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Camas Rally For The Blue Supporters Square Off With Black Lives Matter

More than 300 Camas Rally For The Blue supporters, and approximately 150 Black Lives Matters (BLM) squared off Friday night mostly at 3rd Avenue and Dallas Street to express their beliefs.

The BLM rally started off at Camas Public Library at 4 pm and within about 20 minutes the group migrated to the ARCO station where they stayed for the duration — until just past 10 pm. The pro-police rally was scheduled as a stand-alone event, but Tuesday night local students organized a counter BLM protest.

The Camas Rally For The Blue began a little before 5 pm at two locations — between Camas Safeway and Dairy Queen — but eventually migrated to occupy three of the four corners at 3rd and Dallas.

”We just want to stand up and say Black Lives Matter,” said Cindy Graham, a Camas resident who rallied with the BLM team. “Middle class white people care about black lives and I don’t want to say anything negative about the police because I know a lot of Camas cops are good friends of mine and they are great guys. But that doesn’t negate the fact that we need to stand up and do something to help African Americans. In my opinion the BLM movement doesn’t stand for socialism like some of these people are saying, it just stands for black people have been oppressed and we often don’t understand how oppressed they are so we need to make more of an effort. All lives matter, but black lives matter needs to be said when this is happening in our country.”

She said this is a vote for Black Lives Matter.

“We need more white middle class people to stop screaming at their televisions and get out here and stand peacefully on the corner and say that,” Graham added. “Actually all classes of white people need to do this.”

The interview was interrupted by a BLM supporter in blue hair who told this reporter to “get out of my face.”

Blue
BLM supporters at ARCO station.

”I just wanted a rally to support our police,” said Blue Rally organizer, Helen Sudbeck. “It’s a fabulous town and we have a great police department. They need to know how much we care about them and appreciate them. It’s been a rough couple months for police across the country and I think there are a lot of people in Camas who really care about our police. That’s it. We are just here to support the police. I realize there’s a counter demonstration and that’s fine. It’s a group of kids and that’s their First Amendment right, and that’s fine. They chose to have the rally at the exact same location, and that is their right, as well.”

Was it a bad idea to have this Blue rally today given the historic anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr’s “I Have a Dream Speech”?

“I just picked a Friday night after work hours to show the police we care. I didn’t have any grand plan. We know police morale is low these days. Most cops are good people who have families,” she said. “We know reforms need to take place, and I encourage people to learn more about Project 21.”

It was a lively night, tensions were high, and it wasn’t entirely peaceful.

Blue Rally supporters filled trucks and cars chanting “Blue Lives Matter” while circling city streets for hours. BLM supporters chanted “All cops are bastards,” “I see racists,” and “Black Lives Matter.”

Blue
Police supporters.

Here are some of the things this reporter witnessed:

  • One man was carrying an assault rifle, which was intimidating to many. Police stayed close to him throughout the evening.
  • One Blue Rally supporter went over to speak with BLM supporters to simply express admiration they were being vocal in their beliefs. He knew the teens there and while addressing them, a professional BLM organizer got in his face with a camera demanding he wear a face mask. Another BLM supporter challenged him, as well. The video will be posted on Saturday.
  • A Trump supporter threw coffee at an elderly lady while driving by. It stained her jeans.
  • Joey Gibson, of Patriot Prayer, had a very nice conversation with a BLM supporter about religion and removing hate from our lives. There was a lot of good dialogue between the two individuals. But, his presence also intimidated protestors.
  • Several BLM supporters didn’t want this reporter to conduct interviews and chanted “racist” to my face multiple times.
  • Police broke up a couple altercations before they escalated.
  • Confederate flags were brought in, which disturbed a lot of people.
  • Some of the BLM teens felt intimidated by Blue Rally supporters.
  • Camas Police asked everyone to break up the events shortly after 9 pm. The Blue Rally crowd quickly dispersed, while the BLM group lingered past 10 pm with about 30 people.

The evening ended with a very positive conversation between a BLM/Joe Biden supporter, who is a teacher in the Evergreen School District, and a Blue Rally/Donald Trump supporter, who had a 7-minute conversation about how to make things better. They found common ground. Initially, both sides agreed to be recorded, but after it ended, the teacher withdrew her permission for us to post it.

