Local News · Page 2

What is happening in Kennewick, Pasco, Richland and West Richland.

A police patrol car parked outside a suburban middle school building

Local News

Threat at Richland's Chief Joseph Middle School ruled unfounded, news reports say

Richland police responded to a reported threat at Chief Joseph Middle School on Wilson Street. Local news outlets later reported the threat was unfounded and stemmed from a student being teased.

October 10, 2026

Exterior of a municipal government building representing Pasco city hall amid budget cuts

Local News

Pasco considers cutting 55 city jobs, including a fifth of police force, to close $14.4M gap

Pasco officials are weighing roughly $14.4 million in cuts that could eliminate 55 jobs, including a fifth of the police department, to close a widening budget gap.

October 9, 2026

A small neighborhood park with mature trees and a walking path, similar to Kennewick's Yelm Park

Local News

Kennewick weighs selling 70-year-old Yelm Park to hospice nonprofit

Kennewick's City Council heard public comment on selling 3-acre Yelm Park to Tri-Cities Chaplaincy, which wants to build a new administrative center there.

October 7, 2026

A mosquito, the carrier of West Nile virus, shown close up at dusk in a Tri-Cities area backyard

Local News

Franklin County resident dies of West Nile virus, state's first death this year

A Franklin County resident older than 70 died from West Nile virus, Washington's first such death this year, health officials said.

October 7, 2026

Vendor tents and produce stands at the Pasco Farmers Market in Peanuts Park

Local News

Pasco council delays farmers market, Specialty Kitchen operator decision

Pasco City Council put off picking an operator for the farmers market and Specialty Kitchen, waiting on budget talks over a projected $12.5 million gap.

October 6, 2026

Construction equipment at a municipal water and road infrastructure project site

Local News

Ballfields, water plants and road work: Pasco lays out $695M plan

Pasco's city council got its first look at a $695 million, six-year plan for water, road and park projects that still needs funding.

October 5, 2026

A license plate reader camera mounted on a pole along a city street

Local News

Richland to restart license plate camera network within a month, chief tells council

Richland police expect to reactivate license plate reader cameras within a month after shutting them down to comply with a new state privacy law.

October 5, 2026

Open farmland in West Richland near the Lewis and Clark Ranch where a large data center has been proposed

Local News

West Richland residents fight fast-track zoning for 1,000-acre data center

West Richland already changed its zoning to allow data centers, and a new proposal could shift approval power from elected council members to an appointed hearing examiner, as residents raise water and process concerns over a possible 1,000-acre Trammell Crow project.

October 4, 2026

Exterior of a small-city police department building under a cloudy sky

Local News

West Richland must pay sergeant fired after 'flawed and biased' investigations

A state arbitrator found West Richland wrongly fired Sgt. Athena Clark and ordered 19 months of back pay, adding a new cost to a city already facing budget strain.

October 3, 2026

One of the Lower Snake River dams with rail lines and highway traffic along the riverbank

Local News

WSDOT to preview Snake River dam-breaching freight study at Pasco meeting

WSDOT is holding a Pasco meeting on its study of how breaching the four Lower Snake River dams would shift freight onto local roads and rail.

October 2, 2026

An aging outdoor municipal swimming pool similar to Kennewick's Kenneth Serier Memorial Pool, which city officials are considering replacing

Local News

Kennewick weighs folding $12M pool into $47.5M city hall rebuild bond

Kennewick officials are considering combining a new $12 million pool with a city hall rebuild into one $47.5 million bond that wouldn't raise taxes.

October 1, 2026

Exterior of a generic federal courthouse building under an overcast sky, representing a federal criminal case.

Local News

Richland DOE employee charged with trying to aid Houthis, no threat to Hanford, DOJ says

A Hanford-based Department of Energy employee from Richland faces a federal terrorism charge; DOJ says the case poses no threat to Hanford workers.

October 1, 2026

A closed storefront with blinds drawn and police tape, representing a shuttered Kennewick massage business

Local News

Kennewick shuts down 2 more massage spas in trafficking probe, same sites raided in March

Kennewick police shut down White Flower Spa and Blue Ocean Spa on Sept. 30, the same two addresses, under the same business names, raided for trafficking in March 2026.

September 30, 2026

Exterior of a municipal city hall building representing Kennewick city government facing a budget shortfall

Local News

Kennewick faces $11.4 million budget gap; Herald reports police, fire hiring frozen

The Tri-City Herald reports Kennewick has frozen hiring for police and firefighter positions as the city works to close a projected $11.4 million shortfall in its 2027-28 budget. Here's the financial picture behind the freeze, drawn from the city's own records.

September 29, 2026

Exterior of an aging brick middle school building similar to those slated for replacement in Kennewick

Local News

Kennewick schools race Oct. 15 deadline to lock in $61M in state matching funds

Kennewick School District must notify the state by Oct. 15 to capture $61 million in matching funds for a February 2027 bond to replace two aging middle schools.

September 28, 2026

A highway on an exposed ridge obscured by a wall of blowing dust, similar to conditions on SR 397 south of Kennewick

Local News

Dust storm triggers fatal 12-vehicle pileup on SR 397, kills West Richland couple

A wind-driven dust storm caused a 12-vehicle pileup on SR 397 south of Kennewick Friday, killing a West Richland couple and shutting the highway for hours.

September 27, 2026

Smoke rising from a grass fire on hillsides near a rural highway under a smoky orange sky

Local News

Second Street Fire near Benton City forces evacuations, closes I-82

A fast-moving grass fire near Benton City has forced Level 3 evacuations, closed I-82 and destroyed at least one home as crews battle high winds.

September 25, 2026

A street crossing with a rectangular rapid flashing beacon sign, similar to the safety upgrades planned for four Pasco intersections

Local News

Pasco lands $1.78 million in federal funds to fix four dangerous crossings

Pasco will use $1.78 million in federal highway safety money to add flashing lights and a pedestrian beacon at four crossings, with construction set for 2029.

September 24, 2026

Empty kennels inside a community animal shelter

Local News

Pasco City Council weighs hybrid animal shelter model after public comment

Pasco City Council heard hours of public comment on Tri-Cities Animal Services and asked staff to keep studying a nonprofit-run hybrid shelter model.

September 22, 2026

An empty courtroom with stacks of case files, illustrating a strained prosecutor's office

Local News

Franklin County prosecutors face 'dire' staffing shortage as caseloads quadruple

Franklin County's prosecutor's office says it's stretched thin as trial caseloads quadruple since 2011, even as commissioners cut funding for a new deputy prosecutor in Pasco.

September 22, 2026

A deicing truck sprays fluid on the wing of a commercial jet on a frosty airport ramp at dawn

Local News

Tri-Cities Airport lands $8.3 million in federal funding for deicing expansion

Tri-Cities Airport in Pasco has received $8.3 million in federal funding to expand its aircraft deicing facility, a project tied to winter flight reliability.

September 22, 2026

Vacant retail suites in a suburban commercial building with a parking lot in the foreground

Local News

Pasco council weighs raising cannabis retail cap from four to five stores

Pasco was set to act Sept. 21 on a code change lifting its cannabis retail cap to five stores, clearing the way for a social equity shop on Road 90.

September 22, 2026

Residential garbage and organics carts lined up at a suburban curb on collection day

Local News

Curbside organics coming to Pasco by 2027 as recycling rules shift

Pasco and Franklin County are planning curbside organics collection and possible curbside recycling under new state laws, with costs to ratepayers still unsettled.

September 22, 2026