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The League of Women Voters of Skagit County will host a Skagit County Commissioner candidates forum from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. Monday, Oct. 7. All interested community members are invited to attend the forum at Skagit PUD, 1415 Freeway Drive, Mount Vernon. The audience will hear from: Commission District 1 candidates Rylee Fleury and Ron Wesen Commission District 2 candidates Richard Brocksmith and Peter Browning The County Commissioners play a crucial role in shaping the future of Skagit County. County government is responsible for decisions that...
Glass will no longer be accepted for recycling at Skagit County transfer stations starting Oct. 1. No regional market exists since a Seattle glass manufacturer unexpectedly closed this summer. Skagit County public works staff advises residents to dispose of glass containers with household garbage. Glass brought to the transfer stations will be disposed of in the landfill. A regional bottle manufacturer in Seattle going out of business abruptly decreased demand for recycled glass. Typically,...
Skagit County Planning and Development Services invites the community to an open house to discuss the Climate Element of the 2025 Comprehensive Plan update from 5:30-7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 1, at Jefferson Elementary School 1801 E. Blackburn Road, Mount Vernon. The comprehensive plan is a vital roadmap for county growth and development over the next 20 years. It is a framework guiding the day-to-day land use decisions of elected officials and local government staff. Washington House Bill 1181, passed in 2023, amended the Growth Management Act to...
They have adjoining desks and confer regularly each day, but Jennifer Herring and Anji Viola, who were hired within three months of each other this year, took far different paths to La Conner's Town Hall. Herring is a native Virginian who earned a bachelor's degree in government and international politics from George Mason University near Washington, D.C., served with the Peace Corps in West Africa, and previously worked as a children's librarian in the San Diego suburb of Coronado, Calif. Viola...
The 84th annual National Newspaper Week is Oct. 6-12. It is sponsored by Newspaper Association Managers, Inc., the consortium of North American newspaper trade associations. But it is always the right time for a good political cartoon....
NOT TO BE MISSED Have coffee, learn what police do. Join your neighbors and talk with deputies and area police officers at Coffee with a Cop, 10 a.m. to noon Monday, Sept. 30, at Stompin’ Grounds Coffee, 306 Morris St., La Conner. Coffee with a Cop breaks down the barriers between law enforcement and citizens with conversation. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT The Town of La Conner will hold a public workshop on the Commercial Transition (Moore-Clark) sub-area plan at 6 p.m. Monday, Sept. 30, in Maple Center. Come share your thoughts with town staff and p...
It's no secret that La Conner Weekly News Publisher Ken Stern wants to sell his newspaper. Stern is 69. He is ready to retire. Stern envisions younger, ambitious journalists buying the business, maybe with the community's help. But if that doesn't happen soon, the final La Conner Weekly News rolls off the press on Dec. 18. Finding Ken 2.0 has not been easy. There are plenty of journalists who can run this newspaper, but none have made an offer on Stern's asking price to buy a profitable...
Reporting at the Sept. 10 La Conner Town Council meeting, Sgt. Brad Holmes, the Skagit County Sheriff’s Office La Conner detachment administrator, made a plea to residents and an apology to the council. He addressed concerns voiced at the Aug. 27 council meeting over deputies’ response times to a nighttime burglary and theft incident around North Third Street that month. Holmes said that deputies had arrived in La Conner within 20 minutes of the crimes being reported and immediately began patrolling for the suspect vehicle, which staff learned...
FINALLY! PIER 7’s DOCK REPLACED – Boats will remain afloat on the Swinomish Channel at Pier 7 due to the dock replacement completed by Marine Floats Corporation of Tacoma and Carlson Construction, of La Conner, Sept 3-6. One of the last wooden docks in La Conner has been updated for the 21st century by property managing partners Nikki Fallis and Laura Palmer....
SEATTLE – Washington gubernatorial candidates Bob Ferguson and Dave Reichert clashed over public safety, abortion rights, and Donald Trump throughout an acrimonious hour-long debate Sept. 10, starting after the Harris-Trump debate ended.. The first face-to-face meeting between the two men in the election was marked by sharp exchanges in which Ferguson, a Democrat and the state’s attorney general, and Reichert, a Republican and former congressman, accused one another of lying about their respective records. Reichert jabbed first, throwing sha...
Katryna Barber is closing the book on her latest adventure. After six years as the youth reading specialist, starting at the La Conner Swinomish Library when it bore the name La Conner Regional Library, Barber has announced she is ready for the epilogue stage of a wide-ranging working life. The former teacher, who once served on the library board in Woodstock, N.Y. – the town famous for the 1969 music festival – is retiring at the end of the month. Her last day is Sept. 27. "We will be cel...
Local firefighters who mobilized to battle the massive summerlong blaze in Chelan County near Stehekin had reason to be rattled. A Skagit County Fire District 13 crew on scene twice had rattlesnakes approach their tent. In addition, a bear was spotted in the area where the District 13 firefighters, led by Battalion Chief Jamie Jurdi, were assigned. Jurdi related his team’s three-week stay in the area around Lake Chelan during the District 13 Board of Commissioners meeting Sept. 12. The District 13 firefighters were among those units from t...
The Leagues of Women Voters of Washington and Benton-Franklin Counties will host the candidates for the Commissioner of Public Lands in a live debate to be held at 6 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 25, at at WSU Tri-Cities in Richland. The 60-minute debate will be recorded and livestreamed by Northwest Public Broadcasting. Voters will hear the candidates respond to questions from the public about the office and how they would fulfill the role of Commissioner of Public Lands. Voters can submit questions for the candidates in advance by emailing...
