One hundred vendors are signed up to participate. Harbor Days is a huge draw for tugboat enthusiasts, history buffs and area residents who appreciate the offering of arts-and-crafts vendors. Tugboats began returning to the Olympia waterfront on Friday and many will be open for public inspection today.
The vintage, working and retired tugboats are moored on the waterfront. At noon Sunday the tugs will fire up and slip away from shore to participate in the annual Harbor Days Tugboat Races in the channel of Budd Inlet. Harbor Days is back on Percival Landing this year, having been displaced last year for the boardwalk remodeling project. If you haven’t yet checked out the renovated boardwalk, Harbor Days provides the perfect opportunity. Entertainment will be offered at the Percival Landing stage beginning at 1 p.m. today and at 11:30 a.m. Sunday. The Lady Washington and Hawaiian Chieftain will offer tours and sails from the dock at the Port of Olympia Plaza. The weekend festivities conclude with the announcement of the tugboat winners at 5 p.m. Sunday. Harbor Days is sponsored by the South Sound Maritime Heritage Association, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the preservation and public awareness of the southern Puget Sound’s maritime history. From the early ferry boats that linked Olympia to Seattle, to the working waterfront that helped launch Washington state’s economy, there are many stories to tell.
Thumbs Down: When Gov. Chris Gregoire was elected as the state’s top administrator, she vowed that her staff would reflect the diversity of Washington state.
A recent analysis by The Associated Press shows that minorities now account for more than one-quarter of Washington residents, but Gregoire’s entire senior staff is white and her cabinet of 26 has only two people of another race. Clearly, the governor is not living up to her pledge that her staff would mirror the many faces of the Evergreen State.
According to the Associated Press report, the lack of diversity on the governor’s staff and in her cabinet extends to rank-and-file workers, as well. Just 18 percent of state employees as a whole are minorities and there’s even less diversity among managers — 16 percent of them are nonwhite. The numbers are not getting any better: The percentage of minority hires has fallen from 18 percent in 2007 to less than 16 percent this past year. The governor’s two minority cabinet members are Eva Santos, who runs the Department of Personnel, and John Batiste, who is chief of the Washington State Patrol. By comparison, seven of the 27 cabinet secretaries under former Gov. Gary Locke were minorities in 2004. Lillian Ortiz-Self, who chairs the state’s Commission on Hispanic Affairs, said Gregoire has been supportive of diversity efforts but that her words need to be backed up by actions. “It takes a lot more work than just believing in it,” Ortiz-Self said.
Thumbs Up: The idea to have yellow bikes in the City of Tenino began more as an artistic endeavor, the bikes representing public ownership and playing off other socially conscious art.
It has grown into the Tenino Yellow Bicycle Project which has stationed bicycles around the south Thurston County town to promote mobility and exploration of the city, healthy living, a sense of community and the act of sharing. The bicycle project is the brainchild of Wayne Fournier, Adam Barr and several others. “They are getting attention in town,” Fournier said. “It’s an evolving project. It adapts as the user sees fit.” Once a bicycle is donated, it’s painted yellow and stenciled with reminders such as “respect town bike” or marked with the unofficial “T90 DOT” (Tenino Department of Transportation).
When tires get worn down or something breaks, the bike is collected and repaired. Bikes will remain out for public use until about October, when they will be stored through the fall and winter and return with the good weather.
The only rules are to not chain them up and to return them to Tenino. So far none of the bikes has been stolen, though at least one has been retrieved from the outskirts of town. Organizers want to expand the project and place yellow bike racks at the Tenino City Park and near local businesses.
They also want to see the county put in a kiosk at the trailhead with more information on trails, distances and routes for bicyclists. What a great, community-building project.
