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Tulip Valley Farms proprietor Andrew Miller and Mount Vernon farmer Larry Jensen are named defendants in Skagit County Superior Court for pretrial hearings March 21 with the Skagit County Prosecutor’s Office for the August 2023 lawsuit the county filed for the lack of permits on Jensen’s Bradshaw Road property. The county restated that list: “The defendants never obtained permits for this development, even after a stop-work order was issued - no building permit, no county road access permit, no fill and grade permit, no floodplain permi...
La Conner School District Director of Finance David Cram offered a realistic assessment last summer when presenting student enrollment numbers and the year’s budget to the school board and Superintendent Will Nelson. The head count in the elementary, middle and high schools had dropped below 500, to 490 full-time students. He projected a student population of 448 in 2026-2027. Cram’s forecast is turning into reality. His mid-March estimate for September, the 2024-2025 school year, is for 30 fewer students. His larger concern is that the new...
BRIGHT SUN, BLUE SKY, YELLOW DAFFODILS, OH MY – Last weekend was a perfect trifecta for tourists to swarm the western Skagit Valley for the hundreds of acres of daffodils in bloom, as this field at Beaver Marsh and Jungquist Roads on Sunday. Tulips are being toured at Roozengarde, down the road, also. In La Conner, parking was scarce and the sidewalks were full, as were stores and restaurants. Spring is here....
Daffodils have bloomed and tulips aren't far behind. Soon, thousands of people will descend upon the La Conner flats to enjoy vividly colored fields here. It's hard to imagine, any among the throngs of visitors appreciating the striking spring landscape more than Joyce Johnson, long a bright and engaging fixture with the La Conner Civic Garden Club and related organizations at the local, district and state levels. Johnson recently died at age 105. "Joyce was most certainly a treasure to all who...
Harvest time on the La Conner flats is months away, but the time is ripe now to cultivate goodwill. That was the prevailing theme at the annual La Conner Rotary Club Farmers and Merchants Night dinner and program Monday at Maple Hall. The event, which underscores the club's ongoing mission of public service and education support, was attended by more than 100 people representing the local agricultural and commercial sectors plus government leadership. "We're a hands-on service club," La Conner...
Voters in Skagit County and statewide in Washington chose President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump in the March 12 presidential primary. With all but some 1,000 votes counted Monday for Skagit County, Biden has 87.8% among five Democratic options and Trump won 76.4% among six choices for Republicans. Democratic voters cast 6.9% for uncommitted delegates, a far larger percentage than either Marianne Williamson or Dean Phillips won. Former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley gained 19.6% ballots, the only Republican above 2%. All...
The high tide of saltwater flood season has passed. Town Administrator Scott Thomas said the final king tide on Swinomish Channel until next fall will allow removal of flood barriers that have lined the La Conner waterfront for months. “If you want to go out and get a picture of those orange sandbags so that you can remember them you’d better get out there,” Thomas told town council at its March 12 meeting. “They’ll be going away in a couple weeks and won’t be back until October.” The Public Works Department will remove sandbags and ecology b...
You play how you practice. That was the mantra shared last Thursday by Skagit County Fire District 13 Commission chair Bruce Shellhamer, a former Sedro-Woolley High School sports standout. He wasn’t alluding to athletics. He was talking about the fire district’s upcoming March 30 windstorm exercise. The training will engage HAM radio operators, volunteers at the Shelter Bay Disaster Assistance Center, a mobile Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) trailer, and residents who will post “Help/OK” placards in their windows to inform emergen...
For the 170 or so La Conner Weekly News subscribers who have a Mount Vernon ZIP code, we’ll get our news to you a few days quicker now. Skagit Publishing in Mount Vernon prints the Weekly News every Tuesday night and delivers addressed bundles to the La Conner post office for us to mail. Our subscribers with a La Conner 98257 ZIP code get the paper on Wednesday. Not so for subscribers outside the 98257 ZIP code. It’s most bothersome where the La Conner School District boundary and Mount Vernon’s 98273 ZIP code overlap (think Best and Chilb...
Skagit Transit wants citizen feedback on a comprehensive service analysis it’s conducting to optimize public transportation for residents across Skagit County. This analysis will play a role in SKAT’s Long-Range Transit Plan, reflecting the agency’s commitment to improving and expanding service accessibility. La Conner and Fidalgo Island residents will have two chances to learn about SKAT’s Long-Range Transit Plan and offer comments about current and future services at two public outreach meetings. 5-6:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 27: La Conner...
Lewis (Louie) John Hill Jr., 80, of Mount Vernon, passed away in his home surrounded by family on March 7, 2024. Survived by his wife of 51 years, Laura Hill, son Wayne (Nina) and their daughters, Allison and Mac and son John (Tammy) and their daughters, Jasmin and Sabrina. A graveside service will be held at Pleasant Ridge Cemetery at 11 a.m. Saturday, April 13, followed by a potluck Celebration of Life at the Swinomish Yacht Club in La Conner. Special thank yous to Dr. Anisa Pea and to Hospice of the Northwest for their kind and caring...
A La Conner fourth grader has learning down to an art form. Halley Oh received a statewide Award of Excellence for Visual Arts, ranking second in her age group (grades 3-5) in the Washington State PTA Reflections Art Contest. The contest theme was "I Am Hopeful Because..." "She did a really good job," La Conner PTA Vice-President Mia Paulson told the Weekly News. "They (the contest judges) obviously saw her talent." Halley's colorful entry illustrates how education makes her feel hopeful. Her...
