GOLDENDALE — There’s a new tourist attraction in the works for Klickitat County.
By a 2-1 vote at their Feb. 24 meeting, Klickitat County Commissioners voted to allow local businessman Ty Ross to put a giant American flag on a 200-foot flagpole on the lawn in front of the county courthouse in Goldendale. A number of people crowded into the commission meeting room to testify about the project. Though most were strongly in favor of the project, a few raised questions. Here’s a sampler of the testimony:
Andy Kallanin: “I’m running for county commissioner and when I’m elected this November and I take office next year, I would donate my first month’s paycheck to the maintenance fund of this flag and a portion of my salary for the rest of the term.”
Theresa Babler: “I’m against this. That does not mean I’m not patriotic. I was held gunpoint at in Russia when I was 16 years old. I came out of that being probably one of the most patriotic people that there are. That flag that’s out there on the courthouse lawn now is very patriotic to me. It doesn’t need to be 200 feet tall and however big for me to be patriotic.”
Susan Marlowe: “I’m a retired teacher, so I went right to the kids. We had 13 votes yes, and two votes no. One no was, ‘What if it gets struck by lightning?’ And the other one was, ‘What if the wind blows it over?’ The 13 opinions for the flag were the flag would represent us loving America. And this is out of the mouths of babes.”
Andrew Smith: “I did talk to some old timers here. When that old courthouse was taken down, it sounds like they just buried everything and it’s unsafe. Who knows what’s buried down in there. So I don’t know if anybody did any preliminary scanning of the ground to see where they’re at, but I was told it’s highly dangerous down there. So maybe we can move the flagpole to the high school here at Goldendale.
Sheriff Bob Songer: “It’s paid for, it’s not out of the budget. A man and his wife stepped up to pay for this and a fund set aside to pay for it. You’ve got the American Legion who’s willing to jump in [with support]. There is no God-given reason why you should not vote for this.”
What likely tipped it into acceptance was a pledge of continued support by the Ross Foundation. Riley Ross read a statement that said in part, “We are proud to formally commit that the Ross Foundation will assume responsibility for all ongoing maintenance costs associated with the flagpole, including structural upkeep, lighting, and flag replacement. Our intention is to ensure that this landmark remains first class in appearance and condition for generations to come without placing financial burden on the county or its taxpayers.”
Proponents are hoping to have the project completed in time for the 250th anniversary of the United States on the Fourth of July.
Hanger delayed, other updates
In the morning workshop session, Public Works reported that construction of the college training facility airport hanger has been delayed by the federal government shutdown. Work will not begin until April and construction won’t be completed until November. “We notified the school,” said County Engineer Seth Scarola. “They were disappointed but understood.”
And County Administrator Robb Van Cleave reported that Aramark has agreed to dissolve its contract to provide food for inmates at the county. “Washington Department of Corrections will conduct a site visit on March 3rd to discuss them providing food to our facility at a much reduced cost,” he said, and added praise for Jail Administrator Bill Frantz for his continued work on the subject.
Public Heath Director Erinn Quinn reported her department continues to monitor measles cases.
“There’ve been 26 cases in the state,” she said. “We’ve had four suspect cases. None of them were positive. However, we did a very quick and rudimentary cost analysis. It costs about $1,200 for one suspect case for the work that we’re required to do. A true case I would expect very conservatively would either triple or quadruple that price to my department and the requirements that we have to do by the state. So understanding that when we talk about measles and the burden on public health, that’s something that could very quickly impact my budget in a way that this year are prepared.”
Under the consent agenda, commissioners approved:
• An amendment to the Management Agreement for the Columbia Gorge Regional Airport.
• A change order request for Cayenta Enterprise Resource Planning.
• Supplemental Agreement 2 with Bell Design Company for on-call surveying services.
• A memorandum of Agreement with Washington State University Extension for Extension-related programs and available Klickitat County funds for 2026.
• Authorization to advertise for a van/bus Driver in Senior Services.
• Notice to contractors to advertise for the 2026 Annual Striping Program, RN 642-26.
• Contracts and Contract Bonds – Bundle Preventive Maintenance, Deck and Expansion Joint Repair CRP 376, BHOS-2020(052) and CRP 377, BHS-Z920(004), Contract No. TA-7808 & TA-7806.
• An addendum to the behavioral health contract—Cramer.
• A Health Department request for hosting approval.
• The 2026 Fund 125 Project List.
• Supplemental Agreement 7 with Applied Archaeological Research, Inc. for on-call archaeological services.
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