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Seasonal workers for the Washington Bulb Company are back at work after a three-day strike that made headlines throughout the state. The strike was sparked by an error the company made when calculating worker bonuses for daffodil bunches picked on Saturday, March 19. While pay for the harvest crew averages $17.50 an hour, it can fluctuate on any given day, explained Brent Roozen of Washington Bulb on March 24, when he talked to reporters in front of company headquarters. “Last Saturday, we b...
Looking out at the Rainbow Bridge from Nell Thorn last fall made a favorable impression on new Skagit Tourism Bureau CEO Jake Buganski. “Seeing La Conner’s vibrant downtown while I was interviewing for this position was one of the big reasons I was excited about Skagit County,” he said. Buganski visited again last Tuesday to meet the La Conner Chamber of Commerce board and talk about the town’s tourism priorities with local leaders. Following the early morning meeting, he had coffee at the Calico Cupboard with Mayor Ramon Hayes and Chamber...
The U.S.'s national Women's History Month ends Thursday. Its theme, "Women Providing Healing, Promoting Hope," is timely everywhere for our wounded, war weary world. International Women’s Day was March 8, of course. Its theme, “Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow,” called on people “to work towards a world that is equitable, inclusive and free from bias and discrimination so the playing field is levelled for women moving forward.” Russia's war against Ukraine prevents anyone, women, children or men, from moving forward or toward...
I don’t wish to initiate a “letter to the editor” debate, but Ms. Shimeall’s response (Weekly News 3/23) to my and Mr. O’Donnell’s recent letters begs clarification. First, she asserts that living in Shelter Bay (SB) on leased “Swinomish land” is possible because the tribe generously “granted us the privilege”. The fact is, anyone living on leased land in SB does so purely because of a business deal Axel Osberg/Osberg Construction Co. negotiated with the tribe in 1968 - the master lease - which is up for renewal in 2044. Osberg did all of t...
It has taken a lot of energy from multiple sources to advance from the drawing board to construction phase plans for the new La Conner-Swinomish Regional Library. That kind of energy promises to be renewable on several levels going forward. Plans to solarize the library were shared in detail during a 45-minute Zoom session last Wednesday sponsored by the La Conner Library Foundation, La Conner Weekly News, and Western Solar, the Bellingham firm tabbed to install the library’s solar energy system. La Conner Library Foundation Director Susan M...
La Conner’s charm is reflected not only in the town’s scenic geography, but also in town codes and zoning standards. These standards are drafted to strike the delicate balance between supporting local economic vitality and preserving residential quality of life. The conditional use permit (CUP) process determines whether proposed land uses are compatible with specific zoning areas. Town planner Michael Davolio notes that conditional use applications seem more frequent in La Conner. There is a reason for that, he said. “From my persp...
Since the beginning of this year, the Skagit County Sheriff’s Office has responded to 15 vehicle prowls that were reported and occurred at the two parking areas of the Padilla Bay trail in Bay View. Proactively, deputies have made attempts to apprehend the individuals involved in these activities. This past weekend, deputies had two separate arrests of individuals taking items from a vehicle in one of the parking lots. The first incident occurred on March 26 at 6:14 p.m. Deputies contacted two individuals at a vehicle that had been entered a...
Three months after stepping into leadership of the Museum of Northwest Art (MoNA), Executive Director Stefano Catalani has his eye on how the museum can best reflect the complexity of artists’ voices, cultures and artistic mediums in the Northwest. As someone who has transited continents and careers, he is focused on the expansiveness of the art world today. That focus centers on the Northwest in the present, and historically. With that said, he’s quick to point out that the first phase for a di...
I was blown away this winter by the number of birds that I passed by as I drove all around Skagit Valley, including fields filled with snow geese and eagles in trees being photographed by many birdwatchers. Hooray, I thought, birds are making a comeback! I checked with my friend Libby Mills who is a leading bird expert and has been teaching people about birds for 50 years or so. Libby is a naturalist who is associated with the Padilla Bay Interpretive Center, the North Cascades Institute and a f...
Warm and fuzzy stories are rare these days. But, thanks to former Skagit County Pioneer Association President John Kamb, Jr, the Weekly News has one, both literally and figuratively. This story details the discovery and return of a long-lost embroidered Gonzaga University letterman’s blanket issued more than 80 years ago to Bulldog basketball player Wayne Yager. Kamb, a Mount Vernon attorney, was in Portland earlier this month for Gonzaga’s NCAA West Region Basketball Tournament and was abl...
La Conner Schools are looking to adopt a new math curriculum intended to better match student learning styles, emphasize development of problem-solving and critical thinking skills, and improve standardized achievement test scores. District librarian Beth Clothier told school board members during their hybrid meeting Monday night that a final staff recommendation on which curriculum to select for La Conner’s respective campuses should be presented to the panel at its April 25 session. “We have a couple favorites,” Clothier said, “but we’re d...
The La Conner High School baseball team was late to the chase in NW2B/1B baseball action at Coupeville last Tuesday. The Braves fell behind early to Coupeville, who took a 7-0 lead despite a late La Conner push across eight runs over the final two innings. In the end, the Wolves posted an 18-8 victory. La Conner fell 0-2, both conference setbacks. The Braves, scheduled at Orcas yesterday, resume NW2B/1B play this Friday when they entertain Concrete at 4 p.m. Despite their loss at Coupeville, head coach Jeremiah LeSourd felt his team made...
La Conner resident Tamara Friedman knows the keys to success. That is because she is a concert pianist, her performances drawing rave reviews from numerous critics, including Harvard alum Morton Gold, who notes that her playing of Mozart “reaches my heart as well as my intellect.” Friedman will play Mozart - as well as Bach, Beethoven, and Mendelssohn - on her beautiful replica of a Nannette Streicher fortepiano April 8, 7 p.m. at the Croatian Community Center in Anacortes. She will be joi...
My only New Year’s resolution this year was to learn to make frybread. Swinomish offered two classes and I signed up for the afternoon class. In Swinomish and among many tribes, you hit elder status at age 55. Besides myself, there were a few other elders in the class. Taught by Samish elder, Rosie James and assisted by her two daughters, Ginger and April James, both Swinomish. Oh my! I am delighted to say I successfully made frybread. Previous attempts over the years resulted in hardened f...
John Leaver may has not left public service for long. The former town councilor, defeated for re-election by Ivan Carlson, III last fall, is Mayor Ramon Hayes’ choice to fill a three-month vacancy on the planning commission. Ironically, the open seat on the planning panel was created when commissioner Rick Dole was elected to the council last November. Dole was sworn in January. The council is expected to act on a resolution approving the appointment April 12. Hayes announced his decision to tab Leaver for the commission post during the M...
