Whidbey News-Times, September 24, 2011

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NEWS-TIMES WHIDBEY

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2011 | Vol. 120, No. 77 | WWW.WHIDBEYNEWSTIMES.COM | 75¢

Living: Longtime doctor retires. A15

Boy’s father arrested in gun-at-school case The 9-year-old boy was expelled Sept. 14 after school officials discovered he was carrying a loaded .45 caliber Ruger in his backpack. Oak Harbor Police Chief Rick Wallace said the gun had a full magazine and a round in the chamber. The safety was in the “on” position. According to school officials, the boy also brought a different gun to school on the day before. The boy showed a handgun to a girl on a school bus Sept. 13. She told one of her parents who, in turn, reported the incident to the school the next morning. Investigators don’t believe that the boy intended to hurt anyone, but was probably just showing off. Gardner said he told police he didn’t know why he brought the loaded gun to school.

By JESSIE STENSLAND Staff reporter

Nathan Whalen/Whidbey News-Times

Goats have spent days eating the ivy that is threatening trees at Coupeville’s Town Park. They will remain at the park until Tuesday.

The father of an Oak Harbor fourth-grader who brought a gun to school was arrested Wednesday on suspicion of reckless endangerment. Detective Sgt. Teri Gardner with the Oak Harbor Police Department said the 36-year-old Oak Harbor man was very cooperative with police during the investigation, but detectives found evidence that he hadn’t properly stored guns while there was a child in the home. Under state law, a person is guilty of reckless endangerment if “he or she recklessly engages in conduct ... that creates a substantial risk of death or serious physical injury to another person.” It’s a gross misdemeanor charge.

Ivy-gulping goats hired Council considers funding to attack noxious invaders Nichols Brothers study Staff reporter

Staff reporter

What people see as an invasive weed, goats see as a tasty snack. A herd of more than 40 goats, along with a guard llama, enjoyed a giant smorgasbord of ivy and blackberry bushes that are overgrowing parts of Coupeville’s Town Park located near historic downtown. The goats are spending five days in Coupeville munching on the plants that threaten the trees and native plants at the park. Town officials hope their new four-legged friends will do SEE GOATS, A7

On I-5 at Exit 236 Just 5 Minutes N. of Burlington theskagit.com 877-275-2448

WNT-ST

and Whidbey Island Naval Air Station officials to use the vacant parking lots and boat launches behind the Navy Exchange, but talks had reached a stalemate. The Seaplane Base is within city limits, but the property is owned by the Navy and it won’t consider the possibility until a feasibility study is performed. Estimated at about $40,000, the Navy is also refusing to foot the bill, as is Nichols. Several county funding sources have also

By JUSTIN BURNETT

By NATHAN WHALEN

WNT

Nathan Whalen/Whidbey News-Times

Akyla Farms owner Carol Osterman kneels next to several of her goats. She brought 43 of them to Coupeville Town Park so the goats could eat their way through the town’s ivy problem.

Owned by Upper Skagit Indian Tribe

There may yet be hope for a plan that would help Freeland-based Nichols Brothers Boat Builders set up shop in Oak Harbor. On Tuesday, the Oak Harbor City Council directed staff to start developing a scope of work for a taxpayer-funded feasibility study of the Seaplane Base. While a lot still needs to happen before the study becomes a reality, the hope is that it will help the Whidbey shipyard open a satellite facility and bring about 100 new jobs to the community. Nichols is looking to expand its operations so it can work on larger boats, such as a new 144-car ferry for the state. Company leaders have been in negotiations with the city

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