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Stories by Heather Acheson

email icon heather.acheson@camaspostrecord.com

February 1, 2011

Fulfilling a basic need

Positively impacting local children will be the focus of an upcoming dinner and auction organized by the Camas-Washougal Soroptimists. The event, set for Saturday at the Camas Community Center, will support the East County Resource Center's Weekend Backpack Program. Through donations and other support, children who might otherwise not be fed over the weekends when they don't have access to school lunches are given nourishment they can easily assemble on their own. Donated backpacks are filled with items like peanut butter, pancake mix, crackers, cereal, snacks, applesauce, fruit snacks, fruit cups and canned goods such as ravioli and spaghetti.

February 1, 2011

Camas announces termination of fire chief

The city of Camas has fired its fire chief. Camas Mayor Paul Dennis announced Friday that Fire Chief Leo Leon's employment with the city would end effective Jan. 31. According to a press release, the decision was made because Leon's "leadership of the Camas Fire Department has not been meeting expectations." "I appreciated that Leo accepted the position six years ago, and he accomplished much -- especially in the first several years," said City Administrator Lloyd Halverson in a statement. "More recently, there have been setbacks, confidence has been lost, and now it is time for a change in the leadership of the fire department. Mayor Dennis as the appointing authority has acted decisively, and now it is time to focus on the future."

January 28, 2011

Camas terminates employment of fire chief

Fire Chief Leo Leon's employment with the city will be terminated effective Jan. 31. According to a press release, the decision was made because Leon's "leadership of the Camas Fire Department has not been meeting expectations."

January 25, 2011

House fire in Washougal ruled arson

A fire that recently destroyed a rural Washougal home is now being investigated as an arson case. Richard Martin, Clark County assistant fire marshal, said the fire originated in the garage of the two-story home located at 530 S.E. Blair Road. He declined to provide further details citing the ongoing investigation.

January 25, 2011
The Liberty Theatre, located at 315 N.E. Fourth Ave., in downtown Camas, will re-open with new operators in March. The space has been vacant since September 2009, when the former operator closed up shop. Future plans for the facility include offering food, beer and wine service, and remodeling the smaller second screen theater.

Liberty Theatre to re-open in March

After being closed for more than a year, the Liberty Theatre in downtown Camas will re-open in March with a new operator, a new look and a new business plan. A lease was signed with Rootstock Capital Management, LLC, on Wednesday. The corporation includes Rand Thornsley, who will be the managing director of the Liberty; Thornsley's son Adam, an investor in the business; and Paul Rogers, who is a partner in Rogers Cinemas of Wisconsin.

January 25, 2011
The World War II Liberty ship SS Davy Crockett suffered a significant structural failure this past week on the north shore of the Columbia River near Camas. Ballard Diving and Salvage hazardous response teams cleaned the ship of all imminent ecological threats, including oil and other industrial waste.

Teams complete cleanup of derelict ship near Camas

Ecological threats including oils and other industrial waste have been removed from a derelict Liberty ship located on the north shore of Columbia River near Camas. The SS Davy Crockett, moored at the site for a number of years, suffered a significant structural failure during the past week and its owners were recently issued an administrative order by the United States Coast Guard to take cleanup action or face stiff monetary penalties. According to a press release from Ballard Diving & Salvage, the Seattle based company was hired by the vessel's owner to complete the cleanup. Trained salvage crews working on the ship included confined space teams and commercial dive teams, as well as remote underwater vehicles with sonar to locate and evaluate all sources of oil on and within the 442-foot vessel.

January 25, 2011

Proposed projects foreshadow recovery

The lights in downtown Camas will soon be a little brighter when the marquee at the Liberty Theatre will once again burn bright. The much awaited news that a lease has been signed with a new tenant to occupy the well-known building on Northeast Fourth Avenue finally came to fruition. It is a space that holds fond memories as a downtown destination spot for the many who were sad to see it close more than a year ago.

January 22, 2011
The Liberty Theatre, located at 315 N.E. Fourth Ave., in downtown Camas, will re-open with new operators in March. The space has been vacant since September 2009, when the former operator closed up shop. Future plans for the facility include offering food, beer and wine service.

Liberty Theatre slated to re-open in March

After being closed for more than a year, the Liberty Theatre in downtown Camas will re-open in March with a new operator, a new look and a new business plan.

January 18, 2011
Firefighters responded to a two-story house fire at 530 S.E. Blair Road in Washougal on Wednesday. The cause of the blaze is being investigated by the Clark County Fire Marshal's Office. Updates to this story will be posted at www.camaspostrecord.com.

House fire in Washougal ruled arson

A fire that destroyed a rural Washougal home last week is now being investigated as an arson case. Richard Martin, Clark County assistant fire marshal, said today that the fire originated in the garage of the two-story home located at 530 S.E. Blair Road. He declined to offer further details citing the ongoing investigation.

January 18, 2011
Rock and gravel has been trucked in from Skamania County and piled along the highway shoulder between Second and Sixth streets in Washougal in preparation for work on the state Route 14 improvement project. Work is expected to get under way early this summer.

Pre-construction work begins along Highway 14

For the past several weeks crews have been stockpiling rock and dirt along the shoulder of state Route 14 in anticipation of the onset of construction of the much anticipated Camas-Washougal widening and interchange project. According to WSDOT Area Engineer Chris Tams, the material is being trucked in from another ongoing WSDOT Highway 14 project -- $4.3 million in safety improvements being made from the Cape Horn Bridge to Cape Horn Road. The stockpiling between Second and Sixth streets will continue for the next two to three weeks with no scheduled traffic impacts. The material will be used to create embankments for the interchange project.