Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 626 - 650 of 792
DAYTON—Officials with the Dayton School District are watching the progress of House Bill 1059, and hoping it becomes law. If so, it would extend the safety net for local levy collections by an additional year. The State Legislature has reduced the amount of money local school districts are allowed to collect from voter approved M&O levies in anticipation of full funding for basic education, as ordered by the State Supreme Court in the McCleary ruling. Because fully funding for basic education i...
DAYTON—After weighing the pros and cons of reapplying for an additional five years of the Drug Free Communities Grant, the Coalition for Youth and Families decided not to do so at this time. “Basically, the extra requirements of the grant are so huge, and we don’t have enough people who have the time to dedicate to the application,” said Peggy Guiterrez, the grant coordinator, about the decision not to apply. “We also don’t have the technical assistance we had when we wrote the original fi...
DAYTON - February is National Library Lovers Month, and the Dayton Memorial Library is celebrating that, as well as Valentine's Day, with "Blind Date with a Book." New books for men, women, young adults and children are wrapped in plain brown paper, with brief descriptions, or clues, as to what is inside, and are available for check-out. Many of the Blind Date with a Book picks are suggestions by well-known Seattle librarian and author, Nancy Pearl. Family story time is on Feb. 7, and begins at...
DAYTON-Last week, the conference room at the Best Western Hotel in Dayton was packed, for the first of a series of public workshops hosted by the Blue Mountain Regional Trails – Ridges, Towns, and Rivers organization. Work is underway to establish a non-motorized trails plan for walking, biking, hiking, and horseback riding, that would include all of Columbia and Walla Walla counties, and northeast Umatilla County. Representatives from the City of Dayton and Columbia County Planning D...
DAYTON— In her report to the Dayton School Board, Elementary Principal Pam Lindsley said the students have been hard at work making posters to advertise the Candy Gram Sale, which will take place between Feb. 6 and 13. The students will sell the candy grams before school, during lunch, and after school. The curriculum committee will meet on Feb. 6 to look at several different curricula. The committee has found an on-line site with a tool to evaluate and score them, Lindsley said. Lindsley s...
DAYTON – At their regular meeting on Jan. 23, the city council adopted a formal proposal from the Friends of the Dayton Dog Park for the Dayton Dog Park, which is situated on a 0.6 acre site, south of the fish pond, in the Pietryzycki City Park. The site has been leveled, dirt has been delivered, and the irrigation has been completed, Dayton Dog Park Co-chair Carol Rahn told the council. Rahn said that the next step for the FDDP is to identify the money needed to install a four-foot chain l...
DAYTON—At the outset of last week’s meeting of the Columbia County Health System Commissioners, Bob Hutchens, President of the Commission, reported on the board’s recent performance evaluation of CEO Shane McGuire. Hutchens said the commissioners concluded, by consensus, that CEO McGuire’s accomplishments in 2016 were good and the board was pleased with his progress, both as an individual and as an administrator.” “The board looks forward to continued progress in the administrative management...
WALLA WALLA—In January the Columbia County Commissioners signed a contract with Blue Mountain Action Council of Walla Walla to provide low-income homeowners with the opportunity to have small repairs made to their homes. “There are people in Columbia County who need the help,” said Commissioner Merle Jackson about the BMAC Home Repair Program. The commissioners are testing the waters in 2017, with an initial $20,000 investment, according to Jackson. “That was just seed money,” he said. “We...
DAYTON-What will be the last product you ever use? You are on the right track if you are thinking about a container to hold your remains after death. Local business owner Vicky Beckmeyer, of Snapdragon Floral and Gifts in Dayton, has found a niche in the more affordable range, for the cremation urns she has been turning out since 2007. Last summer, Beckmeyer and her daughter, Cara Watts, attended a seminar for funeral directors in Marysville, Wash. They received kudos from the funeral directors...
DAYTON-A year and a half later, the dream is still true for Manila Bay Café owners Christina and Jon Betts. "I still love doing what I do," said Chef Jon Betts. "I love creating stuff. We use local produce from vendors like Hidden Garden Farms, Frog Hollow Farm, Rey's Roast Coffee, Hayshaker Farm, Little Dipper Dairy and Mary's Candies, to create specialty items." Christina Betts said she thinks Dayton is a great place to raise their three children. "This is a nice, quiet town. We're settled....
DAYTON—The capital facilities plan for 2017, budget review for 2016, a public hearing about surplus property, changes to personnel policies, and election of officers were topics of discussion at last week’s meeting of the Port of Columbia Comissioners. As part of the capital facilities plan, the commissioners agreed to the purchase of a new HVAC system for Industrial Park Building No. 3. The system will cost about $8,000 and work will be done in the spring of 2017, Port Manager Jennie Dickinson...
DAYTON--The 4-H Columbia County Robotics team, the "noobs," is one of 15 teams advancing from the Tri-Cities Regional FIRST LEGO League Robotics tournaments to the Eastern Washington State Robotics Tournament in Spokane on Jan. 21. On Dec. 10, the "noobs" competed against twenty-nine mid-Columbia teams, comprising over two hundred and fifty students, at Richland's Chief Joseph Middle School. The theme for 2016's 11th annual robotics competition was "Animal Allies," and the project goal was to...
