Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Sorted by date Results 235 - 259 of 1893
DAYTON—During their regular meeting on Tuesday of last week, the Board of Columbia County Commissioners discussed the aftermath of the Feb. 6 flood with County Emergency Management Director Ashley Strickland, and County Public Works Director Charles Eaton. “For as much water as we had, we got lucky. Other than our roads, we really don’t have a ton of damage. We had a lot of houses that had water in them, but not a lot of houses that are total losses. Some need drywall four feet up the wall,...
DAYTON—On Wednesday of last week Mayor Zac Weatherford provided information to the public about the flood damage to city infrastructure. Weatherford said the City has determined there are roughly thirty primary residences along the Patit Creek that sustained damage in the recent flood. Additionally, several areas of the Touchet River levee system have received significant damage. County crews shored up an area of the levee near the Kiddie Pond next to Pietrzycki City Park, but the repair is a t...
DAYTON-The Board of Columbia County Commissioners called a special meeting last Thursday and passed an emergency resolution allowing money to be freed up to purchase materials to help mitigate a possible flood, after water in the North and South Touchet Rivers and Patit Creek began rising faster than usual, because of rapid snow melt caused by rain and warm temperatures. At that meeting Emergency Management Department Director Ashley Strickland told the commissioners the U.S. Army Corps of...
DAYTON—Alicia Walker wants to continue her family’s philosophy of providing organic, locally sourced, nourishing food to the community. Her goal is to open, ‘Locally Nourished’, a new breakfast and lunch café, in the building formerly occupied by Winter Rose Boutique, on Main Street. Until recently, Walker has been the proprietor of a slightly similar business on Main Street called ‘Noble Hunt’ and she is in the process of downsizing from that. She said she is looking forward to occupying th...
DAYTON—As area property owners begin the daunting task of clean up and repair following the recent flood event, residents are reminded to obtain local permits prior to repairing or rebuilding flood-damaged structures. These permits are required to help ensure the safety and well-being of our citizens. Local Building and Planning staff has recommended to City Councils and County Commissioners that all building permit fees associated with flood damage rehabilitation be waived and rehabilitation permits will be prioritized above all else to e...
DAYTON-Lions Club International (LCI) is the largest and most active community service organization in the world, according to Glen Mendell Vice-president of the Dayton Lions Club. Mendell said the Lions Club motto is "We serve," and they do. There are 1.4 million members in 46,000 clubs, in 210 countries, working to provide people with vision and hearing assistance, to help people dealing with pancreatic cancer, and diabetes and working to reduce hunger. He said the Lions Club International Fou...
DAYTON—Children who are proficient and passionate readers by third grade are five times more likely to be college or career ready. The Innovia Foundation in Spokane, WA began a program in 2013 in Coeur d’Alene called Opening Books, Opening Doors to ensure young readers in that area had books to read and someone to read with, so all students are reading at grade level by third grade. Recently, Innovia contacted The Club, in Dayton, WA to see if they would like to participate in the Opening Boo...
The Dayton School Board formally announced three finalists have been chosen to move forward in the search process to replace retiring Superintendent Doug Johnson. The three candidates selected are Effie Dean, Guy Strot, and Andie Webb. The chosen candidate would begin their duties on July 1. All three of the candidates are also currently working in the state of Washington. The three candidates will participate in final district interviews with Dayton’s administrative staff and school members all day on Monday Feb. 10. The public portion of t...
DAYTON—I suffered from a headache after hanging out in the office of the county commissioners for most of the day, last Tuesday, and I wasn't looking forward to doing another interview. But I had already scheduled one with Lorraine Ortega, the owner of a new spa in Dayton called Purple Sage Day Spa. During our interview, Ortega was kind enough to offer me a complimentary waterless pedicure. How could I say no to that? So, while I kicked back on a heated table and listened to the soothing s...
Not all people, upon retirement, stop working. Some people, like Nancy Monacelli of Walla Walla, find themselves working long days, all through the week, and enjoying every moment of it. "I launched my business three years ago when I flunked retirement," the confectioner, who creates artisan toffees, chocolates, and snacks from recipes she has been refining for the last 30 years, says. "For years, I made baskets of my candy for family, friends, and co-workers, as well as to take to gatherings...
DAYTON—Columbia County Health Sytstem CEO Shane McGuire has announced plans to fill a gap in care for people who don’t need skilled nursing care, but who fail to thrive at home, with an option for assisted living. The plan is to have two “units” built and located just to the north end of the CCHS campus. This would place residents close to the walking paths and health system resources, such as dietary services, he said. “We have had conversations with more than one developer that would be willin...
DAYTON-Patients who need pre-operative and post-operative orthopedic care can now receive that care from a board-certified orthopedic surgeon, and certified physician assistants, at Dayton General Hospital's Physical Therapy Department. The hospital district has contracted with Lewiston Orthopedics for this service. Physical Therapy Department Manager Michael Schwarz said he approached Columbia County Health System CEO Shane McGuire about a year ago regarding the possibility of bringing...
