Kent Reporter, October 31, 2014

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KENT

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 31, 2014

Sports | Former K-M star shines on GRCC volleyball team [19] Special section | Senior Resource Guide [B1-12]

City seeks money for ShoWare ice plant problems BY STEVE HUNTER shunter@kentreporter.com

Kent city officials hope to recover as much as $500,000 from contractors or subcontractors because of problems with the ice plant equipment as well as hot water heaters at the city-owned ShoWare Center.

Ben Wolters, city economic and development director, told the City Council’s Operations Committee on Oct. 21 that the city has sent claim letters and will file lawsuits, if necessary, to cover the repair costs for “errors of omission and material defect.” The council approved a $95,000

contract in May with Oregonbased PermaCold Engineering, Inc., to repair the equipment that forms ice on the arena floor after compressors failed. The information PermaCold found during the repairs aided the city as it pursues a claim to recover costs associated with the ice plant equipment.

Wolters said there has been several instances over the last couple of years where foreign material was found in the machinery of the ice plant. Two pumps also failed at the same time. Mortenson Construction, based in Minneapolis with a Kirkland office, oversaw the building of the

Soccer team owner receives sexual harassment protection order

$84.5 million arena that opened in 2009. “We provided a claim letter from the city to Mortenson Construction for the ice plant, hot water heaters and opened a conversation about the plaza lights, [ more SHOWARE page 4 ]

Kent Police hit with soaring overtime costs

BY ROSS COYLE rcoyle@kentreporter.com

BY STEVE HUNTER

Dion Earl, owner of Seattle Impact FC, Kent’s new professional indoor soccer team, received a sexual harassment protection order from a former Ladies with Impact dance team co-captain in relation to alleged sexual advances Earl made against her and other members on the dance team. King County Superior Court Judge Chad Allred granted Earl the protection order on Oct. 22. It prohibits Earl from making any contact with the woman. Earl also plays for the Impact, which opens its Major Arena Soccer League season Nov. 8 at the ShoWare Center. No criminal charges have been filed against Earl. Earl declined to comment to the Kent Reporter on the order, directing questions to his attorney, Michelle Scudder. The dance team is being represented pro bono by Jason Ritterieser and Don Heyrich of HKM Employment Attorneys, of Seattle. The firm is considering a civil lawsuit. According to the dance team member’s deposition filed in King County Superior Court, Earl made repeated sexual comments toward her and other dancers, and called and texted them late at night. According to the deposition, some of Earl’s [ more EARL page 21 ]

shunter@kentreporter.com

The Kent Police Department spends an average of $120,000 to $160,000 in overtime costs each month because it has been unable to keep staffing at a full level as well as unexpected costs from high-profile crimes. “Our overtime is a lot,” Thomas said in response to a question from Coun-

INSIDE: Five new police officers sworn in, pages 5

cilman Bill Boyce at an Oct. 21 council budget workshop. “This year has been a tough year with injuries, retirements and we had that significant officer-involved shooting over the summer. [ more POLICE page 11 ]

New team in place to help Mill Creek Middle School BY ROSS COYLE rcoyle@kentreporter.com

EYE ON YOU Gerardo Peña the crazy clown prisoner, complete with colorful bow tie and a blonde wig dyed green, joined the Zombie Walk in the Kent Historic District last Saturday. More photos, story, page 2. ROSS COYLE, Kent Reporter

A new leadership team has arrived at Mill Creek to address the struggling middle school’s problems that culminated in a union grievance last year. Assistant principals David Jones and Regina Hauptmann will join school improvement officer Brad Brown to provide key support roles for the school. Hauptmann has worked as an administrator in

Federal Way academies for the past nine years, largely focusing on ESL (English as a Second Language) and student literacy. She was pivotal in founding the Federal Way International Academy. “Our ELL (English Language Learners) students in Federal Way did not graduate at the same rates as our general ed students and that’s when we figured out, ‘Well, what are we gonna [ more MILL CREEK page 12 ]


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