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| March 24, 2011 Shelton Mason County Journal |  |
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EDITORIAL
With our community's double-digit transactions weekly.
employment continuing, the reported de- Up on the hill, Mason General Hospi-
parture of Adage, and at least five local tal is engaged in a $33 million expansion,
business closings since the new year, re- which will not only provide better heatth-
trenchment and malaise would be valid re- care services, but employ dozens of con-
actions. In today's offering, we would like tractors and subcontractors and increase
to challenge that thinking for a moment, the facility's capability and capacity.
Let's go back to basics for a minute Better hospital facilities also mean ad-
with our local business climate. While it ditional doctors and professionals will
is true that five well-known businesses find Shelton to be a better place to prac-
have closed their doors this year, the fact tice medicine and personally relocate here.
remains that another 118 downtown busi- Even in the struggling housing envi-
nesses, including the Journal in its 125th ronment, the silver lining is that Shel-
year of business, are open -- and have ton area buyers have more selection and
stayed opened- in 2011. better quality living options than ever
Collectively, these local mainstays, before. Against national trends, Mason
everyone from the award-winning Pan- County home values have even increased
torium to Nita's Cafe to Safeway to O1- slightly, too.
sen's Furniture, employ hundreds of our Within three months, Shelton is sched-
residents and do thousands of dollars of uled to see the return of national elec-
tronics retailer Radio Shack and market eral businesses doing well, even against
entry of a regional 24-hour coffee shop, the national trends. Sue's Stitch in
and Shelton just welcomed a new Goodwill Time, Cooper Studios and Sage Bookstore
stere, which provides area residents with are all examples of hometown stores thriv-
a new shopping choice here at home. ing in Shelton.
These businesses are confident in Shel- Quality Appliance did record sal~s in
ton's viability, and the Journal is, too, by 2010, and continues its surge in 2011,
adding -- not subtracting -- our offerings and legendary restauranteur Nita Bariek-
in 2011, among those a regional outdoors man even wrote a book that is now in its
magazine, monthly Arts & Entertainment third printing after two consecutive sell,
guide and the area's first local Real Es- outs.
tate periodical. Finally, a well-respected and seasoned
The new Goodwill store also added 21 executive will be in Shelton next week
full-time jobs and had invested close to
$350,000 in renovations and enhance- to accept the director's post at the Shel-
ments to convert the retail space in the ton chamber. Coming from a much larger
Kneeland Plaza, which in turn, brings and highly successful chamber organiza-
stability and new traffic to the venerable tion, the arrival of this individual sends
shopping center, a positive endorsement of Shelton's busi-
Small Town Papers, Inc., a national ness potential.
newspaper industry provider, also relo- It should be noted that there is plenty of
cated their business to downtown Shelton tangible evidence of business growth and
in February, and similar to Goodwill, its expansion happening now within Shel-
owners invested several thousand dollars ton, and plenty of good things to look for-
in infrastructure investment and new jobs. ward to in the immediate future.
And, believe it or not, the area has see- The sky isn't falling.
TO EDITOR
/
/
Not time to today, Ihopetoencour- to visit the school districts
age voters in the Pioneer website at psd402.org to
School District to vote yes view the YouTube video that
on the upcoming bond. The is posted and to visit the
building and classrooms at PTA and Pioneer Citizens
Pioneer were in bad shape for Education links to see
Editor, the Journal when I was in school. That way the school district and
It is extremely hard for was back in 1986 thru 1996. beard have decided to re-run
me to believe that Adage, a I remember the leaks, the the bend to build a new mid-
multi national highly sophls- bathrooms in disrepair,die school and expand the
ticated company, would com- the mildewed carpet, the primary to house the fourth
mit the huge amount of time standing water and the tiny and fiRh grades.
