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...
The Shelton City Council on Tuesday evening gave preliminary agreement to extend MACECOM's lease through 2025 at the Shelton Civic Center. The council can make the move official with a vote at its Jan. 7 meeting. The agency that operates as a 911 center would rent a 2,472-square-foot space. In the new proposed agreement, MACECOM would pay $1,085 per month for rent and $3,936 per month for other expenses such as utilities, building maintenance, custodial services, supplies and communications. The...
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 Economic Development Administration announced the Port of Shelton will be awarded $100,000 to partner with Mason PUD 3 on the expansion of the substation at Sanderson Field. The funding will support a feasibility study and is provided through a 2023 Disaster Supplemental funding package designed to aid communities in economic recovery and revitalization following a presidential disaster declaration. “The Port of Shelton is excited to see this project move forward with funding from the Economic Development Administration,” Wendy Smith, exe...
Holiday events kick off in earnest this weekend. Kristmas Town Kiwanis and Peninsula Credit Union present the Holiday Magic Christmas Parade that begins at 5 p.m. Saturday on West Railroad Avenue in downtown Shelton. The KMAS Holiday Christmas Party at Christmastown is hosted from 3-8 p.m. Friday in the Shelton Civic Center, 525 W. Cota St. Admission is free. Deejay Jeff Slakey will spin holiday favorites for dancing. Attendees can create crafts, win prizes and visit with Santa Claus. Shelton...
The Shelton City Council wants local legislative representatives to pursue money for a homeless mitigation site, a roundabout, a crosstown trail and other capital projects when the Legislature convenes next month in Olympia. On Tuesday evening, the council gave preliminary approval to its wish list of capital projects at its regular meeting in the Shelton Civic Center. A final vote is Dec. 17. The requests include $2 million for a homeless mitigation site in partnership with local nonprofits, $2.5 million for a roundabout at Wallace Kneeland...
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,...
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...
The Shelton City Council on Tuesday evening approved a budget of $46.1 million for 2025 at its regular meeting. No one from the public commented on the budget. The council gave preliminary approval to it at its Nov. 5 meeting. Mike Githens, the city’s director of financial services, told the council of changes to the general fund from the preliminary budget. In an email to the Journal, Githens explained the city increased the revenue by $150,000 and increased expenditures $212,500 for a net increase over the first budget hearing of $62,500. W...
Mayor earns leadership certification Shelton Mayor Eric Onisko recently earned an Advanced Certificate of Municipal Leadership from the Association of Washington Cities. The program recognizes city and town elected officials for accomplishing training in five core areas: roles, responsibilities and legal requirements; public sector resource management; community planning and development; effective local leadership; and diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging. "Being a city leader in Washingto...
Since being approved by Shelton voters in 2016, sales tax for the city's Transportation Benefit District has collected $5 million dedicated for transportation maintenance projects. The sales tax increase of 0.2% for 10 years has funded 10.2 miles of paving and chip sealing. Along with state and federal money, the TBD money has also helped pay for ambitious capital projects such as the Safe to Schools traffic improvements in front of Evergreen Elementary School and Shelton High School, and the...
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...
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...
The Shelton City Council on Tuesday evening gave preliminary approval to a budget of almost $46 million for 2025. The budget can pass with a vote at the council’s meeting at 6 p.m. Nov. 19 at the Shelton Civic Center. No one stepped up to the microphone at the public hearing. The proposed budget totals $45,902,596, with a general fund appropriation of $16,789,551. The state requires that the budget be approved by the end of the year. The proposed 2025 budget is $1.9 million higher — a 4.3% increase — than the adopted 2024 general fund budge...
Commissioners continued to make progress on the 2025 county budget, with an estimated Jan. 1 beginning fund balance of $26.5 million, revenues at $43.9 million for a total beginning balance of $70.4 million for maintenance level, according to an Oct. 22 workshop. Department heads put in requests for funds and now it’s up to commissioners to decide what the county can afford. All three commissioners gave thumbs-down to creating new staff positions and nixed advanced requests for overtime. When commissioners see hundreds of thousands of d...
New Horizon Communities and South Sound Solar on Oct. 30 hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony and reception marking the completion of the Shelton Veterans Village solar project in Shelton. "It takes a special dedication to come out in the rain," said Dave Redman, the program supervisor at the Shelton Veterans Village. Construction of the solar array on Shelton Veterans Village's 30 tiny homes and community center was completed in September. The Shelton Veterans Village has 156 solar panels, 102 of...
The Veterans of Foreign Wars #1694 and its auxiliary host a breakfast and Veterans Day ceremony Monday morning at Memorial Hall, 210 W. Franklin St., downtown Shelton. The doors open at 9:30 a.m., and breakfast is served at 11 a.m. Members of the Shelton NJROTC will participate in the ceremony. The microphone will be passed around so veterans can share their stories....
