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Each October La Conner Public Works Director Brian Lease and his crew begin bracing for all kinds of wintry conditions anticipated in the weeks ahead – heavy snowfall, icy streets and sidewalks, high winds, steady rain and standing water. They dealt with all those in the last few days alone. A fierce winter storm that brought up to nine inches of snow was followed by record low temperatures making for hazardous travel and then rapid melting marked a wild weather week leading up through C...
The market for sold homes in Skagit County has cooled considerably in October and November. Fewer homes were sold and at lower median prices from 2021 and from last summer The median price of sold homes dropped below $500,000 in October, the first month this year below $500,000 and dropped further in November, to $489,500 for the 118 homes and condominiums that closed in November. July’s $557,500 was the peak median sold home price. The significant drop in the Anacortes market, with only 19 homes selling, at a median price of $585,000, down $...
The American judicial system isn’t always known for its swift action. But Skagit County Superior Court Judge Elizabeth Yost Neidzwski took less than five minutes Dec. 15 to dismiss with prejudice a complaint filed by Shelter Bay residents Wesley and Roberta Fontenot against Philip Buri, the residential community’s longtime legal counsel. Dismissal with prejudice means a plaintiff cannot refile the same claim in that court. Roberta Fontenot, previously an assistant federal public defender in Louisiana, did not appear in court. She had named Bur...
Joanna Sikes, the Museum of Northwest Art's development director from 2021-22 and executive director, 2018-2021, said goodbye to her leadership roles at MoNA in November. Sikes has had a long and storied career in the arts, one which she found quite actually by accident. It began in the 1960s in her early days at the University of California at Davis, where she had planned to become a veterinarian. Davis, located in California's Central Valley, a largely a rural farming country, was the perfect...
When considering activists watching over the community's governance and vocally championing the better future we all want, the dedicated and sometimes seemingly too quiet La Conner Town Council and local school board may not come first to mind. But, as with Mayor Ramon Hayes and the Town's arts, parks and planning commissions, these individuals deserve every resident's thanks for diligently showing up meeting after meeting, taking on assignments, initiating projects, crunching numbers, balancing budgets, fielding questions and agreeing to a...
The Weekly News multi part series on energy transitions has spent many words telling us how we need to wean ourselves off of oil and go green. Admittedly I am no expert on these matters, but after nearly 70 years on this planet I have learned a thing or two. The author stated early on that "we can’t drill our way out of the energy crunch" or words to that effect. To this I say Baloney! We can and have drilled our way out of similar situations. Jimmy Carter pretty much said the same thing in the '70s. Must conserve, turn down the thermostat, put...
What caused the February 2021 Texas electric supply crisis? Prolonged, unexpected cold weather created unexpectedly high electric and gas demand. Supply systems could not keep up. If farmers grow too much wheat, you get a big pile of wheat. If utilities generate too much electricity, overproduction does not create a big pile of electricity. It just heats up the transmission wires. Electric storage systems exist, but Texas does not have the elevation changes required for large scale...
SEATTLE — In a massive international and coast-wide decision for wild Chinook and Southern Resident killer whale recovery, Seattle’s federal court issued a landmark opinion Dec. 13 recommending terminating unsustainable commercial salmon harvest that has persisted for decades until new environmental reviews of those fisheries occur. Overfishing was found in a previous ruling to illegally harm the recovery of both endangered Southern Resident killer whales and wild Chinook salmon across the Pacific Northwest. U.S. Magistrate Judge Michelle Pet...
As I drive around the Skagit Valley, I am blown away by the beautiful cloud formations I am seeing. If I am able to pull over in a safe place along the road, I stop and take a cloud photo. I am inviting my readers to do the same thing and share their pictures with me at [email protected] and we will publish the winning photo in next month's column....
Ana María de Jesús Herrera Guillén Aug. 20, 1929-Nov. 27, 2022 Ana Maria “Anita” Guillén, a long-time resident of the Skagit Valley and widow of Northwest artist Jesus Guillén, died peacefully at the home of one of her sons in Renton, WA, on November 27, 2022 Maria was born in Múzquiz, Coahuila, Mexico on August 20, 1929 to Manuel and Tomasa Herrera. She married Jesus Guillén, an artist and farm worker, in 1951 and together they moved to the La Conner area in 1961. Jesus had fallen in love with the area the previous year while employed i... Full story
We are Youth for the Environment and People – a cohort of Skagit County teens working to complete a climate action project. Our project will improve food composting at Sedro-Woolley High School and educate about the importance of composting. Here we discuss how food waste contributes to climate change and how composting can limit its negative impacts. Food waste is a big contributor to climate change. When people waste food, scraps usually end up in landfills, where they start to release methane, a greenhouse gas. Methane contributes to climate...
