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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04(360) 379-5047 (email: citycouncil@cityofpt.us) www.cityofpt.us April 2008 City of Port Townsend from Mayor Michelle Sandoval What a remarkable place Port Townsend is! Nowhere is this clearer than reflecting on the great participation by the community at our first Town Meeting. What a wonderful problem to have – more folks attending than was antici- pated! We had over 250 people enthusiastically partici- pating. It was a great pleasure to meet, talk with and hug so many of you at the Town Meeting. At our first Town Meeting, community members identi- fied many of the special qualities that make Port Town- send a great place. We agreed that preserving and en- hancing the things that make us special is essential to our vision for the future of our town. However, we also acknowledged that there were a number of challenges that will need to be addressed before that future vision can be made a reality. The upcoming Town Meetings will allow us to discuss the best approaches to tackle some of the challenges that were identified. The April 17 meeting will address how we can provide public facilities and services within the City’s financial resources. We will discuss how to sustain what we value. Although the Town Meetings will help us identify strate- gies that can address some of the challenges we face, Your Tax Dollar for 2008 Each dollar you pay in property taxes, will be distributed in the fol- lowing manner: County .16 City .19* EMS .04 Schools .29** Schools .25*** ConsFut .005 PUD .011 * Fire District receives half Hospital .033 ** Local Schools Port .021 ***State Schools County City EMS Local Schools State Schools Other● 16¢ 19¢ 4¢ 29¢ 25¢ 7¢ ●Conservation Futures, PUD, Hospital, Port IMPORTANT NOTICE ABOUT YOUR WATER SYSTEM Coliform Maximum Contaminant Level (MCL) Exceeded: Non-Acute MCL The Port Townsend Water System ID #69000R, in Jefferson County, routinely monitors the water distribution system for the presence of total coliform bacteria and in March this type of bacteria was detected. Although this incident was not an emergency, our customers have a right to know what happened and what we did or are doing to correct the situation. Coliforms are bacteria which are naturally present in the environment and are used as an indicator that other, potentially harmful, bacteria may be present. Coliforms were found in more samples than allowed and this was a warning of potential problems. Two of five samples collected on March 10, 2008 tested unsatisfactory for coliform bacteria. Eleven additional samples were collected March 11, 2008 and all were satisfactory. On March 17, 2008 another sample taken from the transmission pipeline tested unsatisfactory for coliform bacteria. The four follow-up samples from March 18 all tested satisfactory. You do not need to boil your water. People with severely compromised immune systems, infants, and some elderly may at be an in- creased risk and may want to contact their health care provider for additional guidance. What happened? What is the suspected or known source of contamination? The most likely explanation for the presence of coliform bacteria was inadvertent sampling error. All of the City’s drinking water is treated with chlorine, which is an effective bacterial disinfectant. The City continuously monitors the chlorine residual in the distribu- tion system and there was no indication of a treatment failure or other system problem. At this time the problem is considered resolved. Additional samples collected were found to be free of coliform bacteria. For more information, contact Ian Jablonski at (360)379-5001 or at 250 Madison St. Suite 2R, Port Townsend, WA 98368. Please share this notice with all the other people who drink this water, especially those who may not have received this notice directly (for example, people in apartments, nursing homes, schools, and businesses). You can do this by posting this notice in a public place or distributing copies by hand or mail. This notice is sent to you by the City of Port Townsend, distributed on 03/31/08. many cannot be solved by local government alone. It is only through the broad and continued involvement of all our community members that we will see progress. I encourage you to attend the next Town Meeting – your participation and perspective is important and valued. Please think about bringing a friend or neighbor who doesn’t drive. April 17 the doors will open at 