Fare Increase Begins Today, May 1

Monday, May 1, Washington State Ferries will implement both the annual peak season surcharge and a fare increase, recently approved by the Transportation Commission.

The 6% fare increase is across the board and impacts all fare types. For specific information on fares by route, customers can check the ferries web site on the link above (WSF Updates) or pick up a fare brochure at the nearest terminal.

Paid parking at the Anacortes Terminal will also begin May 1, with rates at $10 per day, $25 for three days and $40 for a week.

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The Writers' Cafe Returns On Wednesday

The Writers' Cafe is back. This popular monthly meeting of the minds is
returning on Wednesday, May 3 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at Pelindaba Cafe in
Friday Harbor. Writers of all genres (fiction, poetry, nonfiction) are
invited to share their work and be entertained by others.
For more information, contact George Smith 370-5354.

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County-wide Disruption of Communications

By Brendan Cowan

At approximately 7:15 this morning (Friday, April 28), a problem with the Verizon owned fiber optic infrastructure on the mainland resulted in the loss of long distance phone and cell phone service, internet, and (for a brief period) 911 service for the entire County.

Calls within the County were unaffected. Cell phones able to connect to towers with different routing (Mt. Constitution for instance) were also able to retain service.

As of 8:45, the majority of the connection has been restored; however there may still be small roadblocks in service if usage is high. Connection is expected to be fully restored later today.

During the outage, San Juan County 911 was swamped with dozens of phone calls from islanders inquiring about the loss of phone service. This is a good time to remind everyone:Please only call 911 for true emergencies. This is doubly true during power or phone outages, storms, or other wide-spread emergencies as Dispatch will already have its hands full. To inquire about disruptions in utility services, please contact your provider directly, and do not call 911

(Brendan Cowan is the Director of San Juan County Department of Emergency Management)

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ARBOR DAY: Bare-Root Seedling Give-Away Today!

10 years & 10,000 trees later, and Pauli Gavora is still giving away free trees each year as a part of national Arbor Day. This year Pauli and her merry band of volunteers will be handing out trees on the three main islands to all comers. Stop by the following places and pick-up a free tree:

3 to 6 pm today, Friday, April 28
● FRIDAY HARBOR...Market Place Parking Lot
● ORCAS ISLAND.....Island Market Parking Lot
● LOPEZ ISLAND .....Lopez Village Market Parking Lot

If you would like to be a part of this annual free give-away of trees next year, call Pauli at 378-4348


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Summer Programs For Island Youth

By Didier Gincig

The Orcas Island Recreation Program's summer schedule for island youth and visitors to the island will be mailed to all island box holders.

Hundreds of summer surveys were completed recently by children and parents indicating their summer interests. There will be programs for teens and pre-teens throughout the summer. Locals and guests to the island will interact shoulder to shoulder creating art, learning sports skills, going on field trips, learning how to sail, and having fun during the summer.

The Programs include soccer camp (July 31-August 4), Baseball Camp with a Mariners associate scout (August 7-9), Volleyball Camp (July 11-13), as well as a tennis clinic, Junior Sailing, Shaw Island bike rides, whale watching, bowling, camps and walks for little ones, Tai Chi for teens and adults, cooking classes, teens only events, camping on Patos Island, summer concerts, and more.

The summer schedule will be posted at www.orcasrec.org. Participants will be able to register on-line and a registration form will be in the brochure mailing.

Volunteers may call 376-5339 to be involved. The Orcas Island Recreation Program is a not-for-profit program that is partially funded by San Juan County, and is made possible through the generosity of community donations and grants.

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Two New Views on Gas Tax Lawsuit

You may have thought the lawsuit filed by San Juan County and prosecutors from two other counties against the No New Gas Tax Committee over campaign finance charges Previous Story was over, but like the guest house issue, it seems to have a long life. The Guardian has received two press releases on the latest twists and turns of the case, and they can be read in their entirety by clicking on the link below:


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Whale Report

The following is a copy of the Monthly Orca Update for April 2006, sent out by the Whale Museum.

By Jeanne Hyde

As April 20th approached the anticipation of J Pod's return grew. Many people shifted into ‘orca alert' mode. Well, the wait was over, when on the morning of April 19th J Pod was seen traveling north along the west side of San Juan Island. A few hours later they changed direction and came south.
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CC May Ask Court To Rule On Guesthouses

(County Council chambers: Public Hearing on Guesthouses)

With every seat taken, and an overflow of citizens from the hallway peering into the Council Chambers, the County Councilmen listened for several hours to a roomful of concerns, criticisms, cautions, complaints, and some constructive council, on how the Council might extricate themselves from the ADU (Accessory Dwelling Unit) morass.

