Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
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The Port of Whitman is taking the next step in improving roads and the drainage system at the Port of Whitman Air Center. The Flightline Drive Realignment/Drainage Improvement Project would include paving existing airport access roads and installing a new drainage infrastructure, said Debbie Snell, Port of Whitman properties and development manager. This project has been approved by the Federal Aviation Administration. Snell said based on estimates from engineers, the total project is expected to cost in the $550,000 range. The port is in the...
The blood-feeding parasites known as ticks are showing up at a rapid pace as the weather warms up. Dusty farmer Kimberley Gustafson said she noticed tick infestations were heavy along the Alkali Creek and a large number were found on her cattle and and horses. Gustafson said their cattle prevention technique was successful this year. They use a skin treatment that they pour over their cattle, and it goes throughout the cattle’s system before the tick season picks up. She said area ticks are most active at the end of March, through early May. ...
The city of Palouse may take on the redevelopment of its Brownfields environmental cleanup site. Mayor Michael Echanove made a pitch at the May 14 city council meeting. The city advertised for requests for proposals in 2018 and expanded the scope in 2019 for the approximately 100x200-foot long riverfront site, which was a former welding shop, gas station and fuel storage facility, torn down in 2012. Another building on the site was dismantled. The city received no proposals in its initial...
A National Weather Service meteorologist last week reported their radars did not catch the rain storm that led to flooding of N. Grand Street in Pullman. Warning Coordination Meteorologist Andy Brown told the Whitman County Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) the weather radar in Spokane was not working properly during the flood. The forecast showed the rain would lighten up when it hit Pullman, but the radar was actually scanning above rain clouds which delivered the blow to north Pullman....
Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Dan Newhouse released a joint statement urging Washington Governor Jay Inslee to veto the $750,000 line item in the capital budget that would commission a state-funded study on breaching the federally-owned and operated Snake River dams: “This study is a waste of state taxpayer dollars. We stand with the people of Central and Eastern Washington who rely on the Snake River dams in calling for Governor Inslee to veto the $750,000 line item in the capital budget. Instead of studying the removal of our federal d...
The town of Lamont tops the listing for seats still needing candidates for the fall election, according to a list posted by the auditor's office at the start of a three-day extended filing session which started at the election office Tuesday. The office of Lamont mayor and four town council seats failed to attract a candidate during last week's regular filing period. Steve Ulrich is listed as Lamont's mayor, and Vicki Falkenstein and Bob Falkenstein are listed as incumbents in county seats 2 and 3. The auditor's listing of open seats lists...
The estate of Robert Osborne, long-time host of the Turner Classic Movies television series, has left $200,000 to the Colfax Schools Foundation, a fund which generates revenue for presentation of scholarships to Colfax High School graduates. The estate also left $8,000 which will be awarded in scholarships to members of this year’s class. The award this year was made as a prelude for following years, when revenue is expected to be generated by the $200,000 donation once it is added to the foundation’s investment fund. Osborne, who was born in...
Chris Cook, Palouse city councilman and school board member, has filed to run for mayor to succeed four-term mayor Michael Echanove, who announced earlier this year he would not seek a fifth term. Cook is a 14-year Palouse resident and seven-year school board member. He was appointed to the planning commission three years ago, from which he resigned, in order to take on the city council role last March. Cook last week filed for re-election to the district one seat on the school board, but he withdrew and filed for the mayor's chair. The school...
Whitman County commissioners discussed topics, like sweeping interest to the Public Works fund and adjusting credit card fees during a workshop session Monday morning. Washington made changes several years ago to allow county commissioners to take interest of any account and deposit it in the general fund, said Public Works Director Mark Storey. He said during that time the county general fund was in financial trouble, so the commissioners "swept" the interest revenue to go into the general fund. “At one point back in our history, it was a b...
The Whitman County public health officer updated the Whitman County Board of Health on Monday about preparation in the event measles were to come to eastern Washington. Brad Bowman, Whitman County health officer, said if a measles outbreak were to happen in Whitman County, adult vaccines would be hard to find. He said through private insurance, pharmacies have vaccines in stock, but through the state for anyone not insured, it can be a hang up. "It's going to be a zero to 60 kind of thing, if...
Jordyn Moehrle of Colton High School Monday was named one of two recipients of the seventh annual Smart Choices Scholarship which is presented by Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA), Dairy Farmers of Washington and Les Schwab Tires. The winners each receive a $5,000 scholarship to the school of their choice. Moehrle plans to attend the University of South Carolina to pursue international trade law. Zach Victor of Federal Way High School is the other winner. In addition to...
John Jaeger, who resigned last October after 11 years in office as Tekoa's mayor, filed to run for city council. He will vie for position no. 3, held by Bethany Fletcher, who also filed for election to the nonpartisan office. Fletcher was appointed last fall to fill the seat of Jason Fletcher, who resigned. Jaeger was elected to his third term as Tekoa mayor in 2016 and was never opposed. He previously served on the town council for one year. After Jaeger's resignation as mayor, Councilman Troy...
