North Kitsap Beat

North Kitsap County Commissioner Chris Endresen is leaving her post in June.

She’s taking a job with Sen. Maria Cantwell. Here’s an interesting paragraph from Chris Dunagan’s story:

he two months’ notice that Endresen is giving the county should give time for potential replacements to step forward, she said. Under state law, the two remaining county commissioners — Republican Jan Angel and Democrat Josh Brown — will have the opportunity to appoint her replacement.

If they cannot agree, the appointment will be made by Democrat Gov. Chris Gregoire.

I’d say the odds are pretty good Gregoire will be making the decision. What are your thoughts?

Today you read about a “sweat equity” housing project in Poulsbo. With the help of the Kitsap County Consolidated Housing Authority, homeowners got low-interest loans and lower prices by helping build homes at Vetter Homestead.

If you want all the nuts and bolts about the program, GO HERE.

Vetter Homestead adds to the list of affordable housing options in Poulsbo.

The others are:

Austurbruin
Fjord Manor
Martha and Mary Nursing Home
Poulsbo Community Center
Rotary Duplex
Hostmark
Windsong

If you have a chance to talk with anyone who’s move into one of these sweat equity homes, you’ll probably notice that they’re regular working stiffs trying to make ends meet like the rest of us. There’s definitely plenty of sweat that goes into getting that equity, too. While it’s obviously hard work for the homeowners, I can also sense that there’s a level of dignity and accomplishment that comes with finishing the homes.

With the “sweat equity” factored in, most of the homes in Vetter are around $160,000-ish. A pretty darn good bargain in Poulsbo, where the median price of homes sold in March was $370,000.

Today you can read all about another phase of the $471 million effort to update the Hood Canal Bridge.

Every time I see part of the building process, I’m always amazed at the scale of everything. Huge drydocks, huge machines, huge pieces of concrete (Most of which float.)

I’ll admit, at times I feel like an awe-struck kid. This is construction on a large, aquatic scale. Soon, if you head to Salisbury Park near Port Gamble you should be able to get a view of DOT crews sinking 1,000-ton concrete anchors into the canal. It’s a slow process, so don’t expect a huge splash.

The state has a wealth of information on the project, so if you’re curious, visit the project Web site HERE.

If you read the story, you’ll notice I included a couple of lines at the bottom about the contractors using cheap vinyl flooring. It was pretty amusing seeing cheap bathroom flooring inside giant concrete anchors…and realizing that it’s part of a $471 million project.

Look at the photo and you’ll see the white teardrop shape inside the anchor in the foreground. That’s the vinyl. In the back left, look at the outside of the anchor and you’ll see the shape teardrop shaped in the concrete.

Mitzel’s isn’t coming back … exactly. I just got a notice from Elmer’s Restaurants, the parent company of Mitzel’s American Kitchen, that says they’re starting construction on a new restaurant there, but not a Mitzel’s.

Here’s an excerpt from the news release:

“We are excited to build a new restaurant in Poulsbo and once again serve as a gathering place for the Poulsbo community,” said Dennis Waldron, president and CEO of Elmer’s Restaurants, Inc. “The new restaurant will feature fresh Northwest ingredients and will include many of the Mitzel’s favorites that our customers came to know and love. We anticipate a great response to our new restaurant, and look forward to serving the community soon.”

The restaurant will reflect a Northwest lodge theme boasting warm features, a comfortable atmosphere and a river-rock fireplace.

The restaurant, which is yet to be named, is slated to open Fall 2007.

So, all you Mitzel’s fans, let me have it. While neither of us know much about the as-yet unnamed restaurant, what do you think? Do you just want the Mitzel’s back? Ready for a change?

(NOTE: I apologize if you came this morning after reading today’s story about the Marine Science Center looking for the list of 23rd District projects that were funded in Olympia. I posted it last night – I thought – but realized today that the entry never showed up.)

Rep. Sherry Appleton sent me a list of 23rd District projects, though some of them overlap with the 35th and 26th districts.

