The Pierce County Council cleared the way today for Fort Steilacoom Park to become a true city park by approving a three-year maintenance agreement with Lakewood.

The county will pay the city $50,000 a year to offset Lakewood’s cost to maintain the 340-acre regional park through 2014, when the county will terminate its lease agreement with the state. Lakewood would then negotiate a lease with the state.

County Council member Dick Muri described the park as the “crown jewel” of the Lakewood area.

Muri said it’s the right time to hand over the park to Lakewood.

The City of …

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Efforts to relieve congestion on Interstate 5 through Joint Base Lewis-McChord received a $6.9 boost earlier this month.

The supplemental transportation budget state lawmakers approved included the money for studies required by the federal government to rebuild five interchanges along the freeway corridor in Pierce and Thurston counties.

A regional alliance formed last year to better manage South Sound’s military-related growth had requested $7 million. The House and Senate had set aside a total of $5 million in each of their transportation budgets, but negotiations to iron out differences ended up adding another $1.9 million.

Lakewood Mayor Doug Richardson said …

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The Clover Park School District in Lakewood is adopting new science instructional materials for grades 6-12 next school year.

As part of the selection process, teachers, parents and community members are invited to review the recommended materials on Thursday, March 8.

The science materials showcase will be held from 1 to 6:30 p.m. in room 6A of the Student
Services Center, 10903 Gravelly Lake Dr., Lakewood. Middle and high school teachers
across the district have been piloting the new science instructional materials this school year.

The materials will also be available for review at the district’s Science, …

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Thursday’s decision on the appeal of a permit needed to move the Camp Murray gate in Tillicum did little to settle the controversy.

Hearing Examiner James O’Connor remanded the permit back to Lakewood city officials for further study and action.

Concerned residents challenged the permit the city issued to the Washington Military Department so it can connect the new gate now under construction to public streets closer to their neighborhood.

Military department officials say the current gate is unsafe due to its proximity to the busy intersection of Berkeley Street and Union Avenue, an antiquated Interstate 5 interchange and a …

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Lakewood officials have leaned on a city ordinance to remove hundreds of junk vehicles stowed on private property over the years.

But some savvy owners have taken advantage of a loophole in the ordinance to keep their inoperable vehicles out of the reach of code enforcement officers.

There hasn’t been a lot of these cases, but the City Council took action to close the loophole by adopting an overhauled ordinance Tuesday night. The vote was 5-1, with Councilman Michael Brandstetter voting no. Councilman Jason Whalen was absent.

“It was only a handful, but it was enough to casue a problem …

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A bill that would have stopped local governments – including Lakewood and Pierce County – from using a federal work eligibility program – failed to get votes by late today in the state House, The Associated Press reported.

House Bill 2568 appears to have died. House Democrats spokeswoman Melinda McCrady said lawmakers ran out of time before making final adjustments, the AP reported.

Earlier today, the Pierce County Council unanimously opposed the bill because it would stop the county from requiring its contractors verify their employees can work legally in the United States.

Council members said the system, called E-Verify, works well and the Legislature should let local governments decide whether to use it.

“This is another example of the Legislature meddling in local government,” said council member Rick Talbert, D-Tacoma.

The council took a firm stand against the proposed measure that would have barred local governments from mandating that private contractors use the federal E-Verify program.

E-Verify is an internet-based program that has been adopted by 11 counties and cities in Washington, including Lakewood.

If approved, the bill would have nullified a Pierce County ordinance approved in 2009 that required use of E-Verify by county contractors for their employees and by the county to verify the employment status of its workers.

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A proposal to reduce the number of days to legally ignite Fourth of July fireworks in unincorporated Pierce County went down to defeat with a thud today.

Dick Muri was the only Pierce County Council member to vote for his proposal to cut the number of days from eight to one: the holiday itself.

Several council members said restricting fireworks further was unenforceable.

“We can’t enforce the current statutes,” said council member Roger Bush. The county doesn’t have the manpower and resources to back up a stricter law, Bush said.

Council member Rick Talbert said Muri’s plan would unrealistically …

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The city of Lakewood is looking to trim about $1 million from its budget as revenues have come in lower than expected, a city spokesman said today.

City Manager Andrew Neiditz will share details on how he intends to close the projected shortfall at tonight’s City Council meeting.

His presentation comes more than two months after the council adjusted the budget by $14,000 midway through the two-year financial cycle.

Neiditz told the council on Jan. 17 that the projected shortfall represents 3 percent of the city’s $38 million general fund, according to the minutes from the meeting.

He told the …

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