City of Ephrata - Government

09/03/2026

We've been made aware of a Facebook group/page operating under the name shown in the image below. The page is not operated by the City of Ephrata, its staff, or any other authorized representative. If you see any content that seems a bit off, please email [email protected] to let our Public Information Officer, Rob Miller, know about the incident.

09/03/2026

Ephrata City Council met for their regular meeting last night at 6 p.m. at City Hall.
The meeting began with a proclamation from Mayor Steve Oliver honoring the victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks and encouraging Ephrata residents to participate in ceremonies planned for that day and community service on Patriot Day and throughout the year to honor those victims and those who work to protect us from terrorism.
Public Works Director Rob Harris then provided a demonstration of the iWorQ platform. This software package allows the City to track a variety of expenses closely and helps with everything from budget tracking to identifying when a vehicle costs more to maintain than it would cost to replace it.
Two resolutions accepting grant funding and moving improvements forward for the City were accepted by Council. The first involved a resolution to move forward with the first stage of the A Street Overlay project. That project will make improvements to A Street from the roundabout by Grant County Fire District 13 to just past Pioneer Ave. SE, making that road better for the neighborhoods it serves. The second will have citywide impacts for residents and businesses as it will help fund the engineering that is likely to remove the city from a FEMA floodplain. The work will happen in stages, with a large portion of the southern part of town hopefully out of the flood zone in the next two years. Afterward, infrastructure improvements to redirect water from the Sagebrush Flats area north and out of town. The second portion would take a while, but would remove roadblocks to economic development throughout downtown. The goal is to eliminate flood insurance costs for residents and businesses while keeping the city safe from flood events during those rare times we see heavy rains that might send floodwaters toward town.
To see more about the grants the City is seeking to offset community improvements, visit our grants website at https://www.ephrata.org/202/Grant-Planning.
Police Chief Erik Koch discussed a scholarship/grant to help fund the purchase of a Safe Restraint WRAP system which helps contain violent suspects while keeping the suspect, the officers involved, the community and city equipment safe. The units cost about $1,800 overall, and the $1,000 scholarship/grant funding will help to offset that expense for the department. A video of how the WRAP system works can be viewed at https://www.saferestraints.com/training-material.
Parks & Recreation Director Josh Johnson asked Council to rescind a contract with the vendor that had been initially selected to surface and paint the new courts at the Ephrata Sports Complex. The original vendor had refused to obtain the bonding required to ensure the project was up to standard. To protect the City from a potential loss, it was decided to award the contract to a new vendor who had agreed to meet the City’s liability requirements with bonding. Director Johnson said it was important to ensure the City’s financial interests were protected and that the new award would allow the work to be completed this year.
To view the full meeting, visit our YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/ and click on the “Live” option. Note that Council meetings are held the first and third Wednesday of each month at 6 p.m. at City Hall and we would love to see you at the meetings in person.

Image: A breakdown of how the floodplain lies on the city and the stages that would be removed from the floodplain under current plans to update the city's flood mitigation infrastructure and planning. Visit our grants website, above, for more details.

08/27/2026

Here is the agenda for the upcoming City Council meeting on Wednesday, September 2, 2026. The community is encouraged to attend in person.

Follow this link to see the packet:
https://www.ephrata.org/AgendaCenter
On the day of the meeting, follow this link to view the Live Stream:
https://www.youtube.com/

08/25/2026

Crosswalk safety applies year-round but is especially prevalent as school starting is just around the corner!

08/20/2026

Be extra cautious as we move into the weekend to make sure we don't recharge smoke-pocalypse 2026.

We are monitoring a period of active weather that will result in elevated to critical fire concerns. There remains some uncertainty in the exact timing and coverage of thunderstorms, but the current forecast suggests isolated thunderstorms over the Cascades late Friday night becoming scattered across the Inland Northwest on Saturday. Saturday afternoon into the early evening will also bring a period of dry and gusty winds. Do your part to prevent sparks.

