June 2006

The short memories of American voters is what keeps our politicians in office.

American humorist Will Rogers

After many years of doing nothing about one of Washington's deadliest traffic problems, the 2006 Legislature finally got tough on repeat drunk drivers.

Well, kind of tough.

Lawmakers, on unanimous votes in both chambers, finally made it a felony for motorists to accumulate multiple convictions for driving under the influence of intoxicating beverages or any drug, beginning in 2007.

But as is often the case, the devil is in the detai

A letter from Richard G. Larson (deceased)

Written by a friend who cares

I loved my family. I loved the youth, the sounds, the challenges and the ups and downs. I loved my accounting practice, my clients and their families, and my community. I loved helping my parents and taking lunch to them every Thursday. I loved track and morning runs and being healthy.

I loved my wife, my son and daughter, and my grandson and little granddaughter. My grandson's girlfriend was a young spark in our lives and very special to us.

An article on June 7, "Annexation Concerns Voiced," contained a significant piece of misinformation. Specifically that "Special Utility Districts, such as water and sewer, could charge more for Burien residents if the city annexes the area."

In fact rates will not increase because of a Burien annexation, but will increase in the event of a Seattle annexation.

For current Southwest Suburban Sewer District customers, the average residential rate in the event of a Seattle annexation will increase by over $21/month.

Two homes burned to the ground in Burien and dozens of firefighters stood around and watched.

It was part of a two-day training exercise for the Burien/Normandy Park Fire Department June 2-3.

For the training, two houses near the corner of South 160th Street and Ambaum Boulevard South, south of Burien Nissan, were stripped down and prepped for the exercise.

Schneider Homes of Tukwila offered the properties to the fire departments.

With the burning over, Schneider Homes begins work on 37 detached condominiums that will be finished next spring, said M

At least 439 Highline 10th-graders can breathe a little easier about graduation, while another 725 sophomores face an additional hurdle following the release of preliminary Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) scores.

Assessment director Becki Bouchard reported to Highline School Board members on June 14 that 439 students met state standards on all three sections (reading, writing and math) of the WASL taken this spring.

Results for other grades will be released in September.

This is the first year that a passing score for sophomores is required for

Water District 49 commissioners voted 2-1 on June 14 against renewing the contract of district manager Dale Cap when it expires this fall.

Cap, who has been at the center of two recent controversies involving district policies, will remain on the job through Nov.

SeaTac and Tukwila received disturbing health news from Dr. Jim Krieger of Seattle-King County Public Health at the SeaTac City Council meeting June 13.

Krieger reported the two communities rank first in King County in several areas that indicate poor health.

These include the percentage of residents with high blood pressure, the birth rate among adolescents, uninsured adults and adults not seeing a doctor in the past year because of costs.

The health district divided the county into 25 or 34 planning areas, depending on the study.

Pro instruction offered

Local tennis professional Steve Walters again offers area tennis lessons at outdoor locations this summer. Walters, certifed Pro 1 by the United States Professional Tennis Association since 1986, has coached at some of the world's top tennis resorts and academies in Florida, Caifornia, Texas and Canada. Also he traveled on the men's professional tour, including the 1988 U.S. Open, as a traveling coach for world-ranked pros and nationally-ranked juniors.

As a player, Walters has been ranked No.

This year's Seamount King Division spring all-star teams are stock full of Highline and Des Moines-area talent.

The following is a rundown of this year's selections as made by the member coaches:

Baseball

Ben Guidos of Highline grabbed the big prize in baseball this year, being honored as the Most Valuable Player for the division.

Dave Larson of Highline was named as the Coach of the Year along with Dave Johnson of Renton.

David Macey of Highline and Darryl Morrow of Mount Rainier also made the first team as pitchers, while Guidos was name

in drunk driving case

Vili Fualaau was sentenced on June 16 to one year in jail with all but one day suspended and ordered to pay a $2,100 fine for driving under the influence in SeaTac last Dec. 22.

Fualaau, 22, is the husband of his former sixth-grade-teacher Mary Kay Letourneau, who was convicted in 1997 for raping him when he was 12-years old.

They married in May 2005 after her release from prison.

Fualaau was pulled over by a SeaTac police officer the evening of Dec.