February 13 -19, 2025
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IN THIS
ISSUE
Semiahmoo fire station update, page 3
Blaine City Council to consider bringing back oral comment
Sheriff to speak about incorporation, page 3
PRSRT STD U. S. Postage PAID Permit NO. 87 Blaine, WA 98230
Blaine dog wins at Westminster, page 5
Preschool teacher honored for saving child’s life
By Grace McCarthy
(See Council, page 3)
s Blaine mayor Mary Lou Steward, r., recognized Loni Berg, c., a caregiver at More Smiles Learning Center, for performing lifesaving CPR on Ramona Giese, c., who was choking on food on January 7. Giese’s mother, Emily, l., also participated in the proclamation reading. “Loni Berg’s quick and decisive actions exemplify exceptional care and dedication to the children under her supervision,” Steward said during the Blaine City Council meeting on February 10, before the audience erupted in applause for Berg’s actions. Photo by Grace McCarthy
Deputy injured in accidental firearm discharge By Grace McCarthy A Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) deputy was transported to St. Joseph Medical Center in Bellingham for non-life-threatening injuries after a firearm accidentally discharged while conducting an arrest on February 11. WCSO deputies responded to assist Lynden Police Department with a 52-year-old Blaine man who fled after brandishing a firearm in the 8000 block of Guide Meridian, according to a WCSO news release. The suspect was then pulled over and taken into custody without incident. After the arrest, a firearm that was recovered was accidentally discharged, injuring a deputy, according to the WCSO.
The deputy has since been released from the hospital. The Bellingham Police Department is investigating how the firearm was accidentally discharged. The WCSO declined to provide additional information, citing the ongoing investigation. Lynden Police Department booked the man into Whatcom County Jail for second-degree assault, third-degree malicious mischief and third-degree theft. “Every day our deputies stand between harm and the community we are sworn to serve,” wrote Sheriff Donnell “Tank” Tanksley in a statement. “While there is always a risk to deputies, events like today’s are (See WCSO, page 3)
INSIDE
Blaine City Council is expected to introduce a motion at its next meeting on Monday, February 24 that could return oral public comment to council meetings after it was banned a year ago. Mayor Mary Lou Steward stopped letting people make three-minute public comments at the February 12, 2024 council meeting after a small group started throwing accusations at council members and city staff. The group was so disruptive that Blaine Police Department began sending officers to meetings to keep things under control. Councilmember Eric Lewis brought up reintroducing oral comment to fellow councilmembers during the February 10 meeting. Lewis’ proposal needed support from two other council members for the motion to be placed on the next meeting’s agenda, and councilmembers Sonia Hurt and Richard May provided that support. Three councilmembers, the mayor or city manager have the authority to put items on the agenda. A couple of members of the public hollered and fist pumped following the support from the three councilmembers. Blaine residents Donna Newman and Tina Erwin, who were involved in the initial public comments, held signs throughout the meeting on a variety of concerns, one of which advocated for oral public comment. The state’s Open Public Meetings Act, which outlines rules for government agencies, only requires governing bodies to accept public comment either by oral or written testimony, though most agencies accept both. State law also allows members of the public to be removed if they are deemed disruptive. The city has continued to allow written comment. In October 2023, public comment became tense following city council’s approval of a zoning text amendment that allowed large manufactured home parks in east Blaine. Distrust grew between east Blaine residents against the zoning change and the city, and a subgroup that called
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