Trisha Leigh Hogan Masen
August 11, 2009
Trisha Masen
Trisha Leigh Hogan Masen died suddenly Wednesday, Aug. 5, 2009, at her home in Issaquah. She was 37. Read more
Free Pops concert still has tickets
August 11, 2009
The POPs! Goes Issaquah concert, sponsored by Rowley Properties, will be at 7:30 p.m. Aug. 21 at Village Theatre, Read more
Clubs
August 11, 2009
This week
Cascade Llama 4-H Club: Wednesday, 391-7988 Read more
Compassion House seeking donations ahead of duplex project
August 11, 2009
This rendering shows a proposed two-story duplex, transitional housing facility along Southeast Andrews Street. Contributed
Volunteers at the nonprofit Compassion House could soon break ground on a transitional housing facility. City planners have approved a plan to build a two-story duplex along Southeast Andrews Street.
John Williams, executive director, volunteer and board member for the Issaquah faith-based organization, said the demand for transitional housing is high. Transitional housing is used to help people move from homelessness into permanent residences.
“The phone is busy all the time,” he said. “There’s a big need in our area.”
The coming addition to Compassion House options will consist of two units, each about 1,300 square feet. The duplex will include a shared laundry area and a common meeting room. The first-floor unit will be accessible for handicapped residents.
A parking area with four stalls will be available in the alley behind the duplex. Crews will also improve landscaping throughout the site. Read more
Costco eyes new parking garage
August 11, 2009
A new parking structure will be built near the Costco corporate headquarters buildings, but city development commissioners attached strings to the development of the five-level garage.
Costco executives and project planners said the garage would provide needed employee parking for the largest employer in Issaquah. Customers visiting the nearby warehouse will not use the structure.
The project will include 1,601 parking stalls spread across five levels, with a below-ground first level and a top level with rooftop parking. The structure will not exceed the height of a three-story building and trees and shrubs will be planted to soften the facade.
The garage will be built on an existing parking lot off Northwest Lake Drive, south of Pickering Barn and north of the Costco Trade Building. Read more
Triathlon attracts range of athletes
August 11, 2009
Athletes round a buoy and head for shore to finish the first leg of the Beaver Lake Triathlon, before going on to the cycling and running portions of the race. By Greg Farrar
At age 65, Sammamish resident Tony Canlis has never done a triathlon. But in 2008, after helping repair bicycles during the Beaver Lake Triathlon, and after the coaxing of Pacific Bicycle owners Kristie and Scott Frericks, Canlis decided he wanted a challenge.
He took up the task of training for the 2009 race.
An avid swimmer — he swam competitively for much of his life — Canlis isn’t worried about the quarter-mile dip in Beaver Lake. While swimming for the University of Hawaii, he used to swim 3.5-miles in the open ocean for training.
“I was a good swimmer,” he said. “I just want to see what it’s like to be in one of these things.”
Canlis, the oldest registered Sammamish resident, is confident he’ll finish the race. Read more
Heat, heat, glorious heat
August 11, 2009
Spring in Issaquah is cool and wet, right? In summer we have high temperatures in the 70s, right? And we see cloud cover day after day after day, right?
Not this year. This year the sun, the temperatures, and the days without rain have just blown us all away. Most of the people I talk to are complaining. One exception is our master gardeners. I wrote some of them in the Issaquah clinic to get their take on the impact of this dramatic weather pattern on our gardens. Surprisingly, there were few complaints.
Some plants did get scorched — even ones that were well watered. The plants that suffered most were next to hot retaining walls, rockeries or reflective surfaces in direct sun. We chatted back and forth and decided a wait-and-see approach would be a good idea for many of these damaged plants. Wait until fall to prune out permanently dead branches but leave them now to protect those underneath until the hot weather is over for sure.
We noticed that some of the ground cover appears to be dead, at least top dead. It may come back from the roots next spring, so wait and see. It’s OK to remove the dead leaves for the sake of appearance.
Some of the native plants look wilted, including swordfern and salal. They are both very tough, and we expect full recovery next spring.
One of the master gardeners said she was losing leaves early on her old Japanese maple. It is planted on the top of a rockery in compacted soil and is difficult to water. If soil gets dry, watering the surface may not work; it might just run off, especially if it’s hilly. One suggestion is to place two to three-inch diameter by 12-inch long pieces of plastic pipe vertically down into the ground at the dripline. Fill the pipes with water regularly during hot, dry spells.
I was looking on the Internet for some gardening information and found an East Coast chat group complaining about their awful, cool, wet weather. You know what? They got our weather, and we got theirs this year. They were saying that the gardening season was ruined. They aren’t going to have a harvest at all. Wussies!
We garden every year in that kind of weather and make it work. But this year all of our master gardeners were thrilled with the way their basil, tomatoes, and herbs jumped out of the ground to feel the heat and soak up the sun. I think we could learn to live with this hot stuff and maybe turn out some pretty good gardens. Heck, we can even make it work in the rain.
Jane Garrison is a local master gardener and landscape architect who gardens in glacial till on the plateau.
Visit the master gardener clinics at Squak Mountain Nursery and the Pickering Farmers Market every Saturday from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. They will not be at Squak Mountain Nursery in August.
Classical concert can change lives
August 11, 2009
Kevin Lee, a senior at Issaquah High School, decided to conduct a special classical music concert in order to help the less fortunate. Read more
Press Editorial
August 11, 2009
1,200 local students need school supplies
The first day of school is only three weeks away. It’s a time of excitement for students as they look forward to meeting new teachers, seeing old friends, getting a new pair of sneakers and filling their backpacks with new pencils and crayons. Read more
Happy faces in wet places
August 11, 2009
Youths are doused with a fire hose, sprayed by Eastside Fire & Rescue Lt. Steve Johnson (not pictured). Photos by Adam Eschbac
