There was no shortage of news for Sequim in 2024.

On a national scale, the long-standing bellwether streak for picking the president went kaput in Clallam County. Sequim’s Pearle Peterson was asked to sing again at the World Series representing the Boys & Girls Clubs of America.

There were new local leaders elected or appointed, many projects started and/or planned, countless positive and not so positive happenings, and so much more. Be sure to look at the Gazette’s website for even more recaps and photos.

Here are some of the many highlights from Sequim’s 2024:

January

• Clearing out trees began on the Rolling Hills housing project in January to develop 215 homes along South Seventh Avenue on 44-plus acres. No homes have been built yet, but roads and utilities were installed throughout the year and city staff anticipate many homes being constructed in 2025.

• Commissioners with Clallam County Fire District 3 discussed selling the Lost Mountain Station and after months of public outreach and attempts to recruit volunteers, the property was listed and later sold in November for $324,000 to a neighbor, with proceeds going to support future construction of a new Carlsborg station.

Fire district commissioners also hired Justin Grider, Fire District 2 deputy chief, to succeed Ben Andrews. Grider started with FD3 in March.

• In mid-January, an approximate half-foot of snow hit Sequim including a handful of days going down to single digit temperatures which froze and caused pipes to burst across the Sequim area, including the George Washington Inn, Cedars at Dungeness and dozens of residences.

• In January, Black Press, owners of Sound Publishing — parent company of the Sequim Gazette, Peninsula Daily News and Forks Forum — announced an intended sale (that was completed in March) to Canadian institutional investors Canso Investment Counsel, Deans Knight Capital Management and Carpenter Media Group.

• Blake Tile and Stone, 490 S. Blake Ave., sold to long-time employee Jordan Pavlak and his wife Kirsten, effective Jan. 1.

• Discussions continued between homeowners, Sequim Prairie-Tri Irrigation Association (SPTIA) and the Clallam Conservation District over concerns about piping more than 10,000 feet of Sequim’s original irrigation ditch through the City of Sequim. Some residents shared concerns about their wells drying up, trees and wildlife dying, and potential safety issues from the pipes. However, SPTIA shareholders held a special meeting in May with a majority of members reversing a decision to oust board members at its annual meeting in February and withdraw from the piping project. The project, the “Irrigation Efficiencies and Improvement Project,” had not begun by year’s end.

Photo by Emily Matthiessen / Three current members of the Sequim Prairie Garden Club, from left Priscilla Hudson, Vina Winters and Kathy Steichen, stand beneath native white oak, Quercus Garyana, known as Garry Oak. The Garden Club is responsible for clearing a weed and blackberry choked 4 acres of land and transforming it into an arboretum and garden known as the Pioneer Memorial Park over the last 70 years.

• Sequim’s Pioneer Memorial Park was officially granted certification as a Level I Arboretum by the ArbNet Arboretum Accreditation Program and the Morton Arboretum. It’s the only official arboretum on the Olympic Peninsula, said Sequim Prairie Garden Club members, who have tended the park for 70-plus years.

Sequim Gazette photo by Michel Dashiell Sequim High School athletes, students and coaches, along with representatives from the Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce, celebrate the school’s newly-refurbished floor inside the Rick Kaps Gymnasium with a ribbon-cutting prior to a basketball doubleheader on Jan. 20. The floor was paid for by voters who approved a four-year, $15 million capital projects levy in February 2021.

• In sports, Sequim School District athletes, coaches and staff along with the Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce dedicated the newly resurfaced basketball court with a ribbon cutting in the Rick Kaps Gymnasium on Jan. 20. The floor was paid for by voters who approved a four-year, $15 million capital projects levy in February 2021.

Photo courtesy of Randy Perry Sequim Wolves Bowling League champs! Sequim High School’s bowling team celebrates the program’s first Olympic League title on Jan. 18 in Silverdale. Pictured, from left, are Kimberly Heintz, Morgan Kayser, Victoria Nava, head coach Randy Perry, Skylar Kryzworz, Nikoline Updike and Cooper Hiatt.

• Sequim High School’s bowling team won its first Olympic League title in January after 23 seasons and more than 240 matches since their inception. Later in the year, the Wolves also earned the program’s third overall academic state title with Kimberly Heintz, Cooper Hiatt, Morgan Kayser, Skylar Kryzworz, Victoria Nava and Nikoline Updike holding a combined 3.895 grade-point-average to top all class 2A teams in Washington state.

• Clallam Transit System started a one-year pilot program to eliminate fares on fixed routes, Clallam Connect, Interlink and Dial a Ride starting Jan. 1. Its board of directors voted in September for another year of zero fares for the same programming, with fares still applying to the Strait Shot (Route 123) and Hurricane Ridge Shuttle.

“In terms of ridership, the results of zero fare at Clallam Transit have been quite positive,” said General Manager Jim Fetzer.