Join your neighbors, deputies and area police officers for coffee and conversation at Coffee with a Cop, 10 a.m. to noon Monday, Sept. 30, at Stompin’ Grounds Coffee, 306 Morris St. The mission of Coffee with a Cop (coffeewithacop.com) is to break down the barriers between deputies, police officers and the citizens they serve by removing agendas and allowing opportunities to ask questions, voice concerns and get to know the deputies in your neighborhood. This event is presented by the Skagit County Sheriff’s Office. For questions, email Cpl...
Skagit County has lifted its seasonal outdoor burn ban, so residential yard and land-clearing fires are again permitted in unincorporated areas. Residential fires may contain leaves, grass and tree trimmings, but not garbage, household trash, lumber, construction waste or demolition debris. Burn permits are required for piles exceeding 4 feet by 4 feet. Request a burn permit by calling 360-416-1840....
On Aug. 5, 1964, a visionary resolution was signed to create the Skagit County Parks and Recreation Department. From those beginnings, with Advisory Board members Dr. Jack Papritz of Anacortes, School Superintendent Lanche Crow of Similk Bay, and Bay View resident Ann Wolford leading the charge, the department has blossomed into a cornerstone of our community. Parks and Recreation’s first flagship, Howard Miller Steelhead Park, set the stage for a flurry of activity in the late 1970s, as parks were acquired and constructed throughout Skagit C...
Much of La Conner’s emergency management commission’s Sept. 3 meeting explored neighborhood mapping – the method for collecting vital information that emergency responders can access when called into residential areas to aid those impacted by flooding, fires, earthquakes or other threats. Neighbors break down barriers and foster increased communication to better prepare themselves to survive emergency situations. Commission chair Jerry George led by example at a Sept. 7 meeting in his North Third Street neighborhood. (see Sept. 11 Weekly News,...
When planning your garden or landscape, choosing the right trees is crucial – not just for aesthetics, but for the long-term health of your yard. While many guides suggest the best trees for various sunlight, soil and moisture conditions, few address trees that should be avoided due to their vulnerability to invasive insects and pathogens. Several tree species are at risk due to non-native insects and diseases. These pests, which often go unnoticed until they cause significant damage, have made certain trees poor choices for planting in your ya...
A cutting-edge, first-of-its-kind new food waste prevention facility will be unveiled at the Washington State University Skagit County Extension Office next Wednesday, Sept. 25. It’s a Worm Chalet – the brain child of Extension staff committed to preventing food waste. In 2023, staff offered programs and a social media campaign, “Use Food Well,” to begin helping Skagit county residents learn how to keep food waste out of landfills. But this year, as they prepped another season of food waste prevention activities, Diane Smith of the Extensi...
NOT TO BE MISSED Skagit Valley Giant Pumpkin Festival, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 21. It ends with pumpkin and squash entry weigh-offs for prizes. It starts with fun for kids of all ages and food, drinks, a hay maze and plants. Christianson’s Nursery & Greenhouse, 15806 Best Road, Mount Vernon. Get out your bibs, it’s the Skagit Tidewater Boil! Celebrate the food, farming and fishing communities of Skagit Valley with fine food, 5:30-6:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 26, at the La Conner Marina. Tickets on sale at genuineskagitvalley.com. COM...
Step into the Wayfinder Café on North First Street and the first thing you will see are freshly baked desserts on top of the deli case. That is, unless co-owner J.J. Grant is behind the counter. Not because he is a big guy – he is – but because his large bright smile will capture your attention. While the name change from former owner Scott Dean's Wayfinder Deli to Wayfinder Café, is one word, the word café captures the essence of Krista Ericson and Grant's business. Dean emphasized fresh,...
The first day of school in La Conner was in the bag. La Conner Middle and High School students received something new during this year's back-to-school routine. Staff distributed magnetized Yondr bags into which students place and lock their cell phones during the school day. They can unlock the pouches to access phones when school lets out. Yondr marks the start of a project designed to increase academic engagement and eliminate distractions in classrooms. By establishing a cell-phone-free zone...
"They are coming out of the woodwork," said Senior Civil Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Will Honea during a public hearing of the Skagit County Board of Commissioners on Monday. He was talking about people proposing "creative new arguments" for locating businesses that are not ag-related on land zoned Agricultural-Natural Resources Land. Honea's remarks came before the microphone was turned over to residents with comments or questions about the six-month moratorium on new event venues on Ag-NRL...
Jerry George put on his hardhat Sunday and went to work helping neighbors prepare for natural disasters or emergency situations that could strike La Conner. The town's emergency management commission chair joined north end residents at the Matthews North Third Street home for a 75-minute session on neighborhood mapping – the process of establishing a set of steps enhancing emergency preparedness. Leslie Smith led the meeting. She lives on Center Street with her husband, William. Their home w...
Tom Beckwith is the man with a plan that will be finalized by the end of the year. Beckwith’s firm was hired to develop a revitalization plan for the town’s formerly bustling south end industrial area by the Town of La Conner. He intends to draw heavily upon public input, he told the planning commission at its Sept. 3 meeting. Beckwith outlined the process his team will follow this fall. There will be public review sessions and meetings with the town’s advisory commissions and workshops with the town council and planning commission. “We w...