and millions of dollars to a classrooms. To this day, the ARer the bond failed in
proposed incinerator plartt school has only gotten worse. November, a group of con-
in Shelton without knowing Go to psd402.org to see a cerned community members,
exactly where they would video that documents some staff and parents met with
sell their product. It has of the issues the school has. the board and administra-
always been assumed that I remember when the tors requesting that they
the electricity they could portable was first brOught in rerun the bend in April.
produce would be too ex- and how excited we were to Since that time, members
pensive to sell in the Pacific have a new classroom. Look- from the Pioneer PTA, the
Northwest and would likely ing at that portable now, it Pioneer Citizens for Educa-
be sold in California where is sad to see how dilapidated tion and staff members have
biomass incinerators are not it has become. I remember been working hard to get
permitted, the leaky roof in my first the word out and to educate
Could this publicity be a grade classroom where we the parents and community
ploy to disarm Concerned had to move our tables away on the deplorable conditions
Citizens of Mason County, from the buckets on theat the Intermediate/Middle
Incinerator Free Mason floor. I remember the toilet School. A voter registration
Count and the thousands of in my fourth grade pod that drive is underway at beth
Mason County citizens who did not work. schools.
have been working diligently I also remember my first I have worked for the
to stop the project? Will we grade teacher who came to school district for 26 years
think this is the end, relax my wedding. I remember and have put four children
our efforts and drop the one of my eighth grade though the Pioneer School "
lawsuit against the Port of teachers telling me howDistrict. Currently, I have
Shelton? beautiful I was, inside and a granddaughter who is in
Consider this: As far as I out, and sparking some self- her fourth year at Pioneer
know Adage has not with- esteem into my 15-year-old Primary and will be moving
drawn its request for a per- brain. There are many more over to the Intermediate/
mit. The EIS is proceeding wonderful memories that I Middle School next year for
and I have not heard that have from this school, but fourth grade. I have mixed
our trusted port commission- this letter would be too long feelings about this. First, I
ers have canceled the prop- to print, know that the Intermedi-
erty lease with Adage. I have seen the lettersate/Middle School staff will
Supposed that all op- written by citizens who live do their best to provide her
position to the project was in the school district who with a quality education. My
relaxed or dropped and the chose to vote no on previous concerns are with the qual-
permit was granted. Ad- ballots. Their excuse makes ity and safety of the campus
age could, all of a sudden, me sad. It is sad to think itself. The buildings are out-
announce that it has found that there are people out dated and do not provide a
buyers for the electricity there who truly do not care healthy environment to edu-
they would generate and for children who will some- cate students in. Please refer
proceed with the project- or day be the leaders of our to the independent study
they might be able to sell the community. It is sad to think that is posted on the PA link
permit to one of their enti- there are people out there on the districts website.
ties or another company, who do not care if these kids I am asking, as a parent
It may net be time to cel- have a safe, reliable place of past students, grandpar-
ebrate just yet. to go to school. We all need ant and staff member to
John Gilmore to stand up for our children please educate yourself of
Sheltonand give them the support the needs within the district.
that they need to succeed. Over the past few years,
Vote yes for I urge you to vote yes the Shelton School District
for the children at Pioneer and other districts within
School. Mason County have passed
the children JaneenMcLaughlin bends to build new or re-
Shelton model schools. The students
at Pioneer deserve as much.
at Pioneer Show the Parents, grandparents and
former students of Pioneer
kids you please get involved by reg-
istering to vote. Attend the
community meetings that
Editor, the Journal care, vote ~ be held on March 29
I am proud to say I was . and April 12 at 6 p.m. at the
a student of Pioneer School yes on
the
Intermediate/middle
School
from Kindergarten through • and invite your neighbers.
bond spread the word. It's
eighth
grade. I made
many
our kid's turn. Show the kids
lifelong friends at that
school and still keep in touch you care, vote yes on the up-
with some of my past teach- Editor, the Journal coming bend.