With early press deadlines prior to the end of the year, the following Clallam Transit staff estimates for 2024: Countywide, Clallam Fixed Routes rose 143,911 riders from 2022 to 2023, and another 174,192 from 2023 to 2024 (801,029 total in 2024).

Sequim Interlink Microtransit increased from 8,709 rides in 2023 to about 14,000 in 2024.

Clallam Connect increased about 7,800 riders in 2024.

Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash Mike Hill takes his oath of office on March 1 from acting city clerk Heather Robley to become the City of Sequim’s new police chief.

February

• Long-time police officer Mike Hill was named the City of Sequim’s next police chief in February to succeed retiring chief Sheri Crain. Hill joined the Sequim Police Department in 1998 as a reserve police officer and was hired full-time in August 2001. He was a K-9 officer for about a decade too. Crain was hired as an officer on Feb. 26, 1991, and named Police Chief in December 2016. She retired at the end of the month.

Sequim Gazette file photo by Michael Dashiell Barb Brabant, Welfare For Animals Guild (WAG) president, looks over Casey, an estimated 18-month-old Great Dane with severe injuries, at the WAG Half Way Home Ranch in Sequim in February.

• Found in the woods in February near Beaver Lake with gunshot wounds that fractured his jaw and left him unable to eat, Casey, a Great Dane, was rushed to Pacific Northwest Veterinary Hospital and spent months healing at the WAG Halfway Home Ranch. Community members fundraised for Casey’s care and WAG representatives announced he was adopted in May.

• The “Remember Me” mural, a collaboration between Sequim artist Melissa Klein and American Legion-Jack Grennan Post No. 62 was announced for the building’s south and west sides at 107 E. Prairie St. to honor veterans and recognize the myriad of activities the legions’ members do. Klein and the post held a mural unveiling on July 20.

• Following a need in the Sequim and Port Angeles areas, Jamestown Healing Clinic staff announced plans to start bringing a retrofitted RV, or mobile medication unit, from Sequim to Clallam County Fire District 5’s fire station in Clallam Bay five days a week for opioid use disorder treatment. The mobile unit features an exam room, a lab, enclosed medicine dispensary and a counseling area with walls/ screens and noise-cancelling devices to protect privacy.

• Jamestown S’Klallam Tribal leaders celebrated the tribe’s remodeled and expanded library on Feb. 24 at 10170 Old Blyn Road. It had been under construction since January 2022.

• Ariya Goettling was crowned the 129th Sequim Irrigation Festival queen on Feb. 24 with Ashlynn Northaven, Sophia Treece and Kailah Blake chosen as princesses at a pageant. They were judged in prior interviews, impromptu stage questions, a creative display and modeling of evening attire. They appeared at events throughout the summer representing Sequim and will each receive college scholarships for their efforts.

• Olympic Peninsula Humane Society hired a new director, Jason Stipp, in February and in June, both the society’s Bark House, 1743 Old Olympic Highway, and Kitty City, 91 S. Boyce Road, opened to the public for adoption. However, about a month later Stipp resigned and board members closed the Bark House to the public leaving locals and municipalities without a place to take animals for adoption. In July, Stipp said the dog shelter closed due to unsustainable high operating costs, an unprecedented number of animal surrenders and the ongoing costs for running two campuses.

Since then, some agencies/groups, including WAG, have stepped up to handle emergency sheltering of animals for municipalities in Clallam County. OPHS board members announced plans to tentatively reopen the Bark House this month for up to 10 dogs before eventually expanding to a maximum of 25 dogs.

• Renne Brock was awarded the Sequim-Dungeness Chamber of Commerce’s 2023 Citizen of the Year by a committee of former winners at the annual awards luncheon on Feb. 27th. For nearly two decades, she’s produced and sponsored Sequim’s First Friday Art Walk, served as director for the North Olympic Fiber Arts Festival, and volunteered for many other efforts, such as in Sequim’s Botanical Garden.

March

• The fifth-annual Sequim Sunshine Festival pushed through limited sun with a big turn out for its Sun Fun Color Run and drone show. The event continues on March 7-8.

Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash / Attendees enjoy a drone show that capped events at the 2024 Sequim Sunshine Festival on March 2.

• Sequim Library, 630 N. Sequim Ave., was closed on March 9 in order to move operations to a temporary location at 609 W. Washington St., Suite 21. The library reopened April 1 as Hoch Construction worked to expand and renovate the current building. A groundbreaking ceremony occurred on April 24. The approximate $7.5 million construction project is slated to open in the spring. It’ll feature more space, new equipment, parking lot, play area and furniture. Follow progress at nols.org/sequim.

Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash Rachel Tax talks to her four-year-old son AJ while he reads a book in the children’s section of the Sequim Library on March 9. She said they visited one last time before it closes temporarily for construction so that her daughter Anna-Marie could check out some cat books for a 4-H report.

