SEATTLE — The possibility of severe flooding due to a damaged dam is prompting King County Elections to move its headquarters from suburban Renton to Boeing Field.
Elections Director Sherril Huff told the King County Council on Wednesday that she’ll move her operations over the next four weeks. The county moved into a new $20 million elections facility in Renton in 2007. Huff estimates the move to a temporary location at Boeing Field will cost about $1 million.
The Howard Hanson Dam regulates the flow of water in the Green River Valley. The dam was damaged during January flooding and now the Army Corps of Engineers says it can’t use the 1962 structure to its full flood-storage capacity. Low-lying areas of Kent, Renton, Auburn and Tukwila could be flooded if winter storms force the Corps to release large amounts of water from the dam’s reservoir.
Huff says relocating her office is necessary to guarantee the county is able to count votes from its more than 1.1 million registered voters in the Nov. 3 election.
Food Lifeline upgrades warehouse for Western Washington food banks
Used warehouse racks might not sound glamorous, but they excite the people at Seattle’s Food Lifeline, a distribution agency for Western Washington food banks and meal programs.
The agency unveiled its new pallet storage system on Wednesday at its south Seattle warehouse. Food Lifeline President and CEO Linda Nageotte said the system and other improvements will greatly speed food handling and allow more than twice the amount of food to be stored.
The improvements were paid for through a $75,000 grant from the city of Seattle. Nageotte said the upgrades are especially critical now that more people are turning to food programs because of the bad economy.
Tacoma: Judge’s sex crime trial delayed for a month
Pierce County Superior Court Judge Michael Hecht’s trial on charges of patronizing a prostitute and harassment has been postponed until Oct. 12 after police were unable to locate a key prosecution witness.
The News Tribune reported Wednesday that efforts continue to locate witness Joseph Pfeiffer.
The trial was set to start Tuesday, but Assistant Attorney General John Hillman requested the delay to give authorities more time to find Pfeiffer.
Hillman alleges in charging documents that Hecht paid Pfeiffer for sex on a number of occasions last year and earlier this year. Hecht denies paying Pfeiffer for sex.
If Pfeiffer cannot be found, Hillman will be forced to drop the soliciting charge against Hecht.
Montesano: Lake Wynooche fatal shooting is ruled self-defense
No charges will be filed in the fatal shooting of a 25-year-old Olympia man at Lake Wynooche.
Grays Harbor County Undersheriff Rick Scott told KXRO the prosecutor ruled the Aug. 30 shooting a justifiable homicide in self-defense.
Scott said the investigation found that after consuming a large amount of alcohol, Westin Wolff went for a walk along Lake Wynooche and stumbled into the campground of Gary Bowers of Port Orchard.
Bowers was camping with his wife and children and ordered Wolff out. Wolff returned a short time later armed with a machete.
Ignoring several warning shots into the air, Wolff advanced on Bowers, who fired the fatal shot.
Port Angeles: Coast Guard airlifts woman from cruise ship
A Coast Guard helicopter has airlifted a passenger with severe abdominal pain from the cruise ship Sea Princess off the northwest Washington coast. The 57-year-old woman was taken Wednesday night to Olympic Medical Center in Port Angeles.
The woman was not immediately identified and Coast Guard Petty Officer Colin White said he did not know her condition.
White said the Sea Princess is en route from Victoria, B.C., to San Francisco. The vessel was about 20 miles southwest of Washington’s Cape Flattery when it called the Coast Guard for help.
Oregon: Portland police investigate church vandalism
Police are investigating vandalism complaints at several Portland churches.
Detective Mary Wheat said the acts occurred during the holiday weekend, and it hasn’t been determined if the same vandals were involved in each case.
The Oregonian newspaper reported that the most severe damage was at Pilgrim Lutheran Church in southeast Portland. A vandal broke a stained glass window and stuck a garden hose inside. Hundreds of gallons of water damaged the chapel and the basement.
Associated Press
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