Hazen wins first Seamont title in more than a decade Page 16
Bob Bridge donates $2,000 to band program Page 14
March 4, 2011 VOL. 9, NO. 3
City Hall to relocate by end of the year Council turns down offer to use both floors of current building By Tim Pfarr
State of the city Mayor ensures Chamber crowd that ‘we’re OK.’ Page 2
So long, 13020 Newcastle Way. The City Council voted to move City Hall to the 7,500square-foot second floor of the
Newcastle Professional Center, 12835 Newcastle Way, by the end of the year. City staff recommended the move, expected to cost $250,000. City Manager Rob Wyman said it is the state of the current facility that prompted the recommendation. The city’s lease with current landlord Jim Denton See CITY HALL, Page 10
By Tim Pfarr
Newcastle City Hall will move to the second floor of the Newcastle Professional Center, 12835 Newcastle Way, by the end of the year.
Author ignites the flame of imagination By Tim Pfarr
Guilty as charged Suspect found guilty in murder-for-hire plot. Page 3
There was no place he could hide. Around each corner, students greeted him with excitement. Whenever he stopped moving, a line would form with students who wanted to say hello, get autographs and share
their own story ideas. Nevertheless, Seattle-based children’s author Keith Baker enjoyed greeting his biggest fans, and he did so with an unwavering smile for each child who approached him when he visited Newcastle Elementary School Feb. 17.
During his day at the school, he spoke at two assemblies and held workshops with the school’s second and fifthgraders. In between presentations, he signed more than 200 books for students and even a few teachers. His visit was a precursor to
Two sides of city battle in recycling challenge. Page 5
Budget crunch Renton schools try to figure out budget cuts. Page 11
By Tim Pfarr
You should know You can find an overview of the city’s history on the city’s website, www.ci.newcastle.wa.us. Click “Visitors,” “About Newcastle” and “Profile & History.”
50¢
See AUTHOR, Page 11
Newcastle Days committee plans 2011 celebration
Green competition
Contact us: newcas@isspress.com 392-6434, ext. 239
the school’s 2011 Literacy Celebration Feb. 28 to March 4, which features guest readers, literature-themed cake decorating, schoolwide reading time and writing activities. In the days before Baker’s
By Greg Farrar
Winter’s last gasp Macy Malleck, 9, of Newcastle, sleds on a snowy hillside at Lake Boren Park Feb. 24 after receiving a push from her sister Jessica, 11.
The committee responsible for planning the 2011 Newcastle Days celebration has convened, and this year’s celebration will be Sept. 9 and 10. The organizing committee is seeking volunteers to help with preparations. The Friday and Saturday celebration will be similar to that of 2010, with a sidewalk sale in the downtown area the first day followed by festivities in Lake Boren Park the second day. This year’s celebration in the park will feature a beer garden sponsored by the Newcastle Chamber of Commerce, live bands, vendor booths, main stage entertainment and food. This year’s celebration will likely See FESTIVAL, Page 7
Newcastle News
PAGE 2
Mayor ensures city is OK in the state of the city address
MARCH 4, 2011
County council appoints citizens to redraw districts By Warren Kagarise Issaquah Press reporter
By Tim Pfarr Mayor John Dulcich delivered the annual state of the city address at the Newcastle Chamber of Commerce’s Feb. 9 luncheon. During the speech, Dulcich also outlined the biggest achievements of 2010 — including the success of Newcastle Days — as well as the state of the city’s finances, major projects and outlook. Financially, he said the city will be all right as long as the governing body is alert and responsible. “We’re OK,” he said about the city’s finances. “The reality is, there’s a little water in the bilge, but we’re moving forward, and we’re not sinking, and we’re not on fire. “I think that’s important,” he said. Dulcich also gave an overview of the largest construction projects planned for the city this year. In addition to the library — which is now being built — a traffic signal will be installed at the intersection of Newcastle Way and 129th Avenue Southeast. “Hopefully, that will allow for better access to the library in the city,” Dulcich said. Also, sidewalks will be built along 116th Avenue Southeast between Southeast 84th Street
On the web View Mayor John Dulcich’s speech at Newcastle News’ website, www.newcastle-news.com, by clicking the “videos” tab.
By Tim Pfarr
Mayor John Dulcich gives a state of the city address at the February meeting of the Newcastle Chamber of Commerce. and Southeast 88th Street, and a sidewalk will be built on Newcastle Golf Club Road to the Coal Creek YMCA. “Our goal is to get all the major arterials and then to work on the neighborhoods,” Dulcich said about sidewalks. “Obviously, arterials are the most unsafe for people to walk along. The speeds are higher, so that’s what we want to get sidewalks on first.” Furthermore, the city will spend $1 million for street
repairs this year, as it postponed last year’s repairs. A new playground will also be installed in Lake Boren Park this spring. Dulcich also discussed the recent City Council decision to move City Hall from 13020 Newcastle Way to the Newcastle Professional Center, 12835 Newcastle Way. “We decided that it would be better to have a more efficient facility, get more productivity out of our staff and really set us up for the next 15 to 20 years in the city,” he said. Dulcich closed his speech by discussing the city’s outlook. “The waters ahead for cities in this economy are very murky,” he said. “But if you’re alert and at the helm, you can manage through it. “It’s up to us to determine our own destiny,” he said. “There are tough waters to sail in, but because of the strength of this Newcastle community, we’re going to make it through.”
King County Council members appointed a team of community leaders in January to update the map for representation in John Jensen county government. The council appointed four members Jan. 18 to the King County Districting Committee, the citizen committee responsible for redrawing council districts based on 2010 Census data. The county is carved into nine districts, each represented by a single council member. “Redistricting is a challenging, time-consuming process that is vital to ensuring our residents are fairly represented,” Councilman Reagan Dunn said in a statement. Dunn represents District 9 on the nine-member council. The district encompasses Newcastle, the rural area near Issaquah, Maple Valley and areas inside Bellevue and Renton. Districts could be shifted as the citizen committee starts to sift through population data. The council appointed representatives from across the county to serve on the panel. The lineup includes John Jensen, president of Jensen Roofing Co. and a past member of the King County Charter Review Commission. Jensen, a Newcastle resident, has also served the Newcastle Chamber of Commerce as a longtime board member and past president. The citizen panel selected retired Superior Court Judge Terrence Carroll as chairman Feb. 7. Carroll is a respected arbitra-
tor and a Distinguished Jurist in Residence at the Seattle University School of Law. He specializes in alternative dispute resolution, and has heard more than 3,000 mediations and 1,000 arbitrations in the past 20 years. He has also served as a deputy prosecutor, a public defender and a private-practice attorney. Jensen said Carroll’s skills and background make him an ideal fit for the position. “I feel like Terrence Carroll was made for this job,” he said. “His experience in arbitration, dispute resolution — along with his passion for public service — make him an excellent choice.” The county charter grants the authority for adopting a final districting map to the citizen Districting Committee, not the County Council. The committee then chooses a technical expert to serve as “districting master” and holds public meetings to gather community input. It will select its districting master March 18. The committee must complete the process and file the final districting plan by Jan. 15, 2012. State law and the King County Charter require council district boundaries to be reset by using the most recent census data, which the committee first saw at the end of February. The statutes require the edges of each district to meet the boundaries of existing municipalities, election precincts, census tracts, recognized natural boundaries, and communities of related and mutual interest as closely as possible. Districts must also be drawn as contiguous areas and to be as nearly equal in population as possible. The population data may not be used to favor or disadvantage any racial group or political party. Reporter Tim Pfarr contributed to this story.
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MARCH 4, 2011
PAGE 3
Clearly Lasik co-founder found guilty of murder-for-hire plot By Jennifer Sullivan Seattle Times staff reporter The co-founder of Clearly Lasik eye surgery centers was found guilty Feb. 3 of plotting to kill his partner. The King County jury convicted Dr. Michael Mockovak of one count of criminal solicitation to commit first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit firstdegree theft and attempted firstdegree theft. Jurors found him not guilty of a second count of criminal solicitation involving the company’s former president. The jury deliberated for less than two days. After the verdict was read, Mockovak, who has been out on bail since shortly after his arrest in November 2009, was taken into custody and led to jail. He will face between 31 and 41 years in prison when he is sentenced March 17. Mockovak’s former partner and target of the murder-for-hire plot, Dr. Joseph King, issued a statement: “My colleagues, my family and I are relieved to put this sad episode behind us.” Prosecutors said Mockovak was willing to pay more than
$100,000 to have King and former company President Brad Klock killed. According to the charges, Mockovak believed King was “greedy” because of his apparent plans to split the company, and thought his partner was taking advantage of him. Mockovak was apparently angry with Klock for suing the company after he was fired, prosecutors said. Prosecutors also claimed Clearly Lasik was in a slump. The eye surgery centers have offices throughout the Pacific Northwest and Western Canada. The company reported earnings of $17 million in 2007, but that figure dipped to $10 million in 2008, charging papers said. Mockovak solicited Daniel Kultin, a Clearly Lasik employee who had emigrated from Russia, to arrange the slayings, prosecutors said. Mockovak believed Kultin could put him in touch with a hit man for the Russian mafia, prosecutors alleged. Kultin reported Mockovak’s alleged scheme to the FBI, and the agency hired him to work as a confidential informant, according to testimony during Mockovak’s trial. Kultin was the prosecution’s
Local dentist charged with child molestation By Tim Pfarr Newcastle resident and dentist Gil Furman was charged in January with one count of second-degree child molestation and two counts of third-degree child molestation. Furman allegedly molested a teenage girl for two and a half years beginning when the girl was 13 and ending when she was 15, according to charging documents. Furman — who is married
with children — was 35 when the alleged molestation began. Furman was arrested and arraigned Jan. 25, and he pleaded not guilty. He was given conditional release and a no-contact order with the girl. A case setting hearing is scheduled for March 22 in King County Superior Court. If Furman is convicted on all counts, he will face a sentence between about four and a half years and 10 years in prison, according to the King County Prosecutor’s Office.
“It is incomprehensible how someone could deliberately plan to take someone’s life and completely devastate a family.” — Dr. Joseph King Dr. Michael Mockovak former partner
key witness during the two-week trial. The plan was for Mockovak to pay the assassin $25,000, while Kultin would earn $100,000 for arranging the slayings, according to the charges. On Nov. 7, 2009, Mockovak met Kultin in Tukwila, where he paid him $10,000 cash and gave him a photo of King, charging papers said. Mockovak was arrested five days later. But Mockovak’s lawyers contended that he never intended to hire an assassin, calling his efforts an “immature joke.” Defense lawyer Colette Tvedt said that Mockovak was “induced” and “persuaded” into the plan by Kultin. Tvedt said Kultin was ambitious to work with the FBI.
