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Newspaper Archive of
Shelton Mason County Journal
Shelton, Washington
October 4, 2012     Shelton Mason County Journal
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October 4, 2012
 
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Journal photo by Gordon Weeks Ed Johnston, whose wife Maxine has sold "safe and sane" fireworks on First Street for 30 years, on Monday presented the Shelton City Commission with a petition signed by more than 70 residents who oppose banning the sale and use of fireworks. But the commission passed the ban by a 3-0 vote, and it takes effect in one year. Fireworks Continued from page A-I But Shelton resident Ed Johnston, whose wife Max- ine has sold "safe and sane" fireworks on First Street for 30 years, presented a petition signed by more than 70 residents opposing the ban. He asked the com- missioners to base their votes on "patriotism, com- mon sense and tolerance." "A little tolerance is not too much to ask," Johnston said. Banning "safe and sane" fireworks in the city will lead residents to drive to First Nations reservations to buy fireworks that are "unsafe and insane," John- ston said. He pointed out that all five residents who spoke at the Sept. 17 com- mission meeting opposed the ban. His remarks were sec- onded by George Rickle, whose group the Mason County Republicans is one of six civic groups who last year sold fireworks at stands in the city. He said the commission is ignoring the needs of people "in the middle" who sell fireworks to raise some extra money for things such as college tuition for their families. "People come and testi- fy, and we don't get heard," he said. But Shelton Mayor Gary Cronce said he was casting his vote not on his own view of fireworks, but on the views he hears from residents on his daily walks. "We don't base our opin- ion on just who speaks ... that's five people out of 10,000," he said. Commissioner Mike O1- sen said he heard from more people who support the ban. Pannell added that many residents told her "the noise inside the city is getting out of hand." After the votes were cast, Rickle told the au- dience the decision is "a rigged deal" as he walked out of the room. "This is not a democracy," John- ston announced as he also left the commission cham- bers. Offender Continued from page A-1 and reoffended eight months af- ter his release. He was sentenced to 20 years for his second rape conviction in 1978. He was paroled in 1994 after serving 16 years. Before being arrested in August, Honore had been on the run from law enforce- ment since December 2001, when he absconded from the Oregon State Police Sex Offender Registration Pro- gram. Honore is listed as a level 3 sex offender because the Ma- son County Sheriffs Office believes he is at a high risk to reoffend. Debates Continued from page A-1 to a question, a one-minute rebuttal and a one-minute re- sponse to that rebuttal. The debate began with candidates for commission District 3 including Terri Jef- freys (I) and Ross Gallagher (D). District 3 includes Shel- ton, Agate, Oakland Bay and the Timberlakes areas. Gallagher and Jeffreys fielded questions about the issues of public safety, prop- erty taxes and balancing the county's budget. In a question about fund- ing for public safety, Jeffreys commented on the perfor- mance of the Mason County Sheriffs Office. "Investigation needs to be picked up a bit. We have a very high unsolved crime rate," she said. Jeffreys said she would work to institute perfor- mance measures in the sher- iffs office if elected. Traditionally, the Mason County Board of Commission- ers approves the sheriffs office budget, but does not manage its operations or set policy. The Candidates also an- swered questions about gov- ernment transparency and accountability and funding for road projects. Gallagher said roads in Mason County "are some of the best maintained roads in the state." Jeffreys stated that only public health functions such Journal photo by Natalie Johnson Candidates for Mason County commissioner for District 2 Tim Sheldon (D) and Roslynne Reed (D) participated in a debate Thursday evening in Belfair. as immunizations, food han- dler cards and septic moni- toring should be funded by the county's general fund. All other public health functions, she stated, should be funded by sources such as grants. Candidates for District 1, Denny Hamilton (D) and Randy Neatherlin, who states no party preference, answered questions next. District 1 includes much of the north end of the coun- ty, from Pickering north to Belfair on State Route 3 and across Hood Canal to Twanoh, Dewatto, Tiger Lake and Tahuya. Hamilton and Neatherlin answered questions on the future of Urban Growth Ar- eas (UGA) in Mason County. Both candidates brought up the Belfair sewer project. '%Ve cannot have growth inour UGA if we don't have infrastructure," Neatherlin said. 