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Wednesday, August 19, 2015 | 75 cents
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Bonney Lake asks irrigation to be cut by 50 percent
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This Week...
By Ray Still
• The Enumclaw Art and Music Festival is cel-
Reporter
ebrating its third year all day on Saturday, Aug. 22. Three stages for performers and musicians; one on the corner of Cole and Initial Avenue and two alternating stages in the Mutual of Enumclaw parking lot.
• Bonney Lake’s Movies in the Park is featuring “Strange Magic” at Allan Yorke Park on Saturday, Aug. 22. The movie will begin at dusk.
Weather The forecast for today, Wednesday, calls for sun and a high near 89. Nightfall calls for clear skies and a low near 55. Thursday also expects sun with a high near 74. Lows drop to 56 at night with a chance of showers. Friday also calls for a chance of showers with a high near 73. Saturday and Sunday call for sun and highs in the low 80s.
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BIG DAYS AT BONNEY LAKE
Daffodil Queen Ashley Becker waves to friends and fans in the Bonney Lake Days parade Saturday morning. Folsom Prism, a Johnny Cash tribute band, played Friday evening. The traditional classic car show sponsored by Les Schwab was also part of the festival. Despite some rain Friday, the weather cleared Saturday and the crowd came out. Photos by Kevin Hanson
King County Fair numbers double By Kevin Hanson Senior Writer
With the 2015 edition of the King County Fair in their rear-view mirror, the staff at the Enumclaw Expo Center was able to take a moment to assess where things stand – and, by all accounts, they like what they see. The Expo Center’s executive director, Scott Gray, appeared before the Enumclaw City Council Aug. 10 and reported that the first year of a new era was largely
positive. “We’re pretty excited about what went on with the King County Fair,” Gray told council members. “We think, mentally and physically, we’re on the right track.” The numbers show reason for Gray’s optimism. Last year’s fair attendance had dwindled to just 7,600, he said, while this year’s numbers climbed to 15,700. Other figures – financial ones - will remain something of a mystery. Gray said the nonprofit group now run-
ning the Expo Center is choosing to keep exact revenues and expenditures under wraps. However, Gray was willing to note that 2015 revenues were five times greater than what was paid to the city by Universal Fairs, the previous fair operator. Also on the positive side, Gray said, was the renewed emphasis on agriculture. From the 4-H ranks, 475 youngsters displayed 384 animals, Gray noted, which accounted for 359 exhibits and involved 236 volunteers.
These past few months have been the driest in history, Tacoma Water announced last week, and there is little sign of much rain in the near future. In response to this news, Bonney Lake is encouraging all residents to reduce their water usage for the remainder of the year, especially residents using irrigation meters. “We are not declaring an emergency, we are not saying don’t water,” said Dan Grigsby, public works director in Bonney Lake. “We are asking people to use reasonable precaution and conserve water where it makes sense.” Bonney Lake is required by their agreement with Tacoma Water to follow their lead when they announce any sort of conservation action because Bonney Lake routinely buys from Tacoma Water during the summer months to level out peak water usage. This gives local springs and well a chance to recover for use during the winter months, when Bonney Lake can rely on it’s own water sources. However, Bonney Lake, like other cities that buy from Tacoma Water, has purchased more water this summer than normal, which has put a strain on Tacoma Water’s systems as they try to save water for other uses, like in-stream flow for salmon and other fish. One reason Bonney Lake is using more water from an outside source is one of the city’s wells had equipment problems and couldn’t supply water. Grigsby said the well was fixed
SEE IRRIGATION, PAGE 4 Looking forward, fair boosters are hoping to create more community involvement, giving parts of the fair “almost a company picnic look,” Gray said. Other small fairs throughout the region have had success with oldfashioned things like threelegged races and sack races, he added. The goal, Gray said, is to have people head to the fair and be participants, not just observers. The fair was the beginning of a hectic run for those in the Expo Center office. The big Scottish Highland Games immediately followed and, just last weekend, came the annual Olympic Kennel Club dog show. Heading
into the dog show weekend, Gray was anticipating there could be 60,000 visitors to the grounds. Updating the council on coming events, Gray noted a flea market/swap meet is set for Aug. 28-29 and a “brewfest” event is being planned for late October. Council members appeared impressed by what the nonprofit Enumclaw Expo and Events Association has accomplished. “To pull off what you did in a three-month period was really outstanding,” Councilman Darrel Dickson said, referring to the fair. “We see new life being breathed into it.”