holiday.

“We did not even have any minor fires, which we usually get from the fireworks at North Dam,” Grand Coulee Volunteer Fire Department Chief Rick Paris noted of the only venue in the city where fireworks can be set off legally.

Paris said there were very few instances of illegal fireworks noted in the city. “The city ordinance definitely assisted in keeping our calls down,” he said.

The city ambulance service had a few calls, Paris said, but nothing fireworks related. And a local truck went to assist on a wildland fire near Quincy for a few hours, “but locally everyone and mother nature were fire safe,” Paris added.

Levy may go on November ballot too

The Grand Coulee Dam School District board approved moving forward with including the proposed capital levy on the November ballot, as well as the August ballot.

“We’re hoping we don’t have to use it, but it would be prudent to rerun in November,” Superintendent Paul Turner said at a July 9 school board meeting.

If the levy passes in August, the levy would be removed from the November ballot. Final approval of the inclusion of the levy in the November ballot will be put to a vote by the school board at their next meeting on July 23.

No council in Coulee Dam

The town council meeting scheduled for tonight, July 11, has been canceled for lack of agenda items. The next meeting is set for July 25 at 6 p.m.