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Back-ups on town streets and roadways around La Conner last Wednesday were not the usual summer tourist traffic but especially troubling, as was its cause: a horrific double fatality head-on collision on the SR 20 Duane Berentson Bridge over the Swinomish Channel. The two vehicle, wrong way head-on collision killed Jill Powell, of Mount Vernon, and Raymond Koladycz, of Oak Harbor, who drove his Toyota Highlander westbound on the eastbound span. Circumstances of the two-vehicle collision were...
A modern Renaissance Man has gifted La Conner its newest work of outdoor art. George Drake has been a politician, professor, soldier and peace activist. But that’s just part of the Bellingham man’s lengthy resume. He is also a champion of public sculpture. Along with his wife, Mary Ann, Drake has donated some 30 pieces for display in various cities and towns. La Conner was added to the list last Thursday. Drake donated “Conical Consonance 3,” fashioned from Corten steel by Oak Harbor abstrac...
It was just over a half century ago that the Shelter Bay development, which some predicted would transform then sleepy La Conner into the Carmel of the Northwest, both literally and figuratively changed the local landscape. That is when Osberg Construction of Seattle was in the midst of dredging millions of yards from what had been known as Indian Bay to create the present harbor and moorage area that serves as a visual anchor for the 420-acre planned residential community. The population now...
Eight days after the first vote totals of the primary election on August 5, over 10,000 Skagit County ballots are uncounted, as more come to the election office in the mail. The outcomes of several local races are too close to call. With so many votes outstanding after Monday’s count, some winners are uncertain. The top two finishers for each office run against each other on the November ballot. The three Legislative District 10 seats will be filled. Only LD 10 Position 2 has an incumbent, Rep. Dave Paul, D-Oak Harbor. He leads the Skagit C...
Two Morris Street businesses are making big changes this summer. Lucy Kelly and her cat Six will be retiring soon. Tillinghast Postal and Business Center and its building are for sale. The beautiful, custom-built home of Pransky & Associates is also on the market, but George and Linda Pransky and staff are very much in business. Lucy has loved her years running La Conner’s only office-services store with Ginger Olson, who helped her open the business in 2013. She hopes that a new owner will c...
Next Tuesday we celebrate the 100th anniversary of the 19th amendment, women gaining the vote. Especially if we are white, we take universal suffrage for granted, that everyone can vote. No one alive today remembers when women did not have the vote, but for 131 years, from 1789 till August 18, 1920, women could not vote. That is more years denied the vote than having it. Women have pushed men into the social evolution of our society. Into the 20th century – depending on where you lived, which state – women were considered property,...
By: Andrea Doll and Wende Sanderson This month, we celebrate the 100th anniversary of ratification of the 19th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which states: “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” Although women in our state had voting rights since 1910, that was not true for most other states in our country. It wasn’t until 1919 that Congress voted to pass the 19th amendment. And then it was up to the states to ratify. By August 1920,...
It was a good weekend in the La Conner area both in terms of weather and on the coronavirus front. The Swinomish Public Health Team confirmed Monday there were no new cases of COVID-19 on the reservation from Aug. 7-9, though cautioning there are still test results pending. There had been one new case reported Friday morning from the prior 24-hour cycle. The Swinomish Medical Clinic has hosted a series of drive-thru testing sites, the most recent being yesterday (Tuesday) morning, making possible the regular and updated posting of coronavirus...
My wife and I recently returned to La Conner after a ten-year absence while she directed the Alternative Program for Neah Bay High and Middle Schools, and I served on the community hospital board. Desperately needing a break from herding cardboard boxes of stuff that appeared to be breeding in our new home, we snuck over to the final sales day at the Library Thrift Store in early July. What a wonderful way to meet new, happy people. They called themselves “Friends of the Library,” and indeed they were that day and have valiantly been for som...
In response to Mr. Morrell’s letter of last week, I hope that the residents of the 2,626 counties who voted for Donald J. Trump in 2016 will think twice before casting their ballots for him this year. It’s time to elect a decent man, one who unifies rather than divides, one who vows to tell the truth instead of peddling lies and one who is capable of true leadership instead of saying he takes “no responsibility” for the state of American affairs. Proudly, I will be casting my presidential vote for Joe Biden on Nov. 3. Ashley Sweeney Shelter...
Each year the City of Anacortes reconciles what it costs to deliver water to its customers versus the budgeted cost. Operating costs for 2019 are scheduled for audit this month, with the reconciliation following soon thereafter. The cost of providing irrigation water is included in the overall cost, so that La Conner pays its share for providing this water to farmers, temporary hook-ups and in-city commercial and residential users. This is not fair. The cost of supplying irrigation water should be offset against the overall cost of operations...
