Trout Lake Festival Of The Arts Next Weekend, Sat. July 21 & Sun. July 22

The 12th Annual Trout Lake Festival of the Arts presents a weekend of art and music in beautiful Trout Lake Valley located beneath Mt. Adams. Forty-five artists will be jury selected to display fine art in the rustic barn, outdoors, or garden setting. In addition to the art, visitors enjoy continuous live music, outstanding variety of foods, local brews and wine. The Festival anticipates 2500 to 3000 visitors. 10 am - 6 pm Saturday 10 am - 4 pm Sunday

Don't Forget WS Town Hall Tonight

6:30 PM, WHITE SALMON GRANGE HALL

Ricki Marx WS City Councilor called this meeting to fascilitate a dialog.

How to give yourself a Blogger Name on this blog

It might not be obvious, but below the comment box that pops up when you go to write a comment you have several choices on how to sign your self. If you check 'other' you can give yourself a pseudo-name like 'CitizenJane' or whatever. To the editors and readers its still annonymous. So when your comment is posted, that name appears in the comment header so its easier to see who is saying what.

And remember that you need to refresh the entire blog page if you have it bookmarked (hit the F5 button or click the White Salmon, Wa title) or you might be viewing a nonupdated page and missing all the new stuff! Also, hit the title of the post that you are following, and all the comments show up below.

Of course you also start your own topic by sending it to whitesalmon2007@yahoo.com. The editors are pledging to keep people anonymous if they want. We just want dialog and information, for the good and bad. We want this to be a community blog. Hope that helps.

Blog shows ignorance of the community

... from the Enterprise.. letter to the editor:
Regarding the "White Salmon Blog" web site, I would like to quote Oscar Wilde: "There is so much to be said in favor of modern journalism. By giving us the opinions of the uneducated, it keeps us in touch with the ignorance of the community." - Roger Holen, White Salmon

Area Population Growth, Energy Consumption, Environment. Any Common Ground?

There is lot of new construction, land rezoning, plus public service infrastructure upgrades and additions in our area. Once predominant industries and business have closed or are leaving the area, replaced by entirely new industries and businesses.

The pace of these changes will only increase as the population grows and the numbers of affluent individuals continue to relocate to our communities. Residents born and raised here have been forced to deal with enormous changes, both economic and cultural. We all realize the values of new residents can dramatically clash with the values and norms of our long-established residents. A person's affluence, religion, education and upbringing strongly influence how they view their neighborhoods, politics and the world.

That said, I'd like to start a conversation on finding some common ground to prepare for this growth in terms of energy efficiency and independence, greater opportunities for small, home-grown businesses and reduction of future infrastructure expenses and taxes.

We’ve all heard the cliché “penny wise and pound foolish”. I’d like to look at making a few changes to our zoning, land use, and construction regulations to prepare us for the future. Clear and unemotionally investigation of the small decisions we make today that can create a large economic and environmental difference down the road.

If you are interested in contributing to this thread, I have only two requests:
1). No interjection of any religious beliefs into this process.
2). Abstain from ridiculing the opinions, viewpoints and ideas of others and no “bad-mouthing”.

I’d like to find solutions--not demons.
...this posting was email'd to whitesalmon2007@yahoo.com by "ShadowGirl"

Columbia Gorge Future Forum...save the date...

The Columbia Gorge Future Forum is a one-day event on October 29, 2007 at the Columbia Gorge Discovery Center to stimulate regional discussion about the future of the Gorge in 2027. Please see the details below or visit the website at http://www.gorgecommission.org/futureforum.cfm. This Gorge experience reaches across city, county, state and tribal borders in an effort to approach the future of this magnificent area in an integrated way. A keynote speaker and expert panelists will spark an interactive dialogue about how Gorge citizens and stakeholders influence the next twenty years. The Future Forum is sponsored by a partnership of organizations and businesses with an active stake in the future of the Columbia Gorge. The event will be attended by 150 community members and leaders.

Attend This Event To:
Directly participate in guiding the future of the Scenic Area
Discover opportunities for Gorge communities to work together as a region
Learn how key trends from beyond the Gorge impact our lives.
Identify regional goals for quality of life, environment and the economy
Provide input for the Gorge Commission Indicators Project, which will evaluate how effectively the Scenic Act has been implemented and guide future decision-making.

Become a Sponsor Today!
Depending upon the level of support, there are a variety of benefits available to sponsors:
Dedicated session with keynote speaker Rick Smyre for your high-level employees (presentation or interactive work session)
Name recognition on:
materials advertising the event (event website, registration brochure, storefront flyers) Sponsors who have pledged support by July 30 will have their name on the registration brochure.
materials at the event (signage, attendees’ packets)
materials generated from the event (summary report, video)
Opportunity for a display at the event
Access to reports generated from the event: written summary report, video
Thank you to our early sponsors: Columbia River Gorge Commission, Washington State, the US Forest Service - Scenic Area Office, and Bohn's Printing, Inc.
For more information, contact Jessica Metta at 509-493-3323 ext. 228 or metta@gorgecommission.org.

