Your independent hometown award-winning newspaper
Your independent hometown award-winning newspaper
Sorted by date Results 1 - 25 of 32
A group of Native American rowers on the Paddle to Muckleshoot arrive to a warm welcome at the Swinomish Reservation on Tuesday. Canoe families from Washington and British Columbia are paddling canoes to Muckleshoot Reservation land in West Seattle for arrival on Sunday, July 30, with multiple overnight stops along the way....
Beset with declining student enrollment and the loss of federal emergency pandemic funding, La Conner Schools officials are bracing to adopt what finance chief David Cram has termed a “bare bones” budget July 31. A 9 a.m. public hearing in the campus administration building precedes the vote. The fiscal plan is designed to rebuild the district’s dwindling fund balance, shrunk in large measure by reduced state financial support resulting from a decreased student population. But it comes at the cost of painful personnel cuts across the board...
The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community is one of two tribes in the state that will receive $500,000 grants to secure high-speed, affordable internet service. The Swinomish and Makah Tribes each received grants through the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Tribal Broadband Connectivity Program, Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) announced Friday. “This award,” Cantwell said, “will help the Swinomish and Makah Tribes plan out and build broadband infrastructure so that over 300 more tribal households can access telehealth appointments, remote learning and oth...
After promoting the Valley's most famous flower gardens, Cindy Verge is looking forward to tending her own backyard. Executive director of the Skagit Valley Tulip Festival for 20 years, Verge will retire this fall. Verge was a journalist and editor when she joined the Festival as its Sponsorship Coordinator in 1999. When she became executive director in 2003, "I learned how to run a business," Verge told the Weekly News, "because it was payroll, accounts receivable, accounts payable, a budget...
Emotions ran high during a July 18 meeting of the Home Trust of Skagit board, its director and residents of its Channel Cove community. Home Trust of Skagit Executive Director Jodi Dean invited residents to the meeting to explain changes at Channel Cove related to the completion of five new housing units and parking revisions. Some Channel Cove residents said the changes caught them by surprise, especially recently installed bollards that prevent residents from driving on the fire lane to...
The plight of independent community newspapers has become a national story. And last week that story's dateline was LA CONNER, WA. A five-minute segment crafted by Jeanie Lindsay, statehouse reporter for KUOW Public Radio and the Northwest News Network, chronicling the struggles of newspapers in small towns focused on efforts by Weekly News publisher Ken Stern to find a buyer for the paper he purchased six years ago. It was heard nationally. Stern received a phone call Thursday from a "between...
Hector Soltero has made countless deliveries in La Conner during his years as a United Parcel Service driver. Now it is his turn to be on the receiving end. And in a big way. The La Conner Town Council unanimously approved a resolution July 11 honoring Soltero and expressing appreciation for the outstanding service he provides to his La Conner area customers. "He's well loved by everybody in town," Councilmember Rick Dole said in proposing the resolution. "He's just a joy to be around." Council...
Tiny houses were a big topic at the La Conner Town Planning Commission meeting July 18. Planning Director Michael Davolio shared a revised draft proposal that would amend Town regulations to allow high density residential development as a conditional use with commissioners at their hybrid meeting in Maple Hall. The amendment is in response to developer Greg Ellis wanting to site 44 tiny home units on Whatcom and Washington streets behind Pioneer Market. It will be considered separately. He said he will continue tweaking the draft proposal and o...
The median price of the 137 homes that closed in Skagit County in June was $560,000, almost unchanged over the four months since March. Fewer homes closed in most of the county’s nine markets than a year ago but the number was about the same as sold in May. The 27 homes sold in Anacortes was six less than in May and seven fewer than in 2022. The median sold home price there dipped to $765,000 after two months of being above $800,000. Data are from the Kirkland-based Northwest Multiple Listing Service. A La Conner area broker shared a report t...
When given a real-world assignment last school year, La Conner High School students nailed it. Both literally and figuratively. The school’s construction class, taught by Daniel Castillo, built a tiny house as part of career and technology curriculum and the finished product was recently delivered to the tiny home village on Pease Road in Burlington. Burlington Mayor Steve Sexton and representatives of the Low Income Housing Institute, which paid for the materials used on the project, were present when the student-built house arrived. “My onl...
Summer is quickly coming to a close, but we still have lots of exciting things happening at the library. We have several weeks of summer reading to keep everyone busy. Keep buzzing through those books so you can turn in your completed packet for a prize. Thank you to drummer Ray Soriano for a great drumming workshop. Those who attended had a wonderful time. Thank you also to La Conner firefighter Natalie, who took time to let us explore and learn about a fire truck. Everyone who came got a chance to sit in the truck and explore all the cool...
La Conner High School championship volleyball coach Suzanne Marble, a member of two separate state-level halls of fame, is about to add another honor to a thick resume. Having retired after 30 years from the coaching ranks and on a leave of absence, Marble will receive the 2023 Skagit County Pioneer Association Spirit Award. She will be recognized Aug. 3 during the business meeting segment of the 119th annual Skagit County Pioneer Picnic in La Conner. Marble led teams to seven state crowns – a likely eighth title was denied when COVID-19 forced...
“I just think food people are the best people,” said Danielle Halstead, Viva Farms development manager, when asked about her favorite thing about working with the organization. “People who grow food in the dirt are authentic and inspiring and anything I can do to help them is wonderful.” Executive Director Michael Frazier, shares that enthusiasm. It was visible as they led a tour last Wednesday evening. Attendees came from all parts of the Skagit Valley to learn more about Viva Farms and getting involved. Viva Farms was founded in 2009 to provi...
