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VOL. 16, NO. 42
MIRROR
F E D E R A L WAY
DIVISION OF SOUND PUBLISHING
OPINION | Roegner: Candidates’ stances on gun measures [4]
JIMMY MAC’S ROADHOUSE
SPORTS | Todd Beamer cross FRIDAY, OCTOBER 17, 2014 | 75¢ country captain inspires [12]
COMMUNITY | Author compiles poetry over 35-year career into book [14] MARIJUANA| Council committee upholds potential marijuana business ban, addresses medical side [11] ELECTION | Learn more about 30th Legislative District candidates [16-23]
Police investigate marijuana grow operation
School bus strikes, injures student in crosswalk
Basement fire ruins three businesses, shuts down Pacific Highway for hours Tuesday morning BY RAECHEL DAWSON
BY SARAH KEHOE
rdawson@fedwaymirror.com
T
skehoe@fedwaymirror.com
A student was hit by a Federal Way Public Schools bus in front of Federal Way High School on Thursday morning. The 15-year-old girl was in the crosswalk at South 308th and Pacific Highway South when she was hit, according to police. She was taken to the hospital in serious condition. Pacific Highway South was closed in both directions for the investigation. There were 11 elementary students inside the bus at the time of the accident, said to Debra Stenberg, communications director. The school district is investigating the incident. “While we don’t know the exact circumstances yet, per our normal protocol, the bus driver is placed on administrative leave during the course of our investigation,” Stenberg said. The school district sent counselors to Federal Way High School so they could be available for students needing to speak to someone. Counselors were also sent to talk to students that were on the bus in case any of them were affected by the accident. “Our thoughts are with the student and her family,” Stenberg said.
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Above, South King Fire and Rescue work to put out a business complex fire, located in the 29200 block of Pacific Highway S., the morning of Oct. 14. Contributed photo Left, Awards by Wilson, Sin on Skin Tattoo and Body Piercing and unoccupied business All Martial Arts Supplies were damaged in the fire firefighters believe originated in the basement of the building. Police suspect a marijuana grow operation may be the cause of the fire that caused hours of traffic delays that morning. Contributed photo
he Federal Way Police Department has obtained a search warrant on the business that went up in flames Tuesday morning. Cathy Schrock, a spokeswoman with the police department, said South King Fire and Rescue officials suspected a marijuana grow operation in the basement of the commercial building located at the 29200 block of Pacific Highway S. as they worked to control the fire. The fire extensively damaged businesses Sin on Skin Tattoo and Body Piercing, Awards by Wilson and unoccupied business All Martial Arts Supplies after a 911 call came in at around 6 a.m. by the tattoo shop owner. Schrock said police were unable to investigate Tuesday because it was a fire scene but executed the search warrant Wednesday to determine if there was a marijuana grow operation and whether it was legal or not. A Department of Corrections officer served an arrest warrant at the tattoo shop on Oct. 9 and Federal Way police were called to assist. Schrock said police did not enter the building, nor was the there a search on the building. “Even the name of the suspect at this point is not known, as it was a department of corrections arrest warrant,” Schrock said. But otherwise, the police department had no prior contact or complaints of criminal activity at the businesses. The parameters of legally growing medical marijuana are defined by state law and interpreted by the King County Prosecutor’s Office. Currently, the medical marijuana laws authorize a grower to have 15 plants. Upon the execution of the warrant, the Federal Way Police Department will determine whether there is probable cause of a crime and, if so, the case will be referred to the prosecutor’s office for formal charges.
Federal Way mayor delivers first city 2015-16 biennial budget proposal BY RAECHEL DAWSON rdawson@fedwaymirror.com
No layoffs, no cuts and new hires. Federal Way Mayor Jim Ferrell delivered a structurally balanced budget proposal to City Council on Oct. 7. It’s one that promises to restore the city after many lean years sparked by the Great Recession. “For the first time in well over a decade, if not more, ongoing operations are now funded, all of them are now funded by ongoing
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revenues, meaning there is no use of one-time dollars to balance the budget,” Ferrell said at the Council meeting. “This is historic for the budget document.” The city’s biennial budget reflects $107.6 million with $42.3 million in the General Fund for 2015 and $106.4 million with $45 million in the General Fund for 2016. Giving much credit to Finance Director Ade’ Ariwoola, Ferrell said he was able to accomplish one of his initial goals as mayor with this
budget: Give union and non-union represented city employees a cost of living raise. “Where city services interact with the public, it’s on a real need basis, so we have been operating on an incredibly lean manner for the past few years and one of the challenges I had when I came on was there had not been a cost of living increase for city employees for six years, and so that’s one of the first things we did,” Ferrell said in an interview, noting that human
capital and institutional knowledge are invaluable. With personnel eating up about 75 percent of operating costs, Ferrell said some of the challenges with the budget included juggling health insurance costs with the limited growth in tax revenue. Between 2008 and 2012, the city’s workforce decreased from 353.35 full-time employees to 278.4. But this biennial budget considers the 10.32 additional full-time em[ more BUDGET, page 34]
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