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A 52-foot gooseneck vehicle hauler and pickup tipped over Wednesday evening, Feb. 10, in the roundabout at the intersection of state Highway 902, West Geiger Boulevard and West Medical Lake Road. The incident spilled three vehicles onto their sides and blocked the roundabout between Airway Heights and Medical Lake for more than three hours. Nobody was injured in the mishap that closed the roundabout from 3:27 p.m. to 6:33 p.m., the state Department of Transportation reported....
SPRAGUE — Unofficial special election results tallied Tuesday night, Feb. 9, show the School District levy passing with overwhelming support. According to the Lincoln County Auditor's Office, the initial tallied showed with 145 votes in favor of the measure and 60 votes opposed. That's 70.73% support in the first count of the measure that included 0 ballots returned from Adams County precincts in the district. The replacement, two-year educational and operational levy would tax property owners $1.68 per $1,000 of assessed val...
ROSALIA — Voters in this rural Whitman County community are supporting a ballot measure to convert two School Board seats to at-large positions. In an initial tally of Tuesday's special election, School District voters were supporting the idea, 65% to 35%. The measure would change the five, in-district School Board seats to three in-district and two at-large seats. Whitman County officials estimate they have an additional 230 votes to count today, Wednesday, Feb. 10, but did not say how many were in the district and how m...
LAMONT — A requested two-year replacement educational programs and operations levy continued to fall short Wednesday, Feb. 10, following a tally of late-arriving ballots in the special election. As of 3:51 p.m., the measure that would have collected $2.50 per $1,000 of assessed property valuation each of the next two years was failing, 24-28, garnering only 46.15% support. If approved, the tax levy was expected to bring in $130,000 in 2022 and $132,000 in 2023. The owner of a home valued at $200,000 would have paid $500 in t...
Why are Roger Harnack’s opinion pieces labeled as news articles instead of being in the editorial section (“Gov. Inslee keeps Eastern Washington locked down,” Cheney Free Press online, Jan. 21, 2021). Terms like “so called” and “teased” are clearly point-of-view and call into the reader’s mind questions about whether journalistic rules and ethics of writing are used in the stories. How can we trust that facts are being reported with such clearly slanted yellow journalism? Joan Mamanakis – Cheney...
The culture, heritage and history of Eastern Washington — indeed all of Washington and Oregon history — is under fire again in Olympia. I’m talking about an effort this year in the House to erase Marcus Whitman’s significance from the halls of the Capitol building in Olympia and the national statuary in Washington, D.C. Pushed by lawmakers, who obviously lack a full understanding of Whitman’s significance, House Bill 1372 seeks to replace the bronze Marcus Whitman statues w...
PULLMAN – Four students took the School Board and employees to task Wednesday night for failing to get them back on campus even though the governor and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have called for in-person learning. The Pullman School District is among the last holdouts generally keeping students off-campus in Whitman County. During a digital School Board meeting, students Collin Bannister, Maddie Weber, Maxwell Cordova and Hanna Talbot called on the b...
SPOKANE – A day after Sen. Andy Billig said area residents would be "glad" about the expected loosening of coronavirus restrictions, Gov. Jay Inslee announced he is keeping the East region pinned down. In addition, Eastern Washington businesses will now have to wait at least two more weeks for coronavirus relief following a gubernatorial press conference at 2:30 p.m. today, Jan. 28. During the press conference, Gov. Inslee, a Bainbridge Island Democrat, said he will allow his so-called “Puget Sound” and “West” regions t...
PASCO — In a split decision, financier John Rosenau has been named as Franklin County assessor. Rosenau edged Franklin County Deputy Assessor Piper Mitchell and applicant James Gimenez in the Franklin County Commission selection process Tuesday, Jan. 26. Commissioner Rocky Mullen moved to appoint Rosenau to the post, an effort seconded by Chairman Clint Didier. The motion passed, 2-1, with Commissioner Lowell "Brad" Peck dissenting. "I want to thank you for your consideration," Rosenau said. That motion followed a failed moti...
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Eastern Washington's two Republican congressional representatives were on opposite sides of the House vote to impreach President Donald Trump for a second time. Fourth Congressional District Rep. Dan Newhouse of Sunnyside joined Democrats in voting for impreachment of the president on grounds of so-called sedition. Newhouse represents Central Washington, including Benton, Franklin, Adams and Grant counties, among others. Fifth Congressional District Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Spokane opposed i...
Roger Harnack’s Jan. 7, 2021 Cheney Free Press article, “Pushing back against bureaucratic harassment,” is troubling. Within the article, the governor and state workers are accused of “illegally” and “unconstitutionally” “extorting,” “blackmailing,” “harassing,” “threatening” and “violating the rights of” business owners. In fact, our duly elected (and re-elected) governor has taken legal, medically and scientifically defensible measures to protect the health and lives of Washington citizens. Our legislature, electe...
OLYMPIA – Two people were arrested this morning, Monday, Jan. 11, as the Legislature entered session behind locked gates. Early in the morning, a woman parked her RV in front of one of the gates and refused to move it or leave, the Washington State Patrol reported. When she was arrested for failing to follow a lawful order, one of her friends moved the RV. Then at precisely 11 a.m. as the Legislature was opening session, a man in his 30s attempted to walk to the Capitol b...
OLYMPIA -- The Washington National Guard and the Washington State Patrol took up positions around the Capitol today in advance of the opening of the legislative session. Their deployment came as two protests took place in the city. The only damage reported was a broken window smashed when some Black Lives Matter protesters broke off from the main protest downtown and marched to the Capitol campus, where state troopers awaited them. After the window damage, the group retreated...
