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Dredging in the Swinomish Channel will begin Sept. 9 and continue until mid-February, says the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Last dredged in 2018, the 11-mile long, 100-feet wide, 12-feet deep federal navigation channel is dredged every four to six years because “navigation through the channel is essential for commerce in the area,” said Sara Young, executive director of the Port of Skagit. Most of the work during the round-the-clock, six-days-a-week project will take place at the entrances of the channel. At the south end, the Skagit Rive...
A celebration of life will be held for Mike Chevalier from 2 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 14, at the Shelter Bay clubhouse. Soft liquor will be served and Santo Coyote will cater a taco bar. Please come and share a favorite story about Mike....
HEADS UP The La Conner wastewater treatment plant will close at 11 a.m. Friday, Sept. 6, to septage hauling, yard waste dumping and compost pickup. The plant is expected to be closed most of the day. NOT TO BE MISSED Join local poet Susan Rich for a short introduction to writing poetry about visual art, 4-5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 7, at the Museum of Northwest Art. Get inspired by art in MoNA’s galleries and other poets writing around you. You will have the opportunity to have your work published on MoNA’s website and to read it at the Poetry Ope...
I am sympathetic to your recent view article questioning the value of our present two-party system to our election process. The criticism can apply to either side. The parties gain total control by holding the purse strings and thus keep things in uproar as an easy way to generate funds. In this game, money talks loudly. The whistlestop train campaigning may be too outdated, but the undergirding of what we stand for may still be there. Namely: 1. That truth is the most sustainable way to keep us free, safe and fair in our interactions. 2. That...
NOT TO BE MISSED Annual Summer Concert. Hear the Skagit Community Band at 2 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 24, for its annual summer concert at Gilkey Square in La Conner. As always, the concert is free. Bring lawn chairs and sun screen. Animal, landscape and rural travel photography by travel photographer Terry Divyak is on display at Caravan Gallery, 619 S. First Street, La Conner. Open daily. LIBRARIES La Conner Swinomish Library. 520 Morris St., La Conner. 360-466-3352. www.lclib.lib.wa.us. Open 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday....
Volunteering has paid off handsomely and repeatedly for Gary Ladd, the rewards proving every bit as valuable as a paycheck. "It's been fun," Ladd stresses, citing the sense of self-fulfillment realized from public service. Over the past decade, Ladd has lent his time and expertise to Skagit County Fire District 13, Skagit Bay Search & Rescue and the Shelter Bay residential community, filling a variety of roles for each. "I always had the spirit for volunteerism, but never had the time," said...
New hire, familiar face. John Tanaka, who was its assistant chief a decade ago, is returning to Skagit County Fire District 13 near La Conner as a paid consultant to help develop long-range plans for expanded services. Tanaka's resume is filled with fire service experience. Along with his stint with District 13, Tanaka has been a fire captain in Everett, a fire response lecturer and instructor, a consultant to several other departments and consulted on a project to rebuild statewide...
NOT TO BE MISSED Annual Summer Concert Hear the Skagit Community Band Saturday Aug. 24 at 2 p.m. for its annual Summer Concert at Gilkey Square in La Conner. As always, the concert is free. Bring lawn chairs and sun screen. Animal, landscape and rural travel photography by travel photographer Terry Divyak on display at Caravan Gallery, 619 1st Street, La Conner. Open daily. LIBRARIES La Conner Swinomish Library. 520 Morris St., La Conner. 360-466-3352. www.lclib.lib.wa.us. Open 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday. Storytime...
The public hearing held on July 29 by the La Conner school board revealed that next year the district is going to levy $1,434,000 for debt service on the bond that built the middle school. That will be paid by about 4,400 non-Native American taxpayers who live in the school district. The Swinomish do not pay taxes. Yet, they account for 38.7% of the student body. They should contribute $554,958. The tribe can afford it. They will collect $1,958,197 extra cash from their tax on Shelter Bay and Pull & Be Damned residents this year. One of the...
La Conner’s town government – elected officials and staff – created a long task list for the second year of implementing the five-year strategic plan they adopted last September. Credit them for being ambitious: 31 tasks came out of their June retreat, with over half of them placed on Mayor Marna Hanneman and Administrator Scott Thomas’ shoulders. The fire department, with five tasks, has made progress, getting a $150,000 commitment from the town council to buy a fire boat. Public works and finance staff are assigned these tasks: improving inte...
With the expected finalizing of Kamala Harris to be the Democratic presidential nominee, our planet has hope for remaining livable. Earth will of course remain no matter what, but the four years that Trump occupied the office set back actions to limit climate change by 10 to 15 years. No one can argue that our weather has become more hostile to humans and animals. Many cities are passing the temperature threshold for outdoor activities plus the number of severe storms and wildfires has gone beyond any expectations. By Trump eliminating the...
The Federal H-2A Temporary Farmworker Program was designed to provide “temporary workers/guest workers” in areas where industrial agriculture can request a cheap, flexible and deportable workforce with no labor rights. This program relies on cheap and exploitable temporary workers working on farms at the expense of local farmworker communities displaced from secure jobs to support their families. Local workers work/live in Skagit County (some for decades), have families, pay taxes, pay for housing, buy clothing and groceries, and support the...
What a difference a year makes. Last summer, La Conner School District officials required a budget extension that forecasted a negative general fund balance, the result of declining student enrollment and loss of pandemic-related federal dollars. That dire scenario landed La Conner in binding conditions, essentially giving the state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction oversight of La Conner’s finances. On Monday, the school board approved what it called a “lean” $13 million budget for 2024-25 that projects revenues exceeding expen...
