Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
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WAITSBURG-The Waitsburg Commercial Club held its annual meeting and awards dinner at Waitsburg Town Hall on Tuesday, April 15, 2025. The guests enjoyed a Chicken Teriyaki dinner catered by Jennifer French, wine and beer, and desserts. The silent auction also included donuts, cookies, and other delectables. Commercial Club President Tiffany Baxter gave a presentation outlining the club's work over the last year. She nominated officers for this year, and the attending club members voted to...
DAYTON—The Port of Columbia Board of Commissioners held its regular meeting at 5 p.m. on April 9, 2025, at the port’s conference room. Commissioners Seth Bryan, Johnny Watts, Mike Spring, and Executive Director Jennie Dickinson were present. Dickinson presented the director’s report. She said there were two new leases, a residential property and the Red Band Cellars units at the Rock Hill Industrial Park. Red Band signed a one-year lease for the three units with a one to two-year option and ended the lease for its tasting room at Blue Mountain...
DAYTON—Mayor Roger Trump called the Dayton City Council meeting to order at 6 p.m. on April 8, 2025. Trump, council members James Su’euga, Kyle Anderson, Michael Smith, Laura Aukerman, Glenn Hagfeldt, and Shannon McMillen were present at city hall. City Council member Joann Patras did not attend. In public comment, Michael Brady Patton told the council that he moved to Dayton three to four years ago after retiring from the pharmaceutical and medical device field. He spoke about his water bill, saying there was no water usage data from Dece...
WAITSBURG — Twenty Waitsburg High School FFA students will attend the FFA State Convention at Washington State University in Pullman May 8-10. The students qualified for State after placing at District Leadership in Asotin on March 26. The top four in each category at District advanced to State. 1st Place Agriculture Education- Marion Duncan. 2nd Place Rituals- Sophia Castillo, Kayla Kuykendall, Rowdy Cole, Gage Mynear, Liam Kiefel, Katie Allen. 4th Place Prepared Public Speaking- Cedar Stegall. 4th Place Beginning Parliamentary Procedures- K...
WAITSBURG - The City of Waitsburg's former city hall building has a new owner. Chet Childers of Burbank, Wash., has taken ownership of the historic Main Street building. This was the second bid the Tri-Cities construction company owner has made for the building. Childers withdrew from his first offer after a 90-day feasibility study. His original offer for $175,000 included his vision statement for The Vault, a space that celebrates beer making and soaking. It would offer second-floor hotel...
WAITSBURG — Waitsburg’s Weller Public Library is facing cuts in services and possibly staffing from the loss of federal funding. The Institute of Museum and Library Services was one of seven agencies functionally eliminated by an executive order to continue reducing federal bureaucracy signed by President Trump on March 14, 2025. While libraries are funded mainly by city and county taxes, federal funding helps pay for workforce training and pilot programs. It helps provide essential library services, including computer and internet access, in...
DAYTON—Columbia County Hospital District CEO Shane McGuire doesn’t think the federal government plans to cut Medicaid benefits to individual healthcare users. Still, he is concerned about the effect on the hospital district’s budget if cuts are made to state direct-funded Medicaid programs, which the federal government heavily subsidizes. McGuire said the health system has “no slack” to absorb additional revenue cuts without cutting services. “I believe that these types of funds are going to be...
WAITSBURG - Six Waitsburg students have returned from an amazing experience in Atlanta, Georgia. The students qualified to compete at the Global Amazing Shake event at the Ron Clark Academy in March. While there, the students and their chaperones enjoyed several attractions in Atlanta. The Coca-Cola Museum, the Martin Luther King Memorial, the Fernbank Natural History Museum, and the College Football Hall of Fame were big hits. Over 400 students from the United States, Canada, and Honduras...
COLUMBIA COUNTY - Scott Hudson, a lifelong resident and community leader in Columbia County, announced his candidacy for Port of Columbia Commissioner, District 1. In his announcement, Hudson said his background in accounting, real estate, and community service makes him well-qualified to address the challenges and opportunities facing the port and the county's economy. Hudson said his nearly 30 years in accounting and tax preparation have given him the financial expertise to oversee port...
WAITSBURG - Returning from a trip to Tuscany, Tom and Judy Bennett brought their new-found love of Neapolitan pizza home to Walla Walla. In 2018, they opened Fiasco, a mobile catering business with a wood-fired pizza oven on a vintage truck. In 2022, the couple scaled up their enterprise by opening American 35 in Waitsburg's former American Legion building. They expanded the kitchen and dining room and opened the restaurant to Main Street with two large glass garage doors. But the real star of...
WAITSBURG —Waitsburg Mayor Marty Dunn called the city council meeting to order on Wednesday, March 19, 2025, at 7 p.m. at city hall. City council members Jillian Henze, Jennifer Bishop, Kevin House, and City Administrator Randy Hinchliffe were present. Council members Jim Romine and Court Ruppenthal were not present. In public comment, representatives from the Touchet River Roundup, known as Woody’s Pig Roast, told the council they disagreed with a memo from the city administrator to the council. Hinchliffe recommended that the council not all...
DAYTON - A helicopter spraying weeds along the South Touchet River south of Dayton flew into transmission lines and crashed March 19. The unidentified pilot of the Bell 206B helicopter, who was the only occupant, was killed. The crash occurred shortly before 12:30 p.m. about six miles south of Dayton across the river from the South Touchet Road. Numerous emergency vehicles from the Columbia County Sheriff's Office and Columbia County Fire District 3 were at the scene most of the afternoon. Accor...
