Morning Press: Gas leak downtown; Sifton Market murder trial; Waterfront water feature issues

Things warmed up at the end of the week but what does the weekend hold? Check our local weather coverage.

In case you missed them, here are some of the top stories from the week:

Vancouver gas leak prompts downtown evacuations

A section of downtown Vancouver and several buildings were evacuated for more than two hours Thursday following a gas-meter rupture at a construction site at Washington and Sixth streets.

Vancouver-based Holland Partner Group, which is building the south apartment tower at the Vancouvercenter complex, said a forklift operator damaged the regulator for an on-site natural gas meter at about 8:15 a.m.

Learn more about how the leak happened.

Trial begins for suspect in Sifton Market homicide, arson

A defense attorney for a Vancouver man accused of killing a clerk at Sifton Market and setting fire to the building in January 2017 argues that a drug dealer called “Zip” is responsible for the crime.

Defense attorney John Terry told jurors Tuesday that the slaying was not carried out by Mitchell Heng — seen in store surveillance footage at the time of the Jan. 15 killing — but rather the unseen methamphetamine dealer.

White deposits mar water feature at The Waterfront Vancouver

The Columbia River water feature opened one month ago as a handsome addition to The Waterfront Vancouver.

The water feature, a mix of public art, geographical depiction and play area, was an instant hit with children looking for a cool spot to frolic on summer days.

Despite the water feature’s popularity, blemishes started showing on the 12-foot tall, 16-foot wide granite and bronze monolith shortly after it opened on Aug. 9. Water splashing onto the back side of the stone structure at the feature’s east end, a structure called Headwaters, has left unsightly white deposits on a small portion of the polished black granite.

Find out more on what may be done to solve the problem.

Ex-Evergreen schools staffer investigated in fraudulent payments

A former communications staffer at Evergreen Public Schools is being investigated in connection with nearly $60,000 in fraudulent payments the district paid to a company registered under his name.

The state Auditor’s Office released a report Thursday detailing an alleged scheme in which Kris Fay, a former communications manager at the school district, approved payments for web hosting services the district did not receive. Fay provided a false name on the contract between the district and his company, NWGA Web Hosting, and collected $58,547 in payments between April 2017 and July 2018.

Read more about the investigation into Fay.