Independent FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2012 n Vol. 121, No. 7 n www.portorchardindependent.com n 50¢
SK girls pass first district test
Page A10
Inside
A Section Editorial Robert Meadows Scene & Heard Sports Legal Notices Mary Colborn Obituaries A4 A4 A5 A6 A7 A7 A8
Inserts: Fred Meyer, RiteAid, Office Depot, Best Buy, Staples, Wal-Mart, Valassis
Jesse Beals/Staff Photo
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▼ Matthes, Garrido advance in SK commissioner race; Dalton, Danielson in judicial contest.
By CHARLIE BERMANT
TIM MATTHES
BRUCE DANIELSON
CHARLOTTE GARRIDO
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JEANETTE DALTON
See Author, A8
Staff Writer
Expectations were turned on their head in two Kitsap County political contests during Tuesday night’s primary election, as the perceived front-runners came in third and were disqualified in their respective races. Republican Tim Matthes drew the most votes in the South Kitsap commissioner’s race, followed by Democrat Charlotte Garrido. Monty Mahan, who was the first to declare for the seat and earned the endorsement of local mayors, came in third (See related story, page A3). SEE UPSETS, PAGE A2
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SEE SCHOOL, PAGE A2
and pension rates along with inflation as issues. In addition to the money saved on custodians, Patton said the district will dip into its reserve fund for $1.72 million. She said that’s not all bad because the district saved more than it anticipated in its last fiscal year, which ends Aug. 31. Patton said they also will save through not filling other vacant positions in the district, and through cutting expenses on supplies. The board unanimously adopted the budget. Patton warned in previous meetings that the “hard decisions” likely won’t end
Custodians won’t be replaced, $1.72 million will be taken from reserve fund.
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By CHRIS CHANCELLOR Staff Writer
The South Kitsap School District is a little closer to closing its $2.9 million deficit for the upcoming school year. Terri Patton, assistant superintendent for business and support services, said at Wednesday’s school board meeting that the district won’t replace five full-time custodians who left the district after the last school year. She said that will save the district $250,000. Patton said the deficit stems from unforeseen circumstances when the district presented its last levy to voters in 2004. She cited escalating teacher salaries
and his old instructor in the program, retired teacher Linda Munson, came to the school to welcome him back. Funny story, though; when Munson read “Hotel” a few years ago, it didn’t
Staff Writer
Neighbor denies pellet gun shooting
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chasing it last spring. City Development Director James Weaver confirmed that Keehn received a conditional-use permit to operate a onechair hair salon out of her home, which he described as “pretty innocuous” and something that doesn’t typically reach “the level of intensive use,” as far as impacts on the neighborhood are concerned. However, since November of 2007, Cronan has filed multiple complaints with the city regarding traffic, noise and other
Both sides report feeling harassed in rift over home business. By JUSTINE FREDERIKSEN
Staff Writer
shot in three of her home’s windows. Cronan, who lives on the 200 block of Flower Meadows Street in Port Orchard, said she believed the attack was part of an ongoing dispute with Keehn, whom she alleges has been running a hair salon out of her home without a business license and in defiance of a city “stop-work” order. Keehn, 30, said she filed for permission from the city of Port Orchard to operate a hair salon out of her home on the 2300 block of Flower Avenue soon after pur-
activities she reported as stemming from Keehn’s attempts to operate a business out of her home. Weaver said following an April 11 hearing with the city’s Hearing Examiner, certain conditions were placed on Keehn’s permit to mitigate Cronan’s concerns before she would be allowed to operate her business. “(Keehn) has addressed all but one of those conditions, with the last being the letter from the (Kitsap County) Health Department,” Weaver said, explaining that Keehn’s current sewer facilities are
SEE NEIGHBORS, PAGE A2
South Kitsap’s Source for News & Information Since 1890
See explorers, A2
One of the people welcoming Martin back to Marcus Whitman was his former instructor in the school’s gifted and talented program, retired educator Linda Munson.
on a cul-de-sac at the end of High Ridge Court SE, about a half-mile west of Bethel-Burley Road. She said Monday that though her husband showed no signs of depression, he had never fully
See missing man, A13
The four-day search for a missing South Kitsap man ended in tragedy Sunday afternoon when his body was found lying in thick brush a short distance behind his
Paul Breeding
Six more months: Medical marijuana moratorium extended
Printed with recycled paper and environmentally friendly soybean oil-based ink.
Tensions between two Port Orchard neighbors that erupted after one attempted to open a home business last year led both women to head down to the Kitsap County Courthouse Monday and file restraining orders against each other. Shelia Cronan, 49, said she filed a restraining order against Amber Keehn after returning home from a camping trip Aug. 17 and discovering pellets had been
Tim Kelly/Staff photos
For 17-year-old Mackinley Holt, the Washington Explorer Search and Rescue (WESAR) program is many things. It’s the thrill of the search. It’s the opportunity to spend time outdoors. It’s helping strangers stuck in a precarious position. It’s also a family affair. Holt and his older brother Nicholas, 20, signed up for the all-volunteer Kitsap unit in October 2010. The following year his father, Tom, 42, and sister Sophie, 15, also joined the outdoor service organization. “My sister thought that it would be kind of cool,” Holt said. “My dad just wanted to see how it was — make sure it was OK for her. Now he’s hooked.” Certified WESAR members assist Kitsap County and statewide agencies with searches for missing persons and evidence recovery, as well as helping during natural disasters. Started in 1978, the Explorer group has 120 members on call. “When the sheriff’s office goes out and they can’t find something and it looks like it will be a bigger search, they call us,” Holt said.
Author Jamie Martin, above, talks about writing with Marcus Whitman Junior High School students Tuesday in the school library.
of an extensive search that included the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office, Washington Explorer Search and Rescue units from Kitsap and Pierce counties, and other search and rescue teams. He was reported missing by his wife, Sharon Breeding, from his home
Staff Writer
home. Kitsap County Coroner Greg Sandstrom confirmed Wednesday that Paul E. Breeding, 65, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound sometime after he was last seen on the morning of Feb. 8. Breeding had been the subject
By Brett Cihon
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Opinion Robert Meadows Scene & Heard Sports Thinking Allowed Obituaries Business
Where in South Kitsap?
Page A3
By Brett Cihon
He used to play Dungeons and Dragons with his “book geek” friends in the junior high library at lunchtime. Jamie Ford returned to the library at Marcus Whitman Junior High School on Tuesday, this time to discuss his best-selling novel and the craft of writing with students, some presumably book geeks themselves. Students in Lisa Johnson’s ninth-grade Advanced Language Arts class read Ford’s book, “Hotel at the Corner of Bitter and Sweet,” but they didn’t know they’d be meeting the author when they gathered in the library Tuesday morning. “I never thought I’d grow up and be somebody’s homework,” he quipped after he was introduced to the group, which also included students in Quest, the school’s gifted and talented program. It was called Project Life when Ford, 44, attended Marcus Whitman,
Sports Cody Wright from Milford, Utah, got a mouth full of mud and a zero score after falling off Strawberry Delight in the Saddle Bronc Riding competition Wednesday night at the Kitsap County Stampede. The fair runs through Sunday.
Book geek visits his old school Author of best-seller discusses writing with students at Marcus Whitman
Missing man’s body found after four-day search
Index
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Community Page A9
Explorers provide valuable SAR help By TIM KELLY
Community