Washington driver killed after speeding through roundabout north of Bellingham, Birch Bay Waterslides denies knowledge of defects and damages, Bellingham’s 116-acre land purchase will help connect existing paths, extend Bay to Baker Trail, Bells Library Card Night, Bells Library Card Night, Bellingham outlines next six years of transportation network improvements, Judge orders BNSF to pay Swinomish Tribe nearly $400M for trespassing with oil trains, First prosecution for retail theft, WA plans to use $32 million to help asylum seekers
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KMRE brings you local news for Tuesday, June 18th. Good afternoon, I’m ______.
STORY: Washington driver killed after speeding through roundabout north of Bellingham
A man died Sunday morning after driving through a roundabout in Lyden.
Cory Lockwood, 32, from Omak, was driving south on the Guide Meridian when he approached the roundabout at Wiser Lake Road at high speeds, sending his car off the road. According to a news release from the Washington State Patrol, the driver wasn’t wearing a seatbelt and was ejected from the car when it hit a tree.
Medics pronounced Lockwood dead at the scene. WSP said it is unknown at this time if drugs or alcohol were involved.
STORY: Birch Bay Waterslides denies knowledge of defects and damages
On Wednesday last week, the owner of Birch Bay Waterslides formally denied any wrongdoing in an incident in which a Skagit man sustained traumatic injuries.
The plaintiff had been riding the Hairpin, one of the park’s slides, when he partially slid through a defective splash guard, causing significant lacerations on both legs. Health inspectors later discovered corroded or missing fasteners where the slide had failed.
In their response in court last week, Birch Bay Jun Yu (JUNE you) Waterslides LLC denied knowledge that any part of its facility was defective or damaged. They additionally stated that admission to the park requires the signing of a waiver that holds the park harmless from any loss, liability, damage or cost incurred, whether by one or another’s actions, or negligence by Birch Bay themselves.
As of yesterday, no trial date has been set. Birch Bay Waterslides has remained closed since the day of the accident, and will be for the remainder of the 2024 season.
STORY: Bellingham’s 116-acre land purchase will help connect existing paths, extend Bay to Baker Trail
Bellingham City Council approved the purchase of 116 acres owned by the state Department of Natural Resources for $2.19 million.
On June 3rd city council approved a measure to allow Mayor Kim Lund to close on the $2.19 million deal, funded by the Greenways Levy, with the sale expected to finalize by the end of this year. According to parks development manager, Laine Potter, the 116 acres of land located north of Mount Baker Highway will permit trail connections to Sunset Pond Park and allow for a future extension of the Bellingham Bay to Baker Trail. The purchase will also give the City the potential of adding a public park to the city’s northeast side.
The new addition builds on other land purchased in 2022, paid for by Greenways levy funds, including 17 and a half acres at the corner of Hannegan Road and Sunset Drive. City councilmember Michael Lilliquist says that although it is a steep cost upfront, the purchase will serve as a longtime benefit for all.
STORY: Bells Library Card Night
The Bellingham Bells are hosting a Library Card Night at their game on Thursday.
Show your library card at the gate for a free general admission ticket. One ticket is provided per library card. The gates at Joe Martin Field open at 5:30 p.m. and first pitch is at 6:35 p.m. Everyone is welcome. As of today, our local collegiate summer baseball team has a 35-and-18 record. Go Bells!
STORY: Bellingham outlines next six years of transportation network improvements
Bellingham City Council approved a new Transportation Improvement Program yesterday on Monday, June 17th.
The plan acts as a bridge between long-term documents such as the Bellingham Comprehensive Plan and budget documents, and outlines the city’s transportation projects for the next six years.
Projects include street repairs, connections and crossings for pedestrians and cyclists, implementation of clean energy transportation, and railroad crossings. This year saw the addition of a Neighborhood Traffic Safety Program and nine new projects— including improvements to downtown safety and streetlight improvements on Samish Way and Maple Street.
