An estimated 200 people gathered in Maritime Heritage Park on Oct. 7, participating in the March for Gaza wearing keffiyehs, waving flags and holding homemade signs, where members from various groups spoke in solidarity with Palestine.
For many in Whatcom County, casinos are more than just a place to gamble. They are social hubs, spaces for excitement and sometimes, moments of personal satisfaction and relief.
Western students returning to campus this fall will no longer be using their Western Cards to board WTA buses. As of June 23, 2025, the university has fully transitioned to a digital bus pass system through the Umo Mobility app.
What was once a hidden gem for local skaters will be taking on a new life. The City of Bellingham, in cooperation with Northwest Skate Collective, is renovating the informal skate park under Roeder Avenue Bridge into an official city park.
Western Academic Workers United has set a strike deadline of Wednesday, May 28. If Western Washington University administration does not meet the union’s demands, including bargaining rights, the student union’s operational student employees will begin picketing that morning.
The energetic hum of voices, the clink of glasses, and the familiar kiss of pool balls rolling down the green felt tables — State Street Bar’s doors are finally open once more.
About 50 resident advisors, lifeguards and other operational student employees from Western Washington University’s Western Academic Workers United gathered in a town hall meeting on Thursday, April 24, to discuss the union’s upcoming strike authorization vote, which will run from May 6 to 9.
Hundreds of community members wearing Washington State Nurses Association shirts filled the sidewalks outside of PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center in Bellingham on Tuesday, April 29. PeaceHealth employees and community members in their blue WSNA wear came together to host informational pickets.
Little Squalicum Pier opened on April 2, 2025, giving the public new access to bay views extending 1,248 feet into the water. The pier was originally built in 1912 by the Olympic Portland Cement Company to transport its products to offshore barges. The City of Bellingham has been planning to turn the site into a public walkway since 1995.
It only takes a few hours in Bellingham to notice the sounds of trains rolling past. The minimum and maximum volume for train horns are regulated by the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission, which requires horns to sound at 96 dB to 110 dB – at its quietest, the sound is comparable to a power mower, and at its loudest, a live rock concert.
As the main chamber of Bellingham City Hall quickly reached capacity at 7 p.m. Monday, April 14, security guided the overflow of attendees to view the meeting via livestream in the mayor’s boardroom. In both the chamber and the boardroom, transgender community members and allies — dressed in funeral attire — showed up en masse, imploring the city council to pass a resolution declaring Bellingham a transgender sanctuary city.
Western Washington University’s Viking Union Gallery will close fall quarter of 2025 and be repurposed to house the La Plaza Latine Student Center. This decision comes from Melynda Huskey, Vice President of Student Affairs at Western.
A total of 15 proposals were submitted by 14 organizations in response to the Northwest Clean Air Agency’s request for proposals, or RPF. The RFP offers $3.5 million in total funding for up to three projects. The RFP called for projects that would provide clear, tangible and positive benefits to local communities.
In a Feb. 15 “Dear Colleague” letter, the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) directed preschool, elementary, secondary and postsecondary educational institutions, as well as state educational agencies across the country to comply with existing civil rights law and the Supreme Court’s 2023 decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard (SFFA). The decision deemed racial preferences in college admissions to be unlawful.
The Whatcom Working Waterfront Foundation’s Northwest Maritime Apprenticeship is helping to fill a hole in the maritime industry. The four-year apprenticeship has three levels, each costing $1500 tuition. The program contains 12 subjects, including math, design and business practices.
On April 20, 2024, the eighth annual Great Puzzle Hunt will take place at Western Washington University, attracting hundreds of participants. The event is free and open to all with teams of up to six players, with four to six being recommended.
The Good Time Girls are a group of women who offer engaging and entertaining historical walking tours in Bellingham, suitable for both locals and tourists. Focusing on diverse individuals, their tours provide a unique perspective on the city's past.
Bellingham’s two most frequent high-profile crimes, vandalism and theft, have seen a major decline by over half of monthly occurrences since March of 2022, according to local police and the city’s crime tracker.
Nine local breweries in Bellingham, Washington have joined Habitat for Humanity in their fundraising efforts towards building homes for families in Whatcom County.
For many in Bellingham, driving a car to get where we need to go feels like an everyday necessity. However, there are many who choose biking as an alternative. But why bike? Is it only out of necessity?
Solutions by The State News
