Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
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First ballot count for Whitman County Tuesday night turned up a strong lead for John Hart in the race for district judge and a seven percent lead for Cathy McMorris Rodgers in the high profile race for the fifth district congressional race. The first ballot count at the elections office totaled out at 6,449 which amounts to just more than 25 percent of the ballots which were distributed for the election. Total count of registered voters for the general election is 25,130. The count was for...
Whitman County Commissioners Monday reviewed a report on the county’s liability insurance coverage and costs and have scheduled a Nov. 19 meeting date for a decision on whether or not to change their approach. The decision will be whether or not to send a letter stating their intent to shop around for insurance policies to the Washington Rural Counties Insurance Program (WRCIP). This letter will not obligate the county to actually change companies, but will allow the option. The WRCIP is a p...
Palouse city council members were set to consider a preliminary 2019 budget at their Tuesday night meeting, a year after approving an eight percent raise for city employees. Later this month, public hearings will be held for input on the budget Nov. 13 and Nov. 27. By state law, the city is required to pass a budget by Dec. 31. The preliminary numbers Tuesday were submitted by Mayor Michael Echanove. He and City Administrator Kyle Dixon gathered input from department heads beginning in August....
John Jaeger resigned Oct. 31 after 11 years as Tekoa mayor. The city council has 90 days to appoint a successor. Troy Wilson is now the acting mayor as mayor pro-tem. Jaeger was elected to his third term in 2016. Never opposed in election, he first took office in 2007 followimg the resignation of Richard Weatherly. Jaeger had been on the city council for one year. “I thought it was just time,” he said of his resignation. “Sometimes, in this position, you make people unhappy, you can’t not. I...
Bank of Eastern Oregon, a subsidiary of BEO Bancorp, announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Umpqua Bank branches in Colfax, Dayton, LaCrosse and Pomeroy. Jeff Bailey, President and CEO for Bank of Eastern Oregon, said the bank’s expansion into Washington began nearly five years ago when they acquired Bank Reale in Pasco. “We see the addition of these Umpqua branches as a natural progression of expanding our brand of banking to rural communities in eastern Washington,” Bailey said. The transaction is expec...
Whitman County commissioners approved two new rock crushing contracts to Seubert Excavators of Cottonwood, Idaho, which submitted the winning bid for Doneen Quarry, east of Oakesdale, and a Pullman South stockpile site to be determined. For Doneen, Seubert bid $359,000, beating out De Atley Crushing of Lewiston, Idaho, which bid $567,500 for the job to provide 60,000 tons of crushed basalt gravel in four types; top course gravel, 3/8-inch chips for chip-sealing, 1/4-inch minus for sanding, and crushed screenings for gravel road maintenance....
After an eight-month delay, The Red Brick Café had its official soft opening Oct. 22. The delay was caused by what owner/manager Kris Sheets referred to as 'newbie naivete.' They needed to finish building cabinets, put in flooring and finish getting the details together. "It reiterated how patience and perseverance can work out in a positive way," said Sheets. The Red Brick Café owners, Kris and Gary Sheets, moved to Rosalia from California in 2011. Gary works full-time at Eastern Washington U...
Jolie Pierce, left, and Kay Riebold, right, present a $1,000 Washington Federal Foundation check to Christine O'Keefe, manager of Coast Transportation, for the Council on Aging and Human Services. The donation was made by the bank to partner with the The Council on Aging and Human Services to enhance lives and grow communities by providing nutrition and transportation services. The grant will help the Council on Aging replace their ADA accessible vans....
The Garfield/Palouse Middle School will hold its annual Veteran’s Day assembly Nov. 9 at 9:30 a.m. in the gym. The itinerary features keynote speaker Colonel Douglas B. Salmon, U.S. Air Force, retired, along with introduction of veterans and the Patriot’s Pen Award presentation by Dave Irving, VFW Post 10300, Commander. Music will be from the Garfield Banner Singers, the Garfield/Palouse/Oakesdale Singers, including soloist Danny Laughary. The event will also include a color guard salute to local veterans who have died in recent years. Col. Sal...
A newly revamped Veterans Memorial will be dedicated Wednesday, Nov. 14, at Whitman Hospital and Medical Center. Ceremonies will begin at 3 p.m. in the hospital lobby with an open house and refreshments served until 6 p.m. The event is open to the public and will feature a patriotic tribute performed by Colfax High School choral members. Visitors can also meet the memorial artist, a Washington State University design professor and Colfax resident, Bob Krikac. For more information, contact Becky Dickerson, Hospital Foundation Coordinator, at...