The girl reported the situation to a school adviser in November, according to charging documents. The alleged molestation
By Erika Schultz/The Seattle Times
Dr. Michael Mockovak, co-founder of Clearly Lasik eye surgery centers, is escorted out of King County Court Feb. 3, after he was found guilty of plotting to kill his partner and the company's former president. In January, Mockovak was ordered to stop practicing medicine in Washington by the Medical Quality Assurance Commission and the state Department of Health. His license to practice medicine was also suspended. After learning of the murderfor-hire plot, King and his family moved into a hotel because they were scared to return to their Newcastle home, which is only a few blocks from Mockovak’s house, court papers said. King told investigators that the two men had been close for
Jennifer Sullivan: 206-464-8294 or jensullivan@seattletimes.com. Information from Seattle Times archives is included in this report.
occurred weekly, and Furman allegedly pushed the girl to a wall and kissed and groped her, sometimes under her clothes but over her under-
wear. She said that happened more than 50 times, usually with others nearby but out of sight.
years and even knew the alarm codes for each other’s homes, charging papers said. “It is incomprehensible how someone could deliberately plan to take someone’s life and completely devastate a family,” King said in a statement released shortly after Mockovak’s arrest. “My family and I were shocked and horrified to learn that a business associate was allegedly planning and ordering my murder.”
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Opinion
PAGE 4
Editorial
City Hall move risky but understandable Moving City Hall from the Newport Manufacturing building, 13020 Newcastle Way, to the Newcastle Professional Center, 12835 Newcastle Way, is understandable but risky. The City Council needs to be sure it protects residents as it takes this risk. The Newport Manufacturing building is run-down, an embarrassing place for City Hall. There is little the city could do to change the image of this building. The move to a nearly new building may improve employee morale, attract better job candidates and reduce employee turnover. More importantly, the Newcastle Professional Center is the only office space available in the city of Newcastle. It may be the only opportunity for many years for the city to get out of the Newport Manufacturing building. The big concern is the cost. It will cost the city $250,000 to move into the new building, and the city will pay an average of $15,000 more per year in rent and utilities in the new building. Given that the city’s financial forecast shows Newcastle going bankrupt by 2015, the city is taking a massive risk. It will take a very responsible and proactive council — not one that sits on its hands and hemorrhages money, like the council of the not so long ago — to keep the city viable. The city should only pay for the move with money from its reserves then work hard to rebuild the reserve fund as quickly as possible. Diverting real estate excise tax funds would delay only projects such as street repair or sidewalk construction. The council claimed the move could increase city services. To delay street projects would be complete hypocrisy, as residents are better served by working roads and sidewalks than they are by having an easily accessible City Hall. The council would be naïve to believe otherwise. Furthermore, the council needs to be creative to find new ways to finance the new city digs — without cutting the services residents hold dear. While the move is understandable, it represents a big leap of faith by the council. The council must protect services while building community pride with a city hall worthy of a fine city.
Poll question What community event should get the most funding this year? A. Newcastle Days B. Fourth of July C. Concerts in the Park D. Earth Day Vote at www.newcastle-news.com.
Newcastle news Published since 1999 by
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P.O. Box 1328 Issaquah, WA 98027 Phone: 392-6434 ❑ Fax: 391-1541
MARCH 4, 2011
Rapid Response
move City Hall to the professional center. — Brian Rayfield, Newcastle
What do you think of the City Council’s decision to move City Hall to the Newcastle Professional Center?
If Lake Boren was more accessible for recreational activities, what kind of activities (i.e. canoeing) would you like it to offer?
OK, as long as we can develop where City Hall currently is into a good tax resource (i.e. a great bistro-type restaurant. No fast food allowed!) for the city. — Jackie Foskett, Newcastle I think larger space was sacrificed for nicer space when funds are low. Rent could go up substantially before improvements are amortized. Maintenance and storage spaces are still needed. — Peggy Price, Newcastle Great move and better accessibility for all. — Trina Sooy, Newcastle Love this idea. This would free up the land where City Hall is currently to bring in a muchneeded steak house (no more banks). — Heidi Furman, Newcastle The move to the Newcastle Professional Center is one of the best things that happened in the city of Newcastle after all these years as a city. It is finally looking like a city with better potential for growth and for long-term establishment. We can’t build a city in a warehouse, and the current space is better fit for commercial development bringing in more tax dollars to the city budget. The City Council handled the matter well with thorough discussion and debate of the matter. The final votes speak for themselves. — Jesse Tam, Newcastle We support the City Council’s decision to
Share Your Views Citizens can make a difference by contacting their elected representatives.
Federal U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D), 717 Hart Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C., 20510; 202224-3441; http://cantwell.senate.gov; 915 Second Ave., Suite 512, Seattle, WA 98174; 206-220-6400 U.S. Sen. Patty Murray (D), 173 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20510; 202224-2621; http://murray.senate.gov; Jackson Federal Building, Room 2988, 915 Second Ave., Seattle, WA 98174; 206-553-5545 U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert (R-8th District), 1223 Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515; 202-225-7761; 2737 78th Ave. S.E., Suite 202, Mercer Island, WA 98040; 206-2753438; www.house.gov/reichert
State — 41st District Sen. Randy Gordon (D), 409 Legislative
Kayaking or canoeing would be great! — Jackie Foskett, Newcastle Small sailboat rentals, paddle boats and stock the lake with trout. — John Jensen, Newcastle At Lake Boren, we would like to see more bike/pedestrian paths (around the lake), canoeing, and a place to eat and sit or picnic. — Brian Rayfield, Newcastle I’d like to have the trail around the lake more clearly marked and designated. Make a clear walking path along the north and west portions where the houses are. Canoeing would be great. — Jana Miller, Newcastle Opinionated? Join our e-mail group — Rapid Response. You give us your name and e-mail address. We send you questions regarding the news. You tell us what you think. What could be easier? We’ll e-mail you a variety of questions. Answer one or all of them! Respond by the deadline in the e-mail and we’ll get your thoughts into the newspaper. We’ll edit for clarity, space and potential libel, then select a variety of responses and run them on a space-available basis. Send your name and e-mail address to newcas@isspress.com. Put Rapid Response in the subject line.
Building, P.O. Box 40441, Olympia, WA 9850400441; 360-786-7641; gordon.randy@leg.wa.gov Rep. Marcie Maxwell (D), 324 John L. O’Brien Building, P.O. Box 4600, Olympia, WA 985040600; 360-786-7894; maxwell.ma@leg.wa.gov Rep. Judy Clibborn (D), 435 John L. O’Brien Building, P.O. Box 40600, Olympia, WA 985040600; 360-786-7926; clibborn.ju@leg.wa.gov Toll-free Legislative Hotline: 800-562-6000
County King County Executive Dow Constantine, King County Chinook Building 401 Fifth Ave., Suite 800, Seattle, WA 98104; 206-296-4040; kcexec@kingcounty.gov King County Councilman Kathy Lambert, District 3. King County Courthouse, 516 Third Ave., Room 1200, Seattle, WA 98104; 206-2961003; 800-325-6165; kathy.lambert@kingcounty.gov King County Councilman Reagan Dunn, District 9. King County Courthouse, 516 Third Ave., Room 1200, Seattle, WA 98104; 206-2961009; 800-325-6165; reagan.dunn@kingcounty.gov
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Newcastle News
MARCH 4, 2011
PAGE 5
Recycling challenge kicks off Waste Management pits the east and west sides of city against each other By Tim Pfarr The gloves are off. Who will win? The Recycling Renegades on the east side of Coal Creek Parkway, or the Waste Less Warriors on the west side? Waste Management has pitted the two halves of the city against each other for a fivemonth recycling competition, and it will award $5,000 to the team that recycles the most between through June 24. The competition kicked off Jan. 24. The competition is the first of its kind, said Katie Salinas, public sector manager for Waste Management. Last year, the organization launched programs that rewarded individuals in cities such as Burien, Kirkland and Redmond for recycling, but it never rewarded entire communities. “We’re always looking for ways to engage our customers with the same kind of recycling messages,” Salinas said. “At the end of the day, we thought that it would be something different and hopefully exciting for people.” She said the idea for a competition in Newcastle came about during discussions with city officials, including Councilwoman Carol Simpson and City Manager Rob Wyman. It split
Horticulturalist to speak at gardening seminar Christina Salwitz, a personal gardening coach from the Newcastle Fruit & Produce nursery, will be a guest speaker March 18 at Proven Winners’ “Outdoor Living Extravaganza” gardening seminar at the Golf Club at Newcastle, 15500 Six Penny Road. The seminar is one of four the plant distribution company is holding in the U.S. and Canada this March and April. The touring seminar also makes stops in Atlanta, Milwaukee and Toronto.
the city in half based on its truck routes, and a Waste Management employee developed the team names. Waste Management will appoint five residents from each side of the city to decide on how its winnings will be spent. The winners will work with at least one member of the City Council and Wyman to decide how to spend those winnings. Newcastle residents and businesses recycled 925 tons of material in 2010, which saved about 2,614 metric tons of carbon dioxide from being discharged into the atmosphere, according to Waste Management. Local residents and businesses also composted 1,189 tons of yard and food waste in 2010, saving 608 metric tons of carbon dioxide from being discharged. Through recycling and composting, residents and businesses diverted 57 percent of its waste from landfills. “Newcastle already does a really great job of recycling, and yet there is more to be done,” Wyman said in a news release. “The neighborhood challenge is an important opportunity to educate and energize even more people — especially new residents and children — about recycling.” Waste Management collects garbage weekly and recycling biweekly in Newcastle. It also collects yard waste from subscribing customers. Go to www.thinkgreen.com/recycle-what Salwitz has more than 20 years experience working at nurseries. Her presentation will be titled “Foliage — Confessions of a Leafaholic.” She will discuss how a designer uses leaves and textures to create a striking landscape. Salwitz will only be speaking at the Newcastle seminar, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. including a catered lunch. Cost is $80 per person, and attendees will be treated to several giveaways. Visit the company’s website, www.provenwinners.com, and click “events” for more information or to register.
Free Wine and Free Advice About Real Estate Short Sales from your local Windermere broker Cheryl Coupens and Richard Eastern short sale expert with Washington Property Solutions Thurs March 24th From 6-7pm At Newcastle’s own Sweet Decadence www.washortsales.com cherylcoupens@windermere.com
Questions? call Cheryl Coupens with Windermere @ 206-718-1334
On the web Apply to be on the grant selection committee for your team at www.wmnorthwest.com/newcastle. If your team wins, you will get to help decide how to spend your winnings.
The winner of Waste Management’s contest will get $5,000 for a community project. Contributed
for more information about what you can recycle.
Newcastle News
PAGE 6
Police Blotter Please leave a message A woman reported just after 3 a.m. Jan. 21 from Newport Crossing Apartments, 7311 Coal Creek Parkway S.E., that her boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend had been harassing her over the phone and cursing at her. She said she just wanted police to be aware of the situation.
Car break-ins ❑ A 1999 Plymouth Voyager was broken into outside Yea’s Wok Restaurant, 6969 Coal Creek Parkway S.E., at about 5 p.m. Jan. 21. The owner reported the front, passenger-side window had been shattered, causing $250 in damage, and that a GPS
unit worth $250 had been stolen. ❑ Someone broke into a 2000 Subaru Outback at Lake Boren Park, 13000 S.E. 84th St., between 4:20 and 4:30 p.m. Feb. 7. The owner reported that she had been walking her dog in the park, and she returned to find the front passenger side window smashed and her purse taken. She reported that the purse and its contents to be worth $4,000. ❑ A 1998 Honda Civic had was broken into at Cedar Rim Apartments, 7920 110th Ave. S.E., between 10 p.m. Feb. 7 and 8 a.m. Feb. 8. The owner reported that she found the rear driver’s side door left ajar. She reported that her cell phone charger worth $25 had been stolen, as well as a pearl necklace worth $1,000, the car’s manual worth $10 and the car’s registration worth $25.
