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The wheels of justice are said to grind slowly. But when it comes to planning for future local transportation needs, Town of La Conner officials, relatively speaking, are putting the pedal to the metal. Two years after the transportation section of the comprehensive plan was updated, Planning Director Michael Davolio, Assistant Planner Ajah Eills and planning commissioners are looking at parking in revisiting that element of the land use plan. Davolio conducted an inventory of available parking spaces on First Street and found there are 307...
April is National Poetry Month and Pelican Bay Books in Anacortes has a full line up of poets coming every Saturday, along with music and some local student poets. Start time is 7 p.m. and lasts through about 8:30 p.m. The line up: April 8th: Alice Derry and Kate Reavey are crossing over from Port Townsend on the ferry, both reading from new books. April 15th: Claudia Castro Luna, Kathleen Flenniken, both former Washington poet laureates, and the wonderful Susan Rich, all coming up from Seattle. They participated in last October’s Skagit R...
Maybe the 50 or so people attending the Climate Resilience conversation Sunday at the Anacortes Senior Center did not provide $7,500 worth of advice for changing the trajectory Skagit County residents – and everyone – are facing as the climate changes. But facilitator Dave Peterson made that unscientific estimate at the meeting’s end. The University of Washington forestry professor is with the Skagit Climate Science Consortium, scientists working with local people to assess, plan and adapt to climate related impacts. “Where do we go from here?...
Officials took the first steps toward updating La Conner’s comprehensive plan at a joint Town Council-Planning Commission meeting at Maple Hall Feb. 28. Admittedly, they were baby steps. It will be a two-year process focusing on public engagement and addressing growth over a 20-year planning horizon as mandated by state legislation, planner Michael Davolio reported. “Our first priority,” stressed Davolio, “is to engage the public in the process. It’s very critical from our perspective that the plan addresses the community’s values.” A...
Having recently celebrated its golden anniversary, La Conner Marina is looking to remain a bright shining light on the local scene well into the future. The Port of Skagit marked a major milestone by completing upgrades to LED lighting at the marina, Port Communications Director Linda Tyler said Thursday. “While the Port’s maintenance teams have been upgrading all Port facilities to LED lighting as needed when old lights burn out,” said Tyler, “a proactive and complete upgrade at the marina began in earnest several months ago to take advanta...
Town officials have cited public engagement as a top priority going forward. Attendees at the Feb. 22 La Conner Planning Commission hybrid meeting at Maple Hall took them at their word. Much of the 45-minute session was devoted to public comments, with residents voicing concerns with Hearing Examiner David Lowell’s Feb. 8 decision to deny the appeal of a conditional use permit granted for a condominium complex at 306 Center Street behind The Slider Café. Georgia Johnson, a Center Street property owner, joined others in raising environmental is...
Burlington — U. S. Sen. Patty Murray discussed investing in value-added agriculture in Skagit County while touring the WSU Breadlab at the Port of Skagit Feb. 22. Murray, who serves as the chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, held a roundtable discussion with Breadlab researchers and Port officials on some key federal investments to move the region forward. “I want you all to know just how serious I am about delivering federal investments to support the Port of Skagit and agricultural initiatives like Breadlab, which keep our eco...
Boaters mooring their vessels at the La Conner Marina will pay more this year. At its Feb. 14 meeting Port of Skagit commissioners approved an 8% rate increase for all moorage slips. Harbormaster Chris Omdal had briefed commissioners the week before, pointing to supply and demand and the rates at marinas in the region, inflation and the expense of infrastructure replacement. With the new rates, a 50-foot covered slip is $973. The monthly cost for that size slip at the Everett Marina was $1,036 last year. Omdal reported that La Conner is at the...
J. J. Wilbur will remain a busy man. Wilbur, who serves on the La Conner school board and as a Skagit County Fire District 13 commissioner and chairs the Swinomish Tribal Community Port Commission, was re-elected to the 11-member Swinomish Senate in Sunday balloting. Wilbur survived a strong challenge from Cathi Bassford, a tribal housing and utility board member and elder programs supporter who has served as Swinomish kitchen manager for nearly 20 years, serving special event meals for...
In the film “Cool Hand Luke,” actor Strother Martin, famed for his role as the sadistic warden, delivered one of Hollywood’s most iconic lines. “What we’ve got here,” Strother’s character tells Paul Newman’s Luke, “is a failure to communicate.” Town of La Conner officials are taking steps to avoid having those words directed at them. Three weeks after communication strategies were addressed during a forum at the La Conner Retirement Inn, La Conner planning commissioners and Council Member MaryLee Chamberlain followed up with a 75-minute ro...
A full moon didn't rise until Sunday, but a lot of crazy things happened in the La Conner area days prior. It started with a burglary at Pioneer Market and included a pair of power outages, the sinking of a boat on the waterfront and a car slamming into a house and flipping onto its top side off Shelter Bay Drive Friday night. The early Wednesday break-in at the Morris Street grocery store didn't net the burglars much. They got away with five cartons of cigarettes and apparently had their...
La Conner Town Council and La Conner Schools officials addressed common goals and interests at their respective meetings last week. Councilmembers Mary Wohleb and MaryLee Chamberlain joined the Jan. 9 school board session via Zoom to share tips for the district best applying for state Department of Commerce grants that fund solar energy projects. Superintendent Will Nelson and Bobby Vaughn, director of operations and planning, returned the favor by attending the Jan. 10 Council meeting to weigh in on a possible joint venture to install a new...