STATE MEASURES Initiative Measure No,. 1631 Concerns pollution. Charge pollution fees on sources of green house gas pollutants and use revenue to reduce pollution, promote clean energy and address climate impacts under oversight of a public board. Should this measure be enacted into law? Yes 2,379, 37.5% No 3,968, 62.5% Initiative Measure No. 1634 Concerns taxation of certain items intended for human consumption. Measure would prohibit new or increased local taxes, fees or assessments on raw or processed foods or beverages or ingredients...
An attorney representing the WSU student who received a $40,000 settlement agreement on his suit alleging damages after colliding with a University of Southern California football player after last fall's football game in Martin Stadium, has alleged USC is making an effort to "cleanse the record." Seattle attorney Susan Machler was asked by the court to prepare an order after the court ruled USC had delayed payment of the agreed settlement. She noted the agreement had been reached in August and signed Oct. 5 by USC's attorney and Oct. 10 by...
Rosalia senior Gage Merritt finished his high school cross country career with a third-place finish Saturday in the all-B state race at Sun Willow golf course in Pasco. The top qualifier from the last week's regional Merritt tracked Austen Apperson of Adna and North Phillips of Northwest Christian of Lacey around the hilly SW course. Apperson, who booked the fastest time among last week's regional winners, finished with a 25-second gap over Phillips, and Merritt was 10 seconds back of Phillips...
Oakesdale and Pomeroy, the two SE foes during V-net campaign, rolled into the SunDome with two SE entries for the state finals at Yakima. Oakesdale topped Pomeroy in a four-game battle Friday on the Oakesdale court in the final SE round for the lone state ticket guaranteed to the SE. In the consolation round, Pomeroy topped Colton for the last SE chance at state and then hit the road again Saturday and downed Odessa, a number-three qualifier from the NE league, for the last ticket to state. The...
Football season for the Colfax Bulldogs came to end Friday at Chewelah where the Cougars, top team on from the north side of the NE League, blanked Colfax 35-0 in the crossover round. Chewelah, Reardan and Northwest Christian advanced to the state's first round of 16 teams which will start the four-week elimination run to the title game Nov. 30 at the Tacoma Dome. Colfax rolled to Chewelah Friday as the third-place finisher on the NE-South league to face the Cougars who were the top finishers...
The 2018 Garfield/Palouse football season ended on the Vikings' field Tuesday night in a first round playoff game against Lyle/Wishram, two towns across the river from the Dalles, Ore. The Cougars, with a bullet train of a running back, handled Gar/Pal 38-16, advancing to play next at home against Entiat – with 16 1B teams remaining in action around the state. The Viking stayed close in the first half, trailing 20-16 to start the third quarter before Lyle/Wishram began to take control. G...
State volleyball finals will crank up at Tacoma's SunDome today without the Colfax Bulldogs, a fixture in the 2B finals, absent. The young Colfax team spun out in their bid for another trip to the state tournament with two match defeats Thursday in the district finals at St. George's. The Bulldogs lost to Asotin in a marathon match in the semi-final round and were then knocked off by Lind/Ritzville/Sprague in the consolation round. Asotin jumped out to a 2-0 game lead in the semi match, but the...
It is amazing, but true. The American people are in agreement on a political issue. Consensus is overwhelming. It is something not seen in a long time. This goes beyond Tuesday’s election results. In fact, it may be more fundamental than who won and who lost. According to a recent poll, nearly 80 percent of Americans are fearful that the political divides will lead to violence. The poll indicates they are afraid. Both parties are guilty of playing hardball continuously. They give the other party no quarter, and it is not always over the most im...
Pet Peeves Christmas decorations on Main Street, a Christmas tree at the Public Service building, it’s Nov. 8....
Republicans have always justified their preferential treatment of the super-wealthy by trotting out the bogus "trickle-down theory." They argue that as the rich get richer, they will spend more on jobs, etc., and the financial benefits will "trickle down" the economic scale. It's a total con, of course. A sham. But now we are witnessing a trickle down that's for real. The man who has taken over the Republicans spews ignorance, hatred and violence every time he opens his mouth or pecks on a smartphone. His malice indeed trickles down --...
It's not any less awful for being so familiar. The last three high-profile attacks that have convulsed the nation, two in recent weeks, have been carried out by fringe loners who fit the stereotype of the perpetrators of such crimes precisely -- they didn't fit in, they were "off," they kept to themselves. The word that comes up again and again in accounts of their lives is "alone," always alone. The life of Cesar Sayoc, who mailed crude pipe bombs to Democrats ranging from George Soros to Hillary Clinton to Robert De Niro, was a pitiable...
When our military is viewed as an employer, it has the same problem as the private sector; attracting qualified people to fill jobs. In today’s vibrant economy, there is an abundance of “Help Wanted” signs. Even though our armed forces have stepped up their enlistment bonuses, they still fall short of their recruitment goals. There are just fewer qualified people in the employment pool to fill jobs which require higher educational standards, more skills, a willingness to work hard, and the d...