Your independent hometown award-winning newspaper
Your independent hometown award-winning newspaper
Sorted by date Results 182 - 206 of 755
In 2010 Christchurch, New Zealand was devastated by two magnitude 7 earthquakes only days apart. Buildings were shaken to the ground; roadbeds overturned; water pipes snapped, etc. Nearby, the hamlet of Littleton, a town somewhat larger but like La Conner, was similarly shaken. But Littleton had a secret: a neighborly system of sharing services hour for hour they called a “time bank.” When Littleton’s 300 time bankers heard about an elderly couple being left homeless by the quake, the time bankers found the couple a temporary home and tappe...
News that President Biden intends to permit the release of cluster bombs to the war in Ukraine needs to be challenged on moral and legal grounds and I would ask that we reach out to Rep. Rick Larsen as a member of the House Armed Services Committee to ask him to oppose the cluster bombs transfer. Cluster bombs are some of the worst weaponry of war, especially on the citizenry. The cluster “bomblets” are designed to detonate in the air, but many fail to do so and fall to the ground leaving them especially vulnerable to children who are mai...
La Conner School Board President Susie Deyo called the panel’s annual six-hour retreat last Wednesday an opportunity for reflection. It was also a time to look ahead. And while the view going forward can be murky at best, board members and school officials – like their peers in districts across the state – anticipate seeing an upcoming academic year fraught with tough fiscal challenges. Finance Director David Cram, just four months into his second tour with the district, outlined a proposed budget designed to salvage a $110,000 fund balance in...
Greg Ellis sees big things ahead for La Conner by going small. The Shelter Bay resident and Braves Club after-school program volunteer, who submitted plans for seven full-sized homes behind Pioneer Market in 2021, now proposes constructing tiny condos there. “I want to do the best thing I can for the community,” Ellis told the La Conner Planning Commission during their 90-minute June 20 hybrid meeting at Maple Hall. “There’s such a shortage of affordable housing here, especially for a workforce.” Ellis is revamping his plans for lots he has ow...
America’s national bird may stump part of a tree-thinning project at Pioneer Park. The Town of La Conner has been advised by an urban forestry services consultant that more than 40 trees in the park, a popular trail hiking and public events venue – including the annual Pioneer Picnic – have structural defects or are in decline, posing potential isolated hazards. A large winter windstorm during the COVID-19 pandemic uprooted a handful of trees in the park, some of which crashed onto the roof of its historic sheltered community kitchen build...
SKAGIT VALLEY — The Rodale Institute Pacific Northwest Organic Center at Cascadian Farm, the historic property formerly known as Cascadian Home Farm, has opened its fields to the public for u-pick strawberries. A beloved destination for tourists and local residents traveling along Highway 20, the idyllic 90 acre farm is nestled between the Cascade Mountains and the Skagit River. Founded in 1972, the site is the birthplace of the Cascadian Farm brand of grocery products. While the Cascadian Farm brand quickly outgrew the Home Farm, it r...
Memorial Day was May 29th this year. That is John F. Kennedy's birthday. I know that because it is also my mother's birthday, Mary Madeline Nemunis Stern. My mother was born in 1920. She would have been 103. I believe my mother hated war. She never told me that. Nor did she ever take her five children to a demonstration against the Vietnam War or go on her own. She did tell me this story once, that in 1964 my parents were at some work-related social function of my dad's, of course, for few women worked outside the home then. He worked for the U...
It’s often said there’s no rest for the weary. For over three decades the Skagit Adult Day Program has been working to put that adage to rest. The organization’s mission is to provide a daytime program where adults with special needs can take part in a supportive group setting with friends, board member and La Conner area resident Jan Taylor told the Weekly News Saturday prior to a major fundraiser at Maple Hall. Caregivers gain time to recharge their batteries or complete daily chores while those in their charge are engaged in an array of su...
The past intersected with present and future during Memorial Day services at two local cemeteries Monday morning. The memories of departed veterans, pioneers and tribal members were honored during separate programs at Pleasant Ridge and Swinomish cemeteries, each of which also stressed the blessings of freedoms enjoyed today and offered words of wisdom and optimism going forward. "We remember with thanks our loved ones who are buried here," Rev. Don Robinson said in remarks at Pleasant Ridge,...
La Conner Schools, which is considering installation of a campus garden, knows it cannot plant a money tree to solve the district’s present fiscal crunch. But sometimes unexpected financial windfalls appear seemingly out of nowhere without anyone having gone out on a limb to shake loose the funds. The district has received such a surprise, receiving $258,000 in federal impact aid monies, designed to assist districts with tax-exempt federal property such as military bases or Indian trust lands. The allocation wasn’t anticipated at this tim...
The national COVID-19 public health emergency ended May 11, as ordered by President Joe Biden. People covered by Medicare will continue to get COVID-19 vaccines at no cost. Medicare will cover COVID-19 PCR and antigen tests with no out-of-pocket costs when ordered by a doctor. Expanded telehealth services will continue through December 31, 2024....
More than 70 local employers with job opportunities will be present at Skagit Valley College first career fair May 18, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. in the Knutzen Cardinal Center on the Mount Vernon campus. Local employers will be recruiting from all areas of study, with industries including diesel, automotive, manufacturing, welding, marine technology and health services. The public is invited. Bring bring resumes, dress professionally, have questions for employers and be prepared to follow up with companies and positions of interest. The campus address:...