Of the estimated seventy members of the public who showed up, 27 addressed the Council-some more than once- to testify against the ordinance; three members of the leadership of the Friends, and one general member -who also serves on the Planning Commission- spoke in favor of the proposed ordinance that would, in effect, ban guest houses outside of high density areas; but would allow duplexes throughout the county, as long as one of the units was 1000 Sq Ft or less.

The comments against the ordinance were not without a theme. Koshi Holt of San Juan Island expressed a recurring response to the Council's dismissal of the overwhelming county-wide support for guesthouses. She referenced the advisory ballot measure that had received over 74% approval by the voters. She told the Council that "Anytime government ignores the result of a vote, it is very scary"

A second theme was expressed by Patty Miller, of the general distrust and criticism of the Council for working with a special interest group. A group that the Council held membership in, and Kevin Ranker was once a paid employee of. Miller testified on the need for open government, and that "there is another process the Friends of the San Juans have used, that is outside of the public process" .

Former County Commissioner John Evans seemed to strike the right chord with the Council, when he summed up a recurring desire expressed in the testimony, that the Council needed to go back to the Court of Appeals and ask them to issue a decision. That will allow the County to know what the County can do with respect to guesthouses. He told the Council that "Things have changed since the County appealed to the court" , and that if the Council was to re-draft the ordinance to allow guesthouses attached to outbuildings, "the Council can put this behind them" .

By the time the public had completed the public input portion of the hearing, there was not time for the Council to give the matter full deliberations and reach a decision. While Chair Lichter was silent, both Ranker and Myhr expressed their general current positions, or opinions, on what the Council should do.

Myhr had prepared a hand-out of "A proposed Solution" that would allow ‘one guest house (detached, accessory dwelling unit) on any parcel with a single family residence, subject to restrictions on size, location, ownership, occupancy, and proximity to the main house' as supported by our voters in the 2004 advisory ballot".

Ranker apologized to the public "that this has taken so many years" , and stated that the original idea of the Planning Commission to allow ADUs to be attached to a garage or a barn was "an excellent idea" . He then said that he was also in favor reversing the Council's request to the Court of Appeals to stay the release of their judgment, and ask the Court to decide the case before them.

With that the Council ran out of time, and Chairman Lichter said he would make his comments at the next meeting, which would be a continuation of the current one, for deliberations only.

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New Home For Orcas High School Rowers

(Ribbon cutting by Moran State Park superintendent Chris Guidotti; Breona Gutschmidt, who started the ball rolling on building construction; and Dave Rosenberry, one of the founding parents -John Evans photo)

By John Evans

Orcas Island's high school rowers now have a place to call home. For the past 9 years, beginning at 5:00 in the morning, parents and coaches have trailered the rowing shells from garages and barns across the island to Cascade Lake three days a week for the 6a.m.student rower practices. A cooperative effort between the rowing club, Washington State Parks and the San Juan Builders Association means that cross-island trailer treks area thing of the past. The brand new rowing shed open house was held on Saturday.

Located at the East end of Cascade Lake, the building was built largely with donated labor and materials by contractors and suppliers who are members of the San Juan Builders Association and lots of volunteer effort by parents, students and supporters. The completed 2100 square foot buildings cost, $21,000 =$10.00 per square foot! The structure was designed to fit with the style of Moran State Parks other buildings and is nestled back in the trees but with easy access to the dock and the lake for the rowers.

Breona Gutschmidt was given the honor of cutting the ribbon. She is credited with being the originator of the competitive rowing program when she was a new student at Orcas Island high school. From humble beginnings and borrowed hand-me-down equipment the program has grown to include a small flotilla of rowing shells, awards from competitive rowing events across the country and a program that attracts 10% of the student body to the early morning drills and practices.

Chris Guidotti, Moran State Park Superintendent said that one of the benefits from the successful community effort at Moran State Park is that the Washington State Parks system statewide is now open to similar partnerships for a wide variety of activities, thanks to the pioneering effort initiated by a dedicated group of parents and students from Orcas Island.

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Ducks to Docks -All Safe, Some Hot, Some Cold

Fire fighters who rescued baby ducks

A training drill in Friday Harbor on Sunday morning for first responders was interrupted by a call of "Spell of smoke" in Jeri's Mall in Friday Harbor. When one of the tenants opened up the door to the Mall they smelled what they describe as, "wood smoke", and put in a call to 911. The source of the smell was quickly determined to be coming from a pet store located at the back of the mall.

