The central feature of Vancouver’s new waterfront park likely will be a futuristic, triangular pier that juts 90 feet over the Columbia River, a dock so modern it will be suspended from cables rather than supported by pilings.
The dramatic pier, along with the 7.2-acre park and a $1.3 billion residential and commercial development sprawling 21 city blocks, will be a “game-changer” for Vancouver and Southwest Washington, predicts Vancouver Mayor Tim Leavitt.
“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that we have. We’ve recaptured our waterfront,” he said at Monday’s City Council workshop.
Project plans, in the works for more than a decade, are coming into sharper focus as the city and developers hash out details for designs, parking, financing and construction. Dirt work begins this fall, and buildings should begin to rise in spring 2016.
Barry Cain, president of Tualatin, Ore.-based Gramor Development, unveiled the first phase of his company’s portion of the private/public partnership on Monday. It encompasses five blocks and will include condominiums, a hotel, restaurants, office and retail space and parking facilities (see map and breakout).
“We see this as being a premier development for the Northwest, not just for Vancouver,” he said.
With the world’s second-largest monolith nearby and some of the best windsurfing conditions in the country, North Bonneville has long been a popular playground for outdoor enthusiasts.
Just west of the Bridge of the Gods, North Bonneville is a frequent stopover for truckers and a quiet base camp for hikers, bicyclists and ice climbers in the Columbia River Gorge. Now, the rural city of about 1,000 people is about to shift into a new kind of recreational hot spot.
This weekend, North Bonneville will become home to what is apparently the nation’s only city-owned pot shop, The Cannabis Corner. While most cities around the state have spent the past two years either banning marijuana businesses or reviewing applications for new private stores, the city of North Bonneville took a different route, diving right into the industry.
No other city in Washington has even attempted to open a pot shop, said Brian Smith, a spokesman for the Liquor Control Board.
Citing family considerations, State Sen. Ann Rivers confirmed Wednesday that she won’t run for the newly created chair position on the Clark County council.
“I firmly believe that when running for political office, family considerations must trump all others,” Rivers said in a statement emailed to The Columbian. “Upon reflection and consultation with those closest to me, I have decided to put my family first and withdraw from this upcoming election.”
Rivers announced in December that she intended to run for the countywide seat created after voters approved the Home Rule Charter for the county in November. The charter changed the three-person board of county commissioners to a five-person county council.
Republican Marc Boldt, a former county commissioner and state legislator, and current county Councilor Tom Mielke, another Republican and former state legislator, also have expressed a desire to run for the chair position.
If you last took a walk down Fourth Avenue in downtown Camas a year ago, you might not recognize the place today.
The heart of the small city has undergone a number of sweeping changes in the past several months, with the closure of several well-known businesses, fixtures of the historic downtown’s lively shopping and dining scene, and the opening of new ones. Those closing their doors in the past year included an upscale bar and restaurant, a swanky champagne lounge and a popular pizza place. A handful of other businesses have also moved or temporarily shut down for renovations.
All the while, the busy little street has continued to bloom with new businesses filling empty spaces or preparing to enter the downtown scene. This year, some big additions are on the way.
Even in the Great Recession, Camas’ downtown avoided the harsh pitfalls that hit other areas of Clark County, Mayor Scott Higgins said.
“We’ve been real fortunate,” Higgins said. “I mean, even through the recession, we’ve never really had a point where it was just dead.”
In the past year, downtown Camas has welcomed a lengthy scroll of new businesses: A Beer at a Time, Fuel Medical, Feast at 316, Cake Happy, Flutes and Rocks, and the list goes on. As a number of places closed or moved, the vacant spots never seemed to struggle to fill up fast, Higgins said.
“Downtown Camas has just firmly established itself as a destination,” he said. “There’s a real park-like feel to it, and I think a lot of people, once they discover it, fall in love with it.”
PORTLAND — In a physical game, the most important play came without any contact.
Wesley Matthews is out for the season with a torn left Achilles tendon, the Blazers announced after their 94-75 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday.
He injured the Achilles in the third quarter on a fast break when he tried to push off the foot. He instantly fell to the ground and stayed there, looking like he was in shock. He didn’t put any weight on the leg as he was helped off the court.
Although the update hadn’t come until after the game, everyone seemed to already know the fate suffered by Matthews, even the referee.
“It feels like some kicks you,” Matthews said. “I was praying. I was praying as soon as I was back there. I was back there and I heard Ron (Garretson), the ref, he knew.”
“It’s disbelief,” Matthews said. “I’m sitting up there in that tube. I don’t hear the noise. I don’t feel my Achilles. I can’t believe I’m up there while my team is battling. I just haven’t processed all of it yet.”
When it comes to being a jail inmate, comforts are hard to come by. And that’s the point — those who are either convicted or suspected of committing certain crimes, under Washington state law, lose certain freedoms.
But for residents of Clark County Jail’s G-pod, Tuesdays are akin to weekly mini-Christmases.
“The night before we call Commissary Eve,” said Chase Burke, a 24-year-old Vancouver man sporting an orange jail outfit.
Using money that they came in with or funds added to their accounts by family or friends, inmates can order commissary items from a kiosk in the day room of their jail unit throughout the week. The items that can be purchased range from lemon drops to shampoo, reading glasses to playing cards.
But one glance at the bags full of brightly packaged goodies delivered to the cells in troves, and it’s apparent that salty snacks and sugary treats reign.
“It can be kind of crazy in here because they’re all sugared up,” said Cmdr. Kim Beltran.
The top item purchased by inmates last year? Hot and spicy pork rinds.
Find out what else is a hot seller at the commissary.
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