Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 1278 - 1302 of 1905
The Grizzly Bear Complex Fire mostly stopped growing a couple of weeks ago, but it still covers about 116 square miles of the Wenaha Tucannon Wilderness and surrounding lands. While many areas in the interior of the fire still smolder away, fire crews from around the country, and even the world, are keeping the perimeter from growing. Last Thursday I got a close-up look at the efforts of some of the more than 1,000 people who were either fighting the fire then, or supporting the firefighting...
Elgin, Ore. – While recent weather has been useful in stopping the growth of Grizzly Bear Complex fires in the short run, fire managers know that it has just slowed the fire down for now. Firefighters are mindful of the extended forecast, which includes warm fall days, and the fact that large fuel that burn for a long time are extremely dry from the extended drought that has affected the Inland Northwest. With these factors in mind, the southern portions will continue mop-up, and containment lines along the south and west will continue to be re...
DAYTON – The Columbia County Transfer Station (500 Cottonwood St.) re-opened, following a recent fire at the facility, on Thursday, Sept. 3. The station is operating regular business hours but users will find the entrance and exit to the dump have changed during the temporary set-up. Normal business hours are Tues. and Thurs. from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sat. from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. The transfer station accepts appliances, tires, oil, paint, paper, glass, aluminum, and cardboard. Green waste items are accepted through Oct. and should not be l...
Waitsburg High School FFA members are a hardy crew. . ....
First Appearance/Arraignment: Joseph John Richter, 31, homeless; entered not guilty plea to one count of violiation of uniform controlled substance act – possession of amphetamine, a Class C felony; one count of violation of uniform controlled substance act – use of drug paraphernalia, a misdemeanor; two counts of criminal trespass in the second degree, a misdemeanor; one count of contempt of court, a misdemeanor; one count of criminal trespass in the first degree, a gross misdemeanor; one count of reckless burning in the second degree, a gro...
DAYTON – In an effort to encourage visitors and residents to spend time, and hopefully money, in downtown Dayton, three entities have joined forces on a two-phase project to enhance Dayton's downtown historic district. Phase one of that project, the construction of year-round, ADA-compliant public restrooms, broke ground this month. The Dayton Development Task Force, the Dayton Historic Depot Society and the City of Dayton have partnered together to continue improvements to the Commercial S...
DAYTON – The Columbia County Planning Commission gave its approval last month to a proposed new county ordinance which would add much-needed teeth to the county’s ability to enforce its zoning and health codes. The proposed code-enforcement ordinance would be a completely new document for the county, according to County Planning Director Kim Lyonnais. It stemmed from a need shared by his office and the county prosecutor’s office, he said. Lyonnais said that he and his staff have become very frus...
FFA Swine Jennifer Warren: Blue Market, Blue Fitting and Showing FFA Beef Logan Hersey: Blue Market, Blue Fitting and Showing Bryeanna Myrick: Blue Fitting and Showing 4-H Swine Dan Magill-Katsel: Blue Market, Blue Fitting and Showing 4-H Beef Sadie Seney: Blue Market, Champion Fitting and Showing Jessie Atteberry: Blue Market, Blue Fitting and Showing 4-H Sheep Anna Fortier: Blue Market, Blue Fitting and Showing Josilyn Fullerton: Blue Market, Blue Fitting and Showing Shaelyn Fortier: Blue Market, Blue Fitting and Showing Tayven Seney: Blue...
DAYTON – A 2,700 acre wildfire continued to burn this week in the Tucannon River valley about 20 miles east of here. The Tucannon Fire came close to several structures along the Tucannon Road Saturday night, including those at the KOA Last Resort RV Park. However, as of Tuesday, no homes or other structures had been lost. According to Information Officer Jeff Sevigney of the Northeast Washington Interagency Incident Management Team, the fire was called in about 9:30 a.m. Saturday. It a...
DAYTON – The Columbia County Department of Emergency Management put out an "all call" for volunteers late Saturday evening to help feed more than 100 firefighters working on the Tucannon Fire 20 miles east of here. "We had a wonderful response," said Emergency Management Director Lisa Caldwell. "Dayton Mercantile opened their doors especially for us, and we went shopping." Steve's Grocery owners also opened their store for the shoppers. Thirteen volunteers showed up at 11:30 p.m. at the C...
Columbia County Superior Court August 19, 2015 First Appearance/Arraignment: Salvador Duran Saucedo, Jr., 25, Milton-Freewater, Ore.; entered a not guilty plea on charges of attempting to elude a pursuing police vehicle, a Class C felony, and driving while license suspended, third degree, a misdemeanor. Deputies attempted to pull over Saucedo’s vehicle and he failed to yield, then fled on foot. He was already wanted on a Walla Walla warrant for vehicle prowl and malicious mischief. Two other wanted individuals were also arrested at the s...
DAYTON – Christina Betts said she's always adhered to the advice of her father, who subscribed to the adage, "if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is." Still, she didn't deter husband Jon from responding to a Craigslist ad promoting a "wonderful career opportunity" with the ability to take over ownership of an existing, successful restaurant. Columbia County Economic Development Coordinator Brad McMasters placed the ad in an effort to help former Manila Bay Café owners, Justin Jaech an...
