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e broadband fiber system is set to begin in February, weather permitting, was the word during the recent Port of Garfield board meeting The Port of Garfield County Commissioners met Tuesday evening, January 21. A contract has been signed with M&L Construction, Inc. from Spokane, and a pre-construction meeting is set for Monday, February 1, 2020. A new contract was approved and signed for the management of the construction phase and operation of the broadband system. The previous contract was with the Port of Whitman, who will remain the...
POMEROY-The Port of Garfield Commissioner Cody Bye, and Port Director Diana Ruchert, the met with the Garfield County Commissioners to discuss the progress of the Port’s broadband system and the possible inclusion of the fairgrounds in the first phase of construction during last Tuesday, January 21. Ruchert provided a list of costs associated with the construction and reported that they have a signed contract with M&L Construction, Inc. out of Spokane to begin the work. M&L has been in business since 1972 and specializes in utility i...
presenting Pomeroy Assist, met with the Garfield County Commissioners January 13, to request money for the operation of the emergency public housing facility. Since transferring ownership of the property in December from the Blue Mountain Action Council (BMAC), Pomeroy Assist discovered their 2020 budget leaves only $500 in their operations account. Garfield County has agreed to fund $14,000 yearly to the public housing facility, and the Pomeroy Assist request was asking for the first quarter funding of $3,500 to be paid right away. The former...
POMEROY-The Garfield County Fire District held meeting on January 14 was the first held after the abrupt departure of the Fire Chief, Kris Darby, and with a new Commissioner, Aaron Stallcop, on board. The commissioners discussed at length how to proceed with replacing Darby who resigned as Fire Chief on December 31, 2019. Darby also served as the District Secretary, full-time EMT, as well as covered weekend, evening and holiday shifts as a volunteer. The next task is to restructure the position to better balance the Fire Chief responsibilities...
POMEROY-A few changes have been made in the committee assignments for the commissioners, as a preliminary planned adjustment to Commissioner Bob Johnson obligations who has decided to retire at the end of his term in 2020. Chairman Justin Dixon will serve on the following committees: Washington Counties Risk Pool (first alternate Johnson, second alternate Commissioner Wynne McCabe), Blues Intergovernmental Council, Work Force Development Board, Snake River Salmon Recovery Board, Blue Mountain...
POMEROY-The proposed contract with Allevant Solutions, LLC was the topic of discussion during the regular Garfield County Hospital District (GCHD) Board meeting January 6, 2020. Allevant was developed by the Mayo Clinic and Select Medical to create a treatment destination for post-acute care and rehabilitation through skill nursing services. If the GCHD chooses to contract with Allevant, they will receive training for their medical staff and marketing services to bring in patients for the swing bed portion of the hospital. The cost of the...
POMEROY-The Garfield County Fire District (GCFD) Commissioners accepted the resignation of Fire Chief Kris Darby in an emergency meeting held December 31, 2019, according to Commissioner Aaron Stallcop. The resignation was effective immediately, and Officer Kyle Pearson has been appointed as the interim Fire Chief until a new full-time EMT can be hired and fully trained. Stallcop stated that Darby was not asked to resign. Darby has moved from the Pomeroy area and currently resides at his family...
POMEROY–Garfield County Engineer and Public Works Director, Grant Morgan, presented a letter to be signed and sent to the Washington State Transportation Commission opposing the proposed Road Usage Charge (RUC) to the Garfield County Commissioners during the regular meeting January 6, 2020. Copies of the letter will also be forwarded to Governor Jay Inslee, State Representatives Jake Fey, 27th–D; Mary Dye, 9th–R; Joe Schmick 9th–R, Senators Steve Hobbs, 44th–D; Mark Schoesler, 9th-R and Secretary of Transportation, Roger Miller. The commissione...
