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Join Rep. David Paul and Mayor Marna Hanneman for a town hall event from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 27, at La Conner Swinomish Library, 520 Morris St., La Conner....
Tulip Valley Farms proprietor Andrew Miller and Mount Vernon farmer Larry Jensen are named defendants in Skagit County Superior Court for pretrial hearings March 21 with the Skagit County Prosecutor’s Office for the August 2023 lawsuit the county filed for the lack of permits on Jensen’s Bradshaw Road property. The county restated that list: “The defendants never obtained permits for this development, even after a stop-work order was issued - no building permit, no county road access permit, no fill and grade permit, no floodplain permi...
BRIGHT SUN, BLUE SKY, YELLOW DAFFODILS, OH MY – Last weekend was a perfect trifecta for tourists to swarm the western Skagit Valley for the hundreds of acres of daffodils in bloom, as this field at Beaver Marsh and Jungquist Roads on Sunday. Tulips are being toured at Roozengarde, down the road, also. In La Conner, parking was scarce and the sidewalks were full, as were stores and restaurants. Spring is here....
Daffodils have bloomed and tulips aren't far behind. Soon, thousands of people will descend upon the La Conner flats to enjoy vividly colored fields here. It's hard to imagine, any among the throngs of visitors appreciating the striking spring landscape more than Joyce Johnson, long a bright and engaging fixture with the La Conner Civic Garden Club and related organizations at the local, district and state levels. Johnson recently died at age 105. "Joyce was most certainly a treasure to all who...
Harvest time on the La Conner flats is months away, but the time is ripe now to cultivate goodwill. That was the prevailing theme at the annual La Conner Rotary Club Farmers and Merchants Night dinner and program Monday at Maple Hall. The event, which underscores the club's ongoing mission of public service and education support, was attended by more than 100 people representing the local agricultural and commercial sectors plus government leadership. "We're a hands-on service club," La Conner...
Voters in Skagit County and statewide in Washington chose President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump in the March 12 presidential primary. With all but some 1,000 votes counted Monday for Skagit County, Biden has 87.8% among five Democratic options and Trump won 76.4% among six choices for Republicans. Democratic voters cast 6.9% for uncommitted delegates, a far larger percentage than either Marianne Williamson or Dean Phillips won. Former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley gained 19.6% ballots, the only Republican above 2%. All...
The high tide of saltwater flood season has passed. Town Administrator Scott Thomas said the final king tide on Swinomish Channel until next fall will allow removal of flood barriers that have lined the La Conner waterfront for months. “If you want to go out and get a picture of those orange sandbags so that you can remember them you’d better get out there,” Thomas told town council at its March 12 meeting. “They’ll be going away in a couple weeks and won’t be back until October.” The Public Works Department will remove sandbags and ecology b...
You play how you practice. That was the mantra shared last Thursday by Skagit County Fire District 13 Commission chair Bruce Shellhamer, a former Sedro-Woolley High School sports standout. He wasn’t alluding to athletics. He was talking about the fire district’s upcoming March 30 windstorm exercise. The training will engage HAM radio operators, volunteers at the Shelter Bay Disaster Assistance Center, a mobile Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) trailer, and residents who will post “Help/OK” placards in their windows to inform emergen...
For the 170 or so La Conner Weekly News subscribers who have a Mount Vernon ZIP code, we’ll get our news to you a few days quicker now. Skagit Publishing in Mount Vernon prints the Weekly News every Tuesday night and delivers addressed bundles to the La Conner post office for us to mail. Our subscribers with a La Conner 98257 ZIP code get the paper on Wednesday. Not so for subscribers outside the 98257 ZIP code. It’s most bothersome where the La Conner School District boundary and Mount Vernon’s 98273 ZIP code overlap (think Best and Chilb...
Skagit Transit wants citizen feedback on a comprehensive service analysis it’s conducting to optimize public transportation for residents across Skagit County. This analysis will play a role in SKAT’s Long-Range Transit Plan, reflecting the agency’s commitment to improving and expanding service accessibility. La Conner and Fidalgo Island residents will have two chances to learn about SKAT’s Long-Range Transit Plan and offer comments about current and future services at two public outreach meetings. 5-6:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 27: La Conner...
A La Conner fourth grader has learning down to an art form. Halley Oh received a statewide Award of Excellence for Visual Arts, ranking second in her age group (grades 3-5) in the Washington State PTA Reflections Art Contest. The contest theme was "I Am Hopeful Because..." "She did a really good job," La Conner PTA Vice-President Mia Paulson told the Weekly News. "They (the contest judges) obviously saw her talent." Halley's colorful entry illustrates how education makes her feel hopeful. Her...
Inside Mortenson Signs on the corner of Avon Allen Road and Bennett Road is an explosion of colorful signs and art. This hints at the body of work Bob Mortenson has made since he opened the shop in 1981. Iconic signs throughout Skagit Valley bear Mortenson's mark: RoozenGaarde, Calico Cupboard, Nasty Jacks and even the La Conner Weekly News. Now, the impact of his art is receiving special attention. The Skagit County Historical Museum's next exhibit is "Signs, Signs, Everywhere – Signs: The A...