Somebody didn’t want his paychecks While on patrol, a police officer found a black bag in the road in the 8500 block of 135th Avenue Southeast at 3:30 a.m. Jan. 25. Inside were numerous paychecks and paperwork.
Take that, fence Main: 425-204-1313 Fax: 425-204-1414 14402 SE 79th Drive Newcastle, WA 98059 Financeman@EvergreenStateMortgage.com
Licenses: MLO-108835 MB-98904
A man reported that his gar-
den fence, in the 14400 block of Southeast 93rd Street, was kicked down between 9 and 11:50 a.m. Jan. 26, causing $100 in damage.
Home burglaries ❑ A man reported his apartment at Newport Crossing Apartments had been broken into between 9 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. Jan. 24. The living room window had been broken. He reported the stolen items to be a cell phone worth $150, a digital camera worth $500, an iPod Nano worth $150, a Nintendo DS worth $100, a Nintendo Wii worth $200, and a set of Wii controllers and controller chargers together worth $200. ❑ A man reported his home, in the 8600 block of 137th Avenue Southeast, was broken into between 8:15 a.m. and 6 p.m. Jan. 28. The front door had been kicked in, causing $300 in damage. He reported the stolen items to be a 55-inch flat-screen TV worth $1,600, two HewlettPackard laptop computers together worth $1,670 and a universal remote worth $150. ❑ A man reported that his home, in the 8600 block of 118th Avenue Southeast, was broken into between 7:15 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Feb. 2. He report-
MARCH 4, 2011 ed that his back window had been broken. He reported the stolen items to be a 46-inch LCD TV worth $1,200, a 52-inch LCD TV worth $2,300, a digital camera worth $110, a Sony Playstation 3 worth $300, a camcorder worth $350 and a portable DVD player worth $130. ❑ A woman reported that her home, in the 7000 block of 123rd Avenue Southeast, had been broken into between 1 and 2:30 p.m. Feb. 14. She reported that the burglar entered through the rear sliding glass door, and stole a class ring worth $100, a cameo ring worth $100, a necklace worth $300, a sapphire ring worth $100, miscellaneous jewelry worth $400 and several empty prescription bottles. Police recovered 11 finger print samples from items the burglar had touched.
Driveway napping A woman reported that a woman was parked in her driveway, in the 8000 block of 118th Avenue Southeast, sleeping inside a 2002 Nissan Pathfinder just before 1:30 p.m. Jan. 27. The woman told police it was her day off and she was looking for a place to rest. Police said she did not appear to be intoxicated.
Checking the front door
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A woman reported that her somebody knocked on her front door and attempted to open the locked door in the 7300 block of 126th Place Southeast just before 11 p.m. Feb. 3. She said this has happened in the past. Her home has an alarm system, motion lights and a video doorbell. She also wedges a two-byfour against the door. Police
checked the area but did not find anything.
Alleged stolen cell phone Police responded to the Coal Creek Apartments, 6802 Coal Creek Parkway S.E., just before 9 p.m. Feb. 4 where a teenage boy allegedly stole a teenage girl’s cell phone. Police were unable to confirm that the phone was stolen.
Parked in the neighborhood Police responded to the 8500 block of 129th Avenue Southeast at 9:45 a.m. Feb. 8 where a suspicious man had been parked in a Ford Explorer for about 45 minutes. Police contacted the man, who was sitting inside with a laptop open on the passenger seat. They checked the man’s license plate and found that he lived down the street from where he was parked. Police reported that there was a subtle sweet, smoky smell inside the car, but the man inside declined to comment on what was causing the smell.
Student makes threats A student at Renton Academy, 6928 116th Ave. S.E., was reported at 7:45 a.m. Feb. 11 to be showing his classmates a photo of a staff member and her boyfriend that he obtained on Facebook. Another staff member told him it was inappropriate and asked why he had the photo. The student said he had it in case he needed to have the staff member killed so he could show it to the hitman. The student said he was not serious and that he was just talking, but he was suspended.
Newcastle News
MARCH 4, 2011
City ends 2010 with $5,500 surplus Heading into 2010, the city was facing a deficit of nearly $500,000 in its operating budget. After extensive cuts, that was eliminated and changed to a surplus of almost $53,000. For the remainder of the year, the budget teetered between small surpluses and deficits, but the year ended with a $5,500 surplus. Almost all city funds collected more money than was budgeted. Development revenue was $182,000 more than what the city budgeted, and this helped offset the shortfalls in retail sales tax and state-shared criminal justice sales tax collections. At the end of the year, retail sales tax collection was $160,000 below budget, and the stateshared criminal justice sales tax
was almost $57,000 below budget. City staff was successful at minimizing its expenses in 2010, staying within 1 percent of its budget. There were no travel expenses for the year, and the city spent less than $2,000 on training and meeting meals for city staff and the City Council. City staff kept its office supply expenses at 45 percent of its $10,000 budget. The city’s total cash is at $7.5 million — a $535,000 increase from the beginning of the year. Read the 2010 fourth-quarter report on the city’s website, www.ci.newcastle.wa.gov. Click “City Records,” “Agendas,” “Council,” “2011” and “201102-01 CC Reg & Spec.” The report begins on page 239.
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Festival From Page 1 include a car show as well, which has historically been a staple of Newcastle Days, although it was not part of last year’s celebration. “We were so pleased with how it went last year,” Parks Commissioner Diane Lewis, who will work on the organizing committee again this year, said of the two-day event. “We’re looking to do it as well or better this year.” Once again, this year’s orga-
PAGE 7 nizing committee is mostly volunteer-driven with Parks Commission Vice Chair Koleen Morris at the helm. Also on the committee are Mayor John Dulcich, City Manager Rob Wyman, Parks Program Manager Michael Holly, Newcastle Chamber of Commerce Chair Angela Wingate, Coal Creek Utility District Commissioner Doug Kunkel, HTS Audio producer David Harris, Sweet Decadence owner Sandra Wixon, Parks Commissioner Craig Belcher, former Parks Commissioner Suzi O’Byrne and Newcastle Weed Warriors founder Grace Stiller.
The committee will meet the first Thursday of each month through September to plan the event. Meetings are at 9 a.m. at City Hall, 13020 Newcastle Way. Due to budget constraints, a volunteer organization took over the duties of planning last year’s celebration. In previous years, city staff had taken a leading role in planning Newcastle Days. To volunteer or become a sponsor for Newcastle Days 2011, call Holly at City Hall at 649-4444. Volunteers will be needed in the weeks leading up to the celebration as well as at the celebration.
Special Section of Newcastle News Advertising Department
March 4, 2011
Naturopathic medical clinic finds a welcome home on the Eastside An idea that three friends generated while they were attending medical school has evolved into NaturoMedica, a thriving Eastside medical practice that serves over 1,500 patients. Local naturopaths Naomi Bryant, Tammy McInnis and Jill Monster opened their innovative Sammamish medical clinic three years ago and have never looked back. “We believed that patients were looking for a blend of evidence-based natural medicine and conventional healthcare along with highly personalized service,” explains Dr. Monster. “Our research indicated that patients liked the idea of the old-fashioned doctor patient relationship combined with cutting edge medicine. Patients wanted 60 minutes of face-toface time with their doctor at an appointment rather than 6 minutes, which is increasingly common in conventional healthcare.” Their belief was that patients would be willing to pay a little more out of pocket for this customized service. After three years of sustained growth, it is apparent that their hunch was right. At NaturoMedica, an initial appointment lasts for two hours and most follow-up appointments last for an hour. The doctors take into account not just the physical, but also the emotional, genetic and environmental factors that can influence a person’s health. Typically, after the first visit, patients undergo testing which may include general lab work along with specialty testing. At the follow-up visit, patients are given an individualized treatment plan. Suggested therapies may include conventional medications, botanical medicine and vitamins and nutritional supplements. Diet and lifestyle changes are also frequently a part of a comprehensive plan. The NaturoMedica doctors see patients for all types of medical
At left, Dr. Jill Monster goes over an individualized plan with her patient. At right, Dr. Jill Monster, Dr. Naomi Bryant and Dr. Tammy McInnis share a vision and passion for individualized care. conditions. The doctors chose not to contract directly with insurance providers. Instead, patients pay for appointments at the time of service, but are given a coded “superbill” to submit to their insurance company for reimbursement. This model is different from the “concierge” medical model, where patients pay a monthly fee. “We use a pay-per-visit model, so that patients aren’t paying for services that they don’t use. We want our clinic to be affordable,” explains Dr. McInnis, “The system is working well. We don’t work for insurance companies. We work for patients. Rather than buying into a system of disease management, we can focus on getting people healthy.” “The public’s response to NaturoMedica has been very positive,” says Dr. Bryant, “Over 80 percent of our
patients arrive through referrals from other patients. We even have patients coming from out of state. “Many of our patients are quick to share that they have become disenchanted with the current healthcare system. They are tired of spending a few minutes with a doctor they barely know and then leaving with little more than a prescription. We focus on getting to know each of our patients and understanding all of their health concerns. Our patients want to be proactive about their health rather than reactive and to treat the cause of their conditions, rather than the symptoms.” NaturoMedica patient Lori Caldwell, who commutes to the clinic from Mercer Island enthuses, “My NaturoMedica doctor has been a lifesaver. She treats my whole family and my friends. It is like going to an old-
fashioned doctor who knows you and knows the dynamics of your family. It’s very personalized. Naturopathic medicine treats the whole person. Western medicine looks at you like a mechanic looks at a car, one part at a time. I will never go back. I believe that naturopathic medicine is the future of healthcare.” The physicians at NaturoMedica often collaborate with local MDs and other healthcare providers. “While many of our patients see us for primary care, we are just as comfortable working alongside other providers. We work together to do what is best for our patients,” adds Dr. McInnis. NaturoMedica is located in the Pine Lake shopping center in Sammamish. For more information about NaturoMedica call (425) 557-8900 or visit the clinic’s website at www.naturomedica.com.
Personalized Health Care That’s Right for You! At NaturoMedica we provide individualized medical care in a warm and welcoming environment. Our therapies are aimed at treating the underlying cause rather than just the symptoms. “NaturoMedica combines the best of modern medicine and tried and true natural approaches. I am receiving the best possible care. I can’t say enough good things about NaturoMedica.” - Laurie Brom (Sammamish)
(425) 557-8900
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2830 228th Ave SE, Suite C Sammamish, WA 98075
Newcastle News
MARCH 4, 2011
PAGE 9
Work plans approved for 2011 planning, parks commissions By Tim Pfarr
Sal Cohen, Michael Gladstein and Robert Gladstein.
