April 11 - 17, 2024
FREE
Community Newspaper of Blaine and Birch Bay HHHECRWSSHHH Postal Customer
IN THIS
ISSUE
Architecture firm hired for Birch Bay library, page 4
Blaine softball stay State legislators to meet in Birch Bay, page 5 undefeated, page 6
PRSRT STD U. S. Postage PAID Permit NO. 87 Blaine, WA 98230
Blaine police ask for help in finding missing 15 year old Police notify public three months after teen was reported missing By Grace McCarthy
(See City, page 3)
BROUGHT TO YOU BY:
@TheNorthernLightNews
TheNorthernLight.com
lll ll l l l l l l l l l
l
lllllllll
NEW THIS YEAR
PROFESSIONAL
BBQ
COMPETITION!
ll l l l
llllllll
PRESENTED BY:
@TNLreporter
lllllllllll
ll ll lllll
FREE
ADMISSION!
Coming Up . . . . . 14 Classifieds . . 11, 12 Letters . . . . . . . . . 4 Police . . . . . . . . . 14 Sports . . . . . . . . 6, 7 Tides . . . . . . . . . . 14
llll
• Booths & Activities from 200 Whatcom County Businesses! • Fun Kids Activities • Beer Garden • Speakers • Scan QR for much more!
TheNorthernLight
l
llllllll
NWWA FAIR AND EVENT CENTER, LYNDEN, WA
l l l l ll
lll
APRIL 12 -14, 10 AM-6 PM
llll
lll
The latest news from the April 8 Blaine City Council meeting ... Open house on downtown parking The city of Blaine’s Community Development Services Department (CDS) hosted an open house on a proposal that would give developers the option to have reduced downtown parking requirements before the start of Blaine City Council’s April 8 meeting. Blaine Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on the proposal at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 11 at city hall. The open house brought back-andforth discussion between CDS director Alex Wenger and about a dozen people who attended. Wenger told attendees
nearly all developers have backed out of building on the westside of Peace Portal Drive, except for Drayton Harbor Oyster Company, and developers have asked that the city reduce its parking requirements. Wenger added that it was common for other cities, such as Sedro-Woolley and Anacortes, to reduce parking. “We’re trying to reduce parking so we can increase the area people live,” Wenger said at the open house. The residential parking changes would be optional, with up to a 50 percent reduction in residential parking for developers on the west side of Peace Portal Drive in the downtown core. The
Saturday & Sunday!
llllllllll
By Grace McCarthy
INSIDE
Blaine City Council: A freedom of speech protest, downtown parking proposal and more
llll
(See Rajan, page 2)
s A group of seven protesters silently stood with tape covering their mouths and held signs during what historically was the public comment portion of the Blaine City Council meeting on April 8. The group was protesting mayor Mary Lou Steward’s recent decision to limit public comments to written submissions only. Steward made the change following a number of council meetings that had been disrupted by a small but unruly group who ignored calls of order. Photo by Grace McCarthy
lll
Blaine Police Department has announced that it needs the public’s help looking for a 15 year old who has been missing for over three months. Rajan Chand, of Blaine, is described as being 5 feet 11 inches, 190 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. Rajan left home the evening of December 28, 2023 and has not contacted family since. Rajan’s father, Dipakh Chand, told The Northern Light that Rajan left all belongings at home, including a passport, ID and clothing. The family doesn’t know for certain what Rajan was wearing but believes it may have been nightwear. “Rajan is someone who would not leave the house,” Dipakh said. “He’s a very kind, polite, heartfelt and caring person. … He’s always very well dressed up and cares a lot about his family, and that’s what shocks us how he has just left us.” BPD asks that anyone with information on Rajan’s disappearance call 911. In an April 5 Facebook post, BPD circulated a Washington State Patrol (WSP) missing persons poster of Rajan. Family members last saw the teenager on December 28, though the poster states Rajan was last seen the day before. Rajan’s mother reported to a public entity around 9 a.m. December 29 that Rajan left their home at 6 p.m. December 28. After friends told the family that they didn’t know anything about Rajan’s disappearance, Rajan’s parents officially reported their child as a runaway to Blaine police January 2. “We kept it down low. We thought ‘he’s probably at his friends or something’ and it’s been a while that he hasn’t come home so we started searching,” Dipakh said. “It was out of our hands so we handed it to the police.” Rajan was entered as a missing person/ runaway in the National Crime Information Center’s (NCIC) Missing Person and Unidentified Person files on January 2, BPD sergeant Tim Richardson wrote in an email