Serving Whitman County since 1877
Serving Whitman County since 1877
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Restrooms closed Monday at U.S. Army Corps of Engineers parks along the lower Snake River while crews install new pre-fabricated concrete restrooms. Using funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, the corps is installing restrooms at the south shore day-use area downstream from Little Goose Lock and Dam. Concrete restrooms will also replace the existing facilities at corps sites near Clarkston, at Greenbelt Ramp, Swallows Ramp and Chestnut Beach. The Greenbelt, Swallows and Little Goose portion of the project should be completed... Full story
The new business incubator in Oakesdale is done and ready for a business to move in. The county and city funded space, which sits one story above the Oakesdale library, is geared to take on a small business start-up. Oakesdale seeks a tenant who wants to start a small business and eventually move to a larger space when their business develops, according to Mayor Russ Rickett. “The idea of the incubator is, at some point, hopefully, early on they could create their business and then put their business down on the street,” Rickett said. The tow...
Crews from All Surface Roofing and Waterproofing, Spokane, stand on exposed support beams as they work to replace the roof on the county-owned building at Main and Island in Colfax. The county will remodel the building into new offices for the elections department....
Those flags at half-staff signal the suffering development Lowering our flags to half-staff seems to be an all too familiar sight across our nation these days. It is a solemn act that recognizes our fallen heroes, whether they be men and women in our armed forces or a Seattle police officer killed in the line of duty. It is a vivid reminder of the ultimate sacrifice made by those who serve us. Unfortunately, after those flags return to the top of the pole and time passes, we tend to forget that the suffering for the friends and families... Full story
Election luncheon pals call fate of two state measures OUR ELECTION DAY luncheon group, a gathering of public officials, ex-public officials and the usual political junkies from the fringes, had no trouble predicting the defeat of Initiative 1033 and the passage of Referendum 71. I-1033, according to the ads, all of which were from opponents since Tim Eyman’s crowd spent all their money just getting it to the ballot, portrayed it as potentially destructive to organized government as another hurricane bearing down on New Orleans. School c...
+++++ The Empire Disposal crew for going above and beyond in helping us clean up from our almost 20 year spring cleaning project this fall. !#@%#! 60 to 70 decibels of low frequency noise pollution all night long. Get it?...
Wednesday was Veterans’ Day. This year it fell in the middle of the week. Programs at schools the week prior and at cemeteries on Wednesday marked the day. Veterans’ Day is meant to be a serious holiday. The idea of Veterans’ Day, which evolved from Armistice Day celebrating the end of World War I, is to show respect for and give thanks to those Americans who have served their country in the military. It is the celebration of the citizen soldier. Veterans’ of World War II, despite their diminishing numbers, usually make up the bulk of those c...
Three strong wins at Dayton advanced the Tekoa/ Oakesdale Nighthawks to another entry in the 2B state show at Yakima’s SunDome. The ‘hawks will start the title quest Friday at noon against Northwest Christian, the third-place qualifier out of the NE. Coach Angie Rambo credited her ‘hawks with being persistent on the court and overcoming the emotional battle which followed the loss to classmate Zach Smith just two days before the start of the SE 2B playoff rounds at Dayton. In the title match Saturday, the ‘hawks came from way back to win the...
Colfax senior Megan Pearson goes up to the net against Reardan's Kelsey Moos in the NE championship game. Coach Sue Doering and the Bulldog girls face a tough bracket when they open their bid for a sixth state title Friday in the Yakima SunDome. The Bulldogs stacked two three-game win at St. George’s Saturday to top the District 7 entry into the state finals. Colfax will shoot for a second title in the state big B division after stringing four straight titles in their last four years in the state A classification. The Bulldogs start Friday a...
