Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
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With the Martin Hall Juvenile Detention Facility at Medical Lake continuing to operate at a loss because of low occupancy, members of the seven-county board in charge of the hall decided to revert to a set fee payment plan. The decision last week is intended to sustain the Martin operation for the balance of the year while the board considers the long-range fate of the operation. Commissioner Art Swannack, who represents Whitman County on the hall’s board, said the numbers of juveniles in the hall has remained low the last several months, a...
The Community Garden Backyard Harvest program is looking to expand into other communities in the county. According to organizer Janelle Miller, the program was so successful in Colfax last year that organizers want to develop more gardens in other towns. Community Garden partnered with Peace Lutheran Church and located the Colfax garden on lots along Lake Street south of the church. Miller said the gardens produced several kinds of peppers, tomatoes, winter and summer squash along with carrots, radishes and lettuce. Backyard Harvest provides...
Steve Rimbey stands on top of a scaffold making sure one of the pillars is level in the refurbished room at Events on Main in Colfax. His wife, Kari, standing next to the scaffold, is handing him some tools. They plan to call the extra space the Fireside Room which will hold an additional 50 people besides the main coffee house. They also removed a false ceiling to reveal the original ceiling tiles. The little coffee shop on the corner is adding a whole new room. Events on Main at N. 203 Main...
Rosalia Town Council conducted its first public hearing for a Community Development Block Grant Feb. 11 and had a second one scheduled Tuesday evening. Mayor Nan Konishi said although not many people came to the hearing, there were many good ideas. Layne Merritt of JUB Engineering in Spokane is assisting the town as it applies for grants. The grants are distributed by the state Department of Commerce. He said the town is applying for two grants, one $25,000 grant for a wastewater facilities plan that would evaluate alternatives and costs for...
Two self-described “crazy” moms have decided to produce a play at St. John-Endicott High School. The two moms, Kelly Lundberg and Rachel Anderson, are producing “Don’t Say No to the USO” which will hit the stage March 27-28 at the St. John auditorium. “It’s just weird insanity,” Lundberg said. The musical is set in the 1940s and includes songs from the Big Bands and the Andrews Sisters. “We wanted to do it because this year’s seniors are such a fun, great, cooperative group of kids,” Lundberg said. “It will be a fun way to end their senior yea...
Steptoe Butte is getting another new tower on top. Verizon Wireless is installing a 180-foot tower within the next 60 days, according to Virginia Painter, state parks spokesperson. After Verizon is finished with construction, ownership will be transferred to the state, Painter said. She said the state hopes with the addition of the new tower, not only will cell service be improved, but some of the other smaller towers might be removed. The parks real estate division negotiated a five-year contract with the cellular company. “It’s an opp...
Hawkins Companies representative Jeff DeVoe, who met with county commissioners here Jan. 27 to assure them the company is still interested in pursuing development of a shopping mall on the Washington side of the state line, met with County Administrative Director Gary Petrovich Feb. 18 to talk about possible financing for the development. DeVoe informed Petrovich he hired a Seattle firm, Pacifica Law Group, to research funding options for the county. They also discussed financing and what arrangements would be allowed by the state. The Boise-ba...
Ranchers, farmers and landowners again crowded the county’s Public Service Building auditorium in Colfax last Thursday for a second meeting with officials from the state’s Department of Ecology. The session lasted more than two hours. Three state Department of Ecology staff members from Spokane who attended were Chad Atkins, Mike Kuttels and David Knight. Atkins and Kuttels were at the December meeting. Because there were so many unanswered questions in December, DOE officials were invited to the second meeting by the Whitman Conservation Dis...
Pastor Fred Tribble, standing on the left, along with his wife, Cinda, serve to a couple of members of the congregation of the Endicott Bible Church on Valentine’s Day. This is one of the activities the Tribbles have done to attract more members to the small church. Since the Tribbles’ arrival, membership has grown from eight to about 20. The couple said they love the small town. Pastor Fred and Cinda Tribble have been in Endicott for a little more than a year and love life in a small town. The...
From the time she was 10 years old, Monica Hardie knew she wanted to be a doctor. Growing up on a farm near Dixie, south of Dayton, she knew she would have to work hard, but she was determined. After graduating from Whitman College in Walla Walla, the first in her family to graduate from college, she went on to medical school at the University of Washington. She did a clinical practice in Walla Walla for three years, then worked at a Spokane hospital for the next three years. As she continued to...
Port of Whitman County commissioners and staff on Thursday, Feb 6, went to Boyer Park and Marina to see improvements made since the new concessionaires, Leo and Terri Haas of Clarkston, took over operation from long-time concessionaire Dave Peterson. Kara Riebold, who has been overseeing Boyer projects for the port, took commissioners and port staff on a brief tour of the newly renovated restaurant and motel. Commissioners remarked the new paint and new flooring throughout the building made it...
Snow started falling late last Thursday evening and continued falling steadily until Friday morning. Snow showers fell Saturday with temperatures warming gradually to the mid 20s, letting icicles drip a bit. By Monday, infrequent snow showers were widely scattered in the county and temperatures were in the mid-30s. David Jones, Natural Resources Conservation Service Soil Conservationist based in Colfax, reported Friday the snow total was six and a half inches, with an additional two inches falling over the weekend. He said data from Pullman...
Ownership of two-thirds of the former Higginson Appliance store on Main Street in Colfax changed Friday, Jan. 24. According to Robert Willford, executive director of the Tri-County Economic Development District based in Colville, the northern portion of the building went into foreclosure for failure to make payments under terms of a deed of trust held by the agency. An attempt to auction off the building segment on the courthouse steps drew no response Jan. 24 and ownership went to Tri County Economic Development. McGrane and Schuerman law...
