This week’s watchwords Aerospace
Playoffs
Silvertips
Pot
Annual summit in Everett will feature key talks by Boeing leaders and Gov. Jay Inslee
Postseason play begins Tuesday, but the M’s hopes were dashed Sunday by Oakland’s win. C1
Play their first home game Friday; Everett is 3-0 after beating Portland on Sunday. C2
Everett’s first pot shop could open this week. It would be the third in the Seattle area since July 8, the first day recreational pot stores opened in the state.
MONDAY, 09.29.2014
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EVERETT, WASHINGTON
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Taxes would fund parks Revival of a sales tax on bottled water and an excise tax would also go to marketing the outdoor recreation industry. By Jerry Cornfield Herald Writer
OLYMPIA — A task force appointed by Gov. Jay Inslee wants to revive two unpopular
taxes to help finance the state’s park system and promote its outdoor recreation industry. The panel wants to bring back the sales tax on bottled water and the excise tax on motor
homes and travel trailers to generate money to keep parks open. Some dollars also would fund new initiatives in the Department of Commerce to put outdoor recreation on equal footing with aerospace, maritime and other major business sectors of the state’s economy. Providing opportunities to
recreate outdoors should be treated as an essential government service and the $22.5 billion-a-year industry respected as an “economic powerhouse,” concludes the final report of the Blue Ribbon Task See TAXES, back page, this section
And they say cats have 9 lives
City Hall update tricky Stanwood’s city leaders have been looking at options to fix the outdated structure but are running into issues with flood-proofing costs.
Beloved hound mix Daisy Mae survives $500,000 apartment fire
By Kari Bray Herald Writer
Daisy Mae always figured she was entitled to a comfortable perch and was partial to the bed. Maddox scooped her up in a comforter and lugged her — all 63 pounds — out and down the stairs. Medics placed an oxygen mask over Daisy Mae’s snout and told the couple to get her to an emergency veterinary clinic fast. “She was just dead weight,” Bernhardsen said. “Nothing there.” They lifted her into the bed
STANWOOD — City Hall is overdue for an update, but its location in a floodplain complicates the project. Federal requirements for floodproofing buildings during a major renovation would multiply the cost of an upgrade, adding about $1 million to a project that could cost up to $620,000 on its own, according to city documents. City leaders have been seeking ways to phase in renovations, but that approach also is running up against floodplain regulations. Snohomish County has been part of the National Flood Insurance Program since 1984. This means the county has specific development requirements within floodplains. In return, the federal government makes flood insurance available. One requirement is that any renovation costing more than 50 percent of a building’s value requires the building to be floodproofed, often by elevating it. The Stanwood City Hall project runs into its 50 percent cutoff at $192,000. If it costs more than that, the building would need to be elevated about 8 feet in order to meet requirements, Community Development Director Ryan Larsen said. In the mayor’s office, the floor would be where the lights are now. It would cost more to floodproof Stanwood City Hall than the price of a full renovation. The city estimates it would need between $750,000 and $1.25 million to elevate the building. Earlier this year, Stanwood City Council members decided to prioritize renovations and do a smaller scale project that would fall within the $192,000 limit. The council voted Thursday to reject all four bids the city received for the project. The lowest was $303,000.
See DAISY MAE, back page, this section
See HALL, back page, this section
KEVIN CLARK / THE HERALD
Daisy Mae barely survived a Mountlake Terrace apartment fire that displaced her and her owners Kyle Bernhardsen and Laressa Sexton.
Herald Writer
MOUNTLAKE TERRACE — They lost just about everything they owned, but they still have Daisy Mae. And to Laressa Sexton and Kyle Bernhardsen that’s really all that matters.
the buzz
Their third-floor apartment was destroyed in a Sept. 12 fire that caused more than $500,000 damage to the Taluswood Apartments in Mountlake Terrace. The two-alarm blaze, which investigators believe was started by a smoldering cigarette butt in another unit, was contained
to three apartments. Two others had smoke and water damage. Bernhardsen, who works at the complex, saw the smoke and flames and immediately feared for the worst. He called Sexton at work to break the news and pleaded with firefighters to save the couple’s beloved dog.
Gorge gorged Where traffic jams and jam bands go together: The owner of the Gorge Amphitheatre wants to expand and upgrade the scenic concert venue in central Washington (Page A4). But some of the amphitheater’s neighbors oppose the expansion,
“I was just in tears,” he said. “All I could see was just flames in our unit. I thought she was a goner for sure.” Snohomish County Fire District 1 Capt. Chuck Maddox remembers his conversation with Bernhardsen that morning. He made no promises. “I told him, ‘I’ll do my best,’ ” he said. He could relate to Bernhardsen. “My dog is pretty important to me, too,” he said. Both knew the odds were against Daisy Mae. Maddox found the hound mix curled up on top of a bed, panting heavily and unresponsive.
saying they’re weary of the massive traffic congestion on weekends during concert season. But what they’re really sick and tired of is the Dave Matthews Band. Time is money: Some relief is in store for commuters on I-90 next year, when the state will launch a toll express lane between Lynnwood and Bellevue like one in place on
Highway 167 in south King County (Street Smarts, Page A3). The average toll on the Highway 167 express lane is $1.25 a day, or roughly $300 a year — still cheaper than a realistic-looking mannequin to prop up in the passenger seat. Science of Dylan: A couple of researchers at a medical
university in Sweden have been amusing themselves by working Bob Dylan song titles into their articles, such as “Nitric Oxide and inflammation: The answer is blowing in the wind” (Short Takes, Page B4). Presumably, they’re saving “Idiot Wind” for a piece on opposition to childhood vaccinations.
— Mark Carlson, Herald staff
INSIDE Business . . . .A10 Classified . . . . B5 Comics . . . . . . B2 Crossword . . . B2 Dear Abby. . . . B3 Horoscope . . . B7 Sloppy 62/54, C8 VOL. 114, NO. 231 © 2014 THE DAILY HERALD CO.
Lottery . . . . . .A2 Obituaries. . . .A8 Opinion. . . . .A11 Sports . . . . . . . C1 Short Takes . . . B4 Your Photos . . B1
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