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Your locally owned newspaper, serving North Bend and Snoqualmie, Washington
Wildcats playoff hopes fade Page 7
October 23, 2015
Hospital candidates discuss shortfalls, plans in district By Dylan Chaffin dchaffin@snovalleystar.com Snoqualmie and North Bend candidates are in the final push of their campaigns as Election Day looms Nov. 3. For most of the race, North Bend City Council candidates have garnered the spotlight, with most seats contested, and Mary Miller throwing her hat
into the ring as a write-in for mayor. But it was the candidates vying for seats in the Snoqualmie Valley Hospital District who were given the chance to set themselves apart in the candidate forum hosted by the Snoqualmie Rotary Club Oct. 14. For Commissioner Seat No. 1, David Speikers is running
against Fritz Ribary, who did not attend the forum. Emma Herron and Ryan Roberts are both running for Commissioner Seat No. 3, and Joan Young and Steve Weaver are running for Commissioner Seat No. 5. Young, who had served as the district’s president since January, was removed from her position in a vote at the board
meeting in September. Dariel Norris, who had served as the commission’s vice president, replaced her. All of the candidates noted the “fractured” relationship between the hospital and the public. “We need to reach out and serve our youth, parents and seniors,” Herron said. She added that taxpayer
School board faces student population explosion
See POPULATION, Page 3
See FORUM, Page 6
Dave Reichert declines run for governor By Jim Brunner Seattle Times political reporter
By Dylan Chaffin dchaffin@snovalleystar.com Growing pains. That’s the best way to describe what the Snoqualmie Valley School District is experiencing — from the imminent remodel of Mount Si High to the construction of a sixth elementary school — it’s all to help the seventh-fastest growing city in Washington. The good news is the Valley is not alone. At least that’s what education and planning consultant Les Kendrick told the Snoqualmie Valley School District Board at its Oct. 15 meeting. King County schools are growing by 4,000 students each year, the largest population boom since the 1980s, when Microsoft headquarters was built in Redmond. Since 2006, births in King County have exceeded the rates seen between 1995-2005. About 3,000 more births a year occurred during those 10 years, Kendrick said, which means 27,000 more kids became eligible to attend school, starting in 2011. The enrollment projections are fairly consistent with last year, Kendrick said. As of September 2014, the district’s enrollment was 6,457 students. The district currently has a 2.4 percent share of the King County K-12 population. The population growth can also be explained by the number
money should go toward paying down the hospital’s outstanding debt, which stands at $98 million. When questioned by her opponent, Roberts, on ideas for wiping away the debt, Herron said the board had been in a rush to see the new hospital built, and therefore wasted the
Congressman Dave Reichert will not run for governor in 2016, eliminating the Republican Party’s highestprofile potential challenger to Dave Democratic Reichert Gov. Jay Inslee. Instead, Reichert says he’ll seek re-election to his 8th District congressional seat. The 8th District includes Sammamish. Reichert made the announcement in an email Oct. 16, finally putting an end to months of speculation the former King County sheriff might jump in to take on Inslee. “Like so many of you, I have been extremely disappointed in the decisions coming out of the governor’s office…” Reichert said. “Yet, I believe I can better serve you now, today, in another Washington where politicians are more interested in fighting See REICHERT, Page 3
A tree to be
Prsrt Std U.S. Postage PAID Kent, WA Permit No. 71
Two young girls plant Sitka Spruce trees to help restore the native evergreens at the Mountains to Sound Greenway Arbor Day event at Tollgate Farm Forest in North Bend Oct. 17. For more photos from the event, go to www.snovalleystar.com.
POSTAL CUSTOMER
By Dylan Chaffin