From fires to flooding: New buildings, wildland fires and Valley flooding dominate 2015 headlines

Published 1:07 pm Monday, December 28, 2015

The year 2015 brought a new hospital, a bond for new schools, a raft of awards, and a slate of new city officials to the Valley. It also brought visitors from Snoqualmie’s sister cities in Korea and Peru, new parks, an improved Si View Community Center and a new irrigation district to help farmers deal with too-much or too-little water.

The new things weren’t always good, though, such as the Tokul Roundabout construction and consequent protests, the condemnation process the school district started to pursue a remodeled high school, or the record-setting drought and wildland fire season that followed, affecting the entire state.

As the year comes to a close, we took a look back at its happenings, and invite you to do the same.

Jan. 7: Taking care of people

North Bend resident Amy Biggs was named the 2014 North Bend Citizen of the Year. Biggs, the director of Snoqualmie Valley Transportation, was recognized for her work on the on-demand shuttle service between North Bend, Snoqualmie and Fall City.  Mayor Ken Hearing described her as someone you can count on to go above and beyond the call of duty.

Snoqualmie Valley Transportation director Amy Biggs was named the 2014 North Bend Citizen of the Year.

Jan. 14: Parks pioneer

Mary Norton was given a Lifetime Achievement Award from the city of Snoqualmie for her decades of work preserving and managing parks in the Upper Valley. Norton helped secure funding to buy Meadowbrook Farm in 1996 and she helped the city develop its first parks comprehensive plan.

Mary Norton receives hearty applause as Snoqualmie Mayor Matt Larson presents her with a key to the city for a lifetime of achievement, Jan. 12.

Jan. 21: Memory Dragon

Students from Gangjin, Korea came to the Valley through a Snoqualmie Sister Cities Association project and while attending classes at Mount Si High School, built a “memory dragon” out of bark and branches at the North Bend Visitor’s Center as a gift to the Valley.

Korean exchange students Yeon Keong Lee, left, and Seung Yeon Lee work together to wire scales into place on a dragon sculpture outside the North Bend Visitor Information Center.

Jesse Herrin of Snoqualmie saved seven of his neighbor’s large goldfish when the rise and fall of a flood lifted them out of their pond and left them stranded in his backyard. He didn’t think the fish would survive, but they became more lively when he put them back into water.

Maureen Irey, owner of the rescued goldfish, with the neighbors who rescued her goldfish, Ashton and Viviane Fender, and dad, Jesse Herrin. Below, the rescued fish.

Jan. 28:  Volunteer app

Tolt Middle School students won Best in State in the Verizon Innovative App Challenge by developing a mobile app that helps people find groups looking for volunteers. The boys won $20,000 and tablet computers for their school.

Tolt students who won Best in State in the Verizon Innovative App Challenge are, from left, Connor Aksama, Husein Syed, Ryan LaTurner, Clayton Kristiansen, Vivek Patel, and Jake Tisdale.

And Snoqualmie threw the “best. party. ever,” Jan. 30

Mason Ostheimer, left, and Colby Heyting showed their Seahawks pride at the 12th Man Tailgate Party. Below,Rhonda Treglown, with son Gavin, is Hawktastic in Seahawks hair, tutu and shoes.

Lack of snow in the mountains had an effect in the lower elevations, too.

Rebecca Banning and Stephanie Pierce, usually working at the Summit at Snoqualmie by this time of year, run the coffee bar at the Pioneer Coffee Roasting Company in North Bend.

The Snoqualmie Valley Winter Shelter relocated from North Bend to Snoqualmie mid-season.

YMCA volunteers Rullie Harris and Cassie Craig prepare a community dinner at Snoqualmie United Methodist Church, which is waiting for a city permit to host a winter shelter for the homeless.

Feb. 4:  Riverwalk report

The Snoqualmie City Council was updated on the riverwalk master plan. The plan details the creation of a series of trails along the Snoqualmie River to connect downtown and the falls. Part of the plan includes a pedestrian bridge across the river at River Street and a gateway at the intersection of Snoqualmie Parkway and S.R. 202.

Six students from Snoqualmie’s sister city of Chaclacayo, Peru visited Snoqualmie and helped paint statues of a condor and thunderbird carved by North Bend artists Bob and Laura Antone, representing elements of both cities’ cultures.

Rich Gieseke, right, a host parent, steadies a condor wing as sculptor Bob Antone wedges it into place during an activity with visiting exchange students from Peru. Below: Peruvian exchange students to Snoqualmie perform a traditional dance.

Feb. 18:  School bond gets passing grade

The Snoqualmie Valley School District’s $244 million bond was passed with more than 62 percent of the vote. The bond proposed a sixth elementary school, rebuilding a large portion of Mount Si High School and repairs to every school in the district.

Feb. 18: Fireworks put out

Snoqualmie’s City Council voted unanimously to ban aerial fireworks in city limits, effective in 2016. The action was taken, council members said, in an effort to prevent fires like the July 4, 2014 fire that damaged a home on Snoqualmie Ridge.

This file photo shows the 2014 house fire that prompted the council’s discussion of an aerial fireworks ban.

Feb. 25:  Jazz band rocks

The Mount Si High School Jazz Band was selected to play at the Essentially Ellington Jazz festival for a second time. After being chosen, the students and music boosters started work on raising $22,000 in order to get them to New York for the festival.

Leslie Kolke solos on trumpet at Essentially Ellington 2014.

Watch for stories from the rest of 2015 posted throughout the week.