Installation of Othello playground to begin

OTHELLO — The long-running project to build a new playground and expanded basketball courts in Othello’s Lions Park should be completed by this fall...

Lower Crab Creek fire out, others still burning

BEVERLY — A wildfire that blazed up east of Beverly over the weekend is out, according to Grant County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Kyle Foreman. The fire consumed about 65 acres, according to Neil Vargas, assistant chief for Grant County Fire District 10, which responded to the blaze. There were no injuries, Vargas added. No further information was available Monday afternoon, as Bureau of Land Management personnel were on the scene and no report had been made yet...

FIBERED UP: Grant Co. fiber expansion nears finish line

EPHRATA — A decades-long project to provide fiber optic cable, and fiber access, to most Grant County locations is almost done. Terry McKenzie, senior manager of wholesale fiber for the Grant County PUD, said the buildout is scheduled for completion in 2024. “We’re about 90-ish (percent) complete with the project customer base, with the customer count,” McKenzie said. “We’re about 60-ish (percent) complete on miles. The very last year and a half is going to be a lot of miles, getting very little customers, because we waited to do the rural (areas) at the end.” ...

Volunteers provide free dental care

Moses Lake Seventh-day Adventist congregation helps locals take care of their teeth.

MOSES LAKE — From the outside the Crestview Christian School looked like it does every summer day last Friday and Sunday, but inside it was a dental clinic, and a busy one at that. The Moses Lake Seventh-day Adventist Church congregation and an Adventist charitable organization teamed up to offer a free walk-in clinic. “We’re offering free dental services to the community. Moses Lake and the surrounding area,” organizer Linda Morgan said...

Soap Lake council passes 6-year Transpo Plan.

SOAP LAKE - The Soap Lake City Council unanimously passed a motion Wednesday to update and amend the city’s Six-Year Transportation Improvement Plan. With the motion passed, the Council will now submit the plan to the Washington State Transportation Improvement Board...

CWU police expect therapy dog to make positive impacts

ELLENSBURG - The Central Washington University Police Department has a new best friend. And once the rest of campus gets to know him, they will, too. During a brief ceremony on May 30, Chief Jason Berthon-Koch swore in Archie, a therapy dog and the newest member of the police department. In a letter to colleagues, the chief said Archie's primary mission will be to provide support, comfort, and stress relief to CWU students, faculty, and staff — and "lend a helping paw when it matters the most." ...

Inner space

The Place at Knolls Vista puts new homes in the heart of Moses Lake

MOSES LAKE — Most of the time, new housing developments crop up on the edge of town. But The Place at Knolls Vista, one of two CAD Homes projects in Moses Lake, is smack in the middle of one of the oldest neighborhoods in town. “It's a lot more difficult, because you're not working with nice big squares,” said CAD Homes owner Drew Scott. The development is located at the northwest end of West Pine Drive. There are 27 lots under development now, Scott said, and four more coming, for a total of 31. Most of it is in the excavation stages, although two houses that face onto Grape Drive are on their way to completion.

Ephrata council discusses city services to new jail

EPHRATA — Water and sewer service, land use and the new Grant County Jail were subjects of discussion by the Ephrata City Council at the regular meeting Wednesday. Council members approved an ordinance allowing the city to provide water and sewer services to the new facility...

Lawrence (Larry) Lee Tracy

Larry Tracy, 79, passed away at home on June 14, 2023. A lifelong resident of Moses Lake, he loved his family, friends, animals – especially cats – practicing law, music, driving and collecting antiques and artifacts. Lawrence Lee Tracy was born in Iowa on March 10, 1944, to Dr. Harold and Gladys Tracy in Iowa. He was the oldest of their seven children, followed 17 months later by his brother Ron. After their dad returned from service in Okinawa, the family moved to Eastern Washington in 1946 where he finished his residency in Spokane, then to LaCrosse, Washington. Their sister Barbara was born during those years. By 1949 they moved to Moses Lake, where they remained and the rest of the Tracy siblings were born. Larry was the quintessential big brother of the family.

