The attention-catching mounds of dirt at Island Transit headquarters south of Coupeville will eventually come down.
Those large mounds will be eventually knocked down and used for new landscaping around the agency’s new headquarters off Highway 20.
Motorists will soon notice a tighter fit when they depart the ferry at Port Townsend.
Passengers and drivers will be departing and boarding the terminal using the narrower, one-traffic lane wide second slip at the Port Townsend terminal.
Nearly 30 people showed up to the Oak Harbor pool Friday night to hear complaints a former employee has about the park district’s director.
Instead, the elected body decided to adjourn the meeting without taking any testimony from former employee Vikki Robinson about North Whidbey Park and Recreation District Director Bill Walker.
Monsters were lurking underwater, and popped out of unexpected places through a hazy pool Friday night.
Oak Harbor School District officials said they hope a levy passes in February so the district can replace 15-year-old textbooks.
Passing a levy next year will provide the funding needed to replace aging social studies materials along with other subjects in subsequent years.
The Oak Harbor School Board has been holding monthly workshops to discuss how either passage or failure of the levy would affect the school district. Voters in February 2013 will decide on a four-year replacement levy that will raise $7.5 million for the school district.
Oak Harbor’s pool could be closed for several days next month for heater repairs.
The staff at the John Vanderzicht Memorial Pool recently discovered two cracks in the heat exchangers of the heating units that warm the building. When the damage was discovered, the heat was shut off for several days last week while the staff researched a possible solution.
Bill Walker, executive director for North Whidbey Park and Recreation District, said the lack of heat causedsome chilly days. The only source of heat for the building was the 82-degree water that fills the pool. Those cracks left staff concerned about carbon monoxide levels.
Concerns about safety at the intersections of Highway 20 with Parker Road and old Smith Prairie Road just south of Coupeville have county transportation officials looking at options.
Island Transit wants to change the intersections to make for a better secondary access to its new headquarters that is being built. That second access point is a requirement for Island Transit’s occupancy permit, said Martha Rose, executive director.
Amid the houses built with the help of Habitat for Humanity, work is underway to help current homeowners who are struggling to maintain their homes.
Noting concerns about financial statements from Greenbank Farm Management Group, a prominent Whidbey Island accountant resigned as a volunteer examining the operations of the publicly owned farm.
Georgia Gardner, a Coupeville accountant who is a former state representative and current Whidbey General Hospital commissioner, resigned in early October after she wrote a letter to the management group’s board of trustees about her concerns.
Noting concerns about financial statements from Greenbank Farm Management Group, a prominent Whidbey Island accountant resigned as a volunteer examining the operations of the publicly owned farm.
Georgia Gardner, a Coupeville accountant who is a former state representative and current Whidbey General Hospital commissioner, resigned in early October after she wrote a letter to the management group’s board of trustees about her concerns.
“I hereby notify you that, in my professional opinion, there are errors, omissions and/or inconsistencies in your federal and state tax returns, federal forms 990 and 990T and in schedules purporting to be financial statements issued by the GFMG,” Gardner wrote in a letter to the Management Group Board of Trustees.
The farmer training center got some funding that will help a seed project sprout at the Greenbank Farm.
The Washington State Department of Agriculture awarded a $140,000 grant to the training center at the publicly owned farm to fund continued work on developing organic seeds.
Oak Harbor’s new police chief will be riding a ferry to get to work for awhile.
The City Council unanimously confirmed the mayor’s selection of Edgar “Ed” Green as the new police chief at their meeting Tuesday night. Green has worked at the Port Townsend police department for nearly 20 years and is currently the administrative sergeant.
People at the meeting only had glowing reviews of Green.
Oak Harbor’s Helen Chatfield Weeks is probably best known as the feisty octogenarian who rises up to lead a rousing “hip, hip, hooray” at parades, events and even City Council meetings.
She has also been a fixture in local groups, is a prolific photographer and has worked to preserve Whidbey’s history.
Because of her community involvement, Chatfield Weeks is being honored during the Island County Historical Society’s Awesome Auction scheduled from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 20 at the Oak Harbor Elks Lodge.
“She’s a major community booster,” said Rick Castellano, director of the Island County Historical Society. “We’re honored to know her.”
