CHERYL SCHWEIZER

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...

Moses Lake physician’s medical license revoked

MOSES LAKE — Moses Lake physician Irene Kimura has had her license permanently revoked by the Washington Department of Health. The order revoking Kimura’s license said her treatment of two patients had contributed to their deaths, and that she was negligent in the case of a third patient. “The panel finds that the license holder can never be rehabilitated and can never regain the ability to practice safely,” the order said. “As such, permanent revocation is necessary.” ...

Samaritan construction cost set

MOSES LAKE — The total project cost for a new Samaritan Hospital will be about $225 million, and construction could start in November. Samaritan board members accepted a “guaranteed maximum price” for the construction phase of the project Tuesday. Board members voted 5-0 to accept the GMP from Graham Construction, the project contractor...

'23 Showdown

Car show coming to Ephrata this weekend

EPHRATA — Old and new cars, old and new trucks, four wheels, two wheels, cars with tricked-out trunks, cars with tricked-out engines, vehicles still in progress - those cars and any other vehicles beloved by their owners are being invited to the second Basin Summer Showdown car show from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. The show is in a new location for 2023 the Grant County Courthouse, 35 C St. NW in Ephrata. Organizer Ricardo Gutierrez said that while car guys and car girls own just about every kind of vehicle imaginable, they all have something in common. They love their cars, they love to show off their cars, and they love to see what other people have done with their cars...

Fun for health

Games, dances, healthy living tips at Mattawa health fair, movie night

MATTAWA — Maybe that dart game was a little harder than it looked. The guys tried it, and tried again, and kept missing. “If a little kid can do it, you can do it,” one of the guys told the others, but he was wrong...

Ephrata gets airborne

National Flight Academy challenges local youth with fun

EPHRATA — The days start early - breakfast at 5 a.m. - are filled with classes, and in the middle of summer, too. But nobody cares. They get to fly. That’s the point of the National Flight Academy sponsored by the Civil Air Patrol. It gives young people the chance to get in the air. Cadets from throughout Washington and the West are attending the annual “Desert Eagle” academy at the CAP facility at the Ephrata Municipal Airport...

Quincy to research property annexation requests

QUINCY — Quincy city officials will consider a request to annex two pieces of property on the east side of town into the city limits. If they are annexed, both properties will be zoned industrial. Municipal Services Director Carl Worley told Quincy City Council members July 18 that the application doesn’t commit the city to annexation. “The staff will proceed with the studies and analysis to see what impacts they have (on the city) and what they may have to provide to mitigate those impacts,” Worley said.

Finances, voter registration discussed by Samaritan commission candidates

MOSES LAKE — Voter registration, cost of the new Samaritan Hospital and staff retention were among the questions discussed by two of the three candidates for a hospital commission seat at a forum July 18.

National Night Out

Cool and interesting vehicles, food, fun events around the Basin

COLUMBIA BASIN — Police cars and fire trucks, stickers and snow cones, games and lots of information will be among the attractions at National Night Out events in Grant and Adams counties. National Night Out is hosted by local law enforcement agencies across the country, and is a chance, said Mattawa Police Chief Robert Salinas, for officers and community residents to get to know each other better. “It’s an opportunity to interact with the public,” Salinas said.

New Moses Lake city park dedicated

MOSES LAKE — Boys and Girls Club of the Columbia Basin Executive Director Kim Pope said one of her club members had what she considered the best reaction of the day to the new Maple Grove Park. “One of the club kids said, ‘This is so beautiful.’ And I said, “It is, isn’t it?’ That just summed up my entire day,” Pope said. The new park is part of the Maple Grove housing development under construction by Hayden Homes at the intersection of Maple Drive and Grape Drive. Hayden Homes employees cut the ribbon at a dedication ceremony for the new park Thursday. It was donated to the city once it was finished, said Katy Wooderson, vice president of marketing for Hayden Homes.

