A4 A4 A5 A6 A7 A7 A8
INSIDE Manchester church celebrating 100 years A5
SPORTS Competition drives Bakalarski on basketball court A23
Both sides report feeling harassed in rift over home business.
Neighbor denies pellet gun shooting
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By JUSTINE FREDERIKSEN
Staff Writer
Independent
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
Port Orchard
FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 2014 N VOL. 122, NO. 53 N WWW.PORTORCHARDINDEPENDENT.COM N 50¢
Jesse Beals/Staff Photo
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-
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▼ Matthes, Garrido advance in SK commissioner race; Dalton, Danielson in judicial contest.
three candidates to fill Angel’s vacancy by district’s precinct committee officers. Young finished as the PCOs’ top choice, followed by Berman and Cloud, respectively. There will be three commissioners — all Democrats — from Kitsap County and seven Pierce County Council members, who will weigh on the decision. Five of the seven Council members are Republican Schlicher served one year as senator after being selected last January to replace Sen. Derek Kilmer (D-Gig Harbor), who was elected to fill Norm Dicks’ seat in the Sixth Congressional District.
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An early Sunday morning fire has left a South Kitsap family homeless. Eight people were taken to area hospitals after they evacuated a burning home near Horseshoe Lake in South Kitsap, according to a South Kitsap Fire and Rescue official. According to media reports, six children, their mother and a friend were inside the home when the fire started. The fire destroyed the family’s home located in the 15500 block of Sidney Road SW and the family’s pet dog died in the blaze. South Kitsap Fire Rescue Battalion Chief Ron Powers said an 11-yearold girl, accompanied by her mother, was taken to Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital. Robert Evans, the girl’s father and a chief petty officer in the Navy, told
By CHARLIE BERMANT
Editor
and transported to Mary Bridge and Tacoma General Hospital. They were released Monday afternoon. The fire was quickly extinguished and fire crews spent several hours performing overhaul and salvage operations, said Powers. Officials reported the home is likely a total loss. The Kitsap County Fire Marshal is conducting an investigation to determine the cause of the blaze. The family is receiving assistance from the American Red Cross. Karen Bevers, West Sound director for American Red Cross, said Wednesday her agency is working with the family to help them with substainable living conditions. “The Goodwill Store of Port Orchard called us and will help provide the family with items and clothing destroyed in the fire,” Bevers said. “We’re going to work with them to replace much of what they lost.” She said other community service organizations will provide assistance to the family.
Staff Writer
By DANNIE OLIVEAUX
KOMONews.com he was on duty at the Naval Hospital in Bremerton when the fire started. He said his daughter woke up with her hands on fire and jumped from the two-story roof to escape the fire, which started in the girl’s second-story bedroom. She suffered second- and thirddegree burns to her hands. A Kitsap County Sheriff’s deputy arrived at the scene first and reported the house engulfed in flames about 12:10 a.m. Several people were evacuated from the home before firefighters arrived. Evans said a family friend helped save his family. Powers reported that SKFR crews — four engines, three tenders, two medic units and an air support unit — were dispatched to the home. A medic unit from Gig Harbor Fire also responded to the scene because of the number of potential victims. The mother and five children — ranging from ages 2 to 21 — were overcome with smoke inhalation
Kitsap County commissioners and Pierce County Council members will meet together today in Gig Harbor to select one of three Republican candidates to fill former State Rep. Jan Angel’s seat in the state House. The meeting is set for 10 a.m. at the Gig Harbor Civic Center located at 3510 Grandview St. Angel (R-Port Orchard) defeated Sen. Nathan Schlicher in November to become the 26th Legislative District state senator. In December, Jesse Young, Adam Berman and Doug Cloud were tabbed as the top CHARLOTTE GARRIDO
BRUCE DANIELSON
Eight hospitalized after fire
Staff report
TIM MATTHES
JEANETTE DALTON
Dannie Oliveaux/Staff Photo
An early Sunday morning blaze that started in a second-story bedroom left a South Kitsap family homeless. No one was seriously injured in the fire in the 15500 block of Sidney Road.
11-year-old girl suffers burns to her hands
Officials meeting today to fill Angel’s vacant House seat
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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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
SEE SCHOOL, PAGE A2
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
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
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
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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.
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A Section Editorial Robert Meadows Scene & Heard Sports Legal Notices Mary Colborn Obituaries
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INSIDE Bek Ashby begins stint on city council A3
High winds cause power outages in South Kitsap By DANNIE OLIVEAUX Editor
South Kitsap residents were among more than 40,000 Puget Sound Energy customers that lost electricity Saturday as high winds caused outages in Kitsap County, Whidbey Island and north King County. As of Sunday afternoon, PSE reported less than 50 homes in the county were without power. Winds caused more than 11,000 homes to be without power in Kitsap County. Ray Lane, PSE spokesperson, said there were two substations and 14 circuits out because of the high winds and crews worked through Saturday night and Sunday to restore power to the region. “At the peak, Kitsap County had about 140 outages that affected about 11,000 customers,” Lane said. On Saturday, the power outage forced some Seahawks fans to leave their homes and find a place to watch the 1:35 p.m. playoff game against New Orleans. MoonDogs, Too, along with other
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SEE WINDS, A2
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