The County Lines

Fri., Sept. 24, 1999

Washington

Adams County

Othello

Funds raised from hotel/motel taxes are earmarked for tourism-related activities. Groups putting on festivals, handing out tourism literature or advertising Othello as a travel destination may apply for funds by writing to City Hall by Oct. 15.

Ferry County

Republic

The county waste management office is holding a free hazardous waste dumping day Saturday.

Citizens may turn in paint, used engine oil, solvents, cleaning products, pesticides and herbicides at the county shop. Businesses also may dispose of wastes, but they will be charged. For more information, call (509) 775-5217.

Grant County

Ephrata

The county’s skunk population is booming. City police are receiving a record number of calls reporting skunks in neighborhoods. Wildlife biologists ask people to call authorities when skunks are found instead of shooting the animals.

Lincoln County

Creston

It was “old home day” for 312 Creston High School graduates recently as the annual all-class reunion drew alumni from all over the nation. This year, the old lumber mill at Lincoln, Wash., was highlighted. Lincoln residents sent their children to the Creston schools.

Pend Oreille County

Cusick

The Cusick Arts Festival will be held Oct. 2 at the county fairgrounds. Morning workshops will include music, art and drama classes. Food booths and fine art displays are planned, and nine bands will entertain from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m. An admission discount is being offered to anyone who brings a clean winter coat for charity. For more information, call (509) 447-9277.

Spokane County

Spokane

All eight branches of the Spokane County Library District will be closed today for staff training. Normal hours will resume Saturday.

Stevens County

Kettle Falls

The Kettle Falls School District has implemented an official crisis plan. The district received a $24,000 grant to hire security officers at the middle and high schools. A zero-tolerance policy for students who harass classmates also has been established.

Whitman County

Uniontown

Uniontown residents recently dedicated Memorial Park, an abandoned park that was rejuvenated through a community project. A $72,000 grant and matching funds from volunteers and businesses that donated labor, cash, equipment and materials, plus a $5,000 cash donation from the city, paid for the refurbished park. It has a picnic shelter, asphalt path, playground area, restroom and softball field complete with backstop, bleachers and benches for players. More than 123 volunteers donated 3,500 hours of labor to complete Memorial Park, which formally was dedicated last Sunday. The same day, city officials also celebrated the completion of improvements at Holzer Park, which now has a new retaining wall, disabled access ramp and a restroom that will serve as an official rest stop between Clarkston and Rosalia, Wash.

IDAHO

Benewah County

St. Maries

Since billing began in April, the city of St. Maries has paid $146,014 to clean up an area along the St. Joe River soaked by creosote from a lumber-preserving plant that was located there more than 30 years ago. Carney Products Ltd., operating at the site, is paying for half the work.

Bonner County

Sandpoint

The comment period for the proposed Fifth Avenue corridor project has been extended until Thursday by state transportation officials. The Idaho Transportation Department wants to widen Fifth Avenue to ease congestion and increase safety. The initial deadline for public comment was Sept. 15.

Boundary County

Bonners Ferry

Boundary County commissioners are trying to fill a vacant seat on the county Planning and Zoning Commission. The commission, composed of citizen volunteers, meets the third Thursday of each month to decide various land use and planning issues. People interested in the post must have lived in Boundary County for a minimum of two years and must submit a letter of interest to the zoning administrator at P.O. Box 419, Bonners Ferry 83805, or by fax to (208) 267-7814. The term will expire Jan. 31, 2002. For more information, call (208) 267-7212.

Kootenai County

Coeur d’Alene

Kootenai Medical Center and North Idaho Behavioral Health are seeking interested people for a “Building Strong stepfamilies”course, which is designed to challenge myths, create opportunities and teach how to build stepfamilies through strong relationships. The course will begin after enough participants have enrolled. For more information or to register, call Angie Clancy at (208) 666-3885.

Latah County

Moscow

Horace Axtell, elder and spiritual leader of the Nez Perce Indian Tribe, will present a one-day course on Nez Perce history and spirituality on Oct. 16 at the University of Idaho’s Clark Fork field campus. Axtell will focus on the important role animals, especially horses, play in the lives of the Nez Perce. He also will discuss “Provisions of Mother Earth” and the importance of tribal traditions. Finally, Axtell will talk about what it’s like to grow up in the Nez Perce culture and how young people are taught to respect their elders, their language and their traditions. Registration fee is $19. For more information, contact UI’s community enrichment program at (208) 885-6486.

Shoshone County

Kellogg

Central Shoshone County Water District plans to disrupt water service to homes and businesses in Wardner and Kellogg for four hours today to make adjustments to a water main. Glenn Jackson, coordinator of the Milo Creek permanent improvement project, said the disruption will affect all district water customers in uptown Kellogg and most of Wardner. The area includes homes and businesses south of the Union Pacific right of way and the Mountain Health Care clinic on McKinley Avenue. The shutdown is necessary to relocate a water main at Mill and Main streets to make room for a storm sewer being installed as part of the Milo Creek project.

MONTANA

Lincoln County

Libby

The Lincoln County sheriff’s office is looking for victims of a suspected home repair scam. A company calling itself Specialty Coatings is believed to have overcharged at least five elderly residents for work on driveways and roofs in the Libby area. Anyone with information is asked to call the sheriff’s office at (406) 293-4112.

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