City News You Can Use. 

News from City Hall 
Dear Bainbridge Islanders,

It seems incredible that we are closing out March and with it, the first part of 2019. Within the City, we marked the end of Q1 with one of our regular "all-hands" meetings to recap work in progress and highlight upcoming priorities. Many of our priority projects are moving ahead as planned, but there are a few areas where we will work to regain momentum in Q2.

The City devoted significant effort in Q1 to site acquisition for our Police and Municipal Court Facility project, next steps for the Suzuki property affordable housing project, changes to the Dave Ullin Open Water Marina, and work to initiate a community conversation about Sustainable Transportation. We also launched several new communications initiatives, including a monthly mailing to all island households (look for the first issue to arrive in early April), and created a Race Equity Task Force.

Looking ahead, Q2 will be a time for the City to focus on an implementation plan for our priority affordable housing initiatives, proposed changes to rules for subdivisions, and new guidelines for sandwich boards and other community signs. We also will complete our once-a-year recruitment for volunteers to serve on the City's advisory committees. Please consider this opportunity to be part of the City's work across a wide range of topics and activities. See the City's website for more details.

Finally, I'd like to note that the City Council decided this week to approve the purchase of the Harrison Medical Building, which we will retrofit to provide a new Police and Municipal Court facility. This is an important milestone in the City's highest priority project, and we are excited to be moving forward.  There is more detailed information below and on the City's project webpage. I am personally looking forward to the project's next steps and will work hard to deliver a project that meets our community goals within the planned $20.0 million budget. It has taken many years and a great deal of consideration to reach this point, and we have all learned a lot in the process. City staff will be working together from here on to build a high-functioning facility that will effectively serve our public safety needs for decades to come.

Best wishes,

Morgan Smith
City Manager
City moves forward with purchase of Harrison Medical Center Building

City Manager Morgan Smith (center) stands alongside Municipal Court Judge Sara McCulloch and Police Chief Jeff Horn after signing the purchase documents.
City Manager Morgan Smith signed a purchase and sale agreement on Wednesday for the Harrison Medical Center Building, located at 8804 Madison Avenue N, in the amount of $8.975 million to support completion of a new police and municipal court facility.
The execution of this agreement follows the Bainbridge Island City Council's approval on Tuesday night.

The City intends to renovate the building to provide replacement facilities for the Police Department and Municipal Court. Based on feasibility studies performed in 2018, the approximate cost for the complete project, including property purchase and renovations, is estimated to be $20 million. The project is likely to be the most significant financial investment the City will make in the next 20 years.

"This project is the City's highest priority for several reasons. First, because we need to a provide a safe and sustainable facility in order for our Police Department to continue to provide first-class community policing, and to be sufficiently prepared for emergencies and other public safety challenges.  We also need to acknowledge that our Municipal Court should be housed in a location that is easy to access and that provides appropriate privacy and security for Court customers," said City Manager Morgan Smith.  

"Finally, we need to do everything we can to meet our commitments to deliver a project that is both functional and cost-effective. I believe that the decision to renovate this existing building puts us in the best position possible to meet all of these goals."

The City will have 60 days to complete due diligence tasks outlined in the purchase agreement. Once that work is complete, the City will use the next six to nine months to develop more detailed plans for the building's renovation, to refine initial cost estimates, and to prepare documentation to bid the project's construction in early 2020.

More information on this project is available on the Police and Municipal Court Facility project page. Watch the March 26 City Council discussion here.
City Council approves six-month extension of development moratorium
The City Council approved a six-month extension of the development moratorium at the March 26 business meeting. The moratorium is now set to expire October 3, 2019 (unless the Council takes further action before this time) to allow staff more time to complete the work plan that includes the following topics:
  • Subdivision Standards
    • Revise the subdivision standards to result in residential development that reflects Comprehensive Plan goals and policies included in the land use, housing, and environmental elements.
  • Design Guidelines
    • Update and improve the design guidelines and review process to result in higher quality development that reflects the Island's values and character.
  • Conditional Use/Site Plan Decision Criteria
    • Revise criteria to reduce subjectivity in decision-making and better ensure outcomes consistent with the Comprehensive Plan.
  • Affordable Housing
    • Develop an affordable housing work program in response to Inclusionary Zoning/Transfer of Development Rights and Affordable Housing Task Force reports.
The Council passed the temporary moratorium in January 2018 and it has been extended several times. 
 
