It was a busy day yesterday at City Hall -- the public hearing for the Winslow Hotel project proposal was held before the Hearing Examiner. The hearing was well-attended, and more than 100 members of the public were present. To date, the City has received more than 300 public comments on this project proposal.

At the study session this week, the Council received information on options to pursue LEED certification for the project to construct a new Police Station and Municipal Court. The project entails renovation of an existing medical building and will include a range of "green building" features within the project design. The Council also received a detailed briefing on the Sustainable Transportation Plan project, which will involve significant community engagement and outreach over the coming year. Finally, the Council discussed community concerns related to the sand mining operation located at the "Triangle Property" on Fletcher Bay and Lynwood Center roads. The Council passed a motion intended to strongly encourage the City's full investigation of issues related to enforcement of permit requirements and other regulations at the site. City staff are actively working with both the Department of Natural Resources and the Department of Ecology to assess what actions are needed on this issue. Click here to watch the Jan. 21 discussions.

For more information on next week's topics and other items, please see below.

A public hearing on the Winslow Hotel project was held Thursday, Jan. 23 in the Council Chambers. The hearing began around 10 a.m., with a short lunch break, and ended just before 6 p.m. More than 100 people attended the hearing, filling the Council Chambers and adjoining conference room with more people listening in the lobby.

 

The hearing began with presentations from City staff and then the applicant before transitioning to public comment. There were approximately 50 people who commented on the project proposal, and various hand-written comments were submitted.

 

Hearing Examiner Ted Hunter provided the following deadlines at the hearing:

The Hearing Examiner will decide no later than Feb. 12 whether to reopen the public hearing or proceed with a written finding.

 

The Hearing Examiner's finding is the final decision of the City and does include an appeal period. 

 

The project's current design includes significant sustainability features, including re-use of an existing facility and plans to meet Washington State 2015 Energy Code requirements. These planned features were presented to Council in comparison charts that showed how they would compare in energy usage and carbon production to other potential design choices as well as recognized green building benchmarks.

 

CHI Franciscan Health plans to vacate the existing building today (Friday, Jan. 24) and the City will finalize its purchase of the property on Jan. 31.

 

Click here to watch the Jan. 21 discussion.

The City Council participated in a roughly 75-minute presentation and discussion at the Jan. 21 study session to learn more about the upcoming sustainable transportation planning effort. Staff from  Nelson Nygaard, a transportation planning firm hired by the City to guide the sustainable transportation plan, led the discussion.

The Council launched the sustainable transportation planning effort in 2019, and recently established as an overarching goal of the project that it support the City's intent to reduce community carbon emissions by 90% by 2040.

The Jan. 21 presentation covered a variety of topics, including identifying the needs that set the context for the plan, considering the values that will be tied to transportation decisions made along the way, and describing the principles that will be addressed. The core areas of focus for the plan include:

Throughout the planning effort, staff will provide updates to Council during each study session.

As part of the planning process, the City is creating a Technical Advisory Committee made up of City staff and public agencies that serve the island, including the BI Metro Park and Recreation District, Bainbridge Island School District, Kitsap Transit, Washington State Ferries, and Washington State Department of Transportation.

The City is also creating a Sustainable Transportation Task Force made up of 15 to 20 community members. The Task Force, which will represent a cross section of the community, will guide development of the Sustainable Transportation Plan and ensure that the project benefits from strong support, input, and stewardship throughout the planning process.

The City is now accepting applications for the Task Force. Members will be appointed by the City Council and serve a one-year term. The Task Force will meet regularly over the course of the project; times and locations to be determined.

Applications are due by 4:00 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 31, 2020. Interviews and/or selection of Task Force members will be held in February.

Click here to learn more about the sustainable transportation plan and apply for the Task Force.

The new fence will meet the current standard for playground fencing and safety and require less maintenance than the existing wooden fence.

It's anticipated the work will begin in mid-February. The project will be completed in two phases. Phase one will include the removal of the existing fence and phase two will be the installation of the new fence. During both phases, the playground will be closed to the public.  Expect the closure to last approximately six weeks.

For more information, please contact the Public Works Department at 206.842.1212.

During the Jan. 28 business meeting, staff will present to City Council on a collaborative work effort between the City and BI Metro Park and Recreation District to establish roles and responsibilities for expanding and maintaining the island's trail network.

The presentation will be in two parts: the first part, scheduled for the Jan. 28 meeting, will be informative and focus on the islandwide trail inventory and the relationship between City and Parks trail planning efforts. One anticipated follow-up will be the potential for a new Interlocal Agreement between the City and Parks through which the two agencies would collaborate on the implementation of building and maintaining trails in the future.

 

Throughout 2019, staff from the City and Parks met regularly to improve collaboration between the two organizations regarding bicycle and pedestrian trail planning. Parks recently updated its Trail Comprehensive Plan, and the City will be updating the Islandwide Transportation Plan (IWTP) as part of the Sustainable Transportation Plan project. Parks and City staff have been working on a joint planning effort to inform both plans, and to identify and illustrate an interconnected trail system throughout the island.

The City Council will consider an amendment to the existing lease with Friends of the Farms (FOF) to allow for payment of $72,000 in operating support in 2020. 

 

Since 2012, FOF has acted as the City's property manager for 60 acres of public farmland in accordance with a master lease signed by FOF and the City. The lease allows for FOF to collect rent from farmers and use City land for programming but does not provide for compensation. 

 

In 2018, FOF requested that the City provide direct support to their organization. In 2019, the City provided a payment of $65,000 to FOF for 2019 services. FOF requested continuation of payment into 2020 and future years. In late 2019, the Council approved FOF funding for 2020 in the amount of $72,000. The lease amendment is necessary to provide that payment, as the current agreement does not provide for City funding to FOF.

This topic was discussed at Council meetings on July 16, Sept.17 and Oct. 22, 2019. 

At the Jan. 21 study session, the Council agreed to form an ad hoc committee comprised of three council members (Deets, Hytopoulos and Nassar) to review various topics related to the management of the City's public farmland. The ad hoc committee will consider a broad range of policy issues, in addition to considering City payments to FOF beyond 2020. The formation of the ad hoc committee is scheduled for approval on the Council's consent agenda at the Jan. 28 business meeting.