Update: Zach's brother, Almanza, called me to say that he received the bronze in the 25-meter-assisted walk, not the softball throw. Sorry about the mix-up.

Of all the shirts people donned at today's Special Olympics Summer Games at Fort Lewis, the ones that read "Team Zack," were the some of the loudest.

The family of Zach Mendes of Everett made the shirts to show their support. Unfortunately, the company that printed the shirts spelled his name with a "k," rather than an "h."

but the misspelling didn't stop the 12 members of his family from Everett and South Hill to cheer their lungs out at every chance.

Danny Almanza, Zach's brother from South Hill, said every Special Olympics in which his brother competes is special.

At 9 months old, doctors discovered Zach had gotten spinal meningitis and didn't give him long to live. Today, he is deaf and developmentally impaired, but he's walking and winning medals at the Special Olympics.

Zach even has his own slogan, which was splashed in bright letters across the backs of his family's t-shirts: "Zack Attack."

"Yeah, go Zach!" Almanza screamed as his brother picked up a bronze in the 25-meter assisted walk. "Zach Attack!"

Ever wonder what you would say if a reporter asked you what you enjoyed most about winning in the Olympics?

Well, that's what happened to Nancy Roberts, a Lakewood resident and member of Pierce County Friends and Athletes.

She took silver in the 100-year trot. After the medal ceremony, I asked her what was her favorite part of Saturday.

"The sunshine," Roberts said, her smile beaming.

At these games, the old saying of "winning isn't everything" really is true.

Kevin Anderson is a 10-year veteran of the Special Olympics.

The 26-year-old from Tacoma was taking a break from his events Saturday at Cowan Stadium at Fort Lewis. Minutes removed his gold medal-winning performance in the shot put as a member of the Metro Parks Panthers, he was mentally preparing to sprint in the 100-meter and 200-meter dashes later in the afternoon.

That's right, Anderson is a multi-sport athlete, a la Bo Jackson, the super athlete of the 1980s. (Remember lines such as, "Bo knows golf," etc.? That's Kevin)

Anderson, who has down syndrome, doesn't let his skills on the field get to his head. However, he did predict a strong showing in the running events.

"I'm super-speed," he said, pointing to his chest.

=> Read more!

UPDATE: Officials say more than 2,500 athletes competed in the Special Olympics

I'm here at the annual Summer Games for Special Olympics Washington at Fort Lewis, where cheers and high-fives are in no short supply.

It's amazing to see the enthusiasm and effort these athletes put into these games. It's also amazing to see their families and friends travel from places such as Eastern Washington, Vancouver and Arlington to cheer them on.

In the seating area of the track, various colored tents help identify where these teams are from. I've already spotted one team from the South Sound - the Fort Lewis Tigers.

I'll be posting from these games throughout this sunny Saturday. Stay tuned.

Puyallup officials have aspirations to make their city more walkable – particularly in South Hill, where the South Hill Mall and adjacent strip malls line traffic-plagued Meridian Avenue.

Thursday city officials invited citizens, health department officials and a national expert on pedestrian-friendly communities to point out what they’ve been doing wrong.

The “walkability” assessment, sponsored by the city and the Tacoma Pierce-County Health Department, took a group of citizens, elected officials and city staff on a tour of downtown Puyallup and South Hill.

Their mission: figure out what street and building improvements could encourage people to get out of their cars and walk from place to place.

=> Read more!

Lakewood City Manager Andrew Neiditz e-mailed me today, saying that he caught my previous post about fines for not paying the $10 launch fee at American Lake Park.

He sent me an update on total fines during the holiday weekend. Turns out, the city issued tickets to 25 boaters. And yes, the fine is $500.

After visiting the site, he did admit that the signs that are supposed to alert boaters of the fee were "not appropriate," and that the city will make them more visible.

More importantly, Neiditz asked the Lakewood Municipal Court and City Attorney Heidi Wachter to dismiss the $500 fines if the boaters pay the original $10 launch fee.

Overall, he wrote, 150 boaters did pay the launch fee.

Here's his e-mail:

Over the holiday weekend, 150 boaters did pay the launch fee, however 25 others were cited for failure to pay (and, yes, the fine is listed as $500). I visited the site Monday and yesterday, and concluded the signage was not appropriate in relation to the fee and how/where to pay it. Accordingly, I asked the Court and City Attorney to dismiss the citations wth the condition that the boater pays the $10 launch fee to the City. We will be installing new directional signage shortly.

I probably won't do a story for the print edition on this e-mail we received. Still, I wanted to pass along the hard lesson some people learned about launching a boat at American Lake without paying the launch fee.

The email, which was sent by disgruntled Lakewood resident Morris Quimby, details his experience at the new boat launch a week after it opened.

If it's true, I'm amazed at the $500 fine the city levies if you launch without paying the $10 fee. Ouch.

Here's Quimby's account. Note the last line in which he says he's not one of the unfortunate boaters:

=> Read more!

It’s will be an all whale weekend at the Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium.
Fans of the zoo’s last beluga whale Beethoven will get a chance to see him perform in four extended shows Saturday and Sunday before he leaves next week for SeaWorld in Houston, Texas.
“This will be the last weekend (to see him) as far as we know, “ John Rupp, curator of aquatic animals at the zoo, said today. “We are planning for his departure in the next week.”
The weekend shows will be at 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. both days.
Sometime next week, he will be shipped by FedEx air to SeaWorld where he will become part of the breeding program there.
Rupp said the zoo policy is not to announce the date and time of his departure.
Beethoven will remain in his pool until close to the time he leaves when he will placed in the private back pool, he said.
So this weekend is it for the 16-year-old male who has been a popular attraction in Tacoma for the past 11 years. It also ends the zoo’s beluga whale program that dates back to the mid-1980s.
Rupp said Beethoven is in fine health. “It really makes it harder on us emotionally,” he said. “He is in such good spirits and in such good shape. But moving him into a breeding area is the right thing.”
Beethoven’s beluga buddy Qannix died March 28 of a bacterial blood infection.
Rupp said Beethoven will be moved in a bathtub-like cradle made of wood and fiberglass. It will be lined with foam and filled with water.
The zoo had hoped to get California sea lions from the Columbia River to take over for Beethoven but the trapping season is over for this year. Rupp said they will have to wait until next year to get a sea lion.
In the meantime, he said the zoo is planning to use the beluga pool for harbor seals and design an exhibit around them.

