Thursday, November 05, 2026
37.0°F

Soap Lake council appoints Arnold to vacancy

NANCE BESTON | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 1 year, 6 months AGO
by NANCE BESTON
Staff Writer | April 16, 2025 8:50 PM

SOAP LAKE — At the April 16 Soap Lake City Council meeting, the council appointed Andrew Arnold to fill seat six. One open seat remains on the council. 


Arnold said he had previously been on the council for two years before he resigned.  


“I am hoping that things have changed enough,” Arnold said. “I was on city council a couple of years ago but had left because of a lot of things going on. I have seen a lot of changes. I am hoping that good things continue.” 


Arnold said he owns a local auto restoration business called Sagebrush Customs and as a business owner and local of Soap Lake he hopes to make a difference.  


“I want to see the infrastructure fixed in our community,” Arnold said. “I live here; I have a business here. For too many things for too many years, the city has pushed things to the wayside, and it would be great to see it all continue to progress in a positive manner.”  


Arnold said that if any city residents have concerns, questions or comments, to reach out to him.  


“Reach out to me, I will listen and do my best to get any concerns or questions in front of the council for consideration,” Arnold said.  


Despite Arnold filling a seat, there is still one open city council position that the city is still looking for applicants for.  


For those interested, visit Soap Lake City Hall and drop off a letter of interest.  


ARTICLES BY NANCE BESTON

Bartrand leads assessor race in preliminary results
November 4, 2026 4:39 p.m.

Bartrand leads assessor race in preliminary results

EPHRATA — Preliminary election results show Grant County Assessor Candidate Anson Bartrand leading over challenger Clayton Johnson, but both candidates say the race remains far from decided as thousands of ballots remain uncounted. As of the Nov. 3 count, Bartrand received 7,152 votes to Johnson's 5,195. However, Election Coordinator Rebecca Pettingill said Wednesday afternoon that election workers still had about 7,000 ballots in the office awaiting processing and estimated that roughly 15,000 ballots remain to be counted countywide before certification. “If we're going to be anywhere near where we were in 2022, which we're still on kind of track to be, we'll probably process another 15,000 ballots before the end of the election,” Pettingill said.

Gregg leads sheriff's race as thousands of ballots remain uncounted
November 5, 2026 3:25 a.m.

Gregg leads sheriff's race as thousands of ballots remain uncounted

EPHRATA — Challenger Darrik Gregg held an early lead over incumbent Grant County Sheriff Joey Kriete following the first release of election results Tuesday night, but both candidates said the outcome remains uncertain with thousands of ballots still waiting to be processed. Preliminary results as of Nov. 3 showed Gregg with 6,670 votes, or about 54.7%, compared to 5,392 votes, or about 44.3%, for Kriete. There were also 123 write-in candidates, or about 1% of the vote. However, Grant County Elections Coordinator Rebecca Pettingill said Wednesday that the county still has a substantial number of ballots left to count before election certification Nov. 24.

MLSD highlights STOPit app as tool for reporting safety concerns
November 3, 2026 5:42 p.m.

MLSD highlights STOPit app as tool for reporting safety concerns

MOSES LAKE — Moses Lake School District officials are encouraging students, parents and community members to use the district's STOPit reporting platform to share concerns about school safety, bullying and student well-being. The renewed focus on the reporting system follows a recent community safety town hall, where district leaders discovered many attendees were unfamiliar with the tool, according to Director of Public Relations Ryan Shannon. “We wanted people to know this system is available to our community and to the parents for a multitude of different issues,” Shannon said.