County to discuss Freed House’s landmark status
February 28, 2011
New: Feb. 28, 2:47 p.m.
The Freed House may soon be certified as a county landmark, paving the way for grant money to help rehabilitate the 115-year-old farmhouse and potentially saving the home from destruction.
The King County Landmarks Commission has scheduled a public hearing at Sammamish City Hall on April 28 to determine whether the home, which currently sits on stilts without a permanent location, qualifies as historically significant. Read more
Costs nearly double on 32nd Street Barricade removal proposal
February 25, 2011
New: Feb. 25, 1:55 p.m.
The city’s estimates of the cost of road improvements to Southeast 32nd Street should the barricade be taken down have nearly doubled.
On Feb. 23 the city posted an updated map on their web site showing additional pedestrian safety measures called for by neighbors and council members following an occasionally contentious council study session Jan. 11. Read more
Goodman’s bill to protect rape victims progresses
February 24, 2011
New: Feb. 26, 2:24 p.m.
A bill proposed by a local representative that would protect rape victims from being cross-examined by their alleged attacker took a step towards reality Feb. 22.
House bill 1001, introduced by Democratic Rep. Roger Goodman (45th District), passed thestate House of Representatives unanimously on a 92-0 vote. The bill would ask the courts to prevent defendants representing themselves in rape cases from questioning their victims on the witness stand. Goodman said an accused rapist could instead question through closed-circuit television, through a third party or through written questions. Read more
Skyline grad Andie Taylor on USA swim team
February 23, 2011
Andie Taylor, a 2010 graduate of Skyline High School, has been named to a field of 47 swimmers that will represent Team USA at the 2011 World University Games in Shenzhen, China. Taylor now attends Stanford University.
The swimming competition will take place Aug. 14-19, while the games will run from Aug. 12-23. Taking place every two years, the World University Games are an international multi-sport event organized for university athletes by the International Sports Federation (FISU).
All athletes selected for the team must be at least 17 years old and less than 28 years old on January 1, 2011. Taylor is scheduled to compete in the 400 meter individual medley and 200 meter butterfly.
Eastlake grad learns as she teaches in Peace Corps
February 23, 2011
During her two years in Turkmenistan working for the Peace Corps, Jeanne Walsh learned that the children listened to her lessons about nutrition, sanitation and exercises the best.
“One day, I said, ‘You can have ice cream on the way home from school,’ and one of the little girls said, ‘Jeanne, you just said ice cream was bad for our teeth.’”
Entering the Peace Corps after graduating from Gonzaga University felt natural, she said. Her father was in the Peace Corps in Ethiopia — teaching math the late 1960s. Her parents encouraged her to try the program, giving her a chance to learn about another culture and herself simultaneously.
Jeanne Walsh, a 2004 Eastlake High School graduate, spent two years in the Peace Corps in Turkmenistan and taught the community about healthcare and fun projects, including how to make Easter eggs. Contributed
Sammamish mayor’s aquatic center financing plan has skeptics
February 23, 2011
Mayor Don Gerend believes Sammamish can build itself a community aquatic center at no net cost to its residents in exchange for opening it up to citizens around King County.
Gerend explained his “thought experiment” to a table containing several skeptics at the council’s Feb. 4 retreat in Cle Elum.
“If a realtor could say, ‘we’ve got a Puget Sound-class community aquatic center here,’ what do you think (a potential home buyer) would say?” Gerend asked. “Schools enhance the value of real estate and recreation facilities do, too.” Read more
Homeowner’s property tax increases result of voter approved tax levies
February 23, 2011
Sammamish taxpayers will likely be paying a bit more this year due to last year’s approved school and library levies.
Property tax bills for the first half of 2011 were mailed out last week and must be paid or postmarked by May 2. Many homeowners handle their tax bills through their mortgage lender, and will see the change in the form of higher monthly escrow payments.
According to levy rates released this month, the average Sammamish homeowner will be paying $12.14 per $1,000 of assessed value – a 2.4 percent increase from 2010. The increase will vary depending on where a home is located in the honeycomb of overlapping taxing districts in the city, but the rise is about the same as the average seen across King County. Read more
Mayor’s plan for pool is too convoluted
February 23, 2011
To mix metaphors: Mayor Don Gerend’s proposal to fund a new aquatic center seems to be founded on the idea that if Sammamish were to use just enough smoke and position the mirrors correctly, it will have no problem selling all the snake oil it wants.
An aquatic center, done properly, could be a benefit to the community and is worth pursuing, but the city simply can’t get something for nothing. Read more
Sammamish Forum Feb. 23
February 23, 2011
Council giving cell companies too much
Evans Creek Preserve could open this summer
February 23, 2011
Sammamish will likely have another couple miles of trails for running and hiking open by this summer.
Evans Creek Preserve, a 179-acre natural area of forest and wetland just north of city limits, is slated to open late this summer, project manager Kellye Hilde said.
The city purchased the property for $1.5 million just after incorporation in 2000 and held on to it while dealing with the host of other road and parks projects on its plate. Read more
