Pets of the Basin: Furry friends up for adoption in Moses Lake and Othello

OTHELLO/MOSES LAKE — Adams County Pet Rescue and Grant County Animal Outreach both have dozens of dogs available for adoption, as well as a plethora of cats.

News Bites for Jan. 22, 2024

News Bites for Jan. 22, 2024

Legals for January, 22 2024

STUDIO BASIN: Honoring Mattawa PD Chief Robert Salinas, MACC upgrades and Basin basketball

MOSES LAKE — The Jan. 19 Studio Basin podcast opens on a somber note, reporting the death of Mattawa Police Department Chief Robert Salinas. Salinas passed away unexpectedly Jan. 16; he was remembered as “Chief Bob” by Mattawa residents.

Grant PUD satisfaction survey shows positive results overall

EPHRATA – Grant County Public Utility District commissioners heard an overall satisfactory report on customer satisfaction from Alex Dunn, vice president of research with Strategies 360 which conducts the PUD’s annual customer satisfaction survey.

Ballots coming for levy proposals in local districts

EPHRATA — Ballots will be mailed to voters Jan. 24 for the Feb. 13 special election that features educational program and operations levy requests in a number of school districts.

Matthew Jones Spurbeck

Matthew Jones Spurbeck, aged 66, lost his battle with cancer on Sunday, December 24, 2024. The service will be held on February 3, 2024 at the First Baptist Church in Soap Lake Washington."

Overcoming barriers

Regulation is slowing home construction, raising costs, expert says

MOSES LAKE — Overregulation is standing in the way of building more housing nationwide, a speaker told local housing professionals last week, but it’s not necessarily coming from state governments.

Mattawa PD Chief Robert Salinas led by example

MATTAWA — Officers with the Mattawa Police Department posted a message to MPD Chief Robert Salinas on the department’s social media Wednesday. “Thank you for your service, dedication and friendship,” it said. “Time will pass, but your memory will live forever. Rest easy, Chief Robert Salinas. “Your shift is over. We have the watch.”

SkillSource to host first-ever Othello hiring fair Jan. 26

OTHELLO — SkillSource’s Othello location will be hosting the first Othello hiring event to connect job seekers with employers Jan. 26. The event, located at 165 N. First Ave., will be an open house from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Legals for January, 19 2024

News bites for Jan. 19

OTHELLO — The Adams County Sheriff’s Office is looking for a burglary suspect, according to a statement from the ACSO.

Law enforcement logs for Jan. 19, 2024

The reports below were provided by the sheriff’s office or police department indicated. All suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

Othello Matters open house to help community members in need

OTHELLO — Adams County Integrated Healthcare Services is partnering with several other local and regional agencies to hold an open house event called Othello Matters from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Jan. 25 at the Othello Church of the Nazarene, meant to help community members in need. The event’s coordinator, Integrated Healthcare Services Mental Health Counselor Charlotte Hillman, said the event is open to the public. “We are reaching out to the homeless community in our area and we're going to provide a warm meal to them. Classic Grill’n is going to be donating the meal,” she said. “Then we're holding it at the Othello Nazarene Church, and they are a Narcan distributor, so they will be distributing Narcan to anybody who wants it or needs it. I'll also have (Opportunities Industrialization Center) there and they are a resource for people for funding and that sort of thing and other supports in the Adams and Grant County area.”

Mavs win fourth straight dual, defeat Richland

MOSES LAKE — Seven Maverick wrestlers picked up wins on the mat in Tuesday’s home dual against Richland, defeating the Bombers 35-30 to win their fourth-straight dual. “We knew Richland was tough when we were preparing for the dual,” Moses Lake Head Coach Jose Tanguma said. “We knew that they had a strong heavyweight lineup, and I’m glad that we pulled out some wins in the upper weight classes.” After a Richland forfeit in the 106-pound match and a double-forfeit in the 113-pound bout, Maverick juniors Cruz Hernandez and Drayden Gaither picked up major decisions in the 120- and 126-pound matches, with junior Trenton Vasquez following with a decision in the 132-pound match.

BASIN HOOPS REPORT: Entering the final stretch

COLUMBIA BASIN — District tournaments across the Basin are less than two weeks away, with teams in the area fighting for higher seeding in their respective conferences. See below for a look at where Basin squads stand during the final weeks of the regular season. All scores and records are according to the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association.

‘A joyful noise’

MLCA polishes up its first band

MOSES LAKE — When the psalmist wrote “Make a joyful noise unto the Lord,” he may not have been referring to a school band. But he would probably approve of the sounds coming from the Moses Lake Christian Academy band. Beginning, but joyful. “We've had choir before, but this is our first year with an actual band,” said MLCA Marketing Director Janeil Koethke. “We’re just building the foundation,” said band director and music teacher Ruth Weger. “I think we've done a lot more this year so far than was even expected.”

Pursuit of the dream continues

Program commemorates work, impact of Martin Luther King

MOSES LAKE — The life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was commemorated with music, poetry and a reading of King’s 1963 speech at the Lincoln Memorial – commonly referred to as the “I have a dream” speech – in a ceremony Monday.

Legals for January, 18 2024

Cold work

EPHRATA - Trucks were stationed at the old track in Ephrata near Walmart on Tuesday as crews were set to begin demolition to prepare the site to become the new Grant County Jail. County officials have stated that a lot of tires had to be removed from the site prior to construction prep beginning.