ISLAND COUNTY: A Message from Commissioner Bacon [Aug. 22, 2025]

Island County Commissioner Melanie Bacon (D-Langley) sent the following newsletter on Fri., Aug. 22, 2025.

Thank you for reading my newsletter for the 34^th week of 2025. There will be only limited Board activity next week (a regular session with just 1 agenda item, and the COG and IRTPO on Wednesday), so I do not plan to write a newsletter next Friday. I will be available to meet with citizens next Monday the 25^th but not the following Monday, Sept 1.

County offices will be closed on Labor Day, Monday September 1.

• Regular Session.  The agenda and recording for the Tuesday August 19^th Regular Session of the Board of Island County Commissioners is here.
  • Super-short 4-minute meeting; no public comments, no regular agenda items, no public hearings.
  • The next regular session will occur at 10 am on Tuesday, August 26^th, The agenda for that meeting is here. On that agenda: Long Range Planning will bring a resolution to amend the Freeland Zoning Code.
• Tentative Upcoming Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) Public Hearings (held during Tuesday board meetings, beginning at 10 am):
  • September 9:       Transportation Improvement Plan
• Work Session. The agenda for the Wednesday, August 20^th work session is here; the recording is here.
  • We heard presentations on applications for Rural County Economic Development (RCED) grants, Port of Coupeville for $112,500, and Opportunity Council in partnership with Shelter Resources, Inc. for $2,000,000. The Board was in support of both applications. The Port of Coupeville’s presentation begins at mark 1:17:51 with application and presentation beginning on page 4 of the agenda; Opportunity Council’s presentation begins at mark 1:31:04 in the recording with application and presentation available beginning on page 20 of the agenda. For those of you wondering what the County is doing for affordable housing, the Opportunity Council application is one of several examples: a couple of years ago we paid $2.2 million (using ARPA funds) for the land on which they and their partner will build 96 rental units serving people with income below 80% of average median income (AMI) for our County, about half of them for people making less than 50% AMI. Now they are requesting $2 Million in RCED funds to help with construction.
  • Public Health brought the long-awaited Wastewater Proviso Report. The summary begins on page 42; the Report itself begins on page 49 of the agenda, mark 2:00:30 in the recording. We’re now moving full-steam on the next steps, identifying a pilot project and reaching out to our legislators for code changes.
  • We reviewed the revised 2026-2031 proposed Capital Improvement Plan, beginning on page 148 of the agenda, mark 2:40:41 in the recording.
  • The next work session will be held Wednesday, September 3^rd. The agenda for that meeting will be available next Friday here; contact my office if you’d like an invitation to the Zoom meeting.
• We held two 2026 Budget meetings this week. We met with the County Clerk and Public Works on Wednesday August 20^th, conversation available at the beginning of our Wednesday recording; and with District Court on Thursday August 21^st, starting 53 seconds into the recording here.  There are no budget meetings scheduled for next week.
  • We discussed a couple of important scheduling items during Thursday’s meeting. Planning told us that the Comprehensive Plan will probably not be ready to be adopted until early next year, probably February. And because we’re still chasing after revenue for 2026, we won’t be ready to adopt the Budget until our first meeting in December.
• Next Wednesday the Council of Governments (COG) and Island Regional Transportation Planning Organization (IRTPO) will meet. The COG will meet at 9; the IRTPO at 10. Both meetings share the same zoom link; contact my office if you’d like an invitation.
  • COG. On that agenda: a presentation by Eric ffitch, Executive Director of Washington Public Ports Association; and a discussion of our 2026 legislative priorities.
  • IRTPO. On that agenda: a discussion and possible action around the WSDOT Ferries fee increase. The IRTPO will take public comment at the beginning of the meeting.
• Planning Commission and the Comprehensive Plan Update: This is a link to the Planning Commission page. You can find details on their meetings and minutes, including Zoom info, here. The agendas are published at least a week in advance. The Planning Commission usually meets at 6 pm on the first and third Wednesday of each month in the Commissioners Hearing Room in Coupeville.
• WhidbeyHealth and the Rural Health Transformation Program. Recent federal legislation included a federal $50 billion Rural Health Transformation Program (RHTP) to improve rural health care across the country. The State of Washington is applying to receive some of this funding. To receive funding, states must submit a Rural Health Transformation Plan that addresses specific, required components. States must also commit to using RHTP funds for three or more activities.
  • From our local perspective, the three activities Washington’s RHTP application should focus on are funds to stabilize the workforce, modernize infrastructure, and protect financial viability in Washington’s rural communities. Our rural hospital, WhidbeyHealth, is the only hospital serving Whidbey Island’s approximately 70,000 residents, providing essential care in a geographically isolated community where accessing off-island services requires ferry travel or long commutes. WhidbeyHealth delivers a broad spectrum of critical programs that directly improve disease outcomes and sustain rural community health, including primary care and rural health clinics, behavioral health and substance use disorder treatment, maternal and child health services, oncology care, and rehabilitation care.
  • Until August 29^th, the state’s Health Care Authority is accepting public input on what should be included in their Rural Health Transformation Program application. For more information or to provide comment, go here.
• The Clinton Community Council will meet at 6 pm on Monday, August 25^th, at the Clinton Community Hall. The guest speaker will be Brian Heinrich, Local Government Affairs & Public Policy Manager for Puget Sound Energy. PSE will present an overview of the utility, including state policy that guides investments in clean energy. The presentation will also include programs and initiatives the utility is offering as well as an update on storm preparedness for both winter and wildfires. For the zoom link, contact clintoncommunitycouncilwi@mail.com.
• On Monday, August 25^th at 3 pm I will meet with interested citizens at the WiFire Community Space in Freeland, and at 5 pm I will meet with citizens at the Clinton Community Hall. I won’t be available on Monday, September 1.

Melanie 

I will turn 70 on Monday. I may celebrate at the Langley Street Dance tomorrow night.

“I intend to live forever. So far, so good.”

~ Steven Wright