A developer looking to build 1,700 homes over the Lipoma Firs Golf Course in Graham has adjusted its plans to address concerns of the local fire district.

Graham Fire and Rescue officials originally opposed the Lipoma Communities development because of worries that the new neighborhood would strain fire district resources. They also feared the Planned Development District would create fire hazards by building homes close together without adding fire safety measures like sprinklers or fire-resistant siding.

The fire district was ready to argue its case before the Pierce County Hearing Examiner Thursday. But before they could appear, fire officials and the developer reached an agreement on their own.

The developer has agreed to pay the fire district $500 for each dwelling unit during the first phase of the project, which consists of 309 homes.

In total, the fire district will receive $154,500 during the course of construction, said Gary Franz, deputy chief of Graham Fire and Rescue.

=> Read more!

The Swiss Pub will provide all the food for the memorial Saturday at the downtown tavern for co-owner Gayl Bertagni who died last Friday, family and friends said today.

In an e-mail, they said there was some confusion earlier in the week about bringing food to the memorial. There will be no potluck, they said, and apologized for the confusion.

"The best way to show your love for Gayl is to make a donation in her name to the Emergency Food Network and to support your local farmers," they said in the e-mail.

The memorial begins at 3 p.m. at the pub, 1904 S. Jefferson.

A trio of city officials from Orting, Sumner and Puyallup are the backbone of a new task force designed to address flooding concerns throughout Pierce County.

They're calling their new task force the Pierce County River Revitalization Task Force.

At least two of the council members involved -- John Knutsen of Puyallup and Sam Colorossi of Orting -- have expressed support for removing sediment from the Puyallup River in the past. (Sediment removal used to be called "dredging," but no one seems to call it that anymore).

I'm still waiting to hear back from Sumner Councilman Matt Richardson, who is to be the chair of the task force.

Knutsen told me today that unlike the existing Lower Puyallup Executive Task Force, the new river task force will focus on all the rivers and creeks in the Puyallup River basin, including the Carbon and White Rivers.

You can read the task force's mission statement below. This is what I received in a press release from Richardson on Friday. I'll be following up with a story in the next few days about what the task force hopes to accomplish and what Pierce County officials think.

=> Read more!

The St. Leo Food Connection folks have come up with a novel fundraiser:
Art That Feeds.

They've asked local artists to donate works, and to put a fair price on them. Instead of bidding in an auction, guests at the event will be able to choose what they like and take it home for the artist's price. That will give them the time and leisure to enjoy wine, appetizers, desserts, live music, and good company.

Tickets are a bargain at $5 each, and the event runs from 3 to 9 p.m. Saturday, May 30, at St. Leo's, 1324 S. Yakima Ave.

All the proceeds from the event will feed the needy people who depend on St. Leo's innovative programs.

This is the food bank that developed the Backpack Project. Every weekend, it sends 200 elementary school students home from school with backpacks filled with enough food to keep them fed over the weekend.

It runs a summer meals program.

And it sends the Springbrook Mobile Food Bank to a low-income neighborhood near Fort Lewis.

Every piece of art that benefits projects like those comes with an extra measure of beauty.

The controversial Lipoma Communities plat application will go before the Pierce County Hearings Examiner tomorrow at 9 a.m.

The 1,700-unit development would build over the Lipoma Firs Golf Course in Graham.

Residents of nearby housing communities plan to show up in force to oppose the development, I'm told. They don't want to lose their golf course views.

The county is planning for a big crowd. When I was at the county Planning and Land Services office last week, officials were debating whether they'd need three rooms for Thursday's hearing instead of one, which is customary.

Graham Fire and Rescue originally filed an appeal regarding the county's environmental review of the project. The county gave the project what is called a mitigated determination of non-significance and didn't address the fire district's concerns.

The fire district thought that the developer should be required to provide monetary support for fire service because of how the influx new homes would strain existing fire resources, among other issues.

The fire district withdrew their appeal this week, however. A notice from the fire district's attorney to county officials dated May 26 said that the fire district has entered a voluntary mitigation agreement with the developer. In other words, fire officials and the developer have reached some sort of settlement.

More on this to come. I'll be covering tomorrow morning's hearing, which will take place at the Pierce County Annex building located at 2401 S. 35th Street in Tacoma.

The Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department is sponsoring a "walking audit" of downtown Puyallup and South Hill tomorrow to help evaluate how pedestrian-friendly the areas are.

The exercise, which begins at 1 p.m. on the fifth floor of the Puyallup City Hall, will take citizens on a bus tour of downtown Puyallup and South Hill to get the conversation going.

According to a county press release, the walking audit is supposed to "identify opportunities to improve the walkability and safety of two Puyallup centers."

The person leading the tour will be Dan Burden, an urban planner and the executive director of the non‐profit Walkable Communities, Inc., based in Orlando, Fla.

Connecting Puyallup's downtown core with its commercial center in South Hill is one of city officials' long-term goals. The city's proposal to use $25 million in grant money from the state Local Infrastructure Financing Tool (LIFT) program focuses on building rapid transit between the two areas, along with trails and other pedestrian improvements.

So, how far do you think Puyallup officials have to go to make "walkability" in South Hill and Puyallup a reality?

Feel free to sound off below.

Gault Middle School grads, teachers and neighbors will have one last chance to visit the landmark East Side School.

Gault, like McIlvaigh Middle School, will close at the end of this school year. Next fall, kids who would have gone to the two schools will attend the new First Creek Middle School that's under construction off of Portland Avenue next to McIlvaigh.

That's a summer away.

Now's the time for nostalgia.

This Friday, May 29, from 5 to 8 p.m., Gault will host an end-of-an-era celebration for anyone with a history with, or an affection for, the school.

There will be speeches, tours, performances, and refreshments on the campus at 1115 E. Division Lane.

It will be an opportunity for alums to see if they recognize their classmates, or their teachers.

Do you have a memory to share? Post it on this blog, and we;ll make sure we get it to the celebration.

Erika and Shawna Hettick recalled how their cousin was a superhero, literally and figuratively.

The sisters from Gig Harbor would visit Jaxon at his house in South Kitsap County to have fun. The three would play games, watch movies and, of course, laugh uncontrollably when he’d dress up as Spiderman or the Blue Power Ranger.

He was full of energy. He was a regular kid.