Damon Buck stretches for a TD catch against Bronco Marshall Fryberger early in Friday night's game. Colfax Bulldogs, who advanced to the 2008 state semi-final in their first year of B2 football, will begin another shot at the playoff trail Saturday when they host the number-two team out of the SE district. The Bulldogs at the start of the week were awaiting the result a three-team SE playoff at Dayton to learn who they will face. Asotin, Waitsburg/ Prescott and DeSales were all contenders for the top SE slot. “We really won’t be facing a num...
TOR kick returner Scott Eberle throws a shoulder into a potential Pomeroy tackler while returning the opening kickoff in the Pirate’s 34-26 victory. A flock of Nighthawk defenders put the clamp on Pomeroy quarterback Trevor Koberstein during the second quarter of Friday night’s game at Oakesdale. With hearts heavy following the death of captain Zach Smith, the football squad of Tekoa/Oakesdale/ Rosalia ended its season with a 34-26 loss to league foe Pomeroy Friday night at Oakesdale. Smith, a wide receiver, died in a car accident Nov. 3, and... Full story
SJE's Kelly Van Lith goes up for hit in front of Haley Reiber and Kelsey Simon in the semi round at Colfax. Della Fleming of the Tigercats raps a hit against TCP in the other semi Thursday at Colfax. Mikayla Nygreen and McKenzie Heaslet put up a block for Colton in the semi-final round Thursday. The SJE Eagles defeated the LW Tigercats Saturday at Dayton to decide the top two SE tickets to the state 1B show which starts Friday in the SunDome at Yakima. The Eagles will play Crescent of Joyce in the opener at 9 a.m. Friday and LaCrosse/Washtucna...
Colton will host Columbia Lions in playoff start Columbia of Hunters, number-three team in a tough NE league, will visit Colton in the first round of the eight-man playoffs Friday. The Lions are seeded behind Almira-Coulee-Hartline and Cusick, two area power clubs also on the grid to start of the playoffs. Two years ago in their last state bid, the Wildcats defeated Columbia before battling Odessa and losing a classic quarter-final round at West Valley game. Coach Clark Vining said the Lions, led by running backs Eli Bear and Paul Larrew, will... Full story
Morgan Willson opened up a gap on Mikel Elliot of White Pass near the one-mile mark in the state race on the way to the first Colfax win at state cross country in 20 years. Colfax sophomore Morgan Willson booked a run-away win Saturday in the state 1B-2B championship race at Sun Willows Golf course in Pasco. Willson officially clocked 18:36 to finish 47 seconds ahead of Mikel Elliott of White Pass. The senior from White Pass finished at 19:23. She had been considered the other contender to watch based on times posted around the state from...
THURSDAY Firing two handguns, U.S. Army Major Nidal Malik Hasan kills 11 people and wounds 31 others in a shooting rampage at Fort Hood base in Texas, the largest military installation in the world and a prime point of deployment for U.S. operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Hasan was a military psychiatrist who had treated soldiers returning from combat. The United States slapped anti-dumping duties ranging up to 99 percent on Chinese-made oil well pipes in the biggest U.S. trade action against China. Canada launched an investigation into why...
With a national recession drying up lines of credit, businesses that were filling up the Port of Whitman County’s commercial properties are going away. That flight means the port will have to tap tax levy proceeds to balance its 2010 budget. The 2010 bottom line of $2,960,600 is a four percent drop from this year’s $3,092,500 budget. Operating receipts are budgeted for $899,000, while operating expenses total $1,030,000. Only once this millennium, in 2001, has the port’s operating revenue failed to cover expenses. “I’m fairly confident... Full story
After hearing from residents that the county’s proposed industrial wind power ordinance is too restrictive, Whitman County commissioners have made some last minute changes that allow towers to be built closer to houses. Commissioner Greg Partch asked Alan Thomson, county planner, to reduce the distance towers must be set back from houses and property lines from the distances listed in the ordinance passed by the planning commission. County commissioners will decide on the ordinance at 10:45 a.m. Monday. Their decision will end a two-year d...
