North Central ESD Board of Directors calls for 2025 elections

WENATCHEE - The North Central Educational Service District (NCESD) has announced a call for candidates for four seats on the Board of Directors. Candidates must file their declaration of candidacy between Sept. 1 and Sept. 16.

Brush fire engulfs house in Ephrata

EPHRATA – There was a report made of a brush fire in the 2200 block of Basin Street in Ephrata at around 12 p.m. Thursday, according to Grant County Sheriff’s Office Public Information Officer Kyle Foreman. When crews arrived on scene, it was discovered that there was a house involved in the fire. “The one occupant of the house was rescued safely by sheriff’s deputies,” Foreman said.

Ephrata boil advisory lifted

EPHRATA – The City of Ephrata has officially lifted its boil advisory after the water sample testing came back negative for contaminants, according to City Administrator Ray Towry. “We apologize for the inconvenience,” Towry said. “We understand the stress that it puts on people and local businesses.”

Royal City Lions Park Phase I upgrades near completion

ROYAL CITY — A new soccer field in Royal City’s Lions Park should be ready for use in early October. “The project is not complete, (but) the major part is complete,” Royal City Mayor Mike Christensen said. “The turf is down; the fence is in.”

Trainers, coaches, athletes discuss benefits of summer programs

MOSES LAKE – As high school sports kick off this weekend, that means summer athletics is officially coming to an end. Local athletes all over the Basin have spent their summer playing in leagues like the Central Washington Sixers program.

Simple sounds: George Bluegrass Festival to feature homemade music and players

GEORGE — There’s something very user-friendly about bluegrass music. “If you know three chords and have a capo, you can play with any group of musicians that are playing bluegrass,” said Terry Enyeart of Steelhead, one of the bands slated to perform at the George Bluegrass Festival Sept. 15-21. A capo, he explained, is a device you can put on the neck of a stringed instrument to change keys easily. “(Bluegrass) is usually based on two or three chords, and if you know even the basics of guitar or mandolin, you can sit there and strum along and be part of the music.”

Smoke forecast to stick around through Friday

MOSES LAKE — Wildfires and light winds have combined to produce poor quality throughout Eastern Washington, a situation that is forecast to persist for a few days. “We’re kind of under this stable (air) layer,” said Charlotte Dewey, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Spokane. “We don’t have a lot of (air) mixing near the surface.”

Gesa helping to fight food insecurity

RICHLAND — September is Hunger Action Month, and Gesa Credit Union is partnering with Food Lifeline and Second Harvest to fight food insecurity, according to an announcement from Gesa.

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR: Municipal roles...

One of the things that’s become apparent as my team and I have covered certain civic issues over the past few months is that there is a lack of understanding in the communities of Grant and Adams counties about which municipalities – cities, school districts, counties and so forth – do in the big scheme of thing.

COLLEGE SPORTS SCHEDULE: Sept. 4-11, 2025

MOSES LAKE – Colleges throughout Washington are starting their first few games of the season. See where your favorite collegiate teams are heading this week.

Ephrata wastewater plant recognized by DOE

EPHRATA – The City of Ephrata’s Water Reclamation Facility was recognized by the Department of Ecology for outstanding performance in 2024. The city received a letter from DOE Water Quality Program Manager Joe Kenning on Aug. 20.

Legals for September, 4 2025

Roundabout near Ephrata complete days early

EPHRATA — The new roundabout at the intersection of Nat Washington Way and State Route 282 is officially open, marking the end of a detour that has been in place for several weeks. The project was completed 8–9 days ahead of schedule, according to Grant County Central Services.

Ephrata boil advisory still in effect

EPHRATA – Ephrata remains on a boil advisory as it waits for test results to return from Pasco after a broken pipe led to a low pressure situation that requires testing under state health codes.

SOAP LAKE SCHOOL DISTRICT POS. 5 Q&A: Leavell vs. Novik

SOAP LAKE – There are two candidates running for the Soap Lake School District Director position 5 role. The candidates are Rebecca Leavell and Mark Novick. Both candidates were given the questions below and given identical deadlines and word count restrictions for their answers.

Huskies head to Dallas for Texas Three-Step

SEATTLE - The Huskies are headed for Texas this week and their first top-25 test as 11th-ranked SMU plays host to the DoubleTree Invitational in Dallas. The Huskies take on the Mustangs this Thursday, Sept. 4, live on ACC Network at 5 p.m. Pacific time. After that, the Huskies (1-2) will stay at SMU to face Stony Brook on Friday at 2 p.m. and Northern Iowa on Saturday at 9 a.m.

COLUMN: Huskies enter Big Ten strong

The first weekend of college football is in the books. Fans were treated to highly competitive matchups like Ohio State versus Texas, Miami versus Notre Dame or LSU versus Clemson. While each of those top matchups delivered on their hype, I was also paying attention to another situation.

BASIN EVENTS

COLUMBIA BASIN — This is a busy week in the Basin, with a fair, community festivals, art, live music and more. Here are some things to check out:

Courtright takes over as CBCCA president

MOSES LAKE — The gavel has been passed at the Central Basin Community Concert Association, as Caren Courtright succeeded Frances Irwin as president last week.

GCFD 8 commissioner candidates discuss visions for future

MATTAWA – A candidate forum for the upcoming fire commissioner election for Grant County Fire District 8 was held at Wahluke High School on August 28. The forum included two candidates running for the fire commissioner seats, Josh Seanard and Richard “Dick” Jenkin, both of whom are running unopposed for their respective positions.