Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
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After KXLY News in Spokane reported Friday an employee claimed Cougar Country, Pullman's beloved drive-in diner, was closing, the rumor hit social media with people who described themselves as employees taking to Twitter and Facebook to detail the business's troubles, namely bounced paychecks. Rhonda Witt-Miller, whose parents opened Cougar Country in 1973, said she will be coming out of retirement to take control of the business. "I truly believe that we will survive, and we'll come back...
In a landmark election, Whitman County voters approved levies violating the state’s legal limit, continuing a precedent set by other school districts. School districts in Oakesdale and Colton each asked for programs and operations levies that are higher than what is allowed under Washington’s McCleary decision, at $3.67 and $2.50 per $1,000 of assessed property value, respectively. Both passed with more than 60 percent of the vote. Colton voters approved the levy for $2.50 with a 131-54 vote for an 70.81 approval. Oakesdale voters gave a 95-...
On a snow-draped seventh annual Palouse Cabin Fever Brewfest Feb. 2 no beer lines froze. Organizers for the colder-than-usual indoor/outdoor event in Palouse made concessions for weather, adapting the layout of the brewers' canopies in case of wind, and sending a pickup to retrieve three kegs and taps from Bellwether Brewing Co. in Spokane. Once underway, the evening went as planned. "We just had to keep the beer flowing so it won't freeze," said volunteer Janet Barstow, a member of the town's...
In order for the Colfax and Community Fund to continue, a new president is needed. Many local non-profits including the Council on Aging, Boy Scouts, Palouse River Counseling, Families Together, Boost Collaborative and the Colfax Youth League count on C&CF for funding. The office of president opened when the Rev. Phil Misner from Peace Lutheran Church transferred to Post Falls. C&CF began in the ‘60s as the Colfax Treasure Box. The organization isn’t as big as it has been in the past, but asi...
The Colfax School board met Monday night with a modified agenda due to snow, postponing a Jennings Elementary board appreciation event at the school library. Board members instead gathered in their regular meeting room and Superintendent Jerry Pugh opened by thanking city and county snow-plow crews. “Even the gravel roads got it today,” he said, as snow continued to fall outside the window, after a two-hour school delay earlier. “You won’t be able to tell in the morning.” Pugh noted that Mark Br...
Amanda Madlin, Spokane, sustained minor injuries Tuesday morning, Feb. 5, when the vehicle she was driving went off Highway 27 north of Garfield and collided with an Avista power pole. The accident report said the pole snapped in two places and downed wires from the pole wrapped around the car. According to the Washington State Patrol report, Madlin was driving southbound on Highway 27 at 10:20 a.m. and lost control of the 2000 Chevrolet Cavalier she was driving in snowy and slushy conditions. The Cavalier went off the west side of the roadway...
Assault charges filed Monday against a Whitman County jail inmate included a detailed account of an alleged assault that took place in the women's section of the Whitman County jail Jan. 24. Randi Keene, 35, was charged with assaulting inmate Ashley Myers, 30. Myers, who is listed in the formal charge as a "criminal justice participant," has been in jail since Sept. 29 after she was arrested for allegedly fatally shooting a Coeur d'Alene man who was in a car at the intersection of Airport Road and Highway 26 across from the fairground. Colfax O...
The local chapter of Habitat for Humanity will build its 2019 house in Palouse, its third there since the chapter formed in 1992. It has also bought land in Uniontown for its 2020 project. In Palouse this spring, volunteers will break ground on Illinois Street for a 10-month construction schedule. Recipients will be Richard and Roberta Kruger, currently Troy residents. Richard is a veteran and Roberta has a disability with Multiple Sclerosis. The house will be paid for by all local money, in...
A workshop on government contracting will be Wednesday, Feb. 20, from noon until 3 p.m., at Umpqua Bank, 225 N Grand Ave. in Pullman. The meeting is free to Pullman Chamber members, and $10 for non-members. Please reserve by Friday, Feb. 15. The Washington State Procurement Technical Assistance Center, a program of Greater Spokane Incorporated, provides no-cost, confidential assistance in all aspects of doing business with federal, state and local governments. PTAC staff can research the types of contracts available, the dollar amounts, and...
Whitman County Sheriff's Office has come across a number of vehicles stuck in snowbanks and abandoned along sides of the road after the recent influx of snow. Most often the vehicles are stuck in a drift on unplowed roads. The sheriff's office has informed citizens that vehicles blocking roadways need to be moved. If the owners cannot be contacted, the vehicle will be towed. In some cases, even if they do contact the owner, the vehicle will be towed. In such cases, having contact information...
