Michael Whitney

Michael Whitney

From Garden to Table: Growers help community, art show will benefit Community Kitchen

SNOHOMISH -- More than 35 photos of garden vegetables, bees and food that were printed onto canvas will be spread out in the parish hall of St. John’s Episcopal Church for an art show the evening of April 5.

Well-respected Snohomish teacher, coach Dick Rodland dies

Well-respected Snohomish teacher, coach Dick Rodland dies

Snohomish trash service fees rising April 1

SNOHOMISH — Rates for in-town garbage, recycling and yard waste services will increase April 1 by an average of 4% overall, or an increase of about $7.50 per quarterly trash bill for an average home.

WorkSource moving its job-finding programs office to South Everett

WorkSource Snohomish County helps people find new jobs, polish resumes and get career coaching. It also helps businesses develop their employees. Starting April 7, it will open its new office at 728 134th St. SW, Everett, south of 128th Street and just southwest of the intersection of 4th Avenue West and 132nd Street SW in the Lake Stickney area.

Monroe man who led chase had felony warrant

MONROE -- The Monroe man who led a chase through the Fryelands in late January had a felony warrant for his arrest

Snohomish council bans fireworks for ‘26

SNOHOMISH — In a 6-1 vote, the City Council last week instituted a fireworks ban that starts in 2026. July 4, 2025 will be the last Fourth of July fireworks will be legal within city limits.

Bill on Ag Open Space tax rules passes in House

Bill on Ag Open Space tax rules passes in House

House passes Cortes bill mandating jail diversion options for juveniles instead of prosecution

The state House near-unanimously passed a bill from state Rep. Julio Cortes (D-Everett) March 5 that tweaks rules to require first-time offenders under age 18 have alternatives to being put into the juvenile justice system.

Franklin’s State of City March 27

EVERETT — Mayor Cassie Franklin will deliver her annual State of the City address Thursday, March 27.

Everett homeless resource Hope ‘N Wellness may have host space

EVERETT — It’s possible the resource center Hope ‘N Wellness will be granted use of a space at the Catholic Church north of downtown’s core. Relocating would ease City Hall’s pressure on it to move.

Frontier Airlines is coming to Paine Field

EVERETT -- Frontier Airlines is coming to Paine Field. The low-cost airline announced a schedule of flights starting June 2 serving Denver, Phoenix and Las Vegas three times a week.

After tax bills hit farms that branched into being venues, lawmakers intervene

SNOHOMISH — A wedding at a farm can be the perfect backdrop, but those farms that converted their barns into regularly booked wedding spaces or other uses got put on the back foot this summer. The barn’s not agricultural anymore, so the land around it is not allowed to be given a special lowered property tax rate named Open Space. The tax fee for changing the land use out of Open Space is seven years of back taxes plus a 20% penalty. At least a handful of farms in the Snohomish River Valley received sizable tax bills last summer. Local lawmakers noticed. They have a new bill to clarify the rules, and the county assessor is on board.

Election for Monroe mayor to succeed Thomas shaping up between Fulcher, Cudaback

MONROE — A race to succeed long-serving Mayor Geoffrey Thomas has begun as City Councilwoman Heather Fulcher and former City Councilwoman Patsy Cudaback have organized campaigns.

Snohomish City Council considers city fireworks ban March 4

SNOHOMISH — The City Council may decide as soon as March 4 whether to make fireworks illegal in town starting as soon as 2026. A public hearing on altering fireworks laws is set for the March 4 council meeting. The council meeting starts at 6 p.m. in the Snohomish Carnegie Building.

Architects directed to lower Snohomish Civic Campus pricetag

SNOHOMISH — The city has asked its contracted architecture firm for its future Civic Campus for design revisions that decrease the total pricetag, Mayor Linda Redmon shared with the City Council last week.

EvergreenHealth would like to expand facilities to Snohomish

SNOHOMISH — EvergreenHealth, which runs the hospital in Monroe, has a long-term plan to open a walk-in urgent care facility in Snohomish, the hospital’s top brass told the City Council last week.

