HEADLINES & HISTORY SINCE 1879 Goldendale, Washington
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 8, 2025
Vol. 146 No. 2
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TROY CARPENTER/GOLDENDALE OBSERVATORY
A GHOSTLY NEW YEAR’S EVE: Goldendale Observatory Administrator Troy Carpenter captured this shot of fireworks in the fog over Goldendale New Year’s Eve. See his story below on the latest goings-on at the Observatory.
Swearing in
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MISSION ACCOMPLISHED: It was a smaller crowd this year, but the Polar Plunge patrol enjoyed their quick splash into the Columbia River on January 1.
Observatory temporarily shuttered Goldendale Observatory Administrator Troy Carpenter offers this overview of the latest developments at the Observatory: 2025 will be the futuristic sounding 52nd operating year for Goldendale Observatory State Park. It’s hard to believe that over five years have passed since completion of this shiny new building and its various upgrades. Since that time, our list of follow-up projects has grown long, and we now have the resources to shorten it. On December 30, 2024, we temporarily closed the Observatory to facilitate dozens of further improvements, the most notable of which include an overhaul of the main telescope drive system, installation of premium new telescopes, and replacement of our presentation computers. We
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NEW OFFICE HOLDERS: Judge Rick Hanson swore in four new office holders lasst week. Top to bottom: Ron Ihrig, Klickitat County Commissioner District 3; Todd Andrews, Klickitat County Commissioner District 1; Stoner Bell, Klickitat PUD Commissioner; and Eric Anderson, Klickitat County Coroner. Anderson’s position is not elected, but Coroner is a position rather than a department and therefore requires swearing in.
Short last meeting RODGER NICHOLS FOR THE SENTINEL Klickitat County Commissioners worked right up to the end of the year, with a final meeting on December 31. It was a short meeting in several ways: it took just over 90 minutes, it was missing a commissioner, and the camera covering the meeting room again was not working, so there was no video for those attending by Zoom.
This meeting was the last for Commissioner Jacob Anderson, who chose not to run in November, and we asked him to share accomplishments he was most proud of, both in 2024 and in his term in office. “We put in a new department,” he said. “We set it up in the shortest amount of time I’ve ever seen it. This year was pretty much chock full of getting the jail transitions done, making
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will reopen in a limited capacity by mid-January to basic tours without telescope observation or classroom programs and resume our regular winter operating schedule and services by Friday, February 7. All available appointment dates and times are now live at the Visit page of our website, GoldendaleObservatory.com We wanted to share with the community what has made these latest advancements possible: our visitors. The Washington State Capital Investment, which defined much of the previous decade mainly focused on permanent infrastructure, though not the day-to-day items associated with facility operations. The purchase and maintenance of equipment is generally covered by our operating budget, donations, and
gift shop proceeds. And in 2024, proceeds from the gift shop did 43 times the revenue we saw in 2013! No, that is not a typo: it was a 43-fold increase in sales. This is due not only to the quintupling of visitor counts since 2013, but also the addition of nifty keepsake and educational items marketed to the mainstream tourists whom we serve. We’ve sold over 2,000 glowin-the-dark T-shirts this biennium alone, not to mention many hundreds of plasma globes, fridge magnets, and other treasures. Whatever we’re doing seems to be working, and we greatly appreciate the support from our many patrons whose generosity fuels our expansion. For the first time in the history of Goldendale Observatory, we
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Goldendale reader board to be refurbished RODGER NICHOLS FOR THE SENTINEL The Goldendale City Council kicked off the first meeting on January 6 with a pair of presentations bringing good news. Brian Paul, a surgical technologist at KVH, who moved to Goldendale three years ago, offered to donate the money to replace city’s iconic “Welcome to Goldendale, Sportsman’s Paradise” reader board. Paul told the council how he had been an EMS technician in Yakima for 31 years and after “retiring” went back to college for added training as a surgical technician, which brought him to Klickitat Valley Health. He said he had fallen in love with Goldendale before he was able to
move here. “I am very interested in donating the funds to have our archway in downtown Goldendale refurbished,” he said. “What a great way to welcome people into our downtown with a nice fresh sign. That is why I want to donate the $22,000-plus dollars to have that sign completely refurbished.” Jason Jones of Cascade Sign Company attended by Zoom and said his company had worked with Paul on the design, which upgraded the existing sign while maintaining the intention of the original. A proposed design was included in the council packet, and after some discussion about colors, the council gave its consensus to move forward, with the under-
standing there would be more consultation before the project began. Lindsey McClure of Mid-Columbia Economic Development District also had the good news that their five-county district, which includes Klickitat and Skamania counties in Washington and Sherman, Wasco, and Hood River counties in Oregon had received a $1 million grant from the federal Environmental Protection Agency to distribute in the district. The grants are for studies involving contaminated properties, which are required before applying for cleanup grants. She told councilors that both public and private property owners can apply and that they won’t have to
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