Paul Bilderback returned to his residence here last Tuesday, Nov. 3, from Yakima Memorial Hospital where the lower part of his left leg was amputated after a hunting accident in the White Pass area. Bilderback was flown Saturday morning, Oct. 31, by medvac helicopter from the Rimrock Lake Airstrip to the Yakima hospital for treatment. Bilderback, 68, was hunting with his stepson, Steve Anderson of Covington, and others. Jack Rodgers of Colfax, a long-time friend of Bilderback, was also in the hunting party. Bilderback said he was hiking to... Full story
Whitman and Latah County grocery stores will promote the 12th annual America Recycles Day Nov. 14 and 15 by giving away copies of Living Green on the Palouse, a directory developed by the Palouse Earth Day Association in partnership with the Washington State Office of Ecology. The directory, a 32-page recyclable guide to green businesses, products, and services in Whitman and Latah County, will be given to customers in grocery stores in both counties. Participating grocery stores include Safeway and Dissmores in Pullman, Empire Foods in Tekoa...
Palouse Direct Seeders will once again conduct a series of meetings for farmers and others with questions about direct seeding. The group began holding meetings last year. Most meetings saw an average attendance of about 34, according to coordinator Dennis Roe. A breakfast, hosted by the Colfax Grange Supply Agronomy Plant, will be at the Methodist Church in Colfax at 7 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 18. Speaking at the meeting will be Randy Emtman, farmer from Spangle, who will talk about his direct seed system, and Bill Ritchie, grower and researcher... Full story
With only a handful of votes remaining to be counted, Pullman Republican Susan Fagan appears solidly voted in as the next State Representative from Washington’s 9th District. Opponent Pat Hailey of Mesa conceded the election to Fagan after the second count of the ballots Wednesday did not close the gap. “I’m so excited. I am so excited,” said Fagan. “I am absolutely thrilled and honored to be chosen by voters.” As of the last count Friday, Fagan had received 55 percent of the total district vote, including 61 percent of Whitman County’s vo...
Whitman County Fire Chiefs Association elected new officers at their quarterly meeting Monday night at the Best Western in Colfax. Rosalia Chief Bill Tensfeld will take over for Colfax Chief Ralph Walter as president of the association. Tensfeld served last year as vice president. Oakesdale Chief Joe Fox takes over the VP spot for the coming year. Mike Heston, Pullman Fire Department’s assistant chief, will serve as secretary/treasurer again this year. The association meets four times a year to consolidate information about the fire d... Full story
Whitman County Sheriff’s deputies responded to two separate incidents of cows breaking free from their pastures Monday. At 2:50 p.m. Sheriff Brett Myers was called out to try and wrangle escaped cattle off the Pine City-Malden Road. At 10:17 p.m., Deputy Dan Brown responded to a call of loose cattle on the Pine City Cemetery Road. The owner of the cattle in the second call advised deputies he already had his stock back behind the fence when they called to check the situation.... Full story
Choosing fatigues and a helmet over his trademark lawyer’s bowtie, Whitman County’s senior deputy prosecutor Bill Druffel flies out Sunday for a year-long tour of duty in Iraq. Druffel, 38, joined the Army Reserve a year ago and was notified of his deployment last month. Druffel will provide legal counsel to soldiers in his brigade as well as legal counsel to Iraqis looking to rebuild their judicial system. Druffel has served in the prosecutor’s office for three years. “Not every country lawyer from Whitman County gets this opportunity to take...
Sen. Maria Cantwell swung by St. John Saturday to chat over concerns with farmers – particularly concerns about a new federal law which credits industries that pollute less. Farmers from the St. John area voiced their concerns about the nation’s cap and trade law, which simultaneously punishes and rewards farmers for their roles in the carbon cycle. Cantwell sat down with about a dozen members of the local agriculture industry at the Community Building on the St. John Fairground to discuss the cap and trade bill passed last summer, as well as...
