Bainbridge Conversation

The unveiling of a “friendlier” Winslow Way hasn’t sparked a resurgence for downtown businesses. At least not yet.

Sales tax figures released for the first six months of 2012 showed receipts from downtown Winslow were down 1.9 percent compared to the same period last year ($211,718 compared to $215,863). That figure might seem insignificant until you recall what Winslow Way looked like in the first half of 2011:

Sales were lower from January to June this year than in 2011, when shoppers braved a jungle of barricades and traffic cones to visit shops. Downtown continued to lose businesses as well, down to 172 from a total of 201 in 2011.

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A newly-unveiled design image provides a good hint at what it will be like to walk through the ‘Welcome to Bainbridge’ park planned for the island’s busiest intersection.

Read more about the park planning effort here.

And head down below to see more of the park.

What do you think of the design?

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The group of islanders working to transform the former Unocal gas station lot into a public park has set its first public participation meeting for Feb. 16.

The meeting, which starts at Bainbridge Commons (370 Brien Drive) at 7 p.m., is aimed at gathering ideas for the 1-acre park’s design.

The group got the City Council’s OK on Wednesday to begin the planning process after they promised to foot the entire $300,000 park-building bill.

The site is at the southwest corner of the Winslow Way-Highway 305 intersection. It has sat vacant and surrounded by a fence since 1989.

The group, which calls itself the Bainbridge Park Task Force, considers the site an eyesore, and provides a poor welcome to visitors unloading from the ferry or streaming into Winslow from the highway.

For more information, see their blog here.

PHOTO: Tristan Baurick

A Bainbridge teen apparently faked a cocaine and itch-related mental breakdown that put police, emergency responders and a ferry crew on high alert.

Also this week, an islander bumped a Winslow Way construction worker with her car after shouting “You’re taking over this town!”

Blotter’s below…

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Almost five inches of snow blanketed the island on Wednesday, shutting down schools, cancelling city meetings and keeping many slick roads clear of traffic.

As of 5 p.m., the Bainbridge Island Fire Department had responded to just three weather-related calls.

“People stayed indoors and limited their driving, and I think that helped,” Fire Chief Hank Teran said.

The only reported vehicle accident was a Tuesday night rollover on New Brooklyn Road. The family inside the vehicle suffered no injuries, according to Bainbridge police.

Teran said someone suffered a fractured ankle due to a snow-related fall.

Firefighters responded to a report of power lines down on Lafayette Avenue.

No significant power outages were reported, and no roads were closed.

Teran said the department was bracing itself for the evening commute, when driving conditions could be more difficult.

A light dusting of snow is predicted for late Thursday morning.

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This week, an impatient driver weaved through the blocked Winslow Way construction zone, hitting a flagger and running over a traffic cone thrown in her way.

She then stopped by the police station to complain about the delay the workers caused her.

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The popular bench outside Blackbird Bakery has been replaced with one made of Bainbridge wood and brawn.

Island woodworker Steve Trick and blacksmith Ryan Landworth teamed up to build the hand-forged iron and bronze bench for one of Winslow’s most popular streetside hangouts.

The wood was cut from a black locust tree felled on Bainbridge.

Trick and Landworth donated about $3,000 worth of labor and materials to build the 10-foot-long, 600-pound bench for Blackbird.

“It brings a sense of groundedness and an organic feel to Winslow Way,” Landworth said.

King 5 News had a piece late last week about the Winslow Way reconstruction project.

Reporter Eric Wilkinson found only discontent among the shoppers, tourists and business owners he spoke with.

One woman went so far as to call Winslow our “little Beirut.”

Another voice noted that shoppers would need the help of Sacajawea to navigate the maze of construction work.

The video is below.

Both lanes of Winslow Way between Town & Country Market and Madison Avenue are now closed between 5 a.m. and 3 p.m. weekdays.

Traffic is being re-routed through the T&C parking lot to Bjune Drive.

The city has not specified when Winslow Way will re-open for weekday traffic.

The closure will enable work crews to start replacing a storm sewer main. Installation of the main will improve drainage on the south side of the street, where rain has caused puddling and seepage problems, according to the city.

“This re-routing of traffic is a decision that we take very seriously, and one which we believe will help us make up for lost time due to weather conditions,” project administrator Chris Wierzbicki said in a statement.

The south Winslow Way lane will is open after 3 p.m. and all day on weekends.

The city will open up 13 more parking spaces for public use at the City Hall parking lot on Monday to ease downtown parking problems.

For more information about the project, visit winslowstreetsmarts.com.

Both Winslow Way lanes will be closed from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. on Monday due to construction. Next week will also see some intermittent closures.

More info from the city is below.

Effective next Monday, April 25, portions of the Winslow Way and Madison Avenue intersection will be closed periodically in relation to the ongoing Winslow Way Reconstruction project.

The daytime disruption will close the south leg of the intersection, eliminating through traffic in a north/south direction, as well as the ability to travel eastbound from any approach. The nighttime disruption will close the entire intersection between 9 pm and 5 am, and will require traffic to be re-routed around Winslow Way in the area between Madison and Ericksen Avenues.

These closures are in addition to the current westbound-only detour on Winslow Way between Madison and Ericksen.
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As you may have read last week, the Bainbridge Island Police Department has a new policy for releasing records to the press.

We must now submit formal records requests to see the level of detail we used to see in previous years.

Not much to update you on, except that it took four days and $20 to get the reports for this week.

In the blotter (below) you’ll find details about that wavy red line that mysteriously appeared along two blocks of Winslow Way sidewalk, and the way police used Facebook and a clever business card trick to catch the alleged painter red-handed (literally).

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The ‘big dig’ is almost here
Believe it or not, but the Winslow Way reconstruction project is less than six weeks away.

Work on the street’s utility poles will begin this month. Crews will tear into Winslow Way by the middle of March.

For more about the project, and the small hiccup in its public relations stragegy, head over here.

Ravine rescue
The Bainbridge man was rescued from an Eagledale ravine this week. No big deal, but the TV news helicopters that came to catch the action sure did spark a lot of interest, especially because a body had washed up on Bainbridge the last time the heli-swarm descended on the island. The gentleman in the ravine was just fine, by the way, and so was his dog.

Ferry reform
Kitsap’s state legislators want to create a panel to reform the ferry system. The bill calls for a system-wide repair plan by next December.

“Serious declines in the amount and reliability of ferry service in recent years have damaged the economic vitality of many ferry communities. For these businesses and working families, recovering from the current severe recession depends on the rapid restoration of better ferry service,” the bill said.

Wall Street whoops
The Wall Street Journal had a nice article about the local geoduck industry yesterday.

The Journal uncovered a key fact that many of us here have failed to recognize: the Suquamish tribe’s 700 members live on Bainbridge Island.

I’m not sure how the reservation’s expansion could have passed under our noses without so much as a public meeting, a workshop or a charette, but I think we can expect the island to get a lot more exciting. Perhaps a Clearwater Casino satellite location in Island Gateway? Maybe a Benny’s Jets fireworks stand stretching across Winslow Green?