February 8 - 14, 2018
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Community Newspaper of Blaine and Birch Bay HHHECRWSSHHH Postal Customer
IN THIS
ISSUE
Blaine silk painter named ‘Artist of the Week’, page 5
Bite of Blaine returns on February 19
BHS wrestlers win sub -regional titles, page 6
PRSRT STD U. S. Postage PAID Permit NO. 87 Blaine, WA 98230
Carbon tax advances to state senate, page 15
Arts and Jazz hailed a success by organizers
B y S t e fa n i e D o n a h u e
(See Bite, page 2)
s The Blaine Fine Arts Association hosted the 21st annual Arts and Jazz at Blaine middle school on February 3. The event is the largest fundraiser of the year for the association, which provides scholarships for students who are interested in studying art in the Blaine school district. From l.: Liam Lyons, Tim Schrader and Elijah Yost. More photos, page 10. Photo by Shawn Robins
Video game store opens in downtown Blaine By Oliver Lazenby Ryan Robinson always wanted to be his own boss, and he wanted to do it by selling something he loves – video games. Ryan and his brother David Robinson opened Blaine’s Games, a video game store at 477 Peace Portal Drive in Blaine last week. They sell, buy and trade video games with
display racks lining the walls and a mural left over from a previous tenant. But the inventory covers much of gaming history. “We have pretty much any kind of video games: new and used games from new systems all the way back to the original Nintendo,” Ryan said. Ryan, 27, started playing video games in the 1990s on an original Nintendo and never stopped. About 75 percent of the
Property tax rates for 2018 released – prepare to pay more B y P at G r u bb Whatcom County Assessor Keith Willnauer was bang on when he recently advised that county taxpayers could expect a hefty increase in this year’s property taxes. The bad news is written all over the 2018 tax rates that have been sent to the county treasurer’s office to use in issuing individual tax bills. Property owners in Birch Bay, Blaine and Point Roberts can expect percentage in-
creases of 11.8, 12 and 13, respectively, in their property tax bills. For example, the average house value of $276,900 in Birch Bay would see property taxes of $3,118 in 2018, up $329 from 2017. The mill rate (tax per $1,000 valuation) has increased from $10.07 to $11.26. In Blaine, the average house value of $264,800 would generate property taxes of $2,997 in 2018, versus $2,672 in 2017. The mill rate is $11.32 in 2018, up from $10.09 in 2017. In Point Roberts, the aver-
age house value of $239,600 would generate property taxes of $2,736 in 2018, versus $2,418 in 2017. The mill rate is $11.42 in 2018, up from $10.09 in 2017. Most of the increase in taxes comes from the hike in state education taxes which have increased 96 cents per $1,000 valuation (from $2.23 to $3.20). This follows the state legislature’s decision to hike the state education levy to comply with Wash(See Tax, page 5)
used games at the store are from his personal collection and the rest he purchased recently. It includes some hard-to-find games for prices approaching $100. Classic game systems have a cult following, Ryan said, and last year Nintendo released new versions of its original Nintendo and Super Nintendo game consoles. (See Games, page 3)
INSIDE
If you’re planning on attending this year’s Bite of Blaine, make sure you come with an empty stomach because there will be plenty of good food to try. The 18th annual event will take place from 6 to 9 p.m. on Monday, February 19 in the ballroom at Semiahmoo Resort. Sponsored by the Blaine Chamber of Commerce, the event features an array of food samples from local restaurants and food purveyors as well as live and silent auctions – it is the chamber’s largest annual fundraiser to pay for Blaine’s Old Fashioned Fourth of July celebration. At 6 p.m., guests can purchase drinks from a no-host bar and bid on silent auction items. Thirty minutes later, guests can taste food prepared by 17 area restaurants including: Big Al’s Diner, Birch Bay Café, Black Forest Steak House, Blaine Senior Center, CJ’s Beach House, Cost Cutter, Drayton Harbor Oyster Company, Edaleen Dairy, Good Samaritan Society-Stafholt, Lizzie’s Café, Paso del Norte, Pizza Factory, The Railway Café, Semiahmoo Resort, Semiahmoo Marina Cafe, Subway and The Vault Wine Bar. Blaine chamber treasurer Kim Shea said they’ve already received more than 40 items for the live and silent auctions and are awaiting more from local businesses and other private donors. A dozen bottles of Atwood Ales beer, five $100 gas gift cards from Blaine’s Hills Chevron and a four-hour wine tour from Smuggler’s Inn are among the items up for bid. Shea said, Friday, February 9 is the final day to donate an auction item for inclusion in the event program. Last year, the Bite of Blaine raised over $9,000 for the Fourth of July celebration, she said. Fireworks for the annual event usually cost around $20,000, while other costs such
Sports . . . . . . . . . . 6 Classifieds . . . . . 11 Coming Up . . . . . 14 Police . . . . . . . . . 14 Tides . . . . . . . . . . 14
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