“I just want our cops to know we do appreciate them, but we also need to help our black people right now,” she said. “They need a voice to know that we don’t want them to be oppressed.”

The Trump supporter agreed, and then the night ended.

Blue
Black Lives Matter Supporter



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Clark Regional Emergency Ops Center Issues Latest COVID-19 Update

Vancouver, WA — The Clark Regional Emergency Operations Center (CREOC) issued their latest COVID-19 update. Here’s the report by the numbers, as of August 24, 2020:

Clark County

  • Number of Positive Tests: 2,435 (cumulative since March 2020)
  • Current COVID-19 Cases Hospitalized: 17
  • Number of Deaths: 47
  • Rate of new cases per 100,000 population: 74.7 (goal is to get to a rate of 25 new cases per 100,000).
  • COVID-19 persons under investigation (PUI) hospitalized: 11
  • Percent licensed hospital beds occupied: 67.5%
  • Percent licensed hospital beds occupied by COVID-19 patients and PUIs: 4.5%

Washington State

  • Number of Positive Tests: 71,012 (cumulative since March 2020)
  • Number of Hospitalized: 6,530 (cumulative since March 2020)
  • Number of Deaths: 1,863
Learning
www.arktana.com

Individual and Business Assistance Information

A team of state agencies hosts a monthly ​webinar series​ with experts who discuss information specific to Washington small businesses. A panel of state and federal partners respond to live Q&A regarding unemployment insurance, returning employees to the workplace, small business relief funding, workplace safety measures, and other topics important to employers. The next webinar will be held on September 9 at 1:30 p.m. There is also a Spanish-language webinar​ on August 27 at 4 pm. Click here to register: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/small-business-requirements-and-resources-sbrr-covid-19-impact-webinar-tickets-105298340170?aff=ebdssbonlinesearch%5C

Community Development Block Grants (CDBG) are available to help rural areas struggling with the costs of the pandemic. Washington State Department of Commerce is now accepting applications from CDBG non-entitlement (rural) city and county governments for the first round of these CDBG-Coronavirus (CDBG-CV1) funds. Visit Commerce’s ​CDBG-CV website​ for details on eligible activities and how to apply. Applications are due by September 3, 2020. Here’s the link: https://www.commerce.wa.gov/serving-communities/community-development-block-grants/cares-act-community-development-block-grant/

The Washington ​State Department of Commerce is distributing approximately $100 million​ in state Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act funding through its existing network of homeless services grantees and organizations serving homeless youth to operate a new rent assistance program launched Aug. 1. The program will focus on preventing evictions by paying up to three months of past due, current and future rent to landlords for eligible participants. Here’s the link to the site: https://www.commerce.wa.gov/news-releases/community-grants/100-million-rental-assistance-headed-to-washington-communities/

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Local Teens Organize Online Learning Resource to Help Fellow Students

To address student learning gaps happening during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to sharpen minds during summer vacation, several local teens have created a non-profit learning and tutoring organization called Youth Hand in Hand, which offers free online classes and tutorials on a wide range of topics.

The organization, which is comprised of talented student teachers, hosts weekly 40-minute ZOOM class sessions, teaching topics that include Coding (Scratch and Python), SAT tutoring, Chemistry, Biology, Math, National History Day, Creative Writing and Cartooning.

“A lot of these classes are things we are passionate about,” said Ares Zhang, a Camas High School senior, and one of the group’s student teachers. “We know a lot of people who have missed out on opportunities over the summer. This all started out as friends trying to help each other, but it’s turned into something bigger. There’s no cost! All of it’s free. All you have to do is sign up.”

As a non-profit, Youth Hand in Hand is able to procure funding to purchase full ZOOM subscriptions for all teachers, and they are accepting old routers to help students to have better WiFi access.

“Technically, we started in April during the pandemic, and my sister wanted to learn scratch coding, and several neighbors were interested,” said Spencer Chang, a junior at Mountain View High School, and the organization’s founder. “I asked if anyone would also want to do it, and other four kids helped us.”

After initial setup, Youth Hand in Hand now has 18 student teachers and offers 15 classes. Most classes have two teachers and typically 15 kids are in each session. 

Learning
www.arktana.com

“Last month, we had 250 people sign up,” said Chang. “It’s a month-to-month program. Most classes are 4 weeks long. We provide resources to help kids get through online learning.”

