Tacoma Week In Review
Tacomans Celebrate the raising of the Pride Flag Thursday afternoon dozens gathered outside the City of Tacoma's Municipal Building to witness the raising of the LGBT Pride Flag in honor of Pride Week in Tacoma. The flag can be seen as far away as three blocks. As it was hoisted
Tacoma Week In Review
What better way to celebrate America's independence than with news and rumors about an election that's a year and a half away. This week saw visits from hopeful representatives, declarations of candidacies, and even a heavyweight change his mind. Forget the fact that we have a 2011 election to
Tacoma Week In Review
Readers: After missing last week's update I note that this week's includes news from the past two weeks Superintendent Retires Many expected Tacoma Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Art Jarvis to announce his retirement in the coming months, but few expected it to come as early as last Wednesday. Jarvis, who has been
Tacoma Week In Review
Nobody seems to like elected officials all that much, yet there never seems to be a shortage of folks who want to become one. The deadline to file for candidacy for the coming election cycle was this week and Tacoma's local elections are jammed packed with aspiring citizens. All four of
Archives
This year's legislative session yielded more bad news than good. Washington's current budget is running on the tax income collected at the height of the recession, and therefore lawmakers simply didn't have much money to work with. However, amidst the prioritizing, debating and political jockeying policy makers seemed to lose
Tacoma Week In Review
This has been a week seemingly dedicated to public dialogue for the City of Tacoma. Although Tuesday's council meeting was cancelled to observe Monday's holiday, the Planning Commission invited citizens to share opinions during the recent moratorium on billboards adopted by the Tacoma City Council and also engage in a
Tacoma Week In Review
Local news this week has been rightfully dominated by the down-to-the-wire state budget passed in Olympia. This week lawmakers worked fast and furious to pass a budget, ending the 30-day overtime in dramatic fashion. However, at the culmination of yet another extra session, most politicians and citizens seem much more
Archives
There is no more pressing matter impacting the future well-being of Tacoma than the state of our educational system. There is much to be concerned about: achievement and opportunity gaps between white and minority students remain wide; the Tacoma School District continues to face large deficits; and the debate surrounding
Tacoma Week In Review
Digital Billboards Outrage over the potential installment of digital billboards in Tacoma has been building since at least July, when the Tacoma City Council agreed to settle a 2007 federal lawsuit brought against the city by Clear Channel (Clear Channel claimed Tacoma's anti-billboard ordinance, adopted in 1997, violated the company's right
Tacoma Week In Review
City Policy The Tacoma City Council voted unanimously this week to grant an increase in pay to more than 340 city utility workers over the next year. This, despite the well-publicized "wage freeze" Tacoma implemented for all city workers earlier this year to help alleviate budget issues. City of Tacoma officials
Archives
Have you noticed the abundance of abandoned shopping carts throughout Tacoma? The Central Neighborhood Council has, and the organization is actively encouraging the City of Tacoma to enact policies to put an end to the unsightly trend. Abandoned carts can be found in Tacoma's parks, lining city streets, throughout downtown (where
We Recommend
The goal of the 15th annual Evergreen Tacoma Spring Fair, Saturday at the Evergreen Tacoma campus, is to provide useful information regarding social justice and culture to the Tacoma community. This year the Spring Fair planning committee chose "Food and Culture" as a theme, meaning things that factor into both
Archives
"As the saying goes, knowledge is power, especially for those living in the margins," reads the public invitation for the 15th annual Evergreen Tacoma Spring Fair. The goal behind the fair, which goes down Saturday at the Evergreen Tacoma campus, is to provide useful information regarding social justice and culture
Tacoma Week In Review
City Hall Protest Around 9:30 a.m. Thursday morning I was woken by the sound of chanting protestors gathering across the street from my apartment in front of the City of Tacoma Municipal Building. "Yes we cannabis!" was the rallying call of day (a not-so-subtle nod to President Obama's election slogan, if
Archives
Last Wednesday, April 27, a crowd gathered at the Varsity Grill in downtown Tacoma for the kick-off of Pierce County Executive Pat McCarthy's campaign for re-election. I know what you're you thinking, and yes, you're correct - McCarthy isn't up for re-election until 2012. However, her campaign appeared to be fully
Tacoma Week In Review
The news story of the week in Tacoma has without question been the apparent police report cover up regarding the timeliness of the amber alert issued after Zina Linnik's disappearance (and subsequent murder). In case you're completely out of the loop, evidence shows Sergeant Mark Fulghum of the Tacoma Police
Archives
Does Pierce Transit have a greater obligation to serve the maximum number of people possible or as many communities as possible? This is the debate raging throughout Pierce County as Pierce Transit determines how and where it will cut 35-percent of its services. In February's special election Pierce County voters chose
Tacoma Week In Review
I was never really taught the significance of Groundhog's Day. Plus, everywhere I've ever lived it's winter when it occurs (Feb 2, are you kidding me?). How I know it's officially Spring is by the return of farmers markets to our area. This week and next mark the return of Tacoma's
Guides
Tuesday, April 19, three days before Earth Day, the Tacoma City Council will introduce two new sustainability policies, one regarding the city's internal purchasing standards and the other relating to its construction and building maintenance standards. Both policies are designed to ensure Tacoma leads by example as it encourages businesses
Archives
Four months ago the Tacoma City Council voted 6-3 to build a surface parking lot at the vacant property on the corner of Pacific Avenue and 12th Avenue. The parking lot is being constructed at the request of DaVita Inc. with the help of state grants from Governor Christine Gregoire
