ISLAND COUNTY: A Message from Commissioner Bacon (MELANIE BACON/Jul. 7, 2023)

Island County Commissioner Melanie Bacon (D-Langley) sent the following newsletter on Fri., Jul. 7, 2023.

Thank you for reading my newsletter for the 27^th week of 2023.

• There was no Regular Session this week due to the holiday. The agenda for the July 11^th regular session can be found here. On the agenda: the Freeland Hall management agreement with the Holmes Harbor Activity Club.

• Work Session. The agenda for the Wednesday, July 5^th work session can be found here; the audio is here. If you want to fast forward to the conversations I note below you will need to download the audio instead of just streaming it, which you can do by clicking on the three dots at the right end of the streaming dashboard and clicking “download”. Depending on your internet access, this download may take a while.
  • The first item on the agenda, a discussion on Marshall Drainage Basin & Surface Water Utility Assessments, was postponed for a future meeting.
  • We talked about the Thunder Run Drill happening this week at our local airports. Thunder Run is a dress rehearsal for earthquake disaster relief. Mark 0:20:11 in the audio.
  • County DNR brought a discussion on salmon recovery funding, mark 1:07:38 in the audio. The salmon recovery map referenced in the discussion can be found here.
  • We began reviewing the Introduction section of the 2016 Comprehensive Plan, to identify changes we will want for the 2025 update. Mark 1:40:28 in the audio.
  • The agenda for next week’s work session is here. Some of the items on that work session agenda: Homeless Housing Grant Fund requests; broadband grant opportunities; discussion about holding a meeting with local builders about permits; 2023 work plan updates

• Representative Rick Larsen invited me to attend an event at the Mukilteo Ferry Terminal yesterday. Governor Inslee, Senator Murray, Representative Larsen, and US Transportation Secretary Buttigieg were there to discuss the importance of investing in the ferry system and ferry electrification, highlighting the upcoming electrification of the Clinton terminal. Also there to represent local interests were Representative Dave Paul, Port of South Whidbey Commissioner Curt Gordon, and me. As you can imagine, I was very happy to see so much attention paid to our ferry needs. Governor Inslee told me that what we particularly need are more boats and more staff—and it was a real pleasure to hear him say those words to me when it’s usually us saying that to them.
• CHANGE TO TOMORROW‘S THUNDER RUN DRILL: There will be no flights to AJ Eisenberg tomorrow because now BC AERO out of British Columbia will not be participating. As such, the amount of deliveries will be considerable lower than originally planned, and to get the most out of the exercise Emergency Management will be focusing their attention and directing remaining flights to the Langley Airpark as well as a single flight to Camano Island.
• DATE CHANGES SINCE I POSTED LAST WEEK, Speed Study Meetings.
  • In 2022 Island County began reviewing the existing posted speed limits county-wide to provide an engineer’s recommended speed limit, based on data analysis and land use within the areas of review. Historically, data points (including the 85% and 50% percentile), Average Daily Traffic (ADT), collision history and engineering judgement have provided the recommendation for a posted speed limit. The current project also considers development density and pedestrian and bicycle use. Now the County is seeking public input into the draft. Four area-specific meeting locations and times for you to review the print-outs of the findings and discuss them with staff are scheduled:
  • North Whidbey (Commissioner St Clair district) –City of Oak Harbor Library July 26th 4:30 PM -5:30 PM
  • North Whidbey (Commissioner Johnson district) –City of Oak Harbor Library Sept 27^th (tentative) 4:30 PM -5:30 PM
  • Central Whidbey –Coupeville Rec Hall September 20^th, 4:30 PM – 5:30 PM
  • South Whidbey –Trinity Lutheran Church August 23rd. 4:30 PM – 5:30 PM
  • Camano Island –the Multi-Purpose Room located next to the Camano Annex building Sept 12th 4:30 PM – 5:30 PM
• Due to travel for a family celebration, Monday Tea with Melanie will not be held again until Monday, July 24.

Melanie

“Roll out those lazy, hazy, crazy days of summer.”

~ recorded by Nat King Cole