Zhang said they are adapting the curriculum to help kids through the school season, and they will shift toward tutoring.

“We can help them learn concepts since they’re not in regular school,” said Chang. “Our goal for September is to expand curriculum and get ZOOM subscriptions for all our teachers. All teachers are teens. The youngest one will be a freshman this year. We are mostly juniors and seniors.” 

Youth Hand in Hand plans to do face-to-face classes and tutoring sessions when life returns to pre-pandemic normal.

“It’s mostly so people can keep on learning throughout the pandemic,” said Chang. “Some people don’t learn as well online, and we’re hoping we can make an impact, to provide people opportunities to learn.”

To learn more about the program, visit https://sites.google.com/view/youthhandinhand/home?authuser=0 or email the team at [email protected]

“We just channeled our passion into this,” said Zhang. “This is great way to make an impact in our community.”

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COVID-19: Latest State Situation Report Shows Slowing of New Cases

Clark County Public Health reported Tuesday that another 11 people have tested positive for COVID-19. To date, 2,121 Clark County residents have tested positive. The Health Department says the current incidence of new COVID-19 cases in Clark County is 88 cases per 100,000 residents over 14 days. The target rate is less than 25 new cases per 100,000 residents.

Currently, 12 COVID-19 patients and 13 persons under investigation (awaiting test results) for COVID-19 are hospitalized.

The agency also said today “our efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19 by wearing face coverings and maintaining physical distancing appear to be working!”

Data in the latest statewide situation report shows the growth of new cases in the state is likely slowing. And the data in this new report “points to vigilant masking and physical distancing as the reason for the slowed statewide transmission, rather than changes to people’s mobility.”

While case numbers are flat or decreasing statewide among people younger than 40, they are increasing among those 40 and older.

COVID-19
www.champpizza.com

Report Highlights

  • While growth in new cases may be slowing overall, aggregated data masks diverging trends in older and younger populations. In both eastern and western WA, cases are flat or decreasing in the 0 to 39-year age group while increasing in the 40-69 and 70+ age groups.
  • Suggests that any flattening of new cases is due to non-mobility-related changes in behavior like vigilant masking and physical distancing when out.
  • The slight deceleration in the growth of new cases is an improvement over the rate of increase noted in their last few reports. However, it is too early to know with certainty whether this represents a real turnaround. Further, the observation at the state level that cases continue to increase in the older age groups and particularly in those 70 and older is concerning. State health experts expect that if the increase in cases in these older age groups continues unabated this will result in an increase in hospitalization and deaths.
  • The report says “We cannot definitively attribute this trend to the mask mandates because mask wearing is generally accompanied by heightened awareness and physical distancing, but a ​preponderance of evidence indicates that widespread use of masks significantly reduces transmission​.”
  • Strict adherence to masking and physical distancing policies and limits on social contacts remain necessary to further suppress COVID-19 transmission in Washington state and protect groups at higher risk for severe disease.

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Q & A: Superintendent Snell Discusses Camas School Reopening Plans

Camas Superintendent, Dr, Jeff Snell provides to frequently asked questions regarding school reopening for the 2020-21 school season. He said this week there will be an opportunity to engage in a question and answer session about Camas Connect Academy, the Camas School District (CSD) full online option.  CSD recommends the Camas Connect Academy only for families that do not have a desire to return to on-campus learning at any point during the school year.  For all others, CSD recommends starting the school year remotely and then transitioning towards more on-campus learning during the year.

So how do we start school? 
During remote learning, we will keep the same school hours.  This provides a consistent structure for students and families and defines the workday for staff.  Schools will be providing orientations to help staff and families partner together in support of students. 

Does full remote learning mean my student will be on Zoom for more than six hours per day?
No, the State Board of Education has provided some flexibility in how we meet our yearly instructional hour requirements, and sitting in front of a screen all day long is not a best practice for students.

We designed our scheduling framework to have a combination of synchronous (live) and asynchronous (recorded) learning with brain/movement breaks for students. Our remote learning schedule is aligned to our full hybrid schedule to help transition to more on-campus time when community health indicators improve. In our full, hybrid learning delivery model, students will receive at least two days of on-campus, live instruction. We’ve included a similar expectation in our remote learning schedule. The equivalent of at least 2 days of “live”, synchronous instruction will be distributed across the week. Other learning time will be asynchronous instruction from our teachers with specific learning tasks for students to complete with support. This allows for some flexibility for students and families when they access this instruction. Each school will develop a schedule that supports students and helps families at home. Prior to each week, teachers will post the week-ahead schedule that includes opportunities for student support and communication with families.

