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In your editorial (“Free Speech in Shelter Bay,” April 5) you state “Public governments are regulated by the revised Code of Washington, or RCW.” You neglected to mention that Home Owners Associations (HOAs) are also regulated by the RCW, specifically RCW 64.38. I agree with you that Weekly News coverage of Shelter Bay should be allowed unless restricted by RCW 64.38. I also feel, as stated before, that the Weekly News should be a valuable resource in assisting our three interwoven communities better understand each other – warts and all. So,...
The facts about health care in the United States are eye opening. How can a nation that spends nearly twice as much as our economic peers still have so many problems? As the former ranking member of the state Senate Health Care Committee and current assistant ranking member, I spent some considerable time trying to unpack our rising health care cost challenge. Like other complex, human problems, this one won’t be solved with a silver bullet either. Let’s start with the biggest problem in our...
Is democracy dangerous to the health of Shelter Bay community board members? Or, is the board’s leadership allergic to free speech? Is it possible that the Weekly News is just plain wrong in its efforts to cover Shelter Bay governance? The Weekly News has taken the standard journalistic approach to cover Shelter Bay: attending meetings; interviewing people; reading documents – including court filings; and tracking social media posts. Staff have spoken to people on and off the record, on background and for source material, including holding nam...
The opportunity to be involved in a new library project in the community we chose to move to in 2007 has been a once in a lifetime experience. I’m grateful to have been able to work with so many who were dedicated to a shared vision that united our community. After a 20-year dream of the Friends of the Library, and an all-out effort over the past 10 years, our “little library that could” made it happen. Thank you to the La Conner Library board of trustees for your commitment to the new library. You held fast to the goal of a building design and...
Washington state is a crucial stopover for millions of migrating birds. The diverse landscapes, from the coast to the mountains, provide essential habitats for birds during their long journeys. Among many vital habitats, the Skagit Valley stands out as an especially important wintering ground for tens of thousands of migrating birds. As a major destination for snow geese, swans and other species, the Valley provides crucial resources and shelter during the colder months, helping to ensure the survival of these magnificent creatures. As the...
Our town hall meetings aren’t that different from what happens in the House and Senate in Olympia. People share their opinions – sometimes softly, sometimes loudly. Yet the kind of dialogue we have—and the attitude we bring to that conversation—determines everything else. It was an honor to host two bipartisan town hall meetings in March and to listen to your ideas, stories and questions. Every town hall is unique, because every community has different issues and ideas. What is the same each ti...
Finding out who slew the Slough Swindler, the La Conner Chamber of Commerce’s participatory mystery theatre event last Saturday, was relatively easy. Several people figured it out and the winner was chosen by lot. He got a grand prize package of La Conner tourist goodies. Everyone went home happy. Solving the problems the Shelter Bay Community faces will not be nearly so easy, may not end at a prescribed time and the outcome is not certain. This is a drama still playing out. It may be dramatic but it is certainly a mess. The five executive c...
These are tough times that will definitely be noted in our history books. Crime and violence are at all time highs (which can be seen as big lows). Many small businesses have shut down and many big businesses have scaled down. COVID-19 will go down in our history books as an extremely challenging event. These are especially trying times for highly overactive people like myself who hate looking at the calendar in their phones and finding not much scheduled. But contemplation can have an upside,...
After my decision to run for the Shelter Bay Community board of directors a year ago, I set a goal to read all of the governing documents, including the association’s Rules and Regulations, cover to cover. I studied HOA educational videos and used my own funds to pay for seminars. I listened to attorneys’ lectures on the fiduciary duty of Care, Loyalty and Obedience. I familiarized myself with HOA infrastructure, liability insurance, management and current state statutes for Common Interest Communities, HOAs and Non-profit Corporations. I lea...
The Skagit Valley’s environment and economy has been shaped over time by changes in our climate and land use. Some of these changes have resulted in devastating impacts to our communities, including floods, heat waves, droughts and wildfires. In 2021, our farmers and farmworkers witnessed one of their driest years with record low rainfall in spring and a vicious heat wave in summer. By late July, the Washington Department of Ecology issued a drought emergency as farmers dealt with dry conditions...
Seems like banks and railroads are failing all around us. No one is really surprised, from corporate CEOs to congressional committees and Congress, period, to front line workers driving engines and managing branches or federal and state regulators at every agency. Train cars and locomotives jumping the tracks in East Palestine and Springfield, Ohio or nearby, behind the Swinomish Casino? Banks failing in California, New York and, now, Switzerland? The new normal is business as usual. Big companies are always failing. Big companies are always no...
“We will fail, / When we fail to try” — Rosa Parks A Message From the Dark Side … . I am a woman from the “other side” as the writers put it in last week’s page 3 “Show of Support” display ad for some members of the Shelter Bay board (Weekly News, March 15). I would like to make a few observations and comments in response. A board in charge of representing nearly 1,000 homes is a huge job! I’m sure that no resident has ever demanded “perfection,” however, along with the honor and privilege of representing our communities it is also...