DAYTON – The first Columbia County Fair was held in Dayton by the Columbia County Agricultural Association in 1888. With the exception of three war years, it has been held every year since. That first fair featured horse racing, trotting and harness races. Pavilion displays (before the current Pavilion) featured the skills of homemakers and farmers' crops, much as they do today. Games were put on for kids, and pie and watermelon eating contests were enjoyed by everyone. This year's 125th C...
[Editor’s Note: Following is the U.S. Forest Service update on the Grizzly Bear Complex Fire for Tuesday morning.] Elgin, Ore. – A second contingent of 155 National Guard Members arrived in Elgin yesterday bringing the number of personnel fighting the 74,471 acre Grizzly Bear Complex to 1,056. With a formidable show of efficiency, the Guards swapped uniforms for green pants and yellow shirts, packed their line gear and climbed into the back of personnel carriers for deployment to the southern flank of the fire by 6 a.m. this morning. Their add...
DAYTON – The U.S. Forest Service has set up a branch fire management office at the Columbia County Fire District 3 station east of Dayton to oversee firefighting efforts in the northern part of the Grizzly Bear Complex Fire, known as Branch I. The Grizzly Bear fire covers nearly 75,000 acres (more than 115 square miles) in Washington and Oregon. Fire management sites have also been setup in Troy, Ore. and Fry Meadows, Ore., for Branches II and III respectively. The main incident command post overseeing the entire fire operation for the F...
Dayton Elementary School kids and their parents were welcomed back to school......
A family gathered in front of the Columbia County Courthouse Tuesday morning to look over the latest updates on the Grizzly Bear Complex Fire . . ....
DAYTON – During a special meeting on Monday, the Columbia County Board of Commissioners rejected a motion to ban growing, processing and sales of marijuana in the unincorporated parts of the county. The motion to ban, which was made by Commissioner Merle Jackson, failed on a 2-1 vote, with Commissioners Dwight Robanske and Mike Talbott voting against. After the vote, the commissioners asked Columbia County Planning Director Kim Lyonnais and County Prosecutor Rea Culwell, who were both in a...
DAYTON – Columbia County Superior Court Judge Scott Gallina has postponed the trial of Levi Helgerson, of Dayton, who is charged with first degree assault of a child. The trial was originally scheduled to begin this week, but was reset for November 2, and may last as many as eight days. According to Columbia County Prosecutor Rea Culwell, problems with Columbia County’s jury notice system left the court with too few potential jurors for the trial. The judge agreed to delay the trial to allow recruitment of a full pool of potential jurors. Hel...
DAYTON – They say that 'absence makes the heart grow fonder,' and that truism turned out to be a career-changer for Dayton's new library director, Dusty Waltner. While pursuing a doctorate degree in geography, Waltner found herself, for first time since her teens, not employed by a library. The realization of how much she missed that work eventually resulted in Waltner earning a library degree and landing her role as the current director of the Columbia County Rural Library District (CCRLD). W...
County has purchased former PGE office on E. Clay for Prosecutor DAYTON – The Columbia County Prosecutor's Office will move to a new location on South Clay Street in Dayton next month. According to Prosecutor Rea Culwell, the Columbia County Commissioners have agreed to purchase the building at 215 East Clay Street, next door to the County Planning office. The sale was expected to close this week. The building formerly housed the Portland General Electric Dayton office during the construction o...
[Editor's Note: the following information was released Tuesday morning by the Umatilla National Forest Fire Information Office.] ELGIN, Ore. – Firefighters continue to make overall progress containing the Grizzly Bear Complex fire. Direct and indirect firelines were improved and 5% containment was achieved. A new fire started yesterday afternoon near the north edge of the Grizzly Bear Complex. Named Green Ridge, it is burning in mixed fuel (grass, timber, slash). Although 60% contained y...
Forty-five children, between the ages of five and 18, from Dayton, Waitsburg and surrounding communities entertained the crowds in two performances of the Missoula Children's Theatre production of Aladdin at Dayton's Liberty Theater on Friday and Saturday nights....
DAYTON – Earlier this month, HomeStreet, Inc. announced its plans to acquire the AmericanWest Bank branch here. The transaction is subject to several conditions, one of which is the closing of a previously announced merger between AmericanWest Bank and Banner Bank. Waitsburg's AmericanWest Bank branch will still merge with Banner Bank, as previously announced. Dayton's branch is the only AmericanWest Bank branch not merging with Banner Bank. A press release from HomeStreet said the company's a...
DAYTON – In June, planning and building employees began the process of updating Columbia County’s ordinances regarding the violation of building codes and the regulation and abatement of public nuisances. County commissioners had asked Planning Director Kim Lyonnais and his team to add “teeth” to the current rules. After a brief look around the county, Lyonnais and his department located more than 40 violations of building codes. Problems include everything from residents running unlicen...
