CHERYL SCHWEIZER

Quincy man arrested after standoff

QUINCY — A Quincy man was arrested early Thursday afternoon after refusing to come out of an empty business building, leading to a standoff lasting about three hours...

Regional utility companies work to mitigate wildfire risks

COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho — The interaction of electrical lines and the landscape around them, especially trees, often ends badly - it can cause power outages any time of year, but in the summer in particular it can cause fires. Keeping fires from happening requires close attention to power lines and the areas around them, and that’s not just a summer job. “Fire season is a condition that can exist at any time of year,” wrote JoDee Black of NorthWestern Energy, based in Missoula, Montana via email. “Each year’s weather conditions impact those situations differently: Early season rains encourage plant growth which fuels fires later in the growing season, and winters with little snow leave dry plant material available for late season fires.” ...

Coulee Medical Center important resource in isolated area

GRAND COULEE — Coulee Medical Center is one of those places that highlights the challenges and opportunities of rural medicine. “We’re just really looking to see what can we do that makes sense. That’s financially viable, that meets our mission and the needs of the community,” said Chief Executive Officer (and Chief Nursing Officer) Roberta Hicks. One of the examples is the Grand Coulee-based hospital’s obstetrics department, the only one in the area with the exception of Mid-Valley Hospital in Omak. Hicks said it’s a necessary service. “If you can make it to Omak from here, it’s 58 miles,” she said.

Quincy football sets goal of building on improvement

QUINCY — The 2022 football season saw some encouraging things happen for the Quincy High School Jackrabbits, and both Head Coach Russ Elliott and Jacks players want to build on that improvement.

After just missing in 2022, Wahluke football looking to make playoffs in 2023

MATTAWA — The Wahluke High School football team missed the first round of the 2022 playoffs by the smallest of margins, and Coach Anfernee Cortez said his team is looking to change that result in 2023.

Ephrata dismisses Parks and Rec director

EPHRATA — Ephrata city officials are considering options to replace Parks and Recreation Director Traci Bennet after her employment was terminated. Ephrata City Council members confirmed Bennet’s firing on a 6-0 vote at the regular meeting Aug. 16...

Ribbon cutting for new Almira school Thursday

ALMIRA — The new Almira Elementary School and Almira-Coulee/Hartline Middle School will be the center of attention at a ribbon-cutting and open house scheduled for 4 to 6 p.m. Thursday. The building is located at 310 S. Third St. People can tour the new building after the ribbon is cut, said building Principal Kelsey Hoppe. “You’ll be able to walk around and check things out,” she said.

Radio-controlled aircraft show could be part of Moses Lake Airshow 2024

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Airshow may add a separate event for radio-controlled aircraft in 2024. That’s one possibility discussed by Port of Moses Lake commissioners during a presentation on the 2023 air show at the regular meeting Monday. Terry Quick of Entco International, Seattle, among the event promoters, said organizers are looking for sponsors for an RC component of the larger air show. Radio-controlled aircraft have been part of the airshow, but their part would be expanded. “If we manage to get enough sponsorship to do it the right way, we’ll be bringing in world-class pilots and planes,” Quick said. “There are a couple of world champions that we’re talking to.”

Car show, parade, tournaments part of Warden Community Days

WARDEN — A community dinner, a parade, a beanbag tournament and a show full of cool cars are among the events scheduled for Community Days, scheduled for Labor Day weekend in Warden. This is the second year for the revived Community Days, and events are spread throughout the weekend rather than concentrated on one day. The car show kicks off the weekend Saturday morning at Warden Volunteer Park, 300 E. Fourth St. Cars will be on display from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Renay Jorgensen of the Community Days committee said car owners can register their rides from 8 to 10 a.m. Entry forms are available on the Warden Community Days webpage.

MLSD board approves 2023-24 budget

MOSES LAKE — The general fund budget for the Moses Lake School District will be $152.47 million for the 2023-24 school year. Moses Lake School Board members passed the budget without discussion at their regular meeting Thursday. The vote was 4-0. Board member Alana DeGooyer did not attend the meeting...

Port of Quincy to consider options for Bishop Rec Area

QUINCY — Port of Quincy commissioners will get an updated title for a piece of port-owned property south of town, which might - or might not - be the first step to declaring the land as surplus.

MLI donation will pay for new GCSO K-9

MOSES LAKE — The Grant County Sheriff’s Office brought some of its coolest vehicles and all but one of its K-9s to Moses Lake Industries Thursday at lunchtime to thank the company for its donation. Chief Operating Officer Brent Hansen said MLI officials looked on the donation as a way to contribute to public safety and to thank law enforcement and first responders in general for what they do for Grant County...

