News briefs

Rental agency changes hands

Winterbrook Realty, Inc., announced recently that it has acquired Vashon Property Management from Ken and Donna Zaglin of John L. Scott Realty.

“This is an important opportunity for us to grow our services and presence here on Vashon,” Jeff Lewis, owner of Winterbrook Realty, said.

Vashon Property Management markets owners’ Vashon property, locates tenants on behalf of the owners, negotiates and executes leases, collects rents and provides monthly reports to the owners and is the tenant contact for problem resolution at the properties, according to Lewis.

To facilitate the increase in staffing and some expected additional growth, Lewis is in the process of moving the downtown office of Winterbrook next door to a larger space.

“Vashon Property Management has an excellent reputation for providing high-quality service to its clients,” Lewis said. “It’s an outstanding foundation from which to build and extend our professional real estate services on Vashon. We will operate Vashon Property Management from the same premise we operate Winterbrook Realty: If we set our service standards very high and then do everything within our power to meet those standards, our clients will reward us for our efforts on their behalf.”

The new combined offices of Winterbrook Realty and Vashon Property Management will be open on May 1. For more information, call Winterbrook at 463-5333.

Colonoscopies for those 50 and up

Vashon Natural Medicine is participating with the Washington Colon Health Program to offer free colonoscopies to men and women ages 50 and older who have low and moderate incomes and are uninsured or underinsured, according to Dr. Kelly Wright, who owns the naturopathic health clinic.

To be eligible, individuals must have an income of 250 percent or less of the federal poverty level — $26,000 a year for an individual or $53,000 for a family of four, for example. The clinic refers patients needing the procedure to participating gastroenterologists in Seattle.

Routine screening colonoscopies are generally recommended for people 50 and older.

Vashon Natural Medicine also participates in the Washington Breast and Cervical Health Program and offers free annual exams and pap smears to qualifying women.

“I am very happy to be able to provide those two services to people, especially during these difficult times, said Wright.

For more information about the programs, call the clinic at 463-4778.

Vashon Wine Shop closes doors

Stephen McClure, the owner of the Vashon Wine Shop north of town, announced Monday that he has closed the business.

He opened the shop in the Old Fuller Store in the winter of 2005 and moved to the store’s present location in the summer of 2006.

The store provided a social outlet for people, McClure said, and he enjoyed playing host.

“It was a gathering place,” he added, “That’s something I will miss the most.”

His business on the Island has always been “marginal, a boot strap existence,” he said, but the economy of the last six months is responsible for his decision to close.

“I felt it instantly,” he said about the economic downturn last fall.

McClure hopes to stay on the Island, he said, but as yet, he is uncertain what his future will hold. He also said he has no regrets about the years in his business.

“I feel good about all the things that it was,” he said.