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REGIONAL WRESTLING,

MOLSON FAMILY BINGO

OROVILLE HOOPS HIGHLIGHTS

Friday, Feb. 21, 6:00 pm Molson Grange Hall

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SERVING WASHINGTON’S

OKANOGAN VALLEY

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Voters approve school levies

THE REAL ACTION WAS INDOORS

Tonasket bond fails to get 60 percent BY GARY A. DEVON MANAGING EDITOR

Brent Baker/staff photo

Cash DeVon (left) waits with high anticipation as dad Rocky releases the race cards in the Northwest Ice Fishing Festival’s version of the Pinewood Derby. While those with fishing poles were frustrated at the lack of on-ice action for the third straight year, the festival itself had plenty to offer in the Molson Grange Hall. Cash came away with two $30 gift certificates to the Pastime Bar & Grill in Oroville.

FEST, BUT NO FISH

Third straight skunking prompts date change

OKANOGAN COUNTY – Voters in the Oroville, Tonasket, Pateros, Brewster, Okanogan and Omak School Districts all approved levies in the Tuesday, Feb. 11 Special Election, however, a measure that would have expanded facilities and replaced the Alternative School in the Tonasket District has fallen short of approval. The $6 million bond would have allowed the Tonasket School District to expand the elementary and high school facilities, adding more classroom space needed to fulfill the district’s goal of getting back to a full day – something that is being required for all high schools by the state in the coming year. With the bond used to construct the current school buildings in 1997 being retired last December (months earlier than originally planned), the $6 million for new construction would have been used to add four classrooms and office space to the elementary school; replace the Alternative Education building (near the tennis courts) that is nearing the end of its life span; adding four classrooms, laboratory bays and additional flexible space to the middle/high school complex; and add a permanent concession stand and provide funding to address long-term maintenance issues with the outdoor athletic facilities The bond, which needed at least a 60 percent supermajority, had only received 54.37 percent of the returned ballots in favor of the issue as of the second ballot count held last Friday, Feb. 14.

Tonasket’s two-year Maintenance and Operations Levy of $1.64 million replaces the existing similar levy that expires this year. Of that total $640,000 is dedicated to increasing staffing as the district extends its school day about 45 minutes. The district has operated with a shortened day since the mid-1990s and has been attempting to return to the full day for several years. The levy passed by a wide margin. Even though it needed only a simple majority of 51 percent, the proposition garnered 64.24 percent approval. Oroville also passed their $1.497 million M&O Levy, a direct replacement for the prior two-year levy with 59.45 percent. The collection rate of $2.40 per thousand is slightly less than that for the previous levy because property values within the school district have increased. The M&O levy provides additional money for programs and operations that the state either does not fund or does not fund completely. The levy represents approximately 23 percent of the school districts budget and helps to support and supplement a multitude of items such as technology, transportation, athletics, clubs, food service, personnel, maintenance items, school nurse, and many other things that could not otherwise be funded with state allocation alone, according to Steve Quick, Oroville School District Superintendent. Oroville Voters also approved redistricting boundaries of board members to create another at-large position. The District #2 board member position has

SEE VOTE | PG A4

What’s next?

BY BRENT BAKER BBAKER@GAZETTE-TRIBUNE.COM

MOLSON - The fish were biting at Sidley and Molson Lakes. Two weeks ago, anyway. By the time the Northwest Ice Fishing Festival commenced Saturday, Feb. 15, the 5,000 or so Rainbow Trout that had been planted and nurtured through the winter had done their vanishing act for the third straight year, leaving competitors in the fishing derby bereft of luck and fish. “They were being caught into late January,” said Robin Stice, who coordinated the event. “We had a biologist here to check things and he caught one in less than a half an hour. People have been catching fish all along. They were averaging about 15 inches.” A recent shrimp hatch received the brunt of the blame as the fish were apparently gorged and had no interest in what those attempting to catch the fish had to offer. There were a number of reports of the small shrimp floating up into the ice holes, however. With that in mind, the festival committee decided that three years of bad luck was enough. Next year’s event will be held Jan. 17 - Martin Luther King Day weekend - in order to precede the shrimp hatching. Stice presented the idea to the post-derby crowd that gathered in the Molson Grange Hall for prizes and raffle drawings and was met with boisterous approval from the frustrated fishing crowd. “The weather will be colder,” Stice said. “But these are people who fish on the ice in the winter. They’ll probably be ready for it.”

