Cleanups, Courtrooms, Controversies, and Questions
A look back at the week’s most talked-about local posts—and the conversations they’ve sparked
From deputies hauling more than two tons of garbage out of the Olympic National Forest to renewed debate over the Shore Pool voucher program, this week’s social media was filled with stories about public safety, public policy, and public accountability. Welcome to Social Media Saturday.
Mountain of Trash, Mountain of Gratitude
The Clallam County Sheriff’s Office deserves tremendous credit for another job well done. This week, the Sheriff’s CREW inmates and deputies spent two days cleaning up an abandoned illegal campsite near the Slab Camp Trailhead on Forest Road 2878.
The results were staggering. Over three trips to the landfill, they removed:
9 pallets
7 tires
3 car batteries
Approximately 15 empty fuel cans
A king-size mattress and box springs
Three tents
A carport
Refrigerator parts
Hundreds of pounds of scrap metal
Clothing, coolers, storage bins
A steel garden rack
Even a bucket toilet
Total removed: 4,620 pounds of trash.
That’s more than two tons of garbage hauled off our public lands.
The Sheriff’s Office, deputies, and the CREW inmates transformed an area that had become an illegal dumping ground back into a place families and hikers can enjoy. It’s difficult work that often goes unnoticed, but it saves taxpayers money, protects wildlife, and keeps Clallam County beautiful.
Outstanding work by everyone involved.
When Timber Doesn’t Sell, Somebody Else Pays
Environmental lawsuits aimed at stopping Department of Natural Resources timber sales are often framed as protecting forests. What receives far less attention is who ultimately pays the financial price.
Revenue from DNR timber sales helps support schools, roads, ports, hospitals, fire districts, libraries, parks, and numerous other local services. When major timber sales are delayed or canceled, those anticipated revenues disappear while the bills remain.
The result is that local governments must either reduce services, find replacement revenue, or shift more of the tax burden onto remaining taxpayers. For many residents already struggling with rising housing costs and property taxes, that’s another economic hit worth considering.
Pool Voucher Program Petition
The William Shore Memorial Pool Board has delayed any decision on its controversial voucher program until it receives guidance from its liability insurance carrier. The program provides pool vouchers to homeless drug addicts through the Harm Reduction Health Center, allowing recipients to use the public pool facility with children and families.
Meanwhile, the Clallam County Democrats have launched a petition urging the board to continue the program, saying residents should “place our trust in our elected officials to make sound decisions for all.”
The debate continues after public records revealed dozens of police responses associated with the facility during the time the program operated, despite earlier public statements that there had been no incidents.
Do the Clallam County Democrats believe we should “place our trust in our elected officials to make sound decisions for all” at the federal level?
Flashback: A Major Drug Bust
Six years ago, OPNET investigators concluded one of the largest drug investigations in recent memory. After undercover heroin purchases, detectives executed a search warrant at a Sequim residence, arresting Daniel Bresler.
Investigators seized:
Nearly nine pounds of methamphetamine
Heroin
Oxycodone
Xanax
Suboxone
Five firearms
Body armor
The estimated street value of the methamphetamine alone exceeded $160,000. The investigation involved OPNET along with numerous local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies working together to remove a significant drug supplier from the community.
This week, jail records show Bresler was again booked into the Clallam County Jail on a U.S. Marshals Service detainer before being transferred to another agency.
Bresler’s return to custody also highlights what many residents see as a contradiction in Clallam County’s approach to drugs.
On one hand, OPNET and local law enforcement devote enormous time and resources to identifying and arresting major drug traffickers. On the other hand, the county funds a Harm Reduction Health Center that distributes drug paraphernalia and instructions to people actively using illegal drugs.
Making drug use easier inevitably increases demand for dealers willing to supply those drugs.
Summer in Clallam County
Summer brings beautiful weather, packed parks, and thousands of visitors. It also brings renewed public debate over visible homelessness, open-air drug use, encampments, and public safety in community spaces.
The PDC Complaint Continues
In the wake of a complaint from Paul Pickett seeking an additional $50,000 in fines against the Jake Seegers campaign, Public Disclosure Commission staff have requested that Clallam County Watchdog begin placing the disclaimer, “This content paid for (or sponsored) by Jake Seegers for Commissioner,” on all content mentioning Jake Seegers.
CC Watchdog will not do so because the statement is false. The campaign has never paid CC Watchdog to publish content, CC Watchdog generates no income, and placing a “paid for” disclaimer on unpaid content would itself be misleading.
A recent Nextdoor post illustrates the concern: “Tozzer is getting paid to write favorable stories for Seegers.”
That isn’t true. The amount the campaign has paid me to publish Jake’s articles is the same amount it has paid me to serve as campaign manager, the same amount CC Watchdog has earned, and the same amount it costs to operate CC Watchdog:
Zero.
A Conversation About Civility
Indivisible describes itself as:
“A grassroots group of neighbors, activists, and everyday citizens committed to defending democracy and building a more just, inclusive, and equitable future...”
Recently, however, one social media comment directed at county commissioner candidate Jake Seegers read:
“What kind of human garbage can picture his child this way in order to earn votes from trashy people...?”
Political disagreements are inevitable. Personal attacks like these raise broader questions about the tone of local civic discourse—and whether our community is becoming less willing to disagree respectfully.
From the Scanner
The commissioners and Dr. Berry did not respond to questions regarding public officials correcting misleading or erroneous information provided to the public. Here is today's email sent to the five Shore Aquatic Center board members: Mike French, Randy Johnson, Mark Hodgson, LaTrisha Suggs, and Greg Shield.
Dear Shore Aquatic Center Board members,
The Board is consulting with the facility's liability insurance carrier regarding the shower voucher program.
Does that mean the Board believes there are potential liability risks associated with inviting homeless individuals—some of whom may be actively struggling with addiction or mental illness—to use a facility primarily designed for children and families?
If the Board has received months of public testimony expressing concerns about safety, drug activity, and the appropriateness of the program, why would the insurance carrier's opinion become the deciding factor? If there are no meaningful risks, why is the insurance carrier being consulted? Conversely, if the Board believes there are enough potential risks to seek guidance from its insurer, doesn't that suggest the community's concerns were worthy of greater consideration from the beginning?
Is the Board waiting for the insurance company to determine whether the program is appropriate, or will it make that policy decision based on the feedback it has already received from the public?
Thank you for your time. I appreciate any clarification you can provide.
Just an observation for those who don't want legacy forests harvested, as they have been so designated for decades; 1), Are you willing to personally make up the difference in lost tax revenue not harvesting the trees would provide? If not, are you willing to see the governmental services this revenue funds be reduced accordingly? And my favorite, 2), Do you use toilet paper? If so, what's your alternative?
As for the ongoing personal attacks on Jeff and Jake - which are shameful - they are but a symptom of a not-so-small fanatical group of so-called "progressives" in Clallam County whose minds are made up, and who believe that bigger government funded by somebody else's money is the answer to all of society's problems. Those of us who believe the opposite is true, and who believe in governmental accountability and transparency at every level, must remember that at election time this group will turn out to vote in big numbers. The result will hinge in no small measure on the turnout from the small government side. It's up to all of us to make sure that friends and family vote.