Traffic study approved for Quincy’s 13th Avenue

Street would provide access to proposed Q-Plex

QUINCY — A contract to study traffic patterns and traffic volume on 13th Avenue Southwest, the first step in possibly widening it, was approved by the Quincy City Council at its regular meeting Tuesday. The contract for about $393,000 was awarded to Transportation Engineering Northwest, Bellevue. The vote was 4-0. Council member Dave Dormier recused himself from the discussion, saying he has worked with Transportation Engineering Northwest on other projects. The engineers will look at traffic from the intersection of 13th Avenue with SR 28 to Road 9 Northwest. The street provides access to Monument Elementary School and Quincy Innovation Academy as well as Lauzier Park. Quincy city officials are planning improvements to Lauzier Park, and among the possibilities is the proposed indoor sports facility called the Q-Plex.

Moses Lake council candidates detail views at forum

MOSES LAKE — Homelessness, growth, water and water use were among the topics addressed by four candidates for Moses Lake City Council at a forum Tuesday. Incumbent David Eck and challengers Jeremy Nolan, Gerrit Klein and Victor Lombardi answered questions and talked about what they see as the issues facing the city. Nolan said that, in his opinion, all the interest in the council race is a good sign, given that council incumbents often have run unopposed in the past. “I love that there are four of us up here sharing best ideas in this type of forum for this one position this year,” Nolan said. All four candidates said they got in the race because they wanted to make the community better.

Health fair, summer movie Friday in Mattawa

MATTAWA — Mattawa-area residents can watch a movie Friday night and get information on all things health-related at the same time. The city of Mattawa is sponsoring a combination and movie night and health fair beginning at 4 p.m. Friday at Hund Memorial Park, 101 Government Road. It's the second of three movie nights this summer. “We decided to do themes this year, (to) be able to provide more for the community,” said Mattawa Mayor Maria Celaya...

Grant County short-term rental rules to get more clarification

EPHRATA — Some changes to clarify rules governing short-term rentals in unincorporated areas of Grant County are being prepared for consideration by the Grant County Commissioners. “They are in the process,” said Jim Cook, deputy director for Development Services. Short-term rentals are defined as dwellings available for rent for less than 30 days, Cook said. Matt Hope, chief appraiser for the Grant County Assessor’s Office, said that while county officials don’t know how many short-term rentals are in Grant County, there are more than there were 10 years ago.

Auditions next week for Masquers season opener

SOAP LAKE — Auditions for the Masquers Theater production of the classic comedy “Blithe Spirit” are scheduled for 4 p.m. Sunday and 6 p.m. Monday at the theater, 322 E Main St., Soap Lake...

Moses Lake to consider annexation

MOSES LAKE — A request to annex about 84 acres into the Moses Lake city limits will be considered by city officials. Moses Lake City Council members agreed to allow evaluation of the application on a unanimous 4-0 vote at the regular meeting July 11. Council member Mark Fancher recused himself from the presentation and the vote, saying one of the applicants is a business client...

Water management a tough issue to address, legislators say

QUINCY — Washington legislators are working on ways to address some of the issues around water use and water management, but it’s a long process. State Sen. Judy Warnick and state Reps. Tom Dent and Alex Ybarra, all representing the 13th District, talked about the condition of water legislation during a town hall meeting in Quincy Wednesday. “Water is the hardest law to change, because it’s so different all over the state,” Warnick said. Dent quoted an old line attributed to Mark Twain. “‘Whiskey is for drinking and water is for fighting,’” Dent said. “That’s reality; that’s the way it is in Olympia. I think it’s been that way for well over 100 years.”

Energy, energy prices focus of town hall discussion

QUINCY — Energy prices and their impact were among the topics discussed at a town hall sponsored by 13th District Senator Judy Warnick and Representatives Tom Dent and Alex Ybarra Thursday in Quincy. “We missed so much of this during the pandemic. We didn’t have in-person (meetings),” Dent said. “A virtual town hall is okay when we’re in session, but the interaction isn’t there. This is much better.” ...