Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
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My father's father came from Sweden. He passed on some cultural traits that my father passed to me. One very important trait is that one should Never act as if one is special. At least that's how the lore came to me. And so, here comes Monday, May 1. Sheriff Mark Howie and yet unknown people conspired to create a community welcome as I came home to go into hospice care. We followed Sheriff Howie down Columbia Street and on to Main Street. What a sight on Main. People were lined up from one end t...
It is strange when your cancer doctor tells you that your cancer has conquered your body and you have what may be days to live. That's where I am. It's a slow moving lymphoma, and I've been under treatment since September, 2001. It has now attacked my bone marrow and I'm not producing platelets and hemoglobin. We established a treatment regimen that should keep me going long enough to take care of last minute business and get set up at home to die. That leaves us with the future of this newspaper. There's been a team working on a potential sale...
Wahkiakum County's finances are in decent shape, Treasurer Tammy Peterson reported to the county board of commissioners on Tuesday. With the improving economy, interest rates paid on county invested money are also boosting revenue beyond expectations. In other business, officials discussed the need for a system for department heads and staff to cover advanced expenditures; the board went over bids for a variety of projects, and citizens and commissioners spent 20 minutes discussing policies regarding sport and commercial fishing. Peterson said...
Wahkiakum County commissioners on Tuesday approved a response to the state Department of Ecology about changes to the county's Shoreline Master Program (SMP) and also for a change in use of fish taken from the test fish trap from research to commercial use. Commissioners also approved bids for improvements at the county fairgrounds; they renewed the status of the Wahkiakum Chamber of Commerce as the county state-recognized Associate Development Agency; they authorized court clerk Kay Holland to increase hours of part-time employees from 20.5...
Wahkiakum County officials discussed details of how Washington is handling multi-million dollar settlements from suits against producers and distributors of opioid medications when they met Tuesday. They also made appointments to the county planning commission and approved calls for bids on a variety of projects for various county departments and accepted a bid for annual mowing of county roadsides. Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson brought the suits against the opioid producers and distributors; it resulted in a nationwide settlement...
Members of the Cathlamet Town Council on Monday addressed two requests for utility bill relief, and approved plans for pickleball, Waterfront Park design changes, and boundary line changes between the Elochoman Slough Marina and the town's former sewage settling ponds. The utility bill requests generated much discussion, with council members stating town utility connection forms should clearly explain connection policies. In the first request, owners of the Rivermile 38 Brewery requested relief from the first two months of charges totalling $41...
Some Wahkiakum County employees may be able to work out in county-owned gym facilities later this year. The sheriff's office and health department have found grant funding for gym facilities which employees are excited to be able to use, department heads told the board of commissioners Tuesday. However, the grant funds target specific sets of employees, and not all county employees would be able to use the gyms. Commissioners on Tuesday authorized Health and Human Services to call for bids on...
Wahkiakum County should receive $1.7 million in revenue this year from harvest of timber on state managed trust lands, the Department of Natural Resources reported Tuesday. The estimate is a bit lower than the $1.8 million reported last October, said DNR Regional Manager Padraic Callahan. The revenue total will depend on the final volume of wood to come off a sale currently being logged, Callahan said, and the lower estimate reflects a conservative total that could increase depending on volume. Otherwise, Callahan said the DNR view of the timbe...
Wahkiakum County officials took steps Tuesday to participate in settlements of two suits against opioid pill producers and distributors. Commissioners also proclaimed March as Red Cross Month, approved letters of support for Wahkiakum PUD's application for a grant to search for an alternate supply for the Puget Island Water System and discussed other items of interest. The county's share for the opioid suit settlements would probably be about $257,842 and be spread over 17 years, about $15,000 per year. The money is to be directed to programs...
In a meeting that lasted just over 10 minutes, Wahkiakum County commissioners appointed Puget Island resident Mark Hoover to fill a vacancy on the board of commissioners of Diking District No. 1. Besides that, they approved previous meeting minutes, discussed legislation that could affect the county, and heard very brief reports from two departments. Hoover joins Tony Aegerter and Kevin Vik as members of the three-person board responsible for maintaining the Island's dikes, pump stations and drainage ditches. Aegerter reported the US Army...
Wahkiakum County commissioners considered who would administer the county's Shoreline Master Program and acted on other business when they met Tuesday. Commissioners also approved a contract with an engineering firm to redesign the intersection of East Valley Road and SR 4 in Skamokawa; they received a report of county Extension Office activities, and they voiced opposition to state proposals to set aside trust timberlands for carbon sequestration. The shoreline program regulates development and activities along shorelines. The county currently...
The Cathlamet Town Council on Monday passed resolutions establishing a policy for purchasing during emergencies, lowering the interest rate on the town's sewer plant construction loan, and modifying their meeting agenda format. The first resolution gives the mayor authority to make expenditures and avoid bidding requirements during declared emergencies. The second resolution replaces the town's first water plan loan with a new loan lowering the interest rate from 2.75 percent to 1.10 percent. Clerk-Treasurer Sarah Clark said the change would...
Wahkiakum County Commissioners covered a lot of ground when the met Tuesday, approving expenses for construction and other projects and previewing proposed changes in fees for food service vendors. Commissioners approved a contract for landscape design services for Forrest Mora Landscaping, $3,500. Once a design is completed, the county will seek quotes for implementing the landscaping around the courthouse. The board accepted a quote from Renaud Electric to upgrade the electrical service at the Grays River Valley Center, $18,770. The board als...
