Series spurs connection
Blessed bridge
In this issue
Artist, author ‘revive’ Rome
B-1
A-2
SEQUIM GAZETTE www
Wednesday, Jan. 6, 2016
Sequim’s Hometown Newspaper
com
75 CENTS
Vol. 43, Number 1
Commissioners consider ending tax holiday Members seek collaboration before decision by ALANA LINDEROTH Sequim Gazette
Clallam County has received about $98,000 less in monthly sales tax revenue since July when the board of county commissioners opted to lower the county’s
optional sales tax rate within the unincorporated county from 8.4 percent to 8.2. The commissioners originally agreed on the countywide tax holiday last April as an approach to stimulate the local economy, but the new year could bring the holiday
Sun Rises
to an end. “I think in our hearts we thought we were doing the right thing at the time,” Commissioner Mike Chapman said. CHAPMAN But, given the 2016 adopted budget that relies on $3 million from the county’s re-
on a
serves to maintain balance, Chapman voiced his concerns. “We’re spending more than we’re taking in so that’s not going to add to our JONES bottom line,” he said. Administrator Jim Jones has calculated for the three months the
New Year
county has received the its sales tax revenue “had there been no reduction, it would have brought in very close to $300,000 more revenue,” he told the commissioners on Jan. 4. When building the 2016 budget in October, Jones budgeted $4.6 million in sales tax revenue based
See COUNTY, A-6
Parks and trails supporter wins vacant seat on city council Smith elected mayor, Miller deputy mayor by MATTHEW NASH Sequim Gazette
Contributor Rich Taylor caught this image of the Angiuli Barn on Sequim-Dungeness Way recently. “I shot it at sunrise and it was about 22 degrees outside,” Taylor writes. “I … drove past it the first time just wanting to go to the park and walk. I decided that it was worth turning around to get this shot. A week before, it was a pouring down rain which formed the huge puddle in the foreground, which made for a great reflection from the beautiful sky. The ground was so white it looked like snow but (it) was frost from the cold weather. I’m just glad that I didn’t pass this one up.”
The City of Sequim ushered in the new year with some changes in leadership. On Jan. 4, two newly elected city councilors — Pamela Leonard-Ray and John Miller — were sworn into office, SMITH Dennis Smith was elected unanimously as mayor and four candidates vied for the vacant seat left by Ken Hays. Cit y councilors interviewed the canLAKE didates on Monday night and appointed Bob Lake, a financial planner and former risk management consultant, to fill
See CITY, A-5
Out with the old, in with the new
Recycling service reflects peak of shopping season by ALANA LINDEROTH Sequim Gazette
The transition from one year to the next often is recognized as a busy time, but one local business owner has a unique perspective on the bustling of the holiday season and what it brings. Dan Tharp owns and operates Ecycle Northwest, an electronic waste recycling service located just east of Sequim. “We were going to close on Black Friday, but we ended up opening the gate and worked Saturday, too, because of Black Friday,” Tharp said. Since the 1930s, throughout the country the day after Thanksgiving
increasingly has developed as the beginning of the Christmas shopping season. Most major retailers and occasionally some small businesses are open during all hours of the night, offering a variety of promotional sales that ring in multi-billion dollars in sales nationwide. “It’s crazy, but it’s that desire to want,” Tharp said. Beginning on Black Friday and the days following, Tharp and longtime employee Cory Maley see many electronics come in to be recycled as people replace the old with the new. “I’ve already pulled a nice Pioneer surround sound system and set it aside,” Maley said. “We’re also seeing a lot of working flat screens.” Though the amount of electronics coming to Ecycle Northwest is not able during t he
Ecycle Northwest, a locally owned electronic waste recycling service, has collected more than 11,000 tons of refuse since being founded in 2007. Sequim Gazette photo by Alana Linderoth
See RECYCLING, A-10
Sports B-5 • Schools B-7 • Arts & Entertainment B-1 • Opinion A-8 • Obituaries A-5 • Classifieds C-1 • Crossword Section C
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