Caleb Breakey
Tribune sports reporter

  SUMAS — First it was concern about garbage. Now Sumas residents can add another worry to their list: possible water contamination.
  Lafarge, a company in Abbotsford, B.C., is looking to mine gravel on approximately 90 acres atop the aquifer recharge area that serves Sumas and Abbotsford, and then backfill it with construction debris, which could be worse than it sounds.

Mark Reimers
Tribune reporter

  LYNDEN — Lynden Christian High School will operate under an interim principal for the 2009-10 school year, signaling the difficulty of finding a replacement for Keith Lambert late in the school year.
  The school announced Friday that former LC superintendent Gary Kamps will serve for a year as the interim principal.
  Superintendent Don Kok said the selection was ideal since Kamps is familiar with the school and will be an asset during Lynden Christian’s centennial celebration in the coming year.

Calvin Bratt
Tribune editor

  WHATCOM — The Whatcom County Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on Thursday, July 9, to consider changes to the Rural Element of the Whatcom County Comprehensive Plan and to Whatcom County’s development regulations pertaining to land uses and densities in rural areas of the county.
  The hearing will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the Whatcom County Council chambers, 311 Grand Ave., Bellingham. The public is invited to submit written comments and/or attend the hearing to provide oral comments.

Tim Newcomb
Tribune assistant editor

  LYNDEN ­— It is a tale of two markets right now for local real estate.
  Jerry Blankers, broker for Snapper Shuler Kenner Real Estate, said that low-end sales are doing quite well, while the houses on the upper end are still a bit slow.
  “We are steady,” he said. “We aren’t setting the world on fire. It is not a great year, but we are not throwing in the towel.”

  LYNDEN — For asphalt resurfacing, Front Street will be closed entirely to traffic from Second to Sixth streets on Monday and Tuesday, June 29-30.
  The work will involve grinding the current pavement on Monday and laying a new surface on Tuesday, said Loren Vander Yacht of Associated Asphalt, which won the job bid from the City of Lynden.
  Only the main traffic lanes will be don

Lynden golf resort
listed at $7.5 million
Tim Newcomb
Tribune assistant editor

  LYNDEN -- In these troubled times, Homestead Development Co. is for sale piece by piece.
  Roughly 15 Homestead properties have been listed for sale by Snapper Shuler Kenner Real Estate of Lynden.
  The largest single piece of the Homestead holdings, Homestead Farms Golf Resort, is listed at $7.5 million, according to Jerry Blankers, SSK broker. That property, the centerpiece of the company’s presence in Lynden, includes the golf course, fitness center, clubhouse and the restaurant located along Depot Road.

Tim Newcomb
Tribune assistant editor

  LYNDEN -- The Lynden Regional Parks and Recreation District is taking the next step of looking into acquiring Homestead Farms Golf Resort’s golf course, fitness center, clubhouse and restaurant on Depot Road.
  Terry DeValois, district vice president, said that at a Monday evening meeting the commissioners agreed to bring in legal counsel to assist with moving forward on “exploring the possibility” of making an offer.

Tim Newcomb
Tribune assistant editor
  

Crews work to bolt together the new steel trusses over the Nooksack River on Monday as part of the Guide Meridian widening project.

LYNDEN — Work continues on constructing a new truss bridge on the north side of the Nooksack River, with a meeting planned in the middle of the steel frame for late July.

Mark Reimers
Tribune reporter
  

The marijuana plants being grown in Lynden for medical use are seen here in an early stage of their life cycle.

LYNDEN – On May 9, officers from the Lynden Police Department visited a house in town and discovered a number of marijuana plants growing under lights in the basement.

Calvin Bratt
Tribune editor
  

Stephanie Faddis, Terri Stocker and Dan Kuiper relight luminaria that had gone out in Friday evening's rain.

LYNDEN — Fundraising in a recession, the 2009 Lynden Relay For Life still raised $220,713 for the American Cancer Society.