You’ll want to think about going to bed early or sleeping in this weekend: Daylight Saving Time starts at 2 a.m. Sunday, March 10. That means you’ll spring ahead and move your clocks forward one hour — and, unfortunately, lose that hour of sleep.
The benefit is that we’ll get more sunlight later in the evening and it’s a pleasant sign that spring is just around the corner. Spring 2013 officially starts on Wednesday, March 20.
One drawback for Northern Virginia residents—Metro closed last year effectively one hour earlier than normal, since clocks jumped from 1:59 a.m. to 3 a.m., and 3 a.m. is Metro closing time. A few late-night partygoers in DC were caught off guard by the time change.
The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority has not issued a press release regarding Daylight Saving 2013, but it is expected the same thing will happen.
Many electronic devices, like your cell phone and computer, automatically adjust when Daylight Savings Time begins or ends.
So, why do we do this at 2 a.m., and why shift our clocks at all?
According to Webhibit:
In the United States, 2 a.m. was originally chosen as the changeover time because it was practical and minimized disruption. Most people were at home and this was the time when the fewest trains were running. It is late enough to minimally affect bars and restaurants, and it prevents the day from switching to yesterday, which would be confusing. It is early enough that the entire continental U.S. switches by daybreak, and the changeover occurs before most early shift workers and early churchgoers are affected.
The larger reason for shifting our clocks, however, is energy conservation.
The first official national time shift wasn’t until 1918. Then the United States stopped the practice, started again during World War II for energy conservation reasons, stopped when the war was over and re-started with the Uniform Time Act in 1966. The Energy Policy Act of 2005 lengthened daylight saving to eight months instead of six months.
Although a U.S. Department of Transportation study in the 1970s found that daylight saving trimmed electricity usage by about 1 percent, later studies have shown that the savings is offset by air conditioners running in warmer climates.
It may not all be for naught, however. Another study, performed in 2007 by the RAND Corporation found that the increase in daylight in spring led to a roughly 10 percent drop in vehicular crashes.
Check Your Smoke Detectors!
When you change your clocks in the fall and spring because of Daylight Saving Time, it’s also a good time to change batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, and check to make sure the devices are in working order.
Arizona, Puerto Rico, Hawaii, U.S. Virgin Islands and American Samoa do not observe Daylight Saving Time.
MARYSVILLE — Unless it’s raining hard, the Highway 529 bridge into Marysville is set to close tonight and is scheduled to remain closed through the weekend.
People who drive the bridge over Ebey Slough will have to choose a different route from 8 tonight through 5 a.m. Monday. The weekend detour uses Fourth Street in Marysville and I-5. Bicyclists and pedestrians can be escorted through the closure if needed.
For the past year, demolition crews have used half of the new bridge as a staging area to rip down the old Ebey Slough bridge.
With the removal of the old bridge, drivers will finally be able to use all of the new, wider bridge after this last bit of work.
State Department of Transportation crews plan to remove the concrete barrier between drivers and the demolition staging area. Once the barrier is gone, the roadway will be striped for traffic in each direction. The bridge will reopen by Monday with four lanes for vehicle traffic and bike lanes on each side.
Transportation engineer Mark Sawyer anticipates that it will be a big change for drivers who use the bridge to commute and ease traffic during the evening commute from Everett.
When the weather improves in May, a final layer of asphalt will be applied.
The state built the new bridge to replace the 85-year-old Ebey Slough bridge.
Colville Confederated Tribes Chairman John Sirois, center (holding award plaque), and previous Watershed Hero Award recipient Mary Verner pose with tribal members at Sierra Club award dinner. Colville received the 2013 Watershed Hero Award from the Sierra Club’s Washington chapter. Photo: Jack McNeel.
By Jack McNeel, Indian Country Today Media Network
The Colville Confederated Tribes’ successful effort to hold a British Columbia smelter accountable for dumping pollutants into the Columbia River for a century has caught the attention of the Sierra Club Washington State’s Upper Columbia River Group, which bestowed its 2013 Watershed Hero Award on the tribes.
