ISLAND COUNTY: A Message from Commissioner Bacon [July 19, 2024]

Island County Commissioner Melanie Bacon (D-Langley) sent the following newsletter on Fri., July 19, 2024.

Thank you for reading my newsletter for the 30^th week of 2024.

I am feeling much better this week, except for a persistent headache that Tylenol is keeping pretty much in check. And my normally-Alto voice is now a Bass.

• 50^th anniversary commemoration of the Vietnam War. If you are a US veteran of any branch of the military who was on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces at any time during the period of November 1, 1955, to May 15, 1975, regardless of location, your country and your county want to recognize your service and provide you with the Vietnam Veteran lapel pin. There are three opportunities for this over the next 3 weeks.
  • Saturday, July 28, Whidbey Island Fair: The Whidbey Veterans Resource Center will be available at the Fair to present lapel pins to these veterans.
  • Friday, August 2, Camano Library, 11 am – 2 pm: Rep. Clyde Shavers and I will be in attendance to hand out lapel pins to veterans.
  • Thursday, August 8, 2 – 3 pm, Coupeville High School auditorium: Various dignitaries will hand out lapel pins at a commemoration event.

• Regular Session.  The agenda and video recording for the Tuesday July 16^th Regular Session of the Board of Island County Commissioners is here.
  • There was no public comment offered during the regular public comment period.
  • We pulled item 6 from the Consent Agenda, a Memorandum of Understanding with Washington State University Extension, to discuss it further at a future work session.
  • We held two public hearings on Broadband franchises—a new franchise with the Port of Coupeville for a broadband project that will bring service to over 1000 people in the Central Whidbey area, and a franchise renewal with WAVE. Both franchises were approved.
  • The agenda for the July 23^rd regular meeting is here. On that agenda: the public hearing shown below.
• Upcoming BOCC Public Hearings (held during Tuesday board meetings, beginning at 10 am):
  • July 23:  Crescent Acres Franchise
  • August 20 (pending BOCC approval of date): Taft Franchise
  • August 20 (pending BOCC approval of date): Prim & Dirske Franchise
  • August 27 (pending BOCC approval of date): Marshall Drainage District
  • Sept 10 (pending BOCC approval of date): Transportation Improvement Program (TIP)
  • Sept 17 (pending BOCC approval of date):  Budget Amendment
  • Sept 17 (pending BOCC approval of date):  Glenwood Beach water franchise
  • Sept 24 (pending BOCC approval of date):  Ziply
  • NOTE: not public hearings (the public hearings were already held) but people can comment during our regular public comment time: the SMP is tentatively planned for a vote on August 13, and the request to open Rowe Road on Camano is tentatively planned for a vote on September 3.
• The Board of Health met on Tuesday July 16^th. The agenda is here; the recording is here.
• Work Session. The agenda for the July 17^th is here; the recording is here.
  • The first item on the agenda was a discussion of the proposed changes to the application for Rural County Economic Development (RCED) grant funds. There will be a presentation with possible adoption of the revised application at a future Board meeting, and a presentation of the changes to the Council of Governments probably at their September meeting.
  • During the Commissioners’ discussion about 2025 Legislative Priorities, we discussed the Bridge to Boat Trail—a topic we also returned to during our Public Works TIP discussion. Mark 0:47:40 in the recording.
  • The Public Works Transportation Improvement Plan (TIP) presentation was quite interesting. Mark 2:00:23 in the recording. The spreadsheets begin on page 24 of the agenda; the presentation begins on page 33.
  • The next work session for the Board of Island County Commissioners will be held on August 7. The agenda for that meeting will be posted by Friday, August 2^nd here.
• Island Transit. The Board of Directors for Island Transit held a special session today to discuss our vision for the agency and expectations for our next Executive Director.
• The County Finance Committee, consisting of the Board Chair, Auditor, and Treasurer, pursuant to RCW 36.48.070, reviews and makes decisions regarding the County’s investment policy and debt policy. They will meet on Tuesday, July 23, at 11 am in the Commissioners’ Board Room. This meeting is open to the public, and an opportunity for comment will be provided.
• The July meetings of the Council of Governments (COG) and Island Regional Transportation Planning Organization (IRTPO) have been cancelled.
• The Commissioners are taking applications for new members of the Citizens Advisory Board (CAB) and Ebey’s Trust Board. If you’re interested, contact Jennifer Roll, j.roll@islandcountywa.gov, for more information.
• 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 Planning Commission meets at 6 pm on the 1^st and 3^rd Wednesday of each month; the agendas are published at least a week in advance.

Clinton Sub Area Plan Outreach

• July 24, 4:30-6 pm, Clinton Sub Area Plan Workshop at the Clinton Community Hall – this will be the first workshop we’re holding to do some visioning with the community to inform the plan

Summer Festivals

• July 25 & 26, all day, Whidbey Island Fair – we are tabling with Health to share comp plan information
• July 13 & 14, all day, Hydro’s for Hero’s – we are tabling with Oak Harbor staff to share comp plan information
• Sept. 7, time TBD, NASWI Base Open House
• Eligible organizations still have until 4:30 on July 31 to complete their Lodging Tax Facilities Grant Program (LTAC) applications for 2025 event funding. We have a great new online fillable application.
• South Whidbey Fire/EMS invites the community to learn more about the fire levy lid lift that will be on the August 6, 2024, primary election ballot. The lid lift would fund additional firefighters, staff a third station in the southeast part of the district to reduce response times district wide, replace aging fire engines, and improve firefighter training programs. Residents are encouraged to attend one of two public meetings hosted by Fire Chief Nick Walsh to ask questions and learn more:
  • Saturday, July 20, at 9 a.m., at Station 32 (6435 Central Avenue, Clinton)
  • Tuesday, July 23, at 7 p.m. at Station 36 (5579 Bayview Road, Langley)
• The Island County Historical Society is featuring free Porch Stories on Wednesday afternoons through the summer, on the porch of the Island County Museum in Coupeville. Check out this link to see which ones most interest you.
• Island County Departments of Public Health and Emergency Management have resources and suggestions for citizens experiencing extreme heat. You can find all of my newsletters since January 2023 here.
• I plan to return to my regular “Mondays with Melanie” schedule next week. Cedar & Salt in Coupeville, 1:30 – 2:30; Wi Fire Community Space in Freeland, 3 – 4.

Melanie

The Whidbey Island Fair starts next week, July 25 – 28.

“It hit me that being hip was a full-time job, and I was only a part-timer. I couldn’t hide forever that I liked county fairs, particularly the goat booth at the 4-H tent, or that I once spent a week with my grandmother at her house in the giant retirement community of Sun City, Arizona, and it was one of the most carefree times of my life.”

~Jancee Dunn

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