The door to the pet store was locked, and rather than damage the door by a forced entry, the firefighters placed a ladder against the front wall of the shop that stopped short of the ceiling, went over the top, moved into the store and found a glass aquarium with a heat lamp that had fallen down on top of wood chips. The wood chips had been placed on the bottom of the dry tank to provide bedding for some baby ducks. The smoldering wood chips were at one end of the tank, and the baby ducks were huddled together at the far end.

Fire put out, ducks saved, no broken door, no harm done. Back to the docks and the water rescue drills.


(Sheriff Bill joins the in-water rescue drill - were not sure if this is a photo of Sheriff Bill jumping in the water, or jumping back out of the water once he felt how cold it was…)

Sixteen brave volunteers entered the water as a part of their training for Water Rescue work. EMTs, Sheriff and Sheriff Deputies, and fire fighters all took part in the drill.

Ask how it felt after coming out of ten minutes in the water, one of the participates said that she could feel her tissue moving in her arm, but could not feel the tissue due to the numbness in her fingers.



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A 2nd Look At Lopez Village by Growth Board

Responding to an appeal by former County Commissioner candidate Steven Ludwig, and Fred Ellis, both of Lopez, the GB (Western Washington Growth Board) has ruled that of the ten issues raised in the appeal of the San Juan County's approval of the boundaries of Lopez Village, four of them have merit, and will have to be addressed by the County.

The issues to be addressed are water protection and capital facilities planning, and once the County responds to the demands of the GB, the plan will be allowed to proceed

Both sides of the issue have produced a press release on the action by the GB, and they may be read below. The first press release is by the Green Party, and the second is by County Prosecutor Randy Gaylord.


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NW Stone Sculptors Assoc 2nd Annual Exhibit

The Westcott Bay Institute would like to welcome the Northwest Stone Sculptors Association to the Island Museum of Art for their 2nd Annual Exhibit.

This Exhibit includes over twenty of the world's best stone sculptors, including Friday Harbor's own Bill Weissinger with two of his sculptures: Salmon and Two Towers.

Along with several new sculptors, many of the featured artists from last year's show are back with new pieces to excite and fascinate the art lover in all of us.

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WSF: Elwha Breakdown To Impact Sji Capacity

SEATTLE -- On April 7, 2006 the M/V Elwha suffered a drive motor casualty, damaging the armature and causing a great deal of damage to the commutator. The prognosis for the vessel is not good in the short term.

The 144-car Elwha was originally scheduled for a major maintenance interval, from October until February 2007, for a new paint job, propulsion control system and other refurbishment. The current casualty means that the vessel will not be available this Spring or Summer, allowing some of the work planned for next fall to be completed early. However, the vessel will still not be available for service until February.

From April 21 through April 27, capacity for cars and people will be increased when the 144- car M/V Yakima returns, and the 144-car M/V Hyak then replaces the 90-car M/V Sealth.
On April 28, the Sealth will replace the Hyak, which will come south to the Bremerton route for almost three weeks and then returns to the San Juans to replace the Sealth until summer schedule, which begins June 12.

"We want to ensure that our customers can get to the Islands easily," says Traci Brewer-Rogstad, Director of Operations for Washington State Ferries. "Customers planning evening travel to Orcas, Lopez or Shaw Islands are encouraged to plan to sail on the 6 p.m. or 6:35 p.m. sailings from Anacortes Sunday through Thursday. The last sailing of the day, the 8:25 p.m. sailing, is the 124-car Chelan which has slightly less capacity than usual.

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Volunteers Needed for Earth Day 2006

Join Soroptomists, Kiwanis, Rotary and Lion's Club in cleaning San Juan Island roadways-

Receive a coupon for a free bag of popcorn from the Popcorn Lady when you sign up to clean up your favorite road. The Kiwanis, Lions, Rotary and Soroptimist Service organizations have organized the San Juan Island Roadside Cleanup. Signups are at the Market Place in Friday Harbor, from 4 to 6 p.m. Friday and then again from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, April 22 . Volunteers can mark a map for a section of road they will pick-up trash on -look for the table by the front door to sign-up. Trash bags and gloves will be available. Public Works will pick up your filled bags after you leave them by the side of the road.

• South Beach, San Juan Island – 10am to Noon: Join the Lion's Club and Griffin Bay Parent Partner Program. Look for a Lion's Club representative at South Beach's first parking lot who will hand out trash bags, data survey forms and gloves.

• South End Lopez – 10 am: Join Nick Teague of the Bureau of Land Management at Watmough Bay trail head at 10:00 am to cover Watmough Bay, Point Colville and Iceberg Point locations.

• Adopt your favorite beach! Please call Jana Marks at Friends of the San Juans at 378-2319 to see which beaches still need to be adopted. They will provide clean-up supplies and data survey forms.

