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Turnout was low but engagement high at a one-hour community mingle April 25 addressing possible future uses of the Jenson property. About two dozen people gathered at the Civic Garden Club to suggest how the town could best use the half-acre field on La Conner's south end, acquired in 2022 for $60,000, about one-third its assessed value. Participants reviewed maps of the property, a fact sheet and an informational pamphlet provided by La Conner artist Maggie Wilder outlining features that would...
Representatives of the bedrock of American democracy – libraries and newspapers – discussed “News & Media Literacy: Informed or Influenced?” at a forum organized by the League of Women Voters of Skagit County Monday evening, April 29 at the PUD building in Mount Vernon. Skagit Valley College librarians Elena Bianco and Libby Sullivan spoke first, sharing slides and offering the same questions they present their students in class. “How do you know where information is coming from?” Bianco asked. “Anyone can have a website.” There are few r...
IF IT IS NOT ONE FIELD, IT IS ANOTHER – Every spring in the Skagit there are tractors cultivating, turning the soil and planting. It is not a race, but they are in it for the long haul, one season at a time. These John Deere were planting potatoes off of Alverson Road, across from Mesman’s farm in late April 2021....
Skagit County voters are casting over 70% yes ballots and overwhelmingly approving proposition No. 1, Continuation of Emergency Medical Services Levy, in the April 23 election. After the third vote count Monday, April 29, 70.8% of votes, 19, 912 are yes, to the 8,192 no votes. The 91.5% yes vote in Shelter Bay was the highest among greater La Conner precincts. Swinomish precinct voters cast 87.6% yes; Snee Oosh votes were 82.1% yes and the La Conner vote was 80.5% yes. The March Point precinct was voting the levy down, 7 no votes to 6 yes...
Washington’s access to quality preschool services falls below many other states, only serving 16% of 4-year-olds and 8% of 3-year-olds, a new national report found. The National Institute for Early Education Research released its annual preschool report in April and found Washington’s preschool access ranked 33rd for 4-year-olds and 17th for 3-year-olds. The report also found that despite its low rankings for access, Washington scores fairly well for funding for the child-care sector, ranking eighth for state spending. But despite the spe...
La Conner's iconic fish slide is temporarily closed and awaiting repairs, but visible progress has been made on another key feature of Conner Waterfront Park. The Town Public Works Department has installed column foundation posts and construction has resumed on a long-sought pavilion at the shoreline park below Rainbow Bridge. Work on the project was suspended for a few weeks due to wet weather and other department priorities, some of which were carried out while crews were shorthanded. Town...
Town Administrator Scott Thomas is known for his occasional use of dry humor, but there wasn’t anything funny about his report to Town Council members last week regarding drought conditions this year. “We’re already in a state of drought,” Thomas told the council during its April 23 meeting at Maple Hall. “So, we may be looking at water restrictions down the road.” Thomas reported that Washington’s snowpack, based on state Department of Ecology statistics, stands at just 68% of its average levels. “With chances for significant additions to the...
Any registered voter interested in becoming a county commissioner, state legislator, statewide executive office holder or U.S. congressional representative or senator has to make her decision and file with the Skagit County elections or Secretary of State offices the week of May 6-10. The western commissioner district 1 and central county commissioner district 2 positions are the only countywide offices on the ballot. The filing fee is $1,413. The Skagit County PUD (Public Utility District) commissioner No. 2 position, also central county, is...
It was cold, damp and gusty in La Conner last Saturday, a perfect day for the La Conner Braves softball and baseball teams. The Lady Braves were especially thankful their home doubleheader with Concrete wasn't rained out as head coach Loran James' charges broke into the win column with convincing 22-13 and 21-13 triumphs. It was a case of déjà vu. A year ago, La Conner had also swept a pair of softball slugfests with their Skagit County rivals, winning those battles by 35-27 and 32-27 m...
The La Conner High School track teams should feel at home today at Mount Vernon High School’s Bulldog Stadium for the NW2B/1B Championship Meet. That’s because La Conner enjoyed strong showings on the Mount Vernon oval last week during the 116th Skagit County Track and Field Championships. With reigning state 2B hurdles champion Tommy Murdock leading the way, sweeping his signature events, the La Conner boys placed fifth on their side of the county meet which was paced by 2A Anacortes. The Anacortes girls topped the team leaderboard whil...
Wherever Emma Worgum goes, birdies and eagles are sure to follow. Worgum, who won the 2022 Washington State 2B/1B Girls' Golf Tournament as a La Conner senior, has taken her game to a new level this spring, having fired a Western Washington University women's school-record round of 68 last month at the Sonoma State Spring Invitational in California. Worgum, now a WWU sophomore, followed up with a splendid showing at the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) Women's Golf Championship last...
An overflow crowd was on the same page with author Janet Yoder at La Conner Swinomish Library last Friday. Nearly 50 people attended Yoder's one-hour presentation honoring the legacy of revered late tribal linguist Vi Hilbert, who made preservation of the Lushootseed language and culture her life's mission. "We're so thrilled with this turnout," library director Jean Markert told the Weekly News afterward. "It's pretty incredible." Incredible is also a word often used to describe Hilbert, whom...
Hear about a really smart man whose son has written a book about him: “Leonid Hurwicz: Intelligent Designer: How War and the Great Depression Inspired a Nobel Economist.” Michael Hurwicz will read at the Skagit Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Sunday, May 12 at 2 p.m. The elder Hurwicz journeyed as a Polish Jew from 1930s Warsaw to America in 1940 at age 23. As an economist and statistician, he realized “there are two kinds of games in economics. One is the game where people use only legal moves. Then there is the true game, the one like...