Will daily student attendance be taken?
Yes, attendance will be taken for both synchronous and asynchronous learning sessions. 

Acorn
www.clarkcountyrelocations.com

Will this look different than it did in the spring?
Yes, our staff are committed to our students and have been planning based on the experiences from the spring.  Staff training this summer includes social and emotional learning/wellness, design for remote learning, learning management and communication tools, video creation, synchronous interaction, and priority learning standards. As you know, we have an amazing staff who were put into a very challenging situation last spring.  They want to create an engaging learning experience for your student this fall!

What if I need emergency childcare as we transition back to on-campus learning? 
We recognize that each family is in a unique situation and may need support.  We are trying to develop options for families in these situations.  Please contact us using this LINK. 

What if my family relies on school breakfast and/or lunch services?
We will develop a similar process to how we provided these meals in the spring during remote learning.  

When will we start phasing into on-campus instruction?
Decision Tree K12 Schools provides a framework that puts regions into COVID-19 activity levels using several indicators. One of those indicators is the rate of cases per 100,000 people. The rate divides COVID-19 activity into three levels: HIGH >75, MODERATE between 25-75, and LOW <25.  The most recent rate of cases per 100,000 in Clark County was 74.3.  Even though we are on the upper limit of MODERATE we are trending in a better direction considering our previous two rates were 99.7 and 96.4 (The Columbian, 8/5/2020, Clark County at ‘moderate risk’ for school reopenings).  Your effort and the efforts of our community of following the Safe Start Washington guidelines are starting to pay off so thank you!  Please help keep lowering the rate by socially distancing, wearing your mask, and washing your hands.  

As our rate per 100,000 lowers, we will bring students on campus in small groups starting with our youngest students and those with specific support needs.  We will then add more small groups of students easing our way towards a full hybrid model of at least two days of on-campus learning for each student.

I have greatly appreciated your feedback and patience during this journey to our first day of school.  

Jeff Snell, Superintendent

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COVID-19: Inslee Issues Guidance for Long-Term Care Facilities, Fitness Businesses

This week, Gov. Inslee and state health officials announced updated COVID-19 guidance for long-term care facilities and fitness businesses.

Beginning Aug. 12, long-term care facilities will be able to resume in-person visits, with restrictions. The state has established a phased approach with criteria for long-term care facilities to safely allow visitors, provide trips for residents outside the facility and group activities, among other things.

  • Facilities in Phase 1:
    • Indoor visits are limited to compassionate care situations. Compassionate care situations include end-of-life circumstances and for psycho-social needs. Any such visit must follow strict safety protocol.
    • Outdoor visits are allowed and limited to two visitors per resident per visit. These visits must include masking, social distancing, and appropriate hygiene.
    • Facilities may invite “window visits” at their discretion with safety protocol in place.
    • Remote visitation must be facilitated in all Phases.
  • Facilities in Phase 2:
    • Indoor visits are limited to compassionate care situations. Compassionate care situations include end-of-life circumstances and for psycho-social needs. Any such visit must follow strict safety protocol.
    • Outdoor visits are allowed. These visits must include masking, social distancing, and appropriate hygiene.
    • Facilities may invite “window visits” at their discretion with safety protocol in place.
    • Remote visitation must be facilitated in all Phases.
    • A designated “essential support person” may visit a resident once per day if the resident is unable to participate in outdoor visits and if remote visitation technology is unavailable.
  • Facilities in Phase 3:
    • Indoor visits are generally permitted, with limitations. Facilities will establish protocol for visitor hours, visitor limits, and safety precautions. Preference should be given to outdoor visits.
    • Outdoor visits are allowed and are subject to facility safety protocol.
    • Remote visitation must be facilitated in all Phases.
  • Facilities in Phase 4:
    • Regular visitation resumes.