Thanks to the Orcas Christian School who annually cleans Crescent and Eastsound Beaches, Shaw students for covering South Beach, Waldron School for removing debris from Cowlitz Bay Beaches, Pat Martin of SJC Public Works and the National Park Service for handling larger items.

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FH Needs Historic Review Board Needs Members

The Town of Friday Harbor Historic Preservation Review Board is in need of two new members, and will is accepting nominations for two open positions on the Historic Preservation Review Board (HPRB). One of the two positions must be filled by a Town of Friday Harbor resident, the other position is open to anyone living on San Juan Island.

HPRB members are volunteers who are appointed by the Town Council for terms of two-years, and are charged with carrying out the historic preservation elements of the Town of Friday Harbor's Comprehensive Plan. The HPRB meets twice monthly, at 7pm, the second and fourth Wednesdays of the month.

Candidates with experience in one or more of the following areas are encouraged to apply: architecture/architectural history, historic preservation, landscape design, construction, planning, design review, historical research, real estate, and local history. Membership in the San Juan Historical Society is preferred, but not required.

For information about board duties and responsibilities, visit www.fridayharbor.org or contact Sandy Strehlou, Historic Preservation Review Board Coordinator, Town of Friday Harbor, 378-2810, sstrehlou@fridayharbor.org, or PO Box 219, Friday Harbor.

Interested candidates should provide a resume and cover letter. Application materials may be hand-delivered, mailed or emailed c/o Historic Preservation Review Board, but must be received no later than 4pm, May 1, 2006.
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Salary Commission Meets

(First Meeting of Salary Commission)
The newly appointed Salary Commission held their first meeting on Wednesday, and will continue to meet at each Wednesday. until they are able to agree on the level of salaries for the elected officials of San Juan County; the one notable exception to their purview is the District Court Judge, who's salary is set at the state level.

After brief opening statements by the Commissioners, Allen Lichter (the only Council member present) stated that we need a "strong Council and a strong administrative branch" and that the Salary Commission will be doing very important work by establishing an economic base for the county. He did not explain his statement, and no one asked. He then left.

Goldsmith gave a basic talk on how Counties and State work together (or not together) and gave a basic primmer on the three branches of government as well as differences between the state, municipal, and regional paradigms.

Under State law "(a) Six of the ten commission members shall be selected by lot by the county auditor from among those registered voters eligible to vote at the time persons are selected for appointment to full terms on the commission under (c) of this subsection. In noncharter counties, the county auditor shall select two commission members living in each commissioner's district. The county auditor shall establish policies and procedures for conducting the selection by lot. The policies and procedures shall include, but not be limited to, those for notifying persons selected and for providing a new selection from a commissioner's district if a person selected from the district declines appointment to the commission or if, following the person's appointment, the person's position on the commission becomes vacant before the end of the person's term of office.

The controversy in the process came from the actions of the County Council's role in approving the four members state law assigns to them as their limited role in the process: (b) The remaining four of the ten commission members must be residents of the county and shall be appointed by the county commissioner or executive with approval of the county legislative authority, or by a majority vote of the county legislative authority if there is no single county commissioner or executive. The persons selected under this subsection shall have had experience in the field of personnel management. Of these four members, one shall be selected from each of the following four sectors in the county: Business, professional personnel management, legal profession, and organized labor.

The controversy was still swirling around the Commission at their first meeting, and as Administrator Pro Tem David Goldsmith took the new commission through the history and the law that brought them together, he touched on the reason for the controversy, outlining the distinction to the Commissioners between a Conflict of Interest, and the Appearance of Fairness, within which it is an appearance, as opposed to an existing conflict, that separates the two.

At the next meeting the Commissioners will get to work by starting an interview process of the elected officials, as the first step toward making the determinations of, "what is the value to the community" that the officials provide, as it was put to the Commissioners by Goldsmith. He also informed them they were not to be concerned about the possible effect of the salary impacts on the County budget, as it was his job to make that work, not the Commissioners.

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Friday Harbor: Sandpiper Unit on Fire

Here we go again. Nope, not this time.

A super-fast response from the local Fire Departments put out an apartment fire before it could spread, and end up as a repeat of the last major fire at the Sandpiper. A fire that resulted in a number of residents without shelter, and a Red Cross, Town and County response to the problem.

The apartment was locked when firefighters arrived, and found one widow broken with smoke pouring out of the apartment through the window. A quick check, and they determined tenants in and near the unit were elsewhere The apartment was entered, the fire put out.

Quite impressive to observe the process and the well polished response by the departments involved.





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Oh Boy, A Billionaire & Lopez, SJ I & Turtleback Land?