ers I was blessed to have I am inviting all parents Vikki Omdahl
while growing up. and community members of Shelten
By writing this letter the Pioneer School District
Health is
more
than money
Editor, the Journal
I greeted the news of Ad-
age's pulling its proposed
biomass facility out of Ma-
son County with joy and
I wish to sincerely thank
everyone, those who wrote
editorials, lettef't5 ~dit~rs .....
and e-mails t@§ta~ offi-
cials, plus all ~those who
attended the public ses-
sions and expressed their
opinions to county officials,
for speaking up against this
facility being built in our
county. Although Adage
claims that the decision to
pull out was purely due to
a lack of demand for the
plant's output, I see this
pull-out as proof of what
can be accomplished when
citizens band together and
make their voices heard.
I am glad that Commis-
sioner Dobson feels he and
fellow port commissioners
protected economic inter-
ests well with their lease
agreement with Adage. We
can only hope that, in the
future, our port, county
and city commissioners will
deem it more important
to protect the health and
safety of the county citizens
and honestly represent us
in support of the kind of
environment in which we
want to live and raise our
families.
Linda Pittman
Shelton
bonds fai
kids-fail
Editor, the Journal
My name is Harold Rus-
sell and along with my wife,
Patty, have been property
owners and residents in the
Pioneer School district for
over 16 years. We have vot- Looking over the articles
ed in every election and on and letters on the incin-
every ballot issue that has erator controversy during
existed during those years, the last year, I'm stuck
We live on a fixed income by the great number of
and are keenly aware of well-reasoned and sincere
every tax issue that affects concerns that have been
us. Every time the issue of raised. What's alarming
a bend for repairs or the is the lack of answers and
building of a new school distain that the County and
is placed on the ballot we Port of Shelton Commis-
have voted in the affirma- sioners have show us. At
tive. We would gladly pay least Port of Shelton Corn-
to have a safe and healthy missioner Jack Miles cares
institution of learning for what the voters think and
what is our future, want. He's the one who, last
Each time bonds for June, made the motion to
schools are defeated our authorize an advisory vote
children take a step back- on Adage.
ward in the process of re- Webster's defines a dicta-
ceiving a quality education, tor as a person exercising
The world passes us by in unlimited powers of govern-
most areas of academics ment. What limits the pow-
and instead of doing what ers of our local commission-
is necessary to succeed ers? Is it rules and regula-
we quibble about pennies, tions? Is it the wishes and
Achievement in any area views of their constituents?
requires sacrifice and any If it's the first and not'the
kind of success bought with second, why not? We can
the necessary sacrifice is write and talk until we're
not without pain. blue in the face and there
It is time for us to stand will be no effect. And, this
up not just as parents or week, we were informed
grandparents but also as that public outcry has no ef-
a community and give our fect on important decisions
children the very best edu- about our future. Feel like
cation available. It is time we're being dictated to, yet?
for us to stand up for the We deserve better. In corn-
children of our community parison, Thurston County
and give a safe and healthy commissioners have issued
environment'for learning. It a moratorium on biomass
is time to do what is right, incinerator projects.
Harold and Patty Russell Here's a regulation for
Sheltonthe citizens of Mason Count
to ponder: Revised Cede
What limits of Washington (RCW):
42.56.030: =The people of
the powers this state do not yield their
sovereignty to the agencies
that serve them. The peo-
of our ple, in delegating author-
ity, do not give their public
servants the right to decide
local com- what is good for the peeple
to know and what is not
good for them to know. The
people insist on remaining
informed so that they may
Editor, the Journal maintain control over the
• What a heart-wrenching instruments that they have
thrill to witness the ouster created. This chapter shall
of Mubarek from Egypt. As be liberally construed and
we watch the peoples of the it's exemptions narrowly
Mideast defeat their fear construed to promote this
and stand together against public policy and to assure
tyranny, it's worth consid- that the public interest will
ering just how receptive be fully protected."
and responsible our own Karen Skinner
local politician are to their
constituents.
Shelton-Mason County
USPS 492-800
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