Colville won a major victory in 2012 when the company, known today as Teck Metals Ltd. (formerly Teck/Cominco), admitted in court to depositing millions of tons of toxic substances into the river, which flows into Lake Roose-velt. Pollutants included 250,000 tons of zinc and lead, as well as 132,000 tons of other hazardous substances such as more than 200 tons of mercury, cadmium and arsenic.
The tribes, having pressed their case for two decades, also made legal history when the court struck down the notion that a foreign company could not be held liable under U.S. law. The victory was marked in high style on February 23 when Sierra Club leaders, including John Osburn, co-chair for Sierra Club’s Upper Columbia River group, joined tribal members in Spokane, Washington, for the presentation of its Water-shed Heroes honor at an awards dinner.
“Watershed Heroes are people who act out of love and respect for nature,” said Mary Verner, former director of Upper Columbia United Tribes and the former mayor of Spokane, who won the award last year and presented it this year.
“We’re very grateful for all the sacrifices you have made,” Verner said in introducing Colville Tribes chairman John Sirois and recognizing others from the tribes who had played major roles in the process.
“I’m grateful you relayed the history,” Sirois said. “I’m grateful for you honoring all the work of the past councils that really put in the time and effort. We have such a great legal team. There are countless people who played a role in this. It’s really a validation of who we are as a people. All along the river, those places are named after our people and where we come from: Okanogan, Chelan, Methow, Eniat, San Poil, Lakes, that is who we are. That is where our people are buried. That is where we’re born.”
Between 1896 and 1995, Teck’s smelter dumped 400 tons of waste a day—derived from the smelting process—into the Columbia River. The smelter is about 10 miles north of the U.S. border.
“It comes as no surprise that after being dumped into the Columbia River, all this toxic material flows downstream. The company tried to deny that,” Verner said. “Some of the most ridiculous arguments one has ever heard from a corporate entity have been raised by Teck/Cominco, now known as Teck Metals Ltd. The Colvilles weren’t having it.”
In the 1990s the tribes asked Canada to tell Teck to stop polluting the river, but Teck did not comply. The U.S. made similar attempts to stop the company but met with the same lack of results. In 2003 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency identified Lake Roosevelt as a Superfund site and entered into an agreement with Teck to study the problem, making it clear that Teck would not be held responsible for the cleanup. But Teck found that unacceptable.
“In 2004 the tribes decided they could not wait any longer, and they filed a suit,” Verner said. Washington State eventually joined the tribes.
“To say the case of Pakootas v. Teck/Cominco is a landmark case would certainly be an understatement,” Verner said. “What a complex case it was! It has required navigating some incredible intricacies of the law, not even counting the science and politics.”
The tribes also got the court to overrule Teck’s argument that a company in another country cannot deliberately pollute U.S. waters and is not covered by U.S. law.
“The question is not where the polluter is located, but where the pollution is located,” Verner said. “It makes absolute sense, but the Colvilles had to fight for that outcome.”
Last April the court ruled that Teck could not escape liability. In September, Teck admitted it had knowingly and deliberately discharged 10 million tons of slag and toxic pollution into the Columbia. And in late 2012 a federal judge ruled that Teck qualifies as a polluter under the Superfund law.
“Heroes are tenacious,” Verner said of the tribes. “But it’s not over. Teck has appealed the ruling. They are trying to take this to the U.S. Supreme Court.”
As long as the bulk of the pollutants remain in the river or wash up on black beaches, the Colville Tribes will continue the battle. “Our future is about the water, all of us,” said Sirois. “We’re all in this fight together, to protect our environment, to protect our resources.”
Read more at http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2013/03/06/watershed-heroes-colville-confederated-tribes-win-sierra-club-award-battling-british
Photo courtesy of JeffKatzPhotography.com Wayne Brady will perform in the Orca Ballroom at the Tulalip Resort Hotel and Casino on March 29.
By Kirk Boxleitner, Marysville Globe
TULALIP — The closest Wayne Brady has been to the Tulalip Resort Hotel and Casino is Seattle, but he told The Marysville Globe and The Arlington Times that he’s eager to try out a new venue.