Without further adieu, here’s a list of projects that lawmakers threw some money at:

23rd Legislative District

Dept Community, Trade, Econ Dev
Suquamish Longhouse (BFA) 550,000
KCR Bremerton Community Services Center (CDF) 900,000
Poulsbo Marine Science Center Floating Classroom (LCP) 100,000
Bremerton Downtown Economic Revitalization Projects (LCP) also listed in 26 and 35 5,000,000
Suquamish Inviting House Construction (LCP) 1,000,000
Kitsap SEED (LCP) 1,100,000

Washington State Historical Society
Suquamish Museum & Arts Center (Heritage) 1,000,000
Bainbridge Is. Metro Parks & Rec. (Heritage) 70,000

Interagency Committee for Outdoor Recreation
Battle Point Park Development (WWRP – Local Parks) 300,000
Kingston Village Green (WWRP – Local Parks) 48,481
Miller Lake Acquisition (WWRP – Water Access) 1,075,000
Eagle Harbor Waterfront Park Improvements (ALEA) 473,690

Dept of Fish and Wildlife
Carpenter Creek estuary Phase 1 S. Kingston Rd. (Puget Sound Initiative-Nearshore Salmon Restoration) 637,000

Public Schools
Island Wood Environmental Learning Center 1,000,000

State Board for Community and Technical Colleges
Olympic College: Humanities and Student Services 37,889,000
Olympic College (Facility Preservation) 679,829
Olympic College (Infrastructure) 271,744
Olympic College (Minor Works Program) 604,500
Olympic College (Minor Works Preservation) 318,500

Total 23rd Legislative District 53,017,744

Gov. Gregoire signed Bainbridge Island Senator Phil Rockefeller’s school transportation funding bill today.

It’s supposed to make the state pay for school transportation more accurately and equitably. Previously, the state used a “crow flies” formula to determine how much money school districts got. That short-changed some districts that had to drive buses a whole lot farther than the crows were flying.

North Kitsap is an interesting example because all the water (Liberty Bay, Miller Bay, Gamble Bay) that slices up this part of the county. Crows fly over the water. Buses don’t.

Read the bill HERE.

Kitsap County Prosecutors have filed charges against the owner of a pit bull that attacked a Poulsbo woman last week. Cops/courts reporter Josh Farley just wrote a Web update.

The city is looking into revising its dangerous dog ordinance, possibly banning certain breeds. I know there’s always the debate over dangerous dogs versus poor training. What do you think should happen?

If you drive through the Bond Road/Highway 305 intersection, you probably wondered the same thing I did. Why’d they leave 10-foot-tall stumps?

I wrote a story March 11 about the Department of Transportation cutting the trees down, but I didn’t realize the stumps would look so odd. (The clearing is in preparation for work at the intersection, including shifting some power poles.)

After a couple of people asked about it, I figured I’d better get an answer.

Here’s an explanation, courtesy of DOT project engineer George Titterness:

PSE needs to relocate some transmission lines that can only be done during low electrical use during the summer months. This is the same time that the Contractor needs to do work in the area during the fish window. (NOTE FROM DEREK: The ‘fish window’ is the time people are allowed to work in or near streams between salmon runs.) It will be way to busy to have them both in the area working at the same time. So, the trees were cut and some minor earthwork done in preparation for new power poles. The poles will soon be installed and wires placed but not connected. This summer when the electric use drops, the new wires will be connected.

By cutting the trees high off the ground we are able to work in the area without having to do a lot of expensive erosion control to protect Dog Fish Creek. Our normal clearing and grubbing would require covering the area with plastic sheeting until the site is stabilized.

So, leaving the trees high facilitates the Contractor in meeting their work schedule, allows PSE to get their work done without significant impacts to the Contractor, and saves the State a few dollars in erosion control.

I hope this answers your question.

If you’ve got a photo of the stumps, feel free to share it here. I don’t have my camera today, otherwise I’d run out and take one. If you can’t embed it in your comment, e-mail me atdsheppard@kitsapsun.com and I’ll put it in.

Should the football/soccer field and track at the new Kingston High School be lighted? That’s what the North Kitsap School District will ask people Wednesday night.

If you’re wondering where the school is located, you can see it on THIS GOOGLE MAP. Kingston Junior High is on the left, the high school on the right. Looks like there are a few homes peppered around the perimeter, some to the south of West Kingston Road and another development to the east.

I would guess the pros might be that it would allow sports teams and the public to play into the evening hours.

The downsides are likely the issues of light pollution and cost. I’ll report back when I know if the district knows how much the lighting is likely to cost. They don’t have any funding identified yet.

Any pros or cons you can think of?

A story advancing the meeting should run tomorrow.

To attend the meeting, head to Kingston Junior High 7 p.m. Wednesday.

What do you think the school district should do?

Olympic Biofuels begins selling biodiesel this week. It’s an interesting development I reported today with our business feature on A1.

What do you think about the prospects of biodiesel, alternative energies and such? Do you use it? Is it viable? Will it save the Earth? Pie in the sky?