Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
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SEL is working on a new business sign at the entrance of the Port of Whitman County at the Pullman Industrial Park. The sign will have plaques featuring the businesses in the park and the names of the current Port commissioners. The sign shown here will actually be re-poured before the project is complete. Gazette intern reporter Upgrades are in the works at the Pullman Industrial Park, with the welcome sign to the complex getting a “sign-lift,” according to Debbie Snell, Port of Whitman County...
Gazette intern reporter Residents of Pullman who reside in the College Hill area can now purchase residential street parking permits through the Pullman Police Department. Only two permits will be allowed per household. Residents with more than two vehicles must either park in driveways or at another parking location. To purchase a permit, residents must provide a driver's license or identification card, verification of residency (a utility bill or copy of lease paperwork with the purchaser's name and the address of the residence) as well as...
Gazette intern reporter A new 122-room Residence Marriott hotel is expected to be constructed soon in Pullman. The project, which is pending permit approval through the Pullman Planning Committee, according to a report, is expected to be constructed near the Residence Inn on Northeast North Fairway Drive, behind the University Recreation Center. The site of the hotel has been approved through the Pullman Planning Committee but still is waiting on approval of the permit. The permit plans, according to administrative assistant Bethany Johnson,...
Gazette intern reporter Tekoa has issued a call for bids for the remodeling of the city’s community center. Sealed bids will be accepted in person or by mail at the City of Tekoa until 4 p.m. Friday, Aug. 12. Tekoa has received a $34,000 grant through Whitman County’s .09 sales tax funding program. “We want to make the building handicap accessible instead of having to go across the street to use the outdoor handicap bathroom,” said Kynda Browning, Tekoa city clerk. Interested contractors must be registered on the city’s small works roster. A...
Flames and smoke spread across Wawawai Road. -Bill Carroll photos Firefighters watch smoke coming out of the canyon. Gazette intern reporter As of press time, in the early hours of Wednesday morning, a wild fire continues to burn after it jumped the Snake River in Garfield County and spread into south Whitman County. The fire, which started in the evening hours of Tuesday, Aug. 2, from suspicious causes, has burned 3,000 acres on the Whitman County side of the river, which forced officials to... Full story
Gazette intern reporter Local volunteer rural and the City of Pullman fire departments have each received Federal Emergency Management Agency grants. Fire District 12 received a quarter of a million dollars, and Pullman fire department received three-quarters of a million. “This is great news for our department, and I want to personally thank our department's grant writing committee for their efforts in securing this grant,” said Mike Heston, Pullman fire chief. The funds the volunteer department received is close to the amount the fire dep...
Gazette intern reporter Neill Public Library's parking lot will be modified to upgrade the handling of stormwater runoff. Currently, there are no methods to provide stormwater flow control and treatment of the polluted water runoff from the parking lot. “We have the funding to do it now,” said Clayton Forsmann, deputy public works director with the City of Pullman. “Funding is in part by Department of Ecology and we received what we needed to begin the project.” Motley -Motley Inc. will be the construction company heading the building process...
Cathy McMorris Rodgers sits with John Davis, who serves as her Veterans and Military Outreach Liasion, Tuesday, July 26, at Umpqua Bank in Colfax. McMorris Rodgers led a discussion with veterans and their families on what services and support they need more of from the Veterans Administration of Spokane. Gazette intern reporter Although there was confusion about the starting time of the meeting with Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers Tuesday, local veterans waited patiently at Umpqua Bank to visit...
Gazette intern reporter The joint meeting of the Pullman and Moscow city councils Wednesday, July 20, in Moscow highlighted recent collaboration between the two cities. Relevant topics discussed between Pullman and Moscow city council members and staff included the impact of marijuana on the Palouse, water conservation programs with Moscow and Pullman public works directors Les MacDonald and Kevin Gardes, the Pullman/Moscow Regional Airport's impact on regional economic development and regional emergency response with Moscow Fire Chief Brian...
Fusions Salon and Spa suffered damage as the result of a major flood on Grand Avenue in Pullman from a water main break in April. Gazette intern reporter Fusions Salon and Spa re-opened in Pullman Wednesday, July 20, after being closed since April 19 due to a water main break on North Grand Avenue in Pullman. “Everything was gone,” said Jessica Wolfe, owner of the business, after seeing the initial flood damage. The business, which opened in August two years ago, had three to four inches of sta...
Gazette intern reporter It is harvest time on the Palouse, and growers are seeing results that contrast with last year’s dry growing season. Reports from the west side of the county carry a lot of promise as harvest moves across the county. “This is a very unusual harvest,” said Phil Bowman at LaCrosse Ritzville Warehouse. “It’s phenomenal!” Harvesters in the LaCrosse area normally expect yields of 35 to 45 bushels per acre, and this season they are getting up to 80 bushels per acre, he re...
Attendees of the walk last Friday stand waiting on the steps of Beasley Coliseum. Gazette intern reporter An estimated 200 people came together in Pullman Friday, July 15, and gathered on the steps of Beasley Coliseum before silently and peacefully marching to remember Alton Sterling and Philando Castile, as well as other victims of recent police shootings. “It opens the eyes of the people who don't think these issues exist,” said Brianna Smathers, 18, who organized the event along with Sab...