Cost reduced for new Samaritan hospital construction

MOSES LAKE — The construction of a new Samaritan Hospital will cost about $2.1 million less than first projected. Construction will begin sooner than originally anticipated, with site preparation scheduled to begin in mid-September. A groundbreaking ceremony is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Oct. 6...

Enrollment projections drop in Othello School District

OTHELLO — Othello School District officials anticipate district enrollment for 2023-24 school year to be the equivalent of about 4,463 students, a decrease of seven students from actual enrollment in the 2022-23 school year. The preliminary budget was presented to Othello School Board members at the Aug. 14 meeting.

Ephrata boil-water advisory still in effect

EPHRATA — A boil-water advisory remains in effect in Ephrata, at least until city officials learn the results of tests on water samples taken Monday. Full test results are expected Wednesday morning. The advisory was issued for the northeast and southeast parts of town, wrote city Administrator Ray Towry in a Tuesday press release. It does not include the Grandview Heights neighborhood. The boil-water advisory was issued Monday afternoon following a malfunction of sensors that regulate the city’s water reservoir system. City officials expected some preliminary test results Tuesday night.

‘Very preliminary’ 2024 Grant PUD budget released

EPHRATA — Grant County PUD customers could see an overall 2.5% rate increase in 2024. The preliminary 2024 budget was released for the first review at the PUD commission meeting Aug. 8. John Mertlich, senior manager of financial planning and analysis, called it a “very preliminary” review. According to information presented to the commissioners, the Aug. 8 presentation meets a state-mandated requirement. Commissioners will approve a resolution to file a preliminary budget today, also meeting a state requirement. The budget will be presented for two public hearings in October, and commissioners will approve the final version in November.

Boil water advisory issued for Ephrata

EPHRATA — Ephrata residents in the southeast and northeast sections of town are being advised to boil city water before drinking it. The boil-water advisory was issued by city officials late Monday afternoon. Residents should bring water to a rolling boil for at least one minute and let it cool prior to using it, according to a press release from City Administrator Ray Towry. Samples of the water have been sent to a state-certified lab for testing, he wrote. “The test requires 24 hours in the lab. The city anticipates receiving results by Wednesday,” Towry wrote.

Pedal tour

Swedish father and son travel across U.S. by bike

OTHELLO — Axel Andersson said his travels on a bike, which brought him and his dad Eric to Othello Thursday, started with a dilemma back in 2018. “It was after my first year in university, and I didn’t know what to do during the summer,” he said. “So I said, ‘I’m going to bike through Sweden.’ And the longest I’ve ever biked before that, I think, was seven miles or something like that.” ...

Walls set to start going up this month at Group14

MOSES LAKE — Construction is underway on a new facility in Moses Lake to produce silicon materials that will, its owners say, contribute to making substantial improvements to the next generation of batteries. Grant Ray, vice president for global marketing strategy for Group14, said the company’s new facility on Wheeler Road will produce an important component in the quest to produce batteries that last longer and are quicker to charge...

Construction zone

Hammers, paint, nails, finished projects at Kids Workshop

MOSES LAKE — Donning carpenter aprons, the builders went to work. Hammers pounded industriously. Projects were painted, sometimes carefully, sometimes not...

Simple fun

MOSES LAKE - As fair activities go on around them, children find a spot to play in the dirt in the Ardell Pavilion at the Grant County Fair Wednesday.

Clean cow

MOSES LAKE - Josie Wilson of Soap Lake gives her cow a bath prior to beef market competition Wednesday at the Grant County Fair.

Fine swine

Keeping cool in the show ring matter of self-discipline say market pig competitors

MOSES LAKE — It wasn’t incredibly hot in the Ardell Pavilion at the Grant County Fair Wednesday morning. Every fan in the place was running, along with a portable behemoth more than six feet tall. For anybody wearing a light shirt, maybe shorts, taking a seat and not moving around a lot, it was - bearable. Unfortunately, the competitors in market class livestock don’t have any of those options...

Vacated seat

Othello council opts to leave newly-vacant council position open until Nov. election

OTHELLO — Othello City Council members will leave one council position vacant until the November general election. Council members decided not to replace Jon Erickson, who announced his resignation at the regular meeting Monday. The vote was 6-1 with council member Mark Snyder voting in opposition...

Stevens Hay Farms take Hay King title

MOSES LAKE — Award-winning hay is a matter of hitting the weather window. Bill Stevens of Stevens Hay Farms said the weather has to be dry enough for freshly cut hay, but not too dry. “Dry enough to let the hay dry, but not a lot of humidity, say at night,” Bill Stevens said. “Too much humidity will bleach the hay before you get a chance to bail it.” ...

