Ritzville offers parks, museums and more
JOEL MARTIN | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 1 year, 5 months AGO
Joel Martin has been with the Columbia Basin Herald for more than 25 years in a variety of roles and is the most-tenured employee in the building. Martin is a married father of eight and enjoys spending time with his children and his wife, Christina. He is passionate about the paper’s mission of informing the people of the Columbia Basin because he knows it is important to record the history of the communities the publication serves. | March 20, 2025 1:45 AM
RITZVILLE — For a town of about 1,800, Ritzville has a lot to do. There are museums, golf and a water park, as well as historic walks and buildings to explore.
Ritzville City Park, located on South Division Street between Seventh and 10th avenues, has playgrounds, a gazebo, barbecue grills, volleyball and a horseshoe pit. On the other side of Columbia Street are five recently refurbished tennis courts.
Ritzville City Park is also home to the Ritzville Water Park, with two water slides, a diving board, a lap pool and wading pools for the little ones. The water park opens as soon as school lets out and stays open through the summer.
On the other side of town is Veterans Memorial Children’s Park, a small neighborhood park with a jungle gym, swings, four-way seesaw and a basketball hoop. There’s also a small skateboard and scooter park with ramps and jumps. Across the street from Veterans Memorial Children’s Park is the Ritzville Little League baseball field.
Not many cities Ritzville’s size own their own golf course. The Ritzville Golf Course, built in 1934, has 18 holes for players of all skill levels. Tee times can be reserved at www.ritzvillegolf.com.
Once all the outdoor fun is explored, Ritzville’s downtown boasts two historical museums. The Frank R. Burroughs House at North Jackson Street and West Main Avenue was built in 1889 and has been preserved with vintage furniture and clothing representing the town’s early history.
A few blocks away is the Railroad Depot Museum, a relic of the town’s rich railroad history. The museum has a unique caboose and some of the original equipment used at the depot.
Ritzville has a treasure trove of unique and historical buildings, including its Carnegie Library at North Adams Street and West Main Avenue. A complete walking tour guide can be found at https://bit.ly/RitzvilleWalkingTour.
Ritzville’s Veterans Memorial Children’s Park boasts a small skate park as well as more conventional playground equipment.
The Ritzville Water Park opens as soon as school lets out in the summer.ARTICLES BY JOEL MARTIN
Quincy National Night Out scales down
QUINCY — Quincy’s National Night Out was more compact this year, which worked out well, said QPD Sgt. Joe Westby, who’s in charge of event planning for the Quincy Police Department. “National Night Out is a big event, and the fact that we’re able to shrink it up is like a breath of fresh air,” Westby said. “If you're always doing the same thing, it's kind of nice to switch things up and see how it works.” National Night Out took place Thursday on the block of C Street next to the police station, a shift from previous years when it was held at Lauzier Park. The smaller space meant fewer emergency vehicles for children to explore, but it also meant less walking for attendees. Grant County Fire District 5 brought a fire truck, and the Grant County Sheriff’s Office had a patrol boat. Renew, the Grant County behavioral health agency, had a booth and so did Quincy Partnership for Youth. Veterans Operation Creation sang the national anthem, and the Quincy Animal Shelter brought kittens that piled over each other making friends with passersby. As before, the QPD served grilled hot dogs.
Quincy Police retirements leave big shoes to fill
QUINCY — There are some big shoes to fill at the Quincy Police Department. “We’re losing 48 years of experience between them,” Quincy Police Chief Ryan Green said at the retirement party for Capt. Jorge Trujillo and Det. Damon Powell Thursday. Trujillo, who grew up in Sunnyside, has been with QPD for 19 years, he said, coming on as a patrol officer fresh out of the military. From there he served as a field training officer, a detective and finally captain. “I consider him my left-hand man,” Green said. “He runs the operations side of the house … He knows the agency very well, and he knows the community.” Trujillo has some projects around the house to tackle now that he’s retired, he said.
Big fun on a small scale
Wheat Land Communities’ Fair opens Thursday
RITZVILLE — The Wheat Land Communities’ Fair isn’t as big or as flashy as some of the county fairs around central Washington, but the folks who keep it going like it just the way it is. “It’s somewhere you can go and get an old-time traditional feeling, and you’re comfortable letting your kids roam the grounds and experience all that it has to offer,” said Board Member Lori Williams. “It’s more of a feeling than (one) specific thing,” The fair starts Thursday in Ritzville and runs through Sunday. Starting Friday, the 56th Ritzville Rodeo will take place alongside the fair at the rodeo grounds. This year the entertainment budget was expanded, Williams said, to be able to offer more fun that’s covered by the cost of admission. For the kids, there’s face painting, balloon art, Lego crafts, races, contests and games. Children can also ride on a little train towed around the fairgrounds behind a tractor.