DAYTON – The Dayton School Board met in the high school library at 5:30 p.m. on March 19, 2025. Superintendent Jeremy Wheatley, Board Chair Jeffrey McCowen, board members Aneesha Dieu, Grant Griffin, and Ryan Paulson were present. Pat Davidson was in attendance. The board approved the consent agenda, including a gift of $269.70 to the Class of 2025 from the Class of 2025 parents. The consent agenda included the following personnel changes: Jack McCaw was hired as HS Assistant Baseball Coach, the resignation of Ajay McNarland as MS Head V...
WAITSBURG — The former city hall was back on the market after the last sales agreement accepted at the special council meeting on March 6 fell through on March 12. The offer accepted at the special council meeting was from Walla Walla residents Delbert and Cindy Steinhorst. The couple's bid was $150,000 for the city hall building and a second city-owned property off E. Sixth St. The offer had a relatively quick time frame, with a feasibility contingency date of March 15 and closing on April 1, 2...
DAYTON- Mayor Roger Trump called the Dayton City Council to order at 6 p.m. on March 11, 2025. Trump, Council Members James Su’euga, Joann Patras, Michael Smith, Laura Aukerman, Glenn Hagfeldt, and Shannon McMillen met at city hall. Kyle Anderson was not present. During public comment, Columbia County Treasurer Carla Rowe said the 15-day grace period for city utility payments was too short since bills sometimes arrive too late for residents to respond. She also mildly admonished the mayor and council for making jabs at the County Administration...
DAYTON – The Port of Columbia Commissioners held their regular meeting at 5 p.m. on March 12, 2025, at the port’s conference room. Commissioners Seth Bryan, Mike Spring, and Executive Director Jennie Dickinson were present. Commissioner Johnny Watts was absent due to a scheduling conflict. The commissioners approved the last meeting’s minutes, monthly budget, vouchers, and leases. Dickinson said CHS had an automatic lease renewal with a 3% rent increase. The commissioners approved the port taking electronic payments. Dickinson addressed the t...
WAITSBURG - Justin Stegall is the Operations Project Manager at Little Goose Lock and Dam. On Saturday, March 15, Stegall, a Waitsburg Lions Club member, invited fellow club members and their families to tour the dam. Little Goose Lock and Dam is one of four dams authorized in the River and Harbors Act of 1945. The dam's construction started in 1963 and had three turbines operational by 1970, adding three more in 1978. The dam is 2,655 feet long with a height of 149 feet. Stegall started the...
DAYTON - A helicopter spraying weeds along the South Touchet River south of Dayton flew into transmission lines and crashed Wednesday afternoon. The pilot of the Bell 206B helicopter, who has not been named, was the only occupant and was killed in the crash. The crash occurred shortly before 12:30 p.m. about six miles south of Dayton across the river from the South Touchet Road. Numerous emergency vehicles from the Columbia County Sheriff's Office and Columbia County Fire District 3 were at the...
DAYTON — The Port of Columbia County Executive Director Jennie Dickinson received a Government Service Agency email on February 25, terminating the building lease between the port and the Columbia County Farm Service Agency, effective August 31. The FSA houses the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). The NRCS offers programs that support conservation work in agriculture, timber, and pasture lands. For example, Dickinson said her family utilized an NRCS cost-share program for pre...
WAITSBURG — Mayor Marty Dunn called a special meeting of the Waitsburg City Council for March 6, 2025. The purpose of the meeting was to review and vote on three bids submitted for the purchase of the old city hall building at 147 Main Street. The council accepted the bid from Delbert and Cindy Steinhorst, past Waitsburg residents f who made an offer of $150,000. The offer is for the city hall building and a second vacant lot property on 6th Street the city has for sale. The second property is an oddly shaped, 1.15-acre lot on East 6th Street....
DAYTON — Columbia County Park and Recreation Pool District board met for their regular monthly meeting at 5 p.m. on February 27 at the Dayton Fire Station. Board members Diane McKinley, Lisa Naylor, Terri Hessler, and Katie Leid were present. Friends of the Pool Chairperson Fred Crow and Cole Massey, the district’s website designer, were also in attendance.In February, the board applied for a Washington State legislative grant for $250,000 and expect to hear if it is awarded in May. The money will come from Washington State Capital Budget fun...
WALLA WALLA - Waitsburg School District will host Whitman College for a Family Science Night on Thursday, March 6, in the Preston Hall gym. Whitman brings science nights to students and families in the fall and spring at different schools throughout the valley; this was the first time it was held in Waitsburg. The event provided an interactive evening of science geared towards K-5 students and their families. Preston Hall was filled with parents watching their children get excited about science...
DAYTON - During the 2024 fall migration season, the National Audubon Society was concerned that the avian flu's virulent H5N1, or HPAI strain, could spread to and by wild songbirds at backyard feeding stations. During last year's migration, wild and domestic birds' infection and death rates soared. The virus spreads along bird migration routes, or flyways, to the detriment of many birds, mainly waterfowl, during the fall migration. There is good news for songbirds, though. According to an...
DAYTON — Mayor Roger Trump called the Dayton City Council to order at 6 p.m. on February 11, 2025. Trump, council members James Su’euga, Joann Patras, Michael Smith, Laura Aukerman, Kyle Anderson, and Shannon McMillen were present. During the public comment period, Dayton resident Theresa Eier spoke about the recall petition she intends to file against Columbia County Sheriff Helm. Eier also discussed her litigation against Columbia County for “withholding records and a lack of transparency.” Eier said there were 600 documents withheld for 600...
DAYTON — The Port of Columbia Commissioners held their regular meeting at 5 p.m. on February 12, 2025, at the port’s conference room. Commissioners Seth Bryan, Johnny Watts, Mike Spring, and Executive Director Jennie Dickinson were present. The commissioners handled a few administrative items, including approving minutes from past meetings and reviewing the monthly budget report. There were no new or amended leases to review. The commissioners reviewed and approved a sewer agreement with the City of Dayton, which allowed wastewater pipes to...
