Anacortes Police joined volunteers to help retrieve a sick horse from a ditch last week.  The horse had fallen in a ditch in the 100 block of 41st St. on Friday, Oct. 8 and was unable to get up on his own.

A handful of local volunteers are working to restore a 1924 fire engine to its original glory, one piece at a time. The fire engine was featured at a fire equipment expo in San Francisco in 1924 as a showpiece by manufacturer American LaFrance.

Oktoberfest comes to Anacortes this Saturday with the inaugural beer festival, sponsored by the Chamber of Commerce. Sub-titled "Beer on the Pier," Anacortes Oktoberfest will be at the Port Warehouse at the foot of Commercial Ave., from noon to 6pm.

Our local newspaper, the Anacortes American, has picked up several awards, including a half-dozen first place awards, in the 2010 Washington Better Newspaper Contest.

The city and the Police Services Guild have reached a tentative agreement, according to a source in a position to know. The City Council was set to take up the agreement on Monday night, but without a ratification vote approving it, apparently delayed action.

Mayor Dean Maxwell is proposing a $39.3 million city budget for the coming year, a 3.6 percent increase from the current budget. He told the Council Monday night,"The budget reflects city departments' continued efforts to be prudent in all of our discretionary spending."