Fitness Guidelines

Fitness guidelines were also updated this week, allowing fitness and sports training other than group fitness classes

Changes in August 3 update:

  • Removing the restriction on independent fitness training by allowing fitness and sports training other than group fitness classes.
  • Increasing the distancing requirement while exercising indoors from six feet to 300 square feet per person, except while practicing certain team sports. For large facilities, occupancy is limited to 25 percent of the facility’s occupancy limit, as determined by the fire code. Occupancy and distancing requirements should be determined and posted for every room in the facility.
  • Requiring all patrons to wear face coverings when inside indoor fitness facilities, except while engaged in strenuous exercise. Patrons who remove their cloth facial coverings to exercise must wear them at all other times, including immediately before and immediately after exercise.
  • Clarifying the use of indoor team sports facilities for practice and limited competition with no spectators.
  • Harmonizing Phase 2 and 3 guidance to allow some limited indoor fitness and training activities in all areas of the state.
  • Clarifying that outdoors locations for fitness training and team sports are preferred to indoors locations and should be utilized to the greatest extent possible. Outdoor temporary structures may be used. Outdoor temporary structures should have no more than two walls to provide appropriate ventilation.
Inslee
www.champpizza.com

Clark County COVID-19 Update

Clark County Public Health issued a new update today:

Another 13 people have tested positive for COVID-19. However, during routine quality control checks of our data, we removed 12 cases from our total due to duplications and cases being transferred to other counties (the county of residence).

With those changes, the total number of Clark County residents who have tested positive to date is 1992.

Another Clark County resident has died – a man in his 80s with undetermined underlying conditions. To date, 41 Clark County residents have died.

Currently, 13 COVID-19 patients and four persons under investigation (awaiting test results) for COVID-19 are hospitalized.

COVID-19
Long-Term Care Facilities Visitation.
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Politics 2020: Updated Washington, Clark County Primary Election Results

Vancouver, WA — The Clark County Elections Office provided an update to the August 4, 2020 Primary and Special Elections Results. Here’s a breakdown of many of the races, which provides a preview of the Fall campaign.

  • Number of precincts (county wide): 314
  • Number of registered voters: 303,702
  • Total ballots counted: 112,549
  • Estimated ballots left to count: 37,000
  • Voter turnout: 37.06%

Congressional District 3 U.S. Representative Race (full district tally)

  • Carolyn Long (Democrat): 70,322 votes; 40.85%
  • Jaime Herrera Beutler (Republican): 94,798 votes; 55.07%

Governor’s Race (statewide tally)

  • Jay Inslee (Democrat): 744,977 votes; 51.26%
  • Loren Culp (Republican): 245,642 votes; 16.93%
  • Tim Eyman (Republican): 100,883 votes; 6.95%

Lt. Governor 

  • Denny Heck (Democrat): 380,453 votes; 27.23%
  • Mark Liias (Democrat): 234,908 votes; 16.81%

Secretary of State

  • Kim Wyman (Republican): 57,062 votes; 52.14%
  • Gael Tarleton (Democrat): 46,075 votes; 42.1%

Washington State Treasurer

  • Duane Davidson (Republican): 55,387 votes; 51.02%
  • Mike Pellicciotti (Democrat): 53,048 votes; 48.86%
Mesa
www.lilyatelier.com

Legislative District 17 State Senator

  • Daniel Smith (Democrat): 14,901 votes; 45.16%
  • Lynda Wilson (Republican): 18,039 votes; 54.67%

Legislative District 17 State Representative, Position 1

  • Tanisha Harris (Democrat): 15,617 votes; 47.19%
  • Vicki Kraft (Republican): 17,440 votes; 52.7%

Legislative District 17 State Representative, Position 2

  • Paul Harris (Republican): 18,181 votes; 65.94%
  • Bryan White (Republican): 7,864 votes; 28.52%

Legislative District 18 State Senator

  • John Ley (Republican): 11,221 votes; 28.24%
  • Ann Rivers (Republican): 12,800 votes; 32.21%
  • Rick Bell (Democrat): 15,680 votes; 39.46%

Legislative District 18 State Representative, Position 1

  • Brandon Vick (Republican): 23,561 votes; 59.67%
  • Kassandra Bessert (Democrat): 15,865 votes; 40.18%

Legislative District 18 State Representative, Position 2

  • Donna Sinclair (Democrat):17,589 votes; 44.39%
  • Larry Hoff (Republican): 21,972 votes; 55.46%

Legislative District 49 State Senator

  • Annette Cleveland (Democrat): 19,078 votes; 59.25%
  • Rey Reynolds (Republican): 13,070 votes; 40.6%

