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In case you missed them, here are some of the top stories of the weekend:
The way David Madore tells it, each morning upon waking the politician stands, salutes God, and says, “Reporting for duty, Sir.”
It’s a favorite story of the outgoing Republican Clark County councilor, who lost his re-election bid in the August primary. That means as of Jan. 1, wherever Madore reports for duty, it won’t be at the dais at the Public Service Center.
Setting Madore’s often polarizing politics aside, there is no question he served a full and busy four years on the Clark County council.
Read our five takeaways from Madore’s time in office.
The leadership of the Clark County Republican Party is drawing fire from some party members for refusing to endorse the re-election bids of Republicans U.S. Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler and state Sen. Ann Rivers — and voting to oppose the candidacy of Republican John Blom for the Clark County council.
The decision was made Saturday by members of the Clark County Republican Central Committee. The official results of the group’s vote were not immediately released, but the tally was known to precinct committee officers, including Carolyn Crain.
“Republicans vote for Republicans, and we do not play these games,” Crain said after the meeting. “Who the hell are you voting for, then? Are you voting for (Democratic Congressional candidate) Jim Moeller? Are you voting for Democrats?”
The party has 187 precinct committee officers. About 50 or so showed up Saturday, and a handful left following news that the party would hold an executive session to decide its endorsements. Crain said the party barely had a quorum, much less a representative complement of committee officers, leading to the walkout by her and several others.
County party officials held their endorsement discussion and voting in a closed session. At the meeting, party Chairman Kenny Smith said the group wanted to be able to discuss its decisions candidly.
Read the full story, including reactions to the Clark County GOP snub of three of its candidates.
Our coverage of contract negotiations between Evergreen Public Schools and the teachers union continues as the scheduled start of school approaches. On Friday, there was big news: A Clark County Superior Court Judge cleared the way for school to start Wednesday even if Evergreen School District teachers vote to strike.
Judge Suzan Clark on Friday issued a temporary restraining order requiring Evergreen’s 1,830 teachers to stay on the job through at least the first day of school. The restraining order is a temporary solution granted after the Evergreen School District filed for an injunction to prevent teachers from striking.
Clark’s decision came just days before the union, the Evergreen Education Association, was set to vote Tuesday evening on whether to strike. The order prohibits district employees from striking, coercing other employees from refusing to do their job, interfering with building entrances or taking sick or personal leave to strike.
“I’m left in the position where I have to” issue the order, Clark said. “I don’t know what time Tuesday evening the vote is anticipated to take place, but you’re leaving people with less than 12 hours, most likely, to make child care arrangements and things for their children.”
Read the full story of the judge’s ruling prohibiting an Evergreen teachers strike.
RIDGEFIELD — Over here, off North 45th Avenue in the center of Ridgefield, 692 homes will be built. Next to that, 453 homes.
Community development director Jeff Niten points to a color-coded zoning map of Ridgefield in northwest Clark County where residential development is exploding. Like most zoning maps, it looks like a mismatched patchwork quilt, but there’s order behind the seeming chaos.
In a county known for its suburban sprawl, planners such as Niten are trying to shape Ridgefield’s development.
“We want to make those choices now before something gets built that we don’t like,” he said.
Planning is exactly what’s needed in Ridgefield, one of Washington’s fastest-growing cities. The small city’s population grew more than 44 percent between 2010 and 2016. Although the state Office of Financial Management estimated the population to be 6,870 as of April, Niten said those figures are outdated. He believes closer to 7,200 people now call Ridgefield home.
“By 2035 we’re expecting 25,494 people. So, that’s basically a tripling of the population,” Niten said.
Read the full story about the latest on Ridgefield’s planning for quality, livability in development.