The 62nd Anacortes Art Festival starts Aug. 4-6 on Commercial Avenue, stretching to the Port dock. Along the way are artist booths; music on main, jazz and waterfront stages; three beer and wine gardens; food trucks and vendors; a kids discovery area; an art dash and artist demonstrations. The Juried Fine Art Show at the Port features 82 regional artists representing a wide range of mediums and perspectives. Among the La Conner area artists are Craig Barber, Dee Doyle, Tracy Powell and Maggie Wilder. It opens July 29, 5:30-8 p.m. at the Port...
By Ken Stern Two outstanding performances of two fantastical characters are sound reasons for blowing into the Rexville Blackrock Amphitheater to see Shakespeare Northwest’s production of “The Tempest.” It is not an island but the outdoor theater is the natural setting for this play. Nate Wheeler’s Caliban scurrying out of the woods, snorting and babbling and Ariel (Maia Newell-Large), flitting and swooning as she darts on and off the stage and up and down the aisle, are way worth the price of admission. This is almost a fairy tale and starts...
Should you want to watch a first-run movie or two (or possibly three) from the comfort of your own car as Americans did decades ago, you'll need to hit the road for the Blue Fox Drive-In, just south of Oak Harbor on Highway 20 at Moore Landing Road. Used to be that many American towns had a drive-in movie theater. Today, the Blue Fox is one of just five drive-ins left in all of Washington. The Blue Fox Drive-In has been a Whidbey Island entertainment mainstay since 1960. In some ways, it still...
Like classic cars or classic boats? Hit the La Conner Chamber of Commerce’s 23rd Annual La Conner Classic Boat & Car Show at the La Conner Marina Aug. 5. Cars from almost all the decades of the past 100 years will fill the parking lot behind the Swinomish Yacht Club. So will motorcycles and tractors. The boats on trailers parked there will be vintage, as well: fiberglass or wood boats made before 1979. Just north and west, at the Marina’s dock, will be classic and vintage boats that will moor overnight Friday and Saturday. Awards for a var...
Rod Proctor is the new president of Shelter Bay board of directors, elected at the board’s special July 5 meeting. The officers are: Vice President Rick Parnell, Secretary Monte Hicks, Treasurer Jan Paul and Secretary Pro Tem Nancy Shimeall. Paul takes the seat vacated when Joe Hurley resigned. She came in fourth in May’s elections. Hurley, Proctor and Parnell were elected in May. Lawson Earl was appointed in May to fill the seat Judy Kontos lost when recalled....
The Town of La Conner Public Works Department will be performing its annual fire hydrant flushing and valve exercising during the month of August from 7:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. Monday-Friday. If you notice any discolored water, please run your cold water supply until it clears up. If the problem does not clear up please call Todd Park, 360-770-4536, or Chip Sherman, 360-840-3684, for assistance. Source: Town of La Conner...
La Conner Planning Commission will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 1, Lower Maple Center, 104 Commercial St., La Conner. By Zoom: phaudowud-online.zoom.us/j/87588605640?pwd=aXFzNkswNGxpMENNTmRCMFNRbG9KQT09, meeting ID 875 8860 5640, passcode 993636. AGENDA Public Comment (topics not on agenda, time limit 3 minutes) MINUTES Approve minutes from July 18 meeting OLD BUSINESS Status Report: Talmon Development Status Report: Public Participation Program Comprehensive Plan Update: Discussion of Transportation Element Ongoing Discussion: Short Term...
The Washington Department of Labor & Industries invites the public to attend hearings in Bellingham and Anacortes on updates to Process Safety Management requirements for petroleum refineries. Six workers at an Anacortes oil refinery died in 1998 in one incident and seven more died in 2010 in an explosion and fire. Hearings will be held: Tuesday, Aug. 15: Virtual via Zoom Passcode: PSM@1230. Meeting ID: 879 4704 9101. Passcode: 43800387. Join by phone (audio only): 253-215-8782. Pre-hearing overview at 12:30 p.m., public hearing at 1:30 p.m....
We count “boat nights” as a measure of how busy the marina is over any given time period. Each boat that spends a single night on one of our guest docks counts, so a boat that is here for a week will count as a stay of seven boat nights. Over the past week, we have hosted 124 boat nights, or just over 30 boats per night on F and G docks. That is a lot of visitors coming to our town and for more than just a few hours. The boats that come in for lunch and shopping and then depart for home are coun...
Sunday, July 16 5:47 a.m. Backyard intruder, maybe – Reporting person called in for the homeowner after learning that someone may have been walking on her property behind her house. Deputies arrived but did not locate anyone. This may have been a previous event and not currently happening. Whatcom St., La Conner. Monday, July 17 3:05 a.m. Loud car early morn – Complaint of a loud vehicle in the area of the La Conner Marina. Deputies were on a priority call and the area was checked by Swinomish Police. No issues found and reporting person bel...
This is a refreshing juice made with fruit and no added sugar. Often someone will reflect on my recipes about their simplicity. They appreciate the short list of ingredients and the simple instructions. Others appreciate how my recipes use ingredients they currently have on-hand. From Aqiimuk's kitchen to yours, I wish you health and happiness. Thank you for being with me on this journey as we discover together the value of a simple life. Ingredients Seedless watermelon, 5 pounds Lime, 1...