Tim Blixseth has described himself as one who came from a family on welfare, to the place where he is today. Where he is today may be a problem for Lopez and San Juan island if DNR (Department of Natural Resources) decides to do a land swap, or outright sell, 400+ acres of Lopez Hill, and 300+ acres of Mitchell Hill on San Juan to Blixseth. And there are rumors he may be looking at Turtleback as well.

Blixseth made his money in Oregon timber and land development, and recently has received a lot of press as the originator of the concept of developing land that is sold, by invitation only, to select individuals. Individuals with a whole lot of money.

His latest development is in Big Sky Montana, called the Yellowstone Club, and is known by the locals and the press as the Millionaires Club. If you want to join there is reportedly an initiation fee of a quarter million dollars, then land costs of a "home site acreage: 1.77 acres. Prices begin at $2,350,000" and can exceed ten million. Those who are allowed to "join" the club are purchasing more than land. The Club has a private security force, and reportedly patrols the land with a helicopter.

As one might expect, Blixseth has his supporters and some very vocal distracters. The supporters say he only develops a portion of the land and leaves areas open to the public; brings in large amounts of cash to a local area, and donates some to local causes. His distracters are on record as being concerned about his environmental record, and his competitiveness that leads him to move in on pending and existing deals that may provide less impact, and greater public use of government land, and that seems to be one of the major sources of the property he develops.


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CC Faces The Music From Citizens

(Pam Nichols, center, in red, addresses Council)

A normal Tuesday County Council meeting starts with a pledge to the flag by the County Council, and then there is an opportunity for members of the public to have five minutes to address the Council on just about any subject they wish. Most Tuesdays no one from the public shows up. On Tuesday of this week the room was packed with citizens, and Chair Alan Lichter told them "Good to see such a large crowd this morning".

He may have felt that way, but based on the expressions of Councilman Bob Myhr, and Kevin Ranker, it was clear they may not have been in complete agreement with the Chair on that one, since they both were aware of the criticism that had followed their actions in appointing one of the members of the Salary Commission, and they clearly knew why there was "such a large crowd" sitting in front of them.

The crowd was there to speak on the Salary Commission appointment of Randy Cornelius over Pam Nichols. Nichols had been on the "A-Team", as County Administrator David Goldsmith had referred to his appointments of candidates for the Salary Commission, and therefore was his first choice to fill the requirement that one of the members of the Salary Commission be selected from a "professional personnel management" sector of the county.

Under the RCW (Revised Code of Washington), Goldsmith was required to appoint, but he still needed the Council to approve the appointments. The Council quickly rejected Nichols without comment, and so Goldsmith came back with a name from his "B" team: Randy Cornelius, the General Manager of Orcas Power & Light. Myhr -a board member of OPALCO- suggested the other two select Cornelius, and the Council -again without comment- agreed. Only problem was, many members of the public failed to understand why the Council would pass on someone who, based on their background, was clearly the superior choice for the position.

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Governor Signs Bill, SJC Set To Lose Big

The Governor has signed bill ESSB 6839. The bill will remove what may be as much as $1,000,000 a year from future Capron funds that was earmarked for San Juan County. The amount is what was an expected percent increase in taxes the county has traditional received back from the state, because San Juan County has no state roads. Last month Public Works Director Jon Shannon and County Administrator David Goldsmith came before the County Council to ask them to send a letter to the Governor asking her to "line item veto" the section of the bill that would prevent SJC from receiving yearly percent increases; increases that have already been factored into the county budget, but now will not be received from the state.

The taxes that were expected to go to SJC, will now go to the ferry system. At the last minute the Council did send a letter to the Governor, but according to Ranker's report to the Council on Monday, she was unable to delete the line items requested, because they contained language that would influence areas beyond San Juan County's concerns. It is not clear at this point why the Council had not lobbied to retain the funds, but based on the Council dialog, the only Councilman that did not seem surprised by the testimony from Shannon and Goldsmith was Ranker.

Councilman Ranker had told the Council that he was familiar with the progress of the bill, and that it had been introduced and supported by members of the legislature who have been friends of San Juan County in the past, but were supporting this bill. Previous Story .


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Household Garbage Ending up in Town Cans

The number one topic at a recent meeting by the Chamber Downtown Forum was the amount of trash, garbage, and in particular, cigarette butts that are littering the streets of downtown Friday Harbor. According to the Chamber: The Town of Friday Harbor street crew sweeps the streets and provides garbage cans and disposal of trash. It faces the challenge of the often all night parking on streets that prevents cleaning all the way up to the curb. In addition, local usage of public garbage cans for disposal of bags of trash, instead of the "on the go" trash intended, causes some cans to fill more quickly than the town can empty them. The Town does not have the additional manpower to regularly clean the sidewalks.

