Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
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During this worldwide pandemic, grocery stores all over the county are finding its shelves bare as customer frequency has increased and the amount that people are buying has increased. Many local grocery stores are not only having to battle with the shopping influx but are also working through a new food distribution service. URM Stores Inc. is a grocery distribution service based out of Spokane. URM services much of Whitman County. While pressure is high on supply chains during this time of increased shopping URM has had to shift its focus on...
On March 17, a three-alarm fire burned the interior and roof of the Fonk’s building to the ground. While Fonk’s Coffeehouse has been deemed unsafe to enter, two other businesses on Main Street, Leftovers and Whitman Family Dentistry, may be safe to enter, but also received substantial smoke and water damage that has affected business operations. “Currently, we can’t be in the store for very long periods of time because of the smoke damage,” said co-owner of Leftovers, Mary Davidson. “We just finished with inventory this past week. Next will b...
The McCluskey Run for Campus Safety, originally planned for an April 4 race at Reaney Park in Pullman, has made the transition to make the 5K race virtual. "We are sad to announce that due to COVID-19 and the cancellation of Mom's weekend, we will no longer be offering our in-person 5K event in Pullman," said the McCluskey Virtual Run for Campus Safety Facebook page. While the 5K event won't be in person on April 4, the organization opened the race to an online virtual platform and will allow...
Open comment remains available until April 13 on the Draft Environmental Impact Study on the Snake River Dams. The draft EIS rejects dam breaching, stating the approach of breaching the dams would destabilize the power grid and increase overall greenhouse emissions. “It is not anticipated that the open comment period for the DEIS will be extended,” said Port of Whitman Communications Director Sarah Highfield. All comments need to be either mailed or entered online up to April 13. To help communities send in comments, the Port of Whitman wro...
Recent conservations at the Whitman County Courthouse between county commissioners have been in regards to revenue flow into the county during this time and throughout the year. “We continue to not have a crystal ball for what the remainder of the year financial will look like, it is my belief and probably others that we will have significant budget and revenue shortfalls,” said County Commissioner Michael Largent. “Perhaps, we need to start doing some things now to stay ahead of the curve when it comes to cost savings.” At the March 30 comm...
Sharing a space with Flowers, Decor and More, Purpose Roasters is officially moved in and open for business at its new location. "I am all moved in and very excited about it," said Nick Wright, the new owner of Purpose Roasters. "The transition from locations has been going great." Wright received ownership of Purpose Roasters on March 14, when previous owners Janelle and Travis Harrison closed the cafe due to health concerns. Unlike before, Wright will just be operating the roasting portion of...
COLFAX–Susan Graham had her communion photos taken on May 1, 1971, by Bill Walters at his photography studio on Mill Street, which operated from 1968 to 1972. Over the years, the communion picture has moved with Graham across the state. It wasn't until recently that she noticed the photo had a paper backing to it. "It's a large picture, 16X21 inches," Graham said. "There was my picture, then behind that was a picture of a gentleman and his wife and then the picture of this beautiful baby." G...
On Wednesday, April 8, the Port of Whitman County announced that it will be canceling the 2020 Snake River Family Festival at Boyer Park. The Snake River Festival will not take place again until 2021. “We are very disappointed that we cannot host this year’s festival for our community,” said Port of Whitman Executive Director Joe Poire in a press release. “It has become a cherished celebration of our river and we will miss seeing all of our wonderful exhibitors and attendees.” At the April 2 port commission meeting, it was discussed if the fe...
Hospitals in the area are working overtime to test those with possible coronavirus symptoms as well as keep those with other emergencies healthy and safe. While hospitals are working more to keep patients and the community safe, there has been a shift in revenue and supplies for the hospitals in the county. Both Whitman Hospital & Medical Center and Pullman Regional Hospital are accepting donations of N95 masks. Most N95 masks are manufactured for use in construction and other industrial types of jobs that would expose workers to dust and...
COLFAX – At Monday's county commissioner workshop, Whitman County Commissioners expressed their concern for continuing forward with upgrades to the county courthouse and jail. The project is estimated to cost $8.6 million with the county putting forth $3 million from the county's general fund. “My concern is revenue flows within the county during this time and throughout the year,” said Commissioner Michael Largent. “Maybe we should rethink giving the $3 million in cash. I'm leaning towards supporting a delay in this project.” Upgrades...
COLFAX – On Wednesday, March 25, Whitman County IT Director Lance Bishop sent out a press release regarding Internet issues in the area, while many are practicing social distancing and staying home. “I imagine that with so many people sheltering at home with nothing to do but play online video games and watch Netflix, this is taxing the individual internet providers,” said Bishop in the press release. He said with more people working from home the Internet speed is slowing down and is starting to affect government and public safety functions. B...
COLFAX – Whitman County Treasurer Chris Nelson updated the county commissioners during their Monday workshop regarding county property tax deadlines. Nelson said the first half of property taxes, by law, are due April 30 and the county will be staying with that original deadline. “The state government has not taken any action, as of yet, on pushing property tax deadlines. Leaving the decision up to individual counties,” Nelson said. “I will keep our first half of property tax deadlines at the original date, April 30. There are too many people...
