Local SECTION B
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THE DAILY HERALD
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WWW.HERALDNET.COM/LOCAL
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Website not feeling well A glitch with tax credit calculations prompts officials to shut down the Washington Healthplanfinder, which reopened for business Saturday. B3 SUNDAY, 11.16.2014
Mukilteo mulls paid parking at park By Sharon Salyer Herald Writer
MUKILTEO — Free parking at the city’s Lighthouse Park, known for beachfront views of Possession Sound and the Olympic Mountains, might soon end. The city is considering adding paid hourly parking at the park, perhaps as soon as April. The park is magnet for picnickers, walkers and volleyball players, a launching site for boaters, and the home of the city’s farmers market — drawing an estimated 750,000 visitors a year. On sunny days, the park is so jammed that the city pays to have someone help direct traffic and turn away cars when there’s no parking left. “It’s a chronic problem,” said Randy Lord, City Council president. “All the feedback we’ve
HERALD FILE 2011
Drivers look for parking spots at the Mukilteo Lighthouse Park parking lot on a summer day.
received from citizens is they need help getting into their own park.”
The exact pay-to-park rates have yet to be determined but could be $2 an hour from May 1
to Sept. 30 and $1 an hour from Oct. 1 to April 30. A public hearing on the proposal is scheduled at the council’s Nov. 24 meeting, which begins at 7 p.m. The money collected from parking fees would be used to help pay for maintenance and make park improvements. Two park rangers would be hired to help with enforcing park rules and the paid parking program, said Mayor Jennifer Gregerson. City residents can get passes so they don’t have to pay the hourly rate, since taxes pay for maintenance and improvements at the park, said Marko Liias, a policy analyst for the city. However, an administrative fee may be charged to get the pass. The parking kiosks and scanners needed to check whether there’s a parking violation are
Public hearing The City of Mukilteo is considering adding paid hourly parking at Lighthouse Park and nearby areas on Front Street, Park Avenue and First Street. A public hearing on the proposal is scheduled during the City Council’s Nov. 24 meeting, which begins at 7 p.m. at City Hall, 11930 Cyrus Way. The public may also email comments to the city at kalmgren@ ci.mukilteo.wa. expected to cost about $200,000. Depending on what rates are chosen and when they go into effect, the paid parking program See PARK, Page B2
Caution urged in use of candles By Noah Haglund Herald Writer
HISTORIC EVERETT
This Boeing courtesy picture from September 30, 1968, of the rollout ceremony for the first 747, “The City of Everett,” is featured on the October page of Historic Everett’s 2015 calendar, which charts 102 years of aviation in Everett.
Historic Everett’s calendar soars
T
he year was 1968. In a scene that would suit a mid-60s movie, flight attendants in mod uniforms, white gloves and heels posed with the first Boeing 747 at its rollout in Everett. The year was 1941. Men in the U.S. Army Air Corps were ready for duty at the newly named Paine Army Airfield, where a tent city arose in preparation for war. The year was 1913. An exhibition pilot named Harry Christofferson, alongside his brother Silas, flew for the first time in skies over Port Gardner, and was described in The Everett Daily Herald as a “Man-Bird.”
JULIE MUHLSTEIN It’s a tradition for Historic Everett to take us back in time with its annual calendar. For 2015, the group is going aloft. The calendar title is “Aviation in Everett: 102 Years of Progress.” As in years past, sales of the $20 calendar will fund the nonprofit group’s programs and
preservation efforts. Dave Ramstad, Historic Everett’s executive board member, said he did the research, writing and “picture finding.” David Chrisman, a past board member for the group, did the calendar’s graphic design, which mixes detail artwork and short narratives with highlighted pictures for each month. Those images came from multiple sources, including The Daily Herald, the Everett Public Library, the Boeing Co., the Everett Museum of History, and the private Hartley collection, M. Salget collection, and Bob Mayer collection. The calendar is an abbreviated
history book with long-forgotten gems. In the March photograph, from the Everett library, a crowd of mostly men in suits is gathered for the April 22, 1928, dedication of the Everett Airport — and it wasn’t where Paine Field is today. Where was it? “You drive over it every time you drive to Marysville on (Highway) 529,” Ramstad said. “You’re over the runway between Steamboat Slough and Union Slough.” The airport, a project of the Port of Everett and the Commercial Air Transport firm, was in operation until completion See MUHLSTEIN, Page B2
Arlington student expelled for making threats By Diana Hefley Herald Writer
ARLINGTON — A student is facing a felony charge after allegedly threatening to blow up Arlington High School in September. The 19-year-old has been expelled from school. The teen reportedly left a voice mail message, saying he wanted to file a complaint. He became more agitated and
angry in the message. He threatened to cut the throats of staff and blow up the building with dynamite, Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Bob Langbehn wrote. The principal and school resource officer were able to quickly identify the teen’s voice. A special education specialist met the student when he came to school. He attended special education classes.
The defendant reportedly admitted to making the threats and went into more detail about his desire to shoot his teacher and light the school on fire “The defendant has a history of damaging property, assaultive behavior, and other incidents,” which led those who heard the message to believe he might carry out the threats, Langbehn wrote. The teen was banned from
being on school property and told not to call anymore. He left another message late last month, threatening the principal, court papers said. The teen doesn’t have any prior criminal convictions. He has a pending case in Marysville Municipal Court for an incident at school. Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463; hefley@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @dianahefley
A leading cause of house fires has stayed constant from ancient history into the digital age. Candles start fires here in Snohomish County almost every year. One of the worst was an October 2011 blaze at downtown Everett’s Strand Hotel, which displaced more than two dozen people. Locally, as elsewhere, candle fires occur more often when the weather cools off, particularly during the holidays. “Normally, people bring them out for the holiday season,” Everett Fire Marshal Rick Robinson said. “We don’t discourage the use of candles, but we do discourage the unsupervised use of candles. If people have a live flame in a room, that flame shouldn’t be left unattended.” In other words, put out the candles in the rest of the house before sitting down at the diningroom table. Candle fires are statistically most common in December, the National Fire Protection Association reports. The top five days are holidays: Christmas, Christmas Eve, New Year’s Day, New Year’s Eve and Halloween. Fire-safety experts estimate that candles start 15,600 house fires in the United States every year, resulting in 150 deaths, 1,270 injuries and more than $500 million in property damage. More than a third of those fires started in a bedroom. Someone falling asleep was believed to be a factor in at least a quarter of the fatalities. In Snohomish County, candles were blamed for starting a house fire in the Meadowdale area in 2012, another in Everett’s Delta neighborhood in 2011 and another in the Martha Lake neighborhood near Lynnwood on Christmas Day 2010. That latter fire also sent a man to the hospital. In October of 2010, a candle started a fire in the basement of a Mukilteo home, sending two people to the hospital. In the late 1990s, a blaze consumed a south Everett home after a dog knocked a candle off of a coffee table, igniting a sofa, Robinson said. “Sometimes, that happy dog with a wagging tale can knock See CANDLES, Page B3