Key Peninsula News

More Than a Food Bank, GH FISH Breaks Ground on New Digs

After decades of cramming food and clothing into rented spaces splitting at the seams, the secular FISH, Friends In Service Helping, broke ground on its own new facility at a private ceremony July 13. more

Ted Olinger, KP News | 8/28/21

School District Explores Options for KGHP-FM

Kris Hagel, executive director of digital learning for Peninsula School District, commissioned an appraisal and educational assessment in July of KGHP-FM to consider its options as a school district and a radio station owner. more

Lisa Bryan, KP News | 8/28/21

How Covid Relief Money Helped KP Residents

COVID-19 affected the Key Peninsula in many ways: residents lost jobs and coped with isolation, illness and death. Some organizations had to close their doors. Others worked in new ways to meet increased demands. more

Ted Olinger and Sara Thompson, KP News | 8/28/21

Mussels on a raft in Carr Inlet couldn’t survive the heat.

High Temperatures and Low Tide Take a Toll

Record high temperatures and minus tides spelled disaster for shellfish and other intertidal sea life in Puget Sound in June. more

8/28/21

Algal toxins were responsible for summer shellfish catastrophe.

Cause of 2019 Rocky Bay Clam Die-Off Identified

The cause of the Rocky Bay clam die-off in July 2019 has been identified. Beaches across Puget Sound were affected by similar events in both 2018 and 2019. Yessotoxins, produced by the algae species … more

Sara Thompson, KP News | 8/28/21

Built in 1936, the Purdy Bridge is graded as “poor condition” by WSDOT. Concrete pier deterioration seen here at low tide is slated for repair this summer.

Detours Ahead for Eight-Day Closure of SR-302

Multiple improvements over an 8-mile stretch of State Route 302 stretching from Elgin Clifton Road to Purdy, delayed by Covid restrictions in 2020, are back on track for completion by year’s … more

Staff Report | 8/28/21

County and Coalition Embrace ‘No Wrong Door’ Approach to Ending Homelessness

An RV and two custom truck trailers set up shop in the parking lot of the Key Peninsula Civic Center. It was the KP’s first visit from the New Hope Mobile Resources Response Team, a collective effort to bring services to people experiencing homelessness on the peninsula. more

Chris Rurik, KP News | 8/28/21

Two Local Teens Die in Separate Accidents

Two teenagers died on the Key Peninsula June 28 just a few hours and a few miles apart in unrelated accidents. Will Huck of Port Orchard, 17, drowned in Horseshoe Lake at approximately 3:15 … more

Staff Report | 7/28/21

Honoring the First Residents

A new historical plaque in honor of the Native People of Filucy Bay was unveiled at the Longbranch Marina in a dedication ceremony May 26. Well-known archeologist and anthropologist Lynn Larson, a … more

Staff Report | 7/1/21

State Funds Next Steps in Restoration of Whiteman Cove

Washington State Legislators appropriated $900,000 in the 2022-23 state capital budget for the Department of Natural Resources to advance plans for removal of barriers to fish passage at Whiteman Cove. more

Lisa Bryan, KP News | 6/30/21

The commission has created a “get-to-know-us” video at https://youtu.be/2-PVS8Q0Os0

Redistricting Commission Reaches Out to the Public

If “unprecedented” described much of 2020, it also describes the opportunity for public input this year as Washington State redraws its legislative boundaries. more

Sara Thompson, KP News | 6/30/21

KP Lags Behind County, State Covid Vaccination Rates

Vaccinations to prevent the spread of COVID-19 have recently slowed all over the U.S., especially in Washington state and on the Key Peninsula, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the state Department of Health. more

Ted Olinger, KP News | 6/30/21

‘Earthonauts’ Land on Purdy Spit

In recognition of World Ocean Day, five Key Peninsula Middle School students organized and hosted a community beach cleanup on the Purdy Spit June 12. more

Carolyn Wiley, KP News | 6/30/21

Dr. Justine Zingsheim-Nadeau and Dr. Lisa Woods

After Surviving Pandemic, Brookside Veterinary Hospital Changes Hands

Brookside Veterinary Hospital, owned and operated by Dr. Lisa Woods for nearly 30 years, has survived over a year of Covid protocols and restrictions. Brookside has been busier than ever and a second veterinarian, Dr. Justine Zingsheim-Nadeau recently joined the practice. more

Krisa Bruemmer, KP News | 6/30/21

The pump out station at Penrose Point has been out of service since April 2019.

County to Boaters: ‘Pump Your Poop’

Pierce County, in partnership with Washington State Parks, The Recreational Boaters Association of Washington and Minterbrook Oyster Farm, will provide a free mobile pump-out service vessel for boaters in the South Sound this summer. more

Kamryn Minch, KP News | 6/30/21

Hugh McMillan center, with school board directors Lori Glover, David Olson, Deborah Krishnadasan, Natalie Wimberley and Chuck West.

The Hugh McMillan Community Center is Born

In a brief private ceremony at Evergreen Elementary School, Hugh McMillan of Lakebay was honored by the Peninsula School District board of directors with the official naming of the gymnasium building as the future home of the Hugh McMillan Community Center. more

Lisa Bryan, KP News | 6/30/21

2021-22 Resource Directory

Help is here! Directory of community resources in the Key Peninsula/Gig Harbor area. Not sure where to start? Call 2-1-1 or visit wa211.org. more

6/22/21

KPHS Board of Directors with Sen. Emily Randall in 2019.

$100,000 Grant for Vaughn Library Hall Restoration

The Key Peninsula Historical Society received a substantial boost for the restoration of the 1893 Vaughn Library Hall with the award of a $100,000 grant included in the state’s 2022-23 budget. more

Joseph Pentheroudakis, KP News | 5/28/21

Battalion Chief Chuck West Retires

After nearly 40 years with the Key Peninsula Fire Department, Battalion Chief Chuck West is retiring. more

Sara Thompson, KP News | 5/26/21

Inside the new Evergreen Elementary building as it undergoes the final stages of construction.

Evergreen School Nears Completion

This fall, thanks to the passage of the 2019 capital bond, a state-of-the-art Evergreen will open its doors to students. more

Sara Thompson, KP News | 5/26/21