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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06-June 2015Ground Breakings and Ribbon Cuttings More than spring has been busting out in our community over the past weeks. I think I've participated in more dedications, presentations and ground breakings recently than in all the rest of my term as Mayor. Some highlights: Ground Breaking for Restoration of Building 202 - Reconstruction of the old balloon hangar into McCurdy Pavilion and the restoration of Building 204 into a conference center facility decisively demonstrated the community benefits of investments in the Fort Worden campus area. On May 12 I got to wield a golden shovel at the groundbreaking ceremony to transform building 202 at Fort Worden into a modern higher education facility. The new campus headquarters of Peninsula College at Port Townsend will at last liberate the College from the constraints imposed by the old Schoolhouse Building they’ve been using. This has been the cornerstone of the Lifelong Learning Center concept since its inception in 2006, and many of the people who worked for years to secure this project attended the groundbreaking ceremony as did a large number of College staff. Politely the rain held off until we were done. The majority of funding for the $7.3 million project will come from the State and State Parks but $500,000 committed by the people of Port Townsend helped secure and preserve the State’s commitment during several years of budget turmoil. Ground Breaking for Jefferson Health Care ESSB - Like many hospitals Jefferson Health Care’s campus has built out over the years like bacteria in a petri dish. On May 18 I attended the ground breaking ceremony for Jefferson Health Care’s new Emergency and Special Services Building (ESSB). In addition to providing a facility to support the major advances in patient care already underway, this new 50,000 square foot facility will provide capacity for future growth and transform the hospital’s campus by improving parking and access for patients, pedestrians and first responders. Years in development, with multiple partners and requiring work on a critical facility that must stay fully operational during all phases of construction I didn’t have the heart to tell CEO of Jefferson Health Care Mike Glen that his “very, very slow roller coaster ride” is probably not over - just beginning to pick up speed. The budget for the ESSB is $21 million. It will be financed by a low interest loan from the US Department of Agriculture which will be serviced by hospital operations and will not require a tax increase. City’s Utility Projects - Unlike the hospital the work on the City’s water system will be mostly out of sight. But at $26 million the cost of replacing our aging and seismically vulnerable reservoir and adding filtration to meet the secondary treatment requirement for our venerable surface water system is the community’s most expensive project. Despite the increased cost of using filtration - to allay Washington State Department of Health concerns about the UV treatment method Council chose originally - City staff has done an exceptional job of financing this project which should allow us to hold to the water rate schedule adopted two years ago by Council. Construction in the Work District - Howard Street - More visible will be extending Howard Street to Discovery Rd. which will substantially complete our City’s Work District north of upper Sims Way. Citizens often urge Council to help attract and keep family wage jobs and completion of the Howard Street corridor will improve access and extend utilities to this area for precisely that purpose. We are also revising the zoning in the Work District in order to allow greater flexibility for business development and we’ve already passed a resolution that forgives three years of City B&O taxes to any new manufacturing business locating here, or any existing manufacturer increasing the size of their facility at least 25%. As I write we have three manufacturing businesses planning to locate or relocate there in new buildings ranging from 5 thousand to 20 thousand square feet. Relocation of Visitor Information Center (VIC) and Business Resource Center - Also visible, already accomplished, and relevant to business development is the relocation of the Jefferson County Chamber of Commerce’s Visitors Information Center and its co-location with Team Jefferson’s Jefferson County Business Resource center to 2409 Jefferson St. This has improved the visibility and accessibility of the VIC and having the Business Resource Center in the same building will facilitate the ongoing collaboration of Team Jefferson and the Chamber – our most enthusiastic and dedicated business promoters and preservers. June 2015 Next up These projects have three things in common: • They are the result of innovative partnerships of public and private organizations working together to achieve enduring results for the community. • They address critical and fundamental needs of the community around health, wellness, education, infrastructure and economic development with the common goal of a