• Sequim Noon Rotary Club announces plans in March to cease club operations in July after being in active service in the area for 93 years. One of its most famous fundraisers was its annual salmon bake, held for 52 years. Members helped with many other efforts, including organizing the Sequim Irrigation Festival Grand Parade, funding for Sequim High School (SHS) band uniforms, fundraising for and building the Sequim Library, establishing and funding the Sequim Boys & Girls Club’s Carroll C. Kendall unit, and much more.

Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash This spring, Starbucks is offering lavender drinks that were partly inspired by beverage development team members’ visit to Sequim last year. The new drinks, include, from left, Iced Lavender Oatmilk Latte, Lavender Crème Frappuccino Blended Beverage, and Iced Lavender Cream Oatmilk Matcha.

• In March, Starbucks launched a line of lavender-inspired drinks that stemmed from beverage developers’ trip to Sequim. They visited Sequim in July 2023 and spent most of their time at Lavender Connection, 1141 Cays Road, where they cut and smelled lavender, and learned about and participated in a lavender oil distillation, according to a spokesperson

The limited edition drinks they developed included an Iced Lavender Cream Oatmilk Matcha, Iced Lavender Oatmilk Latte and the Lavender Crème Frappuccino Blended Beverage.

Rebecca Olson, co-owner of Lavender Connection, said the national attention from the drinks seemed to have brought more interest to Sequim’s lavender farms.

“We’ve definitely had an uptick in interest in culinary lavender,” she said.

“Sequimians know you can eat it because all the local restaurants and coffee shops have been adding it to food and drinks for years. But in other parts of the country and world, it’s much less common.”

April

• State Department of Transportation officials discussed installation of four roundabouts on U.S. Highway 101 between Sequim and Port Angeles, such as at the Old Olympic Highway, Taylor Cutoff Road, and Simdars Road intersections. In June, plans were said to have been updated with the Old Olympic Highway roundabout recategorized now as a long-term project, and a Mill Road roundabout a near-term project. Funding had not been set, officials said.

• In April, the Washington Chapter of the National Wrestling Hall of Fame announced Sequim’s Randall Tomaras would be inducted into the chapter and permanently recognized in the National Wrestling Hall of Fame and Museum in Stillwater, Okla. for “Lifetime Service” including five decades coaching and promoting wrestling. He was honored on May 4 in Federal Way.

• John Brewer, who led the Peninsula Daily News from 1998 to 2015 and, for the last two years of his tenure as publisher of the Sequim Gazette and Forks Forum, died April 19 while he was fishing in Montana. He was 76. Brewer came to Port Angeles after years heading up The Associated Press bureaus in Seattle and Los Angeles and as president of The New York Times Syndication Sales Corp. A remembrance event was held on June 8.

• The Sequim Equestrian Team won its third consecutive District 4 Small Teams title after Sequim riders racked up 11 gold medals, 15 silver and bronzes, and several other individual honors at the third and final district meet of the season, held at Grays Harbor Fairgrounds in Elma April 11-14. They went on to earn nine top-10 finishes at the 2024 Washington High School Equestrian Team (WAHSET) state meet held May 16-19 in Moses Lake.

• Nicole Hartman, Clallam Public Utility District’s communications and government relations manager, was appointed to the Sequim City Council Position 7 in April to replace former mayor Tom Ferrell, who resigned the previous month. She will serve through certification of the 2025 general election, and then voters decide who will complete the rest of Ferrell’s term through 2027.

• In April, Sequim’s Black Bear Diner, 1471 E. Washington St., was awarded Franchise of the Year for the second time at the annual owners’ conference.

Image courtesy City of Sequim/ City of Sequim councilors chose the “Flow” design in April for Centennial Place at the northeast corner of Washington Street and Sequim Avenue.

• City councilors chose the “Flow” design for Centennial Park (purchased by the city in 2013, Sequim’s centennial year) at the corner of Sequim Avenue and Washington Street. Some of the park’s early design work includes a sundial that can be converted into a space for the annual Christmas tree, “Sequim” letters up to 42 inches tall, a 2% sloped “viewing” lawn towards a boardwalk/stage, rain garden, and more.

City staff budgeted up to $100,000 from impact fees to finish the design work this year but still need about $2.8 million in outside funding for the project, according to city staff.

Photos courtesy Chelsea Reichner/ A mural in Sequim High School honors 2020 graduate Alissa Lofstrom who started the mural in 2019 but had to stop due to Covid-19 shutdowns. She died in 2021 in a fall but past and current students finished her mural for the Interact Club.