County Councilor District 3

  • Jesse James (Democrat): 7,456 votes; 33.52%
  • John Blom (No Party): 4,990 votes; 22.43%
  • Karen Bowerman (Republican): 9,745 votes; 43.81%

County Councilor District 4

  • Gary Medvigy (Republican): 17,695 votes; 59.62%
  • Matt Little (Independent): 11,834 votes; 39.87%
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Camas, County, State Reps Forming Alliance to Improve Water Quality at Lacamas Lake

Camas, WA — After generations of battling water quality issues at Lacamas Lake — and now Fallen Leaf Lake — city leaders, county officials, and state representatives are now beginning to form an alliance to tackle severe environmental issues affecting the popular recreation areas.

Citing multiple occurrences of toxic algae in both lakes, which make them unfit for recreation, Camas City Council member Steve Hogan said he, Mayor Barry McDonnell, and Camas Public Works Director, Steve Wall, are in the process of getting an inter-local agreement between the city and Clark County. 

“We decided it was time to clean this lake up,” said Hogan, “and we have the full support of the Mayor and city leaders. We have Temple Lentz and Gary Medvigy on Clark County Council on board, plus Senator Ann Rivers, and state representatives Larry Hoff and Brandon Vick. We asked our state representatives if there’s commitment from them to move through the agencies: Department of Ecology, Department of Fish and Wildlife, Department of Natural Resources, and Department of Agriculture. They said yes.”

The pollution sources that likely contribute to the algae blooms include the following:

  • Storm water facilities feeding into the lake 
  • Lacamas Shores bio-filter, which critics say hasn’t been properly maintained by their Home Owner’s Association
  • Dairy farm/cattle runoff
  • And, historical neglect. From 1883-1889, the Camas forest was logged before we became a state, and there were no protections, and so much drained into the lake over the decades.

“This isn’t going to be a quick fix,” said Hogan. “We want this cleanup to be part of a 20-year strategy. Fallen Leaf Lake and Lacamas Lake have separate issues, but readings at Lacamas Shores have 122 storm pumps leading into it, which go into the lake.”

Hogan said they want a system of testing that goes upstream to see which ponds are contributing to the toxic algae in the lakes. In the process, said Hogan, the county suggested re-designating Lacamas Lake as a recreational lake, which the Camas City Council did in February. It had been previously designated as an industrial lake.

“Today’s story has to deal with algae, but we have to improve the lake for the long run,” said Hogan. “We need to get rid of the dead zone in the lake, where nothing can live. There’s too much debris at the bottom of the lake, which is a major contributor to the pollution. We have to deal with this. We’ve gotten a lot of help from Judit Lorenz, Council member Ellen Burton, and Council member Bonnie Carter. Every council member is very psyched up about it.”

Lake
www.artfuljuxtaposition.com

The next action items are working with Clark County Public Works, since they’ve been observing lake water quality issues. 

“We are in the process of getting this inter-local agreement between Camas and Clark County,” said Wall. “We believe there are short-term things we can do to improve the water quality, but there are many long-term objectives, as well.”

In the short term, said Wall, “we have to educate citizens about knowing when and how to fertilize lawns, and what goes into storm drains, and we need to work with HOA’s so they can fulfill their responsibilities. There are lots of things we can do.”

These developments are welcome news to Lacamas Shores resident, Steve Bang, who has been advocating for cleaning up his neighborhood bio-filter, which many think is a wetland.

“The Lacamas Shores HOA hasn’t properly maintained the bio-filter since 1993,” said Bang. “The bio-filter originally had natural plants that absorbed toxins before they went into the lake. The HOA was supposed to clear those toxic plants on a regular basis to keep the bio-filter operating properly. They’ve neglected to do that, and I’ve been trying to get the city to apply pressure on our HOA to live up to their responsibilities.”

Bang thinks reclaiming the bio-filter to its original state will resolve much of of the lake’s toxic algae issues. He’s been trying to get his HOA to resolve the issue on their own, and lately he’s been pressuring the city to assist in the efforts.

“We can fix major problems right now,” said Bang. “We just have to act. If the city can pressure our HOA to do their job, it doesn’t have to be a part of the inter-local agreement. And, getting this bio-filter fixed won’t cost the taxpayer any money. We don’t have to wait.”