The moratorium is subject to change based on progress or new information that occurs before the expiration on October 3.
 
During the moratorium, people  may request and participate in an informal 30-minute consultation meeting to discuss in general terms project ideas and permit application questions and/or schedule a pre-application meeting to discuss project requirements in more detail. The $180 consultation fee may be deducted from the official land use permit fee if a subsequent pre-application meeting or land use permit is applied for within one year of a consultation meeting. Learn how to make an appointment here.
 
Watch the March 26 discussion here.

In addition, the City Council will spend two hours at the April 2 study session discussing the subdvision update. More information will be available in the Council packet when it's published later today. 
Council approves purchase of Waterfront Park sculpture
The City Council approved the $13,000 purchase of the "Hand in Hand" sculpture at Waterfront Park to add as a permanent installation to the City's public art collection.

The "Hand in Hand" artwork, which was designed by Will Robinson, is one of three pieces installed as part of the City's 2018 Something New rotating public art program. The other artwork is located at the corner of Winslow Way and Ericksen Avenue and at the southern end of Madison Avenue.

Council also approved a recommendation by the Public Art Committee to extend the Something New program for five years and to provide three new sites for artwork installation. The Public Art Committee is now looking for submissions for the second round of outdoor sculpture installations. Learn more here.
City Hall hosts homelessness photo exhibit during April 5 First Friday Art Walk
A new photography exhibit documenting homelessness and homeless communities in Portland and Seattle is now on display at the City Hall Council Chambers and will be showcased at an artist's reception during the April 5 First Friday Art Walk.

Curated by Greg Robinson, Chief Curator at the Bainbridge Island Museum of Art, the exhibit features a sample of photographs by internationally acclaimed photojournalist Steve Wilson, a resident of Bainbridge Island and Seabeck. Wilson's career spans from the New York and Seattle World's Fairs to LIFE and National Geographic magazine. 

"At my final photo assignment with LIFE my editor David Friend asked me 'What's next?'. I told him that I was interested in low-income and homeless. He told me no one cares about that, so that's why I did it. Because no one cares," recalls Steve Wilson. "I started with 'What can be done with small houses?', then I decided the story was about the people, and then I decided that the story was about the people's stories."

Councilmember Leslie Schneider is sponsoring the exhibit. The April 5 reception is 6-8 p.m. and will include remarks by Greg Robinson at 6:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers. Guitarist Robin Kutz will perform during the event. Read more here.
Mark Your Calendar: April Ward Meetings

Got something on your mind to share with the City Council? Please join them for the April Ward meetings. No agenda - just a casual conversation. 

South Ward meeting with Councilmembers Sarah Blossom and Matt Tirman and At-large Councilmember Ron Peltier: Saturday, April 13; Island Center Hall; 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

 
North Ward meeting with Mayor Kol Medina, Councilmember Joe Deets and At-large Councilmember Ron Peltier: Saturday, April 27; Seabold Hall; 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
 
Central Ward meeting with Deputy Mayor Leslie Schneider, Councilmember Rasham Nassar and At-large Councilmember Ron Peltier: Saturday, April 27; City Hall; 1 to 3 p.m.

Don't know your ward? Check the map here.
New buoy layout design for open water marina

Staff is continuing efforts to relocate private buoys following the City Council's approval of a new moorage layout for liveaboards in the Dave Ullin Open Water Marina (DUOWM). Staff has spoken with all the owners of the private buoys and is discussing potential relocation of those buoys. 