DAYTON--The Dayton City Crew cleared all the streets in Dayton at least once, and sanded street routes daily as needed, during last week's snowy and cold weather, according to Dave Elkins at the city public works department. "We're doing just fine. We've had a few broken water pipes, and have had to turn off some water meters," Elkins said. County Emergency Management Services Director Lisa Caldwell reported a higher volume than normal of 911 calls due to stuck vehicles, but nothing...
DAYTON—In December, the Columbia County Health System commissioners adopted a five-year strategic business plan, representing a 12-month effort for CEO Shane McGuire. “A $1.5 billion Medicaid Waiver received by the State of Washington to reform the healthcare delivery system, and change payment models creates new opportunities, and with strategic planning, these can be leveraged to position the district for better reimbursement rates, and also to deliver better integrated and higher quality car...
DAYTON—Wed., Jan. 4, was Norm Passmore’s first day of service on the Board of Columbia County Commissioners. And it was a busy day for the commissioners, who are working with a leaner budget in 2017. The commissioners are facing a budget for 2017 that is $2.5 million less than last year. Last year’s board, including Dwight Robanske, who just retired, spent most of November and December working with the county auditor and various department heads to craft the 2017 budget. Early in December the c...
DAYTON—Jan. 25 will be a busy day for the Dayton School District, beginning with drug impairment training for staff, in Pomeroy, and ending with the district’s community visioning meeting in the evening. At their regular meeting on Jan. 4, the Dayton School Board heard from high school principal Paul Shaber about the drug impairment training, which he has set up, in conjunction with the Coalition for Youth and Families and local law enforcement personnel. “Mr. Shaber has been working on this...
DAYTON--A beginning sign language class is starting up on Jan. 17 at 6 p.m. in the Delany Room at the Dayton Memorial Library, according to Vicki Zoller at the library. Zoller said the class is for anyone who would like to learn an alternative method of communication with small children, or with family members who have lost the ability to communicate because of medical issues, such as stroke. Lois Farnsworth Whysong will teach the basic skills class. Additional monthly classes are being...
DAYTON--Benjamin Orozco made his first court appearance in Columbia County Superior Court on December 21. He was charged with second degree murder in the shooting death of Dayton resident Lance Terry, and with first degree assault, in the wounding of Dayton resident David Eaton. Both crimes that took place, in Dayton, twenty years ago. Columbia County Prosecuting Attorney Rea Culwell said that Orozco has entered a not guilty plea to the charges. On July 7, 1996, Orozco and an acquaintance,...
The Triple Nickle chair lift was full Monday morning at Ski Bluewood, as skiers and snow boarders enjoyed the huge snowfalls that have hit the Blue Mountains this winter. Bluewood reported that 142 inches of snow have fallen at the ski area this winter so far. See story on Page 2....
DAYTON--Since taking over from Donna Hangar as the Columbia County 4-H Club program coordinator in April, Ashley Trevino has been working hard to increase membership, as well as to keep the eleven existing 4-H clubs on track. Trevino said she is happy overall, but would like to add more clubs to the list for older youth. "We have 38% of the middle school enrolled in 4-H. I couldn't be more delighted with this percentage," said Trevino. Trevino would like to see a higher rate of participation in...
DAYTON—Columbia County Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Dale Slack will still have a job, in 2017. The Garfield County Prosecutor, Garfield County Commissioners, Columbia County Commissioners, and the Columbia County Prosecuting Attorney have all stepped up to help secure Slack’s position. “Rea gave us permission to talk to Garfield County. Everybody wanted to save Dale’s position,” said Columbia County Commissioner Mike Talbot. Slack will continue to work his normal 35-hour week, with the same pay...
DAYTON-Suzi Tasker has opened a new business in Dayton. Beginning last February, Tasker undertook a nine-month course through the Nutritional Therapy Association in Olympia, to become a nutrition practitioner. On May 31, she and her husband, Duane, closed Aardvark Granola Blue Mountain Station, to allow her to concentrate on her studies, she said. Tasker said that two years ago, she was struggling with some health issues that included two major surgeries to remove a benign but recurring tumor....
DAYTON— At last week’s meeting of the Port of Columbia Commissioners, the director of the regional Small Business Development Center in Walla Walla spoke about work he does with potential and established businesses. Joe Jacobs is a Certified Business Advisor and Accredited Business Planning Advisor, and he is part of a statewide network of organizations helping people to start and expand businesses. He also helps companies get ready to sell, he told the commissioners. Since 2012, Jacobs sai...
DAYTON—The Columbia County Commissioners have signed off on the City of Dayton’s proposed lawsuit settlement agreement regarding prosecution services. Commission Chairman Merle Jackson signed the agreement during a budget workshop meeting on Dec. 5. “The agreement is settled with the city and we can move on,” Jackson said. On Dec. 8, Judge Jackie Shea-Brown ruled that the county is not responsible for County Prosecutor Rea Culwell’s legal fees associated with the lawsuit, because Culwell c...
DAYTON-Columbia County Commissioner Dwight Robanske is calling it quits after 16 years of service to the county. Robanske said there have been many ups and downs during that time, but he has mainly enjoyed working with the citizens and employees of Columbia County. Robanske said his interest in promoting economic development in the county and in Dayton was the reason he ran for a seat on the board in 2000. "I served on the Dayton Economic Development Steering Committee with Jennie Dickinson in...