Bang said the Ecology Department does not allow wetlands and bio-filters to co-mingle and that the restoration will be done according to Ecology’s best practices manual. You can learn more about the Lacamas Shores bio-filter at www.Lacamasshoresbiofilter.org

Camas leaders are looking to the state to apply pressure on agencies to do their part. 

“Working with the multiple agencies has been like herding cats, and we hope to get past the red tape,” said Hogan. “This is where people like Senator Ann Rivers can be a major support. The city also owns the dam and the mill ditch, and we can use that to make things move faster. Less red tape.”

Rivers is using her membership on the Legislature’s powerful Ways and Means committee, as well as a member of top four elected leadership, to apply pressure on the agencies that can help resolve this.

Lake
Dozens of stormwater drains empty into Lacamas Lake.

“I have the ability to drive funding that someone with less experience simply will not have,” said Rivers. “There are many grant programs we can use to clean up the lake. I have very good relationships in DC with our federal elected representatives because we partner on issues important to our shared constituency.”

Hogan said once these problems are fully identified and defined, he wants the council to make the Lacamas Lake cleanup “part of our 20-year plan.” 

“We need to make a city process that is closely monitored,” said Hogan. “We need to change the culture so we are monitoring the key elements affecting the water quality.  We have to keep pressure on all agencies to make this happen. The city and the taxpayer owns most of the property now around Lacamas Lake — it’s all inside the city limits now.  Owning the dam and ditch gives us more leverage to clean it up. Most cities don’t have that ability, but we do. We can move water into that ditch and divert the crappy water out of the water system. We want to say to the Department of Ecology ‘we want you to be our partner in this.’”

WSU staff spoke with Wall and they’ve done studies to work to improve the lake quality, as well.

“The cleanup of Lacamas Lake is a very high priority,” said Rivers. “By working with the City of Camas, Department of Ecology, and Department of Natural Resources, I believe that we can get the funding we need and develop a policy that prevents a repeat of this situation so we can make these lakes safer for everyone .”

Hogan said this is going to “be a long, hard fight, but it’ll be worth it.”

Wall expects the inter-local agreement to be completed in the coming weeks, and then it will go to City Council approval.

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Camas Schools Superintendent Addresses At-Home Learning Stages, Scenarios

Camas Superintendent, Dr. Jeff Snell, explains in today’s letter that Camas School District is one of eight Southwest Washington school districts to recommend at-home learning when school resumes for the 2020-21 season:

CSD Families,

We have been working this summer through all of the different scenarios for starting the 2020-21 school year with the goal of having students return to campus in some form. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released new recommendations for schools last week which stress the importance of onsite experiences.  I think we all agree how important it is to have our students back on campus.   The CDC also suggests “Administrators should coordinate with local public health officials to stay informed about the status of COVID-19 transmission in their community.” The guidelines also advise us to monitor “COVID-19 transmission rates in the immediate community and in the communities in which students, teachers, and staff live” (CDC, 7/23/20). 

Unfortunately, conditions in our community are not trending in a positive direction.  We have been working with Dr. Melnick, director of Clark County Public Health, as a region to determine the best course of action for schools in our community.  As the numbers of positive COVID-19 cases continue to trend up in our region, it has become clear that the safest way to start the school year is a more robust fully remote learning delivery model.  The growth rate trends need to change in our community before being able to bring students and staff together on campus. Without those changes we risk rapidly spreading the virus between students, staff and throughout our community with the reopening of schools. More detailed information about our current trends in Clark County can be found at Clark County Public Health Novel Coronavirus.

What does this mean for my family?

Over the next four weeks we will refine plans based on this decision and begin communicating specific information to you from your student’s school.   We have taken student, staff, and family feedback from our experience last spring to provide a more robust remote learning experience for students.  

Our hope is to start to transition from full remote learning to a blended delivery model with some version of on campus learning as soon as possible.   The timing for this transition is dependent on regional health indicators.  Our learning delivery models stages are below.

School
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Learning Delivery Models Stages

  1. Remote Learning – all student participate in distance learning
  2. Remote Learning transitioning to Blended Learning – students identified through a set of district/school developed criteria in greatest need of additional support participate onsite with in-person instruction.
  3. Blended Learning – all students participate onsite with in-person instruction a minimum of two (2) days a week.  Transition to more on campus days for students as conditions improve.
  4. On Campus Learning – all students and staff participate onsite with in-person instruction five (5) days a week.