Selway Holdings, LLC and Dewey Scientific have set up a website to promote their bid for a zone change on a land parcel southwest of Pullman. Selway Holdings wants to rezone 3.5 acres of an 8.4 acre parcel they own to a Limited Light Industrial zone. The site is located at the intersection of Flat Road and Country Club Road southwest of Pullman. The aim of the zone change proposal is to locate a marijuana processing facility, which is not allowed in the current agricultural district. A...
Asotin's Panthers edged Colfax 54-51 Tuesday at the NE semi-final round at West Valley to end a Colfax bid to get into the title game. To remain on the road to state action, the Bulldogs will now have to bag two wins at West Valley to claim the third and last ticket to the state regional round. Down by four points at the half, Asotin scored 19 points after the break on the way to the win with Eli Engledow and Thomas Martin each hitting 15 points. Colfax was called for 26 fouls in the Tuesday...
Liberty's Lancers took control in the last quarter Tuesday night for a 56-52 win over Colfax in the NE semi-final round at West Valley. The Lancers out-scored Colfax 13-6 in the last quarter to get the win and advance to the NE title game Saturday. St. George's nipped Davenport 50-49 in the other semi-final and will play the Lancers for the NE title, Liberty's Maisie Burnham, who led the Lancers when they bounced Colfax in the last league round, hit 14 of 17 toss shots and finished with 25...
The No. 1 seed Colton girls advanced to meet No. 2 Pomeroy for the Southeast 1B league/District Nine championship game Wednesday night in Colfax, with the winner going to regionals. The two teams have been first and second all season in the league standings, with Colton beating the Pirates twice handily. The winner of Friday’s district tournament title game will be one step away from state at Spokane Arena. The loser drops into a game against the winner of No. 3 seed Oakesdale and No. 4 seed S...
Snow storms across the state last week wound up knocking out the normal regional round of the state finals for the wrestling campaign. Facing reports of bad roads and school closures, WIAA last week called off the regional eliminations and developed a plan to tack the round onto the state finals at the Mat Classic at the Tacoma Dome Friday and Saturday. For local wrestlers in the B division, the change meant a scratch in the all-day regional which was set at Liberty last Saturday. Four wrestlers from the previous weeks sub-regional round at...
Garfield/Palouse and Oakesdale have been the class of Whitman County 1B boys basketball for the past two years. Last season, the Vikings beat Oakesdale at Oakesdale in the district playoffs to send the Nighthawks into the loser’s bracket where they met Touchet in Walla Walla and their season ended in upset. Gar/Pal went on to take the second league slot into regionals (behind Pomeroy) and came within a basket of Spokane Arena and the state tournament. This year, with senior-laden rosters, G...
Davenport’s Gorillas booked a 60-53 win over Tekoa /Rosalia Tuesday at West Valley to end a strong hoop season for the Timberwolves. The two teams hooked up after the elimination game was stopped twice by snowstorms. They had been booked to play Saturday, but the whole NE playoff slate was cancelled on that day because of snow. Monday’s game date was scratched because the Gorillas could not make the trip in the snow that day. The elimination loss left the T-woves 1-2 for the tournament. They faced the Gorillas after being clobbered last Thu...
A new league/district tournament format began this week for county 1B basketball. The four-team tournament for the Southeast 1B league opened at home sites Friday and concludes Saturday at Colfax, with two boys teams and two girls teams advancing to a regional round – one step closer to state at Spokane Arena. This year’s four-team tournament revises the six-team tournament which was also double elimination, allowing for teams with lesser results from the regular season to get into the playoffs. The Southeast 1B League has seven teams now, dow...
These reports are from the previous four issues of the Daily Bulletin in Colfax. They are reprinted here for the benefit of Gazette readers who reside outside of Colfax. Some accounts have been updated. CITY PLOWS START EARLY Colfax street crews have been operating three plow trucks to clear city streets after the heavy snows for the first two days of the week. Public Works Director Matt Hammer said two crew members Monday started to clear the streets at 3 a.m., and work Tuesday started at 4...
It is still up in the air. The long awaited compromise to avoid another government shutdown is in the works. It is being cautiously called an agreement “in principle.” A tentative agreement may be a better description. As of this writing, stalwarts on both sides are not enthusiastic, but more main stream members of both houses of Congress have made progress in crafting legislation to end the threat of a second shutdown as President Trump vowed. The votes in both houses seem to be enough to bring the deal to the President. At this point, how...
Okeydokes Palouse mayor should school Colfax! The county commissioners, who trekked out to meet constituents at the Steptoe school, came to listen and not to direct. It was a very good meeting. Our lovely friend who gave us the beautiful copper stamped sign. Very grateful at Penewawa....
