Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 61 - 85 of 997
WAITSBURG - Jim and Geraine Hansen, Waitsburg's 2014 Pioneers of the Year, reside on a picturesque plot near the top of what their daughter Mary calls "the Hansen version of Walton Mountain." Mary lives just a half-mile up the road; daughter Karen Yager is three miles up; and son Norman lives in the original family homestead on top of Coppei Mountain. In addition to the mountain-dwellers, the immediate Hansen clan includes daughters Cheryl in Pullman, Jeanette inWalla Walla, and son John in...
WAITSBURG - Waitsburg School Superintendent Carol Clarke announced at the Sept. 10 school board meeting that the Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) will recover $38,708 from the district's September apportionment due to the district's "failure to maintain effort in the special education program". Clarke said the unexpected financial ding is "a tough one." Clarke explained that the recovery comes as a result of staff reductions that took place in 2009 and...
DAYTON - Attorney Abbie Broughton Marsh joined the Columbia County Prosecutor's Office this month as deputy prosecutor. She fills the position left vacant when former deputy prosecutor June Riley left to take a position with the City of Walla Walla. Marsh moved to Dayton with her family in 2013 after working nine years in the Riverside County, Calif. District Attorney's Office. She has worked for the past two years for the Nealey and Marinella Law Office here. "Abbie will be a great asset for...
DAYTON - The Columbia County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously last week to extend its moratorium on marijuana businesses in the unincorporated county for three more months. The county's original one-year moratorium would have expired on September 18. During their September 3 meeting, Commissioners Mike Talbot, Chuck Reeves and Dwight Robanske all agreed that county staff needed more time to review recent court cases regarding jurisdictions that have banned marijuana businesses. "I'm...
WAITSBURG - Last week the Walla Walla County Board of Commissioners voted 2-1 to approve a ban on the production, processing and sale of marijuana in the unincorporated areas of Walla Walla County. To date, Yakima, Pierce and Clark counties have done the same. Commissioners Perry Dozier and Jim Johnson voted in favor of the ban with Commissioner Greg Tompkins voting opposed. This week, The Times sat down with District 2 Commissioner Dozier, who shared his views on the issue. Dozier says his...
MEDICAL CANNABIS GARDENS ALSO OUTLAWED BY CITY COUNCIL RULING DAYTON - The Dayton City Council on Monday night passed an ordinance banning growing, processing and sales of marijuana in the city. Under the new law, recreational marijuana businesses will not be allowed within city limits, and medical cannabis gardens will also be prohibited. The vote was 5-1 in favor of the ban. Council members Delphine Bailey, Kathy Berg, Christine Broughton, Byron Kaczmarski and Mike Paris voted yes, while counc...
DAYTON - Columbia Pulp expects to begin production at its new facility near Lyons Ferry in the fourth quarter of 2015. Recruiting for production/ operations positions is anticipated to begin in the second quarter of 2015. Columbia Pulp will coordinate hiring for those positions through WorkSource Walla Walla, located at 1530 Stevens in Walla Walla. All job openings will be posted on go2worksource.com at that time. The company will begin recruiting for salaried management, operations, technical and administration positions in the first quarter...
DAYTON - During this weekend's Columbia County Fair, special needs people from throughout the area will participate in faux rodeo events in the Exceptional Rodeo produced by Rascal Rodeo. The rodeo will be held on Saturday, from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Participants of all ages will be paired with local youth volunteers, champion cowboys and cowgirls, fair royalty and other community volunteers. Their partners will help them be cowboys and cowgirls for the day by learning the different events in rodeo....
DAYTON - The Columbia County Fairgrounds comes alive this weekend as kids and adults bring their animals and crafts to show to the world. This year's fair will feature livestock showing by 4-H and FFA members from Dayton and Waitsburg, food and craft displays in the pavilion and lots of interactive activities on the midway. Food, drink and live entertainment are in store every day. Animal Showing 4-H and FFA kids have been raising their animals all year in preparation for the fair. Adults can...
WAITSBURG - Eight-year-old Makenna Barron says she can only recall one of the two times she attended the Pendleton Round-Up. She will attend for her third time next week and this visit she won't forget. The pint-sized cowgirl will kick off the week of rodeos by singing the national anthem in the Happy Canyon arena at Monday's opening night PBR Classic rodeo. Makenna, who reigned as Miss Rodeo Washington Sweetheart last year, has rodeo in her blood. Her mom, Tracy Barron, belonged to the Pro...