The Kiwanis Club of La Conner has chosen its November students of the month. Kendall Lee is the high school student for November. Her parents are Jason and Dawn Lee. Kendall is a sophomore at La Conner High School. She is her class ASB treasurer. She plays the flute in pep band and recently joined the knowledge bowl team. Kendall plays soccer and tennis both in school and outside of school. After graduation she would like to study emergency medicine. Kellie Cayou-Lockrem is the November middle school student. Her parents are Josh and Va...
When it came time for state officials to choose a Washington Interscholastic Activities Association Athlete of the Week for girls’ 2B basketball, the decision was pretty much a slam dunk in mid-December. La Conner’s Josie Harper was the clear choice. The senior point guard helped lead the high school Lady Braves to convincing wins against three larger schools, opening the ’22-23 campaign with an impressive 7-2 record despite playing a tough early non-conference schedule. Harper scored a game-high 30 points in a home triumph over 4A Jacks...
During her three decades at La Conner Schools, Suzanne Marble has established a level of excellence unrivaled satewide. Now the entire nation is aware. Marble, a member of the Washington State Coaches Association Hall of Fame who has guided La Conner teams to seven state volleyball titles---four since 2018---has been named a 2022 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Co-Coach of the Year. She shares the national honor with Diana Kramer of New Bremen High School in Ohio. Kramer’s teams have captured three Ohio state crowns in the p...
You couldn’t hide, even if you wanted to. There’d be nowhere to go – and besides, everyone knows who you are. Your entire life has been catalogued, from the moment you were born until probably just a few seconds ago and it will be until you’re dead, plus a week or two. As in the new book, “The Queen: Her Life” by Andrew Morton, it reigns on your parade every day. Ten-year-old Princess Elizabeth was not a fan of her uncle’s lady friend. Even at that tender age, she was aware that Mrs. Simpson had turned everyone’s life upside down, including...
Sponsors of La Conner's giving tree projects are always thrilled with the level of participation in the popular holiday season campaigns. But nothing can – or likely will – compare to the excitement generated by the La Conner Kiwanis Club's Christmas Food & Toy Drive 40 years ago. That's when a loaded handgun was discovered in the main Kiwanis donation box at the then Rainier Bank branch –today's The Fork at Skagit Bay Restaurant on First Street. The late beloved Rev. Jon Skiffington and his f...
As we get ready to ring in the New Year the library is looking forward to exciting new events that will happen in the new year. First, we must look back and thank everyone who worked on the Festival of Tiny Trees auction. The event was very successful and a good time was had by all who attended. The library is looking forward to ordering some new furnishings for both the teen and children’s areas and we are looking forward to an even bigger and better event next year. Under 19 and want to learn how to ride the bus for free? Come to the l...
Bring your kids so they can ring in the new year early with a Noon Year’s Eve celebration at the La Conner Swinomish Library Saturday. Come at 11 a.m. – or earlier. There will be fun craft and ringing in Noon Year’s at 12 p.m....
The necessities of life, at times, requires you to adjust your diet. This is a low fat recipe. Just a bit of olive oil is used. The shiitake mushrooms came in a 5-ounce container and were different sizes of slices. I wanted a variety of mushroom sizes to increase the depth of flavor. The smaller pieces cook to a different flavor than the bigger slices. Fresh shallot slices and fresh garlic cloves bring out the flavor of the mushrooms. The egg whites used were from a carton. Ingredients Shiitake...
Jack Whittaker did not single-handedly put La Conner High School athletics on the map, but the legendary one-armed coach was such a force of nature that there was no doubt 50 years ago that the school's new football field should be named in his honor. Whittaker Field, home to the football, soccer and track teams, opened in the fall of 1972, completing a four-year quest to build a lighted sports venue on campus. Its namesake, who often scrimmaged with his teams of the 1940s and 1950s – Whittaker...
Democrat Clyde Shavers is the Legislative District 10 Position 1 state representative, defeating State Rep. Greg Gilday (R-Camano Island) in the Nov. 8 election. The Washington Secretary of State’s office certified amended returns from the three-county district elections offices Dec 16. Shavers won by 216 votes, gaining five in Island County. Skagit and Snohomish counties results were unchanged. State law mandated a recount....
Sign up for notifications to be alerted to a variety of Town of La Conner announcements, ranging from the arts commission to the wastewater advisory board. Click on the “Notify Me” icon on the homepage of the Town’s revamped website. Provide your cell phone number to get text updates. Start at: townoflaconner.org....
