Snoqualmie Valley Record, July 09, 2014

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Valley Record SNOQUALMIE

WEDNESDAY, JULY 9, 2014 n DAILY UPDATES AT WWW.VALLEYRECORD.COM n 75 CENTS

Valley Hospital may go to Overlake Citing changing health care business, King County Hospital District 4 explores sale to Bellevue BY SETH TRUSCOTT Editor

Fiddler on the Roof comes to Forest Theater Page 9

Explosion: accidental North Bend Way cleanup can begin BY CAROL LADWIG

BUSINESS

Staff Reporter

New business celebrates the artist inside with Arty Party Page 15

INDEX Opinion 4 5 Puzzles 6 Calendar 11 Movie Times Classifieds 11-14 On the Scanner 15

Vol. 101, No. 7

Natural gas was a factor in an April 25 explosion that destroyed three buildings on North Bend Way, but it was an accident, according to a report coming from the King County Fire Investigation Unit. “We are comfortable it was an accidental event,” said Craig Muller, who completed his report last week. A release of natural gas in the Pizza Place building, undergoing renovation for a new business that was reportedly days away from opening, contributed to the blast. “It appeared that a couple of valves had been inadvertently left open,” Muller said. Now that the investigation is complete, that debris field can be cleaned up. North Bend City officials have been eager for this moment, because until the investigators formally conclude their work in the city, the blast area had to remain untouched, SEE BLAST, 7

sought so that Valley health care can compete and survive. With large Accountable Care Organizations, or ACOs, forming in Washington, made up of partnerships between some of the biggest hospitals—among them Overlake— smaller hospitals are challenged to stay independent, he said. These contracting units are “how health care is going to be rationed in

the future,” McCollum said. “This is the driver, the roll-up of health care into these large affiliations of providers to cut costs out of the system. What that means for us is that, in future, we’re either aligned or somehow connected to large networks of health care, or we run the risk of being orphaned out here.” SEE HOSPITAL, 3

Fourth of July footwork

Second Lt. Monica Lui crosses Tolt Avenue in formation with the Seattle Chinese Community Girls Drill Team, Friday morning, during the Carnation Fourth of July Parade. The festival committee welcomed the drill team back after a hiatus of several years. They won the 2014 parade award for best drill team. See more Carnation Fourth photos on page 2, or visit www.valleyrecord.com.

Seth Truscott/Staff Photo

Making the best of it Once-closed Carnation Food Bank opens in new space, but with same spirit of service BY CAROL LADWIG Staff Reporter

Carol Ladwig/Staff Photo

Elizabeth Wing folds some clothes she is donating to the new Carnation Public Food Bank on Myrtle Street.

Things were slow at the newly opened Carnation Public Food Bank on July 2, but in a good way. In an hour’s time, about eight people stopped in at the Myrtle Avenue building. About half of them were collecting some needed food and clothing items, and the rest were dropping off donations, or just there to chat. And that’s pretty much what Fred Vosk had in mind when he envisioned the re-opening of the food bank. SEE FOOD BANK, 9

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THEATER

The foundation is poured, walls are up and the tower cap freshly lifted in place at what, for now, is the future Snoqualmie Valley Hospital. When it opens, however, the new hospital may be a branch of Bellevue’s Overlake Hospital Medical Center.

King County Public Hospital District No. 4, the rural district centered on Snoqualmie, is considering selling its hospital and clinics to Overlake. The district’s board of commissioners approved a letter of intent to negotiate a sale at their Thursday, July 3, regular meeting. District CEO Rodger McCollum said Wednesday that the sale is


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