The News Tribune
Life on Salmon Beach: Tacoma’s hidden waterfront community
Hidden behind an unassuming locked gate by Point Defiance Park is a community of people who like their privacy. Through a thicket of forest and down a steep flight of nearly 300 stairs rest 104 homes, held up by stilts over a narrow stretch of beach....
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Could Tacoma be the new Hollywood? Some people think so
To support the independent film scene in Tacoma is to love Tacoma. It’s to know that the city has so much to offer, to dedicate time to helping others see it and to not expect much in return. Nowhere is that more embodied than at The Grand Cinema....
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Takeaways from Tuesday’s primary election results
Graham Platner, a military veteran and first-time candidate whose populist message resonated with voters in Maine, prevailed over the state’s governor to win the Democratic primary for Senate on Tuesday. Now, he will face Sen. Susan Collins, a...
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‘Seattle to Texas Express’: Why some residents are leaving
Some Republicans say it’s the new normal: that Washington state residents and businesses are leaving because the cost of living is too high and the political ideology has shifted too far to the left. Former talk show host Kirby Wilbur, who spent about...
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Diaz was shot ‘without provocation.’ 2 charged in teen’s death
Two people have been charged with murder in the shooting death last month of Parkland teenager Braylon Diaz. According to charging documents, the suspects are 26year-old Alyssa Marie VaughtBarr and 21-year-old Brandon Torres-Mesa, who is at...
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Man sentenced for stabbing at Point Defiance Park
The man convicted of trying to murder a woman walking alone on a trail at Tacoma’s Point Defiance Park in a stabbing attack foiled by other park goers was sentenced Friday to 22 years in prison. A jury found Nicholas Fitzgerald Matthew guilty of...
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Construction firm faces $1.1M claims in unfinished projects
Every time Brittany Gunderson goes out to her yard, she’s reminded of a promise poured in concrete and left unfinished. Gunderson, who lives in Bonney Lake with her husband, Todd, hired a local construction firm to build a ramp for her brother-in-law,...
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Report says Iran, US reach outline ceasefire deal
The United States and Iran have reached an outline agreement to extend their ceasefire pending the approval of President Donald Trump, Axios reported Thursday, after Iran targeted a U.S. air base in Kuwait in the wake of U.S. strikes on what Washington...
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Residents favor quiet over business growth in Northeast Tacoma
Northeast Tacoma can feel like its own small town. It’s separated from the rest of the city by Commencement Bay, and it can be a bit of a hike to get there. Plus, there are only a few businesses that dot the roads and intersections, compared to dense...
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111-year-old landmark demolished after permit ‘issued in error’
Crews starting tearing down a 111-year-old school house this week after Pierce County staff mistakenly issued a demolition permit for the historic building, a county spokesperson confirmed Tuesday. Pierce County’s Planning & Public Works department...
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‘Mushroom guy’ DeLeo provides fresh fungi to Tacoma chefs
was a cold, misty, midspring morning — as Pacific Northwest as it gets — when I officially met “the mushroom guy” in his habitat. If you live in or near Tacoma, and you like good food, you probably know him, too. For nearly 15 years, Adam DeLeo...
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Ashford guide shatters Mount Rainier speed record
On May 9, Rainier Mountaineering Incorporated (RMI) guide Simon Kearns woke up in company housing in Ashford well before dawn. For breakfast, he had a bowl of oatmeal and a cup of coffee. He’d slept a total of 30 minutes, but that was normal for him...
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Police honor Foss employees who intervened in knife attack
The Tacoma Police Department honored five Foss High School staff members during a press conference Thursday for their roles intervening in a knife attack that left six injured last month. On the afternoon of April 30, four male students confronted...
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Fire on Tacoma’s Temple Theatre roof likely electrical
A fire on the roof of Tacoma’s historic Temple Theatre on Tuesday likely was caused by an electrical failure. Chelsea Shepherd, spokesperson for Tacoma Fire, told The News Tribune that the department is finalizing its report for the building at 47 St....
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Ex-Pierce County teacher who molested students sentenced to prison
The former Pierce County elementary school teacher convicted of inappropriately touching four students was sentenced Friday to 66 years to life in prison. Jordan Roy Henderson, 36, was found guilty by a jury of 12 counts of first-degree child...
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Guarded by JBLM and Chief Leschi’s spirit, prairies endure
Fifteen thousand years ago, the Vashon Glacier, which helped carve Puget Sound, retreated and left behind hundreds of thousands of acres of grassland prairies, which were peppered with Garry oak trees, wildflowers, birds and butterflies. The prairies...