Experience a new quality of living in Newcastle’s new neighborhood American Classic Homes is a family owned and operated business with over 40 years experience specializing in custom homes and building “new” home communities. American Classic is now introducing its newest neighborhood — Eden’s Grove — and is excited to be part of the close knit community of Newcastle. In real estate, it is all about location, location, location. Eden’s Grove certainly meets the criteria. Located just off of Coal Creek Parkway and 89th Street, Eden’s Grove is nestled up to wonderful open spaces with beautiful territorial views that give you the lush feel of sky and trees. Thirty two distinctive homes from traditional twostory homes (some with daylight basements) to single story offerings with walk-out basements provide an answer for the most discriminating buyer. The model home is the Alki floor plan. This home includes a unique double staircase, a covered patio for year-round barbecuing, and a den on the first floor with a 3/4 bath that can be used as a bedroom. Master bedroom, guest bedrooms and bonus room are spacious, bright and ready for your furniture and personal decor. Enjoy cooking in your gourmet kitchen overlooking the great room
and nook, which opens to the covered patio. You will be able to host the next family gathering with ease and style in the formal dining room with butler’s pantry. The majority of the floor plans offer 4 bedrooms, 2 3/4 full baths, main floor den, generous bonus rooms, formal dining rooms and great entertaining space. Some floor plans feature a master bedroom on the main floor and others are designed for more traditional formal living with all bedrooms on the second floor. Eden’s Grove has a home for everyone! American Classic Homes knows this is your home and that your details matter. Buyers have the opportunity to personalize their home prior to beginning construction; they don’t have to have a carbon copy of the home next door. You have the opportunity to select finishes, fixtures, floor coverings, cabinets and other choices to make changes that impact how you want to live. Please accept American Classic Homes’ special invitation to preview our “Showcase Model” on March 12 from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. during the Grand Opening Of Eden’s Grove. Or call us at 425-445-3252 to schedule your private showing.
The City Council approved the 2011 Parks Commission and Planning Commissions work plans with a 7-0 vote at its March 1 meeting. Drafts of the work plans were first presented at the Feb. 15 joint City Council, Parks Commission and Planning Commission meeting. This year, the Parks Commission will review the city’s comprehensive plan — which details the city’s vision — updating the parks, recreation and open space portions. The city needs to update its comprehensive plan every six years to be eligible for state grants. The plan has not been updated in eight years. The Parks Commission will also discuss ways to increase recreational opportunities, possibly through collaboration with the Coal Creek YMCA and Regency Newcastle. The commission will take an active role in community events once again this year, as well as in Newcastle Days. In the third and fourth quarters of the year, the Parks Commission will create a draft of trail construction standards and a public art policy. The Planning Commission will review the city’s community business center for the first and second quarter of the year. It will discuss issues such as the city’s restriction on drive-thrus, the city’s 75-foot building-height limit and floor-area-ratio density requirements. The Planning Commission will work on the review through the second quarter of the year. In the second and third quarter, the Planning Commission will discuss possibly allowing greater used of impervious
Local woman named top business student Beauty industry business training company Nuts and Bolts named Newcastle resident Tamanda Nyasulu one of the top business students in esthetics in North America. The awards were presented at the International Salon & Spa Expo in Long Beach, Calif., Jan. 30.
surfaces in the city’s mixed-use development zones north of Lake Boren and northeast of the Newcastle Golf Club Road and Newcastle Way intersection. It will also discuss allowing more impervious surfaces in open spaces, such as in the site of the future sports park north of Southeast 95th Way. City code states that only 2 percent of open space may contain impervious surfaces, such as asphalt pathways and parking lots. In the third quarter, the commission will also propose amendments to the city’s comprehensive plan and discuss extending the city’s developer stimulus program, which delays development fee collection. In the fourth quarter, the commission will perform its annual code cleanup and update its code regarding communication infrastructure. The Parks Commission is a nine-person advisory body to the City Council that works on issues regarding cityowned parks. It works on park planning, park design, park construction, park and facility development, renovation, trails and paths, recreation programs and special community events, according to the city’s website. The Parks Commission meets at 6 p.m. the second Wednesday of each month in Council Chambers, 13020 Newcastle Way. The Planning Commission provides advice and makes recommendations to the City Council regarding the city’s comprehensive plan and development codes. It meets at 6 p.m. the third Wednesday of each month in Council Chambers. Parks and Planning Commission meetings are open to the public and have opportunities for public comment.
Nyasulu was named the No. 3 esthetic student of the year based on her GPA, sales and visual presentation. Students from 74 beauty schools in the U.S. and Canada competed for the awards. Nyasulu — an African emigrant — attends Evergreen Beauty College in Bellevue and recently accepted a job offer from a local branch of Beauty Works Salon and Beauty store.
Newcastle News
PAGE 10
City Hall From Page 1 expires at the end of the year. However, Denton submitted a revised lease offer to the city Feb. 4, in which he offered to allow City Hall to occupy both floors of the building, doubling City Hall’s square footage. The council held a special meeting Feb. 7 to discuss Denton’s new offer and possibly rescind its previous decision. However, the council was still in favor of moving, with councilmen Bill Erxleben and Rich Crispo and Councilwoman Carol Simpson dissenting. The city will pay rent at its current site through the end of the year; it will not be required to pay rent in the Newcastle Professional Center until next year. The city has rented its City Hall space above Newport Manufacturing for 15 years. A new home Wyman signed the lease with Strange immediately after the Feb. 7 meeting. Next the city will hire an architect to design the layout of the new space. The current four tenants on the second floor of the Newcastle Professional Center will move to the third floor to make space for City Hall. The city will then have the second floor remodeled to accommodate its offices and Council Chambers. Wyman said he was unsure of
when City Hall would make the move, but it would likely be later in the year, possibly in September. The King County Sheriff’s Office will also use space in the building, in which it will have “hot desks,” available to any King County Sheriff’s deputy to use to file reports while in the area. The sheriff’s office will pay about $17,000 annually for the space. The new City Hall will include utilities and some operational costs, such as janitorial services, in the monthly rent. The parking lot will include 27 spaces for employees and visitors during working hours, and as many as 63 spaces for after-hours City Council meetings. About 60 overflow parking spaces will be available at Valley Medical Center, 7203 129th Ave. S.E. City Hall now has 17 parking spaces and about 20 overflow spaces available at nearby Precision Auto Craft. City staff members say the new location will allow them to better interface with the community, advertise city meetings in the building’s lobby and increase attendance at city meetings. They also said it would improve the city’s image, which they believe is adversely affected by appearing to be operated out of an industrial facility. Mayor John Dulcich manages the corporation Newcastle Investments, which owned half of the Newcastle Professional Center from its construction in 2007 until March 2008. The corporation sold its half of the ownership to Geoffrey Strange,
Contributed by Minion Display Italic
The preliminary floor plan for City Hall in the Newcastle Professional Center calls for Council Chambers to be in the rear corner of the building.
MARCH 4, 2011
who had owned the other half. The corporation is still active, according to the Secretary of State, but Dulcich said the corporation no longer does business. He said neither he nor Newcastle Investments has an interest in the Newcastle Professional Center. The split decision The proposal to move elicited an emotional debate from the City Council. Deputy Mayor Steve Buri said it would be a good time to make the move, given the economy. “Ultimately, it’s a question of whether it’s a sensible investment,” he said. “This is not just an additional expenditure.” Councilman Sonny Putter said the move would give the city a more professional look, as he said some have commented that City Hall looks temporary. “For too long, we’ve felt like this city is a temporary city,” he said. Councilwoman Lisa Jensen said it would be easy to say no to the move, but that moving was the right decision, as it would move City Hall to a central location near the soon-to-be Newcastle Library. Mayor John Dulcich said the move is a logical one, increasing employee productivity in a nicer location. However, Crispo said voting against the move was simply a matter of priorities. He said it would be more beneficial to residents to use the money it would for the move for things such as additional street maintenance. Simpson said she likes the new facility, but a $250,000 moving bill was simply too hard to swallow. Erxleben said the city is just one more road failure from falling into the red. “Anyone who has looked at our budget analysis for the next five years has seen that we’re headed for deep trouble after 2013,” Erxleben said. “This is not the time.” The cost The $250,000 the city will pay for the move will fund repairs to the current City Hall building and remodeling of the new site. At the current building, the
By Tim Pfarr
Newcastle City Hall has been in the Newport Manufacturing Building, 13020 Newcastle Way, for 15 years. outside stairs and wheelchair lift need replacement. Inside, a wall needs to be repaired or replaced, as does the carpet, which is torn in spots and trips employees. “We have a significant number of people who almost faceplant around City Hall on a regular basis,” Wyman said. It will cost about $100,000 to make the pertinent repairs to the building, which the city is required to make before vacating. If the city had taken Denton’s offer, he would have paid for half of the repairs. To pay for the move, city staff brought forward two options. Both options call for a $25,000 draw from the city’s Surface Water Management capital projects fund. One calls for the remaining $225,000 to come from the Real Estate Excise Tax fund, and the other for it to come from the city’s cumulative reserve. Excise taxes from home sales provide REET funds. It is typically used for transportation projects, such as road maintenance and sidewalk construction. If the city were to use this money to pay for the move, the REET fund would run out of money in 2013, according to the city’s projections. If not, the REET fund is expected to dry up in 2014. Wyman said the city’s projections are very conservative, but if the REET fund were to run out of money, the city would need to cut back on capital projects or transfer money to it from a different city fund. The city’s cumulative reserve
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fund has $1.5 million for capital purchases or unforeseen operating costs, although the city has never drawn money from the fund to pay for capital purchases. Rent in the new building will increase steadily for the next five years, rising from $22 dollars per square foot in 2012 to $28 per square foot in 2016. The cost of renting the space for the next five years will be $882,705. This is about $78,000 more than the city would pay if it extended its existing lease for five years, and about $275,000 less than it would pay renting both floors of the Newport Manufacturing building. Craig Hill, senior vice president at the Seattle branch of real estate firm Grubb & Ellis, said the rent in the new facility is fair. “It sounds like a very good deal. They must have had a good broker,” he said, adding that the free rent in 2011 is an attractive element of the lease. “That’s a great concession.” The foregone alternatives City staff also considered other alternatives to the city’s lease, such as constructing a new building, but considered it to be too expensive. Wyman said there is no other office space available in the city. In Denton’s revised lease, he offered to drop the city’s rent from $13.20 per square foot per year to $9.75 per square foot per year. After 2016, this rate would increase by 2 percent per year. Using both floors of Denton’s building for the next five years would cost $1.15 million, but the lower floor could have served as a maintenance facility. In addition to paying for half the building repairs, Denton said he would also pay as much as $50,000 to help remodel the downstairs. Wyman said city staff is now evaluating options for a maintenance facility. City Hall also has a $50,000 backup generator that it may not be able to take with it. The generator allowed City Hall to serve as an emergency shelter. Wyman said other facilities, such as the Coal Creek YMCA, could act as an emergency shelter if City Hall cannot take the generator to the new location.