In addition, the Holly Street Bike Lane will be expanded to stretch from Ellis Street to Broadway. Since the conversion of a Holly Street traffic lane into a bike lane, the city has received over 1,000 comments. Public Works Director Eric Johnston says that Holly Street may see additional changes as the city develops the pilot program with the comments in mind.
STORY: Judge orders BNSF to pay Swinomish Tribe nearly $400M for trespassing with oil trains
This week, a U.S. District Court Judge has ordered BNSF Railway to pay the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community nearly $400 million for trespassing on their reservation.
A 1991 easement agreement between BNSF and the Swinomish Indian Tribal Community permitted 25 rail cars to transport crude oil across the reservation per day. In 2015, a lawsuit revealed that BNSF exceeded the terms of by over a total of a quarter of a million rail cars. BNSF generated $900 million in revenue from these activities, with net profits calculated at around $395 million. Judge Robert Lasnik’s (LAZ-nick) ruling on Monday followed a four-day bench trial that debated the calculation of BNSF’s illegal profits.
According to a statement from tribal leaders yesterday, the Swinomish tribe’s concern is not only financial but also environmental, given the rail line crosses sensitive marine ecosystems. BNSF is expected to appeal the decision.
STORY: First prosecution for retail theft
The first prosecution by the state retail theft task force ended in a conviction earlier this month.
On June 7th, 33-year-old Shawn Nanez (NAAN-yez) of Bremerton pleaded guilty in Kitsap County Superior Court to numerous charges, including two felony counts of first-degree organized retail theft and one felony count of first-degree theft. The value of the merchandise, stolen from almost thirty Target stores in King, Pierce and Kitsap counties, totaled over $145,000.
The task force responsible for prosecuting Nanez is part of Attorney General Bob Ferguson’s office, who created the Organized Retail Crime Unit last year in partnership with the Legislature. Upon Nanez’s conviction, Ferguson said that the conviction is, quote, “the first of many in our effort to combat a significant and growing problem in Washington”.
WX: Cloudy
And now for your Whatcom County weather:
The National Weather Service predicts that today will be sunny, with highs in the 60s. The skies will remain clear throughout the night, with lows in the mid-40s to lower-50s. Tomorrow will be even sunnier, with highs near 74 degrees.
OUTRO:
Today’s newscast was produced by volunteers AnThu Nguyen (ANNE-two new-WIN), Carlos Braga, Connor O’Boyle, Jayne Kuhlman, Kye Salinas (KEY suh-LEE-nus), Maggie Flowers, and Kyler Cantrell. Tune in to local news on KMRE weekdays at 3, 4 and 5 p-m. For news tips and feedback, send us an email at news@kmre.org or call 360-398-6150. KMRE is a nonprofit community radio station, powered by listener donations. Check out our Patreon page or go to kmre.org and click on the banner. I’m ________________, and thanks for listening.
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STORY: WA plans to use $32 million to help asylum seekers
Washington officials are working to distribute around $32 million in state funding to aid asylum seekers.
The Washington Migrant and Asylum Seeker Support Project, with funding campaigned by The Washington Immigrant Solidarity Network, will provide $5 million to King County and $2.5 million to the city of Tukwila. $25 million will be allocated to the Office of Refugee and Immigrant Assistance, where $20 million will go to community organizations to create coordinated support. The state will be utilizing one office as a hub for the operation, to connect new arrivals to the specific services they may need. Services include immigration related legal aid, housing, and “culturally responsive case management services.”
$1 million will go to schools serving asylum seeking students who are homeless. The first schools selected to receive funding, Shelton, Tukwila and Wapato school districts, were chosen based on the reported amount of homeless students who did not speak English as their first language.
Funds for The Washington Migrant and Asylum Seeker Support Project were approved by the legislature in March and will be available for use starting July. According to Sarah Peterson, chief of the state Office of Refugee and Immigrant Assistance, agencies involved will then need some time to distribute the funds, with some to be set aside for emergency housing.
Applications to receive funding through the Office of Refugee and Immigrant Services closed on Thursday, and the office plans to have contracts in place with organizations by the beginning of August.