Everett mayor delays deadline on Hope ‘N Wellness center to relocate

EVERETT — The city has extended its cease-and-desist deadline on Hope ‘N Wellness, a resource center downtown near Pacific and Rucker avenues that assists hundreds of primarily homeless individuals. Instead of Feb. 28, it’s now April 30, as brainstorming continues about how to relocate the indie social services organization without losing it.

Pitch to establish Snohomish as ‘sanctuary city’ to be explored

SNOHOMISH — In the coming weeks, city leaders will explore making Snohomish a sanctuary city for unauthorized immigrants and the LGBTQ+ community.

PUD rates to raise again April 1

SNOHOMISH COUNTY — Your power bill will increase a bit April 1.

Man who led police chase through Fryelands arrested, had visited police station saying SUV stolen

MONROE — On Feb. 5 at around 8:30 p.m., Monroe Police arrested the man who was in a police pursuit around Monroe and prompted a near-two-hour manhunt overnight in the Fryelands Friday, Jan. 24.

$1.5M bail for alleged stabber of boy in Everett

Police arrested the man Jan. 29 when someone called in a tip saying he was riding on their bus in South Everett. The next day, a judge set his bail at $2 million, but Freeman was absent. He’d refused to attend his first appearance. He showed up Feb. 3. A district court judge pro-tem modified his bail to $1.5 million.

New Snohomish City Hall / PD campus designs shown, funding plan nearly done

SNOHOMISH -- Details of the future City Hall in Snohomish to be built at Pine Avenue and Third Street.

Public buses will drive you to cold weather shelters for free

If you need to get to a cold weather shelter, just hop on a bus. The Volunteers of America announced last week that Community Transit now offers free bus rides to cold weather shelters. Everett Transit has offered free bus transportation since the start of the season.

Blackman Lake phosphorous controls proposed on developments

SNOHOMISH — A proposal to protect the Blackman Lake watershed would place new requirements on development in the immediate area of the lake

Lake Stevens School District trying again for school bond

Lake Stevens School District trying again for school bond on February ballots.

Wanted SUV driver leads police pursuit around Monroe, manhunt in Fryelands Neighborhood

MONROE — A long police pursuit through town and broad, near-two-hour manhunt that followed in the Fryelands Neighborhood Friday night.

Snohomish parks board tours future Homestead Park site

SNOHOMISH — Members of the city’s park board hiked the future Homestead Park space last week to get a sense of the site. It will continue its conversation at a meeting Jan. 22 that starts at 6 p.m. in the Carnegie Building.

Plan submitted to develop barren acres at 13th St.–Ave. D into residential

SNOHOMISH — A developer is proposing more than 200 housing units on the former county public works yard at 13th Street and Avenue D.

Historic Everett calendar for 2025 shows off cars

EVERETT ­— The nonprofit group Historic Everett’s 2025 calendar celebrates Cruising to Colby with 12 pages of showstopper cars downtown.

County Council delays wetlands decision

The County Council last week paused on acting on updating the rules for wetland buffers and critical areas in its development regulations to do more fact-finding first.

Teen stabbed on Broadway, suspect sought and is still at large

Teen stabbed on Broadway, suspect sought and is still at large

Oldest state employee, from Monroe, calls it a day at age 91

MONROE — Gloria Hopkins knew a small celebration would happen for her retirement, but was wowed by how big a deal it would become. At age 91, she was the state’s oldest classified employee, verified by the state’s human resources division within its Office of Financial Management. On Dec. 31, Hopkins clocked out for the last time, concluding 27 years of working in accounting at the Monroe Correctional Complex for the state Department of Corrections (DOC).

82 people in county died while homeless

Eighty-two people, if not more, died while homeless in Snohomish County during 2024. Nine were known to be veterans.

Car thief whose wreck created big delay on U.S. 2 one October morning pleads not guilty

EVERETT — The driver who led a police chase Oct. 1 before causing U.S. 2 to be closed for hours pleaded not guilty in late October, and will face a jury trial in Snohomish County Superior Court this year.

Damages to Zion Lutheran from vandalism topped $30,000

SNOHOMISH — A man angered with Zion Lutheran Church on Avenue A who has persistently vandalized it caused $39,000 worth of damage earlier this year.