DAYTON - The Columbia County Commissioners last week approved a request by the Mule Mania committee to allow the popular event to be held on Memorial Day Weekend beginning next year. It will continue to be held at the Columbia County Fairgrounds. For the past four years, Mule Mania has run during mid-July. According to committee chairman Les Teel, one of the primary reasons the committee sought a date earlier in the year was hot weather. "We lost between 30 and 50 registered participants...
WALLA WALLA - Local students and parents got a sneak peek at the brand new Southeast Area Technical Skills Center (SEATECH) located on the Walla Walla Community College Campus Monday night. The Skills Center will be open to the public for tours during a dedication ceremony on September 18, but students who will begin classes in the facility on Tuesday were able to tour the $11.5 million facility and talk with teachers at an Open House on Monday night. The Center is a branch campus of the...
WAITSBURG - It was an unusually full house at last week's City Council meeting, at least through the first item on the agenda: discussion and action on the new public art selection finalists. Members of the Waitsburg Art Commission, community members and artists alike were on hand to offer input on the final Council approval of the two bronze sculptures -- to reside on Main Street -- selected by the Commission earlier this month. On August 13 artists Jeffrey Hill and Squire Broel presented...
PRESCOTT - "Being out of balance - everyone has their own version of what that is," Melissa Lee told the group that gathered last week at Prescott's Lions Hall. "But they're usually uncomfortable." Lee, owner of Walla Walla based Melissa Lee Acupuncture, gave a presentation and workshop on "The Science of Acupuncture and Eastern Medicine" in Prescott last Monday night. The free event began with a brief presentation on acupuncture, its history, and its benefits. Acupuncture, Lee said, was...
DAYTON - The Columbia County Sheriff's Office arrested 31-year-old Dayton resident Brandon John on Monday following two suspicious fires reported early that morning on Pettyjohn Grade Road and Robinette Mountain. Columbia County deputies have been investigating a series of suspicious fires over the last few months, according to court documents. John became the primary suspect after deputies and fire fighters noted the presence of his girlfriend's car near the scene of the Pettyjohn Grade fire,...
DAYTON - The Columbia County Auditor's Office announced Tuesday that Randy O. Lewis's name will be added to the general election ballot this year as a challenger to County Prosecutor Rea Culwell. Lewis, who challenged Culwell in her 2010 reelection bid and lost, received 18 write-in votes in this year's primary election. Culwell was running unopposed. According to Washington State law, if a write-in candidate receives at least one percent of the total votes cast in a race, he or she is eligible...
WAITSBURG - Most parents want to teach their children compassion and generosity, but it's often difficult to involve young children in service ministries. That's what led Jamie Gleason and Angela Jones to organize The Kids' Big Give last Thanksgiving. Both mothers wanted to serve alongside their children, teaching them the joy of giving in a practical way. That project, which was initially intended to provide a Thanksgiving dinner for two families, took a life of its own. Dozens of local...
DAYTON - The Dayton City Council has scheduled a public hearing August 25 to take comments on the City's draft marijuana ordinance. The hearing will be held at 7 p.m. during the council's regular meeting at City Hall. During their meeting Monday night, the council approved the first reading of the draft ordinance, but took no action. According to City Planning Director Karen Scharer, members of the public are invited to make oral comments during the upcoming public hearing. Written comments are...
DAYTON - During their August 6 meeting, the Columbia County Board of Commissioners voted unanimously to deny a zoning text amendment that would have significantly changed the land use in the AR-1 zone in Columbia County. The amendment, which was requested by Monteillet Fromagerie owners Pierre Louis and Joan Monteillet, would have allowed on-site sales of any agricultural-related product in the AR-1 zone, regardless of where it was produced. Prior to the commissioners' vote, County Prosecuting...
WALLA WALLA - Incumbent Sheriff John Turner received less than half of the votes cast in Tuesday's primary election, but easily outpolled his two challengers. Tom Cooper appears to have bested fellow deputy Barry Blackman, by less than five percentage points, and will move on to face Turner in the general election in November. All three candidates were running as Republicans. Preliminary results Tuesday show that Turner received 4,874 votes, which was 45.5% of the votes cast. Cooper received...
DAYTON - Republicans Merle Jackson and Dwight Richter will face off in November for the open District 3 position on Columbia County Board of Commissioners. In Tuesday's primary election, Richter, who wasn't on the ballot but filed as a write-in candidate last month, placed second in the balloting, beating Dain Nysoe, who filed as a Democrat. Jackson was the top vote-getter, receiving more than 50% of the votes cast. Only voters in District 3 cast ballots for commissioner in the primary...
