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Newspaper Archive of
Shelton Mason County Journal
Shelton, Washington
January 6, 2011     Shelton Mason County Journal
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January 6, 2011
 
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,/ ,~ ~:~!~, : :v"~,':-"~ ~-, ~ : ~it~ +/:'! ~'ii~:i: ~ ;"i/;~'~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ i~ YEAR 125, $1 SHELTON, MASON COUNTY, WASH. THURSDAY, JANUARY 6, 2011 WEEK 1 JACK MILES IS A PORT OF SHELTON COMMISSIONER. PORT COMMISSIONER FILES HARASSMENT By NATALIE JOHNSON Mason County Journal Reporter The tension at Tuesday's Port of Shelton commission meeting was, once again, palpable. During the meeting, port commissioner Jack Miles filed a formal complaint with the commission against port executive director John Dobson. "It's unfortunate that the beginning of the year has to start out on such a unhappy note," Miles said. The complaint alleges that Dobson made more than one threat to Miles over the course of the last several weeks. He request- ed that Dobson be placed on administrative leave or sus- pended. Miles said that the threats are related to his continued stance against the proposed ADAGE bio- mass facility. "He said I should watch my back," Miles said. Miles did not comment on any other specific threat, but said he felt uncomfort- able in the same room with Dobson. "I no longer feel safe in this environment," he said. "I should not have to feel this way. If necessary I will file a restraining order against Mr. Dobson." Commissioner Jay Hupp questioned whether the commission had any author- ity or interest in hearing the complaint. "It seems to me that it's a problem between you and John," Hupp said. "From a legal standpoint the com- mission neither has the ob- ligation nor is the commis- sion in a position to inter- cede between an employee and a commissioner. If you were an employee it would be a completely different situation." Hupp then called Miles' allegations "unsubstanti- ated." Port attorney Skip Haus- er assured Hupp, however, that the commission could hear complaints from any- one against any of their em- ployees, including Dobson. "The port can always re- ceive a complaint," Hauser said. "The complaint can be quashed." Miles said that he sought support from commissioners Hupp and Tom Wallitner in an earlier executive session, and asked them to suspend Dobson, but was ignored. "They're not going to do anything about it," he said. "It's what I expected." Miles said the threats have continued, but didn't give any details. Wallitner said that he knew nothing of the com- plaint before today. "I'm flabbergasted," he said. "John Dobson does not talk like that." The commission declined to take action because Dob- son was not in attendance at the meeting, but said they would look into the com- plaint. Miles filed his complaint with the Mason County Sheriffs office Tuesday af- ternoon. Dobson declined to com- ment on the complaint. AREA BUSINESSES BOAST OF RECORD SALES IN DECEMBER By NATALIE JOHNSON Mason County Journal Reporter Mason County residents showed their support for lo- cal businesses this holiday season, making the First Friday celebration, and the rest of December, a resound- ing success for the business community. "December was the big- gest month in the history of our store," said Carolyn Olsen, owner of Sage Book- store. "It's clear that people were buying." Olsen said that a combi- nation of loyal customers and a successful first Fri- day, among other things, set them up for a great month. "We have a great custom- I[IIU!UJJ![I!UIjIjIJIIrl2 er base," she said. For other businesses, December was less monu- mental, but still had steady business. "Things started to turn around for us last sum- mer," said Colleen Hunter of Lynch Creek Floral. "It's steadily getting better." Hunter also said that First Friday catapulted them into a successful month. "It was fabulous," she said. "We had people who came in who said they had been waiting since last year to come back." Programs like First Friday helped draw attention to local businesses for the holiday season, and Continued on page 5 By KEVAN MOORE Mason County Journal News Editor A pair of Shelton women died following separate col- lisions on local roads' within the last week. Shelton resident Kristen L. Roy, 40, died following a wreck on Highway 101 on Wednesday, Dec. 29, and Linda K. Mapes, 50, also of Shelton, died following a single-vehicle collision in the 1200 block of East Agate Road on Jan. 2. In the first case, the Washington State Patrol said that Roy was headed northbound on Highway 101 in a blue 2006 Toyo- ta Solara. Upon reaching Brockdale, Roy's vehicle spun clockwise across the