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Lakewood’s J’Nai Bridges to star in Seattle Opera’s ‘Carmen’
After over 100 performances in more than a dozen different productions playing the eponymous character, opera singer J’Nai Bridges has made it indisputably clear: Carmen is her calling. The Lakewood native has played the iconic temptress across the...
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State moves to force health inspections at Tacoma ICE lockup
Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson and Attorney General Nick Brown announced Tuesday that the state is seeking a federal court order to stop the contractor that runs the immigrationdetention center in Tacoma from blocking state health inspections at the...
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Iran offers plan to focus on Strait, delay nuclear talks
Iran has offered the United States a new proposal for negotiations that focuses on opening the Strait of Hormuz and lifting the U.S. sea blockade on Iran as a way of ending the war and then tackling nuclear negotiaasked tions later, according to three...
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18 Washington sheriffs face certification complaints
Nearly half of the elected sheriffs in Washington state face allegations of misconduct lodged by the public with the state’s Criminal Justice Training Commission, which has the authority to suspend or revoke a cop’s certification as a law enforcement...
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Loud train horns disrupt sleep in Old Town Tacoma
Residents in Old Town Tacoma say they have been kept up at night lately by the blaring horns of trains passing through the area. The trouble is centered at the railroad crossing near the inKurtis tersection of McCarver Street and Ruston Way. City...
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Pierce County Juvenile Court sees sudden leadership change
The man who has overseen Pierce County Juvenile Court as its administrator for more than a decade, TJ Bohl, and the court’s longtime probation manager, Kevin Williams, were separated from their positions last week. The reasons for their sudden...
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Why Tacoma holds so many special elections each year
With Tacoma Public Schools’ recently-approved property tax measures in the rearview mirror and Parks Tacoma’s bond measure looming, Tacoma residents might feel that they are constantly voting in special elections. Washington state law allows for up to...
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Ex-sheriff's leader sentenced for DUI crash injuries
The man who was leading the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigation Division when he drank, got behind the wheel of his pickup while off duty and caused a rollover collishe sion, pleaded guilty Tuesday to vehicular assault DUI and...
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Discover Longmire and the National Park Inn at Rainier
Not far inside the Nisqually entrance to Mount Rainier National Park is the Longmire Historic District, which once housed the park headquarters. Nestled inside Longmire is a mountain lodge called the National Park Inn, Mount Rainier’s only year-round...
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Why Pierce County teacher pay has surged amid budget strains
Teachers in the Evergreen State are among the best paid in the country. Washington’s teacher salaries are the fourth-highest in the United States, according to the National Education Association. A News Tribune analysis also found that teacher...
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Tacoma city manager Kim aims for long-term impact
When Hyun Kim first moved to Tacoma, he spent months living in nearly each of the city’s neighborhoods. As he was waiting to sell his house in Wyoming – his home prior to moving to Tacoma – he stayed at hotels and Airbnbs in areas ranging from Hosmer...
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‘Whole civilization will die tonight,’ Trump threatens Iran
President Donald Trump reiterated his ultimatum for Iran to agree to a ceasefire deal or face a major military escalapost tion, as both sides kept up attacks in the sixth week of the war. “A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought...
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Tacoma pushes to protect light-rail extension amid shortfall
Tacoma Council member Kristina Walker vowed this week to “push pretty hard” with other Pierce County delegates on the Sound Transit Board to ensure the long-promised lightrail extension to Tacoma isn’t set back. Walker’s public reinforcement of her...
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Tacoma’s popular poster makers release latest creation
Deep in a North Tacoma basement, the smell of paint is heavy. The walls are adorned with colorful posters, and a large 1952 printing press makes a mechanical swish and clicking sound as paper is run through and inked with poetry and yelguerilla low...
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Horticulturist retires after 38 years at Point Defiance Park
Steve Herbig was hard at work on a sunny morning in the Point Defiance Park rose garden. Joggers sped past, a family took graduation photos and people walked their dogs as Herbig pruned roses nearby. One passerby, spotting 62year-old Herbig dressed...
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Climber with prosthetic ice axe scales frozen waterfall
The act of climbing up something is deeply rooted in the human DNA; the joy and utility of it is inside us all. Evolution tells us this. Millions of years ago, we swung from the trees. Of course, with the advent of bipedalism and Bluetooth, it’s easy...
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Israel kills Iranian naval commander; Trump raises pressure
An Israeli airstrike killed an Iranian naval commander who played a pivotal role in shutting down the Strait of Hormuz, Israel said Thursday, as President Donald Trump ratcheted up pressure on Iran to accept his proposal to end the war. Trump, in a...
