Marshal's Office at Town Trailhead ???

At a recent Town Council meeting, the possibility of locating a building to house the Winthrop Marshal’s Office at the Town Trailhead parking lot was discussed in relation to a grant and loan opportunity available to the Town. This discussion and a subsequent article in Methow Valley News has led to numerous comments and feedback from those concerned about this possibility. Due to some of the concerns expressed, we agree that this site would not be an appropriate location for a new Marshal’s Office building. We will most likely continue to pursue the grant and loan opportunity, but will seek a different site for a new Winthrop Marshal’s Office building. We appreciate all of the immediate feedback on this issue. It is much better to hear from folks early when we are on the wrong course than at the end when everything is nearly finalized. Sometimes the appeal of a simple solution to a difficult challenge blinds us to some of the unintended effects of our solution. Thanks for keeping us on the course that our community desires.

Dave Acheson
Mayor of Winthrop

Recent upgrades to Town of Winthrop website

We're happy to announce that we have recently added a "Planning" page to the Town of Winthrop website (www.townofwinthrop.com). The page includes a roster of current planning commission members, e-mail links to the planning commission and town planner, a link to view the current planning commission agenda, and a place to sign up to have the planning commission agenda e-mailed to you. We hope you'll find this page a useful addition to our website.

In Memory of Former Mayor Stan Peterson

Recently, former Winthrop Mayor and Councilperson Stan Peterson passed away. He served as Winthrop's mayor from January of 1990 until March 1992. Stan's service and ongoing commitment to his community were greatly appreciated. On behalf of the Town, I would like to express how much we will all miss Stan and that our thoughts are with his wife Susan and their family during this difficult time.

Mayor Dave Acheson

Fire Halls and Fire Trucks

Recently, the Methow Valley News ran a story on the upcoming ballot issues being run by the Town of Winthrop and Okanogan County Fire District #6 to get voter approval for bonds to be issued to pay for a new fire truck (Town of Winthrop) and a new fire hall (Okanogan County Fire District 6). The article contained some inaccuracies as to who was being asked to approve and pay for each item. The correct information is as follows:

Town of Winthrop Fire Truck bond proposition (August 19th ballot):

Voters within the Town of Winthrop will be asked to approve a bond issue to pay for a new pumper truck to replace the current pumper owned by the Town which is over 23 years old and does not meet current National Fire Protection Association standards. Only voters within the Town of Winthrop will vote on this measure and only they will pay for the bond if the measure is approved.


Okanogan County Fire District 6 Fire Station bond proposition (November 4th ballot):

Voters within Okanogan County Fire District 6 (which does not include the town of Winthrop) will be asked to approve a bond issue to pay for a new OCFD6 fire station. Voters within the Town of Winthrop will not have this proposition on their ballots and will not pay for the bond if the measure is approved.


The Town of Winthrop and Okanogan County Fire District 6 enjoy a close working relationship and currently share a fire station. The Town contracts with OCFD6 for the operation of the Town's fire department. This close relationship benefits the Town's citizens by providing access to more equipment and personnel than the Town could otherwise afford on its own. However, to the casual observer, it can occasionally cause some confusion as evidenced by the recent MV News article. Hopefully, this post will clear up who is being asked to approve and pay for what.