Downriver Dispatches

Rosburg School Road Project Approved

Wahkiakum County commissioners unanimously approved Professional Engineer Paul Lacy's proposal for the Rosburg School road. The plan calls for the widening of the present entrance and filling part of the ditch to better accommodate incoming and outgoing traffic. The present exit road will be considered to make a walking pathway. Also recommendations were made to lower the speed limit to 40 mph in front of the Rosburg Store out of safety concerns with traffic congestions occurring there frequently.

Paul Lacy is the county road engineer for Wahkiakum County. The state Revised Code of Washington requires a professional engineer licensed in the state of Washington to be part of the county organization. Wahkiakum County cannot afford one full time and professional engineers incline to be expensive, so he is doing the job on a part-time basis. Paul has been doing this for three and a half years now, and can handle most of what the county needs in 60 to 70 hours per month.

As the professional engineer, he is responsible to make sure that the funds received from the state and the federal government is spent correctly. As far as the Rosburg School Road is concerned, his responsibility is to direct what is done to the roads, and make sure the taxpayers of the county get what they pay for. His assistant, who works full time, and Paul will design something that is in accordance with the Washington State Design manual and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, and then have the road crew do the work in accordance with the Standard Specifications for Road, Bridge and Municipal Construction.

The specifications are state specifications that have been adopted by the board of county commissioners for use in Wahkiakum County. When Paul started this job, most of the road fund budget was being spent on projects on the east side. At the direction of the commissioners and Public Works Director Chuck Beyer, they have been trying to spread the work out so that more of it is spent on the west side. They did a chip seal project on the west side last year, and are planning to do that again this year. They do one such project per year, and next year they plan to do an east side project. They also did a little project to widen the entrance to Fairview Road, and a project to fix slide damage on Loop road and on Shannon road. They are also doing more intense maintenance, and directing more of that to the west side. Paul thinks people will start to notice that soon but it takes time to make a difference.

More Westend News

The Grays River Grange #124 will hold their Farmers Market on Tuesdays, 2-6 p.m., at the Grange Hall until harvest is complete and the produce sold. Great produce at reasonable prices.

The Wahkiakum Lions Club will conduct their annual Frozen Berry Sale. There are order forms in Naselle at Johnson's One Stop, and Okies Market, and in Rosburg at Johnson Park, Rosburg Store and Rosburg Hall. For more information call 360-849-4003 or 360-795-3337. Order before September 1. Delivery is September 7 at 10 a.m., at the Rosburg Store.

The Naselle/Grays River Valley Seniors luncheon is held on Wednesdays. Those who are 55 and older can join; also the potluck will be at the Valley Bible Church on every fourth Wednesday. Anyone inspired to volunteer on Wednesdays or would like further information, please contact the Naselle/Grays River Valley Seniors' president Diane Hollenbeck at dianemarye@gmail.com or phone her at 1(360) 465-2991. Anyone interested in renting the Rosburg Hall is encouraged to contact Sonja Kruse at 465-2251 or Dee Nikkila at 465-2595. Thursday luncheon at noon at the Rosburg Hall is sponsored by the Community Action Program (CAP) out of Kelso/Longview. Any questions, contact Denise Rae at (360) 425-3430 extension 259.

Those who are in need of food should go to the West End Food Pantry at Johnson Park every Thursday from 1-5 p.m. The food for you is free at no charge. Johnson Park is looking for board members to help coordinate the facility. If anyone is interested in volunteering please contact Shonda Ware at 360-465-2722 or Toni Fest at 360-465-2393.

Here is something that may be of interest to all the artists in the area. The Finnish American Folk Festival of Naselle is seeking artwork for their next festival. This artwork will be used for advertising on posters, postcards, programs and on festival merchandise including T-shirts, aprons, coffee mugs, and more. They are interested in some variation of the theme of 2020. The festival takes place July 24 - 26, 2020, and it is the 20th anniversary of the folk festival in Naselle, which takes place every other year. The artwork should be 8x10 in size, and no more than 3 colors. Please include your name, address and phone number with the artwork submission. This call for artwork is due August 20, 2019, and can be submitted to: FAFF, P.O. Box 156, Naselle, WA 98638, or submitted electronically to juboggs@wwest.net. The festival committee will vote on submissions received at the August 30 meeting. The winner will be notified by September 1. The festival has a marketplace located in the gym for vendors to sell their artwork. The winner will receive $100 and a free vendor booth space (12x10) at the festival in July, to sell their artwork.