Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
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Wild overnight weather left a quarter of Mason County without power at one point early Wednesday morning, closed roads due to downed power lines and felled trees, flooded roads and delayed schools. At 6:45 a.m. Wednesday, almost 25% of PUD 3 customers lacked service, according to the utility’s website. As of 11 a.m., that number had dropped to 4,419 customers (12.45%) throughout the county, PUD 3’s outage tracker showed. Roads were slower to recover. As of 9 a.m., Purdy Cutoff Road was closed due to multiple downed trees, Skokomish Valley Roa...
Mason County commissioners adopted the 2025 county budget at a special hearing Dec. 2 and next year is looking good financially. The total amount is $184,439,408, with the general fund at $70,816,717 and total other county funds at $113,622,691. The beginning fund balance of $26.6 million plus revenues of $44,216,717, equals the total revenue and beginning fund balance of $70,816,717. Salaries and benefits are $37,566,883, operating expenditures $19,037,321, ending fund balance $14,212,513 for a total of expenditures and ending fund balance of...
William Williams has been sentenced to 35 years for the murder of Janus Afo. Judge Daniel Goodell imposed the state’s recommendation Dec. 12 after hearing from six of Afo’s friends and relatives and Williams’ mother. A jury convicted Williams of second-degree murder Oct. 4. During the trial, jurors heard testimony from Williams, who said Afo was the aggressor on Sept. 28. Williams said he was sleeping in his car with Kennedy Karpf, his girlfriend, when Afo showed up looking to collect an alleged debt Karpf owed to Afo’s friend. Williams testifi...
Appraisers visiting properties throughout county for 2025 Throughout December, county appraisers will be visiting property in Area 2, which includes the Shelton city limits and Shelton Matlock Road to Dayton, Shelton Valley Road, Brockdale Road to just before McEwan Prairie Road, Shelton Springs Road, Johns Prairie Road and state Route 3 out to Bayshore, Arcadia out to Totten Shores, a portion of the beginning of Cole Road and the Mill Creek area. Inspections will be used for the 2025 assessment year/2026 tax year, according to a news release...
A transient who failed to register as a sex offender and was wanted on a felony Department of Corrections warrant stabbed a Shelton Police officer in the hand when the officer attempted to arrest him Dec. 5, according to the SPD. SPD Officer Whitley was treated at the scene and transported to Mason General Hospital for further evaluation, SPD said in a statement. “The officer sustained non-life-threatening injuries and is expected to make a full recovery,” according to the statement. Aaron E. Martinez, 39, was arrested for first-degree ass...
A kayaker who failed to return to Twanoh State Park on Saturday was found dead by the Coast Guard Sunday. Dustin Poe, 26, launched from the park Saturday afternoon and was late returning, Coast Guard Petty Officer Second Class Briana Carter and Mason County Coroner Jaime Taylor told the Journal. At approximately 7:18 p.m., the Coast Guard and Mason County Sheriff’s Office Marine Unit began searching the area, but were thwarted by poor weather, Carter and Deputy Matt Colbenson said. A member of the Coast Guard Air Station Port Angeles spotted P...
A Shelton man died in a car collision Dec. 5 on state Route 3 due to speeding, according to the Washington State Patrol. Levi Eaton, 39, was southbound in an Acura Integra on state Route 3, just north of Grapeview Loop Road South, when he crossed the centerline around 11 p.m. and struck a northbound Audi 8 driven by Belfair resident William Donals, 59, the WSP news release states. Eaton died at the scene and Donals and his passenger were transported to St. Michael Medical Center in Silverdale, according to WSP. Both vehicles were totaled. WSP...
The newest Washington State Patrol trooper has a short commute. “There was only one spot in Shelton and I got the spot,” Trooper Isaiah Tandal told the Journal. Tandal lives in Belfair with his wife and five children. He requested the local assignment after leaving the WSP Academy in Shelton. Graduating cadets can be sent to posts throughout the state, but WSP asks their preferred location and considers family status. Tandal’s last job was at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton as a mem...