• A new mural in Sequim High School went up in H-Building to honor 2020 graduate Alissa Lofstrom who started the mural in 2019 as part of a beautification effort by the school’s Interact Club to brighten hallways. However, she had to stop due to Covid-19 shutdowns. Lofstrom died in 2021 from a fall but Rae Douglas, a 2023 SHS graduate, continued the project before graduating, and Melia Nelson, a senior this school year, finished it in March 2024. Nelson, also an Interact Club member, said she tried to keep Lofstrom and Douglas’ styles intact and she added Alissa’s portrait in the “A” of “Interact.”

• In April, public meetings began between developers of Seabrook and local residents about a tentative proposal to build upwards of 600 homes of varying sizes and densities, along with some small commercial structures on about 160 acres adjacent to West Sequim Bay Road.

Seabrook CEO Casey Roloff said in April that while his company did not own the property, it has rights to purchase property owned by John Wayne’s heirs near the marina that bears his name.

He said that John Wayne Enterprises president Ethan Wayne, the son of the late actor John Wayne, reached out to his company about 10 years ago about a deal for the site.

• Phyllis Bernard started May 1 as a Clallam County Public Utility District commissioner after being appointed to fill Jim Waddell’s seat, who had served the PUD since 2019 and died on Feb. 5 of pancreatic cancer. Bernard ran for the seat in November and narrowly defeated Ken Simpson.

Sequim Gazette photo by Elijah Sussman / New owner Carly Rasmussen stands in front of The Oasis Bar and Grill in Sequim on May 3.

May

• In May, the Gazette featured Carly Rasmussen as the new owner of The Oasis Bar & Grill at 301 E. Washington St. She was an employee for eight years before fulfilling her dream of owning a restaurant and when now-former owner Dale Dunning mentioned to her that he was looking to retire and would be selling, she jumped at the opportunity to take this step into a new phase of life.

• Aline Jones, 44, was sentenced to 20 years and four months in prison on May 7 in Clallam County Superior Court for killing the daughter of a deceased man for whom she had been a caregiver. Jones previously pleaded guilty to the second-degree murder of Susan M. Ferrel, 65, of Nevada with a deadly weapon enhancement. Ferrel’s body was found Oct. 26, 2023 at a Diamond Point home that belonged to her late father, Raymond Rhodes. Jones had worked as a caretaker for Rhodes, who died Oct. 14 at 93, and she continued living in the home after he died.

• A public hearing with the Clallam County hearing examiner was held in mid-May and later approved for Carlsborg Village, a 194-lot development on 40.7 acres west of Carlsborg Road between Runnion and Spath roads. A second public hearing was held in November with the developer, Carlsborg Village of Silverdale, asking to install a sewer line through Matriotti Creek. Hearing examiner Stephanie Marshall approved the request on Dec. 2 with various conditions, including a 127-foot buffer consistent with other conditions.

• Sequim High’s Clare Turella, then a freshman, won the state high jump title at the state 2A track and field championships in late May. She was the first freshman in the program’s history to win a state title after clearing 5-2, and overcoming a field of 18 competitors. A week prior, she won a district title with a personal best 5-3 mark.

Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash/ Leaders of LtCol James Minsky Place near South Seventh Avenue in Sequim look to find five more disabled and/or elderly veterans to live permanently in the facility that was opened last week.

• Thanks to a donation of more than $922,000 from James Minsky to Sarge’s Veteran Support in his will, the nonprofit veterans agency was able to purchase, remodel and hire a case manager for five years for LtCol James Minsky Place, a permanent housing facility for six elderly and/or disabled veterans in Sequim on the 400 block of Salal Place, off McCurdy Road.

Staff and volunteers held a dedication on May 17 and an open house on May 18.

Cheri Tinker, executive director for Sarge’s Place, said last week they have five of the six beds filled and an application pending for the sixth.

She said they look to plant blueberries and raspberries on the south side of the house, create some Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) garden beds in the back and some low maintenance plants in the front and north side yards.

To support landscaping efforts, contact Sarge’s Veteran Support online at SargesVeteranSupport.com or call 360-374-5252.

June

• Sequim city councilors unanimously agreed to finalize a $2.45 million purchase of 16.52 acres of farmland for a future park in May, with its location on the north side of the 800 block of West Hendrickson Road between Kendall Road and North Seventh Avenue, not revealed by city staff until its sale closed in June.

The acreage, now called Ruth C. McCord Memorial Park, was sold by family members to honor the wishes of McCord who wanted the land to be used as a park for children and seniors. City staff said the site was one of four possible future park locations identified on a 2015 land use map. The park was dedicated on Oct. 25. Funding for park development will require grants, city staff said.

• City councilors approved a new noise ordinance on June 10 after 10-plus years without one. Sequim Police leaders and city staff said the code is more subjective, and allows any resident to file a complaint. Police will always seek compliance first, they said.

At the same meeting, a series of hate rhetoric was shared in three public comments that led councilors and staff to require pre-approval for online comments at meetings going forward.

