Bellevue Reporter, November 11, 2011

Page 1

BELLEVUE .com

REPORTER

NEWSLINE 425-453-4270

HEALTH | Children’s Hospital gets $65 million gift, $15 million of which will go to Bellevue facility [ 11]

Business | Bellevue woman modernizes the world of antiques with Haystack Antiques in FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2011 Downtown Bellevue [3]

A DIVISION OF SOUND PUBLISHING

Bellevue council incumbents keep seats

Where is Sky Metalwala? Police suspect foul play in case of missing 2-year-old

BY NAT LEVY nlevy@bellevuereporter.com

The race to replace departing City Council Member Grant Degginger is nearly deadlocked, and incumbents in other races are leading after the latest batch of tallied votes were released Wednesday. In one of the closest races in the state, retired attorney, and current member of the Parks and Community Services Board John Stokes holds a slim 146-vote lead over land use attorney Aaron Laing. Incumbents Claudia Balducci and John Chelminiak both garnered approximately two-thirds of the vote in their races. Stokes, Chelminiak and

Community | Bellevue boy gets his special wish – meeting Marshawn Lynch and the Seahawks [ 16 ]

BY BILL CHRISTIANSON AND NAT LEVY Reporter Newspapers

Bellevue City Council members John Chelminiak and Claudia Balducci check elections returns Tuesday night. The pair held on to their seats by a 2-1 margin over their challengers. CHAD COLEMAN, Bellevue Reporter Balducci celebrated their position together at a party Tuesday downtown at Tap House Bar and Grill. In front of a small crowd of supporters, cheers rained down as the votes were read aloud by

campaign managers. Just a couple blocks away Laing, Patti Mann and Michelle Hilhorst gave impassioned speeches thanking their volunteers for all the time and effort

they put in on the respective campaigns. Council Member Jennifer Robertson ran unopposed, garnering 97 percent of the vote. [ more ELECTION page 18 ]

Arena needs a ‘white knight’ Last of two parts

reality that cities, counties, and states are in right now, it’s hard to imagine any state would put money into funding an NBA arena rather than paying for public education, as an example.� Fans blame politicians who fought to keep the team, and the league that has developed a model to coerce residents into spending billions on arenas, even as governments are forced to cut down to the bare bones due to economic recession. Legislators have worked on plan after plan to bring a team back, but thus far, nothing has come to fruition.

BY NAT LEVY nlevy@bellevuereporter.com

For State Rep. Ross Hunter, the Seattle Supersonics leaving town was heartbreaking. He was a longtime fan, but like other Washington lawmakers he refuses to be held for ransom by the National Basketball Association. “The current NBA model is they extort cities to get them to pay for arenas,� said Hunter, chair of the House Ways and Means Committee. “With the fiscal

[ more ARENA page 15]

Have you been in an accident?

Though police maintain that the mother of missing 2-yearold Sky Metalwala has cooperated with the investigation, holes are beginning to appear in her story. Police said Wednesday they were able to determine that Julia Biryukova’s silver Acura Integra - which she said ran out of gas Sunday morning - had enough fuel to drive for a considerable amount of time. Combined with her unwillingness to take a lie-detector test, Biryukova has become a source of police frustration. “The story doesn’t add up, the whereabouts of Sky are unknown, and mom’s story is Sky Metalwala falling apart day to day; and her lack of cooperation so far in providing more information proactively and submitting to a polygraph doesn’t help,� said Bellevue police Maj. Mike Johnson. Johnson maintained that she has answered investigators’ questions through her attorney, and she has not been named a suspect. The focus of the investigation continues to be getting information from those closest to Sky and Biryukova, who lives in Redmond, so they can piece together the days and weeks that lead up to the boy being reported as missing Sunday. “The people that were close to Sky and Julia are the people that know what happened to Sky,� Johnson told reporters Wednesday morning. “If everyone cooperates, we should have answers we need.� The boy’s father, Solomon Metalwala was scheduled to take a second polygraph test Wednesday after the first one proved to be too emotionally trying. Solomon and Biryukova were going through a divorce and [ more MISSING BOY page 6]

AN IN-CITY RES OR T

CALL US FIRST For a FREE Injury Recovery Evaluation

PASSPORT PHOTOS

425-957-0761

www.mybcfh.com

Visa Immigration t All Countries t Infants

HOMES PRICED FROM

t

$397,500 / Mo.

t

NO W 2/ 3 SO LD

UI "WF /& 4UF " t #FMMFWVF

Photo Specialists

Open Daily 12-5 pm | 737 Olive Way | Seattle, WA

206.382.4820 | Olive8.com * Conforming loans assume 20% down payment on 5/1 ARM (3.267% APR) on approved credit (740+ FICO). Monthly payments include P&I and estimate for taxes (HOA dues & Club Membership fees not included). 5% down options available.

JUST NORTH OF BELLEVUE SQUARE. EASY ACCESS, EASY PARKING.

1100 Bellevue Way NE t (425) 455-2126 www.OMEGAPHOTO.biz


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.
Bellevue Reporter, November 11, 2011 by Sound Publishing - Issuu