REPORTER
COVINGTON | MAPLE VALLEY | BLACK DIAMOND
NEWSLINE 425-432-1209
LOCAL | Kent School Board’s newest member [page 3]
DIAMOND DREAMS | Kentlake graduate Luke Goodgion comes back from multiple FRIDAY, JULY 13, 2012 injuries to become MLB draft pick [14]
City may change fire impact fees process
WEBSITE | Check the website for breaking news, sports and weather stories. maplevalleyreporter.com or covingtonreporter.com
How cities deal with medical marijuana
BY TJ MARTINELL
BY TJ MARTINELL
tmartinell@maplevalleyreporter.com
tmartinell@covingtonreporter.com.
Maple Valley City Council is considering a fire impact fee on new developments to replace the current process, which city and fire district officials consider to be inefficient. The ordinance would also create an interlocal agreement between the city and Maple Valley Fire and Life Safety MAPLE in which the city VALLEY would collect the fees for the fire department. If approved, the impact fee would affect any new development applications that are submitted. Community Development Director Ty Peterson stated in a telephone interview that there would be a baseline fee which can be reduced through various credits and reductions. For example, an impact fee
Since Gov. Chris Gregoire line-item vetoed sections of the state’s medical cannabis law last year, Maple Valley, Covington and Black Diamond have taken three separate routes to deal with collective gardens. Both Maple Valley and Covington passed moratoriums on medical COVINGTON marijuana collective gardens. While Maple Valley passed a ban shortly before the expiration of its moratorium in June, Covington is considering an extension of its moratorium for another six months. Black Diamond has not specifically dealt with collective gardens in any way. In a telephone interview, Covington City Manager Derek Matheson stated that an exten-
[ more FEES page 4 ]
Odarchuk tries to make the catch during a water balloon toss during the city of Making Quite Liliya Maple Valley’s Fourth of July celebration at Lake Wilderness Park. The toss was one of many To view a slide show go to www. activities offered during the event. A Big Splash maplevalleyreporter.com.
A little chicken soup for the math-challenged soul BY TJ MARTINELL tmartinell@maplevalleyreporter.com.
You can count on Maple Valley-based writer Diana Savage to write or copy edit a newsletter. Just don’t count on her to count it accurately. In her story titled “The Numbers Game,” published in “Chicken Soup for the Soul: Boost Your Brain Power,” Savage details the various methods she employs in order to effectively work with math, sometimes to comedic effect. The story also serves to inform people who had seemingly inexplicable struggles with math that there is, in fact, a scientific explanation.
648537
DENNIS BOX, The Reporter
[ more CITIES page 5 ]
Savage said she suffers from a learning disorder called my register in pencil makes it a lot easier to have a neat dyscalculia, which affects a person’s ability to deal with register. The other way to compensate is keeping a running math. Although she said she has not been professionally total (while shopping) so I wouldn’t be shocked at the cash diagnosed, many of the symptoms and warning signs, such register. I do that by rounding to the nearest 50 cents.” as having good reading, writing and speaking skills In an effort to help other people suffering from but little in math, she has noticed since childhood dyscalculia become aware of the problem and finds when she had trouble finding the right hymn effective ways to deal with it, “The Numbers Game” number in church. provides anecdotes of how she had trouble doing “I’ve known all my life (it was a problem),” she basic math, such as giving her exact age to someone said. “But I first became aware of the term five on the phone based on her birth year. years ago. It as an enormous relief. It meant I “I want other people to know if they struggle with wasn’t stupid. It’s a learning disability.” math it’s a learning disability,” she said. “They can Diana Savage Savage said that many people like herself comget specific help for that and not give in to the accupensate for their poor math skills sometimes in sation that they have been told that they are stupid.” creative ways. Savage concludes the story with how she eventu“I’ve learned to keep my check book in pencil because ally took up Sudoku, which she said helped her tell the difI am very creative on how to make errors,” she said. “I ference between a pre-printed number and a hand written (sometimes) subtract deposits or add withdrawals. I balnumber. ance it once a month to the penny, but it’s a rare occurrence when I don’t have an error to track down. Keeping [ more SOUL page 4 ]
INDOOR AND OUTDOOR GARDENS
$PWJOHUPO 8BZ 4& $PWJOHUPO t 253-630-0527