The City Council approved a moorage layout for the DUOWM (at right) that provides 16 liveaboard spots and increases the width of the navigation fairway south of the marina area. This layout will accommodate four 60-foot boats, four 50-foot boats, four 40-foot boats, and four 30-foot boats. The DUOWM includes approximately 600,000 square feet of moorage, just south of the City Dock and east of the Harbour Public House. 

The layout decision was approved after months of discussion to determine the best way to address the needs of both the liveaboard community and recreational rowers. 

In 2018, the City Council voted to provide funding to expand the number of moorage sites in the DUOWM to 16, as allowed under the terms of the City's lease with the Washington State Department of Natural Resources. 

The l ease area is known as the Dave Ullin Open Water Marina (DUOWM), in honor of a beloved resident of Eagle Harbor who died in 2017.
Reminder: WSDOT to host April 10 meeting to discuss roundabout project along SR 305

Drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians are invited to get an in-person look at plans for a series of new modern roundabouts along State Route 305 between Poulsbo and Bainbridge Island.

WSDOT is hosting an open house at Bainbridge Island City Hall Wednesday, April 10 5:30-7:30 p.m. at the Council Chambers. 

The proposed locations for the roundabouts are: Johnson Road, Totten Road, Milepost 7.9 (Masi Shop), Adas Will Lane, Port Madison Road, and Day Road. Please note these are initial conceptual plans   subject to modification. Transit, bicycle and pedestrian improvements are also planned in conjunction with intersection improvements.  Read more about the project  here.
Last call: What says Bainbridge Island? 

We need your input! Do you have any examples of development that you think are representative of what Bainbridge Island should strive for? Please take a minute to let us know by uploading a photo in an online survey . Examples may show site design, buildings, sustainable design elements, pedestrian design, landscape and other features. The images submitted will be compiled into an image book. 
 
The survey is part of the City's Design Guidelines Update project. Learn more here. 
 
Questions? Please contact Senior Planner Christy Carr at 206.780.3719 or [email protected]. 
Sign up for City Notifications
We are reviewing and updating our electronic mailing lists.  Please take a few minutes to review the lists and select topics of interest you'd like to get updates on. Click here for the full list of subscriptions that range from affordable housing to land use topics and traffic notifications.

This is a separate service from our Nixle emergency notification system.
From the heart: Rotarian on mission to help others
 
Jack Sutherland was attending a Rotary luncheon in March 2015 when suddenly he slumped to the floor. He suffered a heart attack. 

As luck would have it, Fire Chief Hank Teran and a local doctor were also at the luncheon and began CPR until paramedics arrived. On the way to the hospital, medics continued providing CPR and used an Automated External Defibrillator, commonly known as an AED, to maintain blood circulation and restore some heart function. 

Jack, who is fully-recovered, is now leading a Rotary Club project to help save other lives.The Rotary Club will buy at least 40 AEDs and place them throughout high-traffic, public locations on Bainbridge Island. For a full list of the AED locations, please click here. 

"This has motivated me to do as much as I can to ensure that others will have an essential AED available to help preserve lives," said Jack Sutherland. "This project affords me the ability to pay it forward and hopefully save lives through the Rotary Club that, quite literally, saved mine. For that, I'll forever be indebted."

In addition, the Rotary Club produced a roughly 7-minute video that reenacts the moment Sutherland collapsed and raises awareness of the project. Watch here. 
Upcoming Events
  • Monday, April 1: Design Review Board; 2-5 p.m. @ Council Conference Room
  • Tuesday, April 2: City Council Study Session; 6 p.m.
  • Wednesday, April 3: Island Center Subarea Planning Steering Committee; 6:30 p.m. @ Council Conference Room
  • Thursday, April 4: Historic Preservation Commission; 2 p.m. @ Council Conference Room
See the full calendar list here.
City of Bainbridge Island www.bainbridgewa.gov
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