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PENINSULA DAILY NEWS June 14, 2016 | 75¢
Port Townsend-Jefferson County’s Daily Newspaper
Undi Road bid process OK’d County to tackle sliding roadway BY CHARLIE BERMANT PENINSULA DAILY NEWS
PORT TOWNSEND — The Jefferson County Board of Commissioners on Monday approved going out to bid for a repair project on Undi Road as long as rights of way and permits are successfully acquired. The board also intends to approach Clallam County, the state of Washington and the federal government for financial support for the projected $864,000 construction project, though this is not a condition to proceeding on the work. The project’s overall cost is estimated to come in at more than $1 million.
Severely damaged
CHARLIE BERMANT/PENINSULA DAILY NEWS
Jefferson County District 3 Commissioner Kathleen Kler, left, chats with off-grid community member Megan Munk during a break Monday.
Some residents ready without repairs BY CHARLIE BERMANT PENINSULA DAILY NEWS
PORT TOWNSEND — Should the Undi Road renovation project be delayed and restrict 13 people’s access to the outside world, a small collective living in the area has a backup strategy. The Jefferson County Board of Commissioners approved putting the project out to bid during their Monday workshop meeting after hearing the collective’s members advocate for foregoing the repairs if it would drain other resources. The county faces a road renovation with a projected $864,000 construction cost and a total projected cost of over $1 million to
provide access for the people who live beyond the road’s damaged portion. “There are a lot of people the county is trying to care for,” said Kevin Spangenberg, a member of the Moss Milk Collective on Undi Road. Spangenberg and a number of others live in a complex of four small buildings on a five-acre parcel that is just beyond the damaged portion of the road. With no plumbing and limited electrical power drawn from solar panels, the group, which has been there for four or five years, said members work the land and offer classes in communication at Clallam Bay Corrections Center. The property is adjacent to five properties occupied by long-term residents
who are senior citizens. “We want the county to act in a way that provides the most benefit for the greatest number of people.” “This is part of a larger problem which I’m seeing all over the country: the decay of infrastructure and the high cost of maintenance,” Spangenberg said. “I don’t think the road should be replaced if it requires a deeper expense for other peoples’ well being.” Collective member Megan Munk said the resource drain causes a ripple effect throughout the county. “A lot of people are in more vulnerable positions,” she said. TURN
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The 0.8-mile stretch of Undi Road on the north bank of the Bogachiel River was severely damaged during fall and winter storms. It is now reduced to one barely navigable lane as the county has sought to begin construction. Those behind the washout line include nine elderly long-term residents on five properties and four members of the Moss Milk Collective. TURN
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CHARLIE BERMANT/PENINSULA DAILY NEWS
Jefferson County Public Works Director Monty Reinders, left, advocates the continuation of the Undi Road project as Eric Simon, Megan Munk and Kevin Spangenberg look on. Also pictured is Jefferson County Assessor Jeff Chapman.
Police: Guns, heroin, jewelry found in car Alleged shooter still hospitalized BY PAUL GOTTLIEB PENINSULA DAILY NEWS
PORT ANGELES — A search of the vehicle driven by James Sweet, a convicted felon suspected of instigating a May 28 shootout with law enforcement, turned up two handguns, more than 100 bullets, 12 pieces of jewelry and a bag of heroin, according to the search warrant the Clallam County Sheriff’s Office executed the day of the gunfight. The State Patrol continues investigating the Memorial Day Weekend shootout at the Monroe Road-U.S. Highway 101 intersection while Sweet, 36, remains in
state Department of Corrections custody while recuperating from at least four gunshot wounds, authorities said Monday. Sweet, arrested for investigation of attempted murder of a police officer, is in stable condition at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, Department of Corrections spokesman Jeremy Barclay said. None of the four officers involved in the 10 a.m. May 28 shootout required hospitalization. At 4:25 p.m. the same day, Clallam County Superior Court Judge Christopher Melly issued a telephonic search warrant to
Sheriff’s Office Detective Amy Bundy to inspect Sweet’s 1990 Toyota Camry. The warrant revealed evidence of a gunfight at close quarters and a suspected shooter’s vehicle stained by blood. Bloodstains were on the driver’s side fender and windshield of Sweet’s vehicle, and two bullets and three bullet fragments were pulled from the car. Bloodstains also were on the hood of a police officer’s vehicle that authorities said had pinned Sweet inside his vehicle — and which also contained bullet fragments and spent jackets. According to the 29-page search warrant and property evidence report, authorities found
inside Sweet’s vehicle a .22-caliber revolver, a .22-caliber handgun and more than 100 bullets, including five in a magazine. They also Sweet found a camcorder, a Kindle e-reader, an iPod, four cellphones, a dozen pieces of jewelry including a gold watch and emerald necklace, and a brass set of presidential coins. They also found two packages of heroin weighing 3 ounces, and two digital scales, according to the report.
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INSIDE TODAY’S PENINSULA DAILY NEWS
Recognizing the Silent Signs of Prediabetes
100th year, 141st issue — 2 sections, 18 pages
Presented by Vicki Everrett, RDN, CDE Registered Dietitian Nutritionist & Certified Diabetes Educator
Thursday, July 14, 3pm & 6pm OMC Medical Services Building 840 N. 5th Avenue, Sequim 661488802
Vicki Everrett, RDN, CDE
Authorities said Port Angeles Police Officer Whitney Fairbanks was trying to stop Sweet, a resident of Bluff Drive in Port Angeles, for failure to yield to a stop sign at 9:47 a.m. on May 28. Sweet had blown the stop sign while entering Highway 101 eastbound from a side street near Golf Course Road when he sped up to elude Fairbanks, they said. He reached speeds of about 60 mph before crashing into a vehicle about a mile east at the Monroe Road intersection, exiting his car through the window while firing at Fairbanks, who had blocked his door with her vehicle, authorities said.
BUSINESS CLASSIFIED COMICS COMMENTARY DEAR ABBY DEATHS HOROSCOPE NATION PENINSULA POLL
B10 B6 B5 A7 B5 A6 B5 A3 A2
*PENINSULA SPOTLIGHT
PUZZLES/GAMES SPORTS WEATHER WORLD
B7 B1 B10 A3