GREEN WAS THE NIGHT'S COLOR – The La Conner Firefighters Association held its annual St. Patrick's Day Dance fundraiser at Maple Hall Saturday with music by DJ Vonn. It was their first year without Brodie the Newshound there to cover it....
La Conner Schools officials are bracing for fewer students again this fall. School district financial chief David Cram is projecting 460 full-time K-12 enrolled students in 2024-25, 30 fewer than this year. “That’s the number we’ll use as we build our budget,” he said. The net loss of 30 students translates to a loss for La Conner Schools of about $330,000 in state funds next year. Enrollment is the main driver of support the state provides to its public school districts. Cram told school board members at their March 11 study session that hi...
A cold wind ripped up the Swinomish Channel, swirled around Gilkey Square on Saturday and undid plans for the La Conner Pet Parade's red-carpet walk. Still, around 50 registrants and a small crowd of intrepid pet lovers, their pets all dolled-up for photo ops, shivered down First Street from the La Conner Marina to Gilkey Square, up to Maple Hall and back to the square for judging. Mayor Marna Hanneman was on hand and the La Conner Chamber of Commerce "made a showing." Cameras were clicking,...
Earth, wind and fire. It's not just a famous 1970s soul band. The three elements also represent threats to the vacant and dilapidated Moore-Clark warehouse and areas around the former industrial hub, a landmark on the La Conner waterfront since 1898. Residents wary of the building's vulnerabilities shared their concerns with the Town Emergency Management Commission during its March 5 meeting at Maple Hall. "I think of Lahaina," Lori Wise, who has a background in real estate development, said of...
School districts will be required to transition to zero emission school buses under a law recently approved by the state House and Senate. The bill received numerous amendments after districts voiced concerns over reliability, range and the time allowed to make the switch. Introduced by Rep. Tana Senn, D-Mercer Island, HB 1368 is an effort to not only reduce emissions, but to prioritize the health of children. Six other states have zero-emission school bus transitions already written into law....
Town officials say they heard plenty of valued input during the recent community mingle addressing First Street parking and traffic issues, but there’s still plenty of time to get the last word in. “We haven’t taken anything off the table,” Town Assistant Planner Ajah Eills told planning commissioners during their March 5 meeting at Maple Hall. “We’re still in the information gathering mode.” Among those whose insights are being sought is Public Works Director Brian Lease. Commissioners want to hear from Lease before a target date is set f...
Town officials over the next few months will begin examining potential options for the Jenson property located south of Channel Cove near the Maple Avenue approach to Pioneer Park. The Jenson family sold the land to the town at a reduced price – about one-third its assessed value – on condition it be utilized in the best interest of the community. Suggested uses for the property have ranged from affordable housing to a public garden. “We have saved the letters and emails that we have received about options for the use of the property when...
New La Conner Emergency Management Commission chair Jerry George had sad news to share when the panel met March 5 at Maple Hall. George had the unenviable task of announcing the death of commission charter member Duane Carpenter, 64, whose expertise in meteorology was frequently tapped during the board’s inaugural year as it considered flood mitigation strategies. George said that Carpenter, with an extensive background in cartography and weather analysis, died unexpectedly March 1 from complications following a surgical procedure. “Duane was...
The last king tides of this winter season are this week on the Swinomish Channel. The USHarbors.com tide table predicted 11-foot-plus tides Monday-Wednesday mornings and a 10.9-foot tide March 16 at 8:27 a.m. The last 10.9-foot tide is scheduled for 4:36 p.m. Friday, March 27. Town of La Conner public works staff plan to remove and store the channel area sandbags by the end of the month....
GETTING DAFFODILS TO THE STORE – Local fields are yellow with flowers now, but farmworkers have been working in the fields since February. Monday, they were doing the hard work of getting flowers ready for tables in the Skagit Valley and around the country....
The five Shelter Bay Community board directors sued by former community resident Jan Henrie almost a year ago are making another attempt to dismiss Henrie’s Skagit County Superior Court civil complaint alleging breach of fiduciary duty and malfeasance. Defendants Wendy Poulton, Monte Hicks, Louise Kari, Elaine Dixon and Joseph Hurley filed a motion for reconsideration Feb. 20, arguing she has no standing, or right to bring her claims. Their attorneys’ motion for reconsideration follows a Feb. 8 order by Judge Laura Riquelme stating “the Court...
Shelter Bay Board of Director Dan McCaughan resigned in late February. An email to residents from the Shelter Bay Community announced his resignation Feb. 28 and broadcast the “immediate board position opening” seeking applicants to replace him. The deadline is no later than May 25 for a term through June 30, 2026. An earlier deadline may be set to fill the seat sooner. McCaughan resigned for personal reasons, the email said. At its Feb. 21 board meeting, the Shelter Bay Company directors – the same as the Community’s board – sanctione...
During his celebrated career as an award-winning newspaper columnist and author, Timothy Egan has traveled the globe in search of the stories that connect him to his readers. For a much longer time – dating to childhood – he has made shorter treks to public libraries and rural bookmobile stops to discover stories that would shape and define Egan as one of the nation's most powerful voices on behalf of literacy. The University of Washington alum, a former op-ed writer for the New York Times and...