sustainable and resilient future. • Their funding is [mostly] in place. Two additional major projects that will come before the community in the near future share the first two elements but lack, as yet, the third. YMCA’s Plans for Mountain View - I don’t swim (well I can, I just don’t for exercise [yet]) but one of my early lessons on Council was understanding how important swimming is to seniors and people with health issues. It’s not just for kids. Building on the Community’s clear commitment to Mountain View the Jefferson/Clallam YMCA met with City Council in May 11 workshop to review their plans for building an Aquatic/Wellness center on the Mountain View Campus. The layout they presented was the first draft of a facility that, working closely with Jefferson Health Care, would incorporate the community’s priorities as informed by a survey of Jefferson County residents commissioned by the YMCA last year. As impressive as the plans for the facility are I was equally impressed with the Y’s process for this ambitious project. The next iteration will be refinement of the current plan in conjunction with an independent review of the funding strategy. Funding for construction will be mostly private donations and grants. Funding for operations will come primarily from membership fees. School District’s Capital Improvement Plan - The Port Townsend School District is preparing a bond proposal that will be taken to the district voters in February, 2016. The District’s Facilities and Long-Range Planning Steering Committee has been meeting on a regular basis for nearly two years now to determine the immediate and long-term facility needs of the district. The committee is currently exploring a number of scenarios and options for public consideration. Some elements of these scenarios are driven by mandatory requirements, such as an upgrade at Port Townsend High School, including new elevators and door hardware to become ADA (American with Disabilities Act) compliant. Security improvements are planned, such as controlled access points and camera systems at both Blue Heron and PTHS. Other scenarios and options include: • Modernization and expansion of Grant Street Elementary to become a PK-5 school, or the re-siting and construction of a new Grant Street Elementary on the current campus. • A new Performing Arts Center building to be co-managed as a community asset or significant enhancements to the existing PTHS space • Directional outdoor lighting at the Blue Heron track complex • New entrance to Port Townsend High School that would improve handicap accessibility and provide natural lighting into the current commons area of the school. Watch the Port Townsend School District’s website for up-to-date information regarding the future bond proposal. A link will be provided on the District’s website sharing information regarding the ThoughtExchange survey currently underway in the community. How We Say Who We Are On May 9th during Saturday’s Farmer's Market I got to speak at the dedication of Great Blue across the street from the Rec Center. Except for a couple of startled looks when I played the ripping sheet metal call of a Great Blue Heron over the microphone most of the market goers were either appreciative or unconcerned. I like Great Blue and will see it almost every day. It is a fitting symbol of the durability of our uptown neighborhood. And it tells the time. In the near future the City is hoping to install Russell Jaqua’s last sculpture “For Willene” in a garden setting on the triangle on Sims where the old VIC building still stands. Normally you’d have to smack me hard with a yoga mat to get me to admit to anything spiritual but Jaqua’s powerful expression of the infinite wheeling sky bookended on the waterfront by the Salish Sea Circle, and punctuated around town by Great Blue, Guillemots and Sea Otters - will work together as a strong symbolic embrace of the extraordinary setting from which our community draws its extraordinary energy. Thanks to the brave souls on our Arts Commission for their dedication. June 2015 POISON HEMLOCK DO’S & DON’TS DO: Bag Poison Hemlock and place the bags in the garbage DON’T: Allow Poison Hemlock to travel to the Jefferson County Yard Waste composting facility. The weeds could then end up contaminating compost used for future landscaping. Note: This corrects information in our April newsletter regarding where to take Poison Hemlock. The long days of summer seem to hold the most promise for selling garage sale items and real estate. Please follow these Port Town- send Municipal Code rules: Garage Sale signs have the 3-3-3-3 rule: they may be up to three square feet in size, for three days, and up to three signs may be placed on the property or in nearby streets. They may not be dis- played more than three times in any 12-month period. Residential real estate signs may be up to 4-1/2 square feet in size, but only one sign may be placed on the property (or right next to the fence). Off-premise directional signs pointing down the street are not allowed except during an Open House when signs up to three square feet in size are allowed in nearby rights-of-way. Signs