Western Front - 2002 November 26

              Women start 1-1
Vikings go from blow-out victory
to disastrous loss.
See Story, Page 8.
Giving back
Western students push for
community change in Americorps.
See Story, Page 6.
I UH<(ClAJ/\i 9 i^0V€5HlO€« ^O^ MAfxpJ* The Western Front Western Washington University Volume 123 Issue 18 Bellingham, Washington
Three key
basketball
players
suspended
BY JOSH DUMOND
Three probable starters on
Western men's basketball team
have been suspended" by the
NCAA for violations involving
the purchase of textbooks.
The NCAA handed down
eight-game suspensions to
Western senior forward
Nehemiah Campbell and
Western junior point guard
Jason Burrell and a three-game
suspension to Western sopho­more
forward Maurice Tyree
last week. The exact violations
are undisclosed.
"My understanding of the sit­uation
is they violated the extra
benefit rule, which means they
were able to obtain more books
than they needed," head coach
Brad Jackson said.
According to the 2002-2003
NCAA Division II manual, stu­dent
athletes who buy their
textbooks with scholarship
funds may not receive extra
benefits for themselves, a
friend, or a relative unless
authorized by NCAA legislation.
The suspensions mark the
first time Western athletes have
been penalized by the NCAA
since the university joined the
organization five years ago.
"We've certainly been affected
by it," Jackson said. "Any time
you take away your starting
point guard, a great forward like
Tyree and an inspirational play­er
like. Campbell, it's definitely
going to have an impact."
All three players played a
vital "role on last year's team
that finished 21-6 overall.
Campbell served as the team's
See NCAA, Page 4
City7s businesses expanding
Heather Trimm/The Western Front
Lauren Kapp adjusts a display at Blue Horizon Clothing Inc., in Fairhaven on Monday
night. Kapp said business is usually slower in November than most months, but the
last couple of days have been crazy.
Every Other Weekly temporarily out of business
BY JEANNA BARRETT
Washington might have the
second-worst economy in the
nation, but Bellingham is show­ing
signs of improvement.
Within the last, year, the
nation's recession has caused a
drop in consumer spending and
a shortage in jobs.
While other Washington
cities' economies are low,
Bellingham is experiencing an
expansion in business, said
Mike Brennan, president of the
Bellingham/Whatcom County
Chamber of Commerce.
Bellingham residents can
expect to see either a stable
economy or a slight increase in
economic activity in the months
to come, he said.
"Normally Bellingham lags
far behind other cities when
coming out of a recession,"
Brennan said. "This is one of
the few times Whatcom
County is leading the state out
of economic despair."
Bellingham is one of the small
number of cities leading the
state in retail sales.
See ECONOMY, Page 4
BY BRANDON ROSAGE
Local alternative magazine
the Every Other Weekly will
print its final issue Wednesday
following a decision by its board
of directors to suspend and
restructure the publication.
The board decided to halt pro­duction
of the magazine because
of slumping advertising revenue
and its inability to fund an
upgrade to weekly printing, edi­tor
Tim Johnson said.
"Our issue is that we need to
take advantage of some of the
operating efficiencies that come
from being a weekly,". Johnson
said. "I believe there's a market
for a paper like ours."
Johnson said his business
could generate more advertising
revenue "and cover more timely
stories if it was published weekly.
Greg Kise, director of market­ing
for the Every Other Weekly,
said the publication has lost
advertising revenue because it
is printed every two weeks
rather than weekly.
"If somebody wants to do
timely advertising, for example,
a sale, it's very difficult for them
to do an advertising campaign
with us," Kise said. "I think
that's been detrimental to our
business."
Kise said the publication also
lost advertisers because of its
young readership. He said the
Mt. Baker Theatre, which
scheduled fewer events for
younger audiences this year, has
stopped advertising in the Every
Other Weekly because the publi­cation
does not reach its older
target audience.
Johnson said he will spend
the next two months creating a
larger budget and restructuring
operations to allow for weekly
publication by February. He said
he is considering three differ­ent
locations to move the busi­ness'
headquarters that are
within one block from its cur­rent
downtown location on
Cornwall Avenue.
Johnson said he will
announce a new name for the
publication in late December.
"We're well on our way to hav­ing
the capital to do this,"
Johnson said. "We're about 75
percent there. We're trying to
sunset this paper and be back on
the scene in February."
See WEEKLY, Page 4
Salmon migration in Whatcom Creek might exceed last year's record
Colin McDonald/The Western Front
Fishermen gather at Maritime Heritage Park to catch chum
in one of the biggest salmon runs in the creek s history.
BY COLIN MCDONALD
For Paul Zoller, fishing at
Maritime Heritage Park in down­town
Bellingham is an annual
tradition. This weekend he and
his son Kalani drove up from
Marysville and found just what
they were looking for — several
thousand salmon, sunny weather
and barely enough room between
fishermen to cast a line.
"We love to fish here," Zoller
said. "We're just catching and
releasing and having a good
time."
. Because of last week's rain,
salmon have enough water for
their migration, said Jon-Paul
Sharinahan, a field technician
for the City of Bellingham who
is doing the fish count for
Whatcom Creek.
"It's a great time to get out­doors
and take a look,"
Shannahan said. "The salmon
are running all over the county."
Earl Steele, who runs the
Whatcom Creek Fish Hatchery
for Bellingham Technical
College, said he and his stu­dents
are processing between
1,000 and 2,000 fish per day.
This year's run could match or
exceed last year's record of
27,500 fish. The hatchery has
already processed 16,000 fish.
After collecting the eggs and
sperm, the salmon are sent to
SeaSharfr, a non profit organiza­tion
that processes and pack­ages
the fish for local and state
food banks.
"We have a fish tube set up by
the park so people can catch the
fish and then send them straight
to the fish hatchery," Steele said.
"That way people can help us, the
salmon and the hungry."
Steele warns fishermen that
it is illegal to keep a fish if the
hook catches anywhere other
than " the its mouth. The
Washington Department of
Fish and Wildlife and the
Bellingham Police Department
will issue $89 fines for any ille­gally
caught fish.
Despite the crowds and regu­lations,
Zoller and his son plan
on coming back next year.
"There is nothing like this
anywhere else," Zoller said.
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