But after awhile, Jaxon couldn’t swing from buildings or fight monsters the way he once did, a result of Subacute Sclerosing Panencephaliti. The rare and chronic neurological disorder is caused by the measles virus. It results in death for most children who have it, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.

Last October, Jaxon died at only 8 years old. (Pictured right)

It was especially hard on Erika, 12, and Shawna, 10, who both attend Minter Creek Elementary.

“When Jaxon died, it was hard to forget about him,” Shawna said. “It would be hard to forget about him because he was a big part of my life. I was really hoping to find a cure before he died.”

=> Read more!

Curran Apple Orchard house

The Washington Trust for Historic Preservation has just put out its list of most endangered historic properties for 2009, and one structure from the South Sound is on it: The Curran Apple Orchard house in University Place.

The TNT has previously written about the 1952-designed house, the work of esteemed Tacoma mid-century-modern architect Robert B. Price.

Now local activists trying to save it from the wrecking ball have gotten a boost from the state historic trust organization. The design is special, according to the state group ...

But what sets it apart, and provides the agricultural connection, is the setting: The house is situated within an orchard providing a unique example of early western Washington apple horticulture. This combination deems the property eligible for listing in the Washington Heritage Register, and if listed, would be the first Price-designed resource to achieve such designation.

University Place gave local preservationists until this spring to come up with a plan to save the structure from demolition. Next steps for the Curran House will be discussed during a City Council study session on June 8 at 7 p.m., according to city officials.

After UP became a city in 1995, it took control of Curran park from Pierce County, and the house was rented out. It has sat vacant for more than a year.

The city has said it would cost $125,000 to renovate as a residence, and even more to convert it to a public-use building.

There are several other endangered properties on this year's Washington Trust list, including the Seattle Post-Intelligencer globe and the old Vashon Island school gym.

The attention that comes with making the list is no guarantee of salvation. In Tacoma, for instance, the Japanese Language School was torn down in 2004 and First United Methodist Church in 2007.

A Washington Department of Transportation camera operator has caught the first few steps in the life of a baby deer born last week underneath the Jackson Ave traffic camera on Highway 16.

Photographs of the baby deer taking last Friday were mailed to Jenni Hogan, KIRO TV Traffic anchor, who posted them today on the station's Web site with a short story.

Usually the employees at WSDOT's command center watch hundreds of cameras every morning and look at brake lights and backups. Last week camera operator Rich Langlois had the pleasure of watching what he described as the Discovery Channel, right on his very own WSDOT camera.

According to KIRO TV, WSDOT employees have named the mother deer Pearl and the baby deer little Jackson.

A memorial for Gayl Bertagni, the co-owner of The Swiss Pub who died Friday night in an accident, is planned for Saturday at the pub. The public is invited.
A funeral Mass was held today at 11 a.m. at St. Stephen the Martyr Church in Renton. The following e-mail was forwarded to The News Tribune by family friend and fellow business owner Marty Campbell:

A celebration of Gayl Bertagni's life will continue on Saturday, May
30th beginning at 3:00 pm at The Swiss Pub, 1904 South Jefferson,
Tacoma, WA 98402. The Swiss is expecting quite a bit of turnout, and
while they will be providing some food for the guests, would also like
to request that you please bring a dish that you would have enjoyed
sharing with Gayl.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to the Emergency Food Network and
support your local farmers.

The Swiss pub will be closed through Sunday, May 31st, reopening for
business on Monday, June 1st.

Friday, May 22nd, 2009
Two firefighters hurt fighting house fire in Puyallup
Posted by Mike Archbold @ 07:56:36 pm

Two Central Pierce Fire and Rescue firefighters received minor injuries this afternoon fighting a fire in a two story house in the North Puyallup area.

Central Pierce Battalion Chief Bob Hudspeth said no one living in the house in the house at 6315 Milwaukee Ave. East. were not injured. The family dog, however, died in the blaze that was called in to 911 at about 4:25 p.m., he said.

When firefighters arrived, smoke and flames were coming out of the upstairs windows, Hudspeth said.

A woman who lived there had run back into the house to try and fight the fire but a bystander ran in after her and brought her back out, he said.

The firefighters suffered minor burns when they entered the burning house after a report that other people were seen going back into the house. It turned out no one was in the house, he said.

“They went deep into fire to rescue people that weren’t there,” Hudspeth said.

The firefighters were treated at the scene and stayed to fight the fire which was under control by 5 p.m., he said.

Hudspeth said the fire gutted the older home, causing an estimated $100,000 damage to house and contents.

The American Red Cross Mount Rainier Chapter was called to the scene. A Red Cross spokeswoman said they provided food, clothing and shelter for the three adults who lived in the rental house.

The cause of the fire, which appeared to start in a bedroom, is under investigation by the Pierce County Fire Marshall, he said.

Twenty-one firefighters on four engines, two ladder trucks, two Medic units and command vehicles responded to the blaze.

The campers Friday also featured some newcomers to Kopachuck. Mat and Crystal Marinelli of Gig Harbor took one of the last campgrounds remaining.

Crystal Marinelli said she heard about Kopachuck’s possible closure earlier this year.

Her reaction at the time? “Don’t take our parks.”

They loved the fact that they could have water gun fights with their 4-year-old son, Giovanni, early in the day and later drive less than a mile to pick up their daughter, Sophia. The 6-year-old attends Voyager Elementary School.
Mat Marinelli said his wife tells him all the time that their family can camp in their back yard.

“We haven’t,” he said. Friday. “Now we will.”

For those people struggling in this difficult economy, there is a resource fair in Tacoma Saturday to help them pull through the hard times.

Pierce County for Change, a grassroots organization formed last December, is sponsoring the Resource Fair which will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Organizers said Tacoma Power will be there to discuss reduced bills. The Episcopal Church will help with foreclosure issues. Health agencies along with AFL-CIO Community Services and representatives of the Pierce County Labor Council will be there.

Information will be provided on topics such as ways to cut energy and food costs, lower cost health and dental programs and education programs.

The fair is being held at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Hall at 3049 South 36th St. The event is free and open to the public.

As I walked the loop of campsites that Kopachuck State Park offers, I ran into a woman who's turned Memorial Day camping into a family tradition.

Jodi Mercer has gone camping every Memorial Day weekend for the past 20-plus years.

Her family and friends usually camp at Saltwater State Park in Des Moines, but decided to make the switch this year.