Newcastle News
MARCH 4, 2011
Renton schools try to figure out budget cuts By Tim Pfarr and Laura Geggel In the wake of the state Legislature’s December cuts to the 2010-2011 school year budget and Gov. Chris Gregoire’s proposed budget for the coming years, the Renton School District has turned to parents, students and members of the community for help. District officials held three meetings in January to discuss budget priorities, including one at Hazen High School on Jan. 27. The Legislature’s cuts snatched $850,000 from the district mid-year, and Gregoire’s proposed budget — which aims to address a $4.6 billion shortfall — calls for $2.4 million in additional cuts for the 2011-2012 school year. “For next year, it’s devastating,” Renton Superintendent Mary Alice Heuschel said. “We’re now cutting into our future, and it’s irresponsible. We’re at the point where there’s not much left.” The district cut $17.9 million from its budgets from 20072010. At the January meetings, district officials said their priorities are maintaining literacy and mathematics skills, equity and access for all students, on-time graduation and college readiness, and safe learning environments. Another priority is promoting initiatives incorporating research-proven teaching methods and not drawing more than a responsible amount from its rainy day fund. Heuschel said members of the community have been supportive of the district’s priorities so far, and the district created an online survey to continue gathering input. The online survey is more in depth than the discussions at the budget meetings and asks users to rate specific services. The goal is to not have the cuts affect students, although it is difficult to do so, district spokesman Randy Matheson said. “Because we’ve been making budget cuts for the last four years, in the tune of $18 million, it’s harder and harder to keep those cuts out of the classroom,” he said. The district will hold more community meetings in April, at which time it will present
members of the community with an initial budget. The district will present the budget to the school board in July, and the board will adopt the budget in August. The governor’s budget Gregoire’s budget reduces or eliminates funding in seven key areas for Washington’s public K-12 education, including: ❑ Eliminating $216 million to be used for reducing class sizes kindergarten through fourthgrades. ❑ Suspending $860.2 million from Initiative 728, a measure to reduce class size and provide professional development for teachers. ❑ Suspending $253.3 million from Initiative 732, which grants cost-of-living increases to teachers. ❑ Suspending $57 million in planned increases for all-day kindergarten. ❑ Suspending $99.5 million in annual bonuses for National Board-certified teachers. ❑ Suspending $56.3 million for annual step increases for teachers. ❑ Eliminating $18.6 million for the gifted-student program. Superintendent of the state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn called the proposed budget the worst he had seen in the 30 years he had worked in education. “But this budget isn’t all about numbers, it’s about kids,” he said in a statement. “And once again, our kids got cut.” The state Legislature began its work on Gregoire’s budget in January. Under state law, the governor takes the initial step for the budget. Then, both houses of the Legislature hammer out proposals. The end result is typically a blend of the proposals.
Your news comments welcome!
PAGE 11
Author From Page 1 visit, each grade level completed art projects devoted to one of the 20 books he had written and illustrated. Kindergarteners completed projects based on the book “LMNO Peas,” creating peas with green finger paints. Those and the rest of the projects hung inside the school for Baker to see. “The kids’ projects were just wonderful,” said Baker, whose other books include “Meet Mr. and Mrs. Green,” “Hide and Snake” and “Who is the Beast?” Librarian Laura Berry, who assisted Baker during his day at the school, said the students were excited to meet the author of the books they loved. “It’s like he’s Santa Claus,” she said with a laugh. “They just keep waiting and waiting. They were like ‘is today the day?’” So many students ordered Baker’s books that he even needed to return to the school Feb. 18 to deliver them. In the assemblies, Baker focused his presentations on how to tell stories through pictures. In the workshops, he led second-graders through creating their own books about snakes, and he taught fifthgraders the fundamentals of drawing realistic pictures. He elicited gasps of excitement from fifth-graders when demonstrated concepts such as the vanishing point — the point at which items disappear into the horizon in pictures — and the basics of proportion, perspective and shadows. “I want to give them a tip about drawing,” Baker said. “At that stage, the kids want to
By Tim Pfarr
Author Keith Baker focuses on how to draw realistically by demonstrating principles, such as the vanishing point. draw realistically.” One student who enjoyed Baker’s drawing instructions was 11-year-old Bailey Keegan. “I knew how to make a road. I never knew how to do anything else,” she said. “It was really cool.” Valerie Adams, 10, agreed. Adams said she loves to draw cartoons, and that she doodles on all of her papers. Although the lesson in realism was a departure from what she was used to, she said she appreciated being able to give it a try. “I liked being able to draw and learn,” she said. Fifth-grade teacher Deanna Buder said that while picture books such as Baker’s mean a lot to young children, they also have something to offer the older ones, tailoring to different styles of learning, inspiring creativity and instilling values. “You don’t think about how much picture books mean to older kids,” she said. “They have great morals and themes.”
Buder said she reads books such as Shel Silverstein’s “The Giving Tree” in her class. She said this book — about a tree that selflessly gives its resources to a boy as he grows up — even brings a tear to her eye when she reads it aloud. The school’s goal in launching its literacy campaign is increasing reading among students and improving their reading scores on tests. Principal Marla Newton said having Baker was a great way to kickoff this year’s literacy celebration. “To actually see that person live and know that that’s their job,” she said. “It just brings it to life for the kids.” In the next two years, the school hopes to bring in more authors, and it already applied for an Issaquah School Foundation grant to help cover the cost of doing so. “You always gain something extra by seeing them in person,” Berry said.
COMMUNITY
PAGE 12
Events The Newcastle Chamber of Commerce lunch meeting is from 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. March 9 at Tapatio’s, 6920 Coal Creek Parkway S.E. Cost is $20. R.S.V.P. to info@newcastlecc.com. Fred Jarrett, deputy King County executive, will give a State of the County address. The Newcastle Weed Warriors next blackberry weed removal projects are from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. March 12 and 26 at Lake Boren Park. Download a volunteer form at www.newcastleweedwarriors.org/ projects.html. Newcastle Trails hosts a Trail Walk from 9 a.m. to noon March 19. Learn more at www.newcastletrails.org. The Hazen High School Booster Club auction and dinner is from 5:30-11 p.m. March 26 at Renton Technical College, 3000 N.E. 4th St., Renton. Tickets are $35, which include dinner. There will be silent and live auctions, and a 50/50 raffle. Items in the auctions include Seahawks tickets and wine baskets. R.S.V.P. at www.hazenboosters.org.
Public meetings All city public meetings take place at City Hall, 13020 Newcastle Way. Call 649-4363. ❑ Parks Commission, 6-8 p.m. March 9 ❑ City Council regular meeting, 7-9 p.m. March. 15 ❑ Planning Committee meeting, 7-9 p.m. March 16 Newcastle Trails board meeting is from 7-9 p.m. March 7 at Regency Newcastle, 7454 Newcastle Golf Club Road.
Youth The following events take place at the Coal Creek Family YMCA, 13750 Newcastle Golf
MARCH 4, 2011
IN THE SPOTLIGHT City hosts spring recycling event
By Greg Farrar
Bring the items that have been sitting in your garage for too long to the Spring Recycling Collection at Renton Academy March 19.
Club Road. Call 282-1500 or go to www.seattleymca.org/coalcreek. ❑ “Fun With Food: Spring Rolls,” for ages 3-10, 10:30-11:30 a.m. March 20, $10 ❑ Family Dinners, lasagna, 5:30-7:30 p.m. March 11, $5 for adults, $3 for children ❑ Swim Lessons: Youth 3 – Minnow, 9:35-10:05 a.m. and 11:20-11:50 a.m. March 5, $22$38.50 ❑ Swim Lessons: Youth 5 – Flying Fish, 10:10-10:40 a.m. and 11:20-11:50 a.m. March 5, $22-$38.50 ❑ Swim Lessons: Youth 6 – Shark, 10:45-11:15 a.m. March 5, $22-$38.50 ❑ Youth Basketball League, coed kindergarten, 5:30-6:30 p.m. March 30 to May 28, $50-
$88 ❑ Youth Basketball League, coed first grade, Mondays 5:306:30 p.m. March 28 to May 28, Tuesdays 5:30-6:30 p.m. March 29 to May 28, and Wednesdays 6-7 p.m. March 30 to May 28, $50-$88 ❑ Youth Basketball League, coed second grade, Tuesdays 6-7 p.m. March 29 to May 28, Wednesdays 4:30-5:30 p.m. and 5-6 p.m. March 30 to May 28, and Thursdays 5:30-6:30 p.m. March 31 to May 28, $50-$88 ❑ Youth Basketball League, boys grades 4-5, 5:55-6:55 p.m. March 29 to May 28, and girls grades 4-5, Tuesdays 5-6 p.m. March 29 to May 28, $50-$88 ❑ Tahminawi Winter Campout, March 18-20, $85
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Clubs The Society of Artists for Newcastle, an art organization, is seeking new members. Call 271-5822. MOMS Club of Renton meets for play dates at parks and other locations.
The city’s spring recycling event will be 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. March 19 at Renton Academy, 6928 116th Ave. S.E. Most household items will be accepted free of charge. No electronics — such as computers, keyboards and TVs — will be accepted this year, as they should be recycled at an E-Cycle station. Visit the city’s website — www.ci.newcastle.wa.us — and click the “Newcastle Recycling Event” link for a complete list of what you can recycle at Renton Academy March 19. Go to 1800recycle.wa.gov to find the nearest E-Cycle pick-up sites for your electronics. The King County Solid Waste Division, the King County Department of Public Health and the state Department of Ecology sponsor Newcastle’s spring and fall recycling events.
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New activities are planned daily. This nonprofit, nonreligious organization provides daytime support for moms and their families. Call 260-3079. Bridge players wanted, evening or daytime. Games take place at homes in the Hazelwood area. Call 255-0895. Newcastle Historical Society meets at 4 p.m. the first Thursday at City Hall, 13020 S.E. 72nd Place. Call 226-4238. An international dinner, sponsored by Baha’i Faith of Newcastle, is at 6:30 p.m. the third Friday. Call 430-8047. Drinking Liberally, an informal progressive social group that discusses politics, meets at 7 p.m. the first and Third Thursday of the month at Angelo’s Restaurant, 1830 130th Ave. N.E., Bellevue. Go to www.drinkingliberally.org. Eastside Mothers & More, a social network for mothers, meets from 7-9 p.m. the second Tuesday of each month in the North Room at East Shore Unitarian Church, 12700 S.E. 32nd St., Bellevue. Go to www.eastsidemothersandmore.org. See CALENDAR, Page 13
Newcastle News
MARCH 4, 2011
Laughing all the way
Old dog, no new tricks
when leaving the house via car, I entered the garage, turned slightly to my left, and with my right hand and without looking, pushed that button. Recently the garage door failed, as these things do after a couple of useful decades. It didn’t fail in a catastrophic manner. It was more benign than that, like a little game of “Can I get in my house today?” roulette. I had maybe a 60/40 chance that it would open after I pushed the control in the car, and I often needed to stop directly in front of it and hold the button down while spewing a string of colorful expletives — that or just drive right through it, a thought that occurred to me
more than once. So we had new and reliable machinery installed and, as part of the process, a new opener as well. This opener was installed 54 inches from the floor and is the size of an electrical faceplate. On it are three wide buttons stacked on top of each other, two of which are still a complete mystery to me, and one of which — the actual opener — I manage to hit only half the time. It’s been two or three months now, and I still haven’t managed to get the hang of it. I hit the top button most. I think it’s supposed to lock something, because it has a little lock icon on it. I think that the next one
Volunteers
In the fall of 1989, back when Harry Met Sally and Taylor Swift was about 3 months old, and probably around the same time that construction workers were leaving empty beer cans in the crawl spaces of our home that we would only find years later, someone affixed a garage door opener to the wall. He placed it on the left side of the door jamb between the laundry room and the garage, precise-
ly 59 inches from the floor. There was a single button on this control. Raised one-half inch above the surface of the apparatus, it was round and smooth and Pat Detmer the size of a nickel. For more than 20 years,
Calendar
fun. Call 644-8417. Coal Creek Family YMCA Active Older Adult Program, ages 55 and older, Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., at 13750 Newcastle Golf Club Road, 282-1500 ❑ Open for community service projects, intergenerational projects, crafts, pinochle games, field trips and fellowship; sack lunches are available for a $3 donation ❑ Refresher bridge class, 10 a.m. to noon Thursdays
tion, in Factoria Mall, 4055 Factoria Mall S.E., Bellevue, is open from 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Monday – Saturday and from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday, for hold pickups, returns and has a small browsing collection for checkout. Go to the library blog — http://blogs.kcls.org/newportway — for updated information regarding programs, classes and events.