Tonasket School Board tries to chart course after bond failure BY BRENT BAKER BBAKER@GAZETTE-TRIBUNE.COM

Brent Baker/staff photos

James and Travis, who traveled from Kettle Falls, keep warm over a wood fire as they tried in vain to catch one of 5,000 Rainbow rout planted in Sidley and Molson Lakes. Below, more would-be competitors wait for that elusive bite. MORE THAN FISHING The other casualty of the weekend were the dog sled demonstrations planned by the Rev. Gary Forgey due to the lack of snow. However, the rest of the weekend’s activities were well attended, beginning with Tim Behrens performing “A Fine And Pleasant Misery” on Friday evening. Saturday morning, the grange hall hosted its annual pancake breakfast and served more than 225 meals. Visitors kept eating throughout the day, also buying 100 lunches from Sitzmark Ski Area volunteers. With the local ski hill unable to open this year due to a lack of snow, the organization is dependent on fundraisers and donations to maintain

OKANOGAN VALLEY GAZETTE-TRIBUNE Volume 110 No. 08

its insurance despite the lack of income. The Arts and Crafts Fair featured a huge array of colorful quilts and other handmade items. Vendors had water color pictures, drawings, beautiful pressed flower arrangements, embroidered home items, hats, books,breads and deserts, antler art and other gift items. For the first time, the festival featured Pinewood Derby racing, in the tradition of the annual Cub Scout competition. Using an old, “retired” track, divisions of kids and the young at heart wanting to relive their Pinewood Derby days of yore competed both for speed and appearance, winning gift certificates for their efforts. “A big part of the weekend is the culture, the history and adventure,” Stice said. “A lot of the people I talk to are happy because their family comes home for the three day weekend. It gets people outside having fun. And our arts and crafts fair this year was our best ever.”

SEE FESTIVAL | PG A4

TONASKET - The need to expand and upgrade facilities is still there; the money, however, is not. The Tonasket School Board called a special meeting Monday, Feb. 17, to try to figure out its next move in the wake of the failure of its $6 million bond measure for several planned construction projects. Though the election won’t be certified for a week, the bond was just over five percent shy of the 60 percent supermajority needed to win at the ballot. The measure led 990-831 (54.37 percent) but would have needed 1093 to pass. The maintenance and operations levy, however, was passing with a county-high 64.24 percent of the vote. If passed, the bond would have funded the construction of an additional wing, or “pod,” in the elementary school; expanded the shop area and added classrooms to the middle and high school; replaced the portable that currently houses the Alternative and Outreach schools; and upgraded/refurbish the athletic facilities, including the building of bathroom/concession facilities. The board was seeking public comment and received plenty of it, including a number of questions and comments they apparently had not encountered during their campaigning efforts over the last six weeks that included meetings with about 20 community and civic groups. Several patterns that the board will need to address came out of the session, which lasted nearly two and a half hours. First, voting patterns from individ-

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INSIDE THIS EDITION

ual precincts indicated that the bond received far more support from areas nearer the city. Outlying areas such as Aeneas Valley, Wauconda, Loomis and Pine Creek voted heavily against the bond. Second, there was definitely more support for some portions of the project than for others. Third, there were multiple reasons that people chose to vote against the levy that may not be easily untangled. Several comments revealed that there is public discomfort with the function of the Alternative School and the Outreach Program, which are two separate programs housed in the decaying portable near the tennis courts. Some of the most pointed comments of the night came from those who felt that the alternative students should be plugged back in with the mainstream high school. Others defended the need for the program based on the need to graduate students with a wide variety of learning styles and needs, and cited a number of success stories. At any rate, there was some indication that a number of “no” votes might have swung the other way without the inclusion of a rebuilt Alternative School. There were also indications that many “no” voters felt that two much money was allocated to the athletic facilities, including the bathrooms. There was also further discussion about how changes in education, including (but not limited to) state law mandating reduced class sizes, meant that a facility that at one time housed more than 1,200 students not has crowding issues with just over 1,050 students. Other comments alleged a lack of trust by community and school staff in the board and administration to do what they promised, while others felt that a core group of naysayers have been on the same page for decades. Still others felt that the bond measure

Schools Outdoors Letters/Opinion

A2 A3 A5

Community A6-7 Cops & Courts A7 Classifieds/Legals A8-9

Real Estate Sports Obituaries

A9 A10-11 A12