ISLAND COUNTY: A Message from Commissioner Bacon [Feb. 13, 2026]

Island County Commissioner Melanie Bacon (D-Langley) sent the following newsletter on Fri., Feb. 13, 2025.

Happy Valentine’s Day! Thank you for reading my newsletter for the 7^th week of 2026.

Most County offices will be closed Monday, February 16 for Presidents’ Day.

I will be attending a County Officials conference in Washington, DC at the end of next week so may not be publishing this newsletter next Friday, February 20. I will try to get it done before I leave but no promises, and since there is almost nothing of general interest on our three agendas next week anyway I don’t think you’ll miss anything if I don’t publish (see Regular, Work Session, and Board of Health agendas for next week, below).

• Regular Session, Tuesday February 10.  This is the agenda and recording for Tuesday’s meeting.
  • This was a short meeting with no regular agenda items or public hearings. We welcomed employees who started with the County recently; congratulated Michelle McKee of Public Health on her 25-year anniversary with the County; and recognized the Commissioner’s own Clerk of the Board, Jennifer Roll, who recently completed her certification as a Master Municipal Clerk (MMC).
  • There was no public comment.
  • The next Regular Session of the Board of Island County Commissioners will be held on Tuesday, February 17, 2026. The agenda for that meeting is available here. For the second week running there are no regular agenda items or public hearings scheduled for the meeting. This always makes the Commissioners nervous because it means we’ll have bigger agendas with more items packed in later in the year. Reminder to Senior Staff and Elected Officials reading this: we prefer to have our business items evenly spaced throughout the year so we can give each item the attention it deserves.
  • The Tuesday February 24 Board Meeting has been canceled due to lack of quorum.

• Tentative Upcoming Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) Public Hearings (held during board meetings, beginning at 10 am, unless otherwise noted):
  • Tuesday March 10:    Mabana Shores Franchise
  • Tuesday March 10:    Mutiny Sands Franchise
  • Tuesday March 10:    Jordan Acres Franchise
  • Tuesday March 10:    Passage Way Franchise
  • Tuesday March 17:    Driftwood Shores Franchise
  • Tuesday March 17:    Ledgewood Beach Franchise
  • Tuesday March 17:    Camano Vista Franchise
  • Thursday March 19 at 1 pm:   Joint public hearing with the Oak Harbor City Council regarding annexation into the UGA
  • Tuesday May 12:    Curbside Recycling
• Work Session, Wednesday February 11^th work session. Revised agenda; Recording.
• • The Treasurer brought us his annual request to write off uncollectable personal property taxes. Most of these are minimal amounts owed by businesses that no longer exist, and the Board approved moving those forward to the consent agenda; but one tax delinquent is a major corporation who owes Island County over $1000 but “no longer has assets in this taxing district”. Since this is a corporation that continues to bill residents (including Island County itself) for services in our County, the Board opted to not write off that bill and instead will pursue collecting the outstanding money owed. Mark 0:20:03 in the recording.
  • The Board will schedule a public hearing on amending our county code to increase recycling and solid waste management levels of service by adding residential curbside collection of recyclable materials to current solid waste curbside collection services. This public hearing is tentatively scheduled for May 12. Mark 0:30:10 in the recording.
  • We discussed the 2026 Rural County Economic Development (RCED) funds cycle. There is a new online application. 2026 RCED applications will be taken from March 2 – March 31. Documents associated with this discussion begin on page 33 of the agenda; the discussion begins at mark 0:48:19 in the recording.
  • At 1 pm the Board met to approve an add-on that should have been included in our Tuesday consent agenda but was missed: scheduling a joint public hearing with the City of Oak Harbor on March 19 on an interlocal agreement between City and County for the purposes of annexation. The document can be found here; the scheduling discussion can be heard at mark 1:46:07 in the recording. Public Comment opportunity was given but none was received.
  • The Board met in joint session with the Planning Commission, mark 1:48:35 in the recording. We intended to discuss two items: rural clusters and short-term rentals; we spent all of our allotted time on rural clusters and will return in a future joint meeting to discuss short-term rentals. Presentation begins on page 53 in the revised agenda.
  • The next Work Session of the Board of Island County Commissioners will be held on Wednesday, February 17. This is the agenda. On that agenda: three Public Health contracts/subcontracts; a discussion to use the Island County Public Health fund balance to bridge gaps in the Island County Noxious Weeds Control program; a donation of a small county parcel along SR20 to WSDOT to be used as shoulder-widening right-of-way; the annual Pavement Preservation Program; and a contract to update the County’s Hazard Mitigation Program.

• The Board of Health will meet next Tuesday afternoon, February 17^th, at 1 pm. Agenda. On that agenda: Foundational Public Health Services Resolution; a review of the final ranked policy docket list; a review and discussion of the 2025 Public Health Report; and a discussion and analysis of Health in All Policies (HiAp) for the 5 Year Homeless Housing Plan.
• 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. The February 18^th meeting of the Planning Commission has been canceled; the Planning Commission will return on March 4.
• A County staff member asked me to pass along this training opportunity, intended to develop more Fiber Optic Technicians (an important and quickly growing field); the cost of the training will be covered by Northwest OpenAccess Network (NoaNet) in collaboration with the Fiber Broadband Association; they’ll even cover the cost of lunch, hotel, and travel for the in-person part of the training. For more information on the program and curriculum, see this link.
• I will not be available to meet with citizens on February 16^th (Presidents’ Day) or February 23^rd (I will be in Washington, DC at the National Association of Counties conference, where I will visit with our congressional delegation about Island County issues). I will next meet with interested citizens on March 2^nd at 3 pm at the WiFire Community space in Freeland, to talk about whatever issues you’re interested in discussing.

Melanie

“It’s so great to find that one special person you want to annoy for the rest of your life.”

~ Rita Rudner