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Newspaper Archive of
Shelton Mason County Journal
Shelton, Washington
December 29, 2016     Shelton Mason County Journal
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December 29, 2016
 
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Page A-8 - Shelton-Mason County Journal - Thursday, Dec. 29, 2016 MAGIC HOLD FULL GRIP TRES AMIGOS PEACE MARIJUANA O-KAY PEACE ASIDE FREE STYLE DEVIL HORNS HANG LOOSE ONE-TWO BAD FINGER Garments on Zazzle.com • Facebook Lighter Wave Available at Off the Walls in Shelton (703 W. Railroad) and Boom Gallery in Olympia (520 Adams St. SE) UndaRudinFrizzell.com FEBRUARY Volunteers hand out supplies, count Five months prior to the star~ of 2016, Joseph Rapski had a roof over his head and a bed to sleep in. Earlier this year, he was searching for a sleeping bag that would keep him dry at night on the ground. Rapski was one of more than 45 homeless people who arrived at North Mason Resources in Belfair in late January, seeking cold-weather equipment to survive the winter. The resource center offered gear, clothing and a hot meal to anyone attending its branch of the annual homeless count, which took place Jan. 28 across the nation, the Journal reported in Febru- ary. The U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness schedules the national point-in-time count each year as a way to measure homelessness through- out the country. In Washington, the Homelessness Housing and Assistance Act requires each county to conduct the point-in-time count. Residents: Dump cleanup too slow Four officials from the state De- partment of Ecology on Feb. 9 told about 75 Shelton residents they were beginning the process to ad- dress the polluted former C Street landfill. But attendees of the meeting at the Shelton Civic Center continually interrupted the presenters to express their dismay at the amount of time it's taken to address the toxic, 16-acre site west of downtown Shelton. Four people suggested that Simp- son Lumber Co. should be a liable party in a lawsuit against the city re- garding the landfill because it dumped toxic baghouse ash down toilets, which was turned into waste sludge that was dumped at the site. The four DOE employees stressed that they were beginning the process to address the site. Voters approve school levies by wide margins Voters in February overwhelmingly approved school maintenance and op- erations levies in three Mason County school districts. Levies in North Mason, Hood Canal and Mary M. Knight school districts led by sizeable margins m'ler the Feb. 9 special election. For the third consecutive time, vot- ers approved a replacement levy for the North Mason School District. Nearly 62 percent of voters checked "yes" when returning the ballot; 38.09 percent voted "no" for the levy. Voters in the Hood Canal School District passed a replacement levy for programs, maintenance and operations. On the first ballot count, the mea- sure had received 950 votes almost 60 percent -- while 639 residents had voted "no," reported the Mason County Auditor's Office. Mary M. Knight School District's replacement levy passed handily, with almost 65 percent of the vote. On the first ballot count, the Mason County Auditors Office reported the measure had received 166 "yes" votes and 90 "no" votes. EW General manager of MTA resigns The Mason Transit Authority Board accepted the resignation of Gen- eral Manager Brad Patterson on Feb. 16 afLer an employee complaint was filed against him in late January. The board and Patterson came to Patterson a separation agree- ment in lieu of ter- mination, said Board Chairwoman Terri Jeffreys, who is also a county commissioner. Patterson received a severance, ac- cording to the separation agreement. Patterson was hired as MTA's general manager in 2011, when he replaced Dave O'Connell, who retired. Sheldon votes for controversial bill The Senate in February rejected 25-24 a bill that would repeal a rule affirming that people can use re- strooms and locker rooms that match their gender iden- tity. Only two Demo- crats voted Feb. 10 Sheldon to repeal the rule: 24th District Sen. Jim Hargrove and 35th District Sen. Tim Sheldon. Sheldon, who historically cau- cuses with the Republicans, said his vote reflected his traditional values. Sheldon and other supporters of the bill argued that repealing the rule would shut the door on predators who could use it as a guise to prey on children. Mountainous hurdles for Shelton Hills For 10 years, the Shelton Hills de- velopment has been anxiously await- ed as the city's great growth explosion to the west. The plans for the 604-acre devel- opment in the woods alongside U.S. Highway 101 call for a 50-acre busi- ness park, 68 acres of commercial property, as many as 1,600 primarily single-family residential dwellings, a new school and 10 parks. The de- velopment by Hall Equities Group of Walnut Creek, California, is projected to take 20 years to complete, and add 4,877 residents and 3,546 jobs to Shelton. But two years after ground was scheduled to be broken, the project was still stalled in February by legal wrangling and unmet requirements involving the state Department of Transportation (WSDOT) and Mason County PUD 3. In emails to the City of Shelton, Hall Equities claims the construction delays have cost the development two anchor tenants, Fred Meyer and Lowe's Home Improvement, among other hurdles. Journal reporter Gordon Weeks put together an extensive story on Shelton Hills, which appeared in the Feb. 25 issue of the Journal.