NOT TO BE MISSED Anacortes Arts Festival, Aug. 2-4. More than 220 artisans will have booths filling Commercial Avenue in downtown Anacortes. It’s one of the largest arts festivals in the Northwest. Music on the Jazz Stage all three days. Free admission. Join Firefighter/EMT Natalie Baker for coffee at 10 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 10 in the La Conner Swinomish Library conference room. She’ll discuss fire safety topics and will have some firefighting equipment for the community to try out. This event will end with a Q&A. Bring your coffee mug and que...
It strikes me with the ending of the Biden campaign today that a couple of things are worthy of note. Joe Biden has said right along he is in this to win as recent as just a day or so ago, then he contracted COVID-19, again and ran home to Delaware to regroup. Joe Biden won nearly 100% of the votes for the nomination, only a few voted for others. Did it matter? Nope. So, who is it that decided to overrule the will of the voters in the Democratic Party? Was it Trump? Nope. The Republican party? Nope. We know that Joe Biden didn’t want to give up...
In the 23 years I have lived in Shelter Bay there have been many notable improvements in La Conner, such as the roundabout, the fire station, the La Conner Swinomish Library, Channel Cove, Gilkey Square, the boardwalk and Conner Waterfront Park. However, I have noticed that many projects seem to reach a certain stage and then just stop. Whether this is because of money, permits or lack of will, us common folk don’t know the reason. Maybe others could help me understand why so many projects stall. Here are a few examples of what I am talking a...
I recently bought a used plug-in hybrid car, a Chevy Volt. After the federal tax credit and Washington licensing fees (EVs are currently exempt from sales tax), it cost about $8,000. I already had a home charger for Jenelle’s Chevy Bolt. If I had needed to install a 240-volt EV charger at home, that would have cost about $2,000 to $3,000 more. Over almost three months, I’ve put a little over 1,800 miles on the Volt, using it as my primary car. It’s a plug-in hybrid, not a pure electric, so it...
They're thinking nationally and acting locally. Delegates from the Skagit chapter of the League of Women Voters championed a national push to support local journalism and news coverage in Washington, D.C., in June. The Skagit chapter, in fact, had hosted public forums in Mount Vernon on the status of community journalism – purchasing print advertising to promote those meetings – well before the League of Women Voters of the United States overwhelmingly adopted a position in support of local new...
A month ago, Skagit County Fire District 13 Chief Wood Weiss assigned crews to cover two 12-hour shifts per week at the Summit Park station on a trial basis. Initial reviews are in. So far, so good. “We’ve had some really busy days,” Capt. Chris Olbu told fire commissioners during their July 18 public meeting. “There’s also an increased probability of getting more transports.” Weiss said early returns on the trial program merit its continuation. “The rapid response to the north end of the district has been of benefit to our citizens,” he said....
NOT TO BE MISSED Humanities Washington Speakers Bureau at Museum of Northwest Art: We All Transition with Mac Scotty McGregor. 1-2:30 p.m. Saturday, July 27. What is it like to see and walk in the world from both the male and female perspectives? Mac will share his gender journey and what it taught him about life, our culture and how it affects our interactions with others. Free. RSVP to monamuseum.org/events/wealltransition. Anacortes Arts Festival, Aug. 2-4. More than 220 artisans will have booths filling Commercial Avenue in downtown...
Lois Watson is the newest member of the Shelter Bay Community board of directors. Watson was appointed by the board at a special meeting June 13. Her term, through June 30, 2026, started July 1. She replaces Jan Paul, who resigned in April. The board elected Pat McGarry treasurer, replacing Paul....
NOT TO BE MISSED The 20th annual NW Art Beat Studio Tour sees 22 artists showing their works in 16 studios in a free, self-guided Skagit Valley art studio tour from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. July 20 and 21. NW Art Beat is presented by Skagit Artists. Learn more at NWArtBeat.com. LIBRARIES La Conner Swinomish Library. 520 Morris St., La Conner. 360-466-3352. www.lclib.lib.wa.us. Open 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday. Storytime for Children. 11 a.m. Fridays. Tech Help. 3-5 p.m. Mondays. Dungeons & Dragons Club. 3-5 p.m. Tuesdays....
This year's July 4 celebration in La Conner was a double feature times two. Several entries in the town's Independence Day parade looped downtown a second time. That evening, tribal vendors led by Rodney John filled the sky with fireworks for hours following the official pyrotechnics show over Swinomish Channel. Both the parade and fireworks received positive reviews as did the two-band holiday evening concert at the Port of Skagit's La Conner Marina. Social media was filled Thursday night and...
NOT TO BE MISSED Skagit City School Picnic, 1-3 p.m. Sunday, July 14, 17508 Moore Road, Mount Vernon. Join the Skagit County Historical Society for this time-honored tradition of celebrating community. Food will be available from the La Conner Rotary Club. The 20th annual NW Art Beat Studio Tour sees 22 artists showing their works in 16 studios in a free, self-guided Skagit Valley art studio tour from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. July 20 and 21. NW Art Beat is presented by Skagit Artists. Learn more at NWArtBeat.com. LIBRARIES La Conner Swinomish...
If practice makes perfect and perfect needs practice, area firefighters and emergency responders are perfectly practiced and practically perfect. This after Swinomish Reservation and the Port of Skagit's La Conner Marina were sites last week of major multi-department training exercises that participants lauded afterward for their realism and long-term value. Skagit County Fire District 13 Training Officer Capt. Chris Olbu scripted a drill for June 26 that challenged several agencies, led by La...