King County Metro bus driver’s killing sparks outrage across transit community

Transit drivers are angered by the killing of Shawn Yim, a 59-year-old King County Metro bus driver who was reportedly maced, then stabbed in an altercation while on duty on a bus route in Seattle.

Teen’s near-fatal stabbing at Everett Lions Park was gang-related

EVERETT — The 14-year-old stabbed numerous times and left to die in Lions Park last month was set up. Classmates from Lakewood High did the hit. One hailed from a rival gang.

Alterations to wetland buffer, critical area rules in Snohomish County code questioned

Certain proposed alterations to how the county protects wetlands in its development regulations have raised some eyebrows, including objections from officials with the state Department of Ecology and the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Big housing site by Glacier Peak High being debated before Hearing Examiner

SNOHOMISH — A decision over a major development along Cathcart Way behind and around Glacier Peak High School and Little Cedars Elementary is coming soon.

Executive Somers halts Maltby UGA expansion with veto

MALTBY — The County Council couldn’t muster enough votes to override a veto from Executive Dave Somers that halted a council-created expansion of the Maltby Urban Growth Area (UGA). They also discussed the veto of another UGA in southwest county.

Everett stadium to be downtown near arena, site selection made

EVERETT — Last week, the City Council voted 7-0 to place a future multimillion-dollar stadium near Hewitt and Broadway. The council chose this site over rehabilitating Funko Field to retain the Everett AquaSox minor league baseball team. More planning and more formal funding plans are due to come in January

All decked out in Snohomish

Randy and Terri Vail, at the corner of Third Street and Avenue F in Snohomish, again decked out their historic home with Christmas lights and decorations. The home’s scene is visible from down the street.

Safer crosswalks in Snohomish sought via plans

SNOHOMISH — A pedestrian awareness campaign for drivers to be more careful is being prepared for early next year by the city’s volunteer Public Safety Board. The city also has safety measures cominng.

Snohomish educator accused of wanting sex with 12-year-old arrested in police sting

SNOHOMISH — A 61-year-old Snohomish man who taught in Woodinville’s Northshore School District for 30 years was arrested in a regional sting on allegations of attempted child rape in the first degree. This is different than the Snohomish School District educator who was arrested in November.

Middle school administrator in Snohomish accused of child rape, on leave since Sept. 4

SNOHOMISH — An assistant principal at Centennial Middle School has been on leave since the start of the school year, and was arrested Nov. 6 from the investigation of an alleged rape of a child. The allegations are unrelated to any student, a separate set of family court documents confirmed.

Albertsons and Kroger mega-merger of grocery store chains is dead

The Albertsons and Kroger mega-merger of grocery store chains is dead.

Executive Somers won’t veto council’s budget, but not happy either

County Executive Dave Somers late last week announced his decision he will not veto the budget County Council approved Nov. 27, but also would not sign it, meaning it will be enacted into law without his endorsement.

Decision on Everett stadium site is this Wednesday

EVERETT — The City Council is expected to decide where Everett’s future stadium will be located with a vote at its meeting Dec. 18. The meeting will include a public hearing. This week, the council will hear a briefing on the matter. The choice is between plunging money into rehabilitating Funko Field  at Everett Memorial Stadium, near 39th and Broadway, or building a new stadium on a 12.5-acre footprint near the northeast corner of Broadway and Wall Street a block east of Angel of the Winds Arena downtown. The latter demolishes some downtown buildings. Both will solidify keeping the Everett AquaSox minor league baseball team.

Snohomish’s pre-professional USL 2 soccer team will be called Snohomish United

SNOHOMISH — The Snohomish United soccer club presented its upcoming pre-professional league team’s name, jersey and logo last week at Haywire Brewing to a full house of 150 or more kids, parents and supporters. The club is joining the USL League Two as an expansion team in the Northwest Division. The USL2 is the first rung of pro soccer.

Snohomish Panther sign being refurbished

SNOHOMISH — The longstanding Panther sign in front of Snohomish High School is getting refurbished by a student-led class in the Sno-Isle Tech Skills Center.