On Thursday, Jan. 31, Whitman County Relay for Life kicked off its annual fundraiser with a spaghetti dinner at the Colfax Baptist Church. Although only 35 people were served that evening, organizers termed it a success. “We were very pleased,” said one of the organizers, Cozy Lueck. Although they served more people last year, Lueck said they knew other events were going on the same night and didn’t expect as many people. A new team signed up and a lot of information was distributed to people who attended the dinner, Lueck said. Whitman Count...
“We are the landowners’ friend. We are here to help rather than judge.” Tom Kammerzell, Board member Whitman County Conservation District now has its own corner at the Colfax Library. Materials provided by the district are available for library patrons to check out at the “Conservation Corner.” “It’s another opportunity for people to see what the conservation district can do,” said board member Tom Kammerzell. “The reality is that it’s the people’s conservation district. We are willing to work with landowners,” he said “This is a nice tool to...
“We are the landowners’ friend. We are here to help rather than judge.” --Tom Kammerzell, Board member Whitman County Conservation District now has its own corner at the Colfax Library. Materials provided by the district are available for library patrons to check out at the “Conservation Corner.” “It’s another opportunity for people to see what the conservation district can do,” said board member Tom Kammerzell. “The reality is that it’s the people’s conservation district. We are willing to work with landowners,” he said “This is a nice to...
One of the oldest businesses in Colfax is closing its doors. Glaser’s Jewelry on Main Street will close for good Saturday, Feb. 15. Owner Ed Glaser, third generation of Glasers to operate the store, said Tuesday morning that the store has been in Colfax for approximately 112 years with a clock on the edge of the sidewalk as the landmark. The closing sale began Nov. 6. Glaser’s grandfather, Otto C. Glaser, advertised his business as the “leading jewelry and optician, at the sign of the stree...
Greg Nolan, left, owner of Nolan Heating and Air in Colfax, helps Cow Creek 4H Club members bag red beans for distribution from Storehouse. The members are from the Genesse area. A Cow Creek 4H Club member presses her hands on a bag of red beans to let the air out. The 4H club members formed an assembly line to get the bags ready for distribution. Tom Riedner of Genesee believes he is leading a revolution. As the executive director of Storehouse, a local charity organization that allows local...
Kiosks for the Palouse Scenic Byway will be ready this spring. The 24x30-inch fiberglass structures will go out for bid and locations are still being considered. The byway committee also discovered a sign restriction for LaCrosse. Residents would like to put signs out along SR 26 to direct visitors to the town’s services. The roads into LaCrosse are part of the scenic byway route. The state Department of Transportation has restrictions about businesses. To avoid the state restrictions, some suggested solutions would be to install a sign on p...
A possible end of the Martin Hall Juvenile Detention Center again appeared on the horizon after County Commissioner Dean Kinzer Jan. 21 said that juvenile offender counts in recent months have dropped to the point where the future of the Medcial Lake facility is in jeopoardy. Kinzer said a meeting of the Martin board Jan. 30 will determine if they will begin to consider a procedure to mothball the center. Kinzer said the hall needs 28 juvenile inmates to maintain the budget, but numbers slid down to less than an average of 18. In December, Mart...
Over the course of the weekend and for most of Monday, Inland Power had multiple small outages spread throughout Whitman and Garfield counties as a result of frost buildup on its lines. Avista crews also were busy with several reported outages Monday. Inland Power crews patrolled the lines to remove frost from lines where needed by beating the lines with a hot stick. Inland Power crews were working around the clock to restore power to areas that had their service interrupted. As of 9 a.m. Monday, power had been restored to all of the company’s...
The Guy Bennet Lumber Mill at the Port of Wilma is starting up production again. The mill takes up about three-quarters of the Port of Wilma according to port officials. They have had a lease with the port for the last 37 years, since 1977, but the mill has been vacant for the last five years. The mill paid the lease on its port property even though it wasn’t operating. The lease is through 2027. Port officials said the mill will have between 60 to 70 employees starting with one shift. The operation might start as early as April. The timing o...
Five more applications to grow and process marijuana in Whitman County have been relayed to the county commissioners by the Washington State Liquor Control Board. Three of the five applications are on the same property as the first application, 7205 Endicott Road, close to Winona. Juan Rodriguez of Yakima has applied to the state to produce and process marijuana under three different names, Wellness Spirits, Green Dream and Mother Nature, all at the Endicott Road address. Darrell and Judy Shaw have also applied for a producer and processor...
According to Hawkins representative Jeff DeVoe, the commercial development company is committed to its project for the long haul. “Hawkins Company is here and here to stay,” DeVoe told county commissioners Monday morning. DeVoe had asked to meet with commissioners to update them about the status of the proposed development on the Whitman County side of the state line along the Moscow-Pullman Highway. The Boise-based company proposes a 714,000-square-foot shopping center on Highway 270 at the Idaho state line. The county and the Hawkins Company...
The main elevator in the courthouse broke down late last week putting those who could not use the stairs to get to the second floor headed in the direction of the jail. The elevator has not been upgraded since the courthouse was built in 1954 and if something breaks on it, parts are more and more difficult to find, said Bob Reynolds, county facilities and maintenance manager. Those not able to use the stairway were asked to notify a member of the assessor’s staff in the office near the elevator. They were escorted to the jail’s elevator and...