Revised Agenda: Gorge Commission Mtg...

Revised...Please note that public comment...has been added to the agenda

COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE COMMISSION MEETING AGENDA
July 10, 2007
Columbia Gorge Discovery Center
5000 Discovery Drive, The Dalles, Oregon
9:00 a.m. Call to Order
9:05 a.m. Approval of Minutes – June 12, 2007
9:10 a.m. Public Comment *
9:25 a.m. Opportunity for Tribal Nations to address Commission
9:30 a.m. Commissioner Work Session on Proposed Plan Amendment for Recreation Resort
10:30 a.m. Break
10:45 a.m. Continuation of Commissioner Work Session
12:00 p.m. Lunch
1:00 p.m. Continuation of Commissioner Work Session
2:30 p.m. Break
3:00 p.m. Continuation of Commissioner Work Session
4:25 p.m. Other Business
4:30 p.m. Adjourn
UPCOMING MEETINGS AND OTHER EVENTS

External Affairs Committee
July 10, 2007, during the lunch break
Discovery Center, 5000 Discovery Drive
The Dalles, Oregon


The times on the agenda are approximate. The chair of the Commission reserves the opportunity to change the order and time of the items if unforeseen circumstances arise.

The Commission welcomes public comment on issues not on the agenda during the public comment period. With the exception of factual questions, the Commission does not immediately discuss issues raised during public comment. The Commission will either refer concerns raised during public comment to the Executive Director for a response or will request that the issue be placed on a future meeting agenda.

Starred items on the agenda (*) are open for public comment. The Commission chair reserves the right to set time limits on public testimony. People distributing copies of materials as part of their testimony should bring 15 copies. Written comment on issues of concern may be submitted to the Commission office at any time.

If you have a disability that requires any special materials, services, or assistance, please contact us at 509-493-3323 so we may arrange for appropriate accommodations.

Columbia River Gorge Commission, PO Box 730, White Salmon, WA 98672
509-493-3323, Fax: 509-493-2229, e-mail: info@gorgecommission.org, http://www.GorgeCommission.org

Anonymity is poor policy... enourages slander, untruths

Hello! I just learned of your White Salmon Blogspot and checked it out. Looks informative. I do have one problem with it - anonymous input. Historical ethical standards require that if you are not willing to "put your money where your mouth is", keep quiet.If one can't back up his/her position or allegations with fact and hard data, then it is nothing more than gossip or unsubstantiated opinion or malicious untruths from an unknown source. Anonymity encourages slander, libel, spiteful comment, absolute untruths. Why? Because the anonymous originator does not have to accept responsibility for his/her words and the object of that irresponsibility may have no recourse. Not taking responsibility for one's actions has become a major problem in modern society. (Yeah, I am old fashioned.)I submit that anonymous commentary may be ungentlemanly, in the least, is typically a refuge of cowards and often venal in the worst. It is unworthy of being disseminated by any media and reflects poorly on the disseminator.I urge you to rethink your policy on anonymity. Herb Hardin

Gorge Commission Meeting: July 10

COLUMBIA RIVER GORGE COMMISSION
MEETING AGENDA
July 10, 2007
Columbia Gorge Discovery Center
5000 Discovery Drive, The Dalles, Oregon


This regular meeting of the Gorge Commission includes a work session
for Commissioners to discuss issues related to a proposed Plan Amendment for
recreation resort. Although there will be no public comment at this meeting,
the Commission encourages comments via email, fax, phone, and letters. There
will be ample opportunity to comment about recreation resorts in the coming months.


9:00 a.m. Call to Order
9:05 a.m. Approval of Minutes
9:10 a.m. Commissioner Work Session on Proposed Plan Amendment for Recreation Resort
10:30 a.m. Break
10:45 a.m. Continuation of Commissioner Work Session

12:00 p.m. Lunch

1:00 p.m. Continuation of Commissioner Work Session
2:30 p.m. Break
2:45 p.m. Continuation of Commissioner Work Session
4:00 p.m. Other Business
4:05 p.m. Adjourn

Check Out 14 More Lots on Salmon Run

It takes committment to keep up with all of the development going on. The editors apologize for not previously including the 14 lots stacked up against the hospital. We hope that the NEW WHITE SALMON PLANNING COMMISSIONER, BILL MASON takes a good squint at it (see the New Developments link to the right). This is the reality of R-3 zoning density. We doubt that this little rural town needs any more of this. The problem is that 'following the ordinance' can result in this ridiculous extreme. Is this what we really want?