Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 191 - 215 of 997
WAITSBURG - Voters showed strong support for schools and emergency medical services by saying yes to replacement maintenance & operations levies for Walla Walla County EMS and Waitsburg and Prescott School Districts on Feb. 11. Preliminary results - to be certified on Feb. 25 - show all three levies passing by substantial margins. Each levy needed 50% + 1 vote to pass. The Walla Walla County EMS replacement levy passed with an overwhelming 84% approval vote. A total of 11,102 voters cast t...
Waitsburg Schools M&O Levy: Yes - 64.23% No - 35.77% Prescott Schools M&O Levy: Yes - 76.88% No - 23.12% Walla Walla County EMS Levy: Yes - 84.01% No - 15.99%...
DAYTON - Columbia County Emergency Management Director Lisa Caldwell announced last week that her office is implementing a new emergency notification program this month. The system, called CodeRED, will allow Columbia County officials to quickly send emergency notifications to targeted neighborhoods or the entire county, using phone calls, text messages and emails. According to a press release issued by Caldwell's office, the county will test the CodeRED system on Tuesday, February 18, b...
WAITSBURG - As is often the case, what began as a relatively simple restoration project has grown into a much larger undertaking. When Commercial Club members discovered that the large painting - approximately 7 feet by 5 feet - that had hung above the window to the kitchen in Town Hall was water damaged, Karl Newell and Doris Huffman decided to do what they could to restore it. Newell tackled the job of sanding and repainting the wooden frame, but Huffman soon learned she was not going to...
WAITSBURG - Waitsburg farmers can rest a little easier following the removal of a livestock-attacking cougar prowling Waitsburg's backyard. The mountain lion was shot and killed Thursday night on a permit issued by the state Dept. of Fish and Wildlife, after it attacked and killed a 250-pound goat. Roland Erikson, who lives just west of Waitsburg on Knotgrass Road. contacted Washington State Department of Wildlife officials and local Houndsman Trey Cole Thursday afternoon, after disco...
WAITSBURG - A second open planning meeting for Waitsburg Celebration Days will take place February 10 at 5 p.m. at the Waitsburg Business Center. Organizers are hoping for a better turnout than the first meeting. Organizers will use the meeting to gauge community support for the May event and are hoping that club and group representatives as well as interested individuals will show up to provide input. "If we're going to have an entire weekend event, we really need some help pulling it off...
DAYTON - The Columbia County Health System has recently added two new physicians at its Columbia Family Clinic in Dayton. According to interim CEO Jon Smiley, the local healthcare provider is now fully staffed with doctors for the foreseeable future. Kim Abernathy, DO, comes to Dayton from Pueblo, Colo., where she practiced for more than a decade. She is a 1999 graduate of Nova Southeastern University School of Osteopathic Medicine in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Prior to starting her medi...
Nearly 2,000 animals have been placed in “forever homes” WAITSBURG – A newcomer stepping into Waitsburg Hardware and Mercantile for the first time is apt to be a bit taken aback. They’ll find themselves in an old-fashioned general store, filled to the brim with all manner of goods, replete with a group of locals gabbing amiably around a table filled with coffee and treats. They’ll probably be greeted at the door by a dog or two and will surely notice the large cat lying in his bed on the cou...
WAITSBURG - During a call-in session with constituents on Monday, State Representatives Terry Nealey and Maureen Walsh expressed the opinion that horse racing is not likely to return to southeast Washington. According to the two, there is no legislative support to provide the funding that would be needed. Cory Hewitt, manager of the Walla Walla Fairgrounds, echoed that opinion. She also said that there are no longer the horses and jockeys in the area to put on the races, even if money were...
DAYTON - A 14-year-old boy from Burbank died Saturday from injuries suffered in a fall while snowboarding at Bluewood Ski area south of here. Dian Ver Valen, public information officer for the Columbia County Sheriff's Office issued the following statement on the incident: Ski Bluewood contacted the Columbia County Public Safety Communications Center on Saturday, Jan. 25, at 12:48 p.m. to request that Columbia County Fire District 3 Ambulance respond to a medical incident involving a juvenile. District 3 Ambulance personnel responded and ar...
PRESCOTT - The Prescott School District is seeking approval of a $615,000 per year maintenance and operations levy for the 2014-2015 and 20015-2016 school years. The levy, on ballots mailed out Monday, replaces the current $585,000 per year levy. Though the overall levy amount is higher, rising district property values result in a decrease in the estimated cost per $1,000. The current proposed levy is estimated $2.33 per $1,000 -- per a 01/01/2013 estimate from the Walla Walla County A...
