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Sorted by date Results 455 - 479 of 2077
Another day, another dollar. More than a familiar lament, it was truly a way of life for one of La Conner’s more famous – or infamous, depending on your political leanings – native sons. Hulet M. Wells, born in 1878 on a farm near town, toiled in hayfields as a young man for a buck a day. He also worked variously as a railway section hand, postal worker, street paver, logger, miner and shingle weaver. And that’s just to name a few. But his eventual calling was that of a labor activist, a role that led Wells in 1912 to run for mayor of Seattle...
La Conner showed its colors Saturday with a joyous celebration of famed local author Tom Robbins, named King for a Day and hailed by fans as he and wife Alexa led a parade down First Street perched atop the vintage La Conner fire truck. In a nod to his bestselling novels, fans showed up in outrageous costumes, the most popular of which were nods to Sissy, the hitchhiking model of "Even Cowgirls Get the Blues" The day was a celebration of imagination and creativity in all its forms. Favorite...
First term state lawmaker Clyde Shavers (D, Oak Harbor) brought plenty of energy to a downtown La Conner appearance last Thursday. And for the 10th District Democrat it was a case of substance matching style. That's because Shavers also brought with him to the 75-minute afternoon stop at Ravens Cup Coffee & Art Gallery on First Street a detailed update on clean energy legislation and policy measures both in Olympia and around the country. His audience, primarily founders of the La Conner-based...
The La Conner Town Council will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 12, in Upper Maple Center at 104 Commercial St. Call to Order Pledge of Allegiance Public Comments (Limit: 3 minutes per person) Presentations Consent Agenda Consent agenda (Approved without objection 5/0) Approval of the minutes: Aug. 22, 2023 Finance: Approval of accounts payable. Approval payroll Items removed from the consent agenda Reports Chamber report Revenue /expenditure report Department head reports Mayor’s report Council committee reports Unfinished Business: Center S...
NOT TO BE MISSED Skagit Symphony begins its 2023-24 season with “Second Chances” on Oct. 21. The concert features Sandra Shen on piano playing “Stars” by Mary Howe, Rachmaninoff’s second piano concerto and concludes with Mussorgsky’s legendary “Pictures at an Exhibition.” Info: www.skagitsymphony.com/second-chances. 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. every Friday. Book Club. Meets at...
Saturday saw the residents of La Conner at their best, gathering for what we all love, a parade. It was made better in that it was organized by us, for us. On this day author Tom Robbins was heralded as a king. The world-famous writer has been living quietly among us for decades. Residents who have known him for a long time and those who have never met him gathered to celebrate, as did those – primarily women – who came from as far away as Ireland, upstate New York, California and everywhere in between, including Indiana and Missouri. Robbins...
There is order in the establishment of frontier towns like La Conner. Religion usually precedes law enforcement and the saloon precedes either religion or law enforcement. Opportunity is the single lure of the frontier, though opportunity is not the same for all. Some come to make a new life for themselves and family. Some come for a quick buck, however it might be acquired. Some come to escape and remake themselves. No two pioneers are the same; neither are they different. They want to get ahead and make something of themselves. Some succeed m...
Some people, no matter how dire the situation, always see things with a glass half-full perspective. And then there's Tom Robbins. The acclaimed La Conner author, who famously quit his gig at the Seattle Times by calling in "well," has during his more than 50 years here earned repute as a joy hunter, always seeking and cherishing life's "cup runneth over" moments. That tireless devotion to optimism, regularly punctuated with wit and whimsy, will be saluted during "Tom Robbins Day" festivities in...
La Conner leaders continue to develop a saltwater flood mitigation plan before king tide season this fall. They will meet Sept. 1 with representatives of the Upper Skagit Indian Tribe at their south end property to discuss placing flood barriers there. La Conner Town Councilmember Rick Dole relayed the news to council, which met after the commission concluded its business Aug. 22 in Maple Hall. Town Administrator Scott Thomas reported discussions have begun with north end business owners for...
In recent years, scrapbooking has become a popular hobby. But for a La Conner area resident it has long been more than that. Anne Waldron has over time filled several of her old-school hardcover photo albums – the ones reinforced by clear protective overlay pages – with an eclectic collection of local and national news articles, favorite cartoon strips, advertisements bearing images of celebrities and treasured family memorabilia. They are assembled in no particular order. Even so, none see...
PUBLIC NOTICE FOR LODGING TAX FUNDING The Town of La Conner is accepting requests for Hotel/Motel tax distributions for budget year 2024. The 2024 Lodging Tax Fund Request for Proposal may be found on the Town website under the Finance Department at www.townoflaconner.org. All requests must be received (no postmarks) at La Conner Town Hall, 204 Douglas, P.O. Box 400, La Conner, WA 98257. by 3:30 p.m. on September 8, 2023. Please address any questions to Maria DeGoede, Finance Director, at [email protected] or call...
La Conner is taking a novel approach when it comes to celebrating the best things in life. The town will be the scene for "Tom Robbins Day" Sept. 2, an event designed to promote fun, friendship, wit, whimsy and positive vibes, all reflective of themes and characters in books penned by La Conner's famed best-selling author. It will also be an opportunity to support mentoring opportunities in the arts for local youth at the new La Conner Swinomish Library. A full slate of activities is planned, in...
Finally. A witch hunt exposed, captured on the front page of newspapers all across the country and blaring from TV screens. Yes, corrupt law enforcement staff exist, backed up by a law-breaking judge willing to bend the law to punish those nipping at their heels. Cronyism run amok, on steroids! Kurt Batdorf’s story, below, sums up the unprecedented-in-our-time attack on a Kansas newspaper, the Marion County Record, gone after for doing its job. Small town cronies tried to out-muscle the 69-year-old publisher and his 98-year-old mother, the c...