The La Conner High baseball team was in mid-season form for its home opener last Thursday. The Braves used sharp pitching, crisp defense and discipline at the plate to post an impressive 7-1 nonleague triumph over Evergreen Lutheran. Starter Nathan Bailey tossed three hitless innings and fanned five Wolverines hitters, then gained solid relief efforts from Charles Jackson, Kaleb Otis and Ivory Damien. Together, they limited Evergreen to five singles and a lone tally over the final four frames....
Tommy Murdock picked up where he left off a year ago. The La Conner High School senior, who is the reigning Washington State 2B boys’ 110- and 300-meter hurdles champion, swept his signature events during a 10-team season debut meet at Whittaker Field last Wednesday. Murdock cruised to triumphs in the 110 (16.00) and 300 (41.10), setting the tone for several solid performances by a slimmed-down La Conner track-and-field program that is focused on quality rather than quantity to kick off the 2024 campaign. Murdock picked up a third solo t...
Inside Mortenson Signs on the corner of Avon Allen Road and Bennett Road is an explosion of colorful signs and art. This hints at the body of work Bob Mortenson has made since he opened the shop in 1981. Iconic signs throughout Skagit Valley bear Mortenson's mark: RoozenGaarde, Calico Cupboard, Nasty Jacks and even the La Conner Weekly News. Now, the impact of his art is receiving special attention. The Skagit County Historical Museum's next exhibit is "Signs, Signs, Everywhere – Signs: The A...
It can be a fine line that separates comedy and drama. A versatile cast of La Conner student actors, often playing dual roles, showed last weekend that it can deliver multiple fine lines that deftly meld comedy and drama. The La Conner Drama Club did so with its well-received performances Friday and Saturday night and Sunday afternoon of Mark Dunn's "A Delightful Quarantine," literally the story of what people do when there's no place to go. Two more shows are scheduled at 6:30 p.m. March 22 and 23 at the Bruce Performing Arts Center on the La...
Halibut Potato Patties. This recipe was a matter of deduction. I make potato patties with leftover mashed potatoes. I make salmon patties with cooked salmon. With just enough leftover cooked halibut, I decided to combine two ingredients we both love to eat. Add flavor with fresh green onion. The result was optimal. This uses leftover potatoes and halibut. Ingredients Boiled potatoes, 3 medium or large Cooked halibut, 1 cup Egg, 1 Green onions, 3 chopped Olive oil, 2 tablespoons Butter, 1 tablesp...
Tuesday, March 12 4:08 p.m.: Hot dog? No – Report of a dog left in a vehicle parked outside of Maple Hall. A deputy checked and found a window was open and the dog was fine, other than barking a lot. Commercial St., La Conner. Wednesday, March 13 12:14 p.m.: What rules of the road? – Report of an erratically driven vehicle entering town. The caller told dispatch the car had crossed the bridge. The call was transferred to Swinomish PD. La Conner-Whitney Rd. Greater La Conner. Thursday, March 14 6:39 p.m.: Is this yours? – Retailer found a walle...
GREEN WAS THE NIGHT'S COLOR – The La Conner Firefighters Association held its annual St. Patrick's Day Dance fundraiser at Maple Hall Saturday with music by DJ Vonn. It was their first year without Brodie the Newshound there to cover it....
IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF WASHINGTON FOR SKAGIT COUNTY In Re The Estate of: MICHAEL EUGENE LONG, Deceased. No. 24-4-00076-29 PROBATE NOTICE TO CREDITORS (RCW 11.40.030) (NTCRD) PATRICK LONG has been appointed as Personal Representative of this Estate. Any person having a claim against the decedent must, before the time the claim would be barred by any otherwise applicable statute of limitations, present the claim in the manner as provided in RCW 11.40.070 by serving on or mailing to the Personal Representative or the Personal Representative’s a...
Dear Editor: I am writing to express my deep concern regarding the recently announced closure of Little Braves preschool due to lack of funding. As a member of our community and a parent who understands the importance of early childhood education, I believe that eliminating programs for young children only harms our community and creates hardship for families. The Little Braves Preschool program, which operates in the elementary school through funding from Head Start, is the only publicly funded early education program in La Conner. The...
To the editor: Thanks for running the article about zero-emission school buses (Weekly News, March 13, 2024). The bill would not have been possible except for the work of a broad coalition of Seattle climate and education activists, including Climate Action Families. The CAF website gives the history: “It started in 2013 to host the Washington chapter for Plant for the Planet. Our community trained over 600 youth in climate justice and participated in countless actions. Lessons learned brought us to developing this movement, knowing we must m...
To the editor: In all the parking discussions I have read and heard, enforcement seems to be ignored. I walk my dog daily through the South Third Street lot, which is theoretically pay parking, and have yet to see anyone checking for compliance. For most, it is free parking. So what is the loss if it is officially made free? And now on to First Street. In Friday Harbor there are time limits on parking and an enforcement person marks tires and writes tickets. Do tourists, non-locals, pay the fines? I doubt most do. Do those fines cover the cost...
To the editor: I would like to thank the Skagit Board of County Commissioners for placing an EMS levy renewal on the April 23, 2024, special election ballot to continue critical funding for emergency medical services in our community. Every second counts in an emergency, and the EMS levy renewal will ensure we have enough personnel, supplies, equipment, and ambulances to respond to calls, which have increased by 25% in the last four years. In 2023, Skagit County EMS provider agencies, like mine in the upper east county, responded to over...
To the editor: I have lived in Shelter Bay for 24 years this month. We have had good times and troubled times as spring mends from the winter. Our community is also on the mend. First, I want to thank all the volunteers and staff for their rugged, thankless work over the years. Today, I am watching the cleaning of blackberries from the greenbelt. I picture a few picnic tables under the trees. From my window, I can see the new playground equipment waiting to be installed. The tennis courts are alive with players, and more people are out and...
