FREE
Community Newspaper of Blaine and Birch Bay
October 6 - 12, 2022
HHHECRWSSHHH Postal Customer
IN THIS
ISSUE
First Responders Salute, pages 8-9
Whatcom County Council news, page 3
PRSRT STD U. S. Postage PAID Permit NO. 87 Blaine, WA 98230
Thanksgiving basket registration, page 13
Blaine puts up a fight in homecoming game Jail release celebration turns into hit-and-run By Ian Haupt
s Senior quarterback Kael Evinger hands the ball off to sophomore Colby Shipp in Blaine High School’s homecoming game on September 30. Blaine’s football team took on Mount Baker High School during the hard-fought game at the Borderite stadium. Read more about this week’s sports on page 6. Photo by Ian Haupt
Oyster festival to take over downtown Blaine By Grace McCarthy Oyster festival organizers are busy preparing for what they hope to be the city’s new pearl of an event. The first-ofits-kind celebration will fill downtown Blaine with oyster contests, cooking demonstrations, vendors, live music, family games and more from noon to 6 p.m. Saturday, October 8. “It’s the first ever oyster festival so we hope the community comes out and supports it,” said Alex Wenger, the city of Blaine’s tourism and economic development director. “It will be a great opportunity to hear live music and celebrate.” Wenger, Drayton Harbor Oyster Company (DHO) and Blaine Chamber of Commerce are partnering to put on the festival. Seven Blaine restaurants will take part
in oyster contests where the public and professional judges will decide which restaurants have the best tasting and best presenting oysters. Each of the participating restaurants will be selling oysters for $2 a piece, which include The Vault, Gateway 1890 Taphouse, Black Forest Steakhouse, Chada Thai, Railway Café, Monte’s Just A Bite and Wheelhouse Tavern. People who vote on their favorite oysters will be entered to win DHO gift cards, DHO co-owner Steve Seymour said. DHO donated nearly 1,000 oysters to local restaurants for the contest. Semiahmoo Resort’s executive chef and executive sous chef will give a cooking demonstration and offer samples on G Street Plaza. DHO will have a limited menu with $2 cooked and raw oysters as (See Festival, page 5)
INSIDE
A Bellingham man, reportedly celebrating his release from jail, was allegedly speeding at a rate of 80-90 mph on Birch Bay Drive when he crashed into an 84-year-old driver October 1. Jordan Garth Pickett, 24, of Bellingham, was booked into Whatcom County Jail at 3:50 p.m. October 2 on hit-and-run, reckless driving and first-degree driving while license suspended charges. He was also charged with operating a vehicle without an ignition interlock, a breathalyzer that prevents someone from operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol. Around 6:30 p.m. October 1, Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) deputies were dispatched to a collision at the intersection of Birch Bay Drive and Shintaffer Road. Deputies found that a vehicle driven by Pickett was traveling at a high rate of speed and recklessly passing other vehicles along Birch Bay Drive, WCSO spokesperson Kevin Mede told The Northern Light in an email. Pickett’s vehicle hit another vehicle that was attempting to pull out from Shintaffer Road. The driver of the other vehicle was an 84-year-old woman who was transported to PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center in Bellingham for injuries. St. Joseph Medical Center spokesperson Beverly Mayhew said in an email the woman was discharged the same day. Witnesses, including the passenger in Pickett’s vehicle, said Pickett was traveling at speeds up to 65 mph faster than the 25 mph zone allows, Mede said. The passenger reported that Pickett was celebrating his release from jail and had been drinking. Pickett fled the scene on foot before deputies arrived, but he was taken into custody October 2 at his home in Bellingham and booked into Whatcom County Jail. Pickett was found guilty last October of third-degree assault, unlawful imprisonment and violating a protection order, according to court documents. He was scheduled to have a preliminary appearance October 3 in Whatcom County Superior Court. Mede said Birch Bay Drive currently does not have any radar speed signs.
TheNorthernLight
Coming Up . . . . . 14 Classifieds . . . . . 11 Letters . . . . . . . . . 4 Police . . . . . . . . . 14 Sports . . . . . . . . . . 6 Tides . . . . . . . . . . 14
@TNLreporter
@TheNorthernLightNews
TheNorthernLight.com
ThiFLYERS sWeek’s
Saturday OCTOBER DOWNTOWN BLAINE
H & G St. Plazas
on
Peace Portal Dr.
Noon - 6 PM See page 2 for details! STREET FAIR • OYSTER COOK-OFF • LIVE MUSIC • KIDS’ ACTIVITIES • GIVE-AWAYS
Rite Aid
8