ISLAND COUNTY: A Message from Commissioner Bacon [Nov. 15, 2024]

Island County Commissioner Melanie Bacon (D-Langley) sent the following newsletter on Fri., Nov. 15 2024.

Thank you for reading my newsletter for the 46^th week of 2024.

As you know, I’ve been pretty busy recently. I guess I wasn’t paying enough attention to my calendar because I somehow got myself double-booked over the next couple of days. As soon as I get this newsletter typed, I’m leaving for a two-day Northwest Straits Initiative conference in Everett, where I will be on a panel talking about the interaction between elected county officials and their Marine Resources Committees. I was also supposed to be on a panel for the “Fix Our Ferries Regional Legislative Summit” in Mukilteo tomorrow. Happily Commissioner St. Clair plans to attend that, and I’m confident she will fully represent our interests in this discussion.

Next week is a busy week for the Board, as it’s our Washington State Association of Counties (WSAC) annual County Leaders conference, being held this year in Vancouver, WA. Consequently, there will be no Board meetings next week and no newsletter next Friday.

In addition, the new Executive Director for Island Transit, Melinda Adams, starts work on Monday and I will need to be there for the all-hands meeting, so I will not hold my normal Monday meetings with citizens next Monday the 18^th.

The following week is Thanksgiving, so Happy Thanksgiving, everybody! The Board will meet on Tuesday the 26^th for our regular Board meeting, but otherwise we will not be meeting so I will not write a newsletter that week either. County offices will be closed on Thursday the 28^th and Friday the 29^th for the holiday.

The Council of Governments (COG), Island Regional Transportation Planning Organization (IRTPO), and Board of Health (BoH) will not be meeting in November.

So, to summarize:

• No Board meetings next week
• The Board will hold our regular meeting on Tuesday, November 26^th
• County offices are closed on Thursday, November 28^th and Friday, November 29^th  
• I will be available to meet with citizens on Monday, November 25^th and Monday, December 2^nd  at my usual locations in Coupeville and Freeland
• The Board will hold our 2025 Budget Public Hearing on Monday, December 2^nd at 10 am. For some reason, members of the public never attend these—even though this is the meeting where we vote on how we’re spending your money the following year. I hope this year will be different, and the public will join the meeting and make comments. You can see the draft budget here: 2025 Draft Budget
• The Board will hold our regular meeting on Tuesday, December 3^rd and work session on Wednesday, December 4^th
• The next edition of this newsletter will be published on Friday, December 6^th
• Regular Session.  The agenda and video recording for the Tuesday November 12^th Regular Session of the Board of Island County Commissioners is here.
  • There was no public comment
  • There were no regular agenda items or public hearings
  • The next regular session will occur on Tuesday, November 26^th.  You will be able to find the agenda for that meeting here.
• Upcoming Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) Public Hearings (held during Tuesday board meetings, beginning at 10 am):
  • December 2: Approve 2025 levies and 2025 Budget.
• Work Session. This is the agenda for the November 13^th work session; here is the recording.
  • We went through the 2025 work plans for the departments that report to the Board: County Administration, Facilities Management, Budget and Risk Management, Human Resources/GSA, Information Technology, Planning & Community Development, Public Health, Human Services, and Public Works. Work Plans outline expectations that departments have for pursuing special projects during the year outside of their normal scope—their normal business operations are not included in their work plans. The recording for this discussion begins at mark 0:08:07; the PowerPoint presentation begins on page 41 of the agenda and the details for each department begin on page 31 of the agenda.
  • We discussed the revised Conservation Futures Fund (CFF) resolution, mark 3:25:40, page 56 of the agenda.
  • We discussed requests by Coupeville and Langley on changes to their Urban Growth Areas (UGA) and Joint Planning Areas (JPA). The Coupeville request: page 188 of the agenda, mark 4:19:14 in the recording; the Langley request: page 191 in the agenda, mark 4:58:48 in the recording.
  • The next work session will occur on December 4^th. You will be able to find the agenda for that meeting here.
• 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 meets at 6 pm on the first and third Wednesday of each month in the Commissioners Hearing Room in Coupeville.
• The next Planning Commission meeting is next Wednesday, November 20^th. Here is the agenda and zoom link. On that agenda: Presentations by the Camano Island American Legion and Whidbey Environmental Action Network (WEAN) on their work plan in support of the 2025 Comprehensive Plan; and an Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) discussion.

As I noted above, I will not be available on Monday, November 18^th for my usual meetings with citizens because I will be welcoming the new Island Transit Executive Director, Melinda Adams. I will be available on Monday, November 25^th and Monday, December 2^nd  at Cedar & Salt in Coupeville at 1:30 and Crabby Coffee in Freeland at 3 pm.

Melanie      

“The turkey. The sweet potatoes. The stuffing. The pumpkin pie. Is there anything else we all can agree so vehemently about? I don’t think so.”

~Nora Ephron