As Maple Valley Food Bank and Emergency Services is celebrating putting the finishing touches on its renovated facility, the non-profit agency is feeling the pinch of a sluggish economy.
Volunteers and other community members celebrated the grand opening of the facility, which doubled in size when initial construction was complete 2 years ago, on Friday with a ribbon-cutting and open house.
Landowners can learn about stewardship and tax-incentive programs to help them maintain and improve farms and forest land during a free presentation June 9 in Ravensdale. It’s scheduled for 7 to 9 p.m. at Gracie Hansen Community Center, 27132 SE. Ravensdale Way.
Registration is at (206) 297-8141 and sue@cedarriver.org.
State Rep. Geoff Simpson filed Tuesday for re-election in District 47, joining other candidates in the Covington, Maple Valley and Black Diamond areas who this week formally entered races for the Legislature.
There won’t be enough money in the King County budget for 2009 and likely well beyond, so officials expect “deep, searing” cutbacks will be required, particularly of the county’s criminal justice systems.
Each department is expected to cut 8.6 percent of their budgets, which will total about $33 million across seven criminal justice departments, due to a $68 million shortfall in the county’s overall 2009 budget.
Charges against state Rep. Geoff Simpson, alleging that he assaulted his ex-wife in April, have been dropped.
Covington’s city prosecutor, Thomas Hargan said, “I dismissed the charges (on May 28) without prejudice based on insufficient evidence going forward.”
Poets and poetry lovers came together recently to celebrate the art of the well-placed word and to honor winners of a tri-library poetry contest.
Submitting items: Calendars are published Wednesdays and Saturdays on a space-available basis. Items for the Wednesday edition must be submitted by noon the previous Thursday. Items for the Saturday edition must be submitted by noon the previous Tuesday. Submit calendar items to calendar@reporternewspapers.com.
The Kent School District’s 28 elementary schools will send teams to the district’s Battle of the Books competition this Friday at Glenridge Elementary School.
King County might ban its agencies from buying bottled water while at work.
In an effort to reduce what it calls environmental impacts and to save money, the County Council is considering an end to the purchase of single-serve bottles of water.
The council’s General Government and Labor Relations Committee last Thursday gave preliminary approval of the new rule, which requires a full council approval, tentatively set for June 9, before taking effect.
The King County Civil Rights Commission is accepting applications for five of its positions, one of which represents the Covington, Maple Valley and Black Diamond areas.
Appointments to the commission, which require County Council approval, are for three-year terms.
The commission advises the county executive and the County Council on civil rights-related programs and issues.
Kent School District high school seniors will have to drive to the Tacoma Dome to graduate this June, but next year’s graduating class will be walking across a more local and much newer stage.
The Kent Events Center, which is expected to be complete by next January, will not only be the new home of the Seattle Thunderbirds hockey team, it also will be the site of future graduations for local high schools.
Recycling efforts in Covington, Maple Valley and Black Diamond and countywide are among government programs that will share more than $2 million in state grants for environmental work.
Jake Dean Rider’s animal cruelty trial is fast approaching, and he’s furious about the way he’s been treated.
Rider, also known as Larry Blanchard, was charged on Feb. 8 with animal cruelty in the first degree in King County Superior Court, according to Dan Donohoe, a spokesman for the county’s prosecuting attorney.
The charges, Rider claims, are wrong. He said the county didn’t complete a thorough investigation of the alleged violations in Covington, and he’s prepared to argue his case June 10 when he will be before a judge.
The bodies of two men who apparently drowned in kayaking and rafting accidents in the Green River were recovered last Saturday.
The men were reported missing May 17, and the location of one body became known several days later, but authorities delayed recovering the bodies because of dangerous river conditions.
Four Corners is on its way to becoming the heart of Maple Valley, and the city wants to make sure that it happens just right.
A King County Sheriff Department deputy sits just beyond the turnstiles, beeping because someone didn’t have a key card. Behind the deputy is a chain-link cage, guarded by a fingerprint scanner. Fifty-nine security cameras are recording in the building’s eight security zones. All visitors are wearing badges. Most doors automatically shut in 30 seconds.
The Cedar River was reopened by King County authorities for recreational uses Friday, but the Green River – where two people drowned two weeks ago – remained closed because of dangerous, fast-flowing water levels.
Calendar submissions: Calendars are published Wednesdays and Saturdays on a space-available basis. Items for the Wednesday edition must be submitted by noon the previous Thursday. Items for the Saturday edition must be submitted by noon the previous Tuesday. Submit calendar items to calendar@reporternewspapers.com.
The high, fast-flowing Cedar River has helped turn Lake Washington into a risky place for boaters.