“I’ll go wherever the audience is, from Manhattan to small towns,” Brady said, as he looked forward his two showings on March 29 in the Orca Ballroom. “And this won’t necessarily be the last time I’ll be here, either.”
Although Brady’s work in the entertainment industry ranges from starring roles in Broadway musicals to guest-starring parts on scripted TV shows and voiceover work for cartoons, many people probably know him best from his long-running stint as part of the cast on the improvisational comedy show “Whose Line Is It Anyway?” which will be returning with new episodes later this year. However, Brady has never seen such high-profile jobs as the end goal of his career, because throughout the rest of his hectic schedule he’s always found time to stay on the road.
“There are stand-ups who land those sitcom gigs because that’s what they were aiming for, but I’ve never stopped performing live,” Brady said. “It’s how I’ve stayed sharp. No matter what I’ve done, whether it was ‘Chicago’ or ‘Let’s Make a Deal,’ it would have suffered if I hadn’t kept doing that.”
According to Brady, he thrives on contact with live audiences, and described the sense of immediacy in their interactions as difficult to duplicate even in live television.
“There’s just this rush of instant reaction,” Brady said. “If you’re doing comedy onstage, you don’t have to wait for a critical review or a Nielsen rating. The club or theater or whatever the venue is will let you know, yea or nay, how they think you’re doing. It can be through a hush in the crowd or in the rattling of drinks, or more positive affirmation if you’re doing good. Either way, you get that feedback right away.”
Brady sees the challenges of live performance as akin to the enjoyable challenges that he feels everyone should choose to take on, regardless of their professions.
“The joy of live performance is that it’s live,” Brady said. “Nothing can replace it. Not everyone can do live performances, but we should all challenge ourselves, whether at work or in our lives.”
While Brady promised his Tulalip audiences that he would arrive fully engaged, he requested that they return the favor.
“I’m happy to come out here and bring my A-game, but I’d only ask that those who come out to see me do the same with their suggestions,” Brady said. “I’m going to challenge you guys too. This isn’t just going to be a show where you sit back and put your feet up. It’s improv, so you need to be ready for me to do anything, even if it means coming out into the crowd and interacting with you.”
Brady’s 8 p.m. show on March 29 is already sold out, but as of March 4, tickets were still available for his 11 p.m. show later that same night. For more information, log onto www.tulalipresort.com/entertainment/orca-ballroom.aspx.
U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom announced March 6 in a U.S. Department of Justice news release that Ruben Dean Littlehead, 38, Lawrence, Kansas, and Brian K. Stoner, 32, Ponca City, Oklahoma, are charged with unlawfully selling feathers from eagles and hawks covered by a federal law protecting migratory birds. The crimes are alleged to have occurred in Douglas County, Kansas.
Federal law (Title 16, United States Code, Section 703) prohibits taking, killing or possessing migratory birds. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service maintains a National Eagle Repository in Colorado for the purpose of providing eagle feathers to Native Americans for use in Indian religious and cultural ceremonies. (For more information, see: Fws.gov/le/national-eagle-repository.html.)
The indictment alleges:
On September 15, 2008, Littlehead sold a bustle made with 68 feathers from a Golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos).
On November 22, 2008, Littlehead sold 11 tail feathers and a wing from a Golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos).
On February 26, 2009, Littlehead and Stoner offered for sale parts of a Bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), a Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos), and a Crested Caracara (Mexican Eagle, Caracara cheriway). They sold a tail feather fan made from feathers of a Bald eagle.
On February 26, 2009, they sold a bustle made of feathers of a rough-legged hawk and ferruginous hawk (Bueto lagopus and Buteo regalis).
If convicted, they face a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on each count. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service investigated. Assistant U.S. Attorney Randy Hendershot is prosecuting.
Court documents were not immediately available for review. Ruben Littlehead, Northern Cheyenne, is a top pow wow dancer and MC, who has emceed at major events such as the Gathering of Nations.
