News-Times Whidbey
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SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2014 | Vol. 124, No. 92 | WWW.WHIDBEYNEWSTIMES.COM | 75¢
Marathon funding do-over stumbles By JESSIE STENSLAND Staff reporter
Though the City of Oak Harbor owns the Whidbey Island Marathon, the event may not receive any of the city’s lodging tax funds for 2015. After a complicated and politically tinged
series of events, the Lodging Tax Advisory Committee, known as the LTAC, declined to reconsider a funding request from the new race director during a tense meeting Wednesday afternoon. Committee members Michelle Curry, Lee Ann Mozes and Ron Apgar voted not
to listen to a second-chance presentation by Melissa Riker, the new race director. “If you are not prepared for your presentation, we should not award that,” said Mozes, who represents the Oak Harbor Chamber of Commerce on the committee. SEE DO-OVER, A20
Photo by Janis Reid/Whidbey News-Times
Island County Prosecutor Greg Banks discusses a budget request with county commissioners Helen Price Johnson and Jill Johnson.
Banks scolded for post-budget funding request
Last EA-6Bs return from deployment
By JANIS REID Staff reporter
Garudas return home to loved ones Friday at NAS Whidbey By JANIS REID Staff reporter
Ben Kroll and his daughter, Abigail, 2, waited expectantly for “Uncle Josh” to land his EA-6B Prowler at Ault Field and climb out of the cockpit. “Uncle Josh is coming,” Abigail said. “It’s going to be loud.” Around 11:30 a.m. Friday, Kroll was able to greet friend and pilot Josh Brown, who arrived with the other Prowlers with Electronic Attack Squadron 134. The Garudas’ nine-month deployment aboard the USS George H.W. Bush marks the squadron’s — and Navy’s — final deployment of the Prowler. “It’s great,” said Kroll, who is a pilot with VAQ-140. “They have been gone for some time.” Cheryl Jason, wife of the squadron’s commanding officer, SEE VAQ-134, A12
Photos by Janis Reid/Whidbey News-Times
Casey Scott-Mitchell, with her daughter, Emmy, waits for husband and father Andrew Mitchell before the homecoming of Electronic Attack Squadron 134.
Island County Prosecutor Greg Banks was scolded Wednesday by the board of commissioners after requesting additional money just one month after a 2015 budget was adopted. The commissioners ultimately approved, in a 2-1 vote, Bank’s request for an additional $4,000 in wages for a deputy prosecutor but not before making their displeasure clear. “I would have preferred to have this brought to our attention during the budget conversation,” Commissioner Helen Price Johnson said. “We should have anticipated this in the budget as a given. “It’s frustrating is what it is. “I’m gonna move forward with it, but I don’t want it to happen again. I don’t know how to better communicate the need to anticipate those costs that are driven by contract.” After “scraping” together the 2015 budget and choosing to not fund some key positions, Commissioner Jill Johnson said she was not in favor of approving a request that should have been planned for. Johnson cast the dissenting vote. “We haven’t even had this budget adopted SEE SCOLDED, A12
Whidbey General legal budget shows possible loss of $4.9 million in 2015 By MICHELLE BEAHM Staff reporter
Whidbey General Hospital’s Board of Commissioners adopted their legal budget this week.
This budget, approved Monday, according to Chief Operating Officer Terry Litke, is the estimated amounts for budget increases in the 2015 calendar year, and the detailed budget is yet to be completed.
The legal budget is required to be completed by the end of November in order to set the property taxes, which will increase by the maximum-allowed 1 percent, in time. Monday morning, the board approved
three resolutions. The first resolved to adopt the legal budget and the 1 percent tax increase. The other two SEE WGH, A20
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