Latest Curated Headlines from Oak Harbor and North Whidbey

The Oak Harbor City Council will use a combination of funds from insurance settlements, marina funds, and a grant from the Washington state Dept. of Commerce to pay for much needed repairs to F dock at the marina. City Council members agreed to award a contract to American Construction Company...

Oak Harbor School Board President John Diamond cleared the audience from the school board meeting during Monday night’s meeting after several people began shouting over board members while they were discussing Governor Inslee’s new mask mandate. The new mandate is for anyone, whether they are vaccinated or not, will be...

Oak Harbor City Council members are postponing until Sept. 7 any further decisions about the proposed gift of the “Angel de le Creatividad” sculpture. The city is waiting on documentation from Sculpture Northwest, who will do the work to install the 37-feet tall sculpture, and for the donating estate’s executor...

The two largest law enforcement offices on Whidbey Island are facing the loss of significant numbers of commissioned officers this year. For some departing Oak Harbor Police Department officers, the significant changes in laws regarding how police officers operate affected their decision to leave. Oak Harbor Police Chief Kevin Dresker...

A proposal for a city staff survey that caught Oak Harbor leadership off guard has mysteriously disappeared. Councilmember Beth Munns announced last November that the city council had developed a survey to take the “pulse” of city staff due to concerns over morale, transparency, and the quality of supervision. At...

Oak Harbor Council Member Joel Servatius resolved an apparent conflict of interest or violation of campaign laws by paying the entrance fee to the Chamber of Commerce’s 4th of July Parade. The Chamber gave out free spots to city council members as well as the mayor and other politicians. However,...

Three current Island County elected officials and former Island County Superior Court Judge Vickie Churchill were fined by the Public Disclosure Commission last week for failing to file F-1 reports that cover personal financial information. The Island County officials are Whidbey Island Hospital Commissioner Nancy Fey, Oak Harbor Councilmember Erica...

Oak Harbor Finance Director David Goldman presented city council members with an overview of ideas on how to spend $6.5 million from the Federal Gov’t during a workshop meeting on June 30. Although there were many ideas forwarded, there are limited categories for which the funds can be used. These...

Whidbey Island will soon receive millions of dollars of American Rescue Plan funding. Oak Harbor was allotted $6,578,122. Coupeville was allotted $550,480 and Langley was allotted $318,229. Island County will get $16,500,000. Half the money will be received in 2021 and the other half in 2022. The respective city councils...

The Oak Harbor City Council is in disagreement over paying for a traffic study that has already been completed. There is confusion about who ordered the study concerning the access road to the future 75-acre city park. The study compared Northwest Elwha Street and Gun Club Road as entry points...