Most Wahkiakum County employees will receive an extra 3 percent increase to go along with already scheduled pay increases this year, county commissioners decided Tuesday. According to the board of commissioners’ proposal, the increases are “in response to extraordinary high inflation.” Members of the American Federation of State, Municipal and County Employees Union were set to receive a 2 percent wage increase this year; the commission approved another 3 percent increase. The 3 percent increase also applies to members of the Masters, Mates...
Wahkiakum County commissioners covered a variety of business when they met Tuesday. The board signed a letter to Gov. Jay Inslee requisition action on local wildlife issues; commissioners signed interlocal agreements to support the Cathlamet library and County Line Park, and they appointed a Westend resident to fill a vacancy on the Grays River Habitat Enhancement District. The letter to Gov. Inslee focused on two issues. First, the letters stated that the board and local residents have noticed an "alarming decline in our elk populations." The...
Wahkiakum County commissioners signed letters to state legislators requesting increased funding for the county ferry Oscar B. and discussed other issues when they met Tuesday. The letters follow up meetings with Rep. Fey, chair of the House Transportation Committee, and District 19 Senator Jeff Wilson. Commissioners requested a change to state statutes establishing the state's subsidy of ferry operations. The letters included spreadsheets showing that the current 80 percent subsidy doesn't cover all costs, forcing the county to use money...
Wahkiakum County Commissioners and District 19 legislators on Tuesday discussed issues the county board would like to see addressed in the coming session of the Washington State Legislature. Rep. Joel McEntire, R-Cathlamet, met with the board in person, and Senator Jeff Wilson, R-Kalama attended via Zoom. Rep. Jim Walsh, R-Aberdeen, reportedly had a scheduling conflict. Topics ranged from compensating counties with trust timberlands that are encumbered by species habitat restrictions to laws affecting law enforcement and drug offenders. For...
Wahkiakum County commissioners set salaries for elected officials and adopted the county's 2023 budget when they met Tuesday. The board also approved contracts for the Health and Human Service Department and a resolution and contract establishing a public defender services program. Starting January 1, salaries for the county auditor, assessor, clerk, sheriff and treasurer will be based on the salary of a sitting superior court judge, which is set by the state salary commission. The sheriff's salary will be 50 percent of the judge's salary, and...
Wahkiakum County commissioners on Tuesday lobbied the chair of the state legislature's transportation committee for increased funding for county transportation services. The State of Washington covers 80 percent of ferry operation costs, but state statutes contain a cap on that funding. When costs exceed the level covered under the cap, the county has to shift money from road department projects to cover the overage, Public Works Director Chuck Beyer explained. Overages have run between $100,000 and $200,000, he said. Is it possible to raise th...
Wahkiakum County commissioners on Tuesday authorized expansion of Skamokawa’s Fire District No. 2, passed resolutions setting tax levy rates for 2023 and addressed other items of business. Fire District 2 had presented petitions signed by at least 60 percent of the residents of the proposed annexation, and the county auditor’s office confirmed the proposal met the requirements for annexation. Prior to annexation, district boundaries included properties close to SR 4 and Skamokawa valley roads. The annexation will take in new construction and...
The Cathlamet Town Council on Monday worked on ordinances, settling some and tabling others as they neared the end of their 2023 budget development process. Council members tabled or failed to pass ordinances establishing a subdivision process and adopting portions of the International Property Maintenance Code. They did give final approval to ordinances relating to personnel policies and amending the 2022 annual budget, and they gave initial approval to an ordinance adopting the 2023 annual budget and salary schedule. Council members...
Wahkiakum County commissioners this week took yet one more step toward setting budgets for 2023. In public hearings Monday, citizens complained about increases in property taxes, and commissioners indicated they might not increase some tax levies. Final action will come later this month. By law, the commission can increase the county property tax collection 1 percent every year; a higher increase needs voter approval. Commissioners adopted a resolution certifying levies for junior taxing districts, who, for the most part, claimed the 1 percent...
Wahkiakum County officials are nearing the end of the development of their 2023 budgets. On Tuesday, the board of commissioners met as the supervisors of the county's four flood control zone districts and set assessments and budget amounts for 2023. Next Monday, 9:30 a.m., commissioners will reconvene their recessed Nov. 22 meeting to hold public hearings on potential property tax increases and the final budget. In the preliminary budget, the county's Current Expense Fund, which includes most courthouse departments, totals $7.8 million....
Surprise! Just weeks after learning their application for a state Recreation and Conservation Office (RCO) grant to construct Waterfront Park had been rated too low for funding, Town of Cathlamet officials learned last week that, indeed, RCO would award funds for the project. Mayor David Olson said Monday that the award would be for the town's application in the two-year 2020 funding cycle, not the latest application for the 2022 cycle. The town's 2020 application had been ranked in 24th positio...
The election race for the position of Wahkiakum County prosecuting attorney became tighter Thursday with the second count of mail-in ballots. Incumbent Democrat Dan Bigelow led Independent challenger Holly McKeen 1,093 to 963 on Tuesday, a lead of 130 votes. After Thursday's count, Bigelow leads 1,241-1,155, a lead of 86 votes. The county auditor's elections website estimates there are another 100 ballots left to count; the next count will be Nov. 28. In the county's other contested race, incumbent Gene Strong boosted his lead over challenger...