The Port of Allyn commissioners appointed a four-member water systems subcommittee at Monday’s regular meeting. The subcommittee will “focus on matters related to the port’s water system operations, planning, and policy recommendations,” according to port documents. “Basically, it’s going to be a subcommittee that’s going to work with commissioners. Commissioners have the full authority to approve or disapprove any decision,” Commissioner John Sheridan said. Subcommittee members will review the port’s current water system operations and re...
State legislators shared their priorities for the upcoming year at a sendoff breakfast at the Alderbrook Golf & Yacht Club in Union Wednesday. The Shelton-Mason County Chamber, North Mason Chamber and Mason County Economic Development Council hosted the event featuring 35th District Reps. Travis Couture and Dan Griffey, both Republicans from Allyn, and state Sen. Drew MacEwen, R-Shelton. Chamber President and CEO Diedre Peterson said the new legislative budget will have long-term impacts for...
The City of Shelton will cover Mayor Eric Onisko’s legal expenses for a suit brought against him and the city for failing to issue a building permit to a marijuana production facility. The City Council voted at its regular Nov. 19 meeting to indemnify Onisko, who abstained. The city’s insurer, Washington Cities Insurance Authority, is covering the city’s defense costs. “The City Council agrees that legal representation and costs associated with the claims against the Mayor shall be borne by the City and covered, as appropriate, by WCIA,...
North Mason High School's band performed at Phil Pugh Stadium for the televised Fox Local Halftime Show during the Seattle Seahawks vs. Arizona Cardinals game Nov. 24. The game was a win for the Seahawks and a win for NMHS Band Director Chris Drewry and student drum majors Athena Bautista and Carl Lewis, who all spoke with "Good Day Seattle" about the experience Nov. 27. "Today, our students got the chance to pull back the curtain and see the wizards behind a major television station, all while...
The North Mason School Board unanimously approved a superintendent recruitment flyer after a study session Nov. 25. The position is now open for applicants through Jan. 5. Search firm Ray & Associates presented results from stakeholders’ meetings and surveys at the workshop to identify qualities wanted by the community in a uperintendent to replace Dana Rosenbach, who will retire in June. “Stakeholders really emphasized the need for consistent, transparent communication and a leader who not only sets clear expectations but ensures fol...
The Shelton-Mason County Chamber of Commerce presented a "State of the Community" event Thursday at the PUD 3 auditorium, where city, county, port and PUD officials discussed how the year went for their organizations, including achievements, obstacles and goals for the future. On the panel were Mason County Commissioner Randy Neatherlin, Shelton City Manager Mark Ziegler, Port of Shelton Executive Director Wendy Smith and PUD 3's Public Information Officer Sheila Corson. Chamber President and...
The Port of Shelton approved a lease with MACECOM at the Nov. 19 meeting, allowing the 911 center to almost double its operating space. MACECOM's current location at the Shelton Civic center has about 1,300 square feet, Executive Director Joe Schmit said at the meeting. The new building on West Rose Nye Way in the port's Peste Business Park will have 5,000 square feet. The lease is for 25 years with a 25-year option. "We've been squeezed for space, stretched thin. I think we were down to six...
The Port of Grapeview’s 2025 Operating & Capital Constriction Budgets were finalized at the Nov. 19 meeting, minus $40,000 in county funding. Commissioner Jean Farmer said the port didn’t get requested $40,000 in .09 money from the county commissioners, which comes from county sales tax. “We will have to ask for a levy increase,” she said. The money is needed to maintain the port’s facilities. Farmer said she would continue to look for grants. The port’s draft budget included the proposed $40,000 in estimated 2025 operating revenue of $236,788...
