We are super lucky in Benton City to have a group of people who care enough to make sure the town…read morehas a nice, proper library. A number of years ago a man passed away and left money and land for a new library. We now have a beautiful library that overlooks the Yakima River. The library has a good selection of books, magazines, and movies. You can request items from other branches and they usually come in a few days. The staff members are super nice and helpful. They have several computers and a meeting room that can be reserved. The restrooms are the cleanest in Benton City. The only downside is that this branch is part of the Mid Columbia system. In the past few years Mid Columbia has instilled a ridiculous fee system. The hours are a bit wacky as well. I guess you take the good with the bad.

Excellent selection for a smaller size library. The staff are always very courteous. Books are…read morevery clean and shelves are well-kept. I love the online browsing that allows items to be requested from any branch and transferred to my branch for pickup in a very timely manner. My family loves to read and I'm thankful for a friendly library to visit and explore often.

It looks like you are in a space without offices or a traditional entry. You will need to enter…read morethru a revolving gate entry, and a security guard will meet you there. If you are 18 or over, please have your government issued photo ID available to enter the visitor's center. The visitor center is awesome! Lots of literature and pictures documenting the lock and dam. Be sure to checkout the fish ladders when entering. This experience starts the curiosity to want more information. The greeter is happy to see people and ready to share information. The facility is clean and ready for guests. This establishment has a lot of history and information to share, and we are excited to have this place available for future resourcing. If you want to learn more about Hydro-power and renewable resources, this is your place! No fees required to enter.

You know, it's not bad, especially for a free exhibit. I would say that the view of the dam from…read morethe outside is more impressive than anything on the inside, but it's still work taking a look. The interior has a view of the fish ladder where you can look at fish through the window and also see the current fish counts (yes, they count every single one, separated by species!). It also has a bunch of historical and informational stuff. However, the strangest thing about the dam is that the entire exterior is controlled by these rather large orb web spiders. No cameras and phones are allowed in the facility, so there's no way to ever get any proof, but I theorize that the humans that work there are actually automatons controlled by these overlords. They're designed to be very friendly and actually rather convincing at times, but I'm pretty sure I know what's gong on here. One visit is plenty for me, but I do think that everyone should see it once -- just don't offend the spiders because there's no doubt that they're the ones that head this operation.

Functional, Not Glamorous. Grunt, Not A Captain. Workhorse, Not A Wheeler & Dealer…read more That's how I'd describe the I-82 Bridge. It constantly has two look downriver at its sexier counterparts: Blue Bridge & the famed Cable Bridge (http://www.yelp.com/bi...). It's a hard life. But of our three big bridges here, I'd say this one is the biggest and gets the most traffic. I think the problem with this bridge is the size. It crosses the mighty Columbia and you almost wouldn't know it when crossing this bridge. I guess that's it's downfall. Oh well, it just get's the job done, and for that it can be a Captain in it's own book.

One of the best drives to and from work, when the sun rises or sets! I've been super impressed…read morewith the view of Badger Mountain and the view west of Pasco, while the sun is setting. Its calming and invigorating at the same time. Makes me want to open the sun roof, put the cruise control on, stand in my seat with one foot on the wheel to drive, and take a couple pictures of the awesomeness!!!

Wow, this tour is AMAZING. It starts with a 15 minute video at the visitor center which explains…read morethe background of the geopolitical climate that prompted the construction of the reactor. It is the first large-scale nuclear reactor ever built, taking uranium and converting it into plutonium-239 (used in the Trinity test in New Mexico and the Fat Man bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan). Then there is a 45 minute bus ride to the B reactor itself (try to avail yourself of the restrooms at the visitor center, but there's a tour bus bathroom and port-a-potties at the reactor itself). The bus ride flew by as the docent talked about the area and his own experience as an engineer. Very engrossing. As you enter, there's another short presentation by a docent explaining the physics behind the reactor, and then you're set loose. There are also small docent-led presentations at specified times too if you want to get more into the nitty-gritty of the design and operation of the reactor. I wish I had more time at the reactor, maybe 15 more minutes, since there was so much to see and read. The exhibits were so well done!

Definitely worth a visit, though most of the buildings that once were on the site at the height of…read moreHanford's operations are no longer there. Everything went on schedule as described. The bus is a comfy coach and the 45 minute ride to the actual Reactor B is enlivened by the tour guide's info about the history and geology of the area, as well as providing background on the construction and challenges of putting together the entire site so quickly. Free bottled water is provided at the site, and there's a good mix of short talks by guides (about 15 minutes or so each) and time to walk around, read info on exhibits, and take photos. Visitor Center is clean, with chairs inside for waiting as well as benches outside. Because we'd driven almost 3 hours to the site, we took advantage of a shady bench to have our lunch. The timing of the 11:45am tour means you'll want to get something to eat before setting off, because you won't return to the Visitor Center for about 4 hours (and there is no food to purchase at the Center, and no food allowed inside the Reactor B building). There is, however, a place to eat next door to the Visitor Center (The Dive) where I can at least confirm that the beer and onion rings are excellent. We got lucky and had a relatively cool (80 degrees) day. Bathrooms at the actual park site (the reactor) are limited to portable toilets, but again, all the info presented from registration to the actual tour were clear, informative, and well done.