CHENEY — Area restaurants, bars and gyms may be able to reopen indoor services as soon as Jan. 11 under another coronavirus-related plan release by Gov. Jay Inslee during a press conference Tuesday. Under the plan, the state will be divided into eight regions based on proximity to health care services. Spokane County will be grouped in the East Region that includes Ferry, Stevens, Pend O’reille, Lincoln, Whitman, Adams, Garfield and Asotin counties. All regions will be des...
SPOKANE - Extortion, blackmail and harassment. That's what the more than 50 area restaurant and tavern owners and their supporters called Liquor and Cannabis Board officers' threats of fines, license revocation and criminal charges during a protest at lunchtime Monday, Jan. 4. The protesters turned out to board's Spokane office at 1303 W. Broadway Ave. to object to the "illegal" tactics being used by the employees in their efforts to shutdown indoor table service at eateries a...
UPDATED Jan. 5, 2021 at 3:56 p.m. -- CNN has just released a statement from 5th District Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers that after witnessing the pro-Trump violence in Washington D.C. today she is changing her mind and will not support the objections to the Electoral College results in contested states. The combined House and Senate is scheduled to reconvene its joint session to read and accept the results from the Electoral College tonight at 8 p.m. Eastern Standard Time. The... Full story
SPOKANE - Protesters are expected to pack the parking lot of the Liquor and Cannabis Board office at 11:45 a.m. Monday, Jan. 4, to rally for restaurants and taverns trying to keep indoor table service - and their businesses - open. The peaceful protest being organized by Caleb Collier of Spokane Valley will take place in the parking lot at 1303 W. Broadway Ave. The protest is the first of two to take place at Liquor and Cannabis Board offices in Eastern Washington this coming week. The second it set for 4 p.m. Wednesday,...
OLYMPIA — Gov. Jay Inslee this morning extended his coronavirus lockdown measures until 11:59 p.m. Jan. 11, “unless otherwise extended.” Jan. 11 is the opening day of the upcoming legislative session, and Democrats Sen. Andy Billig of Spokane and Laurie Jinkins of Tacoma have said there won't be public access to government buildings. Billig is the Senate majority leader and Jinkins is the House majority leader. They are two of the so-called "four corners" of leadership in the Legislature. The remaining two "corners" are R...
SPOKANE VALLEY — Despite 447 coronavirus-related complaints about businesses in Spokane Valley between Oct. 1 and Dec. 15, at least one local entrepreneur is keeping his doors open for inside eating and drinking. The Black Diamond owner Brandon Fenton said his decision was the right move, despite threats from the state Liquor and Cannabis Board The tavern at 9614 E. Sprague Ave. is among several statewide that have reopened in defiance of Gov. Jay Inslee’s shutdown orders. “We’re open and it’s been busy every day and night...
On Dec. 18, 1917, Congress proposed the 18th Amendment, which would later make it illegal to make, buy, sell or drink alcohol. Two years later, after ratification Jan. 16, 1919, prohibition became the law of the land. For nearly 14 years, Americans who wanted to have an adult beverage were forced underground. They danced, dined, drank and gambled in what became known as a “speakeasy.” Law enforcement and other public employees often knew about their clandestine watering hol...
OLYMPIA – Health care workers in the state could start receiving a Wuhan coronavirus vaccine as early as Tuesday. During a press conference this morning, Sunday, Dec. 13, Gov. Jay Inslee said doses of a vaccine should arrive Monday, Dec. 14. “I’m thrilled that Washington state has now authorized the vaccine,” the governor said. According to the governor, the states of California, Oregon and Washington created their own Western States Working Group comprising 17 members to review the vaccine. “I fully agree with FDA’s dec...
COLFAX — A local couple has shut down their tavern after being threatened by fines and revocation of their liquor license for not complying with coronavirus mandates. Dale and Liz Mann have temporarily closed the Hyde Out Bar and Grill, 215 N. Main St., following a Dec. 1 visit from Spokane-based Liquor and Cannabis Board Retail Liquor Enforcement Officer Dale Golman. "He issued us a warning," Dale Mann said. "He didn't shut us down." Golman issued the couple a citation, c...
OLYMPIA — Gov. Jay Inslee unveiled a new cellphone-based coronavirus exposure notification system Monday. During an afternoon press conference, Inslee touted the new "WaNotify" application designed in corroboration with University of Washington, Google and Apple. The cellphone application is voluntary and uses Bluetooth technology to connect to other cellphones with the application. According to the governor, users who are within 6 feet of someone for 15 minutes who has the application and is reporting the viral infection v...
RITZVILLE — A local lawmaker is stepping down from his leadership position in the state Senate, but he is not retiring. Sen. Mark G. Schoesler, R-Ritzville, confirmed Tuesday morning, Dec. 1, that he won’t be seeking re-election as the Senate minority leader. “It’s real simple,” Schoesler said of his decision. “I’d like to turn my cellphone office and my email off for a bit of time.” With 65.34% of the vote, Schoesler won re-election to the Legislative District No. 9...
FAIRCHILD AFB-Nov. 17 was the 92nd Air Bombardment Wing's 73rd birthday at Fairchild Air Force Base. To celebrate, the base hosted members of the media, including reporter Drew Lawson and publisher Roger Harnack of the Cheney Free Press, on a refueling flight on a KC-135 Stratotanker. The 92nd Air Bombardment Wing became the 92nd Air Refueling Wing in 1994 after several name changes to reflect the base's changing missions and remains so in present day. The experience began as...