Gazette intern reporter Kevin Misner moved to Endicott a year and half ago, but in that time has already done more for the community than some will complete in a lifetime. Born in Brewster, Misner always had ties in Endicott, with cousins who he would visit during the summer months growing up. He moved to Vancouver, Wash., when he was a junior in high school and had lived there until a year and a half ago. “After the state bought the property my shop was on in Battleground, I decided to look a... Full story
Colfax youngsters Joseph, 13, Alyssa, 11, and Asten, 14, proudly display all their hardwork in capturing and training their Pokémon. Along with their friends, they have been playing in each other’s neighborhoods, chasing and capturing the elusive pokémon. Gazette intern reporter Pokémon GO is sweeping the nation, and Colfax, too. The app created by Nintendo is based on the video game series Pokémon. Throughout this game, users can travel between the real world and the virtual world of Pokém... Full story
Gazette intern reporter Recently, Avista customers in the Whitman County area may have experienced being called by someone who claimed to be with Avista Utilities, demanding payment or their account would be discontinued. However, Avista, along with other companies in the region, has not been calling its customers to demand payment. Debbie Simock with Avista Utilities told the Gazette that these phone scammers, which most recently targeted at least four residents of Coeur d'Alene, have been calling customers, saying the customers' payments are...
Gazette intern reporter ASWSU and Pullman Chamber of Commerce have again partnered for the annual 30 Days of Pullman event. This year ASWSU will promote the event by expanding advertising from just social media and the Compton Union Building, to throughout the entire campus through physical and digital forms. A Facebook page will be created with an interactive calendar with links to individual businesses websites, videos and a “30 Days Passport.” Deadline to register for this event is July 28. Businesses are asked to email their top three dat...
Margo Balzarini, owner of Palouse River Quilts, stands in front of patterns she created as samples for this summer's Row by Row Experience project. This year's theme is “Home Sweet Home." Gazette intern reporter Local quilting stores are participating in an international promotion to encourage summertime quilting. “Row by Row customers visit other shops. It benefits them when everyone visits. It really helps when there is a variety of shops participating,” said Margo Balzarini, owner of Palou... Full story
(Left) An excavator digs up dirt to commemorate the beginning of groundbreaking at the Pullman-Moscow Airport Monday, July 11. (Right) City officials, board members and public at-larges in the Pullman, Moscow, Whitman County and Latah County communities do their share in celebrating the beginning of the project at the Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport by digging deep into the fields surrounding the runway. Tony Bean, Airport director Gazette intern reporter The Pullman-Moscow Regional Airport...
Gazette intern reporter Mike Anderson, Endicott/St. John teacher for 23 years, will be teaching second grade at Whittier Elementary School in Pasco this fall. He will continue to live in Endicott, but will be staying in Pasco to teach during the week, and return home to Endicott and his family on the weekends. Anderson began his teaching career in California, where he taught for five years before moving to Washington state to certify in elementary education. His years at Endicott/St. John spanned kindergarten to 12th grade in subjects such as... Full story
Gazette intern reporter Residents of southern Pullman and some outlying areas of Pullman experienced a short power outage Tuesday, July 5, from 10:30 a.m. to about 12:15 p.m., according to Avista Utilities employees. The major outage was primarily on the Sunnyside and Pioneer hills and left many businesses without power, including Walmart, Safeway and Pullman Building Supply. Restaurants on that side of town were affected, too, and parts of the Washington State University campus were dark as well. Pullman Regional Hospital, which is located in...
Gazette intern reporter When a Pullman city water main near Dissmores ruptured April 19, businesses in the Tractor Town Square on Grand Avenue were flooded. One of those businesses, Snap Fitness, re-opened Friday. The rupture drained more than one million gallons of water from water towers on Military and College hills and flooded all of the businesses in the square. Snap Fitness had about three inches of standing water. “We had to install new flooring, drywall and repaint all of the walls,” said Megan Hammer, facility manager. “We had to ha... Full story
Gazette intern reporter Writing can be considered a rather personal form of art, whether or not the author is inclined to share their work with the world. However, Starla Simmons Meighan, a clinical assistant professor in integrative physiology and neuroscience at Washington State University, is one writer who not only wanted to share her work with others, but also wanted to grow and develop with other local writers. “I'm actually a professor at WSU. I teach neuroscience,” said Meighan, laughing. “I've always held this passion for writing, but...
Gazette intern reporter After teaching for 38 years at Jennings Elementary School, Sharon Hall has retired. Her retirement became effective at the end of this school year. The Title I teacher – a licensed elementary teacher who works with small groups of children on math and reading skills – earned her bachelor's degree in elementary education from Washington State University and later her master's degree from Nova Southeastern University in Florida. Her teaching experience includes teaching fourth and fifth grade, working as a reading spe...
Gazette intern reporter The WSU extension in Colfax and 4H program have teamed up this summer to put on a 4H adventure day camp to introduce kids to robotics. There are four different camps available: June 27-29, from 1-4 p.m. in Pomeroy at Pomeroy Elementary School; July 6-8, from 1-4 p.m. in Dayton at the Columbia County Fairgrounds; July 13-15, from 9 a.m. to noon in Colfax at the Public Service building and July 18-21, from 3:10-5 p.m. in Clarkston at Parkway Elementary, extension youth activity camp. The camp is designed for kids to learn...
Gazette intern reporter The federal crop insurance program will provide more flexibility for farmers, Acting Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Michael Scuse said. The insurance will give them an opportunity to practice the growing of more than one crop on the same field at different times of the year, which is commonly known as double cropping. Double cropping requirements are reviewed to sufficiently recognize changes in increasing farm operations or for additional land. This change will cover land added as well as account for multiple...
