Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Dedicated to the citizens of Mason County, Washington since 1886
Sorted by date Results 476 - 500 of 608
U.S. Rep. Derek Kilmer, D-Gig Harbor, visited Mason County PUD 3 on Monday with U.S. Department of Agriculture Under Secretary for Rural Development Xochitl Torres Small and USDA state director Helen Price Johnson to talk with local leaders and officials about broadband infrastructure and other needs. Kilmer said rural broadband allows people to access the internet for virtual classes or for senior citizens to have telehealth visits. "Sometimes it's the door of opportunity for a local business...
Sewer hearing moved to 6 p.m. Mason County commissioners approved moving the time of a Belfair sewer public hearing to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, March 1. During the meeting, county resident Ken Vanbuskirk asked commissioners why the meeting was moved from 9:15 a.m. to 6 p.m., and commissioner Kevin Shutty responded that it was changed so more people could attend an evening public hearing. The first public hearing was Jan. 31 at 6 p.m. through Zoom, and the hearing lasted more than four hours. After hearing from county staff and the public,...
Sewer hearing moved to 6 p.m. Mason County commissioners approved moving the time of a Belfair sewer public hearing to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, March 1. During the meeting, county resident Ken Vanbuskirk asked commissioners why the meeting was moved from 9:15 a.m. to 6 p.m., and commissioner Kevin Shutty responded that it was changed so more people could attend an evening public hearing. The first public hearing was Jan. 31 at 6 p.m. through Zoom, and the hearing lasted more than four hours. After hearing from county staff and the public,...
Mason County COVID-19 cases continue to decrease The county saw a decline in COVID-19 cases, recording 284 cases from Feb. 7 to Sunday. According to Mason County Division of Emergency Management, the seven-day case rate per 100,000 is 1,075.4 and the 14-day case rate is 2,146.2. Only one person was hospitalized as of Sunday and the county is 57.4% vaccinated. Several places in Mason County have COVID test kits and N95 masks. According to Mason County Director of Community Services Dave Windom, N95 masks are in Shelton at the Shelton Catholic...
Rep. Dan Griffey’s bill to reopen safety rest areas throughout the state as soon as possible passed the House unanimously. According to a news release, House Bill 1655 passed Feb. 9. The bill would keep roads safe by allowing all drivers to use safety rest areas immediately, which is a growing safety concern throughout the country. The problem was exacerbated in the state due to the state government closing of many state-owned and operated safety rest areas in fall 2021 due to the pandemic. “We...
Shelton senior Chuckie Thompson was named a first team all-Evergreen Conference boys basketball player. Senior Tyler Ireland was named to the all-EvCo second team. Matai Lei Sam and Bo Blacketer were named EvCo honorable mentions. Tumwater's Luke Brewer was named the EvCo MVP and Thunderbird's coach Josh Wilson was named the coaching staff of the year. W.F. West's Dirk Plakinger and Soren Dalan, Centralia's Landon Kaut and Tumwater's Andrew Collins were all named to the EvCo first...
The Shelton boys basketball team battled W.F. West in Rochester in a loser-out game in the district tournament and came up short in a 45-42 loss to end the Highclimbers' season. Mason Goos led Shelton with 11 points and Chuckie Thompson contributed eight points. Dirk Plakinger recorded 12 points to lead the Bearcats. Shelton took a 19-18, lead into halftime, but struggled in the fourth quarter, scoring just seven points to allow W.F. West to hang on for the win. The Highclimbers started the...
The Shelton boys swim team finished second at the district swim meet Feb. 11 at Mark Morris High School in Longview. Shelton scored 207 points, just 12 points behind first-place Hockinson. Mark Morris finished third with 191 points. Shelton’s 200-yard freestyle relay team of Abram Ordonez, Sean Morson, Charlie Morson and Wyatt Anthis won the district title. The same group also qualified for state in the 200-yard medley relay. Sean Morson qualified for the 200-yard individual medley and the 1...
Gov. Jay Inslee announced the indoor mask mandate will be lifted March 21 in schools and certain indoor spaces. According to the news conference, masks will no longer be required in schools, child care facilities, libraries, restaurants, bars, churches, gyms, recreation centers, indoor athletic facilities, grocery stores, businesses and retail establishments. Masks will still be required in health care and medical facilities, long-term care settings, correctional facilities and private...
The Squaxin Island Tribe's Little Creek Casino Resort has launched sports betting before one of the biggest betting weeks of the year. Little Creek Casino Resort CEO Ramon Nunez said the move complements the casino's position in the market and adds to the excitement of watching sports. "There's a sense of accomplishment knowing that it's done, and it's started," Nunez told the Shelton-Mason County Journal. "Relief in getting to this point and to be able to finally operate it. There's a lot of...
Mason County recorded 643 cases and 15 deaths from COVID-19 from Jan. 31 to Feb. 6. According to Mason County Division of Emergency Management, the deaths included three men in their 50s, one man in his 60s, four men and a woman in their 70s, two men and two women in their 80s and two women in their 90s. The seven-day case rate per 100,000 people is at 1,144 and the 14-day case rate is 2,627.6. There were three people hospitalized as of Sunday and the county is 57.2% vaccinated. People can...
Annas Bay Closure Response Plan amended An amendment to the closure plan for Annas Bay Shellfish Protection District was approved at the Mason County commissioners Feb. 1 meeting. According to the information packet, the original plan was completed in August 2018 and was amended in November 2018 before this amendment. The money for this plan is provided by the Hood Canal Coordinating Council. In September 2017, the state Department of Health changed the classification of approximately 1,220 acres of Annas Bay Commercial Shellfish Growing Area t...
