NANCE BESTON

Inslee proposes 2025 budget

OLYMPIA — Outgoing Washington Governor Jay Inslee delivered his budget proposal for 2025 during a press conference Tuesday, revealing a plan that aims to tackle a projected $16 billion budget shortfall over the next four years.  "We have been successful as a state because we've always hewed to the basic values of the state of Washington,” Inslee said. “Those values are that we invest in our people, we don't leave people behind, and importantly; we don't go backwards."

Vehicle, snowplow collision Monday morning

EPHRATA — On Monday morning, a 21-year-old from Ephrata, identified as Charles Cole, was driving a 2009 Hyundai Sonata at high speed and lost control on Sagebrush Flats Road Northwest.

Warden SD discusses annex, driver’s ed

WARDEN – During the Warden School District board meeting Thursday evening, district officials addressed the future of the city’s annex building and driver’s education programs. Additional topics included enrollment and an anaphylaxis policy update.

Law enforcement looking for risky driving statewide Saturday

OLYMPIA – This year's Night of 1,000 Stars will be this Saturday state-wide, where officers from local agencies and the Washington State Patrol will be looking for people driving under the influence, speeding, aggressive behavior and other traffic violations.

SLPD chief on administrative leave

SOAP LAKE – Soap Lake Police Chief Ryan Cox is on paid administrative leave as an ongoing investigation occurs, according to acting SLPD chief Robert Geates.

Ephrata pushing forward with infrastructure upgrades

EPHRATA – The city of Ephrata is currently undertaking several initiatives designed to enhance the quality of life for residents and address infrastructure needs across the community. These include water supply, parks, road maintenance and wastewater treatment projects.

Ephrata High students raise money for foster children

EPHRATA – Ephrata High School students worked together to raise $8,700 to support local teenagers in foster care and shopping for “Toys for Teens”. The funds will be going towards buying those teenagers' gifts and necessities and any extra funding will go back to the Ephrata Food Bank.

61-year-old hospitalized after firearms incident

GEORGE – A 61-year-old George man was hospitalized Tuesday night after accidentally shooting himself during an assumed mental health crisis earlier Tuesday morning, according to a statement from Grant County Sheriff’s Office.

Grant Co. 2025 budget approved

EPHRATA — Grant County Commissioners unanimously passed the county’s 2025 budget with modifications to the Grant County Sheriff’s Office fund and cost-of-living adjustment, or COLA, to be addressed in the upcoming week when they consider a resolution to adjust GCSO’s budget.

Ephrata passed 2025 budget

EPHRATA – The Ephrata City Council passed its 2025 budget unanimously at the Dec. 4 regular council meeting. The council also discussed an ordinance to make adjustments to the budget which was moved to a second reading and may be considered by vote at the next meeting on Dec. 18.

Local, federal authorities warn of holiday scams

MOSES LAKE – Scam text messages, phone calls and emails increase in frequency during the holiday season as criminals attempt to take advantage of people’s holiday spirit with a higher volume of fraud attempts during the Christmas season.

Ephrata schools to move forward with spring levy election

EPHRATA – The Ephrata School District Board unanimously approved a motion to run an Educational Programs and Operations levy on the Feb. 2025 ballot. The levy is not a new tax but instead will replace the 2021 voter-approved levy which will expire in 2025.

Construction begins on Ephrata’s first water tower

EPHRATA – After a long-anticipated wait, Ephrata moved its new water tower project forward Saturday by pouring 15,120 yards of concrete and laying around 67,800 feet of rebar to make the tower’s foundation.

Grant Co. Jail, morgue projects updated

EPHRATA — Another piece of property is now under consideration as a possible location of the Grant County Morgue. Central Services Director Tom Gaines updated commissioners on the morgue project and construction of the new Grant County Jail Tuesday.

Geneva Scott celebrates 109 years alongside family

MOSES LAKE – Geneva Scott, 109, celebrated her birthday at the Jet A Way Cafe Sunday surrounded by her six generations of family, Safeway employees, pancakes and a hearty serving of cake and ice cream.

SGL Carbon releases half-year and 9-month Results

MOSES LAKE – SGL Carbon SE recently released its financial reports for the first half and first nine months of 2024. It presented a mixed performance across its various business units, reflecting sector-specific dynamics and varying demand patterns.

A few girls are going to 'make some noise'

EPHRATA – As the Ephrata girls wrestling team gears up for the 2024-25 season, Head Coach Raul Tejeda is optimistic about the prospects of a predominantly young team. He said they had six girls graduate last year.

Unity and Teamwork — the strengths of Ephrata boys wrestling

EPHRATA – As the winter sports season approaches, Ephrata boys wrestling looks to build on last year’s successes while nurturing a blend of returning talent and new faces.