Commentary: Snake River Whac-A-Mole needs to stop

To supporters of the four Lower Snake River dams, the latest news that President Biden continues to pursue dam breaching is not shocking, but surprising, considering the growing shortfall in electricity predicted in the western states and his desire to dramatically reduce carbon emissions. Biden’s March 21 announcement started another “Whac-A-Mole” game to determine the dams’ future. The news was reported in a Wall Street Journal commentary by Faith Bottum titled “Biden’s fishy plan to breach the Snake River dams.” She wrote that Biden is determined to bring “healthy and abundant salmon runs back to the Colorado River system.” (He really meant the Columbia River.)

Rattling Portland

Local 18U team competes at Valley Invite in Oregon

PORTLAND, Ore. – The 18U Moses Lake Rattlers were one of nearly 60 teams to compete at the Triple Crown Valley Invite in Portland, Oregon over the weekend, though the final day of competition was rained out.

Prowler caught following assault

MOSES LAKE — A suspected vehicle prowler who allegedly punched his victim and fled was caught in Moses Lake Wednesday...

Forest Service waives fees for Juneteenth

PORTLAND, Ore. — The USDA Forest Service is waiving recreation fees for day-use sites in Washington and Oregon on Monday, June 19, in recognition of the Juneteenth holiday, according to an announcement from the Forest Service...

18U River Dogs prepare for Jerry Henderson Memorial Tournament

EPHRATA – The 18U Columbia Basin River Dogs enter their third tournament of the season this weekend, preparing for the Jerry Henderson Memorial Tournament that will be hosted at Johnson-O’Brien Stadium in Ephrata beginning Friday night.

WSU director has a love for dry land farming

LIND — The dryland wheat farming region of Washington state is probably the driest place in the world where farmers manage to grow wheat without irrigation, according to Surendra Singh, the new director of Washington State University’s Lind Dryland Research Station. “Because we have rain for around nine and nine-and-a-half inches, which is just barely enough,” Singh said...

Moses Lake exchanges gifts with sister city

MOSES LAKE — The City of Moses Lake is giving a pair of landscape prints from a local artist to the city of Yonezawa, Japan, in response to Yonezawa’s gift of a tapestry to Moses Lake last year. “In a show of gratitude for that, we’ve decided to present them with these two prints from local artist Kim Matthews Wheaton that show the agriculture in the area and some of the local geology, which is obviously unique to our area,” said Council Member Dustin Swartz at the start of a regular meeting of the Moses Lake City Council on Tuesday.

Little Big Show '23

Wilson Creek hosts annual car show

WILSON CREEK — The little town of Wilson Creek more than doubled in numbers Saturday. The town, which had a population of 207 at the last census, welcomed more than 300 visitors to its annual Little Big Show, according to organizer Nicholas Odorizzi. “Good turnout this year,” Odorizzi said. “We had, I think, 104 cars. We had more vendors this year, which was great. One of our food vendors sold out. So that was a good problem to have.” ...

Fire season starts in Grant Co.

SOAP LAKE — Fire season has kicked off in Grant County with three fires in less than 24 hours – one just north and east of Soap Lake, one at the intersection of State Route 17 and Stratford Road in Moses Lake on Tuesday and another at Rocky Ford Creek between Ephrata and Moses Lake on Wednesday...

Basin community calendar for June 17-21

Basin community calendar for June 17-21

ACH grads sent off with a song

COULEE CITY — The 15 graduating seniors of the Almira Coulee Hartline High School class of 2023 gathered on the stage in the gym on the afternoon of Saturday, June 10, to receive their diplomas. And in each one of those diplomas was a sticky note with a song title. “I thought of a conversation I’d actually had with (co-valedictorian) Isabel (Brink) earlier when she was working on her valedictorian speech,” said Kelley Boyd, who is both Superintendent of the Almira Coulee Hartline School District and principal of ACH High School.