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Skagit County is officially in a drought emergency – but so far, some area farmers are having a pretty good year. Swanson Family Farm's berry crop was bountiful. "We went from a 10 percent crop and lots of freeze damage last year to a 110% crop this year," said Dean Swanson. He is already picking corn and thinks his cucumber and bean crops will be good. Potatoes "look good," said John Thulen of Pioneer Potatoes, "not lackluster, but not a crasher either, although some plants look stressed." P...
La Conner School Board Directors bit the bullet Monday in approving a barebones, $12.9 million annual budget whose target is to realize a positive fund balance by next summer. This budget is about $1 million leaner than that adopted a year ago and reflects painful staffing and program cutbacks tied to declining student enrollment and loss of federal COVID-19 emergency funds. The 2023-2024 budget was developed by Director of Finance and Operations David Cram, who was given the mission of restoring the school system’s fiscal health when he return...
What's old is new again tomorrow: the 119th annual Skagit County Pioneer Association Picnic, a longtime La Conner summer tradition. Starting at 11 a.m. Thursday at Pioneer Park, everyone is invited to attend. State Hall of Fame La Conner High volleyball coach Suzanne Marble and members of the Benson/Berentson Family will be special honorees. Marble will receive the Pioneer Spirit Award for her tireless efforts on behalf of students and athletes here over the past 30 years. Descendants of Atlag...
Focused on the future, Town officials have taken the long view to address La Conner’s most pressing needs. Town leaders highlighted a handful of top-tier issues in a 5-year strategic plan crafted during an all-day retreat July 24 in Mount Vernon. Priorities include a mandated upgrade of the wastewater treatment plant, robust investments in fire protection and safety, providing public access on South First Street to Caledonia, securing a permanent home for the public works department, developing long-term flood mitigation measures, replacing agi...
Pickleball started nearby on Bainbridge Island as a sport for kids in 1965. It has evolved into an extremely popular sport that bridges the generation gap, with many older participants. Last year the state legislature made it the official sport of Washington. Shelter Bay has tennis courts across from its administration building on Shoshone Drive that can be tightened up with a lower net and lines moved so there is less ground to cover. The tennis court further south on Shelter Bay Drive is being...
It was a current event on a Swinomish Channel steeped in history. Tribal canoe families from throughout the region arrived here just before noon a week ago Tuesday as part of the Paddle to Muckleshoot, the continuation of a cultural tradition dating to when the Salish Sea was a Native American superhighway. The 2023 Canoe Journey was the first such celebration in four years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Swinomish and Samish nations were on its route. The display of handsomely painted canoes on...
Dennis Strong and his family began spending summers in La Conner in the mid-1950s, as did Clayton and Barbara James. They met through Ruth Pennington's Fidalgo Allied Arts summer art school, where James found his calling in ceramics and Vera Strong was teaching weaving. Their relationship and those made with others were nurtured over many summers spent in La Conner. As Peter Strong, Dennis' son, recalls, "I remember walking down the middle of First Street in that quiet town, taking art classes f...
Even in the dog days of summer, there is no shortage of events to satisfy diverse entertainment cravings over the next couple of weeks. The Anacortes Arts Festival runs Aug. 4-6. The annual show attracts up to 90,000 guests. It fills several blocks of Commercial Avenue in downtown Anacortes with some 200 arts and crafts vendor booths, plus jazz and main performance stages, art demonstrations, a kids’ discovery area, beer and wine gardens, food vendors and more. Info: anacortesartsfestival.com. The Chamber of Commerce hosts the 23rd annual La C...
The Port of Anacortes’ Transit Shed hosts the Juried Fine Art show during the Anacortes Arts Festival, Aug. 4-6. Maggie Wilder is one of the 82 artists featured. She writes: “Her work is increasingly transparent. Every mark she makes, intentional and otherwise, is visible through all the layers of paint.” It is: “Samsara 505.” Oil on canvas, 24” x 36”. Look closely at it, and all the art exhibited....
Marilynn Olson (at the head of the table) was feted for her 80th birthday last Wednesday by fellow crafters – they proudly call themselves the Stitch & Bitch Club – with lunch, a party and cake on The Slider Café patio. "We started out stitching and bitching," the guest of honor quipped, "but now we eat and laugh." Joining in the fun were, clockwise: Marilynn Olson, Gwyn Beckwith, Joan Scarboro, Bobbie Arthur, Jan Paul, Cathy Brosnan, Barb Hammer (back to camera), Patty Snider, Ruth Braun, Jean...
You may not have noticed, yet our information kiosks are back up and working to keep you and visitors informed about what happens here in our town. Over the winter, the Swinomish Park kiosk blew down during a windstorm, due to the base being rusted and, with that, we decided the remaining kiosks were looking sad and due for repairs and repainting. Public Works took them into their shop disassembled them and sent them out to be painted and labeled. Then they put them back together and installed...
With a stack of fresh newspapers in hand, Ken Stern is making one of his first stops of the day at La Conner’s local office supply and business center. He greets the owners, Christina and Robyn Burdick-Good-Rubenstein – and their dog Clover. Stern knows exactly what they want, as the chanting begins: “Crossword day! Crossword day!” Stern is publisher and editor of the La Conner Weekly News. He doesn’t always deliver papers himself, but today he’s playing tour guide while he restocks local shops and newspaper boxes scattered across the two mai...
