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‘The Tempest’
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VOLUME 37, NUMBER 45 • NOVEMBER 11, 2014
Stephens is here to stay, school bond and levy are approved | 2014 Election results Weekly staff report
Jamie Stephens
Jamie Stephens ran unopposed for San Juan County Council Residency District 3 and received 4,653 votes. Stephens has served on the existing council for close to four years. Prior to becoming a council member, Stephens was active in the community, including ser ving as board member of the Family Resource Center, Fisherman Bay Water Association, Port Commissioner, member of the Lopez Village planning Committee and board member of the Lopez Community Land Trust. He has also substituted
TRASH-TOTREASURES Auction & Sale
Cleverly Refurbished & Repurposed… Furnishings Art & Décor Gifts Accessories …PLUS Services Activities Adventures
CHILI & CORNBREAD SUPPER Sat Nov 15 5:30-8pm Woodmen Hall BENEFITS THE LOPEZ DUMP! www.lopezsolidwaste.org
at Lopez School and has organized the yearly Fourth of July Parade. Stephens teaches business classes through the Family Resource Center. He has two children, one in college and another employed in Washington, D.C. He lives with his wife Lauren Stephens in Lopez Village.
School Bond
Voters have approved Lopez Island School District #144 Proposition No. 1 concerning a $9.6 million capital projects bond with 65.09 percent of the vote. Only 36.91 percent opposed the bond. Taxpayer cost is estimated to be an additional $0.30$0.35 cents per thousand dollars of assessed property, or approximately $124 a year for a $400,000 house. This tax impact reflects an estimated interest rate that continues to be attractive
and below historical averages. According to school officials, Lopez School District facilities are falling apart, and district officials have been worried about keeping up with safety, health, and educational standards. The bond represents significant revisions from the $16.5 million renovation project proposed in 2013, which did not meet with voter approval. This new bond is approximately 40 percent less than the original request, but officials say it will provide sufficient funding for critical upgrades and renovations to meet basic safety, health and educational standards. By reducing originally proposed new additions and site improvements, trimming back on refurbishment of classrooms and eliminating original plans for water catchment for irrigation, the
Contributed photo
Jamie Stephens district is able to present a responsive revised request to the voters.
Solid Waste Levy
Lopez Solid Waste Disposal District Proposition No. 1, Lopez Solid Waste Disposal District Operations and Capital Property Tax concerning an excess levy won landslide support with 76.26 percent of the vote. According to Rhea Miller of Citizens for Lopez Solid Waste Levy, the 2015 levy will be assessed at a rate of 10.7 cents per $1,000 of taxable assessed value, down from 11.155 cents in 2014. The lower rate, with slightly increased property values, will generate the same $115,000 levy for 2015 as for 2014: a $54 bill for a property value at $500,000.
Krebs is new sheriff Lopez Holiday Bazaar Sat., November 29 10 am to 3 pm Lopez School Gymnasium Featuring Many Exciting Quality Arts & Crafts Featuring Many New Vendors Fantastic raffle prizes Delicious Food • Bake Sale • Santa Photos Contact Candice at 468-2678 for more info.
Proceeds benefit the Lopez Preschool
We’ll miss you Bob! Bob and Helen Chonka are heading back to Utah. Stop by the Dump from noon to 3 on Wed., Nov. 19 and say goodbye to this outstanding employee. Lopez Solid Waste Disposal District
By Scott Rasmussen Journal editor
Elections are often about change. San Juan County voters demonstrated an eagerness for it, in the administration of their Sheriff’s Office. In a first-ever bid for public office, deputy Ron Krebs grabbed a sizable lead in a hotly contested 2014 sher-
iff’s race. Krebs, an eightyear veteran of the force and former deputy guild president, collected 4,736 votes of 7,393 ballots tallied, earning 64.06 percent of the vote. For first-term incumbent Rob Nou, the election results signal a decided turnaround from the same race four years ago. He drew 66 percent of the vote
Community Community Shakespeare’s Shakespeare 13th 11th Annual Annual Fall Fall Festival: Festival
AS YOU LIKE IT The Tempest (appropriate for all ages)
Nov. 7, admission by donation, Nov. 19 12 noon & 7:30 p.m. 12at noon & 7:30pm Admission Nov. 8-9-10By atDonation 7:30pm. Students $10,at Adults $15 Nov. 20-21-22 7:30 p.m. Tickets online at $15 Students $10, Adults Lopezcommunityshakespeare.org, Center for Community & the Arts Also at Paper Scissors Rock Tickets: communityshakespeare.org Remaining seats sold at 6pm at the door: and at Paper Scissors Rock Lopez Center for Community & the Arts
in 2010 to become the county’s first new sheriff in more than two decades on the heels of that landslide victory at the ballot box. Four years later, Krebs made leadership and communication, or the lack of it, the centerpiece of his campaign. He vowed to mend and to restore lines of communication within the department and with other agencies that regularly deal with the sheriff’s office. He pledged to create a stronger bond between the department and the public it serves, as well. The department’s rankand-file rallied around Krebs’ run for office, with the guild backing his campaign in an unprecedented and near unanimous endorsement of his election SEE KREBS, PAGE 4