Deer Park News: Center kicks off back-to-school supply drive

Deer Park Greenhouse Community Center has kicked off its back-to-school drive so students have their supplies before school starts Aug. 29.

Families must register their students – ages prekindergarten through fifth grade – no later than Aug. 25. Supplies will not be provided for students in grades 6-12. School supplies packages will be ready for pickup on Aug. 27 and 28.

Needed donations include new backpacks, pencils, wide-rule notebooks, color books, crayons, glue sticks, markers, erasers, rulers, blunt-end scissors, Kleenex, small school boxes, gallon size Ziploc bags and colored pencils.

For more information, call 276-8224.

E.coli found in water

Springdale residents are under a boil-water order after a routine water supply sample test showed E.coli bacteria in the town’s water supply system last week.

Officials went door-to-door to inform the residents about the situation, according to published reports.

Residents need to boil the water five minutes or use bottled water for drinking, cooking and brushing their teeth.

State Office of Drinking Water inspectors will be on site to determine the cause of the contamination. There is speculation the contamination entered the system from an unscreened overflow line.

Northeast Tri-County Health District officials say they have not had any reports of illness because of contaminated water. More samples need to be taken of the water until it is deemed safe. Water in the area was clorinated over the weekend.

Full-time deputy added

The Spokane County Sheriff’s Department will provide more coverage of Deer Park in a new contract negotiated by Mayor Whisman.

The Sheriff’s Department will assign another full-time deputy who will patrol within the city limits during evenings and at night, according to published reports. Currently, the city provides full-time patrol deputy from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. weekdays and additional coverage from deputies assigned to the northern part of the county.

The new deputy will cost the city approximately $85,000 a year. The city will save some money by no longer paying for an overtime deputy that cost the city $35,000 per year. The city will continue to pay $2,100 for a deputy to provide security during the monthly court sessions.

The five months the new deputy will be on duty this year will raise the city’s contract to $458,021 from $419,962.