Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 76 - 100 of 1893
DAYTON—The Board of Columbia County Commissioners met Monday, May 17, via Zoom. The commissioners were joined by WSU Extension Whitman County Director Janet Schmidt to discuss a long-standing memorandum of understanding. Commissioner Chuck Amerein said that the County Commissioners have concerns with the push towards a regionalized extension agent, explaining that the agreement between the county and the university, initially signed in 1986, was not designed for a regionalized agent. “The con...
DAYTON—The Columbia County Commissioners met Monday, May 10, to discuss the WSU Columbia County Extension Agent position and the use of cameras in a county office. The Commissioners heard from Dave McKinley and Jim Moyer, who are exploring options to fill the local extension agent position. The former extension agent, Paul Carter, retired in January after more than 15 years on the job. McKinley, a local farmer, said that Columbia County has had an extension agent available for 100 years. He i...
When I took over The Times in 2019, I was an avid newspaper reader, not a newspaper journalist. Just because you've eaten in a restaurant doesn't mean you can run one. Michele was one of the constants as I began my new endeavor. She covered Dayton and Columbia county in a comprehensive way, as a citizen, friend, and civic member who cared about her community and journalism. You couldn't read her articles and say you weren't well informed about the issues. Michele joined the paper in October...
DAYTON—The Hospital District’s board of commissioners have authorized a request from Columbia County Health System (CCHS) CEO Shane McGuire to spend $250,000 from CARES Act funds allocated to the District. The requested funds are for the Construction Review Services application, electrical service relocation, and construction-ready documents for the proposed hallway construction project. The hallway to be constructed will join the Acute Care wing of the hospital with Hall One at the Booker Res...
DAYTON-On Monday, as many as 101 people attended the Port of Columbia Touchet Valley Trail (TVT) information meeting and to ask questions of the presenters. Brian Hansen, Principal Engineer for Anderson/Perry & Associates, Inc., shared the 30-percent design documents for the trail. He talked about the results of the surveying and ownership research through titles and deeds. Ken Voorhis, a Principal Architect with SPVV Landscape Architects, presented the 30-percent landscape design drawings and...
DAYTON—The Port of Columbia Executive Director Jennie Dickinson reminded those in attendance at the Port Commissioners meeting last week about the Touchet Valley Bike Trail informational meeting, which will take place on Monday, April 26, at 5:30 p.m. on Zoom. Dickinson said most of the marketing for the meeting is in place. Ads have been placed in all the local newspapers and a digital ad campaign in the Union-Bulletin. Information about the meeting is posted on the Port’s Facebook page, as...
DAYTON—Only one COVID-19 vaccine clinic was scheduled this week. That clinic took place at the county fairgrounds on Tuesday, when 91-second doses of the Pfizer vaccine were administered. Sixty-five, second doses of the Moderna vaccine have been scheduled for May 4, and 57-second doses are planned for May 11, according to Stephanie Carpenter, Columbia County Health System CCHS CFO, who is in charge of organizing the vaccination clinics. She said the fairgrounds Pavilion would no longer be l...
When I first landed in Dayton in 2012, I didn’t know anybody and wasn’t sure how I was going to find out anything about my new community. I got my first insight into the community through reading a copy of Ken Graham’s news magazine, Blue Mountain News. I want to thank Ken for that and for hiring me at The Times in 2015 to be the Dayton reporter. That put me on a fast track to knowing Dayton and being embedded in the community. I have had the good fortune to cover some pretty big stories for C...
DAYTON—Columbia County Prosecuting Attorney Dale Slack has wasted no time heading off a headache for local law enforcement due to the State Supreme Court ruling Washington State v. Blake on February 25, 2021. As reported in the March 18 edition of the Times, the ruling struck down as unconstitutional Washington’s strict liability drug possession statute, RCW 69.50.4013, which made possession of a controlled substance a felony. The Court’s ruling said the state law was unconstitutional becau...
DAYTON—At their meeting on March 10, the Dayton City Council expressed reluctance to sign the Interlocal Agreement (ILA) with the County for Law Enforcement, Dispatch, and Municipal Court services. Columbia County Commission Chair Ryan Rundell went on record last week to talk about his frustration over the protracted negotiation process between the county and the city. He also addressed opinions expressed by some city council members at that meeting. Rundell explained the need for an updated I...
DAYTON-The Columbia County Sheriff Office has hired David Walling and Riley Conahan as new deputies for the county. David Walling was raised in the Ellensburg area, graduating from Kittitas High School in 2014. He served as a missionary in the Democratic Republic of the Congo for around six months before turning his focus to Pastoral Ministry, receiving a B.A. from Northwest University in 2018. After graduation, he began looking into Law Enforcement as a career. He was hired at the Benton...
Columbia County Prosecutor looks for options to mitigate ruling's impact on county. DAYTON—On Feb. 25, the Washington State Supreme Court struck down as unconstitutional a law that makes it a felony to possess illegal drugs, even if a person didn’t know they were in possession. The court’s ruling said the state law was unconstitutional because it criminalized passive, unknowing conduct in violation of due process protections. Columbia County Prosecuting Attorney Dale Slack said the Supre...
DAYTON-The Feb. 2020 flood that caused $7.2 million in damages at more than 120 locations has added extra work, time, and stress for County Engineer Charles Eaton and staff in the public works department. While much has been accomplished to repair flood-related damage over the past year, there are still roads, bridges, and levees in need of repair. Eaton said Wolf Fork Road, Robinson Fork Road, Tucannon Road, and South Patit Road's upper reach, where the road washed out, are still in need of...