During the hectic, fluid and complex process of the 2023 legislative session, I wanted to keep our priorities front and center. I’ve been fighting to help our low-income and working families, support our veterans and military families, protect and preserve our environment, provide our students more opportunities and ensure our rural counties and cities have the resources they need to keep our communities strong. We’ve made significant progress and I wanted to share some successes we’ve had t...
I’m happy to report the Legislature finished the 2023 session with a balanced budget – and excellent transportation and construction budgets that will create jobs in the 10th district and throughout our state. Affordability The price of everything has gone up – especially housing. I know how hard this is on family budgets. It’s also tough on our economy, making the workforce shortage worse when jobs go unfilled because people can’t find housing within commuting distance. This session, the Legis...
Two La Conner High School seniors have found a recipe for success in the culinary arts program at Northwest Career and Technical Academy . Li Bell and Kristina Hansen gain instruction and train two-and-a-half hours mornings in the academy's combo lecture hall/kitchen and commercial kitchen facility off Laventure Road near the Skagit Valley College campus in Mount Vernon.. The culinary program, taught by former greater La Conner resident Lyle Hildahl, prepares students for careers in restaurants,...
Photographer and writer Matika Wilbur, "Tsa-Tsique," introduced her epic photography book "Project 562: Changing the Way We See Native America" to the world before a full room of over 160 people in the Social Services Building on the Swinomish Reservation last Tuesday night, April 25. Emcee for the evening Michael. Vendiola, education director for the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, was absolutely right in exclaiming, "I am really excited to have her here. She could have done this anywhere, i...
The Swinomish Tax Authority used the same levy rate for 2023, 2022 and 2021: $11.98 per thousand. But, the assessed value of homes in Shelter Bay and Pull & Be Damned increased from $196,279,100 to $206,399,050 over the past year. The Swinomish government aims to collect $2,440,832 in taxes from Shelter Bay, Pull & Be Damned and Thousand Trails. Three taxing districts will receive contributions from the Swinomish. These are: Fire District 13 at $400,000 for operations and maintenance, plus $90,000 impact fees from the casino, plus a medical...
The permit for a 300 square foot billboard on Cedardale Road on the east side of I-5 at the Conway exit was approved by the Skagit County Planning and Development Services Department April 18. Staff found the application met all requirements in Skagit County’s code and comprehensive plan and the applicant provided “adequate analysis of and mitigation for the specific adverse environmental impacts of the project,” planner Kevin Cricchio wrote. The applicant received a SEPA Mitigated Determination of Nonsignificance. Cricchio approved an admin...
Swinomish Tribal Community lands are in line for salmon habitat restoration and coastal resilience grant funds, U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen (D-Everett) and U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA.) announced last week. The federal funding support has been recommended by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration as part of infrastructure and inflation reduction legislation passed to combat climate change and create green jobs. One of 14 NOAA-endorsed conservation projects is an $11.6 million Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife salmon and...
The memories of severe saltwater flooding that deluged La Conner in December remain firmly etched in the minds of residents and business owners here, perhaps no more so than former council member and planning commissioner Bill Stokes. But Stokes, unanimously chosen to chair the Town’s new six-member emergency management commission at its first meeting April 19, is focused more on the future than the past. “We’ll talk about everything that can cause an emergency,” Stokes said. “That includes fires, tsunamis and earthquakes. “Our current goal,” h...
La Conner Schools will have to make do with less in the 2023-2024 academic year. District officials were facing that as they begin crafting next year’s budget at their April 10 board study session. Declining enrollment, a smaller than anticipated apportionment of federal impact aid monies and the loss of emergency COVID-19-related funds will result in significant spending cuts, district finance director David Cram predicted in a report to school board members. “We’re looking at a $1.5 million reduction in spending to get to a $500,000 fund...
The Swinomish and Tulalip photographer, filmmaker, podcaster and author Matika Wilbur shares her Indian/Spirit name "Tsa-Tsique," meaning "she who teaches children," with her mom, Nancy Wilbur. During an hour phone interview, Wilbur shared the story of her decade long journey leading to her new photography book "Project 562: Changing the Way We See Native America." The 10 inch by 10 inch 416-page book can be ordered now. Her research took her to all 50 states. It started in 2012 as a Kickstarter...
Helping Hands Food Bank invites you to Neighbors Night at Tulip Valley Farms April 20, in partnership together to connect the community with resources while enjoying the magic that Skagit Valley has to offer: Tulips and community fellowship. For this free evening, Helping Hands will be providing a baked potato bar, with potatoes generously donated by Skagit's Best Produce, and the chance to engage in the fellowship that spring brings to the Valley. This is a great way to see tulips while...
New La Conner School Board of Directors Loran James and Kim Pedroza hit the ground running last week in a two-hour marathon meeting. James and Pedroza were appointed last month to fill sudden board vacancies. They did not have the luxury of taking time to get up to speed. And despite the length, it was a relatively fast-paced session. New ground was presented midway through in the form of a 30-minute presentation and proposal by Morgan Brown and Jen Willup of the Between Two Worlds indigenous science class to develop a native food medicine fore...
The Town of La Conner is interested in your opinion. It has created a survey for town residents regarding Town of La Conner services and community resources. To complete this survey, go the Town’s website and click on the link at the top of the home page. The deadline for online survey submitals is May 14. Or, pick up a paper copy at Town Hall, 204 Douglas Street. The deadline for paper copy survey submitals is May 10. Website: townoflaconner.org Source: Town of La Conner...