center-line and was struck by a southbound 2006 Hon- da Pilot. The driver of the Pilot, Marry S. Muckian, 33, and her passengers Brian P. Muckian, 34, a 4-year-old boy, a 7-year-old boy and an ll-year-old boy were all transported to Mason Gen- eral Hospital and released. The highway was fully blocked for two hours and 34 minutes and partially blocked for 41 minutes. The state patrol said that the cause of the wreck is still under investigation and that no charges are pending. The second fatality of the week occurred around 8:45 p.m. on January 2. The Mason County Sher- iffs Office said Mapes was driving her 2008 Kia Spec- tra westbound when she drove onto a frosty shoulder. The sheriffs office said that she then apparently over corrected, causing the vehi- cle to slide broadside across both lanes of travel. The vehicle impacted a ditch and rolled, partially ejecting Mapes. According to investigators, Mapes was not wearing a seat belt and died at the scene. Deputies are continuing their inves- tigation to determine the contributing factors to this collision. GOODWILL ADDING STORE, EXPANDING PROGRAMS IN SHELTON By NATALIE JOHNSON Mason County Journal Reporter Tacoma Goodwill is look- ing to expand its empire to Mason County, adding a store and expanding social programs designed to help people empower themselves and get good jobs. "People didn't want a hand-out, they wanted a hand-up, that's Goodwill in a nutshell," said Matthew Erlich, media relations and PR coordinator for Tacoma Goodwill. By March, Tacoma Good- will expects to open its Shelton store, located in Kneeland Plaza, which will employ 25 people, many of which will have some type of barrier to employment, Shelton store manager Rod Clement said. "It's kind of our focus," he said. "We have various re- sources, placement services that we work with." Clement has worked as a Goodwill store manager for the last seven years, work- ing in Centralia and Olym- pia. Goodwill picked him to run the Shelton store partly because he lives in Mason County Goodwill representatives stressed that it is much more than a store, and is instead a larger non-profit organization that also offers federally funded education and job training programs. One of the programs that Goodwill has already imple- mented in the area is their Senior Community Service Employment Program .(SC- SEP) located at the Shelton WorkSource office. Terry Weber, interim Supervisor at WorkSource, said that programs like this Continued on page 5 RESULT OF DUI The Washington State Patrol said that a Belfair man will face criminal charges following a Janu- ary 4 single-vehicle collision in which drugs or alcohol played a role. The state patrol said that Belfair resident Jeremiah M, Northup, 29, was driv- ing a silver 2005 Subaru Impreza soutbound near Judy Lane when it crossed the oncoming northbound lane, left the roadway and struck a DOT sign and dirt embankment. The state patrol said that Northup was restrained at the time of the wreck, but had to be transported to Harrison Hospital in Bremerton with head and neck injuries. The state pa- trol also said that the colli- sion was caused by DUI and reckless driving and that Northup would be charged accordingly. SERWNG MASON COUNTY, WASHINGTON FOf~ 125 YEARS YOU MAY HAVE NOTICED A CHANGE TO THE JOURNAL THIS WEEK. WE ARE CELEBRATING 125 YEARS OF JOURNALISM IN MASON COUNTY AND KICKING OFF WITH A RETURN TO THE PAST. THE FLAG THAT GRACES THE TOP OF THIS PAGE WAS A MAINSTAY IN THE COMMUNITY FOR FIVE DECADES. THE STYLE OF THIS FRONT PAGE IS BASED ON OUR PRODUCT IN THE '30'S. - JJM EDITOR THE SUN SHINES BUT BRINGS COLD TEMPERATURES High Low Precip Fahrenheit (In.) December29 42 23 .02 December30 37 19 .00 December31 35 17 .00 January 1 39 15 .00 January 2 41 21 .00 January 3 39 17 .00 January 4 35 21 .00 Measurements are re- corded for the National Weather Service at Sander- son Field. The sunny weather that Mason County has enjoyed for the past week or so has officially come to an end, according to the National Weather Service. Consistent rain and pos- sible snow are predicted throughout the next week. Thursday should see a high temperature around 45 degrees with light winds from the southwest. There is a 70 percent chance of rain. Thursday night should be mostly cloudy with a low around 40 degrees. Friday, there is an 80 per- cent chance of rain, with a projected high of 44 degrees and winds up to 15 miles per hour from the southwest. Continued on page 5 GREETINGS FOR A NEW YEAR! MEMBERS OF THE AREA BAND SIDEWAYS REIGN PERFORM DURING A CONCERT TO WELCOME THE NEW YEAR AT THE ROBIN HOOD RESTAURANT AND PUB ON DECEMBER 31, 2010 IN UNION CITY. JUSTIN STANG IS PICTURED AT LEFT WITH BAND MEMBER CODY GOODWIN AT RIGHT. PHOTO BY NATALIE JOHNSON