The Bellingham Herald from Bellingham, Washington • A10

his employees have taken more care to examine the food they prepare before sell- ing it. He said his store had problems like this in the past and added it received a per- fect score in a Health Depart- ment inspection about three months ago. is an unusual inci- Whitman said. still determining the cause of it. Obviously, we have a heightened awareness of everything happening in the Police are urging anyone who experienced a similar effect after drinking a malt from that Dairy Queen to call the Ferndale Police Depart- ment at (360) 384-3390.

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and south bound- ary by way of Pole Road. After all, they basically share police, fire and sewer servic- es, with Nooksack contract- ing for an Everson police offi- cer and sewer service and both entities contracting for county fire district protec- tion. Rowlson said the group is trying to be sensitive to the culture of each community. Though a combined city would have a new name, Rowlson has suggested two districts an Everson Dis- trict and Nooksack District would remain to allow res- idents to keep their It would be similar to Belling- Fairhaven district, Rowlson said. Everson Mayor Pratt said the question of combining is a constant, and she thinks Everson City Council mem- bers are already supportive of the idea.

But she also said a feasibility study, which could be expensive, would be need- ed to scientifically assess whether worth it. Rowlson has advocated for the study group to do the work themselves. Nooksack Mayor Acker- man said there is some push back from the City Council members because they were concerned he had attended the meet- ings without consulting them first. But he said as a citizen, he had the right to go. And all he wants, he said, is to at least let the group explore the idea.

just think well worth having a group of people look into Ackerman said. tom line, at some point, put it to a vote. Let the taxpayers decide if they want to be two towns or Not everyone is convinced, though. Nooksack City Council- man Tom Jones did his own research into it a few years back and think that such a move makes financial sense. this particular group can demonstrate beyond a shad- ow of a doubt this would real- ly be the new and improved mousetrap, Jones said.

that point, it been demonstrated Reach Sam Taylor at sam or call 715-2263. Read his Politics blog at TheBellinghamHerald SINGLE CITY from A1 Community identity issue arises PROBE from A1 Owner says employees are being careful They call for extensive analysis of reuse opportuni- ties, but they also note that reuse may ultimately prove to be impossible. Regulatory certainty: The architects agree with port officials that planning and zoning rules should be approved in advance, so developers can get projects started without a time-con- suming review process. The report also contains some new sugges- tions: New library: Instead of eventual construction of a new library on its existing site next to City Hall, the report suggests a site south of Chestnut Street, between Bay and Commercial streets, possibly as part of a mixed- use building that would include parking and could be built partly with private funds. Public plaza: The arch- itects envision construction of the plaza atop railroad tracks, between Bay Street and Cornwall Avenue, link- ing downtown to the water- front.

Interim uses: Since it may take decades for the waterfront to redevelop as now envisioned, plans should be developed for interim uses of vacant land, including everything from light industrial to urban The architects also urge port and city officials to revive the idea of a pedestri- an bridge over Whatcom Waterway. Such a bridge had been part of original com- munity waterfront visions but has been absent from waterfront maps and drawings for well over a year. The architects say such a bridge is an important link between the main water- front area and the new mari- na the port expects to build inside the old G-P treatment lagoon. Terry Brown, one of the architects who worked on the report, said con- vinced that its recommenda- tions could be implemented using existing information in the lengthy environmental impact statement that has already received many months of public review and comment. Other architects who par- ticipated were Sharon Robinson, Terry Moore, Bob Ross, John Stewart, Brad Cornwell, Doug Landsem, David Christensen and Curt Carpenter.

are confident that a revised master plan layout can be achieved that is not so much as a compromise, but achieves true synergy that is greater than the sum of the the report con- cludes. revised layout must create a excite- ment factor, that will create desire for economic devel- opment and the communi- connection to our water- Reach John Stark at 715- 2274 or john.stark@bellingham herald.com. Read his Con- sumer Protection blog at The BellinghamHerald.com/blogs. WATERFRONT from A1 Architects suggest plaza over tracks HAVE YOUR SAY Want to share your thoughts on a potential merger of Everson and Nooksack? E-mail Everson City Coun- cilman Andy Rowlson at The independent study group looking at the merger is working to set up a blog on the subject within the week, Rowlson said. The study group is independent of any official council or city action by either Everson or Nooksack at this time, but to offer your thoughts directly to offi- cials, call: Everson City Hall: (360) 966-3411.

Nooksack City Hall: (360)966-2531. E-mail: ASSOCIATED PRESS MEXICO CITY Two people searching for treas- ure beneath an abandoned Mexican hacienda died in a gas-filled tunnel, and two neighbors and two emer- gency workers who tried to rescue them also perished, authorities said Tuesday. Sergio Ramirez, director of emergency services for the State of Mexico, said a man, 65, and his 60-year-old wife were the first victims. They were looking for loot in the 45-foot-deep tun- nel, which burrowed about 50 yards horizontally to- ward the residence. The Hacienda de San Ono- fre, a farm estate in San Jose, was owned in the 19th centu- ry by a mining magnate.

6 die in Mexico treasure hunt CHRISTOPHER BODEEN ASSOCIATED PRESS BEIJING China announced plans Wednesday to boost military spending by 14.9 percent this year, but noted that much of it was for salaries and said there was no need for other countries to be fearful. National Congress spokesman Li Zhaoxing de- scribed the increase as in a news conference to announce the agenda for annual legislature, which opens Thursday. Li said the said the increase would not pose a threat to any country, and that much of it would go to salaries and benefits for 2.3 mil- lion-strong military force, the largest. The increase to 480.68 bil- lion yuan ($70.27 billion), fol- lows a 17.6 percent increase last year, and 17.8 percent in 2007 the biggest jump in more than a decade. It also marks the 19th double-digit percentage increase in the past two decades.

Li said the latest figure equals 6.3 percent of the over- all budget for 2009, down slightly from last year. defense spending is on par with Japan, Russia and Britain, but is still dwarfed by U.S. military expenditures, which are nearly 10 times as large. increase in the 2009 defense budget will mainly be used to improve living stan- dards for military officials and he said. Spend- ing will also be increased on improving the tech- nology.

limited military force is for safeguarding the state sovereignty and territorial integrity, and will not pose any threat to any other coun- Li said. But rapid increase in military spending in recent years has raised concerns from its neighbors and from the United States, especially over the potentially danger- ous Taiwan Strait. U.S. National Intelligence Director Dennis Blair said last month that dou- ble-digit annual percentage military spending increases a greater threat to Tai- Amount dwarfed by U.S. budgeting China to spend more on defense.