Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891
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An intense four days of slide stabilization work is set for this weekend on SR 4 near the Wahkiakum/Cowlitz county line. The work is scheduled Friday through Monday, with the contractor working around the clock to stabilize a slope that failed July 25. To accommodate the work, the highway may be closed 20 minutes at a time. Washington Department of Transportation spokesperson Celeste Dimichina said Monday the work was planned for a weekend because department personnel felt there would be less...
Members of the Cathlamet town council lifted a building moratorium, took steps to update the Critical Area Ordinace and handled other business when they met Monday. Clerk/Treasurer Kerrie McNally explained the reason for the update--state agencies are demanding current, updated Critical Area Ordinances (CAO) as part of the requirements for funding grant awards. Twice this year the town has lost grant funding awards for street and water main projects because the town's CAO is out of date. To satisfy the state departments of Ecology and...
In response to questions and queries about the Puget Island bridge painting and re-decking project, Tamara Greenwell, WSDOT Southwest communications officer, has offered the following information. "The project is scheduled for completion in late fall 2018. The work is weather dependent and could be rescheduled based on the weather forecast. "We have an inspector who oversees construction, ensuring contractor crews are protecting the environment surrounding the bridge, including the river. Our inspectors also document the work, to make sure...
By Diana Zimmerman Two big projects got some forward motion at the Wahkiakum County PUD Board of Commissioners meeting, when an application for a broadband feasibility study and the purchase of a transformer were approved on Tuesday. During a public hearing to discuss the PUD’s application for a Community Economic Revitalization Board grant to do a fiber optic broadband feasibility study, new Wahkiakum resident David Olson expressed his pleasure for the project. “Broadband represents the roads a...
Eagle reporter Diana Zimmerman received two second place awards in the recently concluded Washington Newspaper Publisher Association's Better Newspaper Contest. The awards were: --Personality profile, long: Working on the River--feature story about Capt. Brett Deaton and maritime careers in 2017 Focus on Wahakiakum, and --Social Issue Story: Family tries to get help, a story about a family's efforts to get help for a mentally ill member involved in a shootout with police....
To The Eagle: We have two candidates for sheriff. Both have law enforcement experience. That makes sense. We have two candidates for prosecutor. Both are attorneys. That makes sense. But we have two candidates for county assessor. One has years of experience in real estate and property valuation. That’s Bill Coons. And the other candidate has no experience at all in real estate and property valuation. That’s Brian McClain. He works on the ferry. He was employed at the Skamokawa post office for a very short time and left. Because HR records are...
To The Eagle: My name is Michael Dahle. I am the Chief Appraiser for Wahkiakum County. In 20 plus years in this profession I’ve never written a letter related to an election, however, this year I feel that I am forced to do so. Following are my informed opinions. Due to space constraints I have left out a lot of details and have tried just to highlight the main points. First a few negatives (unfortunately) and then some of positives. 1. The assessor’s office is always a lightning rod for criticism. This often originates out of a misun...
To The Eagle: The assessor’s office has been around this bend before. The assessor elected to office for the 2006-2010 years tried the ‘on the job training’; working overtime and meeting with tax payers. The campaign promise to take courses after the election proved difficult however, because there was not the time to attend classes to learn the job sufficiently. The deputy appraiser, at the time, realized the situation and ran with it, unencumbered, raising property values with no apparent rhyme or reason. The county Board of Equalization (BOE...
To The Eagle: Last week's front page story about Lee Wages getting the sentence he received was a testimonial to the wonderful job that both Sheriff Howie and prosecutor Dan Bigelow are doing in their respective positions. After the situation when Mr. Wages was actually shooting at police and was arrested without anybody getting hurt brings home how well trained our deputies are. Thanks, Mark Howie. As a retired RN that spent over thirty years of hospital nursing, much of it on psych units, I approached Dan Bigelow shortly after the arrest and...
To The Eagle: As longtime residents of Wahkiakum County, my husband and I see the value in qualified elected officials. County government is critical, but even more so in a small county such as ours. Strong relationships with the vast array of departments, knowledge of operations within the office, and ties to the community and its way of life are just a few qualities that Nicci Bergseng exhibits. Often times the west end of this county feels overlooked, but Nicci has made sure to make her presence known. She has demonstrated that our little...
FIRST FREEZE--We must be pretty special here in West Valley, as this past Sunday, Oct. 14, we woke up to temperatures below freezing and everything was very frosty, and very cold! The sunny skies were certainly welcoming though and with temperatures up in the 70s, we went from heavy coats to t-shirts in just a few hours. Monday was much the same, and while I'm not too fond of the freezing part, the clear skies and warmth later on are certainly enjoyable. Forecasters are saying we'll have this dry pattern all week long, so I hope you're out and...
THURSDAY Community Center, Cathlamet, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) Community Center, Cathlamet, 6-9 p.m. Girl Scouts, Community Center, Cathlamet, 3:30-5:30 p.m. Learn to knit, crochet and mend, Sandra Sews, Community Center, Cathlamet, 10:30 a.m.-Noon. Walking Group, Community Center, Cathlamet, 9 a.m. Senior Citizen Luncheon, The Hope Center, 3rd & Maple, Cathlamet, Noon. Senior Citizen Luncheon, Rosburg Hall, Noon. Fire Protection District No. 1 Commissioners, Fire Hall, 5:30 p.m. Fire District No. 4, 7 p.m. Cathlamet First...
The much anticipated opening of the Rosburg Store by Wahkiakum County residents is now official. Ed Miller along with his wife, Roni, and brother, Landen, have brightened the store with lighter wood for the walls and great lighting throughout the store. The one thing that was noticed is how clean the store is. All the kitchen equipment is new. Landen Miller, who is a chef that graduated from Art Institute of Seattle, will bring his culinary expertise to the Rosburg Store kitchen. He will begin t...
