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Articles from the June 4, 2014 edition


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  • Commissioners give chief voice on appointment

    Sandy Stokes|Jun 4, 2014

    Fire District 13 commissioners Chuck Hedlund and Arne Fohn will accept applications from people who would like to be appointed to fill a board vacancy until June 10. Then they will meet on Monday, June 16 to interview the candidates and, perhaps, make a selection for someone to fill the position vacated by Doug Avery in April. Last week Hedlund and Fohn agreed to let Chief Roy Horn and two of his designees help them choose the person who will essentially be one of his bosses. Although only the commissioners have a vote on the issue, Horn sugges...

  • Fire District 13 commission votes to boost budget by $90,000

    Sandy Stokes|Jun 4, 2014

    The Skagit County Fire District 13 Board of Commissioners adopted a resolution last week that the “2014 Operating Budget be increased by $90,193.43 to $706,899.97.” However, it appears there was a math error — some employee costs were dropped from the tally given to the board — so the budget would actually be more than $741,000. A year ago, the district’s operating budget was $480,000 and the original budget the district adopted for this year was $637,000. In contrast, this year’s operating budget for District 11, the Mt. Erie De...

  • Nasty surprises in Moore Clark cleanup

    Sandy Stokes|Jun 4, 2014

    The rats are gone, but it turns out the mountain of refuse left at the site of the 115-year-old grain warehouse on La Conner’s south end waterfront was just the mess on the surface. Triton America, which is working to cure the horrendous eyesore that is the historic Moore-Clark property, found “a lot buried under there,” said Triton Chief Financial Officer and Controller Ron Halterman. The junk in the ground included busted concrete and old creosote poles and other hazardous materials, he said....

  • Good Music

    Jun 4, 2014

    GOOD MUSIC – The La Conner Middle School band took third place with a score of “excellent” in a state-wide competition on Saturday. They competed in the Music in the Park at Wild Waves at Stadium High School in Tacoma. Band director Brian Fraser said the “excellent” rating was exciting, because La Conner musicians were competing against older kids, since our band has sixth-graders, while other schools have seventh- and eighth-graders only. – Photo by Kirsten Morse...

  • Boardwalk celebration draws a crowd

    Jun 4, 2014

    Close to 100 people turned out for the ribbon-cutting celebrating the completion of the first phase of La Conner’s boardwalk, the dedication of a little park and pergola named for Fred Martin, and the start of the next phase that will take the waterfront feature the rest of the way through town. Elected officials and local dignitaries gathered on May 28 and patted each other on the back for their roles in a project aimed at boosting the local economy. “All of Skagit County is going to ben...

  • ERIC A. NELSON

    Jun 4, 2014

    Former La Conner resident Eric A. Nelson died on Sunday, May 29 at age 84 in Escondido, California. Eric was born in the La Conner area to Axel and Anna Nelson. He graduated from Burlington High School. He was preceded in death by his parents and his brother Alf. Though he moved out of the area many years ago, he has many Skagit County relatives. He is survived by his wife Mary Herrold, his daughter, Kathy and son Steve and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren. His local relatives are Mary Clare Nelson and Arlene Nelson and her...

  • For Fire District 13 management - Taxpayers pay pricy hotel and restaurant tabs

    Sandy Stokes|Jun 4, 2014

    The administrators and com-missioners of Fire District 13 spent more than $12,000 traveling around the state to various trade gatherings last year. Receipts and reimbursement records obtained through public records requests show that Chief Roy Horn hit the road seven times — once for training and six times for various conventions and conferences. The district’s records show that of those six trade gatherings, then Commissioner Jim Grove and Commissioner Chuck Hedlund each attended three; Secretary Deborah McFarlane attended two; and forme...

  • MAX D. ROBISON

    Jun 4, 2014

    Max D. Robison of La Conner died on Saturday, May 31 at Whatcom Hospice House in Bellingham. He was born in Sedro-Woolley, WA on June 29, 1934, the son of Max and Charlotte Robison. He grew up in La Conner, attending La Conner schools and graduating from La Conner High School in 1954. Max married Janet Greenwald in June 1956. They made their home in La Conner, where they raised their family. Max worked over 40 years at Dunlap Towing as a tugboat captain. He will be remembered for his great...

  • La Conner no mere also-ran at State Track Meet

    Bill Reynolds|Jun 4, 2014

    La Conner High teams went to great lengths to stay in the running at the State 2B Track Meet in Cheney. Making their third trip to Eastern Washington this spring, La Conner thinclads went the distance — and then some — while facing top entrants from both sides of the mountains last Friday and Saturday. Braves’ sprinter Mitchell Grant thrived in the highly competitive climate, showing few ill effects from waging an uphill battle to medal in one of the State Meet’s more grueling dou...

  • Robbins ruffles La Conner's State title hopes

    Bill Reynolds|Jun 4, 2014

    The Yakima sun wasn’t alone bringing the heat to last week’s State 2B Girls’ Softball Tournament. So did Christine Robbins. The aptly named Morton-White Pass hurler nearly dropped a goose egg on La Conner in Friday’s first round State action at the Gateway Sports Complex, an 11-1 setback for the Lady Braves. Robbins, quick to the plate throughout, fired a four-hitter and struck out 12 batters, sending Bi-District champion La Conner to the consolation bracket. The sophomore standout also helped her cause with a three-run homer, one of four Mo...

  • Skagit Co. Sheriff's Office POLICE BLOTTER

    Jun 4, 2014

    Sunday May 25 9:11 a.m.: Domestic – Witnesses and deputies heard loud arguing, 900 block Maple Ave. La Conner. The people involved denied that any assault had occurred. Monday May 26 7:07 p.m.: Dog accident – Someone reported that a dog fell out of a truck onBest Road toward theConway area, but deputies could not locate the animal and there were no other reports of the incident. Thursday May 29 5:40 p.m.: Never mind – A person called in to report a boating problem on the waterfront nearPioneerPointMarina, but then refused to...