Adams Co. primary vote finalized

RITZVILLE — Council incumbents in Lind and Ritzville will face challengers in the November general election, an EMS levy was approved in Othello and maintenance and operations levies were approved for two parks and recreation districts and one cemetery district. The 2023 primary election was certified Tuesday. The general election is Nov. 7...

'23 Grant Co. primary results set council, mayoral and hospital races

EPHRATA — The Moses Lake and Warden city councils will have new members, two Coulee City council incumbents will square off and Royal City area voters approved extending a six-year EMS levy for Grant County Fire District 10. The primary election was certified Tuesday...

Sizzlin’ fun

Shade, staying hydrated among keys to keeping cool at the Grant County Fair.

MOSES LAKE — It being summer and with the weather gods sometimes having a nasty sense of humor, it was probably to be expected. “It’s going to be hot this week,” said fairgrounds manager Jim McKiernan while talking to volunteers Monday morning...

Vittles for a queen

Fair, rodeo season kicks off with Cowboy Breakfast

MOSES LAKE — Seven-year-old Lila Stacy began her reign as queen of the rodeo at the annual Cowboy Breakfast Friday. The Cowboy Breakfast is the traditional kickoff to the Grant County Fair and the Moses Lake Roundup; the fair begins Tuesday, the rodeo Thursday. The breakfast is a community service project of the Moses Lake Kiwanis chapter, and for 2023 they got considerable assistance from Jessica Cox of Country Financial. Cox helped pay for the food and music, and ran the annual Pee Wee Rodeo...

Quincy port considering sale of Bishop Rec Area

QUINCY — Whether or not to sell the Bishop Recreation Area, and how to sell it if that’s the decision, was a topic of discussion by Port of Quincy commissioners and staff Wednesday. The rec area overlooks the Columbia River, about 10 miles downriver from Crescent Bar. The land is in the port’s industrial development district, and that, said port Comptroller Darci Kleyn, will make a difference in how it’s sold - if commissioners decide to sell it...

Rotary project adds games to Moses Lake park

MOSES LAKE — Setting a heavy concrete top on an immovable concrete base is a game of inches. Sometimes quarter-inches. Moses Lake Rotary member Gary Ash was doing just that Wednesday morning, securing the top of a new concrete ping pong table in Carl T. Ahlers Memorial Park. It needed to be adjusted ever so slightly, about a quarter inch...

Lengthy internet outage caused by aging equipment

EPHRATA — Grant County PUD employees restored internet service to all county customers early Thursday morning after an outage that in some cases lasted more than 24 hours. Christine Pratt, PUD public information officer, said internet service providers began notifying the PUD about the outages Tuesday night, but it took a while to locate the source of the issue...

Quincy school board reviews school clinic

QUINCY — An in-school medical clinic at Quincy High School, called the Wellness Center, treated 571 Quincy School District students, staff or community members. Quincy School Board members got an update on clinic operations at the regular meeting Tuesday. Moses Lake Community Health Chief Executive Officer Sheila Berschauer said that while not many community members take advantage of the clinic the opportunity is there...

Internet outage cause still under investigation

EPHRATA — An internet outage affecting some, but not all, residents in Grant County is under investigation. There was no estimated time of repair as of 4 p.m. Wednesday...

New Grant Co. jail site prep to begin in Sept.

EPHRATA — Grant County residents can expect to start seeing activity on the site of the new Grant County Jail in early September. Grant County Central Services Director Tom Gaines said the first phase of the job will be cleaning up the site at 14156 Road B.3 NW, Ephrata. Contractors interested in bidding on that job walked around the site Tuesday...

Mattawa developing parks plan

MATTAWA — Mattawa residents will be asked their preferences for recreation facilities in town as part of the preparation of a parks and open space plan. The city received a grant from the Washington Recreation and Conservation Office to write a plan, the prerequisite to applying for funding for parks projects...

Lightning, rain cause electrical outages

MOSES LAKE — A lightning strike during a Monday morning thunderstorm cut power to customers in the Warden and Moses Lake areas, while the same storm resulted in other outages throughout Grant County. The outages affected about 5,500 customers countywide, said Christine Pratt, PUD public information officer...

Making connections

Mattawa National Night Out a way for officers, residents to get better acquainted, chief says

MATTAWA — Joao Garcia was interested in all those mysterious things carried by Mattawa Police Department officer Edgar Villa, and Villa explained them all. Garcia was also intrigued by the police vehicles, lights flashing, sitting on the lawn in Hund Park. Villa invited him to take a look inside - Garcia could even sit in the police car if he wanted, Villa said...