The first time she took her now 9-year-old son, Zachary, camping was when he was 3 months old.

Mercer and her mother, Beate Zoike of Tacoma, go camping every year to celebrate their birthdays, as evidenced today by the sliced cake at her picnic table.

"We'd really be crushed if they closed the park," she said.

Read more about Kopachuck's busy Friday before Memorial Day in tomorrow's print edition.

Just arrived at Kopachuck State Park to interview campers for a story on outdoors-ing it for the busy Memorial Day weekend.

I first stopped at the office of the park ranger (or park manager, for those born after the Yogi Bear cartoons were popular)

I asked how business was doing today, thinking 50 percent to 75 percent of the park's campsites were full.

The response from Park Manager Tom Pew? "We're 100 percent full already."

That's right, Kopachuck has been full since about 8:30 a.m., today. This is one of Washington State Parks' busiest holiday weekends for camping, along with the July Fourth and Labor Day weekends.

And campers might cherish their stays this year more so than any other. The state was threatening to close some parks because of a lack of revenue, including Kopachuck and Joemma Beach.

But after public outcry, lawmakers instead decided to keep parks open via a $5 registration fee on vehicles.

For that, Pew said, "The rangers say 'Thank you' to the people of the state of Washington."

Read more about this story in tomorrow's print edition

I'm sitting here at Horseshoe Lake County Park, over the Purdy Spit bridge in Kitsap County. If you live west of the Narrows Bridge and get a chance, stop by here.

It's bright and sunny, a nice 65 or so degrees. There are teen-agers pulling up in their cars, cruising the parking lot.

The young guys are taking off their shirts, flexing for their female counterparts. I figure I'm working, so I probably shouldn't do the same. Actually, were I to take off my shirt, it would strike fear more than anything. (Hey, I'm a dad with a paycheck and easy access to donuts. Cut me some slack)

Really, if you have a chance over the Memorial Day weekend, this is just one of the many parks on the Kitsap Peninsula in which you can lounge. It's like Malibu Beach, only instead of BMWs, everyone drives a Subaru wagon.

The American Heart Association will honor a Gig Harbor woman who saved her husband’s life after he collapsed last year.

Carol Putnam, 45, will receive the association’s Heartsaver Award for performing CPR on Kirk, her husband, who went into cardiac arrest July 19, 2008. The awards are part of association’s weeklong celebration of CPR and AED (short for automatic external defibrillators) June 1-7.

Putnam called 911 and performed the procedure to get her husband breathing again, according to a release from the association today. Minutes later, crews from Gig Harbor Fire & Medic One arrived and restarted Kirk Putnam’s heart with a defibrillator.

The 45-year-old worked as a lead mechanic for Gig Harbor Fire for five years. He's been diagnosed with cardiac sarcoidosis, a heart condition that caused his collapse. Since the 2008 incident, he has been on medication, and doctors had a small defibrillator put in his chest.

Putnam learned CPR while serving in the Army. She and her husband have been married for 25 years. They have two sons.

The Lakewood History Museum will stay open, after all.

A month after word that the Lakewood Historical Society was considering closing the museum because it didn’t have enough money to operate, the public rescued it with a $13,500 life jacket.

The money — which came from donations — will help pay for rent at its location at the Lakewood Colonial Center for the next year, said Becky Huber, the society’s president.

The City of Lakewood also helped by allowing the historical society to use $10,000 of the $37,000 grant it receives in lodging tax revenue to pay rent.

“We’re very thankful,” Huber said Tuesday.

=> Read more!

Local news columnist Peter Callaghan offered this:

Alan Liddle, a modernist architect who was a champion of historic
preservation, died Sunday at age 87.

Liddle was one of the city's most-accomplished and well-known architects. He
designed more than 100 homes and 50 commercial buildings and was frequently
featured in national magazines. He was a founder of the Tacoma Art Museum
and one of the first chairmen of the city Landmarks Commission.

One of the Tacoma Historical Society's annual awards is named for him.

Recently Liddle was thrilled to donate his books, papers and drawings to the
University of Washington Tacoma. He wrote friends that perhaps one day the
campus would award architecture degrees.

Much of his remaining estate, including an award-winning house on Gravelly
Lake Drive, will be left to TAM.

Read more about Liddle's life and work in Peter Callaghan's column in
Tuesday's News Tribune and on thenewstribune.com.

It's official: Ava Lystad of Lakebay is übercute.

Hallmark says so.

Ava's mom and dad, Hailey and Caleb, turned the blow dryer on Ava's thick red hair after her bath, and cracked up when it stuck out straight. Hailey grabbed the camera, and the flash took Ava, who was four months old, by surprise.

Voila! Instant Hallmark card.

Conveniently, Hallmark has started holding contests, and rolled the yourParenthood contest out for Mother's Day. It was their fifth, and more are planned.

Hailey submitted the photo with the greeting: "Being a mom is hard work. It can make your hair stand on end. Happy Mother's Day."

The card made the cut, and voting went national on the 16 finalists. Each finalist won $250, and another $250 for a favorite charity. Through a church mission, Ava's $250 helped build a house in Morocco.

Ava's card went on sale with those of the other 15 finalists. Sales and votes determined the winner.

Hallmark's Sarah Kolell announced Ava's big win, and $2,500 prize, today.

Orting officials approved an inattentive driving ordinance last week that prohibits people from multitasking while driving or otherwise failing to attend to the road.

But don’t expect “inattentive driving” to show up on a ticket you receive while cruising through the East Pierce County community.

Police aren’t able to issue tickets under the new ordinance, Orting City Administrator Mark Bethune said.

Instead, Orting’s city prosecutor can amend a more serious driving offense, such as negligent driving, to inattentive driving during court negotiations.

That benefits citizens because this isn’t an offense that will go on their state driving record, Bethune said.

Should the city prosecutor review a driver’s record and conclude the person deserves a break, the prosecutor can file a charge of inattentive driving and help the person keep a clean record.

“The only purpose of all of this is it gives the prosecutor the tool to basically plea bargain negligent driving down to the lesser offense,” Orting City Councilman Joachim Pestinger said.

The Orting City Council approved the ordinance unanimously Wednesday. The law will go into effect May 25.

Unlike city officials thought initially – and was reflected in a May 11 article in The News Tribune – the ordinance won’t affect how much ticket revenue stays in the city.

