Jan 22 Spanaway Court Appeal to be heard

[Updated with corrections.] At 9 a.m. on January 22, 2025, the Spanaway Concerned Citizens administrative appeal to the Pierce County Hearing Examiner decision regarding the permitting of the Good Neighbor Village will be heard at the Pierce County Annex. The event will be available on Zoom if the public wants to watch. The meeting room…

Pierce County’s Non-Significance

One of the hallmarks of the past eight years under County Executive Bruce Dammeier was the prolific use of the DNS, Determination of Non-Significance. It is a term used in land development after an environmental review form is filled out and a plan for development is submitted. In the past eight years, I cannot recall…

Jan 9 – Youth Environmental Council

The South Sound Youth Environmental Council is coming to town! They are planning a first meeting on Thursday, January 9, from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Zoom. Yes, this is a virtual meeting! You can join in wherever you are if you have Zoom on your smart phone. This will be the first ever…

Spanaway Lake, now it’s the beavers

Over the past several years Spanaway Lake has been having issues. For us swimming as children, it was the “duck itch” caused by a parasite getting under our skin if we didn’t dry off well with a towel after swimming. Over time, the swimming beaches became less popular, the diving docks were removed, and the…

Watching a dry creek getting some rain

By Marianne Lincoln On November 29, 2024, I took a drive out to a few locations on Clover Creek to see where there was water and where it ended. I started near Canyon Road and ended near Pacific Avenue. The water in the South Fork disappeared just after Golden Given, where there are a number…

Cantwell & Murray Announce $18.5M For Fish & Wildlife Conservation Projects

Lummi, Skokomish, Colville & Lower Elwha Klallam Tribes — as well WA Dept. of Fish & Wildlife and Chelan County – receive federal funding Grants will help restore salmon & wildlife habitat; improve health, biodiversity of WA public lands WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), a senior member of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs…

Nov. 30 Fundraiser at the Flying Tomato

171st and Pacific Avenue, at the parking lot of the Flying Tomato, will be the site of a fundraiser on Saturday, November 30, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. You can stop by for treats, hot cocoa or cider and peruse an array of wreaths, swags and gift baskets for sale. Volunteers can show up…

Aerial photos of the watershed in jeopardy

Spanaway Concerned Citizens got drone footage from the area where the Good Neighbor Village is being constructed under “Executive Privilege” in Pierce County. We all hope that there can be solutions for our unhoused citizens, but a wetland that is the watershed for Spanaway Lake is not popular with the community. To make it easier…

When the faucet is dry…

By Marianne Lincoln Where did the water go? That is a question a lot of us have been asking for years. It is the end of November. Clover Creek is still dry in From Brookdale Golf Course to Midland and Spanaway Loop Road. The Chambers Clover Creek Watershed is based on a Sole Source Aquifer….

Puyallup Watershed Symposium, Dec 5

The Puyallup River Watershed Council is presenting the Puyallup Watershed Symposium on December 5, 2024, from 1:00 – 6:00 pm at the Pioneer Park Pavilion (330 S Meridian, Puyallup, WA 98317). The presenters’ abstracts can be accessed using the QR code on the poster or using this link. To register, you can do so by…