in the right-of-way must be self-supporting. Use signs with wire legs or wooden sticks that you can temporarily secure into the ground. Place them on the private property side of utility poles, fire hydrants and sidewalks where they are out of the way of motor- ists and pedestrians. Please do not attach signs to utility poles or traffic signs! Thank you for doing your part to reduce sign clutter by promptly re- moving all signs after your sale. Contact Suzanne Wassmer in the Development Services Department with questions – (360) 379-5095 FRIENDS OF THE PORT TOWNSEND LIBRARY USED BOOK SALE Saturday June 13, 2015 9:00-3:00 (8:00 for Members ) Community Center, in Uptown Port Townsend MAKE A DIFFERENCE! Join the Library Advisory Board The City is seeking citizens to fill volunteer positions on the Library Advisory Board. The board acts as an advisory board to the City Council concerning the operations of the Port Townsend Library. The board offers advisory opinions concerning the supervision, care and custody of library property; the annual operations budget; pur- chase of supplies and materials for library patrons; and the hours of operation for public use of the li- brary. The board also develops policy for the selection of books, periodicals, maps, materials, and information services for the li- brary's operation. In addition, the board may make recommenda- tions to the city council regarding long-range planning of facilities and funding-based proposals. Applications are available at City Hall, 250 Madison Street #2 ,Port Townsend, WA. Call 344-3048 to request an application form or download from www.cityofpt.us/ boardscommissions.htm. City residency or employment within the City is re- quired. Appointments are for three years. Get Involved in the Update! Add your voice to the 2016 Comprehensive Update process by participating in a brief online survey. Visit: http://cityofpt.us/CompPlanUpdate.htm then click on SpeakUp Port Townsend. Port Townsend welcomes the City’s newest Police Officer, Derek Ejde, who joined the force on May 1. Derek grew up in Poulsbo and attended North Kitsap High school. He graduated with distinction from Western Washington University with a B.A. in Humani- ties and Social Sciences. He is also a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu instructor. Officer Ejde will be training in Port Townsend until he can attend the Criminal Justice Law Enforcement Academy this July. Officer Ejde being sworn in by City Clerk Joanna Sanders The Port Townsend Police Department has openings for entry level officers. All initial testing for Police Of- ficer Positions is done through PublicSafetyTesting.com (PST) a private testing agency. This includes a physical agility test and a written exam. You may register for testing through PST at their web- site: www.publicsafetytesting.com Upon successful completion of the PST testing process, names will be forwarded by PST to the Human Re- sources Department. City of Port Townsend Civil Service employment applications will be mailed to those candidates. When an opening occurs or at the time the Civil Service Commission recommends an employ- ment list be established, all those who have completed applications on file will be contacted to determine if they are still interested in employment. If so, they will be invited to Port Townsend for further testing, in- cluding an oral board panel interview and a report writing test. You may only receive a Port Townsend employment application if you have successfully completed the PST testing. The next local area PST test will be in Sequim on Tuesday, June 23. All those who suc- cessfully complete testing on or before this date at any PST location will be eligible for the next Port Town- send interviews which will be scheduled in mid to late July. Local candidates are encouraged! If you have further questions, please call Pam Kolacy at 379-5045. Port Townsend will be hosting Tina Clarke, Certified Transi- tion Trainer with the global Transition Towns movement, June 13-21. See more at www.TransitionNetwork.org The Transition Towns move- ment has helped over 220 community transition and re- silience initiatives to date. Sponsored by Local 2020, Jef- ferson County’s official Transi- tion Town initiative. www.L2020.org Are you looking for current information about what to do in Port Townsend? Do you have out-of-town family and friends planning a trip to visit? The City’s Official Tourism Website is the place to go for current information and more! www.enjoypt.com Traffic in the City becomes more congested during the sum- mer months. As you search for parking, please keep in mind the following tips from the Washington State Drivers Guide:  Drivers are responsible for making sure that their vehicle is not a hazard when it is parked.  Whenever you park, be sure it is in a place that is far enough from any travel lane to avoid interfering with traf- fic and that it is visible to vehicles approaching from ei- ther direction.  If you must park on a roadway, park your vehi- cle as far away from traffic as possible and outside of the traveled way. If there is a curb, park as close to it as you can.