Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
Sorted by date Results 1501 - 1525 of 2699
County officials across the state are preparing to press their message to state officials: The current demands on county government aren't sustainable. Wahkiakum County officials discussed the issue Tuesday with Brian Enslow of the Washington State Association of Counties, a group which lobbies for counties in the legislature. The group, called WSAC, is more than that, said commission Chair Blair Brady, who is active in the organization. "When I introduce myself, I say I'm from the Washington Department of Counties," Brady said. "That gets thei...
The Cathlamet Town Council on Monday agreed to start in motion the process to stop providing water for Wahkiakum PUD's Puget Island Water System. The water contract for two entities doesn't expire until 2037, but council members agreed with Mayor George Wehrfritz that it might be prudent for the agencies to separate. That would mean the PUD would have to find another source of water for the PI Water System. Wehrfritz reported he and other town representatives have discussed the situation with PUD officials, who seem willing to consider finding...
As you read this column, my husband and I should be sitting in the heat of central California, on a week long visit with three of our kids and seven of our grandkids. Though I’m not looking forward to California, I am excited to see our family and probably a few friends as well. News from Naselle: Time once again to register for the new school year at Naselle-Grays River Valley High School. The schedule for students is: Friday, the 23rd and Monday, the 26th for new students from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.; Monday, the 26th at 6 p.m. for 12th grade studen...
The 5th Annual Cathlamet Downhill Corral will take place Friday, Saturday and Sunday next week. Longboarders from around the world will converge for a variety of competition ranging from slaloms to races down Cathlamet's hill. Sponsors have put up $6,000 in prize money. Streets will be closed during some of the events; sponsors will have openings for local traffic to pass. Action starts at noon Friday with slalom races on 3rd Street near the Elochoman Slough Marina. On Saturday, racers head to Puget Island for a push race at 9 a.m. This race...
It took just 16 votes to make Wahkiakum County Sheriff's Department Detective Mike Balch consider seeking election to the office of sheriff this year. That's the number of votes, all write-in votes, counted for Balch on election night, August 6. His boss, Mark Howie, was the only declared candidate, and he drew 750. (Editor's note: In a tally updated August 8, Howie had 805 votes and Balch had 26.) Still, state law provides that a write-in candidate receiving 1 percent of the primary election vote will have his or her name on the general...
Wahkiakum County commissioners rejected one bid and put another on hold Tuesday to look for more funding for construction of a new ferry for the Puget Island-Westport run. Commissioners had two bids last week for the construction project, both were over the engineer's estimate of $4.5 million. Nichols Brothers Boatbuilders was low bidder at $5.68 million and Diversified Marine was high at $7.15 million. On Tuesday, the board aproved the recommendation of Public Works Director Pete Ringen to reject the bid from Diversified and to ask Nichols Bro...
Wahkiakum County commissioners voted 2-1 to approve a closure of Steamboat Slough Road during the construction of a setback dike on the Julia Butler Hansen National Wildlife Refuge. The closure is authorized to run August 20 through October 20. The closure will start where the road intersects with SR 4 near the Elochoman River Bridge and run roughly 3.5 miles. Public Works Director Pete Ringen said the closure is needed for public safety, for large construction vehicles will be using the road, which is very narrow. County officials have been ve...
Elsewhere on this page is a letter to the editor from a Rosburg man, Jim Perry, who is upset by the recent reports in The Eagle of gun crime across the state. Mr. Perry objects to "gun control." He assumes I have an anti-gun agenda. My agenda is to learn more about the whole issue. In the past year, gun related crimes have rocked the nation and spurred debate on the national and state levels about what can be done to prevent such crimes in the future. I'm not sure anyone has the right idea of how to prevent the crimes. In this case, I thought...
News from Naselle: Little 4-year-old Jessi Harman survived a near death accident on Mother’s Day. While her mother was in the barn having the family horse shod, Jessi became entangled in some horse gear and was left lifeless. Due to quick mouth to mouth resuscitation, they were able to get a heartbeat and she was transported via Life Flight to Portland. There is good hope that with therapy Jessi will be able to run, play and return to her old spirited self again. This will require months of therapy which is not covered by insurance. There will...
Wahkiakum County's Health and Human Services Department (H&HS) has withdrawn its proposal for an affordable housing project on a site in Rosedale. An environmental consultant reported last week that approximately three quarters of the parcel would be classified as a Class II wetland. To develop the site, the county and its partners would have to create two or three acres of new wetland for each acre that is developed, said project leader Chris Holmes. The site would also need additional construction techniques to accommodate the high water...
Wahkiakum County commissioners opened bids for construction of a new ferry on Tuesday, with the bids coming in over the design engineer's estimate. Nichols Brothers Boatbuilders bid $5.68 million, and Diversified Marine bid $7.15 million. Wahkiakum County Public Works Director Pete Ringen said the county's consulting design engineer had estimated the cost at $4.5 million. Ringen will analyze the bids and possible new funding to develop a recommendation for the board of commissioners. Overall, he said, the county has $5.1 million committed to...
Officials from Wahkiakum County and the US Army Corps of Engineers have resolved concerns that could have delayed construction of a setback dike along the eroding Steamboat Slough shoreline. The Columbia River is eroding the dike that protects the Julia Butler Hansen National Wildlife Refuge for the Columbian White-tailed Deer; the county's Steamboat Slough Road is also atop the dike. Because no local, state or federal agency has funds to repair the dike, the Corps has proposed building a new dike set back from the shoreline and turning the...