(CBS) – On Thursday afternoon, President Obama signed into law the re-authorized Violence Against Women Act (VAWA). The act, originally passed in 1994, provides federal funding for programs and research aimed at preventing and prosecuting domestic and sexual violence.
The new version of the law includes several new measures, including granting Native American tribes jurisdiction to prosecute non-native perpetrators of domestic and sexual violence against native women. Previously, tribes had no jurisdiction over non-tribal members, even if they are married to native women or reside on native lands.
But, said Obama Thursday, “as soon as I sign this bill, that ends.”
According to Tina Olson, co-director of Mending the Sacred Hoop, an advocacy group dedicated to fighting violence against native women, as many as 50 percent of native women marry non-native men. This means that if they become victims of domestic violence, they have little recourse through the tribal justice system.
“It’s not as if native women want something unique,” says Olson. “They just want the justice other women get.”
Olson says she has “high hopes” about how the new law will help tribal women, but is taking a “wait and see” attitude until funds for enforcement – and consequences for failing to enforce – arrive.
In addition to the new provisions aiming to protect Native American women, the re-authorized VAWA allows groups representing Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered men and women to apply for grants to prevent sexual violence and care for victims. The new law also includes the SAFER Act, which aims to whittle down the backlog of DNA tests – often known as “rape kits” – in police storage around the country; and the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act which provides services to victims of human trafficking.
VAWA expired in September 2011 and stalled in Congress after the House of Representatives balked at some of the new provisions in the version passed by the Senate. House Republicans drafted an alternative bill, but it failed when brought for a vote on Feb. 28. Later that day, the House voted 286 -138 to pass the Senate version.
Ariel Zwang, the CEO of SafeHorizon, a group that provides shelter and services to victims of domestic violence, says that as important as the new protections the reauthorized VAWA provides is the message the passage of the law sends to victims and perpetrators of domestic and sexual violence.
“Before VAWA, society’s response to domestic violence was basically to tell the guy to go walk around the block,” says Zwang. The law, she says, makes a national statement that “this is wrong, it’s a crime, and we’re going to talk about it and prosecute it.”
President Obama agreed, saying Thursday afternoon that the original law “made it possible for us to talk about domestic abuse.” The new law, he said, assists immigrant women whose status may be tied to an abusive spouse and “expanded housing assistance so that no woman has to choose between a violent home and no home at all.”
The signing coincides with a new report by the Department of Justice that shows that after declining between 1995-2005, the rate of sexual assault in the U.S. leveled off between 2005-2010. The new report also shows that fewer women are reporting sexual assault to police: in 2003, 56 percent of sexual assault victims reported to authorities, compared to just 35 percent in 2010.
The following canned tuna was shipped nationwide. Don’t take the chance of consuming a bad can.
Tri-Union Seafood Issues Voluntary Recall on Select 5-Ounce Chunk White Albacore Tuna in Water
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – Mar. 6, 2013 – Tri-Union Seafoods LLC is voluntarily recalling a limited amount of Chicken of the Sea brand 5-ounce cans of chunk white albacore tuna in water.
The seams on the lids of the cans do not meet the standard for seam quality. Cans that do not meet seam standards could result in product contamination by spoilage organisms or by pathogens, which could lead to illness if consumed. There have been no reported illnesses to date, and Tri-Union Seafoods is issuing this voluntary recall to ensure the highest margin of safety and quality.
The specific product being recalled is Chicken of the Sea Brand 5-ounce chunk white albacore tuna in water sold at retail nationwide in single cans between February 4, 2013 and February 27, 2013.
The UPC code (also known as the bar code) is found on the label of the product and is 0 48000 03355 0. The Best By date is printed on the bottom of the can and is 01/18/17. The product lot codes that are part of this voluntary recall can also be found on the bottom of the can and include:
CODE
BEST BY DATE
3018CA2CKP
01/18/17
3018CA3CKP
01/18/17
3018CA4CKP
01/18/17
3018CAACKP
01/18/17
3018CABCKP
01/18/17
CODE
BEST BY DATE
3018CACCKP
01/18/17
3018CAECKP
01/18/17
3018CB3CKP
01/18/17
3018CADCKP
01/18/17
“The health and safety of our consumers is paramount. As soon as we discovered the issue, we took immediate steps to issue this voluntary recall by alerting our customers who received the product and by asking them to remove it from store shelves,” said Shue Wing Chan, President of Tri-Union Seafoods.