The question posed at the forum was, "How can we "clean up" this problem of trash on the sidewalks and curbs? After much discussion and exchange of ideas, the forum agreed that the responsibility really lies with the business owners/employees. Businesses should make it part of the opening routine to spend a few minutes to sweep the sidewalk and curb, all part of the storefront, in front of the business. Several of those at the forum do it now and shared their thoughts about how little time it actually takes, plus it gives them time to chat with their neighbors, a good start to the day. The appearance of a business from the outside is just as important as that on the inside. Research show that this is the policy adopted in most commercial areas.


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Court Of Appeals Wants To Hear More.

In a major setback for the County Council, the Court of Appeals has ruled that the Court wishes to receive additional argument, as to why the Court should grant the County's filed request for additional time to pass a proposed ordinance on ADUs. An ordinance, that if passed, would restrict the building of guest houses. The Court has ruled that:

"Margaret M. Manning and Timothy P. Blanchard move to file brief Amicus Curiae in opposition to motion to further stay proceedings in the above entitled matter. As the motion appears to raise a substantial issue and a response would assist the Court in resolving the motion, the Court directs the Appellants and Respondents to file a response to the motion within twenty (20) days of the order. Accordingly, it is so ordered."

The Council is attempting to side-step the current legal proceedings by passing a restrictive ordinance on ADUs (Accessory Dwelling Units, e.g., Guest Houses) before the court makes a ruling on the issue. Because the Council is forced by law to follow a protocol that requires public participation, and public input on the ordnance, the Council is concerned that the court may pronounce before an ordinance can be passed, so the Council has already requested and received one stay, and has now asked for a second one. ( Previous Story )

The court ruling on granting additional time for further argument on the Council's request for the second stay, was in response to a legal brief that was submitted to the court by Orcas property owners Margaret M. Manning and Timothy P. Blanchard, who argued in their recent brief ( Previous Story ) to the court argued that:

"At best, the controversy may be completely resolved by the Court's decision; at worst, an adverse decision would provide the County, and the substantial number of its citizens who have already built guesthouses or wish to build guesthouses in affected areas, definitive guidance concerning the issue. More important, the issue of whether the WWGMHB's "bright line" rule that anything (including an accessory dwelling unit) more than one residential unit per five acres constitutes urban sprawl has predictably arisen in several other counties, many of which are looking to this case and this Court for guidance."

The original appeal to the courts was started by former County Commissioners Rhea Miller and Darcie Nielsen, both Democrates, and John Evans, a Republican, in an attempt to resolve the appeal by the Friends of the San Juans of the Guest House regulations, by asking the Court of Appeals to look at all sides of the argument, and then decide to what extent San Juan County (and by extension, other counties) can build ADUs -the Friends opinion notwithstanding. But the new County Council has other ideas, and decided to ask the court to hold up in giving an opinion the former Board had asked for, while allowing the Council and the Friends work out a deal on a new set of regulations that would satisfy the concerns of the Friends.

Manning and Blanchared told the court that:

"We submit that the public interest argues strongly for denial of the parties' second request for stay, and issuance of a decision directly addressing the questions raised in this appeal.

When the County Council learned of the filing of the brief, they seemed less than concerned, and Councilman Ranker told Randy Gaylord that Manning and Blanchared had no standing in the case, and that it was too late for them to get involved. At a Council meeting Ranker asked Gaylord if the proposed ordinance can be passed before the court makes a decision, then even if the court ruled in favor of the County, (i.e. ruled in favor of the County, and against the Council's desire to change the existing rules allowing guest houses), would the courts ruling be moot. But Gaylord disagreed; and in the brief to the court, Manning and Blanchared appear to have anticipated Ranker's argument

"The Supreme Court in Sorenson v. City of Bellingham concluded that a court may, in its discretion, retain and decide an appeal that has otherwise become moot when it can be said that matters of continuing and substantial public interest are involved."

Since it is a matter of record that other counties are waiting for the court to give some guidance on ADUs, there is clearly "substantial public interest involved" that goes beyond San Juan County.

While all sides will now prepare additional arguments to submit to the court, the County Council will hold a public hearing next Tuesday to take public input on the recommendations the Planning Commission has already submitted to the Council, and that the Council accepted with few changes. ( Previous Story ). In the meantime, it is possible that the court will still make a ruling on the original case, and it may be the attempt of a settlement between the Council and the Friends that will become moot.


