Other Headlines

There goes the judge
MONTESANO — Budget wrangling precipitated a decision not to renew the contract of the city’s current municipal court judge. Mayor Ron Schillinger last week notified Art Blauvelt he wouldn’t be reappointed to the job.

“The City is in the process of reevaluating our needs, and I am unable to offer you the requested reappointment,” Schillinger wrote in a Nov. 5 letter. “It is my hope that you will continue to work throughout the remainder of the year to facilitate a smooth transition for the Montesano Municipal Court.”

Blauvelt said he would do just that.

“I have enjoyed the years that I have served as judge in Montesano,” Blauvelt wrote in a Nov. 9 letter. “It has been an honor to serve the citizens of our town.”

Blauvelt has been the city’s judge since 1995. He also is the municipal court judge of Elma and McCleary.

Schillinger’s decision came after the judge lobbied against making deep cuts in his department to balance the court’s budget.

“I’m not in the revenue business,” Blauvelt told the council last month in a budget workshop. His budget was about $44,000 off target, anticipating a revised figure of $117,330 in revenue and $158,384 in expenses.

Monte reservoir is in jeopardy
MONTESANO — For two years running, the city’s old water reservoir was damaged by winter storms; had the pumps failed, the city would have been out of safe water. Plans for a new reservoir have lingered for years; cost was the main obstacle.

“If we keep pushing out work on the new reservoir … that’s probably not a good idea,” Councilman Doug Streeter said. “The decision is: ‘Do you feel lucky, punk.’?”

The Finance and Public Works committees met jointly Tuesday before the regular council meeting to discuss the issue (all that means is Streeter and Councilman Chris Hutchings, members of both committees, met with Clerk-Controller Kristi Powell, Public Works Director Mike Wincewicz and Attorney Dan Glenn; the other committee members were absent).

Wincewicz recommended borrowing money to finance the design, site work and pipe work to begin the project in 2010. That would mean borrowing about $950,000 through a state Department of Health low-interest loan.

Arson suspected at Monte high school
MONTESANO — The Montesano Police Department is offering a reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the perpetrator of vandalism and attempted arson at Montesano Junior-Senior High School on Monday night or early Tuesday morning.

Apparently, somebody broke into the greenhouse on the north side of the high school, Police Chief Ray Sowers said. Scorch marks, possibly from a propane torch, are on the walls of the greenhouse, high school and a nearby school storage shed, Sowers said.

Additionally, fertilizer and dirt was poured in the greenhouse drains and the water was turned on, Sowers said. Teachers found 6-inches of water flooding the greenhouse when they arrived at 7 a.m. Tuesday, he said.

Sowers said the department is exploring possible connections to fires that destroyed portable toilets at Beacon and Simpson schools and a Dumpster near Beacon earlier this year, but there is no definitive link.

Anybody with information is asked to call the police department at 249-1031.

Property taxes to increase by 1 percent
MONTESANO — The City Council Tuesday approved 4-1 raising property taxes by the maximum 1 percent next year. Councilman Pat Herrington was the sole “no” vote. Councilmen Rich Klinger and Brian Schumacher were absent.

“I would like to see the city find cuts somewhere rather than raise taxes … (Residents) need some help,” Herrington said.

Costs are going up more than 1 percent each year; if the city doesn’t raise taxes, it will continue to fall further behind because of a 1 percent cap imposed by voter-approved Initiative 747 in 2002, Councilman Doug Streeter said.

The increase will bring in an additional $6,670 in property tax revenue next year. If the increase were borne equally by the 1,500 households in the city, it would amount to less than $4.50 per home. The exact amount a taxpayer’s bill will increase is determined by a property’s assessed value.

More Sports

Bulldogs second at districts, off to state
MONTESANO/CASTLE ROCK — A hot start in the 1A District IV Volleyball Tournament earned Montesano a state berth, but a three-day layoff cooled the Bulldogs, and Monte fell to Castle Rock in the district title game last weekend to garner the district’s second seed to state.

Montesano swept Kalama, 25-23, 25-23, 26-24, in the opening-round match at Bo Griffith Memorial Gymnasium on Wednesday, Nov. 4. Monte then scratched out a four-game win over La Center, 25-19, 25-18, 22-25, 25-21, also on Wednesday. On Saturday, Nov. 7, at Castle Rock, the Rockets swept the Bulldogs, 25-14, 25-17, 25-15, in the district championship.

Dogs nab fourth straight district title
MONTESANO — A torrential downpour combined with the completion of a full fall sports schedule on the grass at Rottle Field had turned the field into a 100-yard-long mud pit. However, the conditions mattered not to top-ranked Montesano, who handed in another one of their trademark blowouts to earn a fourth consecutive 1A District IV Championship.

Registering their ninth shutout of the season, Montesano rolled over LaCenter 47-0 in the district’s championship/cross-over/state seeding contest Friday, Nov. 6.