Bethune said the city received false information that implementing a local inattentive driving ordinance would let the city keep all of the money from the resulting citations.

Typically, a portion of all local ticket revenues goes toward the state.

That won’t change with the inattentive driving ordinance, Bethune said Friday.

Why the confusion?

“We keep learning about this,” Bethune said simply.

Other cities in Pierce County also have ordinances against inattentive driving. They include Puyallup and Lakewood.

The fee attached to Orting’s law has yet to be determined, Bethune said. The city’s municipal judge will determine the penalty at a later date, he said.

Want to learn more about a group of fox hunters whose membership began a few years before the Great Depression? You'll get your chance Tuesday.

The Lakewood Historical Society will discuss a new book about the Woodbrook Hunt Club at its monthly meeting. The club rich in tradition was established in 1926 and is marketed as the oldest fox-hunting club west of the Mississippi River.

(To the left is a News Tribune photo of one of the club's events that TNT photographer Dean Keopfler snapped in 2001)

Local author Joy Keniston-Longrie wrote “History of the Woodbrook Hunt Club,” (Arcadia Publishing) and will speak at the historical society's meeting Tuesday.

The book contains more than 200 black and white images and provides a fascinating look at the history of hunting and recreational riding on the southern prairies of Washington State.

In addition to her presentation, copies of the book will be available for purchase.

The meeting is scheduled for 7 p.m., at the Lakewood branch of the Pierce County Library System, 6300 Wildaire Rd SW.

The public is invited to attend and there is no charge. If you're a history buff, this might be interesting.

Kim Whitlock started to lose weight as a personal mission. But her success ended up inspiring an entire town.

The 46-year-old Orting woman has lost 166 pounds since about 2005. When Whitlock’s neighbors heard that she was going on The Oprah Winfrey Show to talk about her experience, they not only decided to throw a party around the broadcast – they started a town-wide fitness campaign.

Whitlock and more than 30 other Orting residents gathered at DeSanto’s Restaurant and Pub Tuesday to watch her TV appearance and launch a campaign called “Get Fit Orting.”

City officials came to tell residents how the local Foothills Trail system could help them reach their fitness goals, while local gyms offered free workout opportunities for residents participating in the fitness challenge.

Meanwhile, friends and former congratulated Whitlock on her progress and showered her with goodies like a $115 gift certificate for a local hair salon and free Zumba classes through the city parks department.

Whitlock said it was Dr. Mehmet Oz on the Oprah Winfrey Show who inspired to her to start losing weight.

=> Read more!

Sunny Park witnessed how the closure of the American Lake Park boat launch drove down business to her store last summer.

Sure, customers to Lake City Deli Mart stopped in to buy worms for fishing or pick up a six pack of beer, but the amount of expected foot traffic dwindled as the city performed reconstructive surgery to the boat launch.

It's the reason Park, a clerk who's worked at Lake City Deli Mart for nine years, and other mom-and-pop businesses hope the reopening of the boat launch Saturday (see my previous post) will translate to more customers.

Boaters make up a large chunk of business for Lake City stores during the summer. There aren't any chain retailers or Towne Centers that attract shoppers to the neighborhood.

The mom-and-pops must rely on visitors to American Lake Park, and having the boat launch open again should only help.

Park appeared pleasantly surprised when I broke the news today about the boat launch's reopening.

"It helps a lot," she said. "Hopefully we'll have a summer this year. Those two things, they hurt business real bad last year."

Zach Holm doesn’t fit the stereotype of the math whiz kid as a scrawny nerd packing a calculator.

Yet the Emerald Ridge High senior with the striking looks says he loves math.

So much so that he took up his mom’s request last year to create a rap song about a subject that typically induces groans from teens.

Going under the stage name of "Tha' Duke," Zach wrote and performed “Math is What Ya Do” on video. Jeremy Cathey, a friend and classmate at Emerald Ridge, shot and edited the piece that offers a glimpse of the wealth of careers requiring number knowledge.

Zach raps about hydraulics near a fire truck, about culinary arts in a commercial kitchen, about aerospace in front of a plane. Here's a sample:
“Say you want to be a dentist working on a bridge
You gotta know what you’re doing when you’re operating drills
Keep up on your math and you’ll be rolling in bills ...
Math is what you do, math is what you do
Algebra, geometry and calculus, too.”

The video has played before huge crowds at a math conference at Clover Park Technical College last year and today, plus at a college fair for eighth-graders in March.
All told, more than 3,000 kids and their instructors have seen the piece.

And that’s not counting all the views on YouTube.

Zach’s mother, Janet Holm, the technical college’s marketing and outreach coordinator, organized the conferences. Among the conference goals: show that math is an integral part of the workworld and that there’s good reason to study math in school.

Zach agrees.

“I know of a lot of kids go into math thinking ‘This is boring. When will I ever need to use this?’ “ Zach said in an interview.

“I thought the math rap video would be a way for kids my age and eighth-graders to get that math is in a lot of things,” he said. “Maybe they could relate more with me than teachers.”

The project melded well with Zach’s interests.

Math is one of his favorite subjects. He plays drums for a jazz band called Gentlemen of the Mafia. He plans to study electronic media and film at Eastern Washington University, with the help of the university's Presidential Scholarship worth up to $4,000. He’s been rapping since he was 13.

With mic in hand and no hint of nervousness, he strolled on the stage in a cavernous hall at Clover Park Technical this morning and held the attention of some 1,200 rambunctious 14- and 15-year-olds.

He urged the kids to get involved in school activities when they get to high school. He rattled off some of his activities at Emerald Ridge: acting the part of a tree in a school drama, playing football, being elected a student-body officer, organizing school assemblies and activities like the upcoming spirit week at Emerald Ridge.

He likened it to standing at a McDonald’s soda fountain and squirting samples of each soda into your cup.

“When you get to high school … you have to take your cup and you have to fill it up with a little bit of every single club and every single activity to really see what it is you’re going to like. When you mix it all together, you get the best drink ever. It’s the way to go."

Zach left minutes after he spoke. He had to take a test in pre-calculus.

Update: Lakewood Parks and Recreation Director Mary Dodsworth said the total project cost is around $1.2 million. The $850,000 figure was the price the city quoted a few years ago.

The wait is over for eager boaters in Lakewood.

The city will finally reopen the boat launch at American Lake Park on Saturday, just in time for the busy Memorial Day weekend.