Nonprofit organizations promoting La Conner tourist activities beyond Skagit County can apply for Town of La Conner Hotel/Motel tax distributions for 2024. The deadline is 3:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 8, for proposals to be received at Town Hall, 204 Douglas, P.O. Box 400, La Conner, WA 98257. No late submissions, including postmarked submissions. The Lodging Tax Fund Request for Proposal is on the website: townoflaconner.org. Questions? Ask Maria DeGoede, finance director: [email protected] or 360.466-3125....
Tuesday, Aug. 15 10:07 a.m. Roasted RV – Fully engulfed RV fire at N. First and Morris. Driver stated they believed it had started near the refrigerator unit and they were unable to put it out before it was out of control. A deputy and Swinomish PD arrived on scene with fire extinguishers but ultimately it was La Conner Fire that arrived and put out the fire. N. First / Morris Sts., La Conner. Friday, Aug. 18 6:31 p.m. Out of mind – Subject waved down a deputy and advised he had lost a backpack somewhere in town and wanted contact if it was...
SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON FOR SKAGIT COUNTY In the Matter of the Estate of Hazel Cherry Monahan, Deceased. Cause No. 23-4-00420-29 PROBATE NOTICE TO CREDITORS (RCW 11.40.030) The Personal Representative named below has been appointed as Personal Representative of this estate. Any person having a claim against the decedent must, before the time the claim would be barred by any otherwise applicable statute of limitations, present the claim in the manner as provided in RCW 11.40.070 by serving on or mailing to the Personal...
Affordable housing is the issue nearly every city and county in our region is struggling with, including La Conner. And, with the town considering new code changes, it seems the situation may only get worse. Over the past few years, I’ve attended many planning commission meetings and at every meeting, the urgent need for affordable housing is discussed. Yet, instead of pursuing policies that will produce more affordable permanent housing, the town is considering encouraging even more short-term rentals by expanding the rules for short-term r...
They say there’s no such thing as a free lunch anymore. Unless, of course, you’re willing to race canoes on Swinomish Channel all day in the August heat, often doing so while pulling against the current. Canoe club members and elders braving the summer weather to watch the weekend races were treated Saturday to a free salmon luncheon prepared as part of the festive annual four-day Swinomish Days cultural celebration. “We did about 400 pounds of salmon,” Marty Cladoosby, part of the fish cooks c...
Better weather in May is probably why tourists again made La Conner their destination. The $55,179 collected in sales tax revenue is the first record high collection for its month in 2023, topping July 2022 by 2.3%. The state’s Department of Resources reports on a two month lag. The special use fire tax barely reached its record, $29 over the July 2022 report, at $5,393, tracking sales taxes, as it does. Most healthy, as it has been all year, was the hotel motel tax revenue, at $16,442, another record, 9% above July 2022. The $9,874 in REET (...
Town officials remain focused on mitigation of flood conditions ahead of king tide season in the fall. La Conner Town Council members last week endorsed recommendations proposed by Public Works Director Brian Lease for immediate short-term saltwater flood protection remedies along the town’s waterfront. Lease had earlier shared with the emergency management commission a priority purchase list for materials and equipment – ecology blocks, sandbags, a sandbagging machine and forklift. “I’d like to have sandbags filled and on pallets by Oct. 1,...
There is truly no gig greater for a college student than housesitting. Instead of spending my July in a tiny I-5-adjacent apartment where, if I open my windows I'm greeted by the cacophony of cars streaming past, I resided in lovely La Conner where, outside my windows, I could hear waves on the bay and view bald eagles and the occasional cat fight. Let's back up a little bit though, so I'm not just a name at the top of an article. My name is Chloe Peterson, I'm a junior at the University of Wash...
The weather has been fabulous for boating this summer and our guest docks continue to be full. Many of our guests are stopping in La Conner on their way to or from Seattle. They come in around lunch time, relax for a day in town, then head out early to get into the traffic lines at the locks. We had a boat come through this week that was over 100 feet long. This is pretty large for our guest docks and the channel. Our guest docks are 500 feet long, so over 20% was covered by just this one vessel...
Florence B. Lockrem passed away on the night of Aug. 7 at 11:20 p.m. She slipped peacefully into the next world with her eldest son by her side. Florence was born on Jan. 24, 1935, in the town of Sioux Lookout, Ontario, Canada. Her early life was harsh and demanded that she grow up quickly in order to help care for her brothers and sisters. In 1953 at the age of 18, she began working as a switchboard operator in her hometown. A short time later, she met a handsome young Airman at a fire. They...
Emergency Management Commission, 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 22, Council Room, 104 Commercial St. AGENDA Minutes Public Comment (items not on the agenda) OLD BUSINESS Upper Skagit Tribe communications Temporary flood measures: Update Conditions to implement temporary flood protections measures What level of flood protection? What is reasonable risk? (Regardless of where the risk comes from) 100-year flood event (1%), 500-year flood event (0.2%), 1,000-year flood event? Flood height for Skagit River design. Trigger(s) for a Skagit River Flood watch...
Questions about flooding I was pleased to read in last week’s Weekly News of the emergency flood commission touring the areas that were breached in last year’s flood. It has been seven months since the high tide inundated the town causing 1.8 million dollars damage to people’s homes and town businesses. Having experienced the flooding up close and personal, I have a few questions. I have photos of the water pouring through the blue metal buildings on the old Moore Clark property. That water spread throughout the south end of town. My quest...
