The County Lines
WASHINGTON
Adams County
Othello
The new community park near the Edson Tracts got a shot in the arm from the McCain frozen foods company. President and CEO of McCain, Howard Mann, recently came to Othello to contribute $75,000 toward the park that fellow food processor Pete Taggares was working on. Taggares donated the land and labor for the park, but died last spring before it was finished. The park is slated to be called Taggares Park.
Ferry County
Republic
Local political races are few, but could be hotly contested. Both Elbert Koontz and Brett Cromwell are running for the mayoral position vacated earlier this year by Skeeter Burnett. There are two Republic School Board positions up for grabs. Twila Corl and David Hamilton will face off, as will Jack Hamilton and Andrea Harding-Swanson. A primary election may be forced as there are three candidates for a single Orient School Board seat.
Grant County
Ephrata
The City Council gave its stamp of approval for future expansion of the Ephrata landfill. The landfill is owned by Grant County. The county’s solid waste plan predicts that expanding the dump site is much cheaper than hauling waste outside the county. The county hopes to use the Ephrata landfill for another 50 years. Excavation will be both vertical and horizontal.
Lincoln County
Odessa
While many rural towns in Eastern Washington are scraping for candidates for city office, Odessa is setting the standard. Four locals are vying for the position of mayor, as well as council position No. 1. Mayor Denny McDaniel is being challenged by Kim Ramm, Jack Costlow and Carl Ryan. Incumbent councilwoman Evelyn Weber is being challenged by Harry Price, Vicki Strang and Kathleen Ratkowski. Two other council seats are up for grabs, with only one of them unopposed.
Pend Oreille County
Diamond Lake
Homeowners battling the noxious water weed Eurasian milfoil feel like they’ve been foiled again. Putting the final touches on plans to use chemicals to kill this aggressive weed, locals are dismayed that new “pioneer” colonies of the plant were found earlier this month near the lake’s main bay. Portions of Diamond Lake are scheduled to be treated Aug. 23.
Spokane County
Spokane
The Spokane Parks and Recreation Department recently received bids from contractors for installing new roofs on the clubhouses at Indian Canyon and Esmeralda golf courses.
Stevens County
Colville
A parking lot near downtown was recently fenced off by owners, forcing 40 drivers to be creative about space. Jan Cox of Coeur d’Alene says she wants the city to ante up $150,000 for the lot. She has turned down a $100,000 offer. The lot is key to parking plans for the city’s Project 2000 city revitalization. The city is worried that ground under the lot is contaminated from leaking fuel from when the lot was a garage and gas station. Cox says she’s tired of providing free parking in a town she no longer lives in.
Whitman County
Colfax
How does Whitman County generate an extra $10,000 annually? By charging a $10 fee to anyone booked into jail. County commissioners recently approved a resolution to charge the fee, which is part of new legislation from Olympia aimed at helping counties meet criminal justice needs.
IDAHO
Benewah County
Plummer
Heyburn State Park will offer campfire programs Friday and Saturday at Hawley’s Landing Campground. Programs begin at 8 p.m. at the amphitheater. Saturday at 10 a.m., the park will offer a junior ranger program about bats. For information, call (208) 686-1308.
Bonner County
Sandpoint
Hearing and speech-impaired people in the Sandpoint area now have a public phone with a teletypewriter available at the Bonner Mall.
The teletypewriter (TTY) has been installed by GTE at a coin phone just inside the mall’s entrance. It’s the first coin phone in Bonner County with TTY equipment. The cost to use the keyboard and display is the same as a regular phone call.
Boundary County
Bonners Ferry
Help is available through the Boundary County Youth Crisis and Domestic Violence hotline. Volunteers are trained to help end the cycle of abuse and all information is kept strictly confidential. For help, call (208) 267-5211.
Kootenai County
Coeur d’Alene
Long Standing Bear Chief, a member of the Blackfoot Nation, will speak at the Coeur d’Alene Public Library on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. The program will include a lecture on the American Northern Plains Indian philosophy and the use of plants for food and healing. For information, contact the library at (208) 769-2315.
Latah County
Moscow
The University of Idaho Dean of Students Office has named Rebecca J. Andrew as assistant Greek adviser.
She will assist with the development of student leadership programs and services for the 18 fraternities and eight sororities affiliated with the UI. Andrew also will be a liaison between the Greek system and university departments, community agencies, local businesses and new students and their parents. Andrew was most recently Panhellenic adviser and graduate teaching assistant at Oregon State University. She also has served as International Educational Leadership Development consultant for Alpha Phi International Fraternity Inc.
Shoshone County
Silver Valley
Old River Road will be closed to through traffic at Steamboat Creek Aug. 16 through Oct. 1 during work on the Steamboat Creek Bridge. The bridge is being replaced because water is undermining existing box culverts.
MONTANA
Lincoln County
Libby
The public review period for the environmental assessment for a proposal to designate campsites in the Thompson Chain of Lakes has been extended. Comments will be accepted through Monday. Plans are to designate an additional 10 campsites in the area. Copies of the draft are available at the Lincoln County Library in Libby.