By Pierce County Sheriff, Paul Pastor The last 10 years has seen an overall decrease in serious crime in America. But the trend appears to be changing. Instances of reported violent crime in America increased slightly last year for the first time since 2006. Instances of reported property crimes, especially thefts and burglaries, also increased…
Category: Government
Flag lowering, March 16
Governor Inslee is deeply saddened by the death of Army Pfc. James Groth, 22, of Ethal, and directs that Washington State and United States flags at all state agency facilities be lowered to half-staff in his memory on Sunday, March 16. Pfc. Groth died on February 21 during a training accident at Fort Bragg, N.C….
County Delay on Plan Amendments
This is notice of Community Development Committee and final Council hearings on Proposal No. 2014-16. An Emergency Ordinance of the Pierce County Council Modifying the Effective Date of Ordinance No. 2011-60s2, the 2011 Amendments to the Comprehensive Plan, to Postpone the Effective date of Plan Amendment M-3 which Received an Order Granting Stay in Growth…
Expect increased DUI patrols and bar visits on St. Patty’s Day
PIERCE COUNTY — Don’t count on the luck of the Irish to get you home safely if you’ve had too much to drink over the St. Patrick’s holiday. St. Patty’s celebrations will bring out more than green beer from March 14-17 when 70 law enforcement officers from 30 agencies in Snohomish, King and Pierce counties…
Treatment plant ending sales of individual bags of SoundGRO fertilizer
Individual bags of SoundGRO® fertilizer will no longer be sold directly from the Chambers Creek Regional Wastewater Treatment Plant in University Place, effective March 15. Bags will continue to be available at a number of distributors across Pierce County. Large volumes – orders of 1 ton or more – will still be available at the…
Brookdale project resumes
Construction on a project to replace a sewer main along Brookdale Road in Parkland will resume on March 11. Work is expected to be complete in 2016. During the first phase of construction, sections of 131st Street East and Brookdale Road East will be closed to through traffic as the work progresses between A Street…
Civil Service Commission seeks applicants
Pierce County is seeking applicants to fill a vacancy on the Civil Service Commission for Sheriff’s Department employees. Commissioners are appointed by the County Executive and serve a six-year term. The commission is a quasi-judicial body responsible for rules and regulations governing examinations, appointments, appeals and other general personnel issues. Commissioners are required to attend…
March 10 Council takes on the Human Trafficking issue
Dear Editor, Every year, human traffickers generate billions of dollars in profits by victimizing millions of people around the world and here in the United States. Human trafficking is considered to be one of the fastest growing criminal industries in the world. Pierce County is not immune from the horrors of this evil. As the…
Simpson Tacoma Kraft’s role in the community
By Marianne Lincoln In 1997-98, I had the privilege of working at Simpson Tacoma Kraft. I was a statistician for the paper mill and worked directly for the manager of the paper plant Tim Jaeger. While there, I saw an amazing amount of caring, generosity and cooperation toward and with the employees of the mill…
Editorial: Spanaway Lake Property Ownership – SMP
Editorial Greetings, I attended the Pierce County Council Meeting on Tuesday where I read most of the statement below. Ran out of time but will be reading the rest this coming Tuesday. There were 3 private tax paying citizens, a bunch of county employees pushing a new regulation on how high vegetation can be on…
Ombudsman program focuses on reducing misuse of drugs
The Pierce County Long-Term Care Ombudsman program is taking on the improper marketing and misuse of certain prescribed drugs for the treatment of behavioral symptoms of dementia. The drugs most often used include Risperdal, Seoquel, Abilify and Invega. The misuse of these drugs, especially for elderly and for people who have a dementing illness, can have…
Council toughens rules for addressing blighted properties
The Pierce County Council has voted to toughen the rules for abandoned or blighted properties in unincorporated areas in an effort to protect neighborhoods. The Council voted 7-0 on Tuesday, Feb. 25, to close gaps in the county’s regulatory authority to address blight. “Abandoned and poorly maintained properties lower property values, attract vandalism and other…
Pierce Prairie Post 