The Mason County Sheriff’s Office and the Mason County Coroner are asking for the public’s help to identify a dead man’s body that was found on Harstine Island on Jan. 16. The Mason County Coroner posted pictures of the John Doe on Facebook and asked for the public’s help Jan. 21. The post has been shared 541 times but hasn’t produced any leads, according to Mason County Coroner Jaime Taylor. The body was found on the beach near East Camden Way on Harstine Island. The deceased man is about 6 f...
Hood Canal Communications receives $5.3 million in grant money Hood Canal Communications announced the award of a $5.3 million broadband grant received from the Washington State Broadband Office in partnership with the Washington Independent Telecommunications Association. According to a news release, the grant is to extend broadband to residents and businesses in several unserved, low-density pockets of Mason County. HCC will contribute about $600,000 in matching money to bring the total...
Rep. Dan Griffey, R-Allyn, saw a bill pass out of the House Finance Committee and two bills pass out of the House Transportation Committee. According to a news release, House Bill 1657 passed out of the House Finance Committee on Feb. 4 and would help reduce emissions and safety risks caused by inadequate commercial truck parking through tax incentives. “We need more safe and secure overnight truck parking options in Washington,” Griffey said in a news release. “By law, truckers must take manda...
Sen. Tim Sheldon’s, D-Potlatch, bill about finance processes for large fire districts cleared the Senate on Feb. 2 with a unanimous vote. According to a news release, Senate Bill 5565 allows larger fire districts with revenues in excess of $10 million to use its own treasurer rather than using the local county or city treasurer. The bill applies to regional fire district authorities in which two or more fire districts share governance. “This is what we mean when we talk about goo...
Rep. Drew MacEwen, R-Union, said House Bill 1788 was the only bill that made it out of committee after Republicans proposed bills about law enforcement. According to the news release, HB 1788 was part of Republicans Safe Washington Plan, which is a set of bills focused on stopping crime, supporting law enforcement and putting victims first. Of five proposed bills, one made it out of committee. MacEwen provided an update about the long-term care and payroll tax, citing a vote to delay the...
It’s almost the end of football season capped off by the biggest game of the year: Super Bowl LVI. The Los Angeles Rams face the Cincinnati Bengals for the Vince Lombardi Trophy. From a regional angle, there is some rooting interest, and there is no more a local star for me (regional for Mason County residents) than Rams’ wide receiver Cooper Kupp, a native of the Palm Springs of Washington (I don’t think Palm Springs, California, is anything like Yakima, but I have never been to Palm Springs to...
Journal reporter Matt Baide asked Mason County’s three head football coaches and other public figures in the county for their take on this Sunday’s Super Bowl LVI. Here are their responses: Justin Johnson, Journal editor The pick: Rams “While L.A. has been inconsistent at times during the past few weeks, when the Rams are at full speed, they’re clearly the best defensive team in the NFL. Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow has shown great resilience playing in front of a suspect offensive line, b...
More than 50 people fired up their computers, tablets or phones to join a Zoom room for a public hearing about the Belfair sewer project Monday evening. The hearing lasted more than four hours, with staff presenting information to the public, followed by community questions, public testimony and commissioners voting to continue the public hearing at 9:15 a.m. on March 1 before making a decision on what to do next. Belfair sewer information County Administrator Mark Neary started the hearing and...
Sen. Tim Shelton, D-Potlatch, has proposed a bill that would allow target shooting on state Department of Natural Resources land. According to a news release, Senate Bill 5865 bill would clear up liability issues for recreational target shooting on public land. The hearing for the bill was Jan. 27 and the bill would establish that the state would not be held liable for unintentional injuries. “The liability issue has been the major obstacle in designating areas for target shooting,” Sheldon sai...
Four appointed to MTA board Mason County commissioners appointed four new Mason Transit Authority Board members at the Feb. 1 commissioners meeting. According to the information packet, John Sheridan, Sandy Tarzwell, Wes Martin and John Campbell were appointed to the MTA board. Sheridan lives in Belfair and is on the Port of Allyn commission. Tarzwell lives in Shelton and is on the Shelton School Board. Martin lives in Grapeview and is on the Grapeview School Board. John Campbell is on the North Mason School Board. The commissioners received...
The Mason County Board of Health met on Jan. 24 to provide updates on COVID-19, environmental health and social service programs. Mason County Health Officer Dr. Keri Gardner provided her report about the COVID-19 omicron variant, stating she has only hospitalized one person out of the hundreds that she’s seen that have omicron, which she said is good news even though omicron is spreading like wildfire. Gardner said the unfortunate news is because infections are widespread, even a small p...
The Mason Transit Authority has officially reopened the Shelton Matlock Park and Ride (shown at right) following expansion and improvements. Shelton Matlock serves bus Route 7, which is the Shelton North Loop and Route 63. The improvements to the park and ride include parking for 65 vehicles, a shelter, security cameras and lights. The money for improvements was provided through state grants to improve transit safety. "With the opening of Shelton Matlock, we are nearing completion of our...
The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association announced updated winter state championship guidelines Jan. 26. According to the news release, WIAA state bowling championships at Narrows Plaza in University Place this weekend will see each classification complete all competition on one day, with 1A/2A competing Friday. Spectators will be allowed but the release states, "If the climate changes and we do not believe we can safely allow spectators, it is possible they will be denied entry."...
