Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
Sorted by date Results 26 - 41 of 41
COLFAX — The Whitman County Library’s Colfax branch is listed on the Washington Heritage Register. It is recognized for the historic significance of the neo-expressionist design and its importance in the education of county residents. The 1960 building was designed by Spokane architect Warren C. Heylman, whose work also includes the Spokane International Airport and the Parkade Plaza parking garage in Spokane. The Colfax library is the first of his buildings named to the state’s Heritage Register. The listing came about after Sue Halle...
DIAMOND — A 300-foot platted alley in block two of Diamond was vacated by the Whitman County commissioners. The commissioners held a hearing on July 6. No public comment was made about releasing the land the county was responsible to maintain. Public Works Director Mark Storey told commissioners the county had no plans for the ground that was platted at the founding of the Diamond community. Residents petitioned the county to vacate it and county commissioners agreed. The ground now becomes a property that may be used by adjacent landowners. ...
BELMONT — A new Belmont bridge receives a 35-foot steel deck on July 12. It’s to be placed over a lower deck built by the county bridge crew. The $49,000 deck is to be topped in gravel and expected to be open to traffic the following week. The project replaces an old wood bridge, which had started to rot. The work began on June 1 and it’s led by Bob Sevedge, the county bridge supervisor, and Robby Johnson, the bridge foreman. Belmont is an area southeast of Oakesdale along State Route 27 where it intersects with Black Road....
COLFAX — Whitman County has a new building inspector. Ginny Rumiser was a permit technician at the front desk in the county public works office for the past 23 years. Rumiser is a certified residential building inspector and performed inspections. She takes over for Dan Gladwill. He left the job on June 30 after 17 years and plans to move to Key West, Fla. Gladwill remains on retainer as a consultant to do building plan reviews since Rumiser is not certified....
COLFAX — The State Route 195 and State Route 26 bridges, at the north end of Colfax, were closed for about an hour on July 12. At about 8 a.m. lanes were closed for an annual inspection by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT). Lanes were closed as the crew from Olympia used a truck and bucket to reach under each span. Each bridge passed inspection, according to WSDOT....
COLFAX - The Colfax Rotary Club dedicated a new softball backstop and fencing at Little League Park on July 8. The project cost $11,000. It was paid in part by the hotel-motel tax from the City of Colfax. The improvements are a higher backstop than the previous 12-foot wall and new fencing along the baselines. "It's a real backstop instead of a fence," said Mark Clinton, rotary boardmember. Junior softball is for kids up to the fifth-grade level. The rotary club met at the Methodist Church for...
COLFAX - Randy Miller served Colfax as a volunteer firefighter for years and now he is the newest deputy for the Whitman County Sheriff's Office. "I've known of him for the last 10 years through the fire department," said Undersheriff Chris Chapman. "I don't think there is a person who doesn't get along with him." Miller returned from the Basic Law Enforcement Academy in Spokane on July 7 and began his field training two days later. He joins the 18 deputies working for the sheriff's office. He's...
CHENEY - A Colville man was named All-Around Cowboy after taking home the most money from the three-day Cheney Rodeo. Travis James Eller took home $2,058 after competing in tie-down roping and team roping, according to Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA) standings. He and partner Brett Hale, of Tenino, tied for third place with 7.8 seconds. Eller took fourth in tie-down roping with a time of 12.8 seconds. While Eller was posting good times in roping, another Colville resident was busy...
MOSCOW - The Colfax Babe Ruth Baseball team took the Latah County League championship with an 11-5 win over Potlatch on July 8 in Moscow, Idaho. The Colfax team is players ranging in age from 13 to 15 years old. The team has one player from St. John and one from Oakesdale. Colfax advanced to the final game with a walk. During the tournament, they beat Pullman 18-17 in the semifinals when Isaac Nelson drew a walk to bring in J.P. Wigen for the winning run. In the third inning, the game hit the...
COLFAX — Whitman County starts on an $8.9 million remodeling project of county facilities in the fall. The project replaces the heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning system (HVAC) and the elevator to meet the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Asbestos is being removed from the building, lights upgraded, and cables replaced to handle the latest information technology. The building’s electrical power is being upgraded. All the windows are being replaced to meet current energy standards. The insulated padding that makes up the out...
COLFAX — Ballots are in the mail for the primary election. The 18-day voting period runs from July 16 to Aug. 3. Up for election in Whitman County are two city council positions in Malden, one in Palouse, one in Pullman, and the election of a Cheney School District director. Each race has three candidates. Races with one or two candidates are held during the general election. Part of the Cheney School District is in Whitman County. Chad Smith, Susanne G. Dolle, and Zachary Zorrozua seek to be the director for District 2. For council position N...
COLFAX — Wraylee Flodin is the new Whitman County assessor. The county commissioners made the appointment on July 6. She takes over after the death of Robin Jones in June. Flodin was the chief deputy treasurer after working in the treasurer’s office for four years and moved to the assessor’s office with her appointment. “It’s a whole different world even though it’s the other side of the same coin from the treasurer’s office,” she said. “Learning the system before levy rate calculations is going to be my biggest challenge.” The move is to a di...
COLFAX - The veteran Colfax coach started a stunted basketball season not expecting much, but it ended better than he hoped. The Bulldogs boys basketball team took the Northeast 2B League championship, and for Coach Reece Jenkin, another league Coach of the Year award. He was recognized a third time. His junior guard, John Lustig, received a second back-to-back Northeast 2B League Player of the Year honor. "I really look at that as a team (distinction)," said Jenkin, in his thirteenth year at...
CLARKSTON - Smoke could be seen from Clarkston as three wildland fires merged into two, one being 100% contained on Monday. The closest is the Silcott Fire, which is 2 miles west of Asotin and was burning 8,633 acres on July 12 and is 100% contained. "We do not expect the fire to grow or spread outside its current borders," said a spokesperson. Fire began burning brush and tall grass on July 7. No structures were lost. The firefighting is managed by Asotin County Fire District 1, the Washington...
OLYMPIA – Gov. Jay Inslee declared an emergency drought for most of the state on July 14. The drought affects every county in the state but excludes an area that encompasses most of King County, half of Snohomish County, and Tacoma by itself. It stretches from north of Everett to south of Kent. Tacoma is the only area in Pierce County not impacted by the drought, according to the state. "Many areas of (Washington) are currently under the stress of these extreme drought conditions," said I...
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