ISLAND COUNTY: 2024 June Update from Commissioner St. Clair

Island County Commissioner Janet St. Clair (D-Camano Island) sent the following newsletter on Fri., June 21, 2024.

As spring turns to summer and I hope the vagaries of Washington weather settle into sunshine, I want to share a few updates and important meetings with you.

Economic Development and Infrastructure:

Please save the date for my next virtual Town Hall on Wednesday, July 24 at 4-5:30 pm.  We will be receiving a couple of presentations on water resources in Island County and the importance of water quality and availability in our comprehensive plan update.

I was pleased to see the completion of the Baker Way emergency repairs on Camano Island.  I want to thank Public Works, our road shop, the residents of Baker Way and our contractor for their work to make this repair as timely as possible.  An extra shout out to Lauren Burch, our Island County lead on this project who worked closely with contractors and constituents.

Island County and Ziply Fiber have teamed up to connect homes and businesses to fiber-optic infrastructure on Camano Island. The Island County-Ziply agreement will provide fiber-to-the-premise construction to more than 100 homes and businesses on the north end of Camano Island. This area of Island County was one of five priority areas deemed “most unserved” through our Island County Broadband Study and FCC data.  Our Island County Broadband Action Team will continue to prepare for expansion to other under and unserved areas in Island County as we complete our mapping and planning efforts to apply for project areas through NTIA funding with the State Broadband Office in order to implement “Internet for All in Washington”.

The Board of Island County Commissioners approved three recommended projects for LTAC (Lodging Tax Advisory Committee) funding for Independence Day celebrations featuring fireworks in Freeland on July 3^rd, and drone light shows in Langley and Oak Harbor on July 4^th.  These investments will delight residents and visitors alike, helping encourage overnight stays and tourist spending in our communities.  LTAC funds a variety of events across the county from Glass Quest on Camano to Musselfest in Coupeville, as well as our Chambers of Commerce and local museums.

Island County Marine Resources Committee and Local Integrating Organization were pleased to host the Leadership Council of Puget Sound Partnership in Oak Harbor to talk about critical issues, priorities and our work on shoreline restoration at Cornet Bay and Crescent Harbor.  Both projects are seeing significant results in salmonids including Chinook babies all the way up Crescent Harbor Creek.

Island County is proud to be included on the USDA project list submitted by Representative Larsen for $1M for Island County’s Recycling and Reuse Station. It was included in the list of projects for the FY25 House Appropriations bill. Senator Cantwell is also submitting our project for $2.8 million. I want to thank our federal delegation for their support.  I met with them when I was in D.C. in February and appreciate that they have taken serious consideration for Island County’s request.

Important upcoming events:

Speaking of the importance of tourism and resources for residents, I wanted to highlight an important upcoming meeting with Washington State Parks. The State Parks and Recreation Commission will be holding a public meeting on Monday, July 15 at 6pm at Stanwood High School. This meeting is to share information with the community on what we’ve learned about the infrastructure failures at Cama Beach State Park. Additionally, staff will be sharing a recommendation based on the failure of the seawall and septic system, sea-level rise projections, and other infrastructure challenges, the cabins cannot be reopened where they currently sit. The Commission is inviting the public to comment on the staff recommendation and the future of the park in-person, virtually, or in writing at this meeting. You can access more information and submit input here.  You can also get information on the challenges at Deception Pass here.

Finally, I want to make sure any interested parties have access to how to stay involved in critical Island County planning issues.  We continue to work through our 20-year Comprehensive Planning process.  We will soon take up the policy considerations for Island County Parks.  You can sign up to get notifications and provide input via our website: Comprehensive Plan | Island County, WA (islandcountywa.gov)

The Board is also taking input and preparing to finalize our capital improvement and transportation plans.  You can find that information at our Public Works website:

• Project Planning Documents 
• Map of the Road, Paths, and Drainage Projects 

If you have any questions or wish to send comments, please email me at j.stclair@islandcountywa.gov or the full board at CommentBOCC@islandcountywa.gov.

Thank you for your engagement in the issues that matter to you!

Sincerely,

Janet

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