THE SHORES INSIDER

September, 2022

Presented by the Ocean Shores Branch of Greater Grays Harbor, Inc.

A Localized Voice for Business in Ocean Shores

Reserve your seat today for this year's Leader's Banquet & Business Recognition Awards taking place on October 28th at the Ocean Shores Convention Center!

During the event, GGHI is excited to unveil the recipients of the following awards: GGHI Ambassador, Large Business, Small Business, New Business, Non-Profit, and the coveted, Business of the Year! The receipients of each award have been nominated and voted on by the communtity and GGHI membership for demonstrating exemplary services, standards, and commitment to our region.

There will also be a live auction (preview auction items here!), signature cocktail, surf and turf dinner, and much more excitement at our largest event on the year!

Register today by clicking here or calling our office at (360) 532-7888. Early bird pricing closes September 29th!

Shores Business News

Oyehut Ditch Cleanup Begins

Many of you know about the flooding that occurs inside and outside of the City limits as a result of drainage issues associated with the Oyehut Ditch. These problems have gone unaddressed for years, but as your Mayor, I made it a personal priority to work with the affected citizens in addition to WSDOT and our County Commissioner, Vickie Raines to mitigate flooding and improve the flow of water to the canal network.

This process was anything but straightforward as the City needed to work with entities such as the Department of Ecology and the Washington State Fish and Wildlife to design mitigation plans and protect the endangered Olympic Mud Minnow.

I am pleased to announce that vegetation removal began this week. The focus of work will be done from Shoal Street to Arrow Lumber. The crews have been diligently working with local businesses to minimize road closures, and along the way, work crews discovered a dozen tires, bicycles and the infamous Olympic Mud Minnow in the water. With vegetation removal nearing completion, the next phase of the project will involve removing muck from the Oyehut Ditch. Based on the work that has been done so far, we have already seen a significant drop of almost a foot in water levels in the ditch.

The Olympic mudminnow (Novumbra hubbsi) is a fish native to the western lowlands of Washington: the Chehalis River basin, Deschutes River basin, and some Olympic Peninsula basins. It grows to 8 cm (about 3 in) in length, and is Washington's only known endemic freshwater fish species. Although they strongly resemble killifish, mudminnows are more closely related to pike and muskellunge.

Ocean Shores Library Celebrates 50 Years!

Where were you in 1972? The City of Ocean Shores Public Library and over 200 community members joined the Ocean Shores Library Staff in celebrating the library’s 50-year anniversary. 

The celebration has been ongoing and will continue for the entire month of September featuring 12 special events for people of all ages. 

Highlights included showing the movie The Poseidon Adventure with popcorn, the dedication of the new 1900 square foot outdoor pavilion in honor of donor Anneka van Doorninck, a make your own pet rock for children, a costume contest, and Wii Bowling for teens. 

Bill Robison entertained everyone with a non-stop, wacky music, hilarious sound effects family comedy show. Local best-selling author, Sheila Roberts shared her success as well as games and prizes. Two multimedia presentations featured The Library Story: 50 Years of Growth and Ocean Shores Memories: Now and Then. Mayor Jon Martin and City Administrator Scott Andersen were keynote speakers during the opening ceremony.

Mayor Martin discussed how fiercely independent the city of Ocean Shores is and how the library is part of that mission. He also discussed how the library continues to evolve and is a welcoming place for all the community to visit. 

City Administrator Andersen stressed what a vibrant community center the library is while providing access to information, a civic participation center, and lifelong learning.

The library is supported by 17 Ocean Shores community members: the Library Board of Trustees, The Ocean Shores Library Foundation, and the Ocean Shores Friends of the Library. These three boards and the staff provide programs and events tailored for the citizens of Oceans Shores, advocate for the library and know the needs of the residents. The is a well maintained building, provides a comfortable, safe environment and offers small town ambience with a blend of new up to date technology and all the traditional high touch services.

Ocean Shores Police Station Proposition 1 Fact Sheet

Proposed model for the new Ocean Shores Police Station

Shores Spotlight

Ocean Shores Donuts

Ocean Shores Donuts is a locally owned business serving some of the best, homemade donuts on the Washington Coast.

After first opening their doors on December 15th of 2020, owner Robyn Holt was excited to serve the Grays Harbor community as well as tourists visiting the shop. "What I really enjoy is seeing the customer's face light up when they come in," says Robyn. "Our shop reminds people of a donut shop from when they were young. It's also great to see children's enthusisam about the donuts."

Fresh donuts of ever-changing flavors are made by the day making Ocean Shores Donuts a perfect stop anytime of the year when you're craving a sweet treat.

Thank You to Ocean Shores Donuts for Investing in the Community!

Upcoming Events to Watch for in Ocean Shores!

All Ocean Shores events found here.

October 1-2:

Urban Unglued

October 19-23:

Celtic Music Feis