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EDITORIAL

Controversy Continues On Salary Appointment

When the County Council turned down an obvious best choice for the Human Resources slot on the newly appointed Salary Commission, and instead followed Councilman Myhr's recommendation, based on his knowledge as a member of the board of directors of OPALCO, to go to the second level of possible candidates, and select the general manager of OPALCO, they may not have realized how that action would look to the voters. Based on the letters to the Editor, and the talk in the court house and on the street, it has not been viewed in a kind light.

The Council has not been shy about expressing their view that the passing of the Charter was not something they were in favor of, and notwithstanding their public statements that, now that the Charter is the law, they intend to follow it, and to implement it as quickly as possible; and in Myhr's words, to do so as transparently as possible, what has become most transparent is the Council's desire to retain their salaries at the level they currently are, and from the beginning they have resisted, and argued against, the advice of others as to how the salary commission should be appointed.

The passing over of candidate Pam Nichols, a retired career executive of the human resource management section of an inter-national corporation, for the currently employed manager of OPALCO, has come as a shock to many. Instead of Nichols, as the first choice of the County Administrator, Mr. Cornelius, his second choice, has been selected by the Council to sit on a commission to determine the salary of the County Council, one of which -Myhr- is also one of Cornelius' OPALCO board members. This action by the Council is hard to see as anything other than an in-your-face rejection of the rhetoric that the Council gives voice to, but fails to listen to.

We hope the Council will back-up on this one, thank Mr. Cornelius for his willingness to serve, and appoint the person who has the most experience, and the time necessary to dedicate to the job. We also hope the Council will start to get down to county business, and leave the politics, and their disappointment that the Charter passed, behind them. They have been in denial long enough, and it is past time for them to concentrate on the public's business, and not their own desires and personal agendas.

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Canadian CG Hovercraft May Aid SJC

The Canadian Coast Guard has offered -at no charge- to make hovercraft landings on San Juan County beaches as part of an emergency response drill. Brendan Cowan, of SJC Department of Emergency Management, said he hoped to have landings on Orcas, Lopez and San Juan Island, but that SJ may be dropped if Jackson Beach cannot be used. The intent of the exercise is to have a practice session in off-loading equipment and supplies, and evacuating the "injured".

Turns out that Jackson Beach, which is owned by the Port of Friday Harbor, does not have the proper land use designation to allow beach landings -although the beach, or indeed any beach, could be used in an actual emergency. As for other areas that could be used, Cowan said that the county road end that goes to the water at American Camp was too far from town to have all of the equipment, and first responders who would take part in the drill, to travel for an exercise. As for other areas, he said due to the noise and congestion that it would generate, he did not want to bring the hovercraft into Friday Harbor for a drill.

The Canadian hovercraft can arrive from Canada within an hour, to an hour and a half, and can not only land on a beach, but according to Cowan they can simply pass over the logs and debris that are common on the beach. There are two types that can be made available, one is passenger only, and the other can load and transport vehicles and people, is 100 feet long and travels at speeds of up to 50 knots.

If necessary permits can be obtained, the drill is scheduled to take place on April 29th.

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Court Orders County To Pay Fine & Release Notes

As The Island Guardian's Piet Visser did research for a Column on the purchase of land by the County by Public Works, he requested copies of documents from the County so that he might be able to report on the facts of the purchase, as background for what turned out be a series of columns on how the County conducts the business of the people.

When Visser's request for relevant documents was processed, someone in County government decided that certain documents were not subject to the Freedom of Information Act, because they were "personal notes…or are considered protected by the attorney-client privilege". As one might expect, Mr. Visser was curious how "notes" dealing with official county business, and made on county time, could be personal, and/or protected, from the eyes of the public due to an attorney-client privilege.

When Visser persisted in his request, he was told "If you wish to challenge this conclusion you may file an action in Superior Court pursuant to RCW 42.17.340 and ask the court to determine whether the listed documents are, in fact, public records that should have been disclosed.". This also seemed odd to Visser, he expected the County would be the one to go to court to stop from having to release the documents to Visser. But according to the record, the County Council instructed the Prosecutors office to not go to court, because they did not want the County to be suing one of their own citizens. Better the citizen sue the County to obtain information pertaining to County business, seemed to be their view on the matter

Visser went to court. Visser won, the County lost. End result of the County not releasing official documentation on the spending of 1.8 million dollars for a piece of property was the County paying Visser $885.00 in penalty as required, and $9,351.30 in attorney fees and costs incurred by Visser. What does not show up in the Court Order is how much it cost the County in loss time and effort to fight the release of the information. Visser Column on the subject

The big question in Visser's mind was what, exactly was so important in the information that the Council and Public Works did not want anyone to see it, or did not think anyone in the public had the right to see it? The odd thing about the whole thing is that the answer to those questions seems to be: not much -unless we are all missing something. One sentence that does jump out, is a note made by Jon Shannon on the results of an Executive Session held by the Board of County Commissioners (now the County Council) that indicates all three of the Commissioners were in favor of purchasing Kellsey South for use by Public Works, and that the use would include a Transfer Station (commonly called a "dump"), and "especially Kevin Ranker" was in favor of it. The rest of the notes dealt with the details of the purchase. It is simply not clear why the County would go to such lengths -and waste of tax dollars- to keep the press and the public in the dark on these details of a land acquisition, after the deal had closed, and the details of the deal could have no bearing on the purchase.