Planning begins for new Quincy public works shop

QUINCY — The city of Quincy might be building a new public works shop. Quincy City Council members awarded a $22,000 contract to MJ Neal Associates, Wenatchee, to design the new shop and prepare a project budget at the regular meeting Aug. 1...

Early delivery

Embankment work to be completed this month at Priest Rapids Dam

EPHRATA — A project to reinforce an embankment at Priest Rapids Dam should be completed by the end of this month, about a year ahead of schedule. “We’re in the final push of that project,” said Dale Campbell, senior manager of power production for the Grant County PUD. “If you haven’t taken a tour, you don’t have much time left. It’s going to be done (by) the middle of August.” ...

Eat up!

Annual Cowboy Breakfast, traditional fair and rodeo kickoff, set for Friday

MOSES LAKE — Following the tradition that any gathering of cowboys and cowgirls starts with a good breakfast, the annual Cowboy Breakfast is scheduled for 7-10 a.m. Friday in Sinkiuse Square. The breakfast is the traditional kickoff to the Grant County Fair and Moses Lake Roundup; the fair opens its gates Aug. 15, the annual demolition derby is Aug. 15-16 and the rodeo is Aug. 17-19...

Baird Springs fire prompts guardrail repairs this week

QUINCY — Travelers between Quincy and Wenatchee could face delays Monday and Tuesday as contractors make repairs to guardrails that were damaged by fire July 10...

Unique home town

Circumstances make Quincy real estate market different

QUINCY — The old saying in real estate is that it’s all about “location” – a word that means a variety of things., Quincy makes the point; it’s like all other towns in Grant County, but it’s not. “The Quincy market is different,” said Tom Parrish, managing broker at Windermere Real Estate Central Basin-Quincy office. “Based upon one factor, and that’s price.” ...

QVMC site prep to begin in September

QUINCY — Demolition of existing structures and site preparation for the new Quincy Valley Medical Center will begin in mid-to-late September. Quincy hospital board members approved authorization for the contractor, Graham Construction, to start the first phase of the project. The cost of the first phase is $3.2 million. Kayla Van Lieshout, project manager for the Klosh Group, one of the consultants, said the contractors will be asking for approval for two additional phases...

Power, water, workforce and dams subjects during Murray visit

MOSES LAKE — Senator Patty Murray said Wednesday that she would not support the removal of four dams along the lower Snake River, at least until the Pacific Northwest has met the challenges the removal would create. Murray said she had researched the issues involved in dam removal in partnership with Washington Gov. Jay Inslee and their conclusions were released last year...

Proud to serve

Veteran remembers Pearl Harbor attack, war service

MOSES LAKE — Sometimes memory fades, sometimes things that happened a long time ago get overlaid with new experiences. Sometimes the memories remain, though. Geb Galle turned 102 years old in mid-July, and he still remembers that Sunday morning, even though a lot of things happened afterward...

QPD gets corny with the community at National Night Out

QUINCY — The line was long at the booth where Quincy Police Department officers were serving hot dogs and roasted corn – “Hot corn! Hot corn! Coming through! Coming through!” said QPD Detective Damon Powell as he made his way to the booth with a full pan...

Quincy schools project higher enrollment

QUINCY — Quincy School District officials expect a slight increase in enrollment for the 2023-24 school year. The projected enrollment for 2023 is the equivalent of 3,160 students, according to information provided to the Quincy School Board at the July 25 meeting. That’s an increase from the 20223-23 school year. Enrollment for 2022-23 was the equivalent of 3,103 students, which was slightly below the budget projection...

Samaritan makes money in first half of 2023

MOSES LAKE — After a few years of discombobulation, a more typical pattern of hospital use – and because of that a more typical pattern of revenue – is starting to return at Samaritan Healthcare. “What we’re starting to see is we’re getting back to that cycle, where you’d see that push (of patients) at the beginning of the year, and then you see that lull,” said Chief Administrative Officer Alex Town. “There were so many midsummers where we were just slammed, and we couldn’t figure out why.” ...

MLSD projects 2023-24 enrollment increase

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake School District is projected to have the equivalent of about 8,299 full-time K-12 students for the 2023-24 school year. Moses Lake School Board members reviewed the preliminary budget at the regular meeting Thursday. Director of Finance Stefanie Lowry said district officials don’t anticipate much change, if any, between the preliminary and final budgets. The budget will be approved at the board’s Aug. 24 meeting...