No other codes of this product or other Chicken of the Sea products are affected by this voluntary recall.
Consumers looking for additional information can call our 24 hour Recall Information line at 1-800-597-5898.
Bumble Bee Foods Issues Voluntary Recall On Specific Codes Of 5-Ounce Chunk White Albacore And Chunk Light Tuna Products Due To Loose Seals
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – March 6, 2013 – Bumble Bee Foods, LLC, has issued a voluntary recall on specific codes of 5-ounce Chunk White Albacore and Chunk Light Tuna products. The recall has been issued because the products do not meet the company’s standards for seal tightness.
Loose seals or seams could result in product contamination by spoilage organisms or pathogens and lead to illness if consumed. There have been no reports to date of any illness associated with these products.
Brunswick Brand 5oz Chunk Light Tuna in Water – 48 Count Case (Case UPC 6661332803)
Can Label UPC
Can Lot Code
Can Best Buy Code
6661332803
3018SB1CLP
Best By Jan 18 2016
6661332803
3018SB2CLP
Best By Jan 18 2016
Bumble Bee Brand 5oz Chunk Light Tuna in Water – 48 Count Case (Case UPC 8660000020)
Can Label UPC
Can Lot Code
Can Best Buy Code
866203
3016SBCCLP
Best By Jan 16 2016
866203
3016SBDCLP
Best By Jan 16 2016
866203
3016SBECLP
Best By Jan 16 2016
866203
3017SB1CLP
Best By Jan 17 2016
866203
3017SB3CLP
Best By Jan 17 2016
866203
3017SB4CLP
Best By Jan 17 2016
866203
3017SB5CLP
Best By Jan 17 2016
866203
3017SB6CLP
Best By Jan 17 2016
866203
3018SB2CLP
Best By Jan 18 2016
866203
3018SB4CLP
Best By Jan 18 2016
866203
3018SB5CLP
Best By Jan 18 2016
866203
3018SBACLP
Best By Jan 18 2016
866203
3018SBBCLP
Best By Jan 18 2016
866203
3018SBCCLP
Best By Jan 18 2016
866203
3018SBDCLP
Best By Jan 18 2016
866203
3018SBECLP
Best By Jan 18 2016
Bumble Bee Brand 5oz Chunk Light Tuna in Vegetable Oil – 48 Count Case (Case UPC 8660000021)
Can Label UPC
Can Lot Code
Can Best Buy Code
866213
3016SACCLH
Best By Jan 16 2016
866213
3016SADCLH
Best By Jan 16 2016
866213
3016SAECLH
Best By Jan 16 2016
866213
3016SAFCLH
Best By Jan 16 2016
866213
3018SAFCLH
Best By Jan 18 2016
Bumble Bee Brand 5oz Chunk White Albacore in Water – 24 Count Case (Case UPC 8660000025)
Can Label UPC
Can Lot Code
Can Best Buy Code
866253
3017SA1CKP
Best By Jan 17 2016
866253
3017SA2CKP
Best By Jan 17 2016
866253
3017SA3CKP
Best By Jan 17 2016
866253
3017SADCKP
Best By Jan 17 2016
866253
3017SAECKP
Best By Jan 17 2016
866253
3017SAFCKP
Best By Jan 17 2016
Bumble Bee Brand 5oz Chunk Light Tuna in Water – 6 Count Case of 4-Pack Cluster (Case UPC 8660000736)
Cluster Pack UPC
Can Label UPC
Can Lot Code
Can Best Buy Code
8660000736
866203
3017SBACLP
Best By Jan 17 2016
8660000736
866203
3017SBBCLP
Best By Jan 17 2016
8660000736
866203
3017SBCCLP
Best By Jan 17 2016
8660000736
866203
3017SBDCLP
Best By Jan 17 2016
8660000736
866203
3017SBECLP
Best By Jan 17 2016
Bumble Bee Brand 5oz Chunk White Albacore in Water – 6 Count Case of 8-Pack Cluster (Case UPC 8660000775)
Cluster Pack UPC
Can Label UPC
Can Lot Code
Can Best Buy Code
8660000776
866253
3017SABCKP
Best By Jan 17 2016
8660000776
866253
3017SADCKP
Best By Jan 17 2016
Bumble Bee Brand 5oz Chunk White Albacore in Water – 6 Count Case of 8-Pack Cluster (Case UPCS 8660000776)
Cluster Pack UPC
Can Label UPC
Can Lot Code
Can Best Buy Code
8660000776
866253
3017SA3CKP
Best By Jan 17 2016
8660000776
866253
3017SA4CKP
Best By Jan 17 2016
8660000776
866253
3017SA5CKP
Best By Jan 17 2016
8660000776
866253
3017SAACKP
Best By Jan 17 2016
8660000776
866253
3017SACCKP
Best By Jan 17 2016
8660000776
866253
3017SB2CKP
Best By Jan 17 2016
These products were distributed for retail sale nationwide between January 17, 2013 and February 28, 2013.