Library events
Angel Care Breast Cancer Foundation-trained survivors offer free emotional support to the newly diagnosed, enhancing emotional recovery while going through treatments. Go to www.angelcarefoundation.org.
From Page 12 Hill’N Dale Garden Club, meets at 6 p.m. the first Monday of each month September through June at the Newport Way Library, 14250 S.E. Newport Way. Call 255-9705.
Seniors Lake Heights Family YMCA Seniors Program has drop-in time Tuesdays and Thursdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the YMCA, 12635 S.E. 56th St. in Newport Hills. Have lunch, socialize and have
The Newport Way Library, 14250 S.E. Newport Way, Bellevue, is closed for expansion. A temporary loca-
Newcastle Chamber of Commerce Please join us in supporting Newcastle’s Businesses Looking for fellow professionals to network with? Join the Chamber and discover valuable resources right in your own back yard!
M A R K YO U R C A L E N DA R ! March 9, 2011 • 11:00 - 12:15 Tapatio Mexican Grill • Luncheon Cost: $20 MARCH
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Health
The Coal Creek Family YMCA Seniors Program needs volunteers for intergenerational opportunities, including rocking and comforting infants, reading to kindergartners and teaching children to play bridge. Call 282-1506. Newcastle Weed Warriors: Volunteers assist city workers in removing noxious and invasive weeds from Newcastle parks, trails and open spaces. Youth groups, community groups and individuals are invited to participate in monthly environmental stewardship projects. Go to www.NewcastleWeedWarriors.org. Newcastle Trails - Trail Advocates and Builders for Newcastle: The group has built
Why Do Smart Kids Struggle?
down controls a lights, but I’m not sure about that. All I know is that the bottom one will let me out, and the bottom one is lower than it used to be and is close to unfinished wood, which means I’ve also impaled myself multiple times and managed to take a splinter under a fingernail, reminding me why bamboo shoots under the nail remain the preferred and cheapest form of torture worldwide. But you know, give me another 20 years, and I may get the hang of it. You can reach Pat Detmer — who is probably trying to get out of her house this very minute — through patdetmer.com.
and maintained miles of trails for the public throughout the city, and has regular meetings and work parties. Call 453-9292, ext. 110, or go to www.newcastletrails.org. King County Library System’s Words on Wheels program needs volunteers to select and deliver library materials to homebound patrons. Training is provided. A one-year commitment is required. Volunteers must be at least 18, have their own transportation and be able to pass a Washington State Patrol background check. Call 369-3235. Dependency CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate): Community volunteers advocate for the best interests of abused and neglected children in King County. Call 269-3201.
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MARCH 4, 2011
Bob Bridge donates to Hazen band program By Allison Int-Hout The Hazen High School band program received $2,000 last month from Bob Bridge, a local businessman celebrated for his continuing support of the Renton School District. The donation was one of four Bridge said will total $8,000 and go to high school band programs in the district. Bridge is the president of a Toyota dealership in Renton and said his life as a businessman was significantly influenced by his experiences in band and chorus during seventh through 12th grade. “The experiences there were quite meaningful,” he said. “I learned a lot that has applied to my professional life.” He said those fond memories, as well as his dedication to funding education during tough financial times, inspired him to make the donation to the band program, which will cover the cost of upkeep on instruments. “It’s going to make these instruments playable for kids,” said Ernest Hibbard, the Hazen High School music teacher. “Our instrument fleet is getting older, and we’ve been without any
means of maintaining it for quite some time.” Although Hibbard said the majority of Bridge’s donation will fund instrument repairs, it will also pay to replace some “consumable” items, like small percussion instruments, drum sticks and drum heads. Bridge is known for his support of programs within the Renton School District and has even established a few educational programs of his own. In addition to this donation to the high school band programs, Bridge funded the district’s Reading Buddies program as well as a program funding algebra tutoring. “He has been extra generous,” Randy Matheson, the district’s executive director of community relations, said about Bridge. “Not just through this, but also the Reading Buddies program. He completely thought it up and funded it himself.” Bridge purchased $10,000 worth of books to launch the Reading Buddies program, which he said reaches students in 13 grade schools. He said that, through the program, the 2,000 participating second- and fifthgraders read 125,000 books dur-
By Allison Int-Hout
Bob Bridge prepares to give a trumpet a try after presenting a $2,000 check for the Hazen High School band programs, one of four checks he plans to donate to Renton high schools. ing the 2009-2010 school year. Matheson said Bridge also played a key role in the creation of the Friends of Renton Schools Fund that was started in 2009 to compensate for budget cuts to public education. “Without his work on that,” Matheson said, “it would not be up and running.” Bridge said the current economic situation and extensive budget cuts to education fuel his continuing support of local public schools.
“This is the third year in a row that there are big cuts in the money the government is able to provide to education,” he said. Bridge said he believes that businesses and communities around the state strive to make up for the cuts made to education during recessions. “Many businesses like mine that have been around for 20 or 30 years,” he said, “have the ability to, in these really horrible times, turn around and reinvest
in the community.” Bridge said his donation to the band programs in the district was the result of a conversation with Superintendent Dr. Mary Alice Heuschel, who Bridge said communicates openly with businesses in the community about the needs of the district. “The superintendent is really good about letting us in the business community know what the needs are,” he said. Heuschel said that businesspeople who are active in the school district, like Bridge, demonstrate to children that the community cares about their education, and she said this relationship is unique to the Renton School District. “My job is to make sure I keep the leaders of the community informed of our needs,” she said at Lindbergh High School after Bridge presented one of the $2,000 checks. “We can’t do this alone.” Although Bridge would prefer to remain out of the spotlight, many in the community commend him for his continual support of the Renton School District. “Bob is extremely unique and he is serious about being a partner in education,” Matheson said. “He is committed to the community, education and the kids.” Allison Int-Hout is a student in the University of Washington Department of Communication News Laboratory.
Science, language arts curriculum to get update By Laura Geggel The Issaquah School District is preparing to adopt new curricula this June: one for elementary school science and another for high school language arts. District administrators try to update curricula every seven years, but sometimes budget cuts get in the way. The elementary science curriculum was last updated in 2003, but the wait has been longer for high school language arts — it was last updated during a three-year period from 1999-2001. Some parents said they felt unsettled after last year’s math curriculum adoption, saying the district did not allow them enough input, especially because a group of parents disagreed with the curriculum that the Issaquah School Board approved. This year, district administrators inserted an extra step in the adoption process: a parent preview night. At the preview nights, parents can thumb through various curricula and write feedback on comment cards next to each station.
Get involved Preview the publishers that could be used in your child’s classroom. Both previews will be presented at the district Administration Building, 565 N.W. Holly St. ❑ Elementary school science, 4:30-7:30 p.m. March 11 ❑ High school language arts, 4:30-7 p.m. March 15
The step is one of many the district takes when adopting a new curriculum. Waiting seven years for each adoption is standard for the district, Executive Director of Teaching and Learning Emilie Hard said. By the end of seven years, textbooks begin to show wear after hundreds of students have used them. Information becomes outdated, effective teaching practices evolve, technology changes and state standards adjust, she added. “There is research that is done
on an ongoing basis, and we want to stay as current as possible to give our students in Issaquah the best possible experience we can,” she said. Some subjects, such as health or technology classes, have curricula that are updated annually, ensuring they comply with state standards and evolving technology. While district administrators are still unsure of the price for this year’s adoptions, last year’s chemistry curriculum adoption materials cost $120,000. The Issaquah Schools Foundation has pledged it will use money raised during its Calling for Kids campaign to help pay for the elementary science curriculum adoption. Hard said the recent budget cuts from the Legislature’s special session in December — a loss totaling $1 million for the Issaquah district — and the predicted $3.1 million the district could lose in 2011-12 if state legislators approve Gov. Chris Gregoire’s 2011-13 budget, are See UPDATE, Page 15
Contributed
Students in science teacher Teresa Coda’s classroom at Hazen High School have new equipment to use thanks to a grant of more than $2,200 from BECU.
Local teachers receive science grants Hazen High School science teacher Teresa Coda and McKnight Middle School science teacher Carlie Jonas each received more than $2,200 from credit union BECU to purchase equipment for her classroom. The equipment included temperature and motion probes, test tubes, graduated
cylinders, beakers, microscopes and slides, and pH paper. The grants helped Coda achieve her years-long goal of replacing microscopes in each Hazen biology classroom. About 6,000 students will use the new microscopes during the next 15 years before they need to be replaced.
Newcastle News
MARCH 4, 2011
Have coffee with the superintendent Grab a cup of joe with Issaquah School District Superintendent Steve Rasmussen at one of his three coffee conversations: 5-6 p.m. March 14 at Issaquah High School; noon to 1 p.m. April 19 at Skyline High School; or 7:30-8:30 a.m. May 17 at Liberty High School. All educational topics will be on the table, as will cream and sweetener.
Superintendent narrowly misses national honor Although she was named one of four finalists, Renton School District Superintendent Mary Alice Heuschel did not receive the award for Superintendent of the Year award for 2010. The award was announced at the American Association of School Administrators’ annual conference in Denver, Colo., Feb. 17. The AASA’s highest honor went to Marc Johnson of the Sanger School District, southeast of Fresno, Calif. Last November, Washington Association of School Administrators named Heuschel the superintendent of the year for the state. In December, the AASA named her a finalist for its highest honor.
Local students named merit scholar finalists Hazen High School senior Jacob Zimmer and Liberty High School senior Jay Chakravarty have been named finalists in the 2011 National Merit Scholarship Program. Zimmer and
Chakravarty are two of 15,000 finalists from across the country. More than 1.5 million students entered the program. Jacob Zimmer To be named finalists, Zimmer and Chakravarty maintained stellar academic records throughout high school. Their respective principals also endorsed Jay Chakravarty them, and Zimmer and Chakravarty performed well on the Preliminary SAT, which is the program’s qualifying test. Zimmer and Chakravarty will be notified this spring if they are to receive scholarships.