So had to do a minor stint in the Justice center…read more The guards were amazing and professional and treated me like a person and not a animal. They were very down to earth and we're accommodating in many ways. The nurses were equally as helpful and assisted in individual needs. The judge sucked seemed like he had a hell of a day but hey Justice isn't always pleasant. The food sucked ass but they did serve 3 meals a day and it was hot. I was in a good pod that allowed for TV and low risk inmates. We were all just doing our time and paying our debts to the system Showers were hot Bed mattress stunk All in all I don't condone breaking the law because it's a road that never ends. If you end up in Benton county corrections you won't have the hardest time serving out your time.

They finally got me. I was charged for Yelping with abandon in Benton County. I pleaded: GUILTY…read more Seriously, I made my trip to the Justice Center for my first Jury Duty experience. I thought of pulling a Lez Lemon, and showing up in a Han Solo outfit, but I was curiously intrigued with learning about the whole experience. They have been having some issues with their online & call-in system, but I had no issues with determining whether I was needed. The staff at the Center were pretty cool. Some of the Jury candidates were hella funny and memorable. Sadly, I didn't make it for Jury selection--my number was just too high. It was a cool experience nonetheless.

It's not comparable to neighborhoods like the French Quarter (New Orleans), Beacon Hill (Boston),…read moreor the Jersey Shore, but who woulda thunk MY neighborhood here in Richland, WA was a "Historic District". But my neighborhood of Alphabet Houses surely has a history tied to this country, and it is kind of cool to put your residence in a historical context. Now, what drove me to write this Yelp was my noticing of historic signs popping up on Van Giesen during my drives to work in the morn. One by one, I started to see little black signs magically appear on the corners of various streets: McPherson Ave, Marshall Ave, Warren Ct, Mahan Ave, etc. Now these signs are due to the effort of a local group honoring veterans, so isn't totally Historic District-related, but it certainly helps for telling the stories history. As for the Alphabet housing. During the war effort of World War II, the small farming of town transformed from a small farming town to a metropolis of secrecy (fuel for the first atomic bombs were built on the Hanford Site). Richland Population: 1943: 500 1945: 25,000 (!!) The huge change in population needed to be handled quickly. Yes, many soldiers were housed in tents and temporary barracks, but scientists, technicians, and management (along with their families), needed honest to goodness homes. An architect from Spokane was given 90 days to design homes and neighborhoods for the huge influx of people: enter the alphabet houses (http://www.yelp.com/biz_photos/z_1wFu2h3fGTsjBo6jfv2A?select=TfltN_vfiTmYtBImYep2tg). Each home design was assigned a letter (hence the term "alphabet houses"). The houses range from tiny 1-bedroom houses to huge two-story duplexes. (for the record, I live in a 2-story 3bedroom, home known affectionately as an F-House). It's over a half century later, and many of these houses are still around and generally in their original state. Some areas of the district are quaint and DO look historical, but other neighborhoods do look a wee bit ghetto (like my 'hood!). This is home, and it's nice to know the history behind the area. If you ever get the chance, you should drop by the CREHST Museum (http://www.yelp.com/biz/crehst-museum-richland). There's a cool exhibit about the Alphabet Houses.

The alphabet housing "district" in Richland is interesting to say the least - the new small metal…read moresigns giving some history about the street names are neat, but unless you go on a walking tour of the area I can't see how you would read them. This part of town is probably the least expensive part of northern Richland, the houses have been remodeled and modified, a least most of them have, but the area still retains its unique vibe.

So I don't live here now, but I did graduate from PHS many moons ago and I vacation here…read moretraditionally every summer as my family still lives in this pretty little gem of a town. I currently work for City government and I know how stressful dealing with the public can be. This summer noticed a few fire hydrants in town that were painted with paw prints on them. I stopped to photograph one for a firefighter who collects hydrant photos and noticed they had ID numbers hand written on them. I thought how fun would it be to find the firefighter's badge number on a hydrant and photograph that for him. I began driving around looking for it which quickly became too time consuming. I stopped into City Hall with my strange request and story, attempting to locate hydrant #158. The ladies at the front were so very friendly dealing with me, and quickly difused an irate water citizen as well. They were unable to locate the hydrant and called a man named Brian in their public works division who they put on the phone with me. My story peaked his interest, he took my cell number down, and sure enough two days later after fit time in his day to day duties, he called me back. He'd discovered the original hydrant #158 was on Wamba Road, and they'd since been renumbering them with a metal tag, and that particular hydrant had been moved directly across the street from Les Schwab on the main drag into town. He wasn't sure if it still had the original stenciled ID on it, but said to call him back if not as he wasn't afraid to use his Sharpie! :) I commend you Prosser officials for having such quality personnel who go above and beyond for your tourists! Kudos...