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January 25, 2011

Methodist pastor enjoys community involvement

Rev. Randy Henderson has been considering his career options since the age of 10. A church pastor asked him then if he had ever thought of being a minister. "It planted a seed, and the idea grew on me," said Henderson, 62. He has been the pastor of Washougal United Methodist Church since last summer. Henderson has previously been a minister in Winlock, Pe Ell, Spokane, Yelm and Mill Creek. In 1972, he earned a master's degree in social work at the University of Washington. Four years later, he received a master of divinity degree from Iliff School of Theology, in Denver.

January 25, 2011

House fire in Washougal ruled arson

A fire that recently destroyed a rural Washougal home is now being investigated as an arson case. Richard Martin, Clark County assistant fire marshal, said the fire originated in the garage of the two-story home located at 530 S.E. Blair Road. He declined to provide further details citing the ongoing investigation.

January 25, 2011
The Liberty Theatre, located at 315 N.E. Fourth Ave., in downtown Camas, will re-open with new operators in March. The space has been vacant since September 2009, when the former operator closed up shop. Future plans for the facility include offering food, beer and wine service, and remodeling the smaller second screen theater.

Liberty Theatre to re-open in March

After being closed for more than a year, the Liberty Theatre in downtown Camas will re-open in March with a new operator, a new look and a new business plan. A lease was signed with Rootstock Capital Management, LLC, on Wednesday. The corporation includes Rand Thornsley, who will be the managing director of the Liberty; Thornsley's son Adam, an investor in the business; and Paul Rogers, who is a partner in Rogers Cinemas of Wisconsin.

January 25, 2011

Vancouver Clinic buys land in Washougal

The Vancouver Clinic, Inc., has purchased approximately five acres at state Route 14 and Southeast Second Avenue, in The Crossing development, in Washougal. The sale, involving landowner Killian Pacific, occurred in December. Terms of the sale are not being released. "We purchased the land so we had the flexibility to expand in the future, but we don't have any immediate plans to build on the site," Vancouver Clinic Chief Executive Officer Tom VanSweringen said Monday. He expects a clinic to be built at the site within five years.

January 25, 2011

Council approves changes to vehicle policy

Washougal elected officials may not use city automobiles unless they are traveling to conferences, seminars, training programs or other city-related business trips. The Washougal City Council has amended a chapter in the city's personnel policies, to include language that prohibits the assignment of take home vehicles to elected officials. Questions were raised about the auto usage policy after Mayor Sean Guard used a city-owned vehicle for personal reasons. He returned a vehicle to the city's surplus fleet on Jan. 3. It had been assigned to him in the early part of 2010.

January 25, 2011
The World War II Liberty ship SS Davy Crockett suffered a significant structural failure this past week on the north shore of the Columbia River near Camas. Ballard Diving and Salvage hazardous response teams cleaned the ship of all imminent ecological threats, including oil and other industrial waste.

Teams complete cleanup of derelict ship near Camas

Ecological threats including oils and other industrial waste have been removed from a derelict Liberty ship located on the north shore of Columbia River near Camas. The SS Davy Crockett, moored at the site for a number of years, suffered a significant structural failure during the past week and its owners were recently issued an administrative order by the United States Coast Guard to take cleanup action or face stiff monetary penalties. According to a press release from Ballard Diving & Salvage, the Seattle based company was hired by the vessel's owner to complete the cleanup. Trained salvage crews working on the ship included confined space teams and commercial dive teams, as well as remote underwater vehicles with sonar to locate and evaluate all sources of oil on and within the 442-foot vessel.

January 22, 2011
The Liberty Theatre, located at 315 N.E. Fourth Ave., in downtown Camas, will re-open with new operators in March. The space has been vacant since September 2009, when the former operator closed up shop. Future plans for the facility include offering food, beer and wine service.

Liberty Theatre slated to re-open in March

After being closed for more than a year, the Liberty Theatre in downtown Camas will re-open in March with a new operator, a new look and a new business plan.

January 18, 2011
Firefighters responded to a two-story house fire at 530 S.E. Blair Road in Washougal on Wednesday. The cause of the blaze is being investigated by the Clark County Fire Marshal's Office. Updates to this story will be posted at www.camaspostrecord.com.

House fire in Washougal ruled arson

A fire that destroyed a rural Washougal home last week is now being investigated as an arson case. Richard Martin, Clark County assistant fire marshal, said today that the fire originated in the garage of the two-story home located at 530 S.E. Blair Road. He declined to offer further details citing the ongoing investigation.

January 18, 2011
Rock and gravel has been trucked in from Skamania County and piled along the highway shoulder between Second and Sixth streets in Washougal in preparation for work on the state Route 14 improvement project. Work is expected to get under way early this summer.

Pre-construction work begins along Highway 14

For the past several weeks crews have been stockpiling rock and dirt along the shoulder of state Route 14 in anticipation of the onset of construction of the much anticipated Camas-Washougal widening and interchange project. According to WSDOT Area Engineer Chris Tams, the material is being trucked in from another ongoing WSDOT Highway 14 project -- $4.3 million in safety improvements being made from the Cape Horn Bridge to Cape Horn Road. The stockpiling between Second and Sixth streets will continue for the next two to three weeks with no scheduled traffic impacts. The material will be used to create embankments for the interchange project.

January 18, 2011

Local residents are involved in project for the homeless

Several Camas residents are doing their part to provide necessary supplies and services for the area's homeless population. Missy Shepherd, a volunteer with the Council for the Homeless, is coordinating "guest guides" for the fourth annual "Project Homeless Connect." The event will be held Thursday, Jan. 27, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at the Red Lion at the Quay, 100 Columbia St., Vancouver.