June 23 - 29, 2022
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Birch Bay man arrested for child molestation, page 3 22
Thunder Run emergency drill, page 6
Esteemed artist starts Blaine art council, page 9
PRSRT STD U. S. Postage PAID Permit NO. 87 Blaine, WA 98230
Primary school teacher awarded for hard work
27 th
City council discusses new police station By Grace McCarthy
(See Station, page 3)
s The Lynden/Ferndale International Masonic Lodge presented Emily Olsen, a Blaine Primary School special education teacher, with Blaine school district’s 2021-22 Educator of the Year award at the June 20 school board meeting. From l.; Blaine school district superintendent Christopher Granger, school board member Dougal Thomas and Olsen. Photo by Ian Haupt
Domestic and sexual violence response efforts continue in Blaine and Whatcom County By Grace McCarthy Susan Marks, director of the Bellingham-Whatcom County Commission on Sexual and Domestic Violence, spoke to Blaine City Council about addressing domestic violence and sexual assault in the community at council’s June 13 meeting. The commission was created in 1998 and is made up of 17 government and 14 community members selected by the county executive and Bellingham mayor from stakeholders and agencies. The commission works to better address systematic problems and support survivors. “We really want every agency, every professional, every person who interacts with a survivor of domestic violence to have the skills and tools they need to provide the best practice response,” Marks said during the meeting. “And we want comprehensive prevention in Whatcom County.” Blaine Police Department chief Donnell Tanksley serves on the commission as the police chief representative for Whatcom County cities. His term expires January 2024. The police department received the most domestic violence calls in the past decade in 2016 with 144 reports. In 2020, Blaine received the third highest number
of domestic violence calls in the past decade with 135 reports, according to data the commission provided. For sexual assaults within Blaine city limits, six were reported in 2020, three in 2019, one in 2018 and five in 2017, when the commission started collecting sexual assault reports. However, sexual assault and domestic violence are highly underreported crimes, Marks said, with only about one out of 10 survivors reporting. Sexual assault reports are so low that it’s hard to determine a trend, Marks said. Blaine has lower sexual assault reporting numbers than other similar-sized areas in the county, she added. “As for Blaine Police Department, I can say Tank is proactive,” she said. “He’s looking for trauma-informed responses training for his officers. A lot of that can change the way officers think about and talk to victims, understanding more about the trauma response.” Whatcom County had the highest number of domestic violence calls in the past decade in 2014, with 3,316 reports, according to data collected from all of the county’s law enforcement agencies, including Blaine. In 2020, the county had the fourth highest number of domestic violence calls in the past decade. The lowest number of calls in the county was
in 2012, with 2,839 domestic violence reports. “An increase in 2020 and since seems to be a trend in Whatcom County law enforcement agencies’ domestic violence calls for service,” Marks said. “A lot of speculation is mirroring national data that during the lockdown people were at home with their abusive partners.” She added increased public awareness of domestic violence, especially during the beginning of the pandemic, may have (See Presentation, page 5)
INSIDE
Blaine City Council discussed what the future of the police station could look like following a unanimous vote to approve a demolition bid at the old city hall property. After being given several options, council unanimously voted for staff to prepare a preliminary report on the cost to develop a full-scale police station that would last decades. “The city needs to move forward on a project that we put on hold as a result of Covid-19 breaking out,” city manager Michael Jones said during the June 13 meeting. Before the pandemic, council authorized city staff to pursue $2.5 million for a police station annex that would include an evidence facility. The $2.5 million was put on hold and the city has been using temporary evidence containers since. In February, council asked staff to prepare an assessment of potential three-acre police station sites outside of downtown. City staff searched for new sites that were either in central or east Blaine, no less than 2.5-acres and currently undeveloped, according to a city memo. Adjacent right of ways, zoning designation, whether a police station is an allowed use in the zone, two or more adjacent streets, presence of critical areas, and public or private ownership were also indicated for each parcel. The city found nine properties, the highest ranked being a private 2.5-acre property on 14th and G streets and a fiveacre city-owned property on E and Allan streets. Although the best contenders, city staff recommended dismissing the 14th and G streets site because it would require construction of 14th Street, which would add a large project cost. The E and Allan streets site was also dismissed because it is located within a residential area and may have large geotechnical expenses. “Six properties ranked at or near the top. However, each of those properties had one or more challenges that could prove to be a fatal flaw,” Jones wrote in the city memo. “They were not properly zoned, or they had critical areas, or
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