WALLA WALLA COUNTY -Walla Walla County Emergency Management Service is asking county residents to approve a $0.50-per-$1,000 levy measure on upcoming ballots. The levy is a continuation of an existing levy and provides funding to every Emergency Service provider in Walla Walla County. The current levy has been in effect since 1990 and has been renewed every six years since. "We've always been supported really well. I'm hoping that will hold true this time as well," said Walla Walla County EMS...
DAYTON - The Dayton Chamber of Commerce's board of directors voted last week to give up an economic development role it has long held. The board agreed that the Port of Columbia should assume the position of associate development organization, or ADO, which is the lead agency in the county for economic development. According to Chamber officials, the ADO contract provided approximately $30,000 to the Chamber last year, and it has been a major source of its annual funding. The new arr...
WAITSBURG - Posters from Waitsburg elementary and middle school students, expressing thanks to their local School Board, decorated the walls of the Preston Hall Board Room at Wednesday night's school board meeting. Waitsburg Superintendent Carol Clarke explained that Governor Jay Inslee has proclaimed January 2014 as School Board Recognition Month - marking the 19th annual observance of the event initiated by the National School Boards Association in 1995. Washington State currently hono...
WAITSBURG - "There's no place like home." Those words hold true for Waitsburg natives, R. Wes Leid, Katie (Mantz) Leid and Jeff Broom -- who have experienced life all across the U.S. and overseas - before choosing to retire "back home". Recognizing the distinct advantages their small town roots provided them, the trio decided to give back by establishing a WHS Alumni Scholarship Fund. The fund will provide two 2014 WHS graduates with $1,000 scholarships and is now open to Founding Don...
WAITSBURG - After nearly 70 years of dedicated service, Ivan Keve and Dorne Hall have transferred leadership in American Legion Post #35 to husband and wife duo, Ron and Cindy Standring. Keve and Hall joined the Legion after returning from World War II in 1946 and have held various offices since. Both are pleased to see a younger generation take the helm. Ron Standring replaced Hall, who has held office as Legion Commander since 2013. Cindy Standring has taken over duties as Adjutant/Finance...
DAYTON - According to the Columbia County Sheriff's Office, only two incidents of thefts of items from cars were reported here between December 1 and January 10. That compares with more than 50 car prowls that were reported to have taken place in Dayton between September 1 and November 30 last year. And for one of the two recent reports, the vehicle's owner was unsure of when the theft took place. The sudden decline in car prowl reports coincided with the arrest of three men at the end of...
WAITSBURG - Bal- lots to approve or deny a two-year, $1.08 million Waitsburg School District maintenance and operations levy will be arriving in the mailboxes of registered vot- ers sometime around January 24. Between now and the February 11 election date, school administrators will be making an extensive ef- fort to communicate district funding needs and respond to community questions and concerns. District Superintendent Dr. Carol Clarke is currently scheduled to s peak at the Lions Club,...
Local 4-H club teaches shooting skills & responsibility DAYTON - It's no secret that parents and other concerned adults in this country are spending a lot of time these days trying to decide on the best way to keep kids safe around guns. For a handful of adults in Columbia County, the answer is simple: Teach our youth how to properly handle and use guns. "There's no question that kids in our rural commu- nities will be exposed to firearms at some point in their life, whether at home or when...
DAYTON - When Co- lumbia Pulp announced plans in December to construct a multi-million dollar straw pulp plant near Starbuck, the company said it would take about a year to complete the permitting process before construction could begin. The Times spoke with Co- lumbia County Planner Kim Lyonnais this week to learn more about the hurdles the company must overcome this year. "From what I've seen so far, there haven't been any red flags," Lyonnais said. "But that doesn't mean there might not be so...
WAITSBURG - Ken Graham, longtime Dayton resident and former publisher of the Blue Mountain News, became the eighth publisher of The Times based in Waitsburg this week. Graham, who was hired at the community newspaper's editor a year ago, agreed on Jan. 1 to buy its holding company, Touchet Valley Publishing, from owner Imbert Matthee. He takes over as publisher beginning with next week's issue. The Times, which marked its 136th year last year, will be in very good hands, said Matthee, who h...
WAITSBURG - Waitsburg's Field House - the old Whiskey Creek School Building that was moved to the athletic field and repurposed in 1931 - has been a hot topic of conversation at community forums, school board meetings and Lion's and Booster club meetings in recent months. "We've known for several decades that the facility is inadequate," said School Board President Ross Hamann, who is also a member of the Booster and Lions clubs. The rapidly approaching potential loss of $40,000 in don...
DAYTON -Ski Bluewood, celebrating its 35th year, opened just before Christmas to the delight of skiers from around the region and now everyone with their eyes on the mountain is hoping for more snow. "Though we have been a bit limited on our actual snow pack, the good news is that our groomed slopes have been skiing quite nicely," general manager Jody Ream said. "The cat operators have done a most excellent job with their many efforts over the past week. Sure we would love to have another foot...
