Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Sorted by date Results 726 - 750 of 859
Taggers have vandalized Shelton Mayor Eric Onisko's Texaco station with paint three times in the past month. "The graffiti's gotten pretty crazy lately, all over town," Onisko said during the Shelton City Council's work session March 8. Other council members agreed. "I've definitely seen an uptick of this in the community, not just downtown," said Joe Schmit. "You drive by an alley and 'boom,' and it wasn't there yesterday," said Kathy McDowell. "When did they do it?" City Manager Jeff Niten...
Erika Edgin, Tryssa Robertson and Hailey Lohman were Mary M. Knight ninth-graders when they donned face masks to ward off the COVID-19 virus. On Monday, as high school juniors, they took off their masks. "It feels like we're supposed to go back to normal, but it's not our normal," Edgin said as the trio stood together outside during a class project Tuesday. She added, "I go to pull up my mask, and it's not there." Monday was the first day students, teachers and other school staff were allowed...
In June, Shelton High School anticipates that 331 of its 363 seniors will graduate, a 91% rate. That would exceed the school's goal to increase the percentage of seniors graduating in four years from 78.1% - the rate from 2016 to 2020 - to 90% at the end of the school year. Shelton High School Principal Bruce Kipper on March 8 presented the school's improvement plan to the Shelton School Board. He also talked about the efforts to return a sense of "normalcy" to the campus two years into the...
Four junk removal companies last week hauled away 50 tons of cars, sofas, wooden pallets, doors, toys and other debris from Evergreen Mobile Estates near Shelton's Sanderson Field. The Evergreen Mobile Homeowners Cooperative that oversees about 50 manufactured homes on East Blevins Road North received a grant for the pickup. The cooperative hired Mason County Clean Outs & Junk Removal, WashingTone's Junk Removal, R&K Recycle and Transport, and Dirt & Stuff Mason County Clean Outs to haul away...
Shelton Music has moved to Olympic Highway North in the Mountain View district after conducting business for seven years in downtown Shelton. The business's lease expired at 415 West Railroad Ave., said store manager Jimmy Garrod. The new site at 2337 Olympic Highway North, Suite 100, is immediately south of McDonald's. The windows were broken three times at the downtown location, and no suspects were ever found, Garrod said. The business purchases instruments from five or six companies, Garrod...
On Friday morning, Pioneer Elementary first-graders planted pea seeds in the garden behind their school. Their classmates followed suit in the following days, the second-graders feeling the soil on their fingers while planting kale. Third-graders planted spinach and the fourth-graders lettuce. They will water, weed, harvest and eat the produce in the garden created and coordinated by the Harstine Island Garden Club. Along the way, the students will get exercise, create art in the space, and...
Five years after receiving state money, ground is finally set to be broken this summer for a village for homeless veterans in Shelton. The Shelton Veteran's Village will feature seven four-plexes, two duplexes and a community center on a triangle of land leased from the City of Shelton on North 13th Street in the Mountain View area, near Olympic College Shelton. Homeless veterans from Shelton and Mason County will be given preference in housing. Construction is expected to be completed in April...
Four receive parks advisory board terms The Shelton City Council on March 1 appointed four people to its Parks and Recreation Committee, two of them continuing their service and two new to the group. Debra Dozier and Sue Patterson will continue with new four-year terms. Melissa Stearns and Mel Schneider applied for the remaining openings. Stearns will serve a four-year term, and Schneider will fulfill the term vacated by Chris Wright through the end of this year. The Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee makes recommendations to the city...
Pioneer Schools seek old photos of school buildings Pioneer School District seeks old photos of the schools – and former schools such as Grant, Oakland Bay and Harstine Island — and the community in general so they can be posted March 19 at the annual school board retreat in the school’s commons. The photos can be dropped off March 18 to Lynn Chakos in the district office. The name of the photo’s owner and a phone number should be on the back of the photo so they can be returned. The school board is hosting a special meeting and executi...
Starting March 12, students and employees in Mason County’s seven school districts will no longer be required to wear face masks in school buildings or on buses. People have the option to continue to wear masks, which will remain available at schools. Gov. Jay Inslee made the announcement Monday. Schools in Oregon and California passed identical measures. In a post Tuesday, North Mason School District stated, “Students and staff will have the choice to wear a mask at school, with the expectation that others’ choices will be respected. One s...
The Shelton City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved new and amended noise ordinances that outlaw sounds of repetitive squealing tires and screeching car engines, continuous noise from pets and off-hours construction. The council gave preliminary approval to the ordinances at its Feb. 15 meeting. The rules go into effect Sunday. No one from the public or the council commented on the changes. The city’s current noise ordinances were adopted in 2006. The council discussed the proposed additions and changes Nov. 23 at a study session. The laws...
Two years into the pandemic, CHOICE High School is in “a bit of an uphill battle,” Principal Stacey Anderson told the Shelton School Board. “This has been the toughest year for me and my staff and for the kids, harder than last year by far,” Anderson said as she presented the school’s improvement plan Feb. 23. “We’ve had more fights this year than any year I have been principal.” Those conflicts prompted the school last week to begin limiting one student at a time in the restrooms. Anderson also delivered encouraging news to the board, and...
The Shelton City Council on Tuesday postponed a decision on proposed animal ordinances that would limit the number of chickens to five hens, and require dogs to be walked on leashes that can’t extend beyond 20 feet. The council gave preliminary approval to new animal ordinances at its Feb. 15 meeting. At Tuesday’s meeting, council member Joe Schmit made a motion to postpone the decision until the council discusses the wording at a study session April 12. That motion passed unanimously. Under the proposed ordinance, residents in neighborhoods in...