The boat launch, which is more than three decades old, has undergone a renovation the last two years. Say for the city opening a temporary boat launch last year, visitors to the park have had to watch the boat launch’s facelift from behind a fence while crews performed the work.

I visited the boat launch today, which is still fenced off. However, the freshly striped pavement and white gangways leading to the floats are a reminder of the renovation.

=> Read more!

Fear not, University Place canines (and their owners) yearning for a restraint-free romp in your back yard.

Pierce County has agreed to provide an off-leash doggy area at Chambers Creek Properties, near the Central Meadow.

The county already designated three areas on the University Place property for off-leash areas, but they are at least a few years away from opening.

The deal was struck last month between the county, University Place and SUNDogs, the volunteer group that will pay for the improvements to the area at Central Meadow. It will remain an off-leash area until 2015. (To the right is a map that shows the approximate location of temporary dog area)

It's not much, according SUNDogs member and UP City Councilwoman Debbie Klosowski. The space measures less than an acre in size.

Still, the group is thankful to the county. Look for the print version of this story in the coming days.

The Pierce County Library System will solicit feedback on a long-term facilities plan at 16 public meetings this month.

The plan will guide library growth through 2030. Among other things, it envisions adding more seats and computers in all locations, expanding or relocating some of its 17 branches and adding a library in the Frederickson area. The public feedback will shape the final version of the plan, to be completed this fall.

The meetings will run from 6:30-8 p.m. at the following locations and dates:

Bonney Lake Pierce County Library, 18501 90th St. E., Wednesday, May 20
Buckley Pierce County Library, 123 S. River Ave., Wednesday, May 20
DuPont Pierce County Library, 1540 Wilmington Drive, Wednesday, May 27
Eatonville Pierce County Library, 205 Center St. W., Wednesday, May 27
Graham Pierce County Library, 9202 224th St. E., Monday, May 18
Key Center Pierce County Library, 8905 KPN, Thursday, May 21
Lakewood Pierce County Library, 6300 Wildaire Road S.W., Monday, May 18
Milton Pierce County Library, 1000 Laurel St., Tuesday, May 19
Orting Pierce County Library, 202 Washington Ave. S., Wednesday, May 27
Parkland/Spanaway Pierce County Library, 13718 Pacific Ave. S., Thursday, May 28
Peninsula Pierce County Library, 4424 Point Fosdick Drive N.W., Gig Harbor, Wednesday, May 27
South Hill Pierce County Library, 15420 Meridian E., Monday, May 18
Steilacoom Pierce County Library, 2950 Steilacoom Blvd., Wednesday, May 20
Summit Pierce County Library, 5107 112th St. E., Monday, May 18
Sumner Pierce County Library, 1116 Fryar Ave., Sumner: Thursday, May 21
Tillicum Community Center, 14916 Washington Ave. S.W., Tuesday, May 19

For more information about the plan and the meetings, visit the library's web page.

Traffic along Meridian Street in Puyallup may get a little less gnarly soon, thanks to a $50,000 grant from the Puyallup Tribe of Indians.

City officials plan to use the money to connect 25 traffic lights to a computer control system, allowing a signal technician to operate them remotely.

That means that when a signal goes out, a city technician can fix it immediately from the office instead of having to go on site.

The system also allows a technician to reroute traffic lights remotely if there’s an accident or special event, directing drivers to take a different route.

City officials say the remote control ability will come in handy during events like the 17-day Puyallup Fair in September and the Daffodil Parade in April.

Plus, when a light gets stuck on red on Meridian, it can be fixed quickly to avoid traffic backups on the busy commute route, said City of Puyallup spokeswoman Glenda Carino.

“It helps the people inside the city and people traveling through the city,” Carino said.

The $50,000 will also allow the city to install traffic cameras at four intersections, allowing technicians to monitor traffic flows.

Those video feeds will eventually be available to the public on the city’s Web site, Carino said.

They will monitor intersections at N. Meridian and River Road, 11th Street NW and River Road, 15th Ave. SE and S. Meridian Street, and 39th Avenue and 9th Street SW.

Note: The county says it initially issued the incorrect days work will take place. Construction is scheduled 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Saturday.

Pierce County will begin work on some major road projects near the Fox Island bridge next week.

The county says drivers should expect delays of up to 20 minutes.

"Weather permitting, Warren Drive will be closed between 27th Street Court Northwest and 70th Avenue Northwest starting (Monday) May 11," according to the county's press release. "It is scheduled to partially reopen June 8. The intersection of 32nd Street NW and 70th Avenue NW will also be completely closed over one weekend during this four-week period. A detour route will be marked."

Work hours are scheduled from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Saturday.

Here is the county's full press release:

=> Read more!

Instead of treating your mother to flowers and a buffet, give her what she really wants this weekend: A front-row view of the bloodiest war in U.S. history.

That's right, her heart will melt at the Historic Fort Steilacoom Association's reenactment of the Civil War this weekend. All kidding aside, the event is intended to allow visitors "to travel back in time," according to a press release from the Lakewood Parks and Recreation Department.

After a 5-year hiatus, the event will bring hundreds of actors (or reenactors?) to the open meadows area, pitting the soldiers of Dixie against the Yanks from the North.

With a keen eye to historical accuracy, the association organized actual battles - cannon blasts and all - scheduled for 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday and Sunday. (Here's a TNT archived photo of the event in 2001)

=> Read more!

It’s time again to mail food for the hungry in Pierce County.

The 16th annual Letter Carrier’s Food Drive will be held Saturday throughout Pierce County and elsewhere in the country. It is the largest annual food drive in the county.

On Thursday, letters carriers will deliver food drive bags along with regular mail. All postal customers need do is fill the bags with food, place them by their mail boxes by 8:30 a.m. Saturday. Both carriers and volunteers will make sure they are picked up.

Non-perishable foods are requested such as canned meats, fruits and vegetables, pasta, rice or beans and other items not in glass containers.

The food will go to local food banks or the Pierce County Emergency Food Network which distributes food to most of the food banks in the county.

Since the drive began in 1994, Pierce County residents have donated almost four million founds of food. Last year 330,529 pounds of food was collected.

The goal this year is $400,000 pounds of food.

“The United States Post Office and the Letter Carriers are proud of the way out community responds each year,” said Dennis Shimomura with the Tacoma Post Office.