Bumble Bee Foods SVP of Technical Services and Corporate Quality Assurance Steve Mavity said: “Due to can integrity concerns, our top priority at this time is to remove these recalled products from distribution as soon as possible. We are working closely with our sales team and with retailers to help expedite the recall. We must assure our consumers and retailers of a safe and quality product so we very much appreciate everyone’s part in disposing of the products with the specific codes indicated.”
Mavity added, “There have been no consumer reports of illnesses attributed to these products, but because we’ve identified an issue with seal tightness, we’re voluntarily recalling products to ensure the highest margin of safety and quality.”
Consumers who have purchased the recalled products should discard the product by disposing in the garbage.
For any questions concerning this voluntary recall or reimbursement, consumers can contact Bumble Bee Consumer Affairs 24 hours a day at (800) 800-8572.
President Barack Obama is signing into law a bill extending and expanding domestic violence protections, ushering in a legislative victory for gay rights advocates and Native Americans.
Flanked by domestic-violence survivors, lawmakers, law enforcement officers and tribal leaders, Obama was signing the extension to the Violence Against Women Act in a ceremony Thursday at the Interior Department, which overseas programs for Native Americans. A key provision of the expanded law strengthens protections for victims who are attacked on tribal land.
Vice President Joe Biden, who as a senator wrote and sponsored the original bill in 1994, was also scheduled to speak at the ceremony.
The law strengthens the criminal justice system’s response to crimes against women. White House press secretary Jay Carney called the extension “a very important milestone” that would give law enforcement new tools to respond to domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking.
Although the law was renewed twice in the past with little resistance, it lapsed in 2011 when Republicans and Democrats couldn’t agree on a bill to renew it.
The Republican-controlled House rejected a Senate-passed version making clear that lesbians, gays and immigrants should have equal access to the law’s programs. The Senate bill also allowed tribal courts to prosecute non-Indians who attack their Indian partners on tribal lands, giving Native American authorities the ability to go after crimes that federal prosecutors, for lack of resources, often decline to pursue.
In February, House Republicans capitulated and allowed a vote on an almost identical version of the bill. It passed 286-138. It was the third time in two months that House Speaker John Boehner let a Democratic-supported bill reach the floor despite opposition from a majority of his own party — a clear sign that Republicans wanted to put the issue behind them after performing poorly among women in November’s election.
The Violence Against Women Act has set the standard for how to protect women, and some men, from domestic abuse and prosecute abusers and is credited with helping reduce domestic violence incidents by two-thirds since its inception in 1994.
The renewal authorizes some $659 million a year over five years to fund current programs that provide grants for transitional housing, legal assistance, law enforcement training and hotlines. It reauthorizes the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, adds stalking to the list of crimes that make immigrants eligible for protection, and authorizes programs dealing with sexual assault on college campuses and rape investigations.