City of Shelton residents would be allowed a maximum of five hens and no roosters in a proposed animal ordinance. The Shelton City Council gave preliminary approval to new animal ordinances at its Feb. 15 meeting. The council can vote for final approval at its meeting at 6 p.m. March 1. People are invited to share their comments during the Zoom meeting. The link can be found on the city's website. Under the proposed ordinance, residents in neighborhoods on land between 5,000 and 43,559 square...
New display coming to Civic Center gallery Photographs by Deborah Chava Singer and pencil-on-paper pieces by Sara Dobbs will on display during March at the Shelton Civic Center’s Rotating Arts Gallery. The Shelton City Council on Feb. 15 voted unanimously to accept the displays. The Shelton Arts Commission recommended the pieces after soliciting submissions from local artists. City seeking civil service commissioner The City of Shelton is accepting applications to fill a voluntary vacancy on the Civil Service Commission. The applicants must b...
The City of Shelton has contracted with Adopt-A-Pet of Shelton to accept unclaimed shelter animals and care for them while they arrange for pet adoption. The Shelton City Council made the deal official with a unanimous vote at its Feb. 15 meeting. The city report states the agreement allows Shelton's animal shelter to be a short-term holding facility pending transfer to Adopt-A-Pet, a nonprofit with a shelter on East Jensen Road north of Shelton. The city will pay the organization $200 per dog....
The Pioneer School District is beginning its search for a new superintendent after parting ways with Jill Diehl after 1½ years. The Pioneer School Board on Tuesday swore in Doris Bolender after changing her title from acting superintendent to interim superintendent. Bolender, the former superintendent of the Southside School District, is the principal of the Pioneer Middle School. The board announced it will begin the search for a new superintendent at its retreat on March 5. The board will decide whether to hire a firm to find candidates,...
The Shelton City Council on Tuesday gave preliminary approval to new and amended noise ordinances that would outlaw repetitive squealing tires, revving car engines, continuous noise from pets and off-hours construction. The council can make the new noise laws and amendments official by granting final approval at its March 1 meeting. The city's current noise ordinances were adopted in 2006. The council discussed the proposed additions and changes Nov. 23 at a study session. The laws are aimed at...
The Shelton City Council on Tuesday awarded two design contracts to a Tacoma company to design the repaving of Brockdale Road, and Safe Routes to School to help students walking near Oakland Bay Junior High, Evergreen Elementary School, and Shelton, CHOICE and Cedar high schools. RH2 Engineering will receive a maximum of $161,238 to design both projects. The council gave preliminary approval at its Feb. 1 meeting. The city advertised the need for design services for both projects in August, and...
The Pioneer School District is parting ways with Superintendent Jill Diehl. In a special meeting Feb. 11, the Pioneer School Board voted 5-0 to let Diehl remain on leave with pay for the remainder of the contract year in June. On Feb. 4, the board voted 4-1 to place Diehl on paid administrative leave, and named former Southside Schools Superintendent Doris Bolender as the acting superintendent. The moves came two months after the Pioneer Education Association presented a vote of “no confidence” on Diehl to the board. School Board President Sus...
Activities at Shelton senior center Activities at the Mason County Senior Activities Center at the Pavilion, 190 W. Sentry Drive in Shelton include tai chi, yoga, line dancing, quilting, machine knitting, crafters, Monday art workshops, pool, bridge, pinochle, hand and foot care, cribbage, Mexican train dominoes, mahjong, bingo and movies on Tuesdays. Proof of vaccination is required to enter the building. Master Gardeners host winter workshop Mason County Master Gardeners host the last of its annual winter workshops on Zoom from 9 to 10:30...
Grant for woman to continue schooling The Shelton Chapter GQ of P.E.O. is offering a $1,500 grant to a local woman to continue her education. To qualify, the woman must be a Mason County resident; a high school graduate or equivalent education; and be enrolled in the 2022-23 academic year at an accredited academic or technical college. The money can be used for tuition, books, transportation, child care or other expenses while attending. The award will be sent directly to the recipient. Applications are available at Shelton and CHOICE high...
Pinky Neuharth turned 100 years old on Valentine's Day, with his thoughts on his late wife, Gladys, who died four years ago. Her ashes are in a box on a shelf, next to a rose, in his room at Maple Glen Senior Living in Shelton. Neuharth - who was born in Seattle on Feb. 14, 1922 - said he plans to be cremated upon his death and have his ashes mixed with Gladys'. They will be released into the north fork of the Skokomish River and drift together into Lake Cushman, where they lived full time...
Voters approved replacement levies for the Hood Canal and Mary M. Knight school districts, while a Hood Canal building bond is falling short of a 60% super majority. In initial ballot results released at 8 p.m. Tuesday, the Mary M. Knight levy received 57.19% of the vote, and the Hood Canal levy 59.61%. Hood Canal's proposed bond to expand and renovate was at 56.16%. The Mason County Auditor's Office released the second count of ballots at 4 p.m. Wednesday, after the Journal went to press. Turno...
The Pioneer School Board on Friday placed Superintendent Jill Diehl on paid administrative leave and named former Southside Schools Superintendent Doris Bolender as the acting superintendent. The move came almost two months after the Pioneer Education Association presented a vote of "no confidence" on Diehl to the board. Four members of the five-member board voted for the actions, with Dwayne Kipple abstaining. "The board is pleased to have Ms. Bolender available to assume this important...
