New art dedication in Snoqualmie Feb. 11
February 7, 2012
New: 4:25 p.m., Feb. 7, 2012
The Snoqualmie Arts Commission will dedicate a new piece of public artwork at 10 a.m. Feb. 11 on the front steps of the Snoqualmie Community Center, 35018 SE Ridge St.
The sculpture, titled “Tah Dah,” stands 18 feet high with the top section revolving in the wind. Read more
Wood debris drop-off and tree workshop this weekend
February 2, 2012
New: 1:56 p.m. on Feb. 2, 2012
Free drop-off of wood debris from the recent storm is available Feb. 4 – 5, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the corner of Snoqualmie Parkway and State Route 202. Read more
Community speaks up about middle schools
February 1, 2012
The prospect of the community’s children attending a two-middle-school district has their parents speaking out on both sides of the issue.
Parents and teachers crowded the conference room at the Snoqualmie Valley School District offices Jan. 26 and waited hours to speak their mind.
The issue of whether the district will turn the 40-year-old Snoqualmie Middle School building into a ninth-graders-only annex of the high school in 2012 will remain unresolved for at least 30 more days.
Given the tenor of the discussion Jan. 26, several people, however, seem to have made up their minds.
Festival at Mount Si makes some changes
February 1, 2012
Street closure should allow residents to get to their homes
After meeting with a small group of concerned neighbors Jan. 24, organizers of the Festival at Mount Si are moving to revamp their plans for this year’s event.
“We will be moving forward with a different option,” said Jill Massengill, president of the board of directors for the nonprofit North Bend Education and Cultural Association.
Festival planners had to develop an alternative layout for the 2012 gathering because Si View Park will undergo extensive renovations at the time of the festival, slated for Aug. 10-12.
Because of those renovations, the park will not be available for even limited use during the festival, said both Massengill and Minna Rudd, program coordinator for the Si View Metropolitan Park District.
According to Massengill, with the park not available to host vendor booths, one option was to place those booths on Southeast Orchard Drive. The street would have been closed, with even local resident access restricted. But according to several sources, that idea just did not sit well with some Orchard Drive residents.
SnoValley Star has a new editor
February 1, 2012
Michele Mihalovich, an Iowa State University graduate with more than 15 years of experience in journalism, has been named the new editor of SnoValley Star.
Mihalovich’s career stops have included the Medford Mail Tribune in Medford, Ore., the Ashland Daily Tidings in Ashland, Ore., and The Wenatchee World and the Wenatchee Business Journal in Washington. In the 1990s, she also worked for the Fort Dodge Messenger in Iowa and as a communications specialist at Iowa State University.
Mihal-ovich started with the Star Jan. 23.
Michele Mihalovich
“I’m thrilled to be a part of the SnoValley Star team, and learning about the Snoqualmie and North Bend communities,” she said. “I hope to hear from our valued readers as to what we are doing right and what we need to work on.”
Tom Meagher is employee of the year for city of North Bend
February 1, 2012
Tom Meagher, a newspaper-man-turned-permits-man, has received the 2011 North Bend Employee of the Year award.
“It feels great,” he said. “I work with a lot of terrific people, so it was actually quite the surprise. So many people here are worthy of the award.”
Tom Meagher
Meagher, the city’s permits and office coordinator, worked in advertising at the defunct King County Journal until six years ago when he sought a more stable line of work.
“The year I left, it was clear the newspaper business was suffering some hard times,” he said. “It was clear to me I had to find a new place to find a job.”
He loved the North Bend area, and at the time working for city government seemed like a pretty stable job.
Police blotter
February 1, 2012
North Bend Police
Drunken driving
On Jan. 4, just after midnight, police pulled over Tiffany M. Padilla-Glen, 29, of Des Moines, on Ballarat Avenue.
According to the report, she didn’t pull over right away, so a second deputy was called to the scene and she did eventually pull over.
Beer cans were spotted in the car and Padilla-Glen told the officer she drank two whiskey and 7-Ups earlier.
She agreed to two breath samples, which resulted in a .213 and .198 blood alcohol content readings.
Police arrested Padilla-Glen for driving under the influence and driving while her license was suspended.
She was driven to her boyfriend’s house and released.
Snoqualmie City Council retreat focuses on services
February 1, 2012
More people mean more fire and police calls, and the Snoqualmie mayor and some City Council members are concerned that a tight budget might mean a lower level of services.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Snoqualmie’s population jumped from 1,631 residents in 2000, to 10,670 in 2010. That’s a 554 percent increase.
Mayor Matthew Larson said on Jan. 30, the first day of a two-day City Council retreat, that when he was first elected to the council 10 years ago, the city had four police officers for every 1,000 residents.
By Michele Mihalovich Snoqualmie Fire Chief Bob Rowe explains his staffing concerns regarding the fire department to the City Council at its Jan. 30 retreat.
“Today, that number is 1.27 officers per 1,000. That concerns me and I think we should start planning for this now,” he told the council.
Larson said the town may appear to be a “rosy” picture because the streets may look fine, new houses were built and emergency personnel show up when you dial 911.
“We may be victims of our own success,” he said. “But the status quo has not been keeping up with our service needs … We need to stay in the driver’s seat and be proactive, not reactive.”
Snoqualmie Fire Chief Bob Rowe, told the gathering of elected officials and city staff members that the fire department has not hired any new, full-time firefighters since 2003.
North Bend City Council determines 2012 priorities for the city
February 1, 2012
New life may be breathed into a North Bend downtown revitalization plan because of an idea brought up at the City Council’s annual retreat Jan. 27.
Gina Estep, Community and Economic Development director, suggested the city might go the same route as Ellensburg.
She said that town used its City Hall as an anchor for the downtown area, and also created a nonprofit organization that helped pay for updating some of the buildings.
Most of the North Bend council members expressed frustration over the snail-paced progress of revitalizing downtown and were optimistic about the new direction.
City Administrator Duncan Wilson said he’s heard from a large number of people saying that they are concerned about the vibrancy of downtown.
Free wood debris recycling at Cedar Falls
February 1, 2012
New: 2:08 p.m., Feb. 1, 2012
Free wood debris recycling will be available on Feb. 4-5, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., to all King County residents at four locations: Cedar Falls, Enumclaw, Kent and Shoreline. See below for full details and contact information. Read more