County commissioners opened bids for two parts of countywide road safety improvement projects Monday. For guardrails they chose the apparent low of $386,419 from M2 Industrial, Inc., of Ellensburg. A total of three bids came in, the other two from Frank Gurney, Inc., of Spokane Valley at $407,86.50 and Peterson Brothers of Sumner, Wash., at $465,705.31. The Public Works department will now review the winning bid to make sure it fits all parameters, with expected award June 3. By law, commissioners choose the lowest bid. For rumble strips,...
Whitman County Public Works department will hold a meeting May 29 at the county's solid waste facility off Highway 195 between Colfax and Pullman on plans for a new moderate risk waste (MRW) facility. The operation would be for household hazardous waste, including paint, pesticides, certain household cleaners, batteries and more. “All the nasty things people don't want in their garages,” said Mark Storey, Public Works director. The meeting is a kickoff gathering with Storey; David Nails, solid waste operations manager; a county consultant, and...
Whitman County commissioners took in an update Monday from Mark Storey, Public Works director, on a stalled resolution involving a fence damaged during the snows of February and early March. On both sides of Belsby Road, at the northwest edge of the county, approximately 8,200 feet of fence was hit by snow thrown from plows along county right-of-way ground. On that stretch, north of Rock Lake, front-end loaders were used on drifts to scoop and dump snow to the side of the road. Right-of-way...
A summer-long paving project on Highway 195 between Rosalia and Plaza Road started Monday. Richard Shelling, WSDOT assistant project engineer, said construction crews will grind off the top asphalt surface and then will repave the 7.8-mile stretch of road. Construction will start at the State 271 interchange in Rosalia. Shelling said construction is expected to continue for 35 working days. Shelling said the majority of the work will be conducted at night, but there will be some day-time work. A detour will be in place during construction. The...
Charges of second-degree assault filed May 15 in superior court relate to a Feb. 22 Pullman Police investigation of a fight at the SAE fraternity house on NE B Street on College Hill in Pullman. Charged with second-degree assault were Markus Chanthao, 21, and Samuel L. Burke, 21. The arrest report by Officer Holden Humphrey said he and four other Pullman officers responded to a report of a fight at the fraternity at 10:53 p.m. The report said the alleged victim, Connor McCabe, had been assaulted by three people who removed him from the...
A state audit report issued May 13 on a three-year audit for the Town of Rosalia reported auditors were unable to audit town records for 2016 because they could not locate the files for that year. The records were believed to have been boxed up at the end of the year. The report said the employee in charge of the process is no longer employed with the town, and the records could not be located while the state auditors were present. Town revenues for 2016 were stated to be $696,247, and expenditures for the year were stated at $710,264. The repo...
The Local Records Grant Program, which provides funding to Washington counties and towns to organize records, was extended indefinitely last Tuesday with a law signed by Governor Jay Inslee. The grant program had a set amount of years which has now been lifted. Colfax City Clerk Lynda Kramlich said Colfax was awarded the grant of $5,500 last year to organize records, buy shelving and boxes to store the public records. “It helps small entities be successful with organizing their records,” Kramlich said. According to a state news release, $1....
Natural Resources Conservation Service is accepting proposals through July 15, 2019, for on-farm trials, a new sub-program created by the 2018 Farm Bill for the USDA’s conservation innovation grants program. Trials include a soil health demo trial, also created by the 2018 Farm Bill. USDA is investing up to $25 million per year over the next five years to help support the adoption and evaluation of innovative conservation approaches on agricultural lands. “Our conservation innovation grants program is time-tested, highly successful and has led...
Ashley Rockwell of Pullman was awarded a Jacqueline Boles Graduate Teaching Fellowship from Georgia State University. Now studying for a doctorate degree, she is a sociology major and was recognized this spring during college honors night....
Oakesdale girls stacked an amazing 184.5 points Friday and Saturday at the regional qualifier on the Central Valley track to pave their way back to the state finals at Eastern Washington University this weekend. The Oakesdale point total was 79.5 ahead of the 105 second-place tally logged by league foe Pomeroy. St. John/Endicott/ LaCrosse girls came in a close third with 94. Oakesdale will return to the 1B finals where they dueled Trout Lake last year and landed in second by a scant three...
Colfax boy nipped Asotin by one-half of a point when the long regional meet was over Saturday at Central Valley. The slim win was tallied after Colfax was credited for a half point from a tie in the long jump where Dakota Hall tied Garrett Naught of TR. Naught was rated fourth for the state entry, but Hall was credited for team points for the tie and that made the difference. Colfax finished with 101.5, and Asotin finished with 101. The two teams swapped wins in the league and sub-district...