Sequim Gazette photo by Michael Dashiell / Sequim High School’s Class of 2024 celebrates following the conclusion of their graduation ceremony at Stáʔčəŋ Stadium on June 14. Almost 170 of the approximate 180 SHS graduates participate in the ceremony.

• Sequim High School saw nearly 170 graduates participate in the annual ceremony in June.

• Boys & Girls Clubs of the Olympic Peninsula staff celebrated CEO Mary Budke’s 20th anniversary after starting in the Sequim club kitchen in June 2004 and working her way up in leadership roles with the organization.

July

• A new Agricultural Accessory Uses ordinance with guidelines for farms countywide went into effect July 5 after decades without regulations for items such as farm store sizes, farm stands, and activities, such as U-pick, farm tours, and much more. County officials started discussions in November 2023 following complaints filed about Sequim area lavender farms the previous summer, despite no formal complaints for many years, staff said.

Farmers met for months with county officials to work on regulations, which led to county commissioners approving the code change in late June. Many farmers said they were OK with the changes in mid-July, but some were still weighing the expenses of permitting and required changes versus the revenues they earn.

• Clallam County Fire District 3 fire commissioners agreed in July to hire the district’s first community paramedic. District leaders later appointed firefighter/paramedic Mark Karjalainen to start Sept. 1 with the intent in part to help reduce/eliminate frequent 9-1-1 calls from certain households and connect them with needed services.

Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash/ Marylaura Ramponi originally pledged $1 million in July for naming rights for the Ramponi Center for Technical Excellence, a vocational building at Sequim High School. Here she donates a $500,000 check on Oct. 17 to Sequim School District superintendent Regan Nickels The check was made in honor of Marylaura’s husband Louie, as it would have been his 89th birthday. She plans to give another $500,000 on her birthday in March.

• On July 15, Sequim resident Marylaura Ramponi offered $1 million for the naming rights to Sequim School District’s vocational center, now to be known as The Ramponi Center for Technical Excellence.

The center also received nearly $5 million from state legislators in the 2024 supplemental budget to support Phase 1: a 10,000-square-foot structure with two large bays and two or three classrooms that would serve the district’s automotive and construction classes.

On Oct. 17, Marylaura donated half of the funds on Louie’s 89th birthday and she plans to give the other half on her birthday (March 28, 2025). School Superintendent Regan Nickels said Ramponi’s donation allows the school district to begin portions of the construction phase apart from the grant funding cycle. Crews will tentatively break ground in spring or summer 2025 on Phase 1 and complete it about a year later.

Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash Donna Staus and her granddaughter Jordyn Mancuso-Staus cut the ribbon for the Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce during a ceremony recognizing the finished remodel of the Sequim Walmart. The ceremony also recognized Staus’ husband Lynie who passed away in May, and worked for Walmart for nearly 24 years.

August

• Sequim Walmart employees and community leaders celebrated the completion of a months-long remodel of the 20-year-old store at 1110 W. Washington St. on Aug. 2. It included new floors, signage, a mural and more. A ribbon cutting with the Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce was held, local nonprofits received donations from Walmart, and employees John-Paul and Jessica Davis honored long-time employee Lynie Staus who died May 1 after a battle with cancer.

Staus’ wife Donna and their granddaughter Jordyn Mancuso-Staus cut the ceremonial ribbon for the remodel.

Photo courtesy of Shipley Center / Eileen Schmitz, JACE Real Estate owner and Shipley Center board member, presents the keys of the former JCPenney building at 651 W. Washington St. to Shipley Center executive director Michael Smith following the center’s Aug. 8 purchase of the building. At far left is Joyce Gladen of JACE Real Estate, and second from left is Shipley Center board secretary Margaret Cox.

• Shipley Center representatives publicly announced in August the purchase of the former JCPenney building at 651 W. Washington St. for its operations as Sequim’s senior center. Escrow closed on the $2.8 million all-cash sale Aug. 8, after all inspections were completed.

The 29,000-square-foot building in the Sequim Village Center was leased to JCPenney from 1994-2021, and has since been vacant. The building outsizes both of the Shipley Center’s current building on East Hammond Street and its proposed health and wellness annex building by about 10,000 square feet, said executive director Michael Smith.

Through Sequim Senior Services, the nonprofit that operates Shipley Center, officials will look to sell the property earmarked for its proposed annex on East Hammond Street, across from the current center, at 921 E. Hammond St., as well as 5.8 acres of land on Washington Harbor Loop that center members had previously targeted for its expanded center in the 2010s.

The current center could also be sold but would require upgrading, Smith said.

As for a move-in date? Smith said he’s likely being optimistic in saying the Shipley Center could file for occupancy permits and open in 18 months to two years, after fundraising and renovations are complete.