OSPI data shows Basin schools performance

OLYMPIA — The Washington State Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction releases a report card with data about every school district in the state. The data is updated year-round as new information is reported to OSPI. This is the breakdown of school districts in Grant and Adams counties.

MLSD addresses contract, assessments, snow and payroll

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake School District met for its normal meeting Nov. 21 to discuss a construction agreement with Absher Construction, state assessment data, snow removal and the finances surrounding payroll.

Itchy cows to blame for several power outages

WINCHESTER – There have been multiple intermittent power outages between Nov. 13 and Nov. 18 between Quincy and Ephrata. The Grant Public Utility District began investigating the outages which were impacting the Winchester area with patrols searching for the problem. After several days of searching and a two-night investigation, the district believes it has discovered the culprit – itchy cows.

Ephrata School District awards $6,100 in grants

EPHRATA — The Ephrata School District recently held a special awards ceremony to present 12 “Teacher Classroom Grants” totaling $6,100 to 25 teachers in the district. The grants were distributed among Grant Elementary, Columbia Ridge Elementary and Ephrata Middle schools, supporting a variety of innovative educational projects aimed at enhancing student learning across different subjects.

Local clerks playing catch up after court system outages

EPHRATA – Technological troubles with the Washington Superior and District court systems have left county clerks working to catch up on backlogged cases.

'Countless opportunities to grow and learn'

Warden Middle School’s new principal tackles first semester

WARDEN – Annie Hindman has stepped into the role of principal at Warden Middle School, bringing experience in both education and juvenile justice. Raised on a farm in between Moses Lake and Warden, Hindman credits much of her dedication to education to her mother, who taught kindergarten and first grade for 16 years at Warden Elementary.

Soap Lake passes ‘25 budget

SOAP LAKE – The Soap Lake City Council unanimously passed its 2025 budget during its Nov. 20 regular meeting. The city received help from Finance Director Jeff Valentine this year and Soap Lake Mayor Peter Sharp thinks the process went smoother this year.

Safeway heater starts sprinklers Tuesday

EPHRATA – A heater at the Ephrata Safeway triggered the building’s sprinkler system and a call to the Ephrata Fire Department Tuesday.

Law enforcement gearing up for shop with a cop events

EPHRATA – As the holiday season approaches so does the annual shop with the cop events various police departments and sheriff’s offices put on yearly. Departments that are hosting the event this year include the Ephrata Police Department, Moses Lake Police Department, Othello Police Department, Quincy Police Department and Soap Lake Police Department.

Vehicle thefts rise as temps cool

Leaving vehicle running, warming increases theft risk

MOSES LAKE – As the weather gets chillier and residents are tempted to preheat vehicles and leave them unattended, both the Othello Police Department and the Grant County Sheriff’s Office released statements cautioning people against doing so because of potential vehicle thefts.

Harvest Market at fairgrounds tomorrow

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake Farmers Market is having its first harvest market this Saturday from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. at the Grant County Fairgrounds in the Commercial building. “At the (regular season) market we try to really focus on the farmers and the produce that we have at the market. So that’s our main focus. It’s a farmer’s market after all,” Moses Lake Farmers Market Treasurer Katie Laine said. “I would say our off-season markets, they’re a bit different. It’s more of a craft market. We do have some produce there. We do have a couple of farmers who still have produce (to sell). But it’s more of a crafters market than a produce market.” The market will be full of vendors with flowers, crafts, lotions, candles, jewelry, bags, festive foods, baked goods and more.

Port of Ephrata passes budget, updates on new fuel

EPHRATA – The Port of Ephrata Commissioners met Tuesday night to pass its 2025 budget including the tax levy. The board also discussed the Jet-A fuel project and the annual track inspection.

'A brighter future, together'

Lewis appointed to permanent superintendent position at MLSD

MOSES LAKE – The Moses Lake School District appointed Carol Lewis as its permanent superintendent at the Nov. 7 school board meeting. This followed a period of transition during which she served as both assistant superintendent and interim superintendent.

Suspect reportedly slashes two in Grand Coulee

GRAND COULEE – During a party Sunday morning, a 17-year-old Grand Coulee boy allegedly slashed two people with a knife in Grand Coulee. The suspect was lodged in the Chelan County Juvenile Justice Center for first-degree assault and first-degree harassment, according to a statement from Grant County Sheriff’s Office.

Boeing employees return to work

Staff roll up their sleeves amidst production restart and new contract agreement.

MOSES LAKE – Boeing is taking its first steps to fully restart airplane production in the Puget Sound region as thousands of IAM-represented employees return to work following a 52-day strike and subsequent contract agreement. Tuesday marked the last day striking employees could return to work. Employees began returning Nov. 6.

