City Manager's Report
Bainbridge Islanders,
At the Tuesday, Jan. 26 business meeting, the Council took a significant step in the City Manager search process and directed the recruiting firm leading the process to begin negotiations with Blair King. Mr. King is the current City Manager in Coronado, California. The direction to begin negotiations is the latest step in a robust process that began in the summer of 2020 and will continue with a public meeting to hear from Mr. King on February 10. More information about how to provide questions ahead of the meeting and how to join this Zoom event are provided below.

This week, the other finalist, Keith Campbell, withdrew from consideration. Mr. Campbell is currently the City Manager in Stayton, Oregon.

With the return of some students to in-person learning this week, the City partnered with the Bainbridge Island School District and other community organizations to introduce some traffic calming measures on a temporary basis to support students who choose to walk or bike -- part or all of the way -- to school. Staff have made adjustments and tweaks to the approaches being introduced, and the temporary facilities are still in place on a pilot basis.

At the business meeting this week, the Council also received a briefing on the City’s COVID testing site and community partnership related to the COVID vaccine distribution. Council also passed a resolution, the result of significant work of staff and the Utility Advisory Committee, to look into how to expand support to small water systems island-wide, including options for facilitating consolidation of small water systems.

As you look ahead to next week, I encourage you to join the Race Equity Advisory Committee, the City Council and community leaders for an event, Courageous Conversations, to be held Thursday, Feb. 4 on Zoom. The goal of this event is to have a public conversation around race equity and what that looks like in our community.

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

Best wishes,

Ellen Schroer
Interim City Manager
City Council begins contract negotiations with City Manager finalist, virtual community meeting scheduled for Feb. 10
The City Council this week directed its consultant, Ron Holifield of Strategic Government Resources (SGR), to move forward with contract negotiations with City Manager finalist Blair King.

“I am absolutely convinced that [King] is a superb fit for our community and our City organization, that he has the experience to address the issues that we’re facing right now, and that he will help us realize our vision for the future of the island,” Deputy Mayor Kirsten Hytopoulos said during the Jan. 26 Council discussion.

King has served as City Manager of Coronado, California since 2010, and has 36 years of local government experience, which includes 25 years as a City Manager at cities throughout California. King holds a Master of Public Administration and bachelor’s degree from California State University, Fresno.


Virtual open house

The community will get an opportunity to learn more about King during a live, online community open house from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 10.

Community members may submit questions in advance by sending an email to citymanagersearch@bainbridgewa.gov by 5 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 8.

How to participate

  • Join by telephone: Dial +1 (253) 215-8782 and enter the webinar ID

  • City website livestream: Visit the Agendas & Minutes page, then click on "In Progress" when the meeting starts (similar to City Council meetings)

  • Bremerton Kitsap Access Television (BKAT): The meeting will be broadcast live on Channel 12 on Comcast & Channel 3 on WAVE

A recording of the open house will be available following the event at bainbridgewa.gov/1250.
COVID-19 Updates
COVID-19 vaccine distribution on Bainbridge Island
The City of Bainbridge Island, in partnership with the Bainbridge Island Fire Department, Bainbridge Prepares, and Bainbridge Island Community Pharmacy is working with the Kitsap Public Health District to formally request additional doses of vaccine from the Washington State Department of Health to allow us to set up a high-throughput clinic on Bainbridge Island. We are requesting a weekly allocation of 1,000-1,200 vaccines to assist with getting eligible people vaccinated on Bainbridge Island. We expect to submit additional paperwork by the end of the week and hope to receive a response from the State Department of Health in the next week or two.

Status of Bainbridge Island COVID-19 vaccine providers

  • Bainbridge Island Community Pharmacy
  • Bainbridge Island Community Pharmacy did not receive any first dose vaccines this week. We will learn Sunday, Jan. 31 if our community will receive vaccines to provide during the week of Feb. 1.
  • If Bainbridge Island Community Pharmacy receives vaccines next week, information on scheduling an appointment will be posted on the City’s vaccine page and an alert will be sent through the City's Nixle emergency notification system. Sign up for Nixle by texting 98110 to 888777 or online at nixle.com. 
  • Virginia Mason Bainbridge Island Medical Center
  • According to Somer Shields, Director of Virginia Mason Bainbridge Island Medical Center, the Bainbridge Island location is no longer accepting new appointments for COVID vaccinations. The medical center will honor all currently scheduled first dose appointments through Feb. 24, as well as ensure people who received their first dose on site will be able to come back for their second dose. Beyond that, Virginia Mason is switching its focus to providing support for larger mass vaccination clinics across Western Washington. 
  • The City’s Emergency Management Coordinator Anne LeSage and Shields are discussing how to best utilize Virginia Mason staff and volunteer resources in the current vaccine planning partnership with the City, Bainbridge Island Fire Department, Bainbridge Prepares and Bainbridge Island Community Pharmacy. 
  • Member Plus Family Health
  • Updates can be viewed here.