Helen McGovern, executive director of the Emergency Food Network, said food bank visits are up 40 percent compared ot the same time period last year.

“We’re counting on the Letter Carrier Food Drive to assist us in filling food bank shelves to ensure that no child, adult or senior is turned away from a local food bank due to lack of food.”

Evening Magazine watchers have spoken: Sumner is one of the best tiny towns in the Northwest.

The northeast Pierce County town came in third in voting for the Best Tiny Town. First place went to Leavenworth and second place to La Connor.

KING 5’s Evening Magazine announced Monday the 2009 winners in their annual Best of Western Washington Escapes contest that covers everything from the best bed and breakfast and scenic drive to best tourist town and outdoor adventure. There were 20,704 voters in the many categories.

“This is a great honor,” Sumner Mayor Dave Enslow said in a press release today. “We know we like Sumner, but it’s great to hear from other people that they enjoy visiting. They commented a lot about how friendly everyone is in Sumner, and that’s exactly what we want people to experience here.”

As Sumner works on reclaiming its traditional designation as the Rhubarb Pie Capital of the World, this vote of confidence from the people who live, work and visit Sumner reinforces the popularity of this little town, said city spokeswoman Carmer Palmer.

Among the postings on the voting Web site (http://best.king5.com/winners/northwest-escapes/4261) was this one:
“Sumner is complete charm. A lot of my favorite shopping spots are in Sumner. It is the perfect mix of modern and vintage with a friendly homespun feel. Sumner also has some of the best restaurants around. A day spent in Sumner is a happy day for sure.”

Another Sumner fan wrote: “Sumner is absolutely adorable. Main Street is covered with great mom and pop shops where you can find almost anything. … Mostly though I love the people. Everyone is warm, welcoming and inviting. Walking down the street or enjoying music in the park makes me feel like I’ve stepped back to a time when neighbors knew one another and kept an eye out for each other’s children. Sumner is an ideal place to spend time.”

Upcoming events in Sumner include the Sumner Arts Commission's Music Off Main, every Friday in July at 6:30 pm in the gazebo at Heritage Park plus Sumner Downtown Association's Mutts Off Main dog show on July 11, Classy Chassis car show on August 23, and Mystery Wine Walk on September 12. The wine walk will feature Sumner's recent "pairing" with the city of Prosser in Eastern Washington.

Puyallup City Council members killed a proposal to eliminate the city’s three council voting districts Tuesday, and now say they’ll support letting citizens decide the issue.

Mayor Don Malloy said he plans to propose a ballot measure to determine whether Puyallup should hold citywide elections for all council positions or stick with district representation.

A majority of the council said they’ll support the ballot item, which Malloy said he’d like to see go before voters as soon as November. Malloy said the proposed ballot measure will come up for discussion at an upcoming meeting, possibly when the council next meets May 19.

Currently, six members of the Puyallup City Council are elected by residents of the council district in which they reside, while one at-large council member is elected by voters throughout the city.

More than 100 people attended Tuesday’s meeting to oppose a proposal to make all seven council positions at-large, which was introduced at the council’s April 21 meeting.

A majority of the Puyallup City Council approved the proposal when it first came up for consideration. But Malloy and Councilman Mike Deal said Tuesday that they reconsidered their position after hearing objections from citizens.

The proposal to switch to citywide elections for all council positions was greeted by angry shouts from citizens when Councilwoman Kathy Turner first proposed it April 21, causing police to call extra officers to the council chambers for backup.

About 25 citizens spoke against the at-large proposal again at Tuesday’s meeting during a citizen comment period. City staff had to set up about 30 additional chairs outside the council chambers to accommodate an overflow crowd.

“I have yet to have someone come to me and say they want at large,” Councilman Rick Hansen said at Tuesday night’s meeting. “Tonight I did not hear it either.”

Read more later this week in The News Tribune.

City officials in Orting are considering an ordinance prohibiting inattentive driving, but they’re worried citizens will see it as a money-grubbing move.

The ordinance would be similar to municipal laws in Gig Harbor, Puyallup, Sumner and Lakewood that punish drivers who multitask or otherwise fail to pay full attention while driving.

But a separate benefit for the city is that all the revenue from inattentive driving citations would go toward the city, instead of partly going toward the state.

Orting officials expressed concern last week that citizens will think that money is the main drive behind the ordinance, rather than a desire to make roads safer.

“It’s a safety issue,” said Councilman Dick Ford. “The public needs to know it’s not intended as a revenue generator.”

Orting City Prosecutor Virginia Amato said that citizens stand to gain from the ordinance more than city officials.

=> Read more!

The community known for panoramic views, rows of homes and narrow streets has a beach-access issue brewing.

A group of Day Island neighbors are pushing University Place to trim shrubs and bushes, as well as improve a rock stairway at one of the few spots the public can access the beach.

Ernest Lackman, 85, says it's too dangerous for kids. The city doesn't properly maintain the area, but it doesn't let residents do so either.

"Would you like to bring your young children down here?" he asked last week while giving me a tour. "For them not to be able to use that access and waterfront, it's ridiculous really."

But Gary Cooper, UP's assistant community development director, says there's more to the story. The neighbors are the same group that paid for the tops of 21 trees to be cut so it wouldn't obstruct their view of Puget Sound.

The city cited them, saying they either had to pay $13,7000 or replant the trees. As the two sides have worked out the agreement, the neighbors are bringing up concerns of the beach access.

"Sometimes when people don’t get the answers they want, they find alternate ways to get it,” Cooper said.

I plan to write a story in the coming days about the issue.

If cleaning isn't your thing, consider enjoying an action-packed day of math.

Middle school students from throughout the South Sound will compete in the annual Washington State Middle School Math Olympiad on Saturday, May 2.

Truman Middle School, 5801 N. 35th St., will host the competition, the same as it has since 2003. The Washington State Math Council (WSMC) sponsors the competition for math lovers in fifth through eighth grades.

Teams compete in six test components. There's a long-session problem and five short-session problems in number sense, probability and statistics, measurement, geometric sense and algebraic sense, according to a Tacoma School District news release.

More than 75 teams are expected at Truman, making it the largest math olympiad competition in the state this year.

For more information, check out www.wsmc.net/olympiad.

Here's a few more details about an event that I briefed in the paper version of The News Tribune earlier this week:

Organizers are hoping 1,500 volunteers young and old will show up to tidy up Tacoma’s Eastside this Saturday (May 2).