What if my student prefers a full online model regardless of the health trends in our county? 

If your preference is a full online model for your student, we have developed the Camas Connect Academy.  This program will not shift through the phases above.  It will stay online throughout the year.  It will operate as a separate school/program within our district with district staff and the same learning standards.  We will provide more information about the Camas Connect Academy in the coming weeks including a Q&A session prior to the enrollment window. 

What if I need emergency childcare during learning delivery models 1 through 3? 

We recognize that each family is in a unique situation and may need support.  We are trying to develop options for families in these situations.  Please contact us using this LINK. 

What if my family relies on school breakfast and/or lunch services?

We will develop a similar process to how we provided these meals in the spring during remote learning.  

We have all been on a rollercoaster ride since early March as we’ve collectively tried to manage through a very different world.  School is a big part of everyone’s lives.  We had hoped to provide you with a return to on campus school this fall.  Our staff is committed to provide the very best educational experience possible for your students no matter what the learning delivery model. It will not be without challenges and there will continue to be opportunities to improve.  We will continue to engage with our public health partners to help determine when we can safely shift to more on campus learning.  

Sincerely,

Jeff Snell

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COVID-19 Effect: Annual Washougal Art Festival Goes Virtual This Summer

Washougal WA — Washougal Arts and Culture Alliance will host an online art festival as an alternative to its annual August event cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic public gathering restrictions. 

“We are very excited that our virtual 2020 Washougal Art Festival will last not just one day, but the entire month of August,” said WACA president, Kelli Rule.  “Our website will be the hub, and from there people will be able to access the festival through our Facebook and Instagram pages.”

The goal of WACA’s art festivals is to create exposure and drive sales for local and regional artists. According to Rule, artists have pushed themselves to create exclusive videos, new and refreshed websites and more to help promote their art in a new way online.  “We hope our community will support these local artisans, hard hit by the cancellation of so many opportunities to sell their art,” Rule said.  “We’ll do our best through social media to give the artists the attention they deserve.  When you purchase original artwork, you are not only buying that object, but you’re investing in that person.”

The event will highlight the work of 25 artists, each selected to participate by a jury of art professionals. 2020 festival artists are Linda Andrews-Riggs, water color; Eric Berlin, porcelain jewelry; Shirley Bishop, fused glass; Jean Blatner, watercolor acrylic; India de Landa, plexiglass acrylic jewelry; Chrissie Forbes, found art & oils, Katy Fenley, silver jewelry; Kyla Rae Friedrichsmeyer, watercolor & ink; Anni Furniss, mixed media; John Furniss, woodworking; Suzanne Grover, pen & colored pencil; Charlene Hale, fused glass; Kellie Kuter, mixed media; Brenda Lindstrom, oil; Beck Lipp, woodworking; Toni McCarthy, jewelry; Diane Moeglein, fused glass; Liz Pike, oil on canvas; Spike Palmer, oil painting; Karen Reule, silver jewelry; Gary Suda & Pamela Hancock, ceramics; Tamra Sheline, watercolor on yupo; Hiroko Stumpf, watercolor & acrylic; Cyndee Starr, mixed media; Barbara Wright, water color, ink, pencil; Jeff Wirth, photography; and Tom West, acrylic, stationery.

Art
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Each year a local artist is selected to create an image for the event poster that reflects Washougal in some way. This year’s poster art of a deer among tall grass was drawn by Washougal artist, Suzanne Grover, a founding member of WACA, whose work will be a part of the virtual festival. Her beautiful spring meadow scene was created from the photography of John Rakestraw.  Signed posters are available for a $20 donation.  There is a limited number of signed posters from previous festivals available as well, which can be purchased directly from WACA by emailing [email protected].

“This year has been hard for artists who have seen so many fairs, festivals and events cancelled,” Rule explained.  “Artists have not been able to meet potential customers face-to-face and we know it is hard for them to make connections.   We hope this virtual event will help in some small way.”

Join the festival at the WACA website http://washougalarts.org/ or  https://www.facebook.com/WashougalArts/, https://www.instagram.com/washougal_arts/.

Art Festival
Washougal Art Festival
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