Board hears more on property sale

The Wahkiakum School Board continued discussion of a proposal to sell 4.75 acres of the Farm Forest to the Town of Cathlamet but took no action when it met November 21.

The town wants to use the land as the site of a new sewer/waste water treatment plant.

The board, citizens and Cathlamet Mayor Dick Swart discussed the proposal at the board's October meeting and continued discussion to gather more information.

Swart was present again and said that he had spoken with parish council and a priest of St. Catherine Catholic Church. He said he was told that the council and parish priest had their questions answered to their satisfaction.

“The church supports the installation of a waste water treatment plant,” he said.

At the October meeting, Superintendent Bob Garrett had expressed concern regarding the access road to the property and wondered if there were any alternatives.

Swart said a ‘Y’ could be put in to the road that would run parallel to State Route 4 right-away in a northwest direction uphill to the site. He told the board about the possibility of cutting an access road into SR 4 to separate traffic going up the logging road from the school property to the traffic going into a waste water treatment plant.

Swart promised to find out if the state Department of Transportation would agree to a separate access road coming off the highway, and if not, why not.

The economical option would to be to leave the access road present but find a divider or some other alternative to separate traffic, Swart said.

Another concern for Garrett was the students using the property. He wondered if there were a possibility of installing of a walking trail to keep students off the logging road once they have crossed the highway.

The mayor said he felt a “mutually acceptable solution” could be found.

Local residents Frank and Cynda Webb were present to listen to the facts as they have been away for some time. Frank Webb, a former school board member, said from what he had heard, he hoped the sale would go through.

Cynda Webb said she hoped that there would be a locked gate most of the time to restrict access to engineers and employees.

Board member Mike Quigley said there would be a locked gate at the facility so the plant wouldn’t have access to the school property and the public wouldn’t have access to the plant.

Frank Webb expressed concern over the amount of traffic on the access road should the facility be built. The mayor told him that the traffic would be minimal.

Garrett wanted to make it clear that still no decision has been made; the board hopes to be able to reach a decision regarding the proposal at its next meeting.

In other business, Garrett said it was time for the board to think about removal of the old gym. He stated that board member Willie Johnson, who was unable to attend the meeting, phoned to say he would like to see the removal as soon as possible so as to minimize the amount of dust that could be kicked up in the summer months.

Board Member Lee Tischer disagreed, saying he would prefer to have the removal in the summer because of children playing in the area. “Kids are kids,” he said. He expressed concern that children have curiosity and there is the possibility of stepping on a nail, or getting hurt.

Quigley said it would be smart to search for a contractor now if it is decided it will be done in the summer. The board thought of putting ads in local papers to find bids for contractors. Garrett said he would like to have a contractor in place by April.

In a written report submitted to the board,Julius A. Wendt Elementary/John C. Thomas Middle School Principal Theresa Libby reported that over 65 students participated in the Missoula Children’s Theater production of, “Robin Hood.” She thanked Cathy Murphy for organizing the event and Fern Fey for playing the piano and housing one of the traveling actors. She also thanked John and Pam Doumit for housing the other traveling actor, and all those that helped in other ways for the performances.

Girl’s basketball and the wrestling season have begun, Libby reported. There are over 20 people out for each sport and in order to participate, students must pass all of their classes each week.

The Lion’s Club will be doing vision and hearing screenings on December 3. Dream Team Dental will be doing free dental screenings and cleanings on December 4 and 5.

In his written report, Wahkiakum High School Principal Loren Davis announced an associated student body fundraiser. ASB officers are planning a ‘penny war’ as part of holiday festivities. Each class will compete to see how many pennies they can bring in during a one week period.

“The money raised by this fundraiser will be spent on the Star project to buy Christmas gifts for underprivileged children in our community,” he said.