POMEROY-The Garfield County Commissioners approved the budget for 2020 at a public hearing at 10 a.m. Monday morning, December 30, 2019, at the Garfield County Courthouse board room, and signed Resolution 2019-33. The Supplemental Budget Hearing was also approved and signed as Resolution 2019-34. Grant Morgan, County Engineer and Director of Public Works, reported to the commissioners what he has learned through emails and a meeting of the County Road Administration Board (CRAB) regarding expected funding cuts resulting from implementation of...
POMEROY–Local High School freshman Lane Shawley, returned from his first Junior World Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas, held during the week of December 3-11, 2019, without a win, but with an enthusiastic attitude. He competed with the Senior and Novice Saddle Bronc riders on December 5 and 7, at what was billed as the "Biggest Cowboy Christmas in Las Vegas" event, held next to the T-Mobile Arena, near the Las Vegas Strip. Shawley completed his check-in duties of gear checks and a weigh-in, on December...
POMEROY–Jack Peasley, Southeast Washington Economic Development Association (SEWEDA), Pomeroy Director discussed several projects during the Pomeroy Garfield County Community Economic Development Forum meeting in November. First, he announced that he is working as a Garfield County coordinator for the U.S. Census, through the Blue Mountain Action Council (BMAC) out of Walla Walla. BMAC has received a grant for $140,000, to include Garfield County in working to be sure each and every individual in the county is counted and included in the C...
POMEROY-Katie Magill, Garfield County District Court Deputy, brought a new legislative issue to the attention of the Garfield County Commissioners at their regular meeting Monday, December 23, 2019. The new bill being considered in the Washington state legislature would change the penalty for non-payment of moving violations tickets. Currently, if someone is charged with a moving violation and does not pay the fine, or does not show up in court, the judge has the right to suspend their license or order jail time. This judgement can go into effe...
POMEROY–At the monthly meeting of the Garfield County Transportation Authority, Rachel Anderson, General Manager, announced that a brand new cut-away van is expected to arrive soon. It is currently being fitted and installed with needed equipment. The total cost on the van is $77,327.84, of which the Washington State Department of Transportation will reimburse the GCTA for 80% of the cost, leaving about $17,500 for the GCTA to pay. The last two vehicles purchased were at no cost to the GCTA. Anderson said that she was not able to get full f...
POMEROY–Mike Shock, Vice President of Columbia Pulp, and one of the three founders of the company took time to explained some intricacies relating to the purpose of the local plant during a Pomeroy Garfield County Community Economic Development Forum in meeting last November. He stated that the Pomeroy plant was started as a pilot plant with the intention of debugging the process of making pulp products from wheat byproducts. They also wanted to use the facility to train people and generate samples of the pulp commodities to use for m...
POMEROY–Martha Lanman, Public Health Administrator for the Garfield County Health District, announced at its regular monthly meeting with the Garfield County Commissioners on Monday, December 23, 2019, that they have received a $150,000 grant from the Group Health Organization for the use of mental health services. The Health District will be looking at setting up a program in the Pomeroy Schools to provide a mental health counselor for students. A similar program has already been established in the Dayton School District, and Lanman expects th...
POMEROY–A special meeting to discuss the amount of the special levy that the GCHD will run in April, 2020, was held at the Pomeroy Senior Center by the Garfield County Hospital District (GCHD) Tuesday, December 17. A presentation by Allevant Solutions, LLC was conducted via phone and a slide show. The special levy for $860,000, will run again in April, 2020 as it did on the last ballot in November, 2019. Board member Gary Houser stated that the board needs to make it clear to the public that i...
POMEROY–The Shepherd Foundation has awarded the Pomeroy School District a total of $28,247.08, as well as an additional $6,000 for two other purposes, announced Superintendent Rachel Gwinn. The original sum included awards for Future Farmers of America (FFA), Future Business Leaders of America (FBLA), Missoula Children’s Theatre, WSU Garfield County Master Gardeners Program, K-6 Learn 360, Elementary Art, Advanced Biology trip, Fifth Avenue Theatre, K-2 Brain POP Software, First/Second Grade Classroom Library, Sixth Grade Classroom Lib...