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County To Develop Sewage Management Plan

The State has required twelve Puget Sound counties to develop a Local Management Plan that will guide the operation and maintenance of on-site septic systems. Environmental Health Manager Mark Tompkins came to the County Council to ask, which of five recommend management models that have been prepared by the Environmental Protection Agency, would they choose to guide San Juan County as it develops it's plan.

After a review of the information, the Council went along with Mr. Tompkins' recommendation that a "Homeowners Awareness Model" be used as a prototype for the County. Tompkins told the Council that the CD&PD (Community Development and Planning Department) has been made aware of the requirement, since they are taking the lead on updating the Critical Areas Ordinance, and the Sewage Management Plan will be a part of the updates.

A letter has been sent out to solicit participation from "a variety of stakeholders", including on-site professional designers, Realtors, environmental groups and the shellfish industry, to name a few. The first meeting is expected to take place in May, and Tompkins estimates it will take a year to develop a plan.

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SJ Lions To Form "Leo Lions" For The Young

(San Juan Lion Club President John Towson, along with Lisa Brown, Leo Club CO Chairperson and past Lion's President, Minnie Knych, are shown with the ten Charter members of the newly formed Lions Leo Club for San Juan Island.)

Future San Juan Leo Lions met at Friday Harbor High School last week before Spring break to discuss becoming the Charter Leo Lions Club Group for San Juan Island.

The mission of Lions Opportunities for Youth is: To provide the young people of the world with opportunities for achievement, learning, contribution and service, individually and collectively, through sponsorship of activities identified as best practices in the field of youth development.

The "San Juan Leo Lions" are a Youth Group, and will be sponsored by San Juan Lions, the island's first service organization on San Juan Island, beginning in 1962. Lions Club is an international of over 1.5 million members, with local membership over 80 men and women.

The Leo Clubs are also an International Club "...to provide the youth of the world (with) an opportunity for development and contribution, individually and collectively, as responsible members of the local, national and international community."

The ten initial Leo Charter Members for San Juan Island will provide a nucleus for teens to contribute their time, talents and service to San Juan Island.

The first Leo Club was formed in 1957 in Glenside, Pennsylvania and that group created the Leo acronym - Leadership, Equality, Opportunity (Equality was later changed to Experience.)

The mission of Lions Opportunities for Youth is: To provide the young people of the world with opportunities for achievement, learning, contribution and service, individually and collectively, through sponsorship of activities identified as best practices in the field of youth development

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Myhr Reports To CC On Islands Trust Forum

(Bob Myhr)
County Councilman Bob Myhr recently attended a forum in Duncan B.C. that was held to discuss management options related to tourism, including options to "enhance community understanding about the ability of local governments to address tourism topics".

The Forum was sponsored by The Island Trust, which was started in 1974 by the government of B.C. to protect the "unique part of the world" comprised of the islands in the Strait of Georgia and Howe Sound. while not an official part of the Trust, SJC has a history of participating and cooperating with the Trust.

Councilman Myhr reported that the topics of concern for the Trust could just as well be a description of issues in San Juan County. A reading of an official statement of one of the challenges facing the Islands Trust Area gives a good example of Myhr's point: "The big attraction is the rural and unspoiled nature of the Gulf Islands yet, ironically, these are the very aspects being threatened by development pressures. Local Islands Trust bylaws are designed to balance the needs of the human and natural environments."; but he also reported back to the Council that there were some factual surprises that differ from those found in SJ County.

Councilman Myhr reported the following:


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Citizens Salary Commission Appointments Complete

The San Juan County Charter requires that the salary of all elected officials be set by members of a duly-appointed, independent, Citizens Salary Commission. Previous Story

One person from each district was randomly selected for appointment to the Citizens' Salary Commission by the County Auditor, and those names were then adopted by the County Council. Previous Story The Charter requires one person each from the fields of business, personnel management, legal profession and organized labor to be appointed to the Citizens' Salary Commission by the County Administrator, with approval by the San Juan County Council.

The Auditor appointments for positions number 1 through 6, and the County Administrators appointments for the four professional positions are as follows:

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