'We have to be aware of keeping it affordable." Hamilton said the project was "much bigger than it needs to be," and that more users need to hook up to make it function properly. '~ou can't unring that bell," he said. "The pain of the sewer is with the individual residences." Hamilton also suggested that the county' commission should have a plan for the fu- ture to prioritize infrastruc- ture projects. Neatherlin rebutted that statement, pointing out that Mason County does have a comprehensive plan, which is updated annually by the county commission and re- viewed regularly by the Ma- son County Planning Advi- sory Commission. The liveliest of the three debates was between Dis- trict 2 candidates Tim Shel- don and Roslyrme Reed, both Democrats, who answered questions last. District 2 includes much of the west side of the county, including Hood Canal and Lake Cushman, Potlatch, the S kokomish Valley, Dayton, Matlock and Kamilche. Sheldon and Reed sparred over topics ranging from bud- get priorities, to advisory committees to the morale of county staff to the logic of im- pact fees and management of county planning and permit- ting offices. %re are still in a recession. It is the biggest recession since the 1930s," Sheldon, the race's only incumbent, said. "I've been a prudent voice for budget management." Reed said advisory com- mittees would be more use- ful to the county commission if the citizens on those com- mittees were trained to make recommendations on the specific issues they were con- sidering, such as stormwater management or planning. She also criticized Sheldon for his attendance at county meetings. "I was attending more meetings than you were and that didn't make sense," she said. Sheldon threw in several jabs of his own, including re- peatedly admonishing Reed for giving vague, anecdotal answers in response to the questions. A second debate has been scheduled for legislative can- didates with doors opening at 6 p.m. Oct. 11 at Hawkins Middle School. The debate is scheduled to begin at 6:45 p.m. and run until 9 p.m. Candidates running for the 35th Legislative District position 1, including Kathy Haigh (D) and Dan Griffey (R), and position 2 including Drew MacEwen (R) and Lyn- da Ring Erickson (D), have confirmed that they will at- tend the event. Candidates for the 6th Congressional District, Bill Driscoll (R) and Derek Kilm- er (D), were invited but will no,t attend the event. Goldsborough Creek Apartments is accepting wait list applications for seniors ages 62 and better. HUD subsidized, controlled access, garden setting, minutes from downtown shopping. Non-Smoking Property. 23 1-Br. and one 2-Br. 303 S 7th St., (306) 426-3903 15634 .Panasonic .Energizer .Duracell Development Continued from page A-1 water resources, plants and animals, environmen- tal health, energy and greenhouse gas emissions and aesthetics. Needed public services and utili- ties such as fire protection, emergency services, police, schools, and sewer and wa- ter also will be examined. About 50 residents at- tended a presentation on the development Sept. 26 at the Shelton Civic Cen- ter. They expressed con- cerns about possible dam- age to the shallow aquifer, traffic congestion, water runoff toward downtown and the proposed expan- sion of lanes on U.S. High- way 101 near the develop- ment. One resident questioned the idea of expanding the lanes of U.S. Highway 101 for 2 or' 3 miles near the exit to the proposed devel- opment. "A five-lane highway in the middle of nowhere - that doesn't make sense to me," she said. Shelton resident Tom Davis urged Hall Equities to hire local workers on the project, and to donate land to establish a YMCA. He also encouraged them to build high-quality homes. "We don't just want to attract people looking for low-cost affordable housing ... make them attractive to a broad range of people so they can add to the commu- nity," he said. But even residents who voiced environmental con- cerns about the develop- ment said they are excited about what it can bring to the community. Shelton resident Kim Russell said he is con- cerned about who will be accountable for water run- off from the development in 20 or 30 years. But as for the economic promise of the development, "start the shovels immediately," he said "We've needed some- thing like this for years." A Belfair resident en- couraged the developers to opt for solar power where they can, such as power- ing the streetlights, and to create walking trails that will connect Shel- ton Hills to surrounding neighborhoods. He said he is excited that the project includes plans for senior housing. Hall Equities has owned the land Outright for six years. The real estate in- vestment/development/ management company has been working to entice po- tential retail tenants for years, and has launched a statewide marketing pro- gram to attract businesses, Farrell said. "Hall is very committed to this project," said Far- rell. "We've been working on this for seven years. We're here for the long haul." Near the entrance to the development off East Wallace Kneeland Boule- vard is Goose Lake, which is owned by the Rayonier Corp. Rayonier Corp is working with the state Department of Ecology to clean up the lake, Farrell said. The process of transfer- ring ownership of the lake to the city is not linked to the clean up grant, but would be the outcome of a three-party agreement in the near future between Hall Equities, Rayonier and the city, Goins said. A buffer is placed around the lake from the development, and the city is looking at establishing walking trails and docks for public use, The lake "will provide a nice backdrop to the devel- opment," said Goins. T-Bone Steak Porterhouse T-Bone Steal( i Fresh Local Coho Dinner Ready Fillets Cordon-Blu 1/2 lb. ea. 99 , 99 • ...................... m ea. or 1.69 lb. by the 40 lb. case (67.60) 1729 OLYMPIC HWY. N. SHELTON • 360) 426-165 www.michaelsmeats.net Mon-Sat 9-7, Sun 9-E Shelton-Mason County Journal-Thursday, Oct. 4, 2012 - Page A-7