• Department of Transportation officials announced three roadwork projects along U.S. Highway 101 to remove barriers to fish in or near Sequim – Johnson Creek (MILEPOST 267.1), Unnamed Tributary No. 2 (271.8) and Contractor’s Creek (277.9) – will continue into fall 2025. The intersection of Whitefeather Way and U.S. Highway 101 will remain closed during the Johnson Creek abatement project but the Olympic Discovery Trail is still accessible at Whitefeather Way.

• Voters in Public Hospital District 2 approved a levy lid lift that will increase Olympic Medical Center’s property tax collection rate from 31 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value to 75 cents per $1,000, the maximum amount allowed under state law. The levy will generate about $12 million a year, nearly double the amount OMC currently collects.

In December, OMC’s board agreed to explore partnering with another healthcare system to ensure the hospital’s long-term viability, support its staff and providers, and continue to deliver care. Proposals will be reviewed on Feb. 19, 2025 with a final decision expected on May 7 whether to proceed or not.

• The Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced a co-stewardship agreement on Aug. 16 for the Dungeness and Protection Island National Wildlife Refuges, with the Tribe taking over the day-to-day management of the refuges. Tribal representatives wrote via press release that they’ll follow Comprehensive Conservation Plans for the refuges. The agreement drew a petition of 800-plus people against the agreement with concerns over oyster farming negatively impacting the landscape and water quality.

Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash/ The Gathering Ground’s first phase is open dawn to dusk to community members and is inclusive for children of all abilities.

• The first phase of Olympic View Church’s four-phase community park project “The Gathering Ground” saw a soft opening on Aug. 16 at 503 N. Brown Road. Children and adults sampled the new swing set, ziplines, preschool play set, merry-go-round (“Inclusive Whirl”), spinning pyramid (“Cyclo Cone Pyramid”) and stationary musical instruments. The next phases include a pavilion for phase 2, a concrete log and hill/slide play structure for phase 3, and poured-in place rubber throughout instead of wood chips for phase 4. More information is available at gatheringgroundsequim.com.

September

• More than two years into the joint venture to restore Sequim’s 85-foot-tall downtown building, Ryan Schaafsma and Jason Hoffman shared an update in September about their efforts.

The duo said they’re set on hosting a full taproom/restaurant in the site’s south-facing side; three short-term “apartment”-sized rentals in the heart of the structure, and on the north end, a coffee bar and hangout space at 531 W. Washington St.

At the time of the interview, the friends said it’s likely at least another year of work before opening up the site for business operations, and probably 18 months before a full opening with all three portions in operation. The pair bought the property and began renovations in May 2022 and since then has posted their progress at facebook.com/thesequimgranary.

Photo courtesy of Ryan Schaafsma The site of a mill, granary/grain elevator, a mall, restaurants and more, “Sequim’s skyscraper” at 531 W. Washington St. is being prepped for a trio of businesses by natives Jason Hoffman and Ryan Schaafsma.

• Various federal, state and local officials dedicated the Department of Energy’s first hybrid vessel — the RV Resilience — at PNNL-Sequim. The approximate $4.55 million, 50-foot ship, will be used to study coastal and environmental impacts, acoustic testing and surveys, autonomous vehicle launch and recovery, and more. Chris Meinig, division director for PNNL’s Coastal Sciences Division, said when staff is in Sequim Bay, they’ll use it for half a day, recharge at lunch time and go back out in the afternoon.

Photo courtesy Sara Turner/ Sequim students, from left, Olivia Lozano, Allee Deering, Megan Reeves, teacher Sara Turner, and Riley Guimond, won a trip to the Kennedy Space Center in August for their work on the Artemis ROADS II student project through last school year. They were one of 15 teams selected out of nearly 500 across the nation.

• Sequim students Allee Deering, Riley Guimond, Olivia Lozano and Megan Reeves were interviewed in September about winning a trip to the Kennedy Space Center in the summer as members of the Starry Sequim Serpents team through the Sequim Middle School NASA Science Club. They worked through a mission binder after school each Wednesday last school year to accomplish various tasks for the Artemis ROADS II project that included building a bottle rocket, a rover and a lunar habitat.

Sequim Gazette photo by Michael Dashiell / Sequim High sophomore Clare Turella does the honors, cutting a ceremonial ribbon to celebrate the Sequim School District’s newly-refurbished track on Sept. 13. Turella won a state 2A high jump title as a freshman in 2023.

• Sequim School District students, staff, coaches and others celebrated the official opening of the newly refurbished track during halftime of the SHS football game at Stáʔčəŋ Stadium on Sept. 13. The district hadn’t been able to host activities — including high school and middle school track and field meets — since May 2021 because of severe damage to the track. The track project cost the district $363,299, and the pole vault project cost $39,074, using funds out of a capital projects levy voters approved in 2021.

• Jack in the Box, 1280 W. Washington St., closed in late September after opening in 2005.