Wanted! More law enforcement officers

MOSES LAKE — Law enforcement agencies across Grant County are actively hiring officers and deputies. However, according to Moses Lake Police Department Captain Jeff Sursely and Soap Lake Police Chief Ryan Cox, filling those spots is intricate and time-consuming.

MLSD noncompliant with PE requirements

MOSES LAKE – The Moses Lake School District addressed concerns around physical education time requirements not being met at several schools in the district. The presentation was led by Executive Director of Elementary Education Robbie Mason.

MLSD board backs away from forensic audit

MOSES LAKE – At the Moses Lake School District meeting on Nov. 7, there was an announcement from board member Paul Hill regarding the need for a forensic audit. Hill originally brought up the need for the forensic audit in the closing comments of the Aug. 22 meeting. However, in the most recent meeting, he said he no longer believes it necessary.

Lewis voted in as MLSD superintendent

MOSES LAKE – Moses Lake School District Interim Superintendent Carol Lewis was appointed to the permanent superintendent position at the MLSD board meeting Thursday.

MLSD welcomes new PR director

MOSES LAKE — The Moses Lake School District has announced the appointment of Ryan Shannon as its new Director of Public Relations. Shannon, born in Washington with roots in the Yakima Valley, officially joined the district Nov. 4.

Pellicciotti leading in State Treasurer polls

OLYMPIA – Democrat incumbent Mike Pellicciotti is leading the polls for State Treasurer with 57.73% of voters. His opponent, Republican Sharon Hanek has 72.17% of voters.

Mungia holds narrow lead WA Supreme Court race

OLYMPIA — State Supreme Court Pos. 2 candidate Sal Mungia led his opponent by a narrow margin of 0.8% of votes as of Friday night, according to the Washington Secretary of State’s office.

MLSD to pursue levy in Feb. 2025

MOSES LAKE – The Moses Lake School Board unanimously passed a resolution to proceed with a proposed education program and operations levy. This decision will lead to a special election scheduled for February 11, 2025. “It's really going to be fun that the board can be involved this time,” MLSD Board Member Paul Hill said. “There was so much animosity last time because of being forced into decisions that we didn't want to make, and it reflected in the lack of board support on the street corners. It won't be that way this time.”

Jones returns to his GC Commission seat

EPHRATA — Rob Jones won the Grant County Commissioner District 2 race with 8,707 votes Tuesday. His opponent David Henderson received 5,762 votes. Both candidates identified themselves as Republicans on the ballot.

Pellicciotti leading in State Treasurer polls

OLYMPIA – Democrat incumbent Mike Pellicciotti is leading the polls for State Treasurer with 58.09% of voters. His opponent, Republican Sharon Hanek has 41.81% of voters.

GCFD7 gets new Kenworth pumper and tender

SOAP LAKE – The Grant County Fire District 7 has a new 2024 Kenworth pumper and tender which was funded completely by Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Grant Funding.

Ephrata schools to upgrade three kitchens with grant funding

EPHRATA – Earlier this year, the Ephrata School District successfully secured a $165,000 Healthy Kids-Healthy Schools Grant from the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction. The Ephrata School Board approved a series of electrical upgrades during their meeting on Oct. 28, marking a step forward in improving the school facilities.

Ephrata School Board approves pole vault pit purchase

EPHRATA – The Ephrata School District Board approved a motion to purchase a new pole vault pit for track and field students. The district has not replaced the pit for around 20 to 25 years.

Burgess wins Grant Commission seat 1

EPHRATA – Kevin R. Burgess won the Grant County Commissioner District 1 race with 9,613 votes. Amador Castro received 5,285 votes.

Newhouse leads in 4th District race

MOSES LAKE — Incumbent Dan Newhouse led in the polls with 82,990 votes, or 50.35%, of the districtwide vote for the Fourth Congressional District U.S. Representative position Tuesday night, while his opponent Jerrod Sessler trailed with 79,161 votes, or 48.03%, according to the Office of the Secretary of State.

Auditor hosts voting at Grant Co. Fairgrounds

MOSES LAKE – The Grant County 4-H Fairgrounds building was filled with residents registering to vote and completing their ballots with Grant County Auditor Michelle Jaderlund and Elections Administrator Marlen Gomez helping voters with the process.

November starts, Moses Lake Farmers Market ends

MOSES LAKE – As autumn comes to a close, people are composting their pumpkins, preparing for colder weather to come and celebrating at the Moses Lake Farmers Market weekly conclusion at McCosh Park. The final market day, Oct. 25, brought people of all ages in costumes to trick-or-treat vendors and vote on the best decorated pumpkin. Local businesses had everything from fresh veggies to unique crafts.