Wahkiakum County law enforcement officers and emergency response personnel handled a variety of reports during the past week, including: October 8 — 9:42 a.m. The Cathlamet Fire Department and the Grays River Fire Department responded to a fire alarm at a Deep River address. All units were told to stand down when it turned out to be a false alarm. 10:37 a.m. A credit card was missing and had been used after a burglary at a Rosburg church. 12:26 p.m. A disabled Rosedale resident asked for assistance after a neighbor parked on the sidewalk, b...
The Naselle-Grays River Valley School District Board of Directors met for its monthly meeting on October 16 in the Middle School Commons. In personnel matters, the board approved the hire of Kimberly Jensen, bus driver and the resignation of Rob Baker, cross-country coach. An out of area teaching assignment was approved for Qin Xia. Several WSSDA Policies were adopted: 1400 Meeting Conduct, Order of Business and Quorum, 3122 Unexcused and unexcused absences, 3143 District Notification of Juvenile Offenders, 3144 Release of Information...
Our vote-by-mail ballots for the general election will soon arrive, and many people will pick up a pen and fill them out right away. I learned a long time ago to wait till just before election day to make my choice. I had endorsed a candidate in the last issue before the election, and she came to our town and made some statements that changed my mind about her. It was too late for the newspaper but not the ballot. We have an overwhelming number of letters to the editor this week; it’s good that citizens are taking the election seriously. N...
To The Eagle: I am writing to support Brian McClain for assessor. Brian is my neighbor and friend. I’ve talked to Brian about access to hunting lands I previously used to be able to hunt that are now off limits. He has told me that he will look into this and see what the facts are regarding their tax liability and public access. Remember, if all else fails, vote out the incumbent to keep them honest. Also a vote for Carolyn Long is a vote for the left wing radical leadership! Tony Cleveland Skamokawa Editor's note: This letter has been c...
The article in last week's edition incorrectly associated legislative aide David Hodges with the staff of Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler. He is, in fact, Southwest Washington Director for Sen. Patty Murray....
To The Eagle: Although no Democrat is running in the race for Wahkiakum County assessor, both candidates have come to Wahkiakum County Democratic Party meetings and asked for our endorsement. The decision whether to endorse a candidate in a Democrat-free race was one we discussed for some time. We decided that the party has a duty to promote excellence in government, so we should take a stand and endorse a candidate in the Wahkiakum County assessor race. Once we made that decision, the hard choices ended. The Wahkiakum County Democratic Party...
To The Eagle: I encourage you to vote and to retain Mark Howie as the Wahkiakum County Sheriff. I worked at the courthouse when Mark was hired as undersheriff and I witnessed Mark take on the unexpected duties as sheriff after the death of Sheriff Jon Dearmore. Mark lead the sheriff’s department through rough times and proved himself as a strong leader. That’s not the only reason I am encouraging you to vote for Sheriff Mark Howie. Mark and Debb have a vested interest in our county and it shows every time they volunteer their personal time for...
To The Eagle: One could perhaps drum up a little sympathy for a political candidate reeling from multiple criticisms and recovering from a star-crossed performance at the Grays River Grange Forum, but the latest retaliatory letter from Candidate Coons truly qualifies as “a bridge too far.” Bill’s opponent had told many of us of his impending candidacy last winter, and actual campaign launch was an unintended consequence of a legitimate complaint letter by Lori Hamp in the March 22 Eagle, giving Brian a graceful entre, which he took the follo...
To The Eagle: In answer to a previous letter from Mr. Coons, I never launched Brian McClain’s run for assessor. He did that all by himself. Please get the facts straight. The first straw for me was that he inflated a property value to $165,000 when my business partner and I bought it for $120,000 even after we showed you the bill of sale. That property was on the market for over four years. We paid fair market value. The real frustration was when he turned me into the Washington Department of Revenue for personal property taxes on “Welcome Slou...
Marie Fauver of Grays River, Washington died October 4, 2018, at Columbia Memorial Hospital in Astoria, Oregon at age 87. Marie was born in Astoria, Oregon on September 15, 1931. She was the daughter of Hjalmar and Mabyn (Shane) Klint. She enjoyed growing up in the family farm in Grays River where she lived her entire life. Marie received her education at Rosburg Grade School and Naselle High School where she graduated in 1950. Marie and James H. Fauver were married in 1950. Marie had several different occupations, including running the family...
May 30, 1956 - Sept. 27, 2018 Janine Ann Tischer-Strock was born May 30th, 1956, in Bend, Ore., and was brought home to our Lord on Sept. 27, 2018, in Longview. She is survived by her husband, Terry Strock; two sons, Tyler Robinson (Kasey), and Casey Robinson (Sara); a daughter, Brittany Green (Brian); three brothers, Gary, Lee and Brent; three sisters, Sandy, Sharlene and Beverly; and eight beautiful grandchildren. She was preceded in death by her parents, Ray Tischer and Artyce Quigley; and an older brother, John. Janine held a special place...
The Charlotte House, a program of St. James Family Center, will have chocolates available for purchase on October 26 from 3-7 p.m. Their staff will be in the lobby of the Hotel Cathlamet along with boxes filled with 20 plus different chocolate treats. Boxes will also be available for purchase at River Mile 38. This annual fundraiser is sponsored by The Charlotte House Advisory Board and all funds raised go directly to help the families that they serve. Those interested in pre-ordering a box of chocolate, should call 360-795-6401 or toll free...