6:00 and the meeting will be 6:30-9:00 PM in the McCurdy Pavilion at Fort Worden State Park. (Dress warmly and eat dinner first!) MAKE A DIFFERENCE! Citizen Advisory Board Recruitment The City of Port Townsend is seeking interested citizens to fill volunteer positions on the following advisory boards/committees/commissions. All committees have either vacancies or members with terms expiring on May 1. Appointments are for three years. Arts Commission Civil Service Commission Design Review Advisory Committee Historic Preservation Committee Lodging Tax Advisory Committee Non-Motorized Transportation Advisory Board Park & Recreation Advisory Board Planning Commission (4-year appointments) Tree Committee Applications are available in the City Clerk’s Office on the second floor of City Hall, 250 Madison Street. Call 379- 5083 to request an application form or download from www.cityofpt.us (Council/Boards & Committees). City residency or employment within the City is a requirement for most positions. More information can be found on the website. Fifth Annual EARTHDAY EVERYDAY! 2008 OUR EARTH, OUR COMMUNITY April 18 – 20 Friday, April 18, 7:30 PM, Rhys Roth, Director of Clean Energy Programs for Climate Solutions, will talk about “Practical and Profitable Solutions to Global Warming,” with a focus on potential applications to our commu- nity. Join us at the USO Building in Fort Worden. A donation of $5 is suggested. Saturday, April 19, 10 AM to 3 PM, the Beyond Waste action group of Local 20/20 will sponsor an Electronic Waste Roundup at the Port of Port Townsend’s Boat Haven. Go to our website www.L2020.org and click on Beyond Waste to find a list of the many electronic items that can be recycled and the charge for each item. Sunday, April 20, the Green Living Expo will be held on Memorial Field. Come and delight in our educational ex- travaganza, with FREE hands-on activities and entertain- ment suitable for the whole family, plus local food ven- dors. Once again you can sing and dance and learn about sustainable agriculture, energy conservation, local grassroots organizations and much more. New this year will be a Community Tent with scheduled presentations and demonstrations, a Green Marketplace, and a parade down Water Street. To register for a booth at the Green Living Expo or to find out more about activities and schedules, visit our website at www.L2020.org and go to EarthDay EveryDay, or call 360-385-2830. Sixteenth Annual Rhody Tour Bike Ride Sunday, May 4, 2008 The Port Townsend Bicycle Association invites you to the 16th Annual Rhody Tour Bike Ride on Sunday, May 4. The fully-supported road bike tour features routes of 32, 45 and 62 miles over Jefferson County's scenic low-traffic roads. Riders will find three rest stops and Support And Gear (SAG) vehicles along the route, all staffed with friendly volunteers. Register at the Haines Place Park & Ride, 8 to10 AM. $20 for individuals and $40 for families, with discounts for PTBA members. Each registered rider receives a coupon good for a small ice cream at Elevated Ice Cream after the ride. Proceeds from the Rhody Tour are used to support these great projects: -- The City's Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Educa- tion program; -- Free bike repair classes at the Boiler Room; -- The Village Bicycle Project, providing sustainable and affordable transportation to the people of Ghana www.VillageBicycleProject.org; and -- The Bicycle Alliance of Washington working for a bicycle-friendly Washington www.bicyclealliance.org. Details for the event, including registration forms, can be found at www.ptbikes.org. Port Townsend Main Street Program Earth Day Spring Clean-Up …weeding …planting …litter removal Volunteers are invited to join us Saturday, April 19, 2008 9 AM to 12 Noon MEET AT ADAMS STREET PARK Help Us Make Port Townsend Sparkle! Wear work clothes, bring your gloves and tools. There are a limited number of dump waivers avail- able for trash clean up on public lands. Main Street thanks the Jeff. Co. Commissioners and Jeff. Co. Public Works for their assistance with Earth Day. Please contact the Main Street office (385-7911) in advance for dump waivers. “Art Wave” and “The Chair Affair” coming in May. Find out more at www.ptguide.com/mainstreet. Farmers Market Opens Saturday, May 3! Farm fresh foods for everyone! Bring your neighbors and come meet the new growers and food vendors at the Opening Day Kickoff on Saturday, May 3 from 9:30 am – 1:30 pm in Uptown Port Townsend between Lawrence & Clay.