DAYTON—The Columbia County Health System (CCHS) board of commissioners began their January meeting with a few changes. Wes Leid is now the President of the Commission, taking over from Bob Hutchens. Jim Kime was appointed by the board to fill the remainder of Ken Dyball’s term in District 3. Dyball has resigned from the board, but his term won’t expire until Dec. 31, 2020. This first meeting was a busy one, lasting over two hours. During the meeting the commissioners finalized their monthly cale...
DAYTON-Benjamin Orozco has been sentenced to a gross total of 447 months at a maximum-security prison for the second-degree murder of Lance Terry and the first-degree assault of David Eaton, in a shooting that took place in Columbia County, on July 7, 1996. Orozco, now 46 years old, will serve 192 months for the second-degree murder charge, and 123 months for the first-degree assault charge. Each charge carries an additional sixty-month firearm enhancement, and these sentences will run consecuti...
DAYTON-If you are looking for gently used clothing, appliances, furniture, toys and games, jewelry, books, appliances, and much more, you don't have to look much further than the St. Vincent de Paul retail store on Dayton's Main Street. Store manager Bob Patras said the store has been open for about forty years, and thrives thanks to the many volunteers, monetary donations, and the donated items, which come from communities as far away as the Tri-Cities and Walla Walla. The store also benefits...
The number one issue facing the school board continued to be the oversight of the monies collected from previous levies and how they are spent on various prioritized projects. And accordingly, how they are being held accountable to the public for the choices they make. At its January monthly meeting Superintendent Doug Johnson presented an update regarding the 2016 and 2018 capital project levies. He said over $1.5 million will have been collected by October 2020 in order to address various facilities issues. As of the end of 2019, the asphalt...
DAYTON-The ability to deliver quality behavioral health services to southeastern Washington communities just got a boost when Blue Mountain Counseling of Columbia County, added telepsychiatry to its treatment protocol. "This started because none of our counselors are credentialed high enough to prescribe medications if warranted. Adolescents under the age of thirteen aren't being served through some of the other services provided in the community, and we felt this was a good place to start,"...
Some people are observant, and others . . . not so much. For an artist, it helps to NOT be in the "not so much" category. "I have always loved detail," says Walla Walla acrylic painter Mary Soper. "My husband told me once that he really didn't notice things until he married me. I was constantly pointing out unusual or beautiful things to him that attracted my attention." Not only does Soper notice the world around her, she wonders about what she sees. On passing an old pickup truck, abandoned al...
DAYTON—The Board of County Commissioners have adopted their budgets for next year, and there are some things the budget will allow and some things the budget won’t allow. One thing the county won’t be able to do next year is to finish renovating the former Convenient Care Clinic building, on N. 2nd St., which they now own, Chairman Mike Talbott said, at last week’s regular commission meeting. Talbott said the commissioners have been planning to house the Public Health Department in that buildin...
New business at Blue Mountain Station to open in February Mike Collins began as a home brewer, where his love of fermentation took hold. After studying for awhile at Walla Walla Community College, he transferred to Seattle’s Art Institute, where he received a degree in audio/video marketing, working for a while at Banner Bank as a network security administrator and IT specialist. It wasn’t until he was old enough to attend WWCC’s Center of Enology and Viticulture, that he found a school “that re...
Robert “RC” McNicol has been working on the dream of opening his own liqueur business for four years now. He served as Active Duty in the U.S. Air Force and worked construction alongside his father, Robert, to raise the funds for Cedar Rain Spirits. A native of Portland, OR, McNicol moved to Walla Walla as a sophomore and graduated with Walla Walla High School’s class of 2011. McNicol joins Rusty Figgins of XO Alambic and Mike Collins of Bard & Bee Meadery in the Blue Mountain Station compl...
DAYTON—Three years after a private developer first started construction on a second building at Blue Mountain Station, the building is finally complete and full of tenants. The Port of Columbia, which owns Blue Mountain Station, purchased the building in late 2018 from private developer Tucannon Development LLC. Tucannon Development completed the shell of the building on land they leased from the Port before stalling on construction. Port of Columbia Commissioners approved purchasing the building shell in August 2018. Executive Director Jennie...
DAYTON—The Conference Room at Fire District 3 was crowded with community stakeholders for the Port’s annual Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy (CEDS) meeting, which took place on Dec. 18. The CEDS meetings have been ongoing since the late 1990s and are part of federal Economic Development Administration requirements when receiving planning funds and coordinating as an economic development district, according to the Port’s Executive Director Jennie Dickinson. “While we do not coordin...
DAYTON-At their regular Board meeting last week, Superintendent Doug Johnson discussed the progress of facilities improvements, gave a short Capital Project update, discussed the Athletic Combine and talked about the District's search for a Teacher on Special Assignment. Johnson said he was asked to speak at last week's Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy meeting, because supporting the District in upgrading and maintaining school facilities has been a goal for community stakeholders....
DAYTON—Chelsey Eaton, Columbia County’s Public Health Wellness Initiative/Coalition Coordinator, is leading the charge to help the members of the Coalition for Youth and Families to craft and implement a strategic plan to educate the community on prevention awareness, and raise awareness about mental health issues that contribute to substance use. How are Dayton youth doing in regard to substance use, as compared to students state-wide? In October 2018 Dayton students in Grades 6 - 11 took the Healthy Youth Survey, which they do every two yea...