I don’t know about you, but I certainly enjoyed the little bit of rain we got last week. Our nephew from California thought it was great, as they don’t see much down in the desert. He actually turned on the windshield wipers of his new jeep for the first time since he bought it. News from Naselle: Only another month until the kids are back in school for the new year, but there are activities beginning to take place in preparation for getting back in the groove. There will be a special Naselle-Grays River Valley School board meeting on Tue...
Here it is, August already. Where has this year gone? It seems like there aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done that needs to get done, but I guess time flies when you’re having fun, right? I can say that when I see progress being made on the home front. It looks like we may see a sprinkle of two later this week. I’m looking forward to it. News from Naselle: Kindergarten screening will take place for the Naselle-Grays River Valley School on August 15. The Play and Learn Group meets at the Valley Bible Church each Thursday morni...
Concern is mounting among Wahkiakum County officials that county roads may be damaged in the planned construction of a setback dike on the Julia Butler Hansen National Wildlife Refuge. County commissioners on Tuesday said they would raise those concerns with project managers and also look at what options the county had to protect the roads. The Columbia River is eroding the dike along Steamboat Slough Road, and state and federal agencies worked through the winter to find a way to find money to address the threat to the dike. They settled on...
Wahkiakum County officials are planning to amend and supplement their 2013 budgets. The county will receive this year an estimated $763,000 in unanticipated revenue from harvest of timber off state managed trust timber land, and officials need to find uses for that revenue, or it will go to the state. Department heads on Tuesday reviewed their needs and requests for budget supplements. They included: --Sheriff's office: $15,600 for a new four-wheel drive patrol pickup and $49,000 to cover the salary of a deputy for the end of 2013. The...
It’s still summer, and most folks can’t believe it. This is the longest dry spell that I can remember since we came here 13 years ago. I hear some farmers may even get a third cutting of hay on some of their fields. Does anyone else enjoy the sounds and smells of this country life, with the scent of warm cut grass and the machinery working late into the evenings? It sure beats the sounds of traffic and the smells of city life. News from Naselle: If anyone has a child that they would like to enroll in the Naselle ECEAP program, please con...
Cowlitz County is trying to divest itself of county parks that don't produce revenue, and officials there have talked of shedding County Line Park. Commissioners of Port District 2 of Wahkiakum County, who operate Skamokawa Vista and Svensen parks, met Tuesday and said they are interested in the possibility of taking over County Line. However, there are a lot of hoops to jump through. County Line Park is located in Wahkiakum County on land claimed by the state Department of Natural Resources. Cowlitz operates the park through a memorandum of...
Three young ladies are campaigning as Wahkiakum County Fair princesses to raise funds for the county fair. They are Cheyenne Barton, Mya Kirzy and Aaliyah Montgomery. Cheyenne is the daughter of Natalie and Charles Barton of Puget Island. She will be a freshman at Wahkiakum High School this fall. "I've never really been involved in the fair," she said, "and I want to be involved in the fair and the community." Mya also will be a freshman at WHS this fall. She is the daughter of Amy Lomax and Dan Kirzy of Cathlamet. "I'm looking to try new...
A King County Superior Court judge ruled July 11 that the state Department of Natural Resources (DNR) must produce full environmental impact statements (EIS) before starting thinning logging near marbled murrelet habitat. The agency had hoped to undertake the thinning logging on approximately 12,120 acres, including 3,000 in Wahkiakum County, and had issued a declaration of non-significance for the work after consulting with the US Fish and Wildlife Service and reviewing provisions of a habitat conservation plan (HCP) established to protect...
The Cathlamet Town Council acted on fireworks complaints, sewer rates, and a variety of other issues when it met Monday for its monthly meeting. Mayor George Wehrfritz reported he had received an unusually high number of complaints from Cathlamet residents about July 4 fireworks that were unusually loud and lasted very late at night. People said there was an abundance of illegal fireworks with many launched over houses. People reported having terrified animals, he said. "I hadn't received this kind of feedback before," he said. Council members...
Wahkiakum County commissioners handled a variety of business when they met Tuesday, including several requests from department heads for budget amendments. Commissioners said they would hold a workshop next week to discuss the requests and how they could be funded and act on the requests at their August 6 meeting. Sheriff Mark Howie asked the board to authorize him to replace a pickup used as a patrol vehicle with another pickup. The vehicle in question came to the county through a seizure, and it hasn't been in use long enough to build up...
Wahkiakum County officials got some good financial news Tuesday. Treasurer Tammy Peterson reported that the Department of Natural Resources has estimated the county will receive an extra $763,000 this year in revenue from the harvest of timber off state managed county trust timberland. The timber market has gone up significantly in the past year, she said; log buyers are paying much more for logs. The DNR has revised estimated revenue for 2013 from $1.26 million to $2.024 million, Peterson said. Auditor Diane Tischer has recommended that the...
Representatives of regional public housing agencies gave support Tuesday to Wahkiakum County's proposed public housing project. The county Department of Health and Human Services (H&HS) and its Housing Advisory Committee have proposed construction of a mix of houses and apartments on a land parcel off Jacobson Road in Cathlamet. The project is aimed at low income individuals and families, proponents have said. "It's aimed at keeping our residents here," (H&HS) project coordinator Chris Holmes said Tuesday. "It's needed to replace housing that...
Wahkiakum County commissioners decided Tuesday to try a two-pronged approach to updating ordinances to address junk vehicles, boats, RV's, appliances and other items that become public nuisances. Commissioners began considering a junk vehicle ordinance in the spring after receiving complaints about problem spots around the county. As Commission Chair Blair Brady commented, it started with vehicles and expanded to include other "crap" that has collected on certain properties. The board held public meetings, and citizens attending those...
