King County introduces new service to streamline permit application process in unincorporated areas
April 25, 2011
King County’s Department of Development and Environmental Services has added a pre-submittal review service for complex permit applications. The new service is part of the county’s efforts to make it easier to apply for permits in unincorporated areas.
The service, which went live Monday April 25, allows customers to enter more complex applications into a new program called Pre-Submittal Services. It is meant to help people with permit applications that are too complicated for over-the-counter service but not so involved that they require — or qualify for — a pre-application meeting.
North Bend’s Valley Center Stage seeks directors
April 25, 2011
Valley Center Stage needs directors for productions during the 2011-2012 season.
The North Bend community theater puts on three productions each season. It needs directors for its fall 2011 and spring 2012 productions.
The proposed production is “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” in fall 2011 and “Moon Over Buffalo” in spring 2011.
BASEBALL | Big hit extends Mount Si’s winning streak to 13 games
April 25, 2011
Mount Si fans had a new name to cheer for after the Wildcats beat Mercer Island in extra innings on April 23.
Senior Justin Henak has had limited playing time this season — his first on varsity. He was filling in behind the plate after the team’s regular catcher Robb Lane was sent to the hospital following a violent collision in the Wildcats’ April 20 game against Bellevue.
Coming to bat in the bottom of the eighth inning with the score tied 7-7, Henak delivered the biggest hit of his season.
New face stands out on Mount Si track team
April 22, 2011
 (Photo by Sebastian Moraga) |
On her first race of the season, Kristen Kasel clinched a commanding performance for the Mount Si Wildcats 4×100 relay team against Lake Washington and Interlake April 21.
Kasel overcame first-time jitters to help her team.
“Nerves help you go faster, Kasel said. “They help you go faster, with the adrenaline.”
The Wildcats won the event with 52.1 seconds. Lake Washington finished second with 53.6.
Kayleigh Perkins Mallory escapes hydroplane fire with minor injuries
April 21, 2011
Kayleigh Perkins leaps from the UL-72 Miss Foster Care hydroplane that caught fire as she taxied to shore after a test run in Lake Washington during the ULHRA spring training event Thursday, April 21, 2011 in Seattle, Wash. There was an explosion shortly before she leaped into the water. She was helped from the water and was okay. (Photo by John Lok / The Seattle Times)
Hydroplane racer and North Bend resident Kayleigh Perkins Mallory suffered a scare Thursday when her boat caught fire while making practice runs on Lake Washington.
Perkins Mallory leapt clear of her turbine-powered boat seconds before flames swept through its cockpit.
She escaped with only minor injuries, and she is ready to get back on the water. This season, the 22-year-old wants to reclaim her crown of Unlimited Light Hydroplane race circuit.
Her boat, the U-72 Foster Care/TRIAD Racing Technologies, however, has to be rebuilt, which will force her miss at least the 2011 season’s opening race in May.
King County outreach structure for unincorporated areas could receive overhaul
April 21, 2011
King County’s outreach structure for its unincorporated areas could be getting overhauled.
King County Executive Dow Constantine has proposed reforming and expanding the existing structure to improve engagement with residents in unincorporated areas. Metropolitan King County Council requested the reforms last fall as part of the county’s budget.
Under the proposal, unincorporated King County would be divided into Community Service Areas, which would serve residents as a single point of contact for county services. Teams of existing staff would work with the service areas to improve public outreach.
Know a volunteer deserving kudos? Snoqualmie Valley group is taking names
April 21, 2011
The Snoqualmie Valley Community Network is looking for nominations for its 15th annual Rise and Shine Awards, which recognize outstanding volunteers who have worked to improve the health of children and families in the Valley.
Rise and Shine awardees strengthen the Valley’s sense of community. Oftentimes their work is not widely recognized, but the Snoqualmie Valley Community Network believes that recognition is important to strengthening the community.
Everyone is eligible for the awards. Nominations are due April 29.
BASEBALL | Mount Si routs Bellevue to pick up 12th consecutive win
April 21, 2011
The Mount Si Wildcats cruised to their 12th consecutive win with a 13-3 rout of Bellevue. Trevor Taylor pitched five innings to pick up the win.
Bellevue scored one run in the first inning, but Mount Si quickly responded with two in the second and then six runs in the third inning. The Wolverines scored two more runs in the bottom of the third. Mount Si added two runs in the fourth and three in the fifth.
Bellevue didn’t help itself in the field by committing five errors.
Snoqualmie tribe participates in historic kokanee fry release
April 20, 2011
Jessica Leguizamon, 10, watches kokanee salmon fry swim away from her Dixie cup into Laughing Jacobs Creek as her sister Sabrina, 5, waits her turn and their grandfather, Gary Smith, looks on. County environmental scientist Hans Berge makes sure the release is done properly. By Greg Farrar
Every season, the kokanee salmon returns to the creeks and streams after its journey to Lake Sammamish.
At the second annual kokanee fry release in Issaquah April 18, Matt Baerwalde, a representative of the Snoqualmie Tribe, recounted the relationship between the fish and the tribe, explaining how they relied on the fish for sustenance.
Governor approves math bill to streamline testing
April 20, 2011
Graduating from high school with sufficient math credits just got easier. Gov. Chris Gregoire approved a bill that would allow students in the 2013 and 2014 graduating classes to pass only one mathematics end-of-course exam, instead of two.
The state House of Representatives passed the legislation in a 96-1 vote on March 4. State senators passed a companion bill in a 47-0 vote on March 29. Gregoire signed it into law April 11.
State Superintendent Randy Dorn had championed the legislation.
“Plain and simple, this is a win for fairness,” Dorn said. “In a tough legislative year, this is one law that directly impacts the lives of students in a positive manner. I’m pleased that state legislators and the governor did the right thing for students.”
Eventually, the math section of the High School Proficiency Exam — which is administered to sophomores — will be phased out, and two end-of-course exams, in algebra and geometry, will take its place.