Everett Mall seems to be back on steadier financial footing after receiving an investment from a California firm with ties to former NBA great Magic Johnson.
Canyon-Johnson Urban Funds has agreed to help recapitalize Everett Mall and The Commons shopping center in Federal Way, the company said Wednesday. The amount of money being invested was not disclosed. Both malls are owned in part by Steadfast Companies, which defaulted on a $98 million Everett Mall loan last March. Irvine, Calif.-based Steadfast owns two-thirds of Everett Mall.
“We are confident that the infusion of capital at this critical time for both regional malls will help them achieve their potential,” Bobby Turner, Canyon-Johnson CEO, said in a statement. “These are exceptional retail assets.”
Canyon-Johnson is a joint venture between Canyon Capital Realty Advisors and Earvin “Magic” Johnson, former Los Angeles Lakers basketball star. The private equity firm has invested $4 billion in urban revitalization projects over the past decade.
In 2004, Steadfast paid $50 million to buy Everett Mall after the mall’s previous owner, Titanic Associates, defaulted on a loan in 2000. Steadfast quickly pumped more than $30 million into renovation and expansion, overseeing the addition of Regal Cinemas Stadium 16 theaters and attracting Best Buy and TJ Maxx to the outer mall’s buildings.
Last summer, Lisa Whitney, Steadfast vice president, acknowledged the mall had not been “immune to the proliferation of retailer downsizing, bankruptcies and the subsequent vacancies that have occurred industry wide” since the 2008 economic downturn.
Everett Mall has struggled to keep one of its large anchor storefronts filled. Late last year, the mall began construction to accommodate Burlington Coat Factory in the spot previously occupied by Steve & Barry’s and, before that, by Mervyn’s. Both retailers closed due to bankruptcy. Burlington Coat Factory will open this fall.
The renovation for Burlington Coat Factory was made possible by the investment from Canyon-Johnson, a spokeswoman for the investment firm wrote in an email Wednesday. However, the agreement between the two was not finalized until recently. Party City and ULTA Cosmetics also are opening retail stores in Everett Mall as part of the Canyon-Johnson project.
“Canyon-Johnson has a great track record of investing in urban retail centers, and we look forward to delivering results that will achieve a complete repositioning of these two properties that have enormous upside potential,” Steadfast Chairman and CEO Rod Emery said in a statement.
This is the second time Canyon-Johnson has worked with Steadfast. The two firms first teamed in 2010 to remodel and reposition the Brea Plaza Shopping Center in southern California.
“With Canyon-Johnson’s involvement, we have the resources to bring new shopping, dining and entertainment options to both properties” Steadfast’s Emery said in a statement.
Steadfast had not returned requests for additional information.
Immigrants and advocates on a multicity bus tour across the state calling for immigration reform hold a rally Wednesday at Casa Latina in Seattle. Lupe Sanchez, at right, from Yakima cheers with the crowd. Photo: Mark Harrison/The Seattle Times
With important victories on same-sex marriage, the gay-rights movement here in Washington and across the country is bringing new energy and momentum to another thorny social issue: immigration.
By Lornet Turnbull, Seattle Times staff reporter
After the November election, gay-rights advocates — victorious in their fight for same-sex marriage in Washington — began planning their next strategic move.
Over the past decade they had landed other important victories, from outlawing discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity to winning domestic partnership benefits for gays.
Now lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) advocates here in Washington and across the country are bringing new energy and momentum to another thorny social issue: immigration.
In a way, their involvement is one of reciprocity — an acknowledgment of the broad support by immigrants of same-sex marriage last November. But it also reflects the overlap of two big political movements with shared constituents, whose struggles have often been cast in terms of human and civil rights.
An estimated 5 percent of undocumented immigrants are believed to be lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender, and tens of thousands of gay Americans have foreign-born partners.
“What we know is that marriage equality and anti-discrimination do not meet all the needs of our diverse community — that one of our most vulnerable communities is the immigrant community,” said Josh Friedes, longtime spokesman for Equal Rights Washington, a gay-rights advocacy group.
“We are committed to the idea that no aspect of the LGBT community be left behind.”
