Holiday Closures
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City offices will be closed on:
- Friday, December 23, offices closed at 12 PM
- Monday, December 26, Christmas
- Friday, December 30, offices closed at 12 PM
- Monday, January 2, New Years Day.
City of Poulsbo Public Works department collects garbage during ALL holidays including: Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. Bainbridge Disposal will also collect recycling during all holidays.
There will be no change to your scheduled garbage pickup day during holidays.
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Winter Camps & Activities
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Backyard Habitat Grants
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The Kitsap Conservation District is now accepting Backyard Habitat Grant applications for stream restoration projects, on private property, in unincorporated Kitsap County. Applications are due November 16
th. Please visit their
website for more information and an application. Feel free to contact
Carin Anderson with questions at 360-204-5529 Ext. 122.
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New Skate Park in Poulsbo!
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The Poulsbo Parks and Recreation Department is putting together a citizen's committee for a new Skate Park in Poulsbo. This volunteer committee will create a park vision, identify possible sites, create a publicity brochure and discuss project timelines. The first meeting will be Monday, December 5, 6:00 pm in the Poulsbo City Hall Council chambers. If interested, please email Mary McCluskey at mmccluskey@cityofpoulsbo.com.
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2016 Comprehensive Plan Periodic Update
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The City of Poulsbo is undertaking a periodic review and update of its comprehensive plan and development regulations, as required by the Washington State Growth Management Act, RCW 36.70A.130(5). The GMA sets forth that Kitsap County and its cities should review and revise,if needed, their comprehensive plans and development regulations to ensure the plan and regulations comply with GMA requirements.The periodic review shall continue for every eight years thereafter.
Poulsbo's Comprehensive Plan has been updated since the original 1994 GMA Plan, with a significant update adopted December 2009. Amendments have occurred yearly since 2009, including amendments to policies, maps, functional plans, and the capital facilities plan. Since the City underwent a significant update effort in 2008-2009 of its comprehensive plan and 2012-2013 of its zoning ordinance, the 2016 Periodic Update will primarily be a check-in on the policy direction of the comprehensive plan, and amendments will be identified as needed and appropriate...
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December 2016 E-Newsletter
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Affordable Housing in Poulsbo
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Mayor Erickson
The North Kitsap Herald asked me the following question: "Voters recently approved a 3/10 of 1% sales tax that is expected to raise $11,000,000 for a fast foot ferry. If a similar tax were passed for affordable housing, how would you recommend using that money and what impact might your recommendations have on the current affordable housing crisis?" I answered the question below. I thought I would share this column in case you do not see it in the Herald.
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You know that mind game, "What if I won the lottery?"
I'm delighted that Richard Walker and the NK Herald staff are allowing me to 'play' that game in my year-end column.
I do not want to tie the question of affordable housing to fast ferries. That question has already sailed away.
I am a fiscally conservative mayor, so the amount of money needed to bring some true and lasting relief to our housing crisis is rather modest.
First, let's define the problem. Most of us think affordable housing is for 'poor people.' But the current median sales price of a home in Poulsbo is $357,000 and it is not uncommon to find apartments renting for over $1,200 per month. Is Poulsbo affordable? It depends on your income. For many we are no longer a place of affordable housing, especially for three categories of people: the homeless who need shelter; the chronically disabled or elderly, and families who are priced out of the market.
Let's start with the first group, those most in need: the homeless. I am currently speaking with fellow elected officials to encourage them to do what we will do in Poulsbo--build a small shelter, one of a "cluster" around the county. Build small shelters, in each jurisdiction, easy to manage and closer to the problems of each community. Each community shares the responsibility of providing shelter. I am estimating a cost of about $800,000 for the shelter in Poulsbo and ongoing operational costs of about $200,000 annually to manage it.
The next group: those in need of long-term support, the disabled and elderly. Housing Kitsap has a couple of facilities here in Poulsbo that serve this group well, but we need more. There are two apartment projects in the works: 1) 100 units at Olhava next to Olympic College, that will be 50% market rate and 50% low-income, plus 2) another 70 units on Viking Avenue. But those projects are several years away. So in the meantime, Poulsbo will be granting occupancy permits to larger homes that can be converted into boarding houses, each with live-in managers. This is a low-cost solution, and I've already identified five homes that could be converted. I'm looking for more. The apartment buildings and boarding houses would require private investors to help facilitate their construction. For the entire county, $2 million annually would be adequate seed capital to incentivize development of apartments and boarding house conversion.
The third group that needs our help is those that have been priced out of our housing market. These are many of the people you see daily--the barista, the waitress, the retail clerk, the auto mechanic. They are often our grown children starting out in life.
This is a lack of supply problem. When supply is low, landlords can demand higher rents. Increase supply, and the rents go down. We need more apartments and modest home construction. Housing construction of any kind virtually stopped in 2009. We're catching up now. I've been working with developers who are interested in building affordable housing. This is my role as Mayor of Poulsbo, to work within the laws, regulations, and processes, but to also facilitate private businesses who can work with us to solve our problems.
Everyone needs a warm, dry place to sleep at night. Ultimately, it's what we all want. So for a modest investment, there are housing solutions available. We just need the political will to accomplish them, and yes, a little more money. Just 1/10 of 1% throughout the County would provide sustainable funding for shelter and affordable housing construction for our vulnerable residents of Kitsap County.
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Anderson Parkway Construction Slated for February-March 2017
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The City and Port will be constructing improvements to the portion of Anderson Parkway near the SEA Discovery Center from late January to mid-March 2017. The improvements will result in a new stormwater treatment system that will help protect Liberty Bay, additional parking spaces and re-surfacing of the parking lot. Residents and visitors can expect to see a much more efficient and attractive parking area by spring 2017.
To accommodate construction activity, the parking lot will be closed from late January to early March. Pedestrian access to the marina and businesses will be maintained, as will vehicle access to the SEA Discovery Center. As part of the project, the Port will also be repairing the existing bulkhead. This work has to be done at night while the tide is out (low tides in winter are at night) so residents, businesses and visitors should expect to see construction activity during the night from late January to mid-February.
The City and Port are working hard to minimize impacts to businesses, residents and visitors. The parking lot closure period is occurring during the lowest use period of the year, and the construction schedule is being compressed as much as possible. The City will be hosting an open house on January 8, 6:30-8pm, to provide more information to residents and businesses as the construction date draws closer. Any one desiring more information should contact the City Engineering Department at 360-779-4078.
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NK Fishline Fundraising Concert
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