A Belfair man suspected of DUI died in a head-on collision Thursday night, according to the Washington State Patrol. Juan F. Lopez Bautista, 41, was northbound in a Toyota Corolla on state Route 3 around 9:30 p.m. when he veered into the southbound lane just past East Island View Road. Bautista struck Port Orchard resident Tarah Yeary, 36, who was driving a GMC Yukon. The Corolla came to rest on its top on the northbound shoulder while the Yukon blocked the southbound lane. Bautista was deceased at the scene and his passenger, Felipe Mateo...
A man shot in the head near the Belfair QFC around 2:30 a.m. Friday survived his injuries and was treated and released from the hospital the same day, Mason County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Matt Colbenson told the Journal in an email. Police arrested the suspect in Silverdale Monday, according to MCSO. “On Monday the 18th, MCSO detectives located the suspect vehicle in Silverdale and requested assistance from Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office (KCSO) detectives and patrol units. The suspect was observed leaving a local business and entering the v...
A man who allegedly thought aliens were attacking him was arrested for vandalizing the Mason County Sheriff's Office in downtown Shelton on Nov. 14, according to court documents. A deputy driving by the office around 6:45 p.m. saw Alexander Ivory, 21, inside the parking lot by the automatic gate, the MCSO probable cause document states. "As I pulled into the lot, I could hear Alexander yelling, followed by a throwing motion towards the records office window. I immediately heard the crash of...
Port of Allyn commissioners are taking a “time out” on signing a water connection agreement with MTT Construction, Commissioner John Sheridan said at Monday’s special meeting to discuss the contract. “We are not going to make any decisions today” Commissioner Judy Scott said. MTT plans on buying lots in the Allyn plat from Batjack Holdings, J & J Development and Cedarland Homes, all governed by Joseph Cedarland, according to state corporate filings. Cedarland called the contract “burdensome” at the meeting. “There’s no way as a builder I would...
A boil water advisory for the Grapeview School District, issued Nov. 8 due to E. coli, is still in effect, according to the state Department of Health. Pumps recently installed in a well that supplies water for the school may have allowed the contamination, Superintendent Gerald Grubbs told the Herald in an email. Students are receiving sack lunches from the kitchen until the advisory is lifted, he said. The school’s kitchen has been closed by Mason County Public Health due to the advisory, Environmental Health Manager Ian Tracy told the H...
The Mason County Sheriff’s Office announced a “triage” for increasing calls for service that mostly limits responses to in-progress crimes, according to a news release. Known as “Citizen Reporting,” the program started Nov. 1 and requires MACECOM to divert certain 911 callers to a new online form. “We understand due to historic increases in reported crimes and limitations on available Patrol Deputies to respond, we have had to triage what types of incidents we can respond in person. This has created long wait times for our community m...
Housing Kitsap's Phase 2 line extension and water availability agreement with the Port od Allyn is still in review with legal advisors, according to Executive Director Travis Merrill. "I will be inquiring about status this week as I intend to get this wrapped up before the end of the year," Merrill wrote in his report to commissioners. "I think it will be wrapped up in the next few weeks," he said at Tuesday's meeting. He said he would bring the contact before commissioners for approval. "It's f...
County and state officials celebrated the Belfair pump station in a ribbon cutting ceremony last week. The Washington State Department of Commerce commended Mason County on the completion and cited the project as an example for others. "I'm super excited," Mason County Commissioner Sharon Trask said at the Nov. 4 commission briefings. "This is the way we should do things." The Public Works Board, through the state Department of Commerce, provided a 0.54% interest loan to fund a portion of the co...
Pioneer School District closed Monday due to alleged online posts that said someone was coming to the middle school with a weapon, according to Superintendent Jeff Davis. Davis decided to shut down the school until police could investigate, he told the Journal in an email. “On Sunday evening, a student sent our middle school principal some social media threads that mentioned someone coming to the middle school on Monday with a weapon. Our principal contacted the Sheriff’s Department and provided the information. Based on the information tha...