• Ten athletes and one team were inducted into the inaugural 2024 Sequim Athletic Hall of Fame on Sept. 14.

The inaugural class includes: Matt Dryke (Sequim High class of 1977), a gold medalist in skeet shooting at the 1984 Olympic Games; Cliff Echternkamp (class of 1963, basketball, baseball and football standout); Summer Jackson (class of 2005), state 3A swimmer of the year who holds numerous school records; coach/athletic director Rick Kaps; his son Ryan Kaps (class of 1989), all-state basketball star; Chuck Lehman (class of 1953), a three-sport prep star who also was key to starting Sequim little League; Bruce Randall (class of 1950), a three sport start in football, basketball and baseball; Joe Rantz, a gold medalist in men’s crew at the 1936 Olympic Games; Bill Ward (class of 1948), professional football player; Wheeler (class of 1985), a track and field standout junior national record holder in the javelin; and, the 2011 fastpitch softball team that went 28-0 on its way to winning the class 2A state championship.

October

• State Sen. Kevin Van De Wege, a Sequim area firefighter, resigned his expiring legislative seat on Oct. 1 saying he made the move because he didn’t want any perceived conflict of interests if he talked to someone about potentially lobbying for them under his new consulting business while he held the state senate seat. Van De Wege said he decided with his family in 2022 that it would be his last term as senator and he sought to be the state’s next public lands commissioner. While he won Clallam County, he did not advance in the primary. Van De Wege, formerly of Dungeness, served as a State Representative for the 24th district from 2007-2016, and then as a Senator from 2017 through Oct. 1. He has about two years left with Clallam County Fire District 3 before retirement. Mike Chapman won Van De Wege’s former Senate seat in November.

• Clallam County staff announced Towne Road and the Lower Dungeness Levee trail were opened on Oct. 8 after much public discourse and county staff planning. Last December, Clallam County commissioners agreed to do a “hybrid” option of a two-lane road and adjacent 6-foot-wide pedestrian path with county staff agreeing to keep costs down by doing some work in-house.

• Sequim city councilors agreed to ban the sale of fireworks in city limits, effective one year later in October 2025. The move came nearly eight years after city residents voted 65.6% in an advisory vote for a ban of the discharge of fireworks, and councilors voted to enact a ban of shooting fireworks in city limits but start a public display on the Fourth of July in Carrie Blake Community Park. While councilors then approved the ban of discharge of fireworks, they did not go forward with a ban of firework sales to allow nonprofits to continue operating fireworks booths and raise funds. With the ban not going into effect for a year, fireworks sales will be allowed one more summer from June 28-July 5, 2025. Permits will be given first preference to local nonprofits benefiting youth, and second preference to other local nonprofits.

• Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe held a ceremonial groundbreaking on Oct. 19 for its $31.25 million, 16-bed psychiatric evaluation and treatment facility adjacent to The Jamestown Healing Clinic. Brent Simcosky, the tribe’s health services director, said construction on the approximate 20,000 square foot Jamestown Evaluation and Treatment Center will open sometime in February/March 2026.

Simcosky said patients will be experiencing a mental health crisis, and may be of harm to themselves or others, and be voluntarily or involuntarily admitted. Average visits will be 10-14 days, he said, and patients will be discharged to family or long-term services decided upon by staff.

• Farmer Nash Huber faced eviction by Nov. 1 from Delta Farm in Dungeness that he helped preserve and where he operates his grain and seed business for allegedly failing to comply with local and state laws, and easement agreements with property owner Washington Farmland Trust, formerly PCC Farmland Trust. Huber’s 30-year-lease was set to go through Dec. 31, 2032, and Huber’s sister Karen Huber said they had mediated concerns prior to the eviction notice. Washington Farmland Trust said in November that they were in discussions with Huber’s attorney with no updates available.

Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash Mary Budke, executive director of the Boys Girls Clubs of the Olympic Peninsula, and fellow supporters cheer for Pearle Peterson on Oct. 26 from inside the Sequim club as Peterson sings the national anthem at game two of the World Series.

• Sequim’s Pearle Peterson with the Boys & Girls Clubs of America sang the national anthem prior to game two of the 2024 World Series at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 26 in Los Angeles. It was the second time she sang “The Star-Spangled Banner” at the World Series after singing at the event in 2023 in Arlington, Texas.

• Hundreds of people filled the Guy Cole Event Center on Oct. 22 to hear new proposals for the Dungeness Off-Channel Reservoir project off River Road in Sequim. Clallam County and Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) opened public comment periods through November. New designs lowered embankment heights to meet community concerns.

The project has been in development for more than a decade, with proponents saying it will better help late-season water flow in the Dungeness River during possible drought periods to support fish species on the Endangered Species Act, meet irrigation needs east of the river and downstream of the reservoir, and intercept storm flows to help prevent flooding.