The coronavirus pandemic roared into 2022 but vaccinations slowed its spread and the story faded from the public consciousness. Fewer people reported their positive tests and infections. People are still getting infected and hospitalized, however. Skagit Count now over 15,000 COVID-19 cases Jan.12 New COVID-19 hospitalizations swamping county Jan. 26 Indoor mask mandate ends statewide March 21 Feb. 23 Skagit one of 12 state counties with high COVID-19 transmission Jul. 6 New Skagit COVID-19 cases drop dramatically Sep. 7 Wearing masks indoors...
Each October La Conner Public Works Director Brian Lease and his crew begin bracing for all kinds of wintry conditions anticipated in the weeks ahead – heavy snowfall, icy streets and sidewalks, high winds, steady rain and standing water. They dealt with all those in the last few days alone. A fierce winter storm that brought up to nine inches of snow was followed by record low temperatures making for hazardous travel and then rapid melting marked a wild weather week leading up through C...
Today is the official start of winter. The seasons changed Monday, though, when La Conner and the Puget Sound region awakened to sub-freezing temperatures and light snow on the ground. Much of the same is forecast through Friday. The wintry conditions immediately impacted schedules. La Conner Schools Monday morning canceled Tuesday classes, the last day of school before winter break. The La Conner High girls' basketball game at Meridian Monday and the Braves' Tuesday tipoff with Clallam Bay...
Larry McCormick has been seeing a lot of dead birds. "You drive around Best, Calhoun, Bradshaw, you see them," said the La Conner resident, an avid hunter. "At one farmer's field with goose decoys out, I picked up 14 dead geese. A guy I know counted 81 dead ducks in a ditch on Best Road. It's bad." In a Dec. 8 release, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife confirmed that it has retrieved more than 700 deceased birds of several species – primarily juvenile snow geese – from the Ska...
Those attending the Port of Skagit’s open house Thursday at La Conner Marina lost their marbles. That was the plan, it turns out. Port consultants handed people Zip-Lock bags containing seven marbles each as they entered the Swinomish Yacht Club for the two-hour event, which offered an opportunity to share ideas and learn more about Marina redevelopment plans. Attendees were asked to indicate preferences by placing marbles in jars matching the respective Port proposals presented on illustrated placards. They ranged from pedestrian and r...
The public is invited to attend an open house hosted by the Port of Skagit Dec. 1 to share ideas and learn more about the vision and goals for redeveloping the La Conner Marina. Port staff welcome feedback from the community as the Port looks at the future of the 13 acre commercially-zoned parcel in the center of the La Conner Marina property. The open house is 4-6 p.m. at the Swinomish Yacht Club Source: Port of Skagit...
The public is invited to attend an open house hosted by the Port of Skagit Thursday, Dec. 1 to share ideas and learn more about the vision and goals for redeveloping the La Conner Marina. Staff welcome more feedback from the community as the Port looks at the future of the 13 acre commercially-zoned parcel in the center of the La Conner Marina property. Staff will answer questions and there will be opportunities to offer input on the vision and goals for the La Conner Marina. The open house is 4-6 p.m. at the Swinomish Yacht...
The La Conner Town Council’s three hour meeting Nov. 8 included four public hearings. A 530 p.m. 2023 budget meeting started the evening. Three hearings, including one on the budget, were dispatched quickly. Council did not adjourn till 9 p.m., however because the 25 residents attending had a lot on their minds, first with general comments and during the hearing on amending the municipal code. The now Heart of La Conner tourist promotion icon on Gilkey Square was “deja vu times four,” said project originator John Leaver in his lead prese...
Half a dozen La Conner residents accepted Port of Skagit Executive Director Sara Young’s invitation to coffee at the La Conner Marina last Wednesday. She hopes to reach more residents at an open house Dec. 1. Young brought Planning and Development Director Heather Rogerson, Communications Director Linda Tyler and a Power Point graphic. Dashed lines outlined the 13 acres on North Third Street north of Sullivan Slough. The Port has “amassed the pieces of the puzzle,” every property, for which the Port has a vision, Young said. “We want this pr...
Port of Skagit staff are planning a “Coffee and Conversation” gathering on Wednesday, Nov. 9 from 2-3 p.m. at the La Conner Marina office. Its purpose is to invite community members to sit down with Port staff and ask any questions they may have about the La Conner Marina and the vision for the property. Source: Port of Skagit...
The La Conner municipal code did not receive a complete facelift upon Town Planning Commission review at Maple Hall last Tuesday. But there are a few new wrinkles for the town council to consider. Perhaps the most significant development during the 90-minute public hearing, continued from Sept. 20, came when commissioners embraced town planner Michael Davolio’s proposal that they rule on conditional use permit applications and not the contracted hearing examiner. The idea floated by Davolio came near the end of the commission’s Oct. 4 mee...
La Conner Planning Commissioners last week got a closer, on-the-ground look at long-range Port of Skagit plans for the northern industrial area of La Conner Marina. The five-members held a special Oct. 3 public meeting at La Conner Maritime Services, a well-established marina tenant eyeing future expansion to meet market trends. Port staff, including Executive Director Sarah Young, joined commissioners, residents and Town Administrator Scott Thomas on an afternoon walking tour of the La Conner...
La Conner Maritime Service is a second generation La Conner family owned and operated business providing marine services since 1992. We employ about 30 individuals in living wage jobs. Several of those individuals, including myself, call La Conner home. I consider it a great privilege to work and live in such a beautiful area. Over the years our business has grown and attracted new clientele to the area, many with larger boats. With this growth we’ve realized a need for indoor space to accommodate larger boats and maintain year-round work f...