Mark your calendars for some fun activities this coming week. Swinomish Yacht Club Opening Day Boat Parade, 3-4 p.m. Saturday, May 4. Grab a viewing spot along the La Conner boardwalk at the Swinomish Channel for the "Under the Sea" theme parade of members' decorated yachts. Salish Sea Early Music Festival, 7 p.m. Tuesday, May 7, Fir-Conway Lutheran Church, 18101 Fir Island Road. "Renaissance Psalms, Irish Baroque and Folk: Three Centuries of Folk Song" features guitarist Oleg Timofeyev and flut...
Celebrate the farm-raised flavor of the Skagit Valley from 5-7 p.m. Tuesday, May 7, with the release party of “Genuine Skagit Cooking.” Break bread in tribute to the farmers, food producers, and residents who have opened their recipe boxes saluting Skagit’s agricultural way of life. While enjoying bites of small plates featured in the cookbook, guests will also be first in line to take the cookbook home. “Genuine Skagit Cooking,” from the organization Genuine Skagit Valley, features over 45 recipes from food producers, small business owners an...
After almost a century of hosting potlucks, weddings and receptions, rummage sales, art shows, dances, memorial services, service projects, polling sites and parties, the Rexville Grange #815 on Summers Drive is showing its age. Water seeps into the below-grade kitchen whenever it rains on Strawberry Hill. "That has caused a lot of rot in the lower cabinets, and damaged the water heater," says Cathy Savage, Grange president. With a kitchen unsuitable for cooking or catering, hosting indoor...
Sunday, April 21 3:02 p.m.: Old hearts still hope – Elderly female had met someone online and started a “romantic” relationship. She has sent the subject $800 over the past few months and wants to believe it’s a real relationship. She only called because friends were concerned that he could show up and may be dangerous. This is a common Facebook scam and there is little concern of the subject showing up. La Conner-Whitney Road, greater La Conner. Monday, April 22 2:55 p.m.: Caller in distress – Caller reported two dogs locked in a car that...
A bedrock principle of our society is the rule of law. The cliches are true because they are fundamental to justice: A nation of laws, not of men. And, of course, no man is above the law. But every red-blooded American knows that everyone gets the amount of justice that they can pay for. And when you are a billionaire ex-president who has appointed three Supreme Court justices, not only are the books cooked, but the defendant has aces in his back pocket as well as up his sleeve. Last week, the Supreme Court heard arguments over former President...
A little perspective: In 1869 bearded men in tall black hats whacked in a golden spike completing the Transcontinental Railway at Provo, Utah, establishing the first sit-down transportation between the East Coast and San Francisco. In January of the following year a magnitude 9 earthquake set off a flood that drowned Native coastal villages from mid California to the northern tip of Vancouveer Island. In short, it was a whopper; but almost completely unrecognized for over 100 years. In January 1700, the offshore portion of that fault fractured...
At its recent convention in Spokane, the Republican Party’s endorsement committee removed gubernatorial candidate Semi Bird’s name from consideration due to Mr. Bird’s failure to disclose a prior federal conviction for bank larceny. This action by the state committee resulted in such a chaotic uproar from the Bird supporters in attendance that the committee removed the governor’s endorsement entirely from consideration. Once again, Bird’s supporters vociferously objected. As a result, former U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert, the leading contender...
Dear Editor, Skagit County Emergency Medical Services and the Board of Skagit County Commissioners want to thank residents for supporting the recent ballot measure to renew the emergency medical services levy. The levy funds a county-wide coordinated EMS system through contracts with cities, towns, fire districts and other agencies that serve all county residents. Our EMS system consists of Basic and Advanced Life Support for county residents and visitors, which is the highest level and quality of service possible when it comes to a medical...
If they were protesting Saudi Arabia’s human rights abuses would they be branded anti Islamic? History has shown that the students were right about the wars in Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq. Listen to the students. Jai Boreen La Conner...
As longtime readers know, Jenelle bought an all-electric Chevy Bolt a couple of years ago. We’ve driven it about 18,000 miles. It replaced a Buick SUV that had about 85,000 miles on it. The total cost of the Bolt out of pocket, after the trade-in and the electric-vehicle rebate, plus the cost of adding a 240-volt (Level 2) charger to our garage, was about $25,000. The Buick got about 20 mpg, so we’ve saved 900 gallons of gas. Gas has been around $4 a gallon here for most of that time, so tha...
Use thin asparagus. After baking, the thick, cheesy roux stayed atop the asparagus. I mixed it up a bit for the photo. The baked cheesy roux was delicious on top of potatoes, also served with our meal. Ingredients Asparagus, 1 pound Butter, 3 tablespoons Flour, 2 heaping tablespoons Half-and-half, 1 cup Parmesan cheese, 1/2 to 2/3 cup grated Preparation Rinse asparagus and remove woody end of the stem. Snap each spear in half. Smear butter on bottom and side of a casserole dish. Place the...
SUPERIOR COURT OF WASHINGTON FOR SKAGIT COUNTY No. 24-4-00189-29 PROBATE NOTICE TO CREDITORS (RCW 11.40.030) In the Matter of the Estate of Lyle R. Wesen, Deceased The co-personal representatives named below have been appointed as co-personal representatives of this estate. Any person having 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 co-personal representatives or the...