DAYTON—The COVID-19 vaccination clinic at the Columbia County Fairgrounds is working well. However, only 110 doses will be administered this week, according to Stephanie Carpenter. Carpenter is the Columbia County Health System Chief Operating Officer and is in charge of the Columbia County Hospital District vaccination plan. Carpenter said Dayton General Hospital Pharmacy Manager Cheryl Pell requested 400 doses of the vaccine for use this week but only received 100 doses. There are ten doses l...
DAYTON—County finances have “definitely” been affected by the flood and COVID-19, said County Commissioner Ryan Rundell, following an update on fourth-quarter finances from County Treasurer Carla Rowe last week. “As Carla said, because we are a bare-bones taxed county, we have been less affected by COVID-19 than some counties who rely on extra taxes, like an entertainment tax, with large venues, and the like. However, the flood coupled with COVID-19 has done visible damage to the county and its...
COLUMBIA COUNTY—The Board of Columbia County Commissioners has gone on record to let Washington State Governor Jay Inslee know they are displeased with the COVID-19 Healthy Washington – Roadmap to Recovery plan. The Healthy Washington – Roadmap to Recovery plan is using a regional approach for a phased recovery. The state has designated eight regions, with Columbia County part of the South-Central Region, Kittitas, Yakima, Walla Walla, Benton, and Franklin counties. All eight regions start...
DAYTON—2020 was a busy year for staff inside the Columbia County Planning and Building Department, primarily due to the Feb. flood. Work has continued apace, despite the COVID-19 slowdown. Planning Manager Dena Martin provided a synopsis for the county commissioners at their meeting last week. The Planning and Building department oversees county land use, zoning, comprehensive plan updates, and environmental uses. The department also provides building services for Columbia County, the City of Da...
DAYTON-The Dayton School District kicked off the second semester of the school year on Jan. 21. Report cards will be mailed home for middle and high school students on Jan. 27 and for elementary school students on Jan. 26. Dayton School District Superintendent Guy Strot provided an update about the elementary school at the school board meeting last week. He reported challenges were keeping some elementary classrooms open during the two weeks after Christmas break because some of the staff were...
DAYTON-Columbia County Sheriff Joe Helm's overarching goal is to get back to the fundamental basics of law enforcement; through proper staffing, handling calls appropriately, providing deputies with the proper equipment, and establishing a good relationship between his office and members of the community. When Helm took office on Jan. 1, 2019, he began to implement his goals and ideas and was well into it, early in 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic struck, and social distancing guidelines began...
DAYTON—On Dec. 16, Columbia County Health System CEO Shane McGuire provided the hospital board of commissioners with an update on projects designed to improve the hospital’s ability to treat COVID-19 patients, as previously reported in The Times on Dec. 10. McGuire presented the commissioners with “firm” cost estimates for four of the five projects. The Medical Vacuum project, Medical Air project, and the Medical Gas projects came in close to, or below, budget. The new hospital generat...
DAYTON-On Dec. 29, Dayton General Hospital Pharmacy Manager Cheryl Pell administered the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine to DGH employee Mike Paris, kicking off vaccinations for essential health care workers and first responders, according to Phase 1A guidelines from the Washington State Department of Health. Pell said 200 doses of the Moderna vaccine were received at the hospital pharmacy on Dec. 23, followed by another 100 doses on Dec. 28. She said each vial of the vaccine contains ten...
DAYTON—The Moderna COVID-19 vaccine has arrived in Columbia County. The Columbia County Health System (CCHS) has received 300 doses. At this time, CCHS has started giving immunizations to healthcare workers and first-responders, and will advance to Phase 1B when given guidance to do so by the Washington State Department of Health (DOH). Columbia County Public Health will be organizing a list of interested individuals who would like the vaccination and fit into Phase 1B, which is currently d...
DAYTON—The Columbia County Board of Commissioners (BOCC) met on Dec. 21 to adopt various budgets, sign the ILA with the City of Dayton for Law and Justice, Dispatch, and Court services, and hire an attorney for the Indigent Defense contract. During the meeting, the BOCC adopted a 24 million budget for 2021, including a 2-percent cost of living adjustment for county employees. The BOCC also signed the five-year contract agreement with the City of Dayton for Law and Justice, Dispatch, and Court s...
DAYTON-The Columbia County Prosecuting Attorney's Office has announced that Cindy L. Horowitz will be joining the office as Deputy Prosecuting Attorney on January 1, 2021. Horowitz has served as an Assistant District Prosecuting Attorney from the Brooklyn District Attorney's Office in New York. Since 2017, she has served in the Domestic Violence and Appeals divisions of that office. Before working as an ADA in Brooklyn, Horowitz was a securities regulations attorney and an attorney for the...
DAYTON—Dr. Kyle Terry, Medical Chief of Staff at Dayton General Hospital, touched briefly on vaccine distribution and safety protocols for patients and staff when he spoke to the hospital board of commissioners on Dec. 17. Terry said COVID-19 vaccines would be distributed according to population numbers. With 2-percent of the national population, the state of Washington State will receive 2-percent of the vaccine. He thought Walla Walla County would receive the first distribution of the Pfizer v...