Update From Page 14 not expected to affect the curriculum adoptions. How the process works Once the district determined it would proceed with two curriculum changes, it sent surveys to parents in June 2010. Parents answered questions about their children’s interests and abilities in science or language arts, and asked whether families liked the current curriculum. The district then posted the survey responses on the district website. After the survey, the district formed two committees — one for science and another for language arts. Each committee has one community representative from each of the district’s five areas, plus teachers and representatives serving specific student populations, including special-
PAGE 15 needs students and gifted students. The committees decided the evaluation protocols — first seeing if each curriculum met state standards and later making sure the material was not biased toward one gender, if it was easy to understand, if it had online components for both students and parents and if it would appeal to students and teachers. The top materials they choose will make appearances in Issaquah classrooms during a field test period. The committee asks teachers, students and parents to provide them feedback, seeing if the lessons were clear yet challenging. During that time, the district will invite the community to two parent preview nights. Using feedback from both the field tests and the preview nights, the committee will look at its resources one last time, and then make a recommendation to the Instructional Materials Committee. The committee — composed
On the Web To learn more about the curriculum adoption process, go to www.issaquah.wednet.edu, click on “Academics” on the dropdown menu and then click “Curriculum Adoption.”
of community members, teachers and librarians — will review the recommendation and make sure the committee properly carried out its work. Parents can also look at the recommendations at the district’s Administration Building during a two-week period: from May 24 to June 7 for high school language arts, and from June 9-23 for the elementary science curriculum. If the IMC approves the work, it will send the recommendations the school board in June. If not, the committee goes back to square one, starting the process over again.
Hazen recognized for high graduation rates The state Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction and the State Board of Education awarded Hazen High School with a Washington Achievement Award for having a graduation rate between 90 and 95 percent. This is the second year Hazen won this award for a high graduation rate. Learn more at k12.wa.us/EducationAwards.
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SPORTS
PAGE 16
Liberty winter athletes take to postseason
MARCH 4, 2011
Wrestlers build a legacy for Highlanders Team wins Seamount title with victory over Renton
By Tim Pfarr Liberty High School’s swimmers and wrestlers stole the spotlight this winter season, reaching the state championships. Swimmer Logan Briggs took second place in the state 3A championships in the 200yard freestyle, helping lead Liberty’s swim team to a tie for seventh place at the state championships. Wrestler Hamilton Noel took second place in the state in 152-pound weight class. Liberty’s basketball teams’ postseasons were cut short, with the girls falling in the Sea-King District Tournament, and the boys falling in the KingCo 3A Tournament. Swimming Liberty High School took seventh place at the state swimming championship meet Feb. 19 at the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way, thanks to strong performances by Briggs, Luke Duschl, Kevin Hays and Tyler Larson. “We were seventh in 2006, and that was a really, really good year for us,” Liberty head coach Kris Daughters said. “To get seventh again is pretty cool.” However, the Liberty crew
By Alysha Alibhai The Hazen High School wrestling team won its first Seamount League championship in more than a decade last month, a victory that came from defeating Renton on Jan. 27. “We had lost to Renton [last year] and I knew that they were going to be tough,” said head coach Rory Magana. “The championship match was a crazy back-and-forth battle.” Magana has been coaching at Hazen for the past two years and is proud of the team’s recent success, he said, especially since they struggled to fill all weight classes this year. Magana said the wrestlers “knew that we had a job to do and they went out there and took care of business.” The win was well-deserved, said sophomore Tyler Watanabe, who was able to win his match in the last second, and attributes the team’s success to its strong work ethic. “The amount of energy everybody puts into practice and their hard work reflects onto our
By Sebastian Moraga
Hamilton Noel, Liberty High School junior, has the better position on Enumclaw’s Josh Musick early in their 152-pound state 3A championship match Feb. 19 at the Tacoma Dome. Below, Hazen High School sophomore Daniel Karpman, left, advanced to the state tournament in the Tacoma Dome Feb. 18. By Scott Coburn
See LIBERTY, Page 18
See LEGACY, Page 18
Liberty running back Chandler Jenkins signs with Air Force By Tim Pfarr A month ago, Liberty High School senior Chandler Jenkins wasn’t sure where he wanted to go to college. The three-sport athlete had received scholarship offers from numerous colleges to play football, but he wasn’t sure which one to take. However, on national signing day Feb. 2, he signed a letter of intent with the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. “I didn’t want to regret the decision in five years,” Jenkins said. He said he wanted to set himself up for a good career, although he is not sure what field he would like to go into. Jenkins will play the slot receiver position in the Air Force
triple-option offense, and will get plenty of opportunities to run the ball. Jenkins celebrated his signing before school Feb. 9 in Liberty’s career center. With him were his father Cephus, mother Kathleen, stepfather Neal, older brother Jordan, aunt Shirley and grandmother Thelma. “He could have been a pro at basketball, baseball or football,” Cephus Jenkins said. “The kid just had it. He could adapt to anything, left-handed or righthanded. It didn’t matter.” Cephus had coached Chandler in every sport through elementary and middle school. His mother said seeing Chandler sign was seeing all her dreams come true, and his See JENKINS, Page 19
Chandler Jenkins (second from right) poses for photos after signing a letter of intent to play football for the Air Force Academy. With him are former football and basketball coach Ken Burns (left) Liberty football head coach Steve Valach (second from left) and his father Cephus Jenkins (right). By Tim Pfarr
Newcastle News
MARCH 4, 2011
PAGE 17
Hazen boys basketball team reaches state tournament By Tim Pfarr Despite a midseason coaching change, the Hazen boys basketball team found great success in the 2010-2011 season, fighting through a district tournament to achieve its first state playoff berth since 2002. Swimmer Chase Onstot and diver Brandon Alexander earned a trip to the state swimming and diving championships in Federal Way Feb. 19, and five Highlanders earned a trip to the state wrestling tournament in the Tacoma Dome Feb. 18. Basketball The Hazen High School boys basketball team suffered a heartbreaking 1-point loss in the second game of the state tournament to end its season. The berth in the tournament followed district tournament wins over Kelso, Bremerton, Camas and Kennedy high schools. Had Hazen lost one of those games, its season would have been over. The team started the state tournament with a 67-60 victory over Mountlake Terrace High School, senior power forward and center Brandt Graybeal led the team with 22 points in the victory, followed by senior point guard De’corius Sampson, who racked up 17 points of his own. Junior point guard Frankie Johnson also had 11 points. In the second game of the state tournament, Hazen fell to Glacier Peak High School, 50-49. The Highlanders were up by 1 point with 15 seconds left, but Glacier Peak picked up a loose ball. Hazen fouled, and Glacier Peak hit both free throws. When Hazen got the ball back, it was unable to score. Senior shooting guards Michael Dampier and R.J. Magar led the Highlanders in the game with 13 points and 10 points, respectively. Junior center Dawit Kasa and Sampson each had 9 points. Regardless, head coach Gary Schaplow said the team made a good run. “I’m really proud of the kids, the way they played down the stretch,” he said. “They bought in and came together and played some pretty good defense.” Of the nine postseason games Hazen played, three went into overtime. “I was so impressed with their competitive spirit. I told them that all year,” Schaplow said. “They will just fight and fight and fight until the horn blows.” The team finished the season
with a 21-7 overall record, and a 13-1 record in Seamount League play. Magar led the team in scoring in the year with 355 points and an average of 14.2 points per game. Kasa, Sampson and Graybeal also finished the season with more than 250 points each, averaging 11.8, 11 and 10.7 points per game, respectively. Schaplow took over as head coach Dec. 13 after the school fired former coach James Olive. Schaplow had coached the Highlanders for two seasons in the early 2000s and served as the school’s athletic director from 2004-2009. He said he is not sure whether he will coach the team again next year. The Hazen girls basketball team finished the season with an 11-8 overall record and a 8-6 record in Seamount League play. The Highlanders advanced to a seeding match against Enumclaw High School Feb. 11 to battle for a spot in the district tournament, but they lost 52-44. The loss marked an unfortunate end to a season that started strong. “On paper, we should have beaten Enumclaw,” girls basketball head coach Jeff Bernhardt said. “It came down to a couple possessions here and there, and they made the most of them.” Junior guard Airashay Rogers led the league in scoring during the season with an astounding 448 points and an average of 26.4 points per game. Rogers also racked up 42 assists during the season, as well as 35 blocks, 112 steals and 160 rebounds. Senior guard Michelle Wnek was second on the team in scoring with 220 points, averaging
12.2 points per game. Wnek also had 34 assists and a league-leading 132 steals. “They were, no question, the leaders of our team,” Bernhardt said. With Rogers returning for her senior season next year, Hazen is sure to be a threat in 2012. Swimming Sophomore Onstot and junior Alexander advanced to the state swimming championship meet Feb. 19 at the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way. Onstot took 10th in the 500yard freestyle with a time of 4 minutes, 51.78 seconds. He also took 11th in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:46.87. Alexander took 16th in state in diving, racking up a final score of 252.7 in the championship round. Wrestling Hazen wrestlers Josh Kluth, Derek Coburn, Austin Clark, Daniel Karpman and Kyle Ely advanced to the Mat Classic in the Tacoma Dome. Ely — a senior in the 189pound weight class — lost his first match 15-7 to Camoron Babcock, from Shadle Park High School in Spokane, and advanced to the consolation bracket, where he pinned Jake Ferris, from Wilson High School in Tacoma, in 4:33. However, he dropped his next match against Colton Malek, from Enumclaw High School, 40, ending his championship run. Kluth, Coburn, Clark, Karpman and Ely each lost their first two matches and were eliminated from the tournament.
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Hazen High School junior Brandon Alexander prepares to leap into reverse double summersaults in the first round of the state diving finals Feb. 19. He finished 16th in the event.
Newcastle News
PAGE 18 and senior Larson made up both relay teams.
Liberty From Page 16 was missing breaststroke specialist Raymond Ha, who was out with the flu. Ha was slated to be on Liberty’s relay teams. Briggs, a junior, led the team at the meet, taking second in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1 minute, 41.99 seconds. The only swimmer to clock in with a faster time was Eastside Catholic High School’s Ethan Hallowell, who set a new meet record in the event with an all-America time of 1:38.18. Briggs later took third in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 4:37.88. Duschl, also a junior, took sixth place in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 54.10, and eighth in the 100yard individual medley with a time of 2:01.71. The former time was a new personal best. Liberty’s relay teams also advanced to the finals in the 200-yard medley relay — taking fifth with a time of 1:41.59 — and the 400-yard freestyle relay — taking seventh with a time of 3:22.33. Briggs, Duschl, junior Hays
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Wrestling Noel reached the finals at the Mat Classic for the second straight year. This time, the Liberty wrestler reached the 152-pound finals of the 3A state competition Feb. 19 in the Tacoma Dome. But, once again, he came up a bit short. Noel lost to Enumclaw’s Josh Musick 6-2, after opening the match with a 2-0 lead. A disappointed Noel blamed himself for the loss. “I knew it was going to be a good match — I came out, I scored on him, thought I had him, but I didn’t finish strong enough,” he said. “I’m just glad there’s next year.” As it turned out, Noel was just one of two 3A KingCo Conference wrestlers to reach the finals. Noel pledged to work on his conditioning for his senior season. “I was a little gassed,” he said. “More than I should have been.” Noel’s road to the finals began with a pin of Bishop Blanchet’s Myles Hollowed in the second period, a pin of Yelm’s Anthony Allred in the third, and a 4-2 decision over Mount Spokane’s Austin Pea. Liberty coach Manny Brown praised his wrestler and the new champion. “He gives us his all in practices and matches, everything,” Brown said of Noel. “Congratulations to Josh, who had a good match.” As a sophomore, Noel placed second at 145 pounds. At 160 pounds, Liberty’s Jay
MARCH 4, 2011
Chakravarty was eliminated in the second round of the consolation matches. Chakravarty defeated Kennedy Catholic’s Nick Armitage 6-4, before losing by pin to Enumclaw’s Kario Wallin, who went on to win the title. In the consolation bracket, Chakravarty lost 7-3 to Shadle Park’s Luke Miller, who finished seventh. Basketball Liberty’s girls basketball team’s season came to an end Feb. 18 with a 53-41 loss to Juanita High School in the SeaKing district tournament. However, the Patriots started with success in the postseason, taking second place in the KingCo 3A tournament. In the regional tournament, the team took down Bishop Blanchet High School, 41-30, thanks to strong performances from forwards Halie Ericksen and Aspen Winegar, who each posted 11 points. The team lost its next game to Lakeside High School, 40-27. Senior forward Danni Sjolander led the team in scoring in the loss with 13 points. With the loss, Liberty entered a consolation bracket, battling for the fifth and final state playoff berth. However, it was the loss in the next game that finished the season. The Liberty boys basketball team’s season ended in the first round of the KingCo 3A tournament with a 53-47 loss to Mount Si High School Feb. 5. Although the loss marked an early end to the postseason, Liberty senior guard Chandler Jenkins racked up 19 points.
