Meet In CommonNews

News in North Bend, WA

Salish Current · North Bend, WA

Rising mountain biking star Chloe Bear refuses to slow down

Ankle sprain on the eve of Italy event is tough blow, but she views it as just another lesson Last month, Bellingham resident Chloe Bear, 19, reached Finale Ligure, Italy, to compete in the 2026 mountain bike enduro world championships. She had spent months preparing for what would be a challenging competition. However, her hopes of racing were cut short when she suffered an ankle sprain on one of her training days. This crash would take her out just before the race. Had she competed, Bear would have been one of only two American women among the 36 other female riders from around the world. Bear grew up in North Bend, Washington, where she had been riding bikes ever since her feet could reach the pedals. Her life has been filled with adventure ever since. Whether it’s backpacking, skiing or weekend trips up to Bellingham to couch surf and mountain bike, Bear has had a thirst for the outdoors and getting dirt under her nails.

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Seattle Medium · Tukwila, WA

Nearby: Tukwila, WA

36th Annual Youth And Law Forum To Feature Erin Jones And Shawn Kemp

The 36th annual Judge Charles V. Johnson Youth and Law Forum returns to Tukwila Nov. 14, featuring keynote speaker Erin Jones and former SuperSonic Shawn Kemp. The free event offers workshops on police encounters, mental health, bullying and online safety, aiming to build trust between youth, families and justice system professionals through interactive, hands-on learning experiences.

The US Inquirer · Auburn, WA

Nearby: Auburn, WA

New federal housing rule could displace thousands, experts warn

Residents of federally funded public housing will be required to show proof of U.S. citizenship or eligible immigration status under a new rule published Thursday by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The measure could displace nearly 80,000 people, including tens of thousands of citizens in mixed-status families, from their homes, according to the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, a nonpartisan research and policy institute. Since 1995, mixed-status families have been permitted to live together in HUD-funded housing as long as federal subsidies covered only eligible household members. The new rule may force these families to decide whether to remain together in nonpublic housing or split up their households. “This is tearing apart families and sowing division,” said Marie Claire Tran-Leung, director of the Evictions Initiative Project and managing attorney at the National Housing Law Project.

Capital Press · Seattle, WA

Nearby: Seattle, WA

Judge rejects union bid to reset piece-rates for farm work

A federal judge in Seattle largely upheld the Labor Department’s rules for setting prevailing piece-rates for farm work, declining to order wholesale changes sought by a farmworkers union. Familias Unidas por la Justicia alleged the rules artificially limit piece-rate opportunities for foreign and domestic farmworkers. Instead, farmworkers must work for hourly wages, which pay less, the union claimed. U.S. District Judge John Chun agreed with the union on one rule, but mostly left intact the current methods for setting wages. Although the union’s suit focused on farmworker wages in Washington, a broader ruling in favor of the union could have affected farmworker wages nationwide. “The Labor Department can’t have a separate set of rules for Washington,” Worker and Farmer Labor Association CEO Enrique Gastelum said.

The Stranger · Seattle, WA

Nearby: Seattle, WA

Nobody Wants a McDonald’s in Chinatown

McDonald’s wants to put a new store in Seattle’s Chinatown-International District (CID). Almost nobody thinks that’s a good idea. They are decidedly not loving it. Last night, about 80 CID residents and supporters packed the meeting of the International Special Review District (ISRD), the neighborhood’s historic preservation board. Impassioned public comments, handmade protest signs in Chinese and English, and several people in Ronald McDonald-esque clown masks injected the typically sleepy meeting with life. McDonald’s wants to place its new franchise on the corner of 4th Avenue South and South Jackson Street, along a busy thoroughfare close to the regional transit hub and sports stadiums. The storefront has remained vacant since Bartell Drugs closed four years ago. In submitting its proposal, Mickey D’s managed a remarkable feat: Uniting the community to take action in the span of less than a week.

International Examiner · Seattle, WA

Nearby: Seattle, WA

Exhibit explores the connection between Hwagae Market in Korea and Pike Place Market in Seattle

Surrounded by dense forests, the Kenneth J. Minnaert Center for the Arts houses the Leonor R. Fuller Gallery. As a contemporary state-of-the-art venue, it currently features an exhibit of installations and paintings by local Korean women artists—telling the “Stories of Immigrant Life through the Spirit of the Marketplace.” If you were fortunate to make the opening reception on September 18, you were treated to an amazing performance by the Gunsan City Children’s Dance Company. Afterwards, you likely gorged on a delicious Asian style buffet. And, of course, you were captivated by the artwork. Curated by Kellis Parlett, the exhibit titled “From Hwagae Market to Pike Place Market” displays the talents of Korean women artists. As an artist herself (as well as the curator for Jade Choe Gallery at Asia Pacific Cultural Center in Tacoma), Parlett had in-depth answers to our questions about the exhibit.