British rule of America began in 1607. The Revolutionary War started in April 1775, before any declaration of independence by the 13 colonies. With almost no form of self-government, the colonies were compelled to meet as a Continental Congress in an effort to manage their war effort. Our Declaration of Independence was adopted on July 4, 1776, proclaiming that “(A)ll men are created equal,” and citing “(M)any injuries and usurpations,” including no right of representation in the legislature. Despite the historic importance of the Declara...
Recently a neighbor here in Shelter Bay, a person of color, told us that he was out for a walk in the community when a white stranger accosted him to ask what he was doing there. The stranger told our neighbor that he didn’t look like anyone who lived in the community, and then the stranger demanded that our neighbor account for himself. We are infuriated and embarrassed to learn that an apparently out-and-proud racist is despoiling our beautiful neighborhood, and we refuse to tolerate it quietly. More importantly than what it might do to p...
Stompin’ Grounds Coffee shop has been given notice their lease will not be renewed. Apparently this is due to discrepancies about enforcing masks. La Conner has lost nine businesses due to the virus. There will undoubtedly more before the virus is brought under control or runs its course. Stomping Grounds is one of the few businesses that has done well these last few months. It is popular for locals, visitors and school children. In short, it has become a draw to La Conner. To drive stomping Grounds out of business is unfortunate, not only f...
The July revenue report to La Conner Council captures the economic impact to La Conner of shutting down the economy March 18 through May. Without the Tulip festival, April and May hotel/motel tax receipts were down 81.3%, $32,700 less than 2019. Sales tax receipts were down 29.3% for the two months, $37,276. The Council reviewed these financial reports at its meeting Tuesday, General Fund revenue is 32% above projections, at $738,522, boosted by the $200,000 sale of the Town’s Kirsch property. The Town has also received $100,000 from its 2019 c...
If true that a busy person wears many different hats, don’t expect to see J.J. Wilbur without a head covering anytime soon. Wilbur, a commercial fisherman who serves on both the Swinomish Tribal Senate and Fire District 13 Board of Commissioners, joined another local public service panel Monday night when he was chosen to fill the vacant Shelter Bay director district seat on the La Conner School Board. Wilbur was selected by board members to succeed Brad Smith, who resigned mid-term in June, at the time Whitney Meissner resigned as district s...
The sun has set on La Conner High summer conditioning sessions. La Conner coaches have pulled the plug on the optional off-season workouts as a public health and safety response to recent spikes in confirmed local COVID-19 cases. “We had a few unrelated cases in the Swinomish community, so we decided to postpone it,” new head football coach Jeff Scoma said of the outdoor training. Scoma told the Weekly News that more than 20 players were regularly taking part in his workouts, which focused on running, agility drills and tire-flipping. “We...
The University of Washington has announced these students from the La Conner area have been named to the Dean’s List for the winter 2020 quarter: Nolan Burgmeier Duckworth, a senior, and juniors Tsedenya Hasenbalg, Kendall Anne Johnson and Jayna Rose Whited. To qualify for the Dean’s List, a student must have completed at least 12 graded credits and have a grade point average of at least 3.50 (out of 4). Hunter Tautvydas, a junior at Ripon College, is on the spring 2020 Dean’s List. Students must achieve a 3.4 grade point average or highe...
Monday, August 3 4:13 p.m.: Wove away – Report of a pickup with a camper weaving on the road. Deputies checked the area and were unable to locate it. La Conner Whitney / McLean Rds., Greater La Conner. Tuesday, August 4 11:17 a.m.: Not now – Report of a white truck driving on the wrong side of the roadway. Deputies checked the area and were unable to locate it. Penn / Calhoun Rds., Greater La Conner. 1:34 p.m.: Got away – Report of a truck stepping on the gas and kicking up rocks behind the caller’s house. Deputies later l...
Are you a gardener? Radishes are easy and fun to grow. They are planted, as seeds, in the spring. I allow a few to flower for the bees. This year I cut the long stalks with the seed pods when they are young tender green pods and just a few have a reddish tinge. I cut the pods, leaving the stem, cutting the tiny pods as well. Ingredients Radish seed pods, 4 cups Pint jars, 2 Brine: 1 cup bottled water 1/2 cup white wine vinegar 1/2 cup rice vinegar 1/2 cup sugar 1/2 tablespoon Kosher salt (salt...
