Whatcom Land Title CEO receives lifetime achievement award
Former college pitching prospect makes Ferndale his home
Washington Land Title Association awards Lifetime Achievement Award. — News, A2
Local realtor Joshua Amberson helps run county softball league. — Sports, B1
JUNE 26, 2024
SINCE 1885
FERNDALE, WASHINGTON • $1.50
Future funding for organizational grants Ferndale City Council approves putting ARPA funds toward program By Racquel Muncy For the Record
FERNDALE — The Ferndale City Council had a healthy discussion during its meeting on Monday, June 17 regarding the Organizational Grants Program and use of American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding for the programming. The City of Ferndale needs to obligate the remaining about $1 million of ARPA funding by Dec. 31, 2023 and is looking at con-
verting $300,000 to the General Fund to be earmarked for the Organizational Grant Program. The Organization Grant Program was started in 2012 and provides grants annually to various human service organizations and economic development organizations. The goal is to enhance the quality of life for homeless, low-income and senior residents of Ferndale, as well as promoting economic development. According to City Administrator Jori Burnett the program normally has $30,000 budgeted annually. Staff has recommended the City create a one-time grant pool of $300,000 by converting ARPA funds to the General Fund. This would create two grants of up to $50,000 and the remaining grants be for a maximum of $20,000. This recommendation garnered a long discussion from
council that ultimately brought out a modified resolution. Council Member Jon Mutchler said he is in opposition. “I do not think it is healthy for the community since we can only do it one year,” he said. “I think we’re generous year after year.” Instead, Mutchler said he would rather see the funds dedicated to an infrastructure project that everyone can enjoy for the next several decades. “I’m not against these groups. We do support them every year,” he said. “But I’m against this use of $300,000 if we can give back to our citizens.” Council Member Erin Gunter said she was also uncomfortable with the proposal and said she too would like to see the money go toward an infrastructure project. Council Member Robert Pinkley said the ARPA funding
situation did not come from a place of sound economics and would prefer the money to just go back into the general fund. “This, this to me, is the epitomization of dirty money,” he said, adding that he would like it to get back into a system where people can access the funding equally. Council Member Ryan O’Larey pointed out that with the proposal the City Council retains power over the funds, whether that is to allocate all of the $300,000 distributed to the grant program or to only distribute the normal $30,000 and anything extra will sit in the fund for the next year. “It can be available for us for the next 10 years,” he said. “All this is doing really is transforming ARPA funds into general funds and then those general funds are sitting in this Organizational Grant pool and we’re giving ourselves the authority to disperse it
as we would like.” Mutchler said knowing the dynamics of the council and knowing there are many worthy organizations in the area, the council would likely not turn anyone away. Council Member Ali Hawkins said it was her understanding that converting the ARPA funds into the general fund was a way to bring more flexibility to the funds and that if need be the funds could be shifted at a later date. Council Member Herb Porter asked those in dissent what figure they would feel comfortable with for the grant program. Mutchler said he is comfortable with the normal $30,000. “I’m comfortable with what staff has done these last few years,” he said. See Funding on A5
New summer tour season at Pioneer Park
Through mid-September, Ferndale Heritage Society offers tours each summer of Pioneer Park Village. (Luke Seymour/Ferndale Record) By Luke Seymour Staff Reporter
FERNDALE — On May 20, Ferndale history was brought back to life as the Ferndale Heritage Society began its 2024 summer cabin touring season at Pioneer Park Village. Every year, the Ferndale Heritage Society offers visitors the opportunity to witness the origins of Ferndale and Whatcom County with tours of the village’s historic cabins. From now until Sept. 15, tours will be available from 11:30 a.m.
until 4 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays. Tours are $5 for adults, $3 for children ages 6-12. Each tour lasts roughly two hours and is given by an experienced guide dressed in era-accurate costumes Donated by local families and businesses throughout Whatcom County, each cabin was built at a time when Ferndale was just beginning to establish itself as a town. Some of those cabins date all the way back to the late 19th century. According to the Ferndale Heritage Society website, the Whatcom Old Settlers Associa-
tion began efforts in 1935 to relocate cabins from their initial construction sites to what is now Pioneer Village in order to preserve regional pioneer heritage. Each cabin houses unique and valuable items from the past that displays the culture of early settlers of the Pacific Northwest, such as the Jenni House, which was initially built as a stage coach stop for weary travelers to stay overnight in, as well as the Zion Congregation Church, which the Whatcom Old Settlers pamphlet claimed was the first church built in Whatcom County and is still a
popular place to hold small weddings. “Each person that comes in really just wants to see a piece of our history,” said Linda Harkleroad, vice president of the Ferndale Heritage Society. “There’s a lot of people who make up the whole of the Heritage Society but we’re all on the same page here: our goal is to preserve this culture for future generations.” Harkleroad said that outside of the annual Christmas celebration in the first week of December, the summer tour season is where the cabins see the most traffic.
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“Word gets out pretty quickly every summer,” Harkleroad said. “We get lots of people who are local to Whatcom but we also get a lot of people who are traveling from these great distances to come and see the cabins. Some of them are coming all the way up from Southern California or Portland and even a woman from China.” Harkleroad said that although she expects this summer to be a robust tour season, changes in technology and attention spans See Tour Season on A5
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