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Stories by Doug Flanagan

email icon doug.flanagan@camaspostrecord.com

December 31, 2020
Ninebark,  a planned residential community, will be located on the Washougal waterfront and connected to a new public park. (Contributed graphics courtesy of Port of Camas-Washougal)

New park, apartments coming to Washougal waterfront

Developers working on Ninebark, a three-story, 242-unit residential complex to be built east of the Port of Camas-Washougal, hope to begin construction on the complex’s eight buildings in the fall of 2021 and open its first apartments in the fall of 2022.

December 31, 2020
Washougal resident Sam Rickenbach started his new business, Gorge Family Therapeutics, to provide consumers with more affordable options for cannabidiol (CBD) products. (Contributed photo courtesy of Kara Cooper)

Washougal man opens Gorge Family Therapeutics

During the past three years, Sam Rickenbach worked for several Portland-area companies as a cannabidiol (CBD) extraction laboratory director. He generally enjoyed his work, but over time came to believe that most of the businesses in his industry — including his own — were severely overcharging for their products.

December 24, 2020
Camas High School Sophie Franklin swings during a 2019 softball game. Franklin, a 2020 graduate, said she was shocked when her final high school softball season was canceled in the spring of 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Prep sports to start in February amid uncertainty

The COVID-19 pandemic upset high school sports last spring and has caused multiple delays during the 2020-21 school year, but Camas High School Athletic Director Rory Oster remains hopeful local student-athletes will be able to complete their 2020-21 sports seasons.

December 24, 2020
Contributed photo courtesy Chris Collins 
 Construction crews revamped the parking lot at Steigerwald Lake National Wildlife Refuge earlier this year as part of the Steigerwald Connection Project. (Contributed photo courtesy of Chris Collins)

Steigerwald project had ‘productive year’

2020 has been a big year for the massive Steigerwald Reconnection Project happening at the national Steigerwald Lake wildlife refuge located on the edge of Washougal.

December 24, 2020
A group protests school closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic in front of the Washougal School District headquarters on Dec. 17, 2020. (Doug Flanagan/Post-Record)

Washougal greenlights school reopenings

Several dozen parents and students gathered in front of the Washougal School District office on Dec. 17 for an informal rally, waving signs in front of honking automobiles and calling for the district to reopen its buildings for in-person instruction.

December 17, 2020
Jess Moore, owner of Champ Camp Training and Fitness in Washougal, will hold a "holiday ball giveaway" event at his facility on from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 20. (Contributed photo courtesy of Jess Moore)

Champ Camp hosts ball giveway this weekend

When Jess Moore opened Champ Camp Fitness and Training in Washougal in July, he hoped that the facility would become a “community development project,” providing opportunities to low-income youth through scholarship programs, holding fundraisers, sponsoring community events and establishing close working relationships with Washougal High School athletes.

December 17, 2020
Doug Flanagan/Post-Record 
 Les and Wanda Sonneson pose for a photograph on Dec. 20, 1945, one day before their wedding in Seattle.

‘Love at first sight’

Les Sonneson believes the key to his long-lasting marriage with his wife, Wanda, is their ability to “cut off the arguments as soon as possible.”

December 10, 2020
Former Washougal resident Angela Ridgway stands with "Millie," one of two metal herons that she created for display at the roundabout on Highway 14 and Washougal River Road. (Contributed photo courtesy of Angela Ridgway)

Angela Ridgway remembers push to grow Washougal art scene

After moving from California to Washougal in 2014, metal artist Angela Ridgway quickly settled into the Clark County arts community, opening a studio in downtown Vancouver and joining the Washougal Arts and Culture Alliance (WACA), helping the nonprofit organization to put on its annual Washougal Art Festival.