Hey, now here’s a curveball for you, instead of larky snark about dikes and missing fish, music is the subject of the day. No, Sloughmander is not going to miraculously re-appear, unless he does, but don’t hold your breath. Heck, some of you only know me as a mean writer, when I’m actually a mean dancer, I kick everyone else off the dance floor (not really), I mostly share the space quite nicely. Sunday music in Gilkey Square is not enough for this dancer man, the music in the Tav is okay, for coming from a box, but we have such great music...
It seems that the efforts to enshrine reproductive access in the state constitution have been aborted, as the proposed amendments from the House and Senate failed to receive a Floor vote before our most recent cutoff. As I’ve said in other media outlets and during committee proceedings on the Senate’s version, I believe the issue of abortion access is settled in Washington state. In no uncertain terms, voters told us via initiative their policy preference on the matter. My job is to rep...
What is the difference between last week and this week? Answer: Last week everyone was at the end of the third year of the coronavirus pandemic. This week we all step into, no not its fourth year but the first year of what the World Health Organization in January termed a global health emergency. When the United Nations' backed World Health Organization declares a global health emergency, pay attention. We can breathe a sigh of relief that we are out of the three-year grip of the COVID-19 pandemic. Pandemics are defined as everywhere, able to...
In 2023 the La Conner School District taxes will be $993,717 for operations and $1,300,000 for debt service. There are 2,313 taxpayers in the district. On average, each taxpayer pays $992 for schools. According to the school district’s budget, the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community contributes $500,000 to operations and nothing to debt service. Debt service is covered by non-Indians. According to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, 34% of the student population is Native American. The Tribe’s share of debt service is $442,000...
Too many neighbors are experiencing the trauma of homelessness and that affects our entire community’s quality of life and economic prosperity. Did you know that underhoused students are 25% less likely to graduate than their housed peers? And 300+ households in Skagit County currently have no home, with many more struggling every day to find or keep housing. Many are working hard to make it better, including Community Action and the 16 service providers that participate in Skagit County government’s Coordinated Entry homeless response sys...
I agree with the writer’s statement (letter: “Weekly News story misreports Shelter Bay forum,” March 8) “We live in challenging times and a plague of misinformation stands in the way of finding solutions.” The writer then went at length to explain how the Weekly News provided misinformation in several ways – quoting social media, not providing direct quotes, attributing a statement to the board president who was not in attendance, failing to tell the readers that the board members in attendance did an excellent job of addressing some of She...
If we listen to each other with respect and work together, good things happen. I’m happy to report that we’re doing a lot of that this year in Olympia. With the legislative session at the halfway point, we’ve passed some great legislation for the people of Washington. I’m pleased to report that almost 60% of the bills voted out of the House of Representatives this year were passed with unanimous support – and almost 80% were passed with the support of 80 or more legislators from both sides of th...
Ouch. Ouch everywhere, for everybody. New La Conner Schools Deputy Superintendent of Finance Dave Cram's initial assessment is that 490 students will enroll in the school district next fall. That is down 35 kids from today and 100 from 2021. It is not good news that the pain is nationwide, that national and local media are reporting on drastic drops in the numbers of pupils attending public schools, with no upturns in sight. This sea change is no more anyone's fault than a flood or a wild fire. There are larger reasons, root causes, as carbon...
We live in challenging times and a plague of misinformation stands in the way of finding solutions. We are cautioned that instead of social media, we should seek truth in “real news,” traditional journalism. Sadly, this paper chose to cover the recent Shelter Bay town hall by quoting anonymous social media posts on Shelter Bay issues instead of reporting what actually took place at the meeting. The writer’s bias against the current board was not well concealed in the poorly written piece. Phrases like “sources did say,” “the Weekly News was to...
There has been a lot of discussion of late, with very good reason, on the matter of the age of the president and other elected members of government. First, there was Sen. Feinstein of California, soon to retire at 89, with some noting an obvious loss of mental acuity. And, of course, most prominently is our sitting president, Joe Biden. His latest physical, according to whomever the doctor was, seemed to indicate that Biden is in the pink despite numerous health issues, as one would expect for a man 80 years old. But if we take the doctor at...
As vice chair of the House Education Committee, I’ve been regularly meeting with students, teachers and administrators on every aspect of our education system. We’ve collaborated on special education, early childhood education, career and technical education and much, much more. I’ve spoken with low-income students who have jobs outside of school to support their family. Students with rigorous academic schedules tell me they simply don’t have time to explore job opportunities. And parents are wo...
With March's arrival are a flurry of activities, not late winter snow but opportunities to join together in fun and games, literally, and, in one instance, to change, literally. There are also very real storm clouds hanging over Shelter Bay. The month's first joyous get together is the La Conner Rotary Clubs’ annual farmer and merchant dinner on the 6th in Maple Hall. All farmers and merchants get dinner and an evening of hearing from organizations of community plans and projects, ventures toward a more sustainable future. The La Conner Chamber...
Upon reading of the sign blight in Conway, I thought I’d go investigate more thoroughly. I went to where the proposed sign is to be put and watched the flight of the trumpeter swans as they left for the night. They don’t usually fly over the gas station, where the sign is proposed to go. They fly south along the hillside ‘til they get high enough to fly across the freeway, with Skagit Bay a couple of miles away! The sign’s only real destination has to be on their already existing 76 sign. The 10’ x 30’ sign will be just under the “76,” on pr...