POMEROY–At the third meeting of the Pomeroy/Garfield County Community/Economic Development Forum (PGCCEDF) at the Pataha Flour Mill on November 19, about 20 people attended to give a synopisis of their businesses and overview of what they provide to the community. The Forum is also to bring organizations together to collaborate and identify areas where they can unify a vision for the economic health of the community. Representatives from the Port of Garfield, Pomeroy Assist, Pomeroy Grain Growers, Garfield County Ag Museum, Garfield County H...
POMEROY-The Port of Garfield opened four bids from companies bidding for the construction contract for the broadband system installation at a special meeting December 19. Proposals were received from Blue Mountain Telecommunications Services, Inc. (BMTS) out of Walla Walla, Wash., M&L Construction Inc. (MLC), Spokane, Wash., Pocket iNet Communications, Inc. (PNC), Walla Walla, Wash., and Summit Utility Contractors LLC (SUC) from Lewiston, Idaho. BMTS submitted a bid for a total of $839,916.76; MLC for $633,733.73; PNC for $898,563.72; and SUC...
POMEROY–Pomeroy High School Senior Alyssa Wolf, presented two checks for $1949.25 each to representatives of St. Joseph Diabetes Center and the Shriners at the morning high school assembly on December 12. The funds were raised at the annual "Beat Diabetes Basketball Tournament" held at the Pomeroy School District gyms on November 23. Susan Rauch, representing the St. Joseph Diabetes Center, spoke with the high school students and praised them for the continued generosity shown by the c...
POMEROY-A Garfield County Commissioners workshop was held in the County courtroom to discuss plans for providing County Fairground maintenance on Monday, December 9. The recent resignation of Paula Kessler, long-time fairgrounds maintenance person, and Ron Kessler, volunteer, has left the County searching for a solution to the problem. Before the Kesslers’ resignation, the Commissioners had been discussing the need to establish a job description for the maintenance position and a prioritized list of future capital improvements and repair p...
POMEROY-The 2020 Budget for the Garfield County Fire District (GCFD)was presented by Fire Chief Kris Darby and approved by the commissioners. Darby stated that the total 2019 expenses were much the same as the 2018 expenses, and the fire district "stayed in the black" for 2019, even though they were in the process of building a new fire station. According to Darby, this was accomplished by investing money wisely. The budget for 2020 is set at $1.4 million. The Garfield County Fire District...
POMEROY–The Garfield County Hospital District (GCHD), has decided to run a Special Levy again in 2020, after its failure to receive enough votes to pass in November, 2019. This decision was made in light of the announcement by Jim Heilsburg, CFO, that the GCHD will run out of money to operate by September, 2021. Heilsburg explained how Medicare reimbursements work, which is a complicated process of filing cost reports and waiting several months to a year later for audits and adjustments which may result in a payment due to Medicare, or a p...
POMEROY-The Puget Sound Energy Lower Snake River Wind Habitat Project Fund of the Blue Mountain Community Fund (BMCF) presented a check for $25,000 to the Conservation District here Monday afternoon, December 9. The grant will help fund two restoration projects in Garfield County; restoring a two mile stretch of Pataha Creek and recovery of a five–acre landfill on Bell Plain Road. About six miles southeast of Pomeroy Pataha Creek, the project will make improvements to the mainstream through habi...
POMEROY–Firefighters and law enforcement personnel escorted the body of Ashton K. Farley, a Walla Walla volunteer firefighter, through Garfield County as he was transported from Prescott, Wash., to Moscow, Idaho Friday morning, December 6, 2019. The motorcade began at the Prescott Fire Station, leaving there at 7:30 a.m., and proceeded through Walla Walla County, Waitsburg, onto Columbia County, Dayton, then into Garfield County. The Sheriff's Department and Garfield County Fire District No.1 j...