Monthly Archives: June 2013

Forum for BI fire commission candidates is tonight

Islanders can get to know an unusually crowded field of candidates for the Bainbridge Island Fire Department commission Thursday night.

Resident Jane Dunkel organized the forum, scheduled for 7-8:30 p.m. at Station 21, 8895 Madison Ave. (Dunkel requested use of the meeting room, the fire department is not affiliated with the event). 

Dunkel said seven of the eight fire commission candidates are expected to attend. Current commissioner Dan Morrow is running unopposed for Position 3 and is not participating in the forum.

Dunkel said she is interested in promoting effective local government and organized the forum as a community service. It will include opening remarks from candidates, questions from the moderator (Dunkel) and an audience Q&A session.

Commission positions 2, 3, 4 and 5 are up for election. Position 2 has three contestants and will be the only commission position appearing on the August primary ballot.

Longtime commissioner and department booster Glen Tyrrell resigned from Position 5 prior to the candidate filing period. Tim Carey was sworn in Wednesday to fill Position 5 until an elected commissioner takes office.

BIfire.commish

 

 

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

Waterfront Park planning continues Sunday

blog.WFpark

Planning for a revamped Waterfront Park will continue Sunday with a second community workshop. The event runs 1:30-4:30 p.m. at Waterfront Park Community Center. Islanders can join a walking tour of the park and dock at 1 p.m.

The city and Sustainable Bainbridge launched the planning effort with a well attended community meeting June 1. Prolific walkable communities consultant Dan Burden helped guide the conversation. Participants brainstormed ideas for the park and voted on their favorite design elements (you can see the voting results here).

Sunday’s workshop will include presentations from specific user groups. Bainbridge Island Rowing has a proposal for a new boathouse. The city’s advisory Harbor Commission is promoting designs for an expanded city dock.

The city dedicated $1.8 million of a Washington State Ferries settlement to reinvigorating the downtown park and will seek additional grants. A request for qualifications from design firms was recently issued for the project.

 

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

Pedaling in your great-grandfather’s shoes

april 001

Tristan Baurick here. On my way back from Colorado I got a chance to represent Bainbridge in a unique bike race. Here’s my story…

Your great-grandfather would have told you that a long day of bicycle riding is a bone-shaking and nerve-racking affair. He would have advised you to mind the smoke from your brake, and bring along a hunk of wood to drop like an anchor if the overworked brake gives out. And if a prostitute offers you whiskey in a hail storm, take a swig. You’ll need it.

I know all of this because I rode your great-grandfather’s bike – a 97-year-old, single-speed steel contraption – for last month’s L’Eroica Junction to Glenwood Vintage Bicycle Race. The 102-mile, one-day trek through western Colorado combines sports, history, and a touch of theater. Also, a lot of wool knickers and several waxed mustaches.

Continue reading →

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

Sportsman Club Road work begins next week

blog.sportsman

A portion of Sportsman Club Road will be northbound-only next week, as the city begins work on bicycle and pedestrian improvements. The city expects major construction to be wrapped up before the Rotary Auction opens for donations June 21.

Here are details and a detour map from the city:

BAINBRIDGE ISLAND, June 13, 2013 – Work will begin on Sportsman Club Road next Monday, June 17. The City has contracted with Lakeside Industries Inc. to install non-motorized shoulder improvements on the west side of Sportsman Club Road from Wardwell Road to approximately 400 feet south.

During construction hours, between 6 am and 5 pm Monday-Friday, Sportsman Club Road will be restricted to one-way northbound traffic. A detour route will be established for southbound traffic and residents/local traffic accessing Wardwell Road. Shoulder work is expected to last for approximately one week, with paving to follow as weather permits.

Citizens are encouraged to access Sportsman Club Road from the south when delivering donations to Woodward Middle School for the Rotary Auction, beginning Friday, June 21.

This improvement project is part of the City’s Core 40 Program which targets 40 roads for upgrades around the island for non-motorized improvements.

Sportsman Club Detour by tsooter

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

Bainbridge school district posts configuration survey

blog.school.configThe Bainbridge Island School District is seeking input on school configuration with an online survey. The district held a series of well-attended public meetings in May on the topic of a potential grade reconfiguration and school closure. The survey is intended to solicit opinions from the broader community.

A School Configuration Committee was convened last fall to examine reconfiguration as a way of cutting costs and maintaining educational programs in the face of declining enrollment and tightening budgets. The committee, which includes district staff, community members and school board representatives, recently decided to hold off on making a recommendation until 2014. 

Materials from the committee’s study sessions and the public meetings are available on the district website.

 

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

BIPD releases progress report; new chief starts Monday

Bainbridge Island Police Department released a report Friday detailing its efforts to meet the recommendations of a peer assessment conducted over the winter. The Washington Association of Sheriff’s and Police Chiefs report highlighted the need for new leadership at the department and identified numerous areas in the organization where improvement was needed.

blog.PC.hamnerThe working document released by BIPD (and posted below) shows what actions the department is taking to meet those recommendations and what changes are already complete. City Manager Doug Schulze made the document available in his weekly report, along with an update on Crisis Intervention Team Training.

According to Schulze, 11 of the island’s 18 sworn officers have completed the 40-hour training, which prepares first responders for situations involving the mentally ill. The entire force will have received the training by the end of October, Schulze said. The need for Crisis Intervention Training was a key finding in the Ostling trial last year.

The updates come as the department prepares to transition to new leadership. Newly-hired Police Chief Matthew Hamner (pictured) is expected to start Monday. There will be a public swearing-in ceremony and reception for Hamner at 7 p.m. June 20 at City Hall. Interim Public Safety Director Larry Dickerson has led the department since last summer and will assist with the transition.

LEMAP Response – Working Document 6-6-13 (2) by tsooter

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

Bainbridge Islander preview

blog.islander.6.7

Here’s the Bainbridge Islander preview for June 7. Feel free to give your events a plug in the comment section below.

0607_BI_01-1ROWERS TO NATIONALS | Fast-improving club sends two boats to Tennessee.

WHITHER WATERFRONT PARK? | Islanders share ideas for improvement.

SCHOOL CONFIGURATION | District taps brakes on school closure discussion.

PUGET SOUND HEALTH | Warning signs in seafloor sediment.

KILMER TOWN HALLS | Climate change central in congressman’s island visit.

COMING UP: BHS bids goodbye to Brent Peterson.

 

Continue reading →

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

Bainbridge joins Marina Day celebration Saturday

blog.lotus

Bainbridge Island is one of three Kitsap cities hosting National Marina Day festivities Saturday. Similar Marina Day  recognitions will take place across the country this weekend.

Events are scheduled at Waterfront Park from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. One unique activity planned for Eagle Harbor is an “anchoring with a local” workshop. Boaters will partner with an island mariner to learn how to anchor in 30 feet of water.

blog.marinaBack of Beyond Outfitters will offer a free “small boat mess-about” all day. There will be a rodeo for small non-motorized boats, demonstrations, and canoe tours of the harbor. Participants can bring their own craft or rent one on-site.

Other Marina Day activities will include free vessel examinations, a flare demonstration, sailboat rides, ROV hull inspections and rigging lessons.

Eagle Harbor also welcomed a special guest this week. MV Lotus (pictured above) is anchored off the Harbour Marina. Lotus will be on hand this weekend and on June 15-16 for the Bainbridge Wooden Boat Festival, according to the Lotus page on Facebook. Lotus was launched in 1909 and has plied Puget Sound and the Inside Passage for more than a century.

(Tad Sooter photos)

 

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post