COLFAX – Washington State University recently completed a United States Department of Agriculture grant application to establish an agricultural innovation center and is requesting financial support from the Port of Whitman County. A motion was placed before the commissioners to authorize a project match of $70,000 and an in-kind match of $10,000 to include 50 percent of six months' of the communication director's staff time for educating Whitman County agriculture producers on the center's services. The port staff recommends providing a m...
COLFAX – Whitman County Commissioners met for their weekly workshop before a live and web audience Monday. To help promote social distancing, county commissioners set up a Zoom video conferencing service for those who would like to attend the workshop, but to keep distance from large crowds. There were other department heads and elected officials present in the commissioner’s chambers. Whitman County Health Department Director Troy Henderson reported to the commissioners, starting Monday, the health department recommends Whitman County operatio...
COLFAX – As concerns for being quarantined sweeps across the county, grocery stores in the area are finding shelves, which used to be stocked with toilet paper, pasta, canned foods, etcetera, swept bare. Whitman County Emergency Management Director Bill Tensfeld said since there has been some lead time, people have had the time to go shopping all at once and that many people are out buying for three to four weeks when it should be for roughly two weeks. "It's going to take a few weeks for the s...
COLFAX – Planned for the gravel lot behind Rosauers on Mill Street, S&L Rentals will be building a 6,000 square foot office space designed for three to four tenants. The building currently has two long-term tenants planned to move into the property. Scott Ackerman, owner of S&L Rentals, said there is a total of 1,500 square feet available that can be leased or split into two 750 square foot spaces. The scheduled start date for this project was supposed to be Tuesday, March 17, but with c...
COLFAX – The first phone-in public comment meeting on the Draft Environmental Impact Study regarding the Columbia River System was held Tuesday, March 17. Three additional phone-in meetings occurred March 18, 19 and 25, with one more meeting today and the last phone-in meeting on Tuesday, March 31. The draft EIS rejects dam breaching, stating the approach of breaching the dams would destabilize the power grid and increase overall greenhouse emissions. With the open comment period, the Port of W...
Whitman County Commissioners authorized an emergency declaration for COVID-19 in Whitman County with an unanimous vote from all three commissioners Monday morning. This emergency declaration is primarily meant to open up additional resources for emergency personal. Commissioner Michael Largent said this emergency declaration might not be as important as the one on the state and federal level, but he believes it’s prudent that we recognize officially that we are in a time of emergency and we’ll need all the resources that we can gather to res...
With all schools in Washington closed from March 17 through April 24 due to COVID-19, Whitman County school districts have begun plans to continue food service, education and more. COLFAX Colfax will offer breakfast and lunch for students starting Thursday to be delivered to certain spots in-town and along rural bus routes. In-town locations include Jennings Elementary School, from 8 a.m. to 10:30 a.m., and the following from 8 a.m. to 8:15 a.m.: Ace Hardware, Pearson Farm and Fence, the St. Pat...
Bernie Sanders leads as the Democratic Presidential Primary for Washington and had the highest amount of votes in Whitman County as of 8 p.m. Tuesday, March 10 with a 20.37 percent voter turnout. The only three candidates up for a vote in this election were Joseph Biden, Bernie Sanders and Tulsi Gabbard. The sole Republican Party candidate, running for a second term is Donald Trump. Trump won the Republican vote in Washington and had 2,371 votes in Whitman County. In 2016, the nominees from...
As of 4 p.m. Monday, March 9, there have been 162 positive confirmations of the coronavirus in Washington, along with 22 deaths. While many of these cases are surfacing in western Washington, with the closest positive reported case being Grant County, hospitals and county officials are still taking precautions and making preparations for this virus. On Monday, at the county commissioner workshop, Whitman County Health Director, Troy Henderson shared with county commissioners what he felt the sta...
Brandy Dean, county facilities management director, Monday presented to the county commissioners an update on the courthouse and jail upgrades and replacement project that is planned for later this year. The upgrade and replacement projects are to be completed by McKinstry Co., which is a construction engineering company that is headquartered in Seattle, but also has offices in Spokane and Pasco. Upgrades and replacements are being considered for roofing, HVAC, elevator, windows and doors, plumbing, electricity, jail facade, generators, cabling...
On Monday, March 9, Sarah Highland, port communications director, presented to the Port Commissioners the opening day for Boyer Park and planning updates for the Snake River Family Festival. Boyer Park and Marina/Snake River KOA will have its season kick-off April 1 and run through Nov. 24. “They will have kayaks and they received adult tricycles for this season,” Highland said. Store hours will be 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday-Sunday from April 1-May 1 and Sept. 8-Nov. 24. During the peak season, from May 1-Sept. 8, the store will be open from 8:3...
Debbie Snell, port properties development manager, shared with the port commissioners the possibility of developing a grading plan on the port retained lots at Pullman Industrial Park West. The retained lots are what remained after the port commissioner approved two resolutions to allow the sale of 25 acres at Pullman Industrial Park West to Aspen Heights, a Texas-based company which develops student housing units. Lots 15-18 and 22-25 were approved to be rezoned from light industrial to multi-f...
The new Endicott Community Garden will be holding a planning session on Monday, March 16, at 7 p.m. at the Endicott Library. The garden project in Endicott was started by the Palouse-Rock Lake Conservation District, headquartered in St. John, and it was funded by a national grant competition through the National Association of Conservation Districts. The grant also provided funding for the conservation district to launch its own podcast. The podcast will be launched within the next three to six weeks. Titled “Bits of Conservation,” the pod...
