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The Port Townsend & Jefferson County Leader

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The Port Townsend & Jefferson County Leader

Serving Port Townsend and Jefferson County since 1889

12/04/2025

County budget fix deemed unsustainable

By Mallory Kruml

Little additional detail on the proposed departmental cuts was provided at the Dec. 1 meeting of the Jefferson County Board of Commissioners.

“We’ve had these budget updates the last few weeks at the chair’s request, because we just wanted to talk about these things and get some direction from the board,” County Administrator Josh Peters said. “It doesn’t necessarily imply that there’s some big update for information because we are working on it to try and get that budget prepared, which we expect to do by this Friday.”

Still, staff sounded the alarm on its own budget-balancing tactics.

For the full story pick up a copy of The Leader or go to ptleader.com

12/03/2025

State auditor’s office says county’s 2024 books are clean

By Alex Frick

Jefferson County received clean results in its 2024 state audit from the Washington State Auditor’s Office which reported no findings in its financial, federal and accountability reviews.

The audit released on Nov. 26 covers the county’s operations from Jan. 1 through Dec. 31, 2024. State auditors examined how the county manages public dollars, follows state and federal rules and protects resources from fraud or misuse.

For the full story pick up a copy of The Leader or go to ptleader.com

12/02/2025

High hopes for Rivals wrestlers this winter

By Leader Staff

Wrestlers packed the Port Townsend High School (PTHS) gym on Nov. 17 as they prepared for the start of the winter sports season.

“About 30 boys and almost 20 girls have registered for our sport,” said assistant coach Kade Wilford. “It is great to see the wrestling room bustling with energy again.”

This year, the girls program boasts 18 registered athletes, which is the largest number of girl wrestlers yet, said assistant coach Ryan White.

For the full story pick up a copy of The Leader or go to ptleader.com

12/01/2025

Environmental award goes to Land Trust steward

By Alex Frick

At the headwaters of Chimacum Creek, Erik Kingfisher teaches during the Tidelands to Timberline natural history course in spring 2025. Photo courtesy of Jefferson Land Trust

Erik Kingfisher, Jefferson Land Trust’s Director of Stewardship and Resilience, has been awarded the Eleanor Stopps Environmental Leadership Award, an honor recognizing individuals who have made significant contributions to conservation on the Olympic Peninsula.

Kingfisher’s first reaction was “gratitude.”

“Just being grateful that I was nominated and selected,” he said. “I started thinking about other people I know who’ve received the award. It’s kind of a great club of people that I get to be a part of.”

Kingfisher’s approach to conservation reflects a phrase he coined years ago: “Think forever, act now.”

For the full story pick up a copy of The Leader or go to ptleader.com

11/30/2025

New strain of bird flu kills Grays Harbor resident, case marks world’s first, risk low

By Leader Staff

A Grays Harbor County resident who was the first person ever confirmed to have the H5N5 strain of avian influenza has died, the Washington State Department of Health announced Nov. 21.

The individual, an older adult with underlying health conditions, was hospitalized in early November after developing severe symptoms.

Testing at the UW Medicine Clinical Virology Lab identified the virus as H5N5, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention later confirmed it — making this the first recorded infection with this variant in a person globally, health officials said.

For the full story pick up a copy of The Leader or go to ptleader.com

11/29/2025

Council member named county's 'Best'

By Mallory Kruml

Councilman Thomas vows to stay involved in city council matters, for now

Outgoing city council member Ben Thomas has been named Jefferson County’s Best Person in this year’s Leader Readers’ Choice contest.

His initial reaction to the news?

“Disbelief,” he said. “I thought it was a gag.”

For the full story pick up a copy of The Leader or go to ptleader.com

11/28/2025

Coach named city’s ‘Best’

By Alex Frick
When a voicemail came through congratulating his family on a couple of Readers’ Choice victories, Alex Little listened in — unaware a surprise was coming. His wife, Abbie, pressed play. They were named Best Brokerage. One of their colleagues was announced as Best Realtor. And then the caller added, almost in passing, “And funny enough, Alex was voted Best Person.”

Little couldn’t help but laugh.

“I didn’t even know there was a Best Person category this year,” he said. “That one caught me by surprise, obviously.”

His reaction – equal parts humble and amused – is likely why Port Townsend voted for him in the first place. Little has spent years quietly weaving himself into the community, with an optimism and grounded steadiness that people notice.

11/27/2025

Rec center and sheriff’s office on chopping block

By Mallory Kruml

The Port Townsend Recreation Center, community development staff and sheriff’s deputies are among the proposed cuts to staff and services as Jefferson County officials consider ways to close the $5.2 million general fund deficit.

“Where we are sitting today is $1.1 million,” Finance Director Judy Shepherd said of the deficit at the Nov. 24 county commissioners meeting. “And I know that’s a big jump from $5.2 [million], but that was our goal. Our goal was to really hone down on this deficit. Between changes to revenue, changes to expenditures, we’ve been able to do that.”

Following the identification of a $5.2 million deficit, Shepherd provided each county department with a dollar amount to cut from general fund budget requests.

11/26/2025

Tensions rise over scope of city’s comp plan update

By Alex Frick

Standing room only and growing public tension marked the City of Port Townsend’s latest comprehensive plan hearing, as residents packed council chambers to weigh in on a sweeping update that could reshape housing, zoning and development rules for the next 20 years.

For the full story pick up a copy of The Leader or go to ptleader.com

11/25/2025

Bid awarded for Washington Street sidewalk improvements near courthouse

By Mallory Kruml

New sidewalks will soon be poured along Washington and Walker streets outside the Jefferson County Courthouse.

“It’s all about getting ADA- compliant sidewalk from basically Penny Saver up the side of Washington Street and then across the street, across Walker along Courthouse Park to the Courthouse,” Public Works Director Steve King said at the Nov. 10 meeting of the Port Townsend City Council.

All seven council members voted in favor of awarding a $237,585 construction bid to Van Ness Construction.

Work is expected to begin in December and should wrap up in February, according to city staff.

11/24/2025

Port Townsend hires Austin Watkins as new in-house city attorney

By Mallory Kruml

After 18 months of relying on the Issaquah-based law firm Kenyon Disend for its legal needs, Port Townsend will soon have an in-house city attorney.

“ While they’ve done extraordinary with a high volume of legal needs over the last year and a half, there’s really nothing like having somebody in that seat and working with the team in the meetings we have day-to-day and being accessible and available,” City Manager John Mauro said at the Nov. 10 city council meeting.

That night, Mauro named Austin Watkins, a former planning manager and civil deputy prosecuting attorney for Jefferson County, as the city’s new attorney.

For the full story pick up a copy of The Leader or go to ptleader.com

11/23/2025

First reported human case of H5N5 avian flu; officials say public risk remains low

By Alex Frick

A Grays Harbor resident has tested positive for H5N5 avian influenza. According to the Washington State Department of Health, this is the first time this strain has been confirmed in a human.

The patient was hospitalized in early November with flu-like symptoms and remains in care, said health officials. The source of the exposure appears to have come from a “mixed backyard flock” at the person’s home, which had contact with wild birds.

State and local health agencies, along with Washington State Department of Agriculture are continuing to investigate.

For the full story pick up a copy of The Leader or go to ptleader.com

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