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The La Conner School District Board of Directors unanimously approved a 12.4 percent across the board increase for their Public Service Employees, as recommended by Superintendent Whitney Meissner, at its Monday board meeting. They also approved a 3.1 percent salary adjustment for administrators. Meissner reported meeting with the PSE “a couple of times” to reach the tentative agreement. These negotiations were in marked contrast to the long and contentious bargaining with the La Conner Education Association representatives. That agreement was...
La Conner Live 2018 would like to thank the following for their financial support. Without their support the concert series could not happen. The Ward Foundation, The Town of La Conner, Port of Skagit, Rachel’s heART, Nell Thorn, La Conner Brewery, Skagit Cellars, Seaport Books, Blackfish Gallery, La Conner Seaside Gallery, Whitey’s BBQ, Santo Coyote Mexican Kitchen, La Conner Seafood and Prime Rib, and La Conner Pub and Eatery. Concert attendees who came on a regular bases (weekly) came from seven cities in three counties (Whatcom, Ska...
In response to Doug Cole’s request for reasons to support the charter process, I give the following example. Several years ago, my neighbors were told by a local farmer that he was clearing land next door to park farm equipment on high ground in case of a flood. But instead of occasional storage, 100s of 10,000-gallon vats filled with brine and pickles were brought onto the property permanently – bringing noise from forklifts and semis operating through the night and year. We’re used to normal farm activity on the roads and in the fie...
Diaper Need is defined as the lack of a sufficient supply of diapers to keep a baby clean, dry and healthy. Diaper Need, a consequence of poverty, is not well known or understood. However, the National Diaper Bank Network, the foremost national authority on Diaper Need, is continuously seeking to paint a clearer picture, including the difficult barriers and tradeoffs families in need face daily. Unless someone has a child or grandchildren, they may not know diapers are expensive: Diapers cost 80-100 dollars a month per child. And, babies use a...
A friend gave me this magazine article: “The death of local news: The watchdogs of America’s local and state governments are disappearing. Can they be saved?” This Weekly News has stories on the latest town council and school board meetings in it. Under Sandy Stokes’ editorship, it won a statewide open government award for its lawsuit forcing Fire District 13 to turn over budget documents as public records. At least a couple of people every Wednesday strike up a conversation over articles and editorials they have read. It is good to know th...
Voters will choose seven of 28 District 1 candidates as freeholders, or delegates, to draft a home rule charter for Skagit County this election. Separately, voters will vote on approving the drafting of the charter. If the charter measure passes, the 21 freeholders from the three county commissioner districts will work together in developing a governing structure, or charter, for the county. It may take them a year or more. Once the charter is drafted, voters will decide to accept or reject it. District 2 has 18 candidates; 23 candidates will...
Kevin Paul is helping history repeat itself a second time. Nearly 30 years ago, before he became a nationally renowned carver featured on the Discovery Channel, Paul joined family members in creating a replica of the famed Swinomish totem pole unveiled as part of a major Washington State Centennial celebration on the local reservation. These days Paul is serving as lead craftsman and mentor to two of his former La Conner High carving students charged with refurbishing the weathered pole, whose...
Family and friends brought a dozen guns and a plethora of knives to be fired in a blacksmith’s forge and pounded flat and twisted into useless pieces of metal – and made into a future sculpture. Five artists, a couple of churches, City Councilman Eric Johnson and Director of the Anacortes Are Festival Rita James are the force behind “The Anacortes Regeneration Project: from Guns to Art, from Conflict to Peace.” They were joined by Chris Wardenburg-Skinner, an Edison artist with Safe and S...
IT’S IN THE BOOK – Ruby Billy proves she has mastered this reading lesson. Helping out are Principal Bev Bowen, left, and Connie Funk, tribal para-educator for the third grades. The school district fed 352 people at its annual community dinner and open house at the elementary school last Wednesday. Parents swarmed that school and the middle and high schools as well. – Photo by Ken Stern...
Last week Washington State Ferries released its draft long-range plan, outlining strategies for providing reliable, sustainable and resilient ferry service through at least 2040 for the largest ferry system in the United States. The ridership is forecast to grow 30 percent by 2040. Over half the fleet, 13 of 22 ferries will be retired and replaced by then. Plans call for expanding the fleet to 26 vessels. The plan identifies the challenges: “an already overburdened fleet and aging i...