Legacy From Page 16 meets,” he said. The meet against Renton was an example of a strong team effort, Magana said. “I knew that there were some underdog matches that we would have to pull off in order to win,” he said. “We had so many kids step up that night. If it weren’t for the wrestlers who gutted it out for tough wins, we wouldn’t have beat Renton.” Senior wrestler Jonathan Greer said he was among “several athletes who overcame obstacles to win their match and help the team succeed.” Greer was recovering from an injury and cut off his cast three weeks early in order to wrestle his match that day. Hazen wrestlers knew that the Renton match was going to be close, sophomore wrestler Jeremy Hazlett said. “We knew that we needed to get pins from our key guys,” he said, “and coach needed me to step up and get a win.” Hazlett has been wrestling for two years and won a key match against a wrestler whom he had lost to the weekend before, Magana said. The league title win was a great source of pride for the wrestlers and their parents, but wrestling is not as popular as other sports at Hazen, according to Hazlett. “Hopefully, we can build a strong tradition at Hazen,” Magana said. “We want more kids to come out and be part of our team.”
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450 NW Gilman Blvd. • Medical Center of Issaquah www.doctorfeder.com S TATE OF THE A RT C OSMETIC D ENTISTRY • T EETH W HITENING • I NVISALIGN
State tourney results ❑ Freshman Josh Kluth (103pound weight class), sophomore Derek Coburn (112), junior Austin Clark (130) and sophomore Daniel Karpman (135) each lost his first two matches and was eliminated. ❑ Senior Kyle Ely (189) dropped his first match but won his second, earning the team three points. However, he lost his third match and was eliminated as well.
Hazen is building a legitimate winning wrestling program, said Greer, which will help Hazen create an even stronger team for next year. “We are building a legacy for Hazen wrestling,” Hazlett said. “The next steps are to win more tournaments and do well at state,” he said. Hazen’s success didn’t end with the Seamount championship. The team went on to compete in subsequent tournaments. Since their win against Renton, Magana said, Hazen qualified 12 wrestlers for the WIAA 3A Region II championship, where they placed fourth. From their performance at the regional tournament, they qualified five wrestlers to compete in the state championship at the Tacoma Dome on Feb. 19 and 20. “Coach tells us over and over and over and over again,” Hazlett said, “in tournaments we need to just wrestle our match and keep the tempo up.” That is the mantra Hazen wrestlers will use to continue building a legacy. Alysha Alibhai is a student in the University of Washington Department of Communication News Laboratory.
Newcastle News
MARCH 4, 2011
Liberty football player wins National Football Foundation scholarship The National Football Foundation awarded Liberty High School running back and linebacker Jay Chakravarty with a $2,000 college scholarship for his achievements on the football field, in the classroom and in the community. The Seattle-King chapter of the organization presented Chakravarty with the award at Qwest Field Feb. 13. Chakravarty led the Patriots with 48.5 tackles during his senior season in 2010. He also rushed the ball 15 times for 92
yards — an average of 6.1 yards per carry — and one touchdown. One other athlete from the region received a $2,000 scholarship; six others received $500 scholarships. Others who were named semifinalists for NFF scholarships were senior lineman Kylan Marlow, from Liberty; and junior wide receiver and defensive back Julian Li and senior offensive lineman and linebacker Jordan Bumgarner, from Hazen High School.
Jenkins From Page 16 brother said their rough play in the back yard as youngsters had a purpose. “I’m pretty excited,” Jordan Jenkins said. “All those years being hard on him and making him cry paid off. It made him competitive.” Also in attendance were Liberty football coach Steve Valach, athletic director Stark Porter, former coach Ken Burns, and numerous teammates and other school staff members. They took turns shaking Chandler’s hand and giving him words of encouragement.
PAGE 19 “I’m really proud of him,” Valach said. “He’s going to be around excellent people. He’s going to be playing in bowl games.” Valach said Chandler’s signing has now made him a fan of Air Force. “I’m a Falcon, absolutely,” Valach said with a laugh. Burns — who coached Jenkins from second grade through high school — said Chandler has a perfect opportunity in attending Air Force. “You couldn’t give him a better launch pad,” he said. “The same things he used to get into Air Force are the same things he could use to get into IBM or politics. “This is one seed we’ve planted that has flowered,”
Burns said. In the 2009 season, Jenkins led the Patriots in rushing and total yardage, racking up 1,345 yards rushing, 762 yards receiving and a team-leading 22 total touchdowns, helping his team advance to the 3A state championship game, which the Patriots lost to division rival Bellevue Wolverines, 23-17. During his senior season, he recorded a whopping 1,795 rushing yards, 439 receiving yards and 286 kickoff return yards, for an average of nearly 36 yards per return, and three interceptions. Jenkins will play on the academy’s prep team his freshman year, to participate in a junior college league to develop his skills.
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Choose a CRS Certified Residential Specialist when you buy or sell a home. Some CRS Realtors in King County are shown here. Call 1-800-540-3257 for Certified Residential Specialists serving other areas or counties in the state. For more information on the CRS designation or for the names of CRS out of state, call 1-888-462-8841. The Council of Residential Specialists of Realtors National Marketing Institute is an affiliate of the National Association of Realtors.
Washington State Construction Contractor law requires that all advertisers for construction related services include the contractor registration number.
Gretchen Allen
Barbara Andersen
Laurie Ashbaugh
Better Homes & Garden Real Estate/Executive Greater Eastside & Sammamish
John L Scott Greater Eastside
Coldwell Banker Bain Greater Eastside
(425) 392-1211
(425) 450-5287
(206) 427-5553
Cindy Hamman RE/MAX Integrity Greater Eastside & Seattle
(425) 442-4942
Debbie Kinson
Kathy Lee
Steve Honnen
Bev Parsons
Windermere Greater Eastside
Coldwell Banker Bain Greater Eastside
Coldwell Banker Bain Greater Eastside & Sammamish
Coldwell Banker Bain Greater Eastside & Seattle
(206) 948-6581
(206) 465-7062
(206) 819-6166
(206) 972-0649
Also try us at the CRS web site
www.crs.com CRS Agents: Increase your visibility by participating in the special CRS page. Contact Jill at (425) 392-6434 ext. 229 or jgreen@isspress.com
“Fewer than 4% of the Realtors in the nation have their CRS designation but they account for 24% of all the transactions. Do the math. Maybe it’s time to call CRS!” –Jerry Rippeteau, Associate Broker, CRS CRS Washington State Chapter
Newcastle News
PAGE 20
MARCH 4, 2011
Registration open for Skyhawks summer camps Registration is open for Skyhawks summer camps for children 5-12 years old. Camps include golf, basketball, tennis, cheerleading and Mini-Hawk, which includes basketball, baseball and soccer. Camps are five days each and range in price from $69 to $145. They will be held at Lake Boren Park, Renton Academy or Hazelwood Elementary School. For the full list of camps, go to register.skyhawks.com, and enter your ZIP code. Call Newcastle Parks and Recreation at City Hall at 649-4444 or Skyhawks at 800-804-3509 toll free with questions.
Looking to sell - we have buyers and need inventory. Give us a call! Outstanding In Olympus $500,000 Located in the Issaquah school district, you’ll love the feel of this 3 bedroom/den home. Beautifully remodeled master bath. Well maintained throughout including new roof. Extensive use of hardwood floors. Call for private showing.
FEBRUARY STATS Year Homes Average Sold List Price
Average Sold Price
SP % LP
DOM
2010 2011
$632,206 97.1% $736,766 98.6%
118 212
9 6
$651,511 $742,268
Milepost at it’s Best!! $525,000
Best of the Reserve $1,359,000
Across the street from Newcastle Elementary yet as private as can be! You’ll have to see it to believe it. Located in a cul de sac this professionally decorated 3 bedroom/den home is charming. Highlighted by the amazing yard abundant with fruit trees and vegetable gardens. Decks off kitchen and living room allow you to enjoy the peaceful, serene setting. Call for a private showing.
Bank APPROVED short sale = EQUITY. Amazing value!! Can close soon. Enjoy the Reserve at Newcastle’s ultimate golf course view from this home that has everything you’ve been looking for. Only the finest finishes have been used throughout. Gourmet kitchen has a dual Wolfe range, Sub Zero, large island and butler’s pantry. Boxed beamed ceilings add to the appeal of the large family room. Stunning master bath has jetted tub and oversized walk-in closet. Movie night in your own home theater.
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Julie 425.444.SALE (7253) Ben 425.444.SOLD (7653)
Playground purchase made for Lake Boren Park The City Council passed a resolution at its Feb. 1 meeting allowing city staff to purchase new play equipment for Lake Boren Park. The vote — 6-1 with Councilwoman Carol Simpson dissenting — allowed the city to forego the competitive bidding process to make the purchase. The council authorized the move because manufacturer Highwire Inc. retained a low price it offered the city for the equipment last year. The city needed to purchase the equipment immediately to get the lower price. The playground will be built this spring. A $325,000 state grant is funding the project.
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Purchase one entree and two beverages from our regular menu and receive the second entree of equal or lesser value FREE. Offer Expires 3/31/11.
FREE BREAKFAST Valid with coupons at participating locations. Not valid with any other specials, discounts, senior programs, kids eat free, all-you-can-eat promotions or holidays. Limit one coupon per party. Dine-in-only. Kennydale/Renton 4750 Lake Washington Blvd. NE Renton Bellevue/Overlake 2223 148th Ave NE Bellevue Code: WNA
Valid with coupons at participating locations. Not valid with any other specials, discounts, senior programs, kids eat free, all-you-can-eat promotions or holidays. Limit one coupon per party. Dine-in-only.
(Regular Menu)
Valid with coupons at participating locations. Not valid with any other specials, discounts, senior programs, kids eat free, all-you-can-eat promotions or holidays. Limit one coupon per party. Dine-in-only.
Kennydale/Renton 4750 Lake Washington Blvd. NE Renton
Kennydale/Renton 4750 Lake Washington Blvd. NE Renton
Bellevue/Overlake 2223 148th Ave NE Bellevue
Bellevue/Overlake 2223 148th Ave NE Bellevue
Code: WNA
Code: WNA
Offers good at following locations only
Kennydale/Renton 4750 Lake Washington Blvd. NE
Bellevue/Overlake 2223 148th Ave NE