While gay-rights organizations in the past have been involved in the long-debated effort to fix the nation’s immigration laws, the intensity of their engagement on all levels this year is unprecedented.
Here in Washington state, most major gay-rights groups have a seat at the Washington Immigration Reform Roundtable — a loosely formed coalition of religious, labor and social-justice groups working to influence the outcome of the immigration-policy overhaul under way in Congress.
Rich Stolz, executive director of OneAmerica, one of the state’s largest immigrant-advocacy groups and a lead organization on the Roundtable, said the gay-rights groups bring an important perspective, as well as broad grass-roots support and advocacy to the decades-long conversation around immigration.
“There are so many parallels and crossovers in the LGBT and immigrant movements,” said Kris Hermanns, executive director of the Pride Foundation.
“The way we worked together around marriage equity deepened the understanding and trust in the relationship.”
In Maryland last November, for example, exit polls showed that LGBT voters overwhelmingly supported a ballot measure to allow undocumented immigrants to access in-state tuition and state financial aid, while Latino voters backed a same-sex marriage measure.
Both passed.
“We’re seeing a significant alliance between the two communities that will not just be helpful for immigration reform, but that will hopefully continue beyond that,” said Steve Ralls, spokesman for Immigration Equality, a national group that focuses on LGBT immigration issues.
A lot at stake
But this isn’t just about payback.
In the first major rewrite of the nation’s immigration laws in a generation, the gay-rights movement also has a lot at stake.
An estimated 30,000 to 40,000 same-sex couples would benefit directly from changes in the immigration laws to allow gay Americans to sponsor their foreign-born partners for lawful residency — a benefit now enjoyed only by straight couples.
And of the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S., about 600,000 are LGBT, including an untold number of young people brought to the U.S. illegally as children.
“We are keenly aware that many LGBT undocumented people come to America out of necessity and are being penalized for simply trying to survive and live with the dignity we here take for granted,” Friedes said.
And gay-rights advocates are bringing more than just momentum — they’ve also put money on the table.
A coalition of three dozen national advocacy groups, including the Pride Foundation and the Gay City Health Project, established a $100,000 fund to help young LGBT undocumented immigrants pay the application fees for a federal program, which grants them relief from deportation and issues them a work permit.
Carlos Padilla, an undocumented immigrant student and sophomore at Seattle Central Community College, has been advocating for immigration changes since he was a sophomore in high school.
But Padilla said it wasn’t until his freshman year in college that he felt he could also disclose that he is gay.
He not only sees the parallels between the two communities, he lives them.
In his presentations before students and others, he said, “I’d talk about being gay and get these blank stares. Now when I talk about it in terms of human rights, being able to have equality, it makes sense to people. People are now connecting the dots and seeing the connections.
“LGBT people and undocumented people are fighting for acknowledgment and acceptance in society.”
Political dogfight
While bipartisan, the effort to overhaul the nation’s immigration laws is expected to be a political dogfight, with the centerpiece of any legislation likely to include legalization for undocumented immigrants.
Any measure is also expected to include provisions to ease immigration restrictions on highly skilled workers; beef up border security and clear up immigration backlogs to allow family members to be reunited.
Immigration benefits for gay couples have been included in proposals set forth by President Obama, with some Democrats and gay-rights advocates — including those on the Washington Immigration Reform Roundtable — also pushing for them to be included.
But some Republicans have warned that provision could derail or at least hang up legislation that already promises to be divisive.
That same concern has also been raised by some of the more conservative faith-based groups at the Roundtable, which fretted over signing a letter to the Washington congressional delegation that listed benefits for LGBT families among the provisions they want to see in an overhaul bill.
Stolz of OneAmerica said the list of provisions are ones that the group overall could support, though, given the political sensitivity, “We understood that not everyone is prepared to sign onto the letter at this time.”
You’ll want to think about going to bed early or sleeping in this weekend: Daylight Saving Time starts at 2 a.m. Sunday, March 10. That means you’ll spring ahead and move your clocks forward one hour — and, unfortunately, lose that hour of sleep.