08/20/2026

Ephrata City Council had a busy but productive meeting last night.
The meeting began with the swearing-in of Officer Rickey Barquet, whose family came to City Hall to support him. Rickey’s grandfather pinned his badge on him after Mayor Steve Oliver administered the Oath of Office.
Following the swearing-in, Council heard two presentations.
Grant County Health District Executive Director Theresa Adkinson delivered an update on the services provided by GCHD to Ephrata. Highlights include 19 restaurant inspections, one temporary food vendor inspection, and 159 food worker cards issued – all in Ephrata. Add to that 3 septic permits and 9 septic and drinking water evaluations within city limits. Councilmember Phil Borck serves on the Board of Health and said his time on the board has shown him that GCHD does a lot to keep Grant County residents, including those in Ephrata, healthy and protected from disease and other health risks.
Aaron Loeffelbein and Danielle Durr from NCW Libraries presented on the remodel at the Ephrata Public Library. The remodel is part of the library district’s Reimagining Spaces program. Loeffelbein said the library sought out a great deal of public input prior to designing the new interior of the building. Office space for staff will be smaller, but will also be used more efficiently. That change has allowed a meeting room and larger spaces for children, teens, and adult readers to enjoy the library. Programming after the remodel will focus on Family Fun & Play and a Creative Arts Studio. Renovations are expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2027. In the meantime, the library will still be open and offering services for limited hours (see the attached slide).
Council also passed an ordinance that clarifies how temporary signs can be displayed in public spaces. The goal is to ensure things like campaign signs are picked up by candidates in a reasonable time frame and that they don’t impede driver visibility at intersections. The full ordinance may be viewed in the Agenda Center at Ephrata.org. Just pull up the packet for the Aug. 19, 2026, Regular City Council meeting.
Finally, Council received information from our vendor who is helping with the update of the City’s Comprehensive Plan. The goal of the project is to create a roadmap for how the city will be developed in the coming years and to ensure that the plan complies with state law. According to Andrew Oliver, who gave the presentation, and Community Development Director Ron Sell, the changes being recommended by the team will make for a more consistent set of rules for builders and property owners to follow. That will make it easier for residents to place accessory dwelling units on their land, build new housing, and understand the rules the city has laid out.
Council meetings are held at 6 p.m. the first and third Wednesdays of each month and the public is encouraged to attend. The full meeting may be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/live/Zvy8BlnR_KY?si=91gLrjSHmI_TMrvy. Meeting materials are located at https://www.ephrata.org/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Agenda/_08192026-279.
Thank you to our community partners who showed up to share vital information with Council. And, as always, a special thank you to Summer Rocheleau for leading the Pledge of Allegiance at the start of the meeting.

08/19/2026

It’s kind of hard to miss that the trip uphill on Nat Washington Way toward Columbia Basin Hospital is a bit rough right now. Not to fear, it’s just temporary and will be replaced with a permanent surface that’s nice and smooth once the underground work is done and the workers installing the fiberoptic and other infrastructure are ready to seal things up. The current surface will be pulled back up, sent off for recycling, and a new surface will be laid down. This isn’t a City project, but we’ve gotten a lot of feedback so we wanted to let everyone know what was going on. We hope you’re enjoying your summer and email City Clerk Rob Miller at [email protected] with any questions you might have about what’s happening around town.

08/19/2026

The pictured section of C Street SW between 6th Ave. SW and 5th Ave. SW will be closed all day August 19, 2026, so that a manhole can be installed to facilitate sewer maintenance for properties in the area. Drivers are asked to use caution in the area and divert to D Street SW or Basin Street SW to go around the worksite. Barricades will be placed at the locations noted in purple to ensure public and worker safety. The City would also like to remind drivers to be careful through the rest of the summer and into the new school year, as children are expected to be out on foot, biking, zipping about on scooters, and otherwise enjoying their last days of summer break freedom.

Reminder: City Council meets for their mid-month meeting Aug. 19 at 6 p.m. at City Hall.

08/14/2026

More good things happening in and around Ephrata.

08/14/2026

If you have an old instrument sitting around unused, there's likely a student that could put it to good use.

The Ephrata School District encourages local families to participate in an upcoming instrument drive supporting families impacted by recent fires.

Gently used, playable musical instruments can be dropped off at:

📍 Location: Frontier Middle School (Moses Lake)

📅 Date: Sunday, August 23rd

⏰ Time: 12:00 PM – 4:00 PM

Every donated instrument goes directly to a student or family in need to help keep the music playing in the community. Consider stopping by to support young local musicians! 🧡🖤

📲 See the attached flyer for more information.