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Nisqually wildlife refuge hires pro to take out bullfrogs
On a gray and rainy Thursday morning, I traveled south to the Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge. On a typical soggy March day in the Northwest, it seemed I wanted to find Washington’s soggiest place. The kind of place a bullfrog would...
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Tacoma man living in car found solace cleaning headstones
William Douglas Fleet’s version of paying rent three years ago was picking up garbage in the area where he parked his car for the night. It was Fleet’s way of saying “thank you for getting me through the night” when he lived in his car. One of the...
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Puyallup school cuts trade pool closure for more layoffs
A pool, three gymnastics teams and librarian-led instructional time for most elementary school students have been spared from the Puyallup School District’s $15 million budget cuts. But there is a trade-off: more positions on the chopping...
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Residents, pizza restaurant clash over rowdy karaoke nights
Tensions are running high between the North End’s Bigfoot Pizza and Bar and neighbors in the area after the two clashed over noise complaints and late-night activity outside the business. Bigfoot Pizza and Bar, previously known as Sammy’s Pizza, has...
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No more timed entry at Mount Rainier
The News Tribune headed to Mount Rainier National Park on the park’s 127th birthday to talk to locals about the official cancellation of the timed-entry reservation system for 2026. The decision to drop timedentry reservations officially ends months...
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War expands as US, Israel, Iran ramp up regional strikes
U.S.-Israeli war on Iran reverberated across the region for a fourth day, with oil and gas prices surging and the world adjusting to a conflict that President Donald Trump says has no fixed timeline. Iran sent a fresh wave of missiles at countries...
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Response time questioned for Key Peninsula stabbings
How long did it take deputies to arrive after a 911 caller reported a man stabbing people outside homes on the Key Peninsula? In the days following the tragic incident in the 14000 block of 87th Avenue Court Northwest, which left five dead, Key...
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Neighbors recall stabbings in Key Peninsula
Neighbors remained in shock Wednesday after witnessing the tragic stabbings and shooting Tuesday near the 14000 block of 87th Avenue Court Northwest on the Key Peninsula. The neighborhood of duplexes is tucked away from the main highway that runs...
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Trump says Iran strike would be ‘easily won’ but wants deal
President Donald Trump pushed back on reports that the Pentagon was concerned that an extended military campaign against Iran could prove difficult, even as he insisted Monday his preference was still to strike a diplomatic deal. “Everything that has...
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Tacoma TikToker’s jingle ends up on national television
On a particularly hot day last year, Tacoma native Romeo Bingham was sipping on a Dr Pepper when an idea for a jingle popped in their head. “I swear it just, like, came out of me,” Bingham, 26, said. Bingham, who uses they/ them pronouns, decided to...
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County attorney: Minn. could consider charges for fed agents
Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said Wednesday that with or without federal cooperation, state prosecutors are in “good shape” to make charging decisions against the federal agents who shot and killed Renee Good and Alex Pretti. While noting...
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Washington’s winter weather raises red flags for experts
If you’re thinking the extra sun Tacoma’s soaked in this winter is out of the ordinary, you aren’t wrong. The SeaTac weather station recorded a 14-day-long streak of no precipitation in January 2026, just one day below the longest January dry streak...
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Horticulturist provides glimpse inside the jewel of Wright Park
Thousands of species of plants stretch for sunlight inside an elaborate glass Victorian conservatory in Tacoma’s Wright Park. For nearly 120 years the W. W. Seymour Botanical Conservatory has offered Pierce County residents a special place to look at...
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Seahawks, more than 700K fans go wild at Super Bowl parade
Sam Darnold, Ernest Jones and Riq Woolen climbed off the bus they were riding on top of. They wanted to walk and touch the people who wanted to touch them. DeMarcus Lawrence did his Super Bowl quarterback, his middle linebacker and his cornerback one...
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Democrats outline demands for immigration restrictions
Democrats say they will not support a spending bill needed to keep the Homeland Security Department running past Feb. 13 without new restrictions on federal agents who are carrying out President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown. Congress had been...
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Tacoma’s historic Armory will be on the market soon
Many U.S. cities have a legacy National Guard armory, but not every city has made such a building work in modern times. The conundrum is such that you can find a 67-page document online produced by the National Trust for Historic Preservation National...
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Bill would fine Tacoma ICE facility for blocking inspections
The federal immigration detention center in Tacoma has come under fire in recent years following reports of neglect and suicide. Now, Washington Democratic lawmakers are making the case for the state to be able to fine the center in the event that the...
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Pierce County economy stagnating, according to new report
A new economics report shows that the economy is stagnating in Tacoma and Pierce County amid the Trump administration’s whiplash tariff policy, higher-than average inflation and affordability issues. University of Puget Sound associate economics...
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Shelter’s higher surrender pet fee raises fears of abandonment
Diana Van Dusen posted a video on Facebook of two mixed Siamese kittens that she said had been found, with food, in a crate on the side of the road near Tacoma. A paper sign noted they were 3 months old and free. Van Dusen took the kittens into her...
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Storm poses big threats to power grids across US
As arctic cold and snow squalls threaten much of the United States this weekend, managers of electric grids from the Midwest to the East Coast have issued warnings that many homes and businesses could lose power. Grid managers have instructweather ed...
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Firefighters confront cancer risks from on-the-job exposures
Matt Frank, a lieutenant at the Tacoma Fire Department, has spent over half of his life in the fire service. It’s because of that work, he says, that he’s contracted cancer twice, a disease that’s becoming all too common for firefighters. That’s why...
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EU tells Trump a deal is a deal as Greenland threats escalate
President Donald Trump’s economic threats on the European Union over acquiring Greenland amount to a “mistake” that violates a trade arrangement forged last year between the transatlantic allies, the bloc’s executive said. “The European Union and the...
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Under Trump, a shift toward ‘absolute immunity’ for ICE
The instructions to Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents explain in clear terms how to defuse dangerous encounters: Use “minimal force” when trying to remove people from cars. Issue commands in “professional,” “firm,” “courtevestigate ous”...
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What to know as WA Legislature convenes for 2026 session
Washington state Legislature is back in session. Monday marked the first day of 2026’s 60-day legislative session. The hallways beneath the Capitol dome buzzed with activity as lawmakers returned to Olympia for opening day ceremonies at noon. In the...
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Why Bob’s Java Jive is all white for now: Stay tuned
In the gritty underbelly of crisscrossing highways, Tacoma’s coffee pot-shaped dive bar has lost its color — temporarily — as the owner, just a few years into his stewardship of the century-old icon, completes a much-needed exterior restoration...
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Jury finds former teacher guilty of molesting students
A jury found a former elementary school teacher from the Peninsula School District guilty Monday of molesting four former students. Jordan Roy Henderson faced 13 counts of first-degree child molestation after four of his former students from his...
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Trump delays tariff increases on furniture and cabinets
President Donald Trump has changed his mind on tariffs again by postponing steep increases on imported upholAmerican stered furniture, kitchen cabinets and vanities for one year. Newsweek contacted the White House via email on Thursday for...
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Trump abandons efforts to deploy National Guard to 3 cities
President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he would abandon, for now, efforts to deploy the National Guard in Chicago, Los Angeles, and Portland, Oregon. The decision comes after the Supreme Court ruled last week that Trump could not deploy troops in...
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WSP Trooper Guting remembered for her compassion and service
Tara-Marysa Guting was more than just a Washington State Patrol trooper. She was a doting wife and supportive sister, a dedicated best friend who always offered a shoulder to cry on, a proud pet mom and a lover of video games, fishing and...
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That isn’t a Chihuly glass sculpture in a Tacoma McDonald’s
If you’ve driven past the McDonald’s on Tacoma Avenue near the County-City Building, you’ve likely seen a large glass vase of flowers dominating the restaurant’s facade for the last 25 years. Commenters on Reddit have speculated for years that the...
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Bodies of National Guard soldiers killed in Syria return home
remains of two Iowa National Guard soldiers killed in an ambush in Syria arrived at the Iowa National Guard base in Des Moines, with funeral services for both scheduled for this weekend. The bodies of Staff Sgt. William Nathaniel Howard and Staff Sgt....
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Judge orders release of US Army vet held by ICE in Tacoma
A federal judge in Tacoma on Monday ruled that a U.S. Army veteran’s detention at the Northwest ICE Processing Center was unlawful and ordered his release. The judge said there were “serious concerns” about substantive due process in the case. U.S....
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Mayor-elect Anders Ibsen lays out his plans for Tacoma
Anders Ibsen thinks that Tacoma is “enough.” Ibsen, 39, who recently won the election to become Tacoma’s next mayor, is a lifelong city resident. The City Council member turned real estate agent turned mayor said he hears from newcomers that Tacoma...
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Howling winds batter Pierce County, knocking out power
Wind and rain left tens of thousands without power across Pierce County and the Puget Sound region Wednesday morning. Many schools were delayed or closed in Pierce County, especially in the Puyallup area. Tacoma Power reported more than 17,000...
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