Open Gorge: The Skamania Dispatch & Klickitattler
Welcome to Open Gorge, your audio bridge to local government, infrastructure, and community news in the Columbia River Gorge.
Hosted by the founder of Open Gorge, Kate Bertash, this podcast brings the in-depth, civic-minded reporting of The Skamania Dispatch and The Klickitattler newsletters straight to your headphones. We break down the public meetings you didn't have time to attend, track local infrastructure projects, and decode the regional policy decisions that directly impact your daily life.
Whether you are a Columbia Gorge resident commuting across the river, following local elections, or tracking where your tax dollars are going, we provide clear, factual summaries of what’s changing and what’s coming next.
Our unified feed covers the entire Gorge. Check the title of each episode to see if we are covering Skamania County, Klickitat County, or regional issues that impact us all. Listen to what matters most to your neighborhood, or stay tuned for the full regional picture.
Subscribe to the written newsletters and join the community at SkamaniaDispatch.com.
Open Gorge: The Skamania Dispatch & Klickitattler
Latest Episodes
[All-Gorge] ⚡ Scoping Deadlines & Tribal Consults - EFSEC May '26
The state's Energy Facility Site Evaluation Council hit a major procedural bottleneck this month regarding the proposed Cascade Renewable Transmission line. We break down the May 20, 2026, meeting where local leaders and state officials debated...
[Klickitat] 🐟 Fish Windows & Budget Trapdoors - Klickitat BOCC 5/26 & 6/2
Summer is bringing a wave of mandatory infrastructure repairs to Klickitat County, threatening to temporarily sever key recreational and emergency routes. Plus, we look at how statewide mandates and national labor trends are compounding severe ...
[Klickitat] 🏗️ The Multiplex Fight - White Salmon May '26 Round-Up
In this episode, we dive into the growing friction between statewide housing mandates and local zoning codes playing out over a four-unit multiplex on Wyers Street. Plus, we cover infrastructure headaches for Snohomish Place residents, and how ...
[Skamania] 🗣 Public Pushback Pauses $1,000 Rescue Fine - Skamania BOCC 5/27
The Skamania County Commissioners pumped the brakes on a controversial ordinance that would have fined negligent hikers a thousand dollars. We look at why local search and rescue veterans pushed back during the May 27th meeting.In Thi...
[Skamania] 🌶️A Spicy Mayorial Email - North Bonneville May ‘26 Round-Up
Welcome to the May municipal round-up for the North Bonneville City Council and Planning Commission. In this episode, we unpack a highly misspelled email reprimand from the Mayor that exposes deep friction over meeting decorum, and we look at a...