April 26 - May 2, 2018
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News from the April 23 Blaine City Council meeting, page 3
PRSRT STD U. S. Postage PAID Permit NO. 87 Blaine, WA 98230
Blessing of the Fleet Design Builders, LLC slated for May 6, page 5 revamps home, page 10
Blaine school Plover passes coast guard inspection, captain says levy passing by 52.8 percent By Oliver Lazenby Second-day results from the April 24 special election show the Blaine school district’s $12 million, six-year capital projects and technology levy narrowly passing. With 4,290 ballots counted, the levy was passing by 52.8 percent after the most recent count at 12:45 p.m. on April 25. It needs a 50 percent yes vote to pass. The school district was seeking the levy to raise money for a variety of maintenance and replacement projects that the district said are too expensive for the school’s general fund. The first projects the district plans to tackle with levy funds are building a new high school grandstand, installing field turf at the high school and purchasing property for a future Birch Bay school. Other levy-funded work includes roofing, painting and flooring projects throughout the district, stage improvements for the Performing Arts Center, renovations at Pipeline Fields and technology upgrades throughout the district. The results aren’t official until Friday, May 4. The school district would begin collecting money in 2019. The capital projects and technology levy would cost taxpayers 51 cents per $1,000 of home value annually and raise $2 million a year from 2019 to 2024. The district levy was the only issue on the special election ballot. The district’s maintenance and operations levy will also drop by 46 cents next year; that means district property owners will see a total rise in 5 cents per $1,000 in assessed value if the levy passes, or $12.50 annually for a house valued at $250,000. For more information on voting results, visit results.vote.wa.gov/results/current/ whatcom/.
s Plover captain Richard Sturgill reported that the historic ferry passed a bi-annual inspection conducted by United States Coast Guard (USCG) chief warrant officer Chris Schilling, l., and civilian marine inspector Ray Johnson at Blaine Harbor on April 18. The inspections are required for the passenger vessel, which will start operating regularly on Memorial Day weekend.
City, school agree to fund full-time school resource officer By Oliver Lazenby The Blaine school district is working toward getting a full-time school police officer for the 2018-2019 school year. At an April 23 school board meeting, the board approved the city of Blaine’s estimate for supplying a full-time school resource officer and requested a formal
contract from the city. The district currently funds a half-time school resource officer position. The city estimated that training, equipping and paying for a full-time officer will cost $87,000. The school district will pay 75 percent, or $65,265, and the city will pay the rest. “The city feels, just like the school dis-
trict, that it would be beneficial to have a more consistent officer present in the schools to interact with the students,” said interim city manager Michael Jones. The district expects the officer would be on campus eight hours a day during the school year. (See Safety, page 3)
Shannon Mani, a class of ’15 Blaine High School graduate, was found murdered last week in Wisconsin after the father of her unborn child allegedly shot, stabbed and bound her, according to news reports. Mani, age 21, was reported missing to the Waukesha Police Department on April 13 by her parents who said they became concerned after she missed work and failed to pick up her brother from school, accord-
ing to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Mani reportedly lived with her parents in Waukesha County and attended the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. Initially, Quentin Neal, Mani’s 27-yearold boyfriend, told police he didn’t see Mani on the day she went missing, reports the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. However, a conversation that was recovered from her Apple Watch revealed that the couple had spoken about seeing each other that day. The discovery led to a search warrant at
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Locals mourn the loss of Blaine High School alumna B y S t e fa n i e D o n a h u e
Photo by Drayton Harbor Maritime
Letters . . . . . . . . . 4 Sports . . . . . . . . . . 6 Classifieds . . . . . 11 Coming Up . . . . . 14 Police . . . . . . . . . 14 Tides . . . . . . . . . . 14
Neal’s home. According to a criminal complaint that was filed in Milwaukee County Circuit Court on April 17, authorities discovered multiple traces of blood in his home. When questioned, Neal stated that Mani did in fact visit his home and that they got into an argument, according to the criminal complaint. Neal alleged that Mani grabbed his gun and a kitchen knife and that she attempted (See Mani, page 3)
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Sat., May 12 • 6:30 - 9 pm Blaine Harbor Boating Center • 235 Marine Drive, Blaine $35 Tickets at the door or reserve at festival.paa@gmail.com Fundraiser for Drayton Harbor Music Festival
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