BRIEFS

PUBLIC HEARING ON CITY FEES

WAITSBURG - The Waitsburg City Council is holding a public hearing on Wednesday, Jan. 18 to discuss rate increases. The city staff and council members will discuss raising rates for residents for water and sewer. Also, to help improve city roads, the city will be discussing increasing local sales tax or charging residents a car tab fee of up to $20. For more information, call City Hall at 509-337-6371.

TOUCHET VALLEY CALL TO PRAYER

WAITSBURG -- The first Touchet Valley Call to Prayer, sponsored by the Touchet Valley Pastors Association, will be held Wednesday, Jan. 18, at 7 p.m. at the First Christian Church of Waitsburg, at 6th and Main Streets, Waitsburg. Pastor Mike Ferrians invites you to attend this important quarterly prayer meeting for the people of the Touchet Valley. If you need transportation, call Pastor Greg Bye, Redeemer Lutheran Church, at 382-4662 or 540-5532.

MEET 'THE CLOCK FAMILY' AUTHOR

WAITSBURG - During Story Time at Weller Public Library on Jan. 19, the author of "The Clock Family," a children's picture book by Debra R. Williams, will be on hand to read and talk about her work. Story Time is at 10:30 a.m.

INSTALLATION DELAYED

DAYTON - The blinking sign the city of Dayton planned to install on the East end of Main Street to make crossing more safe pedestrians has been delayed, Mayor Craig George said Monday night. The sign was to be placed on a parcel of land that was recently sold and will be developed. George said after the construction is finished on that site, the city will use the money Pacific Power donated and install the sign.

LIBRARY PUBLIC FORUM

PRESCOTT - The Walla Walla County Rural Library District will be holding a public forum in Prescott on Jan. 19, at 6 p.m. at the Lions Hall Community Room. As part of an ongoing strategic planning process for serving the library needs of Rural Library District communities, the district is holding forums for the public in each community to ask residents how they would like to use their library, what services do they think are important now and what do they believe will be important to them in the future. The district and Friends of the Prescott Library invite all rural library district residents to join them for this conversation.

BRIX AND BREW NEEDS VOLUNTEERS

DAYTON - The Dayton Chamber of Commerce is holding its Brix and Brew auction on March 16. It is the biggest fundraiser of the year for the chamber. Claudia Nysoe, the chamber's executive director, is looking for chamber members who would be interested in serving on the committee. Anne Walsh is our event chair for the second year in a row and she is already revved up and raring to go, Nysoe said. Contact the chamber for more information, 509-382-4825.

DAYTON LOOKS FOR NEW ATTORNEY

DAYTON - City Clerk Trina Cole told the Dayton City Council Monday night that the current City Attorney Kimberly Boggs will be resigning her post because of a conflict of interest. The city will put together a selection committee to interview applicants. The opening and job qualifications will be published this week, Cole said.

FREE LEADERSHIP SEMINAR

DAYTON -- A free Leadership Development seminar will be held at the Delany Building on Jan. 20 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Presenting at this seminar will be Jenny Scott of Northwest Leadership Strategies. She will cover topics such as board organization, development and assessment, roles and responsibilities of volunteer boards, and bringing on new members and planning for succession. This seminar is open to any community member who currently serves on a volunteer board or would like to serve. The seminar is being co-sponsored by the SEWEDA, Dayton Chamber of Commerce, and Columbia County Community Network. There is no fee for the seminar, however a donation for lunch will be requested. To register, please call the Dayton Chamber of Commerce at 382-4825.

DUI PATROL RESULTS

WALLA WALLA -- Walla Walla County, WA - The results of the recent Holiday DUI enforcement campaign conducted from Nov. 24 through Jan. 2 were released last week. In Walla Walla County, 27 motorists were stopped and arrested for driving under the influence (DUI), and statewide, law enforcement officers arrested 3812 drivers for DUI. Last year during the same time period, officers in Walla Walla County on routine and extra patrols arrested 32 people for DUI. During 2010, drinking drivers killed 188 people, representing more than 40 percent of the 458 people who died on Washington's roadways.

HOSPICE FUNDRAISER

WALLA WALLA -- The Evening of Elegance event to benefit Walla Walla Community Hospice will be held on Saturday, Feb. 11, at 6 p.m. The event will be held at the Marcus Whitman Hotel and Conference Center. The event includes wine and hors d'oeuvres, elegant dining, and a live and silent auction. The full auction catalog will be available for preview on the hospice web site (www.wwhospice.org) beginning Feb. 8. The cost of the evening is $95 per person. Contact Walla Walla Community Hospice at 525-5561 or e-mail to laurie@wwhospice.org for more information or to make reservations. Reservations must be confirmed with payment by Feb. 7.

HEALTH DEPARTMENT CONSOLIDATES

WALLA WALLA -- The Health Department us closing its Environmental Health office at 310 West Poplar and moving those functions to the Public Health and Legislative Building at 314 West Main on Jan. 16. The change is due to staff reductions caused by decreases in state and federal funding of public health programs. The office functions of Environmental Health - food worker training, food facility permitting, on-site septic system permitting, environmental complaints, and other environmental health issues will all be handled by the office staff at 314 West Main. Effective Jan. 16, all calls to the Health Department will be routed to the main phone number, 509.524.2650.