• Habitat for Humanity of Clallam County leaders agreed on Oct. 28 to purchase 7.7 acres at 303 Mill Road in Carlsborg, north of Sunny Farms, for $1.93 million with a goal to build about 45 homes ranging from two-bedroom duplexes to two-story four bedroom homes. A groundbreaking ceremony was held on Dec. 23.

November

• Family and community members rededicated a new plaque to honor the “Clallam County boys” who died in World War I at a Nov. 9 ceremony in front of Carlsborg Family Church, 481 Carlsborg Road. Clyde Rhodefer, a sergeant in the U.S. Army, and Jack Grennan, a private in the U.S. Marine Corps, were the two Sequim servicemen who died during the war.

Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash/ Clara (Rhodefer) Muma, 5, looks at a memorial honoring her great-great-great uncle Clyde Rhodefer of Sequim in front of Carlsborg Family Church on Nov. 9. The plaque was replaced and added the names of the men from Clallam County who died in World War I

Their names, along with eight others, are memorialized on the new plaque, including Port Angeles men Walter E. Akeley, private, U.S. Army; Donald Dorr, private, U.S. Army; William G. Grason, private, U.S. Army; Earl Jenkins, seaman, U.S. Navy; John P. Moore, private, U.S. Army, and Jacob Sunde, private, U.S. Army. Benneville William Bertolet, private, U.S. Army, and Gudstein Borgford, private, U.S. Army, were from Clallam Bay.

• Following the certification of Washington’s election, Clallam County’s bellwether streak of choosing the next president was officially over after 11 straight picks. Clallam voters opted for Vice-President Kamala Harris (25,440 or 52.3% of votes cast) while former President Donald Trump (21,632 or 44.5% in Clallam) won the national election with the most electoral votes.

Sequim Gazette file photo by Matthew Nash/ Clallam County Master Gardeners, from top left clockwise, Gordon Clark, JoAnn VanAken, Keith Dekker, Nancy Kohn and Robb Drake helped remove most of the agave plant growing at Isobel Johnston’s house for 28 years. Kohn said Master Gardeners don’t typically do house calls, but they wanted to see how they could help Johnston especially because she requested them.

• After 28 years, blooming to 22 feet and falling over during a hard freeze, Isobel Johnston’s agave plant was removed (mostly) from her yard by Clallam County Master Gardeners at her request. She bought the plant when it was the size of a baseball and saw it grow large over the years. Her request to the gardeners was to keep just one baby so it could grow in the same spot.

• For its annual auction, leaders with the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Olympic Peninsula announced that they far-exceeded their event goal with a record-breaking $602,026 raised for Sequim and Port Angeles clubs’ operations.

Photo by Time Catcher Photography Past and present staffers along with local business and community members celebrate the Sequim Gazette’s 50th anniversary on Nov. 20 at the newspaper’s new office space, 175 W. Washington St., Sequim. Regional publisher Eran Kennedy with Sound Publishing had the honors of cutting the ribbon for the Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce.

• The Sequim Gazette celebrated its 50th anniversary on Nov. 20th, with a Sequim-Dungeness Valley Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting and open house at the newspaper’s new office space, 175 W. Washington St., Sequim. A 50th anniversary special section was also released the same day.

December

Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash Helen Haller Elementary, mostly built in the 1970s, would be replaced with a new school if a bond proposal from Sequim School District is approved by voters in February. The proposal also includes new instructional wings at Sequim High School, a cafeteria at Greywolf Elementary, a new athletic stadium, new transit center, various safety improvements, and more.

• In December, Sequim School Board directors agreed to ask voters to approve a construction bond and an educational programs and operations (EP&O) levy renewal in a February special election with hopes to improve facilities and continue program funding.

The approximate $145,950,000 bond is multi-faceted and proposes improvements, including building a new Helen Haller Elementary, renovating Sequim High School, building a new cafeteria at Greywolf Elementary and a new transit center. The four-year, approximate $36.2 million EP&O levy renewal would help fund teacher and staffing levels, extracurricular activities and athletics, library, music, social emotional learning, counseling, nursing, transportation and more.

• City councilors voted on Dec. 9 to enact a new overlay that preserves areas of the city with manufactured home parks so that they cannot be rezoned into anything but for manufactured homes. Councilors see the overlay as a way to preserve affordable housing. Residents in attendance said they will look to the legislature this year to set rent caps for properties, too.

• Three Crabs Road in Dungeness saw flooding on Dec. 14 due to back-to-back high tides, with the National Weather Service issuing a coastal flood advisory for an anticipated 2 feet of water above ground level along shorelines in low-lying coastal areas. Residents saw upwards of two feet of water with flooding spanning from the 3 Crabs nearshore and estuarine restoration project to Golden Sands Boulevard.