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Sports | Hundreds of runners flock to Kent Cornucopia Days 5K [10]
FRIDAY, JULY 17, 2015
Three candidates seek Kent City Council seat in primary election BY STEVE HUNTER shunter@kentreporter.com
The only Kent City Council race on the Aug. 4 primary ballot features perennial candidate Bailey Stober against newcomers Tina Budell and Hira Singh Bhullar.
They are vying to replace Councilwoman Deborah Ranniger, who decided not to run again. Rich Brandau withdrew for personal reasons but his name remains on the ballot because he pulled out after the King County Elections deadline to remove his name. The top two vote getters in
the primary advance to the Nov. 3 general election. Stober lost council races in 2013 against Ken Sharp and in 2011 against Ranniger. He lives on the East Hill and works as a communications and marketing consultant for several small businesses and a political client. He
remains under investigation by the state Public Disclosure Commission (PDC), which is looking into a January 2014 complaint that Stober failed to file expense reports during his campaign against Sharp. Bhullar is a member of Kent’s Sikh community and a software
developer at Starbucks in Seattle. He lives on the East Hill and also teaches at the Punjabi School in South King County which instructs children in computer literacy, music education, language and religion. [ more CANDIDATES page 5 ]
City Council approves study to fund railroad quiet zone through LID BY STEVE HUNTER shunter@kentreporter.com
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Ahoy Matey!
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A pirate gives Aaron Gomez, 7, a sticker, with his dad, Juan, behind him, during the Kent Cornucopia Days grand parade in downtown last Sunday. The four-day festival featured entertainment, dragon boat races, a 5-kilometer fun run and the crowning of Miss Cornucopia. See page 2 for a story about Kajal Sabhaya, who was named this year’s Miss Cornucopia. RACHEL CIAMPI, Reporter
It continues to be a slow train coming but a railroad quiet zone could be arriving someday in downtown Kent. The Kent City Council approved on July 7 up to $150,000 for a feasibility study to determine whether a local improvement district (LID) could be formed to help pay for a railroad quiet zone, where new safety measures are installed to further separate vehicles and pedestrians from the tracks to eliminate the necessity of sounding horns at intersections. A LID is an additional property tax fee charged to property owners who would benefit from the improvements. The feasibility study includes the costs of an appraiser, noise expert, quiet zone expert and staff time. Councilman Dennis Higgins said at a council Public Works Committee meeting last month that he strongly supports the study. “We have been talking about a quiet zone for many years and at this juncture the question is whether it would be feasible to create a LID to fund the roughly [ more RAILROAD page 4 ]
Chamber of Commerce hosts reception for new superintendent Local businesses, organizations welcome Watts to community BY HEIDI SANDERS hsanders@kentreporter.com
In his first month on the job, Kent School District Superintendent Calvin Watts is establishing ties in the
community and setting goals. Watts, who took over as head of the district on June 15, was the guest of honor at a reception hosted by the Kent Area Chamber of Commerce on July 9 at Golden Steer Steak ‘n Rib House. Representatives from local businesses and organizations introduced themselves to Watts and explained their roles in the community and
how they hope to work with Watts and the district. Watts spent about 15 minutes addressing the crowd, discussing his upbringing and goals for the district. Watts said he has enjoyed his first few weeks on the job. “It feels like I have been here for a much longer time, and I mean that [ more WATTS page 4 ]
Kent School District Superintendent Calvin Watts addresses local business leaders on July 9. HEIDI SANDERS, Kent Reporter Present this Coupon for $3 OFF a Kids Zone Bracelet at Covington Days 2015.
Parade Sat @ 10 | Reptile Man Sat @12 & Sun @ 2 Watermelon Eating Contest - Sat @ 2 (Free, all ages)
Present re en att festival f fe ticket ke sales ssale sa e booth. es o h. Regularly egularl $ $15. 5