Emergency Management Coordinator Anne LeSage participated in a discussion this week with the Senior Center about COVID-19 vaccine distribution efforts on Bainbridge Island. See the video below.
Update on Kitsap County vaccine distribution
The Kitsap Public Health District opened a COVID-19 vaccine clinic this week. Please see the message below from the Kitsap Public Health District website.

We experienced an overwhelming volume of demand after opening vaccine clinic registration Monday morning and the registration system was overloaded, causing many users to not be able to save appointments. If you did not receive a confirmation email from noreply@timetap.com, you do not have an appointment.

We apologize for this issue. We will be working with our vendor to resolve this issue and make improvements moving ahead.

Please sign up to be notified of future vaccination opportunities.

We appreciate your patience and understanding as we build out this system.

Kitsap County Emergency Management created a blog post with information about opening the community-based vaccine clinic and questions that staff is getting from the community. Read here.
New COVID-19 vaccination site opens at Kitsap Transit's Gateway Center
The message below was included in the Jan. 27 Kitsap Emergency Operations Center bulletin.

Kitsap Transit’s Gateway Center, located at 2525 6th Street in West Bremerton, now has a COVID-19 vaccination clinic operated by Peninsula Community Health Services. See the news release from Kitsap Transit for more details.

Peninsula Community’s COVID-19 vaccine clinic operates from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays on an appointment-only basis when vaccine is made available by the state Department of Health.

To make an appointment, visit http://pchsweb.org.

For local updates and resources on the COVID-19 vaccine, visit kcowa.us/vaccine.

For more information on how Kitsap Transit keeps its customers and employees safe, visit kitsaptransit.com/covid-19.
Kitsap County to remain in Phase 1 of Roadmap to Recovery plan
Kitsap County, which is part of the Northwest region in the Roadmap to Recovery phased reopening plan, will remain in Phase 1 for the next two weeks.

Gov. Jay Inslee announced yesterday the following regions will move into Phase 2:
  • Puget Sound
  • West

The following regions will remain in in Phase 1:
  • East
  • South Central
  • North Central
  • Northwest
  • Southwest
  • North

Phase changes will go into effect on Monday, Feb. 1 and remain in effect until Monday, Feb. 15.

The Governor also announced yesterday that regions now need to meet any three of the four metrics outlined in the Roadmap to Recovery plan in order to move into Phase 2. The four metrics have not changed and include:
  • Trend in 14-day rate of new COVID-19 cases per 100k population
  • Trend in 14-day rate of new COVID-19 hospital admissions per 100k population
  • Average 7-day percent occupancy of ICU staffed beds
  • 7-day percent positive of COVID-19 tests

Going forward, the Department of Health will reassess the metrics for all eight regions every two weeks and announce any phase adjustments on Fridays. The next announcement will be Friday, Feb. 12.
City's COVID-19 test site moves to Monday, Wednesday schedule next week
Beginning next week, the City's COVID-19 drive-thru test site will operate on Mondays and Wednesdays from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. to allow emergency management staff and volunteers to focus on COVID-19 vaccine distribution in our community. Appointments at the City's drive-thru site will no longer be available on Fridays.

The test site will continue to operate by appointment only, and will offer 52 appointments per day.

While the City’s test site operations will reduce from three days to two, there are still test sites open six days a week in Kitsap County for anyone who needs a test. A complete list of the Kitsap County community test sites, registration links, times and addresses can be found here. An appointment is required for all test sites.

A list of medical clinics and pharmacies in Kitsap County offering COVID-19 testing can be found here.

More information can be found on the City's test site webpage at bainbridgewa.gov/COVIDtest.
City Council Updates
Upcoming City Council agenda
Below are some of the topics to be discussed during the Feb. 2 City Council meeting.

  • WSDOT presentation on the SR 305 roundabout project at Adas Will/Agatewood intersections
  • Proclamation declaring February 2021 as "Black History Month"
  • An update on the interim Green Building program
  • Update from the Climate Change Advisory Committee
  • Discussion on Mayor’s proposed approach to Council meetings 

If you would like to receive the City Council agenda by email when it's published, sign up on the Council Agendas webpage.

Ways to Watch
  • Zoom
  • City website livestream (visit the Agendas & Minutes page, then click on "In Progress" when the meeting starts)
  • BKAT (Channel 12 on Comcast & Channel 3 on WAVE)
City Advisory Group Updates
Race Equity Advisory Committee to host 'Courageous Conversations' event next week
Please join the City’s Race Equity Advisory Committee (REAC) and City Council on Thursday, Feb. 4 for a virtual panel discussion on social justice and community service to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

The REAC and the City Council are coming together in the spirit of MLK as one unit to hold courageous conversations with the public. The goal is to have a public conversation around race equity and what that looks like in our community.

This event, which begins at 6 p.m. on Zoom, will be held as part of BIMA’s “Untold Stories” program that began Jan. 20