Local
Big dreams aboard the tiniest boat in the harbor PAGE 3
Island Scene
Fragrance of fall; distilling the essence of lavender PAGE 9
As I See It
Senior meals, lunch with friends—a healthy mix; two nutritional reasons to support Proposition 1 PAGE 7
Journal
The 75¢ Wednesday, October 8, 2014 Vol. 107 Issue 41
Wanted: animal control officer
Woman perishes in Orcas hot tub
Group claims cases of neglect and abuse deserve more priority
By Scott Rasmussen Journal editor
By Scott Rasmussen Journal editor
More people. More animals. Tighter spaces. That’s the reality of the landscape in the San Juan Islands today and, according to a local animal advocacy group, it’s a combination that demands a greater level of awareness, training and dedication to the cause of animal protection than local law enforcement is presently equipped or inclined to provide. “Washington state has many animal laws in place but enforcing them requires education and some basic resources that I feel our current law enforcement team does not have available to them,” Jennifer Rigg of the San Juan Island Animal Task Force said. Members of Task Force, founded in late 2012 and largely in response to several incidents of perceived animal abuse or neglect, called on the County Council last week to pick up the cause of instituting an animal control officer in the Sheriff ’s Department, or to help boost the level of training among deputies in situations where an animal’s well-being is at risk. They found a sympathetic ear See OFFICER, Page 3
Journal file photo
Town officials say branding initiative is about attracting more businesses, better jobs and more year-round residents to Friday Harbor, and not about bringing more visitors in the summer season, as shown in photograph above.
Branding? Here’s the scoop
A 29-year-old Oregon woman died of an apparent drowning in a hot tub at a Deer Harbor home, Sept. 30, in mid-afternoon. Sheriff ’s deputies, emergency medical personnel and firefighters responded to the westside Orcas Island home after receiving an emergency call at about 3:15 p.m. Amanda May Ferguson, a Portland-area resident vacationing on the island with a friend at the time, was unconscious and unresponsive when the team of See HOT TUB, Page 4
Town leaders talk about details, goals of new branding initiative By Emily Greenberg Journal Reporter
The ferry comes in and there’s gridlock on Spring Street. There’s no place to park and bodies swarm the downtown area. It’s nearing the end of the summer season—and although tourism is the backbone of the town’s economy, people seem to be at wits end with the influx of visitors. The branding initiative, when thought of in terms of attracting more tourists to the peak season, is a frightening thought—and a false one. “Many parts of our infrastructure were pushed to its limits this summer,” said Town of Friday Harbor Administrator Duncan Wilson, who’s heading the branding plan. “We don’t need to put any more money into summer tourism–we’re full.”
Sales deadline
Increasing tourism however, is not entirely untouched in the plan to brand Friday Harbor. An important factor in the strategy will be gaining a steady flow of visitors year round, to take pressure off businesses that have a few short months to make money for the entire year. The fall event See SCOOP, Page 4
2011 Special Award; Second Place: General Excellence from the Washington Newspaper Publishers Association
2014 Women in Business publishes the week of Oct. 21 in the Journal, Sounder & Weekly. Sales Deadline: Fri., Oct. 10, 2014. For more information call the Journal 378-5696.