First to last, for 50 years the Skagit Valley Food Co-op has been about its member-owners. That, and the international principles embraced when the cooperative was founded as a buying club in a Presbyterian church basement in Mount Vernon in August 1973. "We would not exist without our members," said Nicole Vander Meulen, the Co-op's marketing and outreach director, Friday. "Let's start at the beginning ... YOU," the 2022 annual report proclaims next to the winding path of milestones depicting...
We are getting the parking lots ready for the Car and Boat Show Saturday, Aug 5. This is a bigger endeavor than you might imagine. Boaters in our marina are sometimes gone for months at a time, and we have to make sure their cars are parked somewhere safe. It can be difficult to manage, but we are blessed with a community of boaters who enjoy supporting town events and most people are happy to help. Remember to come out for this event if you can, it should be good again this year. Safety and...
Sunday, July 23 4:17 a.m. Prowler, maybe not – Reporting person called in for the homeowner after learning of a subject who may be prowling in the area. Subject described as riding a bike and wearing a backpack. Subject also said to have neck tattoos. Multiple calls on same subject but no crimes found and subject not located or ID’d. N.1st St., La Conner. Monday, July 24 7:27 a.m. Kids got away – Report of kids racing ATVs on the road and in farm fields. Area was checked but no ATVs located and no damage seen at any fields. Bradshaw Rd. / Sum...
Our beautiful Gloria passed away Monday, July 24, 2023, surrounded by love and admiration. Her courage and grace, regardless of what life threw at her, never ceased to amaze the many who loved her. Dementia may have seized her mind, but her heart and soul put up quite a fight. Gloria was born to Anna and John Lotz on August 17, 1942, in Jordan Valley, Oregon. She often spoke about her childhood adventures, with her many beloved cousins, and about her interesting Basque culture. After the...
Margery Zimmerman passed away on July 22, 2023, in Burlington, WA. She was born on March 7, 1933 to Gene and Teresa (Wells) Dunlap, and grew up in La Conner, first at the Dunlap house on La Conner-Whitney Road, then on Kiket Island, at a beautiful residence and grounds known as "Flagstaff". After graduating from La Conner High in 1951, she traveled the world with her father and sister Gerry. A highlight was attending the 1956 Olympics in Melbourne, Australia. She attended the University of...
Barbara Birkeland Hulbert died peacefully at home in La Conner on June 17, 2023. A celebration of life service will be held at The Vinery at Christianson’s Nursery on Thursday, August 10, 2023, from 2-4 p.m. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Rotary Club of La Conner Jim Hulbert Vocational Scholarship, P.O. Box 2111, La Conner, WA 98257. Arrangements are under the care of Kern Funeral Home of Mount Vernon....
The La Conner Town Council will meet at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 8, Upper Maple Center, 104 Commercial St. Call to Order Pledge of Allegiance Public comments (Limit of 3 minutes per person) Presentations Consent Agenda Consent Agenda (approved without objection 5/0) Approval of the Minutes: Council meetings of July 24 and 25, 2023 Finance Approval of accounts payable Approval of payroll Items removed from the consent agenda Reports Chamber report Revenue /expenditure report Department head reports Mayor’s report Council committee reports Unfinished...
I love that phrase. It always makes me smile. It is what brought me to La Conner in March 2017 to look at buying the Weekly News. I will always associate my newspaper publishing career with my best friend, Dick Wittenberg, who loves to see his name in print. My newspaper ownership is fundamentally due to friendship but more, to love and trust. Dick believes in me completely. He knew I could successfully run a newspaper. He was right. Weekly newspaper for sale. This is the second month of my seventh year owning the La Conner Weekly News. You... Full story
I attended the meeting of the Skagit County Planning Commission Tuesday, July 25, along with scores of others to express concern regarding proposed increased regulations for local farm families, many whom are already struggling to keep their family farm businesses viable. It is being reported that many limits and restrictions could be put in place to prevent celebration events and would even block new farm stands from opening. Many of the good people in the room have been the backbone of preserving Skagit farmland over the years, leading the... Full story
Fire Blanket saves lives Please share this with your readers! Several weeks ago, I nearly set my home on fire. I had a three-quart saucepan, with 2 tablespoons of cooking oil, on the gas stove, as part of a recipe in the making. I stepped away from the stove to take care of laundry. Let’s just say I was distracted. Suddenly the smoke detector went off. I rushed back to the kitchen to a pan on fire, flames nearly 20 inches in the air! Instinct kicked in, as I reached for a Fire Blanket hanging in the pantry. If not for this blanket, I would n... Full story
When I started working on lithium-ion batteries, in 1993, Sony and Toshiba had introduced the first such commercially available batteries a couple of years earlier. They were mostly used in “the 4 Cs” of small consumer electronics – cassette players, camcorders, cell phones and computers. If anyone had thought about putting a bunch of lithium-ion batteries together into huge battery packs, for vehicles or utility distribution systems, they would have stopped as soon as they found out the cost:...
The Town of La Conner Public Works Department is performing its annual fire hydrant flushing and valve exercising in August from 7:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m., Monday-Friday. If you notice any discolored water, please run your cold water supply until it clears up. If the problem does not clear up, please call Todd Park, 360-770-4536, or Chip Sherman, 360-840-3684, for assistance. Source: Town of La Conner... Full story
Fresh from your garden. Italian parsley is easy to grow in a sunny, well drained location. We have an abundance of flat Italian parsley this year. Italian parsley reseeds itself so we have a nice raised-bed of it. One plant yielded one cup chopped fine. I used a chef’s knife to chop the leaves small. I removed stems as I chopped. I used a garlic press and a box grater for the lemon zest, on the smallest side to grate. You can adjust amounts of fresh garlic and lemon to taste. For the most b...