Already, 1,200 students, families and other community members have signed up to clean around schools and along safe walking routes to schools from 9 a.m. to noon in the 2009 Eastside Clean Sweep project, according to a Tacoma School District news release.

Four St. Vincent DePaul trucks will be stationed throughout the Eastside community to collect used furniture and other salvageable donations. After the clean-up, Clean Sweep participants can enjoy a free barbeque, family activities and entertainment at a community celebration and awards ceremony 12:30 to 2 p.m. at Stewart Middle School, 5010 Pacific Ave.

Schools participating in the clean-up include: Boze, Blix, Fawcett, Lister, Lyon, McKinley, Roosevelt and Sheridan elementary schools; Gault, McIlvaigh and Stewart middle schools and Lincoln High School.

A high school student from the Division 34 Kiwanis and Key Club has collected nearly 2,000 children books that will be distributed at the event.

The Clean Sweep planning committee includes the Tacoma Public Schools, First Creek Neighbors, Tacoma Police Department, Tacoma Housing Authority, City of Tacoma, Boys and Girls Club, Kids at Hope, Safe Streets and the Puyallup Tribe.

The clean-up is supported with a $5,000 grant from the Eastside Neighborhood Advisory Council (ENACT) and another $5,000 from the Puyallup Tribe. For more information or to volunteer, contact Kate Frazier at 253-571-1347.

Debby Abe, The News Tribune

The Orting School District’s spring lahar drill, which typically takes place the first week of May, will be delayed this year.

Orting City Manager Mark Bethune said that although the drill was originally scheduled for Tuesday, it probably will take place a couple of weeks from now instead.

City and school district officials had difficulty coordinating this year's spring drill in part because they're still figuring out whether they have the ability to activate the city’s five lahar sirens themselves, Bethune said.

During many past drills, the state or the county has activated the sirens.

The city will run its own silent test of the warning system on Monday to see if it works, Bethune said. The customary live drill involving students evacuating the Orting Valley on foot will most likely occur sometime later this month. Another will occur as usual in fall.

Officials will give citizens advance notice of when the spring drill is to be rescheduled, Bethune said.

About 1,500 students from various Bethel School District campuses staged walkouts to protest teachers losing their jobs today.

To show their support, they all wore black. One principal called it “Black Friday.”

The school district, facing up to a $12 million shortfall in its $160 million annual budget this year, issued layoff notices to 220 educators early this week. Those numbers are something of a worst-case scenario, however, and it's unlikely so many will actually be out of a job next fall.

Talk and text messages about a protest began to flood through the student body during the week.

The gist of the messages: walkout Friday, wear black.

Shortly before 8 a.m., today, waves of students at Bethel High, Graham-Kapowsin High, Bethel Junior High, Spanaway Lake High and Frontier Middle School walked out of their classrooms, according to the district.

Devin Hannold, a sophomore at Graham-Kapowsin High, was one of them. He said students like their teachers and realize how important they are to be successful.

“It’s easier to get passing grades when you have teachers you like," he said.

The 16-year-old said about 400 students at his school gathered in the Graham-Kapowsin parking lot and began to walk around the school building. They made their way to the football field and walked around the track before marching the school grounds again.

By the time the first lunch bell rang around 10:30 a.m., some teachers came from inside the building and warned that the protesters wouldn’t be able to eat lunch, he said. Some kids then went inside.

Around noon, between 30 and 40 students remained. They were warned that if the protest didn’t stop, they could receive suspensions, Hannold said.

There were still a few people walking to support the teachers by 1 p.m., he said.

At Bethel High, about 500 students walked out.

Principal Wanda Riley said the students left class about 7:45 a.m. and peacefully marched to Art Crate Field, some carrying signs with messages like “Save our teachers.”

Bethel School Board member Joy Cook then came and spoke to the students for about an hour. After that, most students returned to class about 9 a.m.

About 60 students remained protesting outside the school into the afternoon. None who participated are being punished, Riley said.

“They’re still peaceful,” she said. “They’re supporting one another. They just love their teachers.”

Riley added that she didn’t know of any Bethel High teachers who participated in the walkout, though some were present for supervision purposes. Those teachers also wore black.

“We called it ‘Black Friday,’” Riley said. “I don’t know who coordinated it.”

The school district reports that between 400 and 500 students at Bethel Junior High, 50 students at Spanaway Lake High School and about 30 students at Frontier Junior High staged similar walkouts.

“Basically the students all wore black today and they wanted to support their teachers by walking out for a little bit,” district spokeswoman Krista Carlson said.

Carlson said no schools are taking disciplinary actions against the students.

“Our students are entitled to their opinions,” Carlson said.

She added that school officials were expecting the walkouts.

“We knew there were rumblings that this might be happening today," Carlson said. "We were not unaware.”
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News Tribune reporters Brent Champaco and Melissa Santos contributed to this story.

A long, ascending ramp that could be seen throughout the Orting Valley is among the latest proposals for a pedestrian bridge to take Orting school children out of the path of a lahar.

An engineering firm is completing initial design work for the proposed Bridge For Kids, which would guide students from four Orting schools across the Carbon River and to higher ground.

The Bridge For Kids group has been working for almost 10 years to secure funding and complete studies for the evacuation route, which they say is necessary to get students and other Orting residents off the valley floor in the event of a volcanic mudflow from Mt. Rainier. Bridge for Kids volunteers say too many cars would flood the roadways for citizens to safely evacuate in the 40 minutes it would take the debris to reach the city.

Volunteers working on the project presented a few rough design options to the Orting City Council Wednesday night.

“At this point, we’re going through the engineering process of just saying, ‘What are the options?’” said Chris Fowler, president of the Bridge for Kids group.

=> Read more!

Just got off the phone with Lakewood City Manager Andrew Neiditz, who said he learned of the possible swine flu at Lakes High about 5 a.m. this morning.

He said he's confident the Tacoma-Pierce County Health District is taking the right steps, which started with the closure of Lakes High.

So far, the news isn't affecting city business. "At this point, we're not closing any operations," Neiditz said.

I asked whether there was a concern of other students possibly with swine flu and whose symptoms weren't detected going out into the community on what's turned into a day off.

Neiditz said he hopes parents would take the initiative and keep kids who show signs of the flu home.

"The concern I have is containment," he said. "That's the concern of every parent and every resident in Lakewood."