Washington is making dramatic and steady progress on cleaning up the state’s voter registration rolls, particularly in removing duplicate or deceased voters from the lists, but the difficult task of culling ineligible felons remains a challenge, the state Elections Division reported.
If you aren’t currently registered to vote in Washington and want to vote in the Nov. 4 general election, you have until the Oct. 20 deadline to so in person at your county elections office. Secretary of State Sam Reed is urging eligible residents to register in person to vote by Monday’s deadline so they can take part in the election.
The Gray & Osborne Infrastructure Study gave us 52 million good reasons to look at alternatives to annexation of additional residential land into the Town of Friday Harbor. The Town of Friday Harbor currently has enough residential zoned land to both satisfy the county’s long-term affordable housing needs and provide entry-level homes for working islanders. With minimal creativity, we can meet the projected housing demands of the Growth Management Act without expanding the town’s boundaries one inch.
I am writing in response to a letter from Michael Mayes published in The Journal of the San Juan Islands (“Grover Street is a liability”, Sept. 17). This is the second letter Mr. Mayes has written to The Journal attempting to throw up roadblocks preventing the annexation of the Buck/Boreen property. Mr. Mayes has also addressed Town Council meetings and been interviewed by at least one Journal reporter regarding the proposed annexation.
The Friday Harbor girls soccer team clinched the Northwest 1A/2B championship Thursday, defeating Orcas at home 3-0. Fifth-year coach Mark Fishaut believes it’s the first title in the program’s history — if not the first in its history, the first in Fishaut’s career and the first in recent memory.
Julie Corey has opened Friday Harbor Mortgage. She was previously with Countrywide and has 15 years experience. Her new business, Friday Harbor Mortgage, is a branch of Axia Financial, LLC. The office is located at 20 West St. next to The Whale Museum. She is looking forward to offering her clients a wider selection of mortgage solutions.
Reunion for the Friday Harbor High School Class of 1998 — titled “10-Year Reunion Done ‘Island Style'” — is Saturday, Oct. 18, noon at Cady Seiler’s House, 625 Park St., Friday Harbor.
The community sports fields project at the end of Carter Avenue is on the 50-yard line, with curbs, gutters, roads and sidewalks completed and the clubhouse under construction. Donny Galt Jr., president of the Friday Harbor Athletic Association, put the value of the work to date at $1.3 million — funded through private donations and volunteer labor. Now under way: grading the sports fields and completion of the clubhouse.
Doug and Lori Guard, long-time residents of the island, proudly announce the engagement of their daughter, Jennifer Guard, to Cody Anderson of Murrieta, Calif. The young couple met at Calvary Chapel Bible College in Murrieta, Calif. They became engaged June 5, 2008.
It’s time for Lolita to be returned home. The Southern Resident orca, you may recall, was captured in 1970 in our waters and now resides, and performs on demand, at the Miami Seaquarium. Since 1995, Orca Network and the San Juan Island-based Center for Whale Research have lobbied for the whale’s return to the Salish Sea, but the aquarium’s ownership rights have apparently trumped the Endangered Species Act, the Marine Mammal Protection Act and other animal welfare laws.
The Friday Harbor Town Council has scheduled a Nov. 20, 5:30 p.m. public hearing on the proposed annexation of the so-called Buck/Boreen property.
Jawaad Reaves pleaded innocent Friday to a charge of second-degree murder in the death of his brother, Jermaine. Superior Court Judge John O. Linde scheduled trial for Feb. 9. Bail was reduced from $100,000 to $50,000. Reaves posted bail Saturday and was released from Island County Jail. His employer, Miller Drywall, said he was back at work Monday.
After an even and scoreless first half, the Wolverines — undefeated in league, 8-2 overall — came out strong and dominated the second session. Elle Guard broke the ice with a Steven Gerrard-like strike from 30 yards in the 44th minute.
