Eastern Adams County's Only Independent Voice Since 1887
Eastern Adams County's Only Independent Voice Since 1887
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RITZVILLE — Adams County's ballot-counting equipment for the Aug. 4 primary election was certified by Heather Sorgen of the state Secretary of State's Office today, July 29. County Elections Administrator Jacque Laird did a test run of over 700 test ballots to make sure the machine was calculating correctly, while Sorgen observed. Sorgen said she certified the ballot-counting equipment in Lincoln County earlier in the day, and is headed to Whitman County on July 30. On e...
HAY — The Whitman County Sheriff’s Office is looking for an overdue motorist/missing person. William “Bill” Betcher, 81, of Hay, is described as a white male approximately 6-foot-2 weighing 270 pounds. He may be wearing a large straw sombrero-type hat and shorts. Betcher left Hay at about 4 p.m. July 21 to buy a horse in the Ford area north of Reardan, he's been missing since. He was seen eastbound on U.S. Highway 26 east of Hooper and on the morning of July 22 in the Almira area. Betcher may be experiencing memory issues...
RITZVILLE – Two of six people arrested Monday, July 13, remain in Adams County Jail as of Monday, July 20. The arrests were made when multiple agencies served a search warrant to recover evidence from a Bobcat theft which occurred in Warden (Grant County). During the investigation, a global positioning device (GPS) on the Bobcat pinged at 1110 N. Rand Lane, and later at a location in the Kennewick/Richland area, where it was recovered. According to court records, Glen Gilbert, 63, admitted to stealing the Bobcat with the help...
Dark skies over rural Eastern Washington offer a perfect opportunity to view the comet Neowise each night low on the horizon. Photographer Bob Juarez captured this image of the aurora borealis and comet last week in Lincoln County near Odessa. The comet, last visible from Earth about 6,800 years ago, is best seen between 3:30-4:30 a.m. below the Big Dipper constellation....
RICHLAND — Adams County Health Department announced an Adams County resident in his late 70s passed away at Kadlec Medical Center July 23. The name of the individual was not released. The health department did not specify the cause of death of the male, who was a resident of Coventry House Assisted Living in Othello. The health department called it the first Adams County "COVID-19 associated death," and said a diagnosis of COVID-19 was laboratory confirmed. A death investigation at Coventry is underway. Coventry House A...
CHENEY – Eastern Washington University’s Board of Trustees have approved using more cash reserves and an allocation of reduction targets in order to close a $22.54 million operating budget shortfall. At a special meeting today (July 24) held via Zoom, the board voted 8-0 in approving expense reduction targets of 13.5 percent for all university areas except Diversity and Inclusion and Academic Affairs. The latter will look for ways to come up with a 22.3 percent reductions in expenses while the former will be exempt from red...
RITZVILLE – A parade made up of school staff and administrators, the Adams County Sheriff's office, Ritzville Police, Adams County Fire Protection District No. 1, Ritzville Fire Department, friends and family drove past Cameron Boness' house Thursday, July 16, to honor Boness for his induction into the 2020 AAA School Safety Patrol Hall of Fame. Boness was a fifth grader last year when his safety advisor Terry Swartz nominated him for the honor which recognizes the top 10 p...
RITZVILLE - The National Weather Service says critical fire weather conditions will exist across most of Eastern Washington today. The agency issued a Red Flag Warning that continues through 8 p.m. The Northern Columbia basin can expect breezy conditions and low humidity. "Breezy to windy conditions will continue this afternoon with a second cold front reinforcing the winds," the Red Flag Warning said. "Rapid fire spread will be possible with any new or ongoing fires" in...
RITZVILLE – Basketball coach Dustan Arlt said about 20 boys signed up for summer camp, comprised of small groups of athletes practicing at Gilson Gymnasium. “At least 15 kids showed up every day, so that’s pretty positive,” Arlt said July 16, adding they were in the second week of camp when the state-wide mask mandate came out. “We thought we would lose a couple kids, but they all showed up, so that’s good,” Arlt said. By coaching two, one-hour long camps, Arlt was able to s...
ELTOPIA — A fake, 21-page endorsement of candidates has the Franklin County Republican Central Committee and the now-defunct Tri-Cities Tea Party concerned over an apparent fraudulent effort to influence the primary election. More than 50 Republicans and at least four former Tri-Cities Tea Party leaders gathered in a potato shed tonight, July 23, to discuss what to do about the fraudulent letter emailed to an estimated 3,500 area voters in the last week. With each page using the Tri-Cities Tea Party letterhead, those who g...
OLYMPIA — The governor today followed Oregon Gov. Kate Brown’s lead today, July 23, in cracking down on restaurants, bars and gyms, as well as expanding mask-wearing requirements. During a press conference, Gov. Jay Inslee announced a shutdown of indoor service at bars effective July 30. He also said bar and restaurant alcohol sales will not be allowed after 10 p.m., and ordered arcade, gaming and cardroom areas shuttered. State Secretary of Health John Weisman added an expanded mask order, requiring face coverings to be wor...
June 29 Ryan T. Krueger and Jamie Krueger, Othello, to Ernesto G. Leyva, a married man as his separate estate, and Abigail Leyva, a married woman as her separate estate, Othello – 2312 W. Sherman Lane, Othello. $380,000. Janet Phillips, Lind, to Timothy A. Smith and Michelle A. Fode-Smith, Ritzville – agricultural property under current use - $2,665. Alberto Pineda Apolinar, husband of Abigail Leyva, Othello, to Abigail Leyva, Othello, a married woman as her separate estate – 2313 W. Sherman Lane, Othello. $0. Alma Leyva...
RITZVILLE – Summer camps ended July 16, until further notice, for volleyball, basketball and football athletes. “As coaches, we encourage all athletes to do some workouts at home for physical health, as well as mental health,” Lind-Ritzville/Sprague Athletic Director Greg Whitmore said, adding he had posted an at-home workout video on his YouTube channel, https://youtu.be/by4WSfvHwdw. “This full body workout can be done at home, after work or while on vacation by everyone: girls, guys, middle school athletes, high school...
We are almost there. Baseball is back starting Thursday, for a 60-game shortened season. Some of us remember the strike shortened season of 1994 when there was no World Series. That was also the season that the Mariners got on a roll and everyone thought that they had what it takes to get their first shot at a playoff spot. But it was also the season when tiles started falling from the Kingdome ceiling, making it very dangerous to play there. If the season would have...
RITZVILLE – Steve Wellsandt said COVID-19 restrictions have limited his training options for girls at their summer basketball camp, so he's focused on the drills allowed. "They can't pass the ball, and they can't play one-on-one, but we worked on a lot of footwork, pivoting, and a lot of shooting. So it's been a little more individualized," Wellsandt said July 16. Returning players Julia Klein, Dakota Killian, Grace Fedie, Taylor Galbreath and Meagan Melcher kept track of t...
RITZVILLE – At a volleyball camp Thursday afternoon, Coach Cari Galbreath filmed her athletes doing individual drills, then went over the footage with them to critique their form in a way perhaps more focused than before COVID-19 restrictions banned most practice routines. Not allowed to pass a volleyball back and forth, the girls took up tennis balls and threw them against the walls, while Galbreath photographed them. "The girls have been good sports about having to wear t...
Keep government offices open I was shocked to read in the Journal that a resolution by the Ritzville City Council to close city hall through December 31, 2020, passed. I, for one as a taxpayer, think city hall, as well as the Adams County Courthouse, should be open to all our citizens as an obligation to their office. If the mail carriers, policemen, firemen, grocery, and retail businesses are out there taking risks for our benefit, why shouldn’t city, county and state employees do the same? And to think they’re getting paid...
New redesign concepts to be presented RITZVILLE – Conceptual designs for the Downtown Revitalization Project will be presented today, July 22, in a Zoom meeting from 3-5 p.m. The City of Ritzville has partnered with the WSU Rural Initiative and Innovia Foundation on the revitalization project to stimulate new business development and jobs, as well as improving streetscape for community gatherings and events. The project kicked off with a design phase workshop in the fall of 2019. A second workshop held at the end of F...
OLYMPIA – The Washington Secretary of State's office released a statewide, online voters' guide for the upcoming primary, with votes due Aug. 4. Republican candidate for governor Loren Culp claims information his campaign manager submitted to the office of the Secretary of State on three separate occasions was not included in the voter's guide. The Secretary of State's office responded to the claim by stating emails allegedly submitted by Culp's campaign manager May 20 and M...
ADAMS COUNTY – David Borden, 26, has joined the Adams County Sheriff's Department after graduating from the police academy in Spokane Friday, July 17. According to Adams County Sheriff Dale Wagner, Deputy Borden was hired in the Adams County Jail in mid-April of 2019 before making the transition to the road at the end of December that same year. Wagner said Borden has been living in the Spokane area, but currently has a house in Ritzville. "He will be, and has been, a great a...
ADAMS COUNTY – Two candidates for county commissioner positions have released information about their campaign contributions. Three other candidates filed as “mini-filers,” and are not required to report campaign revenues or expenses. As long as a candidate does not raise more than $5,000, they can choose the option not to report. All five candidates registered as Republicans. In the race for County Commissioner District No. 1, Dan Blankenship disclosed having $8,105 in contributions, $9,092 in expenditures and $5,000 in lo...