Looking back at 2007 on the Eastside

In the news ... and out. That's been the case for many of the people and issues in our pages over the past year. Before we call 2007 a wrap, we thought we'd revisit a handful of Eastside stories and bring you up to date.

Marin Morrison

You could call 2007 an eventful year for Marin Morrison.

The 17-year-old Sammamish athlete underwent radiation over the summer to fight cancer cells growing in her brain. The insurance money on her in-home occupational- and speech-therapy sessions ran out. But through it all, she managed to focus enough to compete in the U.S. Paralympic swim trials, which could qualify her to go to Beijing next year.

Marin was the subject of a Seattle Times story in March, which featured the journey of the champion swimmer left half-paralyzed and beset by speech problems after undergoing brain surgery in 2005 to fight a rare, malignant cancer.

Marin has spent that time relearning how to read, write and walk. She's made strides since the surgery, and continues to swim every day. She even shaved 3.3 seconds off her backstroke record this year, qualifying her for the U.S. Paralympic Swim Team.

Marin suffers from aphasia, a neurological disorder that has hindered her ability to communicate. So her mother spoke for her.

"Eighty percent of swimming is mental," said Nancy Morrison. "It takes a certain person to keep persevering, despite everything she's gone through and continues to go through."

— Sonia Krishnan

Animal shelters

In September, a citizens-advisory committee blasted King County's two animal shelters, saying the dogs and cats are kept in "deplorable" conditions and suffer high rates of disease, are confined in small cages and don't get enough exercise.

The Metropolitan King County Council will decide in April whether to close both shelters and either contract the work to another agency, such as the Humane Society, or get out of the animal-care business.

In the meantime, County Executive Ron Sims plans to close the smaller shelter, in Bellevue's Crossroads area, in the next couple of months, according to Anne Bruskland, deputy director of the county records and licensing division. The shelter, which opened in 1997, was designed to be temporary and has little space or staff, according to the advisory panel.

The county is also making some smaller changes while the council decides the fate of the animal-services program. At the Kent shelter, the kennels are cleaned more often, unsafe doors have been repaired and an uncovered sewer drain running through several dogs' pens will be covered next month, Bruskland said.

The County Council in November approved $130,000 in improvements at the Kent shelter, including a commercial washer and dryer, temporary trailers to house animals in the winter and a taller wall dividing cats and dogs.

The council wants the animal-services program to be a "model agency," with drastically improved conditions and a much lower euthanasia rate for the animals, said Councilmember Julia Patterson.

Sims plans to submit more details by the spring about the improvements, including how to lower the euthanasia rate, said Jim Buck, head of the county's executive-services department.

— Ashley Bach

Spirit of Washington

Eric Temple, owner of the Spirit of Washington Dinner Train, said he's "absolutely, for sure" still interested in running the traveling dinner excursions between Snohomish and Woodinville. But for now, Temple is watching from the sidelines as King County politicians and activists debate the merits of rails vs. trails.

The 42-mile BNSF Railway corridor between Snohomish and Renton is part of ongoing complex negotiations — first made public in September 2006 — among the railway, King County, the Port of Seattle and the state.

While the fate of the rail corridor along the east side of Lake Washington remains in flux, the intent has always been for the 14-mile stretch between Snohomish and Woodinville to remain open for freight trains. The right-of-way is wide enough for a parallel trail, analysts say.

Temple still hopes to create a new dinner-train route on those rails, if the Port chooses his company to operate the freight line. The Port and BNSF continue to negotiate sale terms for the full rail corridor, said Port spokeswoman Charla Skaggs. Once the sale is complete, the Port will seek a private rail operator, she said.

The dinner train's longtime route between Renton and Woodinville closed in August because of a project to widen Interstate 405 through Bellevue. An interim move to Tacoma failed — and last month Temple shut down the train.

The distinctive train is now parked in Battle Ground, Clark County, while Temple awaits final word on the Snohomish County rail line.

— Diane Brooks

Taj and Almos

Five months ago, two Bengal tiger cubs nestled in the arms of their caretakers at Issaquah's Cougar Mountain Zoo.

Now they're almost the size of a zookeeper — weighing in at 124 and 128 pounds.

Taj, 7 months, and Almos, 6 months, were featured in a Seattle Times article in July at 11 and 8 weeks old. They had moved to Issaquah from a Florida preserve, partly to educate the community about their endangered species.

The only Bengal cubs in the state, they have since developed distinct personalities, said Robyn Barfoot, the zoo's general curator. Taj, the slightly larger golden, is a playful people-pleaser, who likes to rub against the fence and "chuff," or greet, spectators. Almos, the 3-week younger Royal White, is pensive and majestic as he observes his play area from a 7-foot-high platform.

They've moved to a larger habitat at the zoo with climbing limbs, wooden ramps and playful next-door neighbors: the cougars.

Barfoot said the cubs, who have grown extra-furry winter coats, are just as popular today as when they made their debut.

"The public is very supportive and proud," she said. "They're Issaquah's tigers."

Still considered cubs, the tigers will roar in a few months, their baby teeth will be gone by summer and during the next two years they'll quadruple in size — to a full-grown weight of 500 pounds.

— Meghan Peters

Bridge for sale

Despite historical significance and an unbeatable price tag, 93-year-old bridges aren't exactly selling like hotcakes.

King County's Mount Si Bridge, which crosses the Snoqualmie River near North Bend, has been on the market since August — and there are still no takers.

The buyer would only have to dismantle, transport and reassemble the bridge, Ikea-style.

An Aug. 29 article in The Seattle Times sparked a few inquiries, said Julia Turney, an environmental engineer at the county Road Services Division. But "the reality of taking the whole bridge gives people a little pause," she said.

The bridge could be useful for a park as a trail bridge, Turney said. Even though county code would allow the landmark to go to a government agency at no cost, recreation departments haven't shown much interest.

If no public department bites by the end of the month, the county will offer the bridge to private agencies through a bidding process, she said.

The 19-foot-wide landmark, which serves about 4,000 vehicles each day, will stay in place for local traffic until late summer or early fall 2008, when its replacement is expected to be completed. If no deal is struck by then, the bridge will be demolished and recycled as scrap.

If you're looking for a good deal on a used bridge, visit: www.metrokc.gov/kcdot/roads/eng/bridge/mtsibridge/index.cfm

— Meghan Peters

Family slain

The husband and father of a former Sammamish family will likely face the death penalty if he's convicted in their slayings, Illinois prosecutors say.

Christopher Vaughn, 32, formerly of Sammamish, was indicted by a grand jury in Will County, Ill., southwest of Chicago, in July on four counts of first-degree murder.

Vaughn is accused of the shooting deaths of his wife and three children. The victims were Kimberly Vaughn, 34; and Abigayle, 12, Cassandra, 11, and Blake, 8. The mother's and children's bodies were found inside a red Ford Expedition on a service road near Interstate 55 about 5:30 a.m. June 14, according to the Will County State's Attorney's Office.

No trial date has been set. Vaughn is being held without bail in the Will County jail. His next court appearance is scheduled for Jan. 22.

The Vaughn family had lived in Sammamish until about 2005, when they returned to the Midwest because of Vaughn's work. Until then, he'd had offices in downtown Bellevue, where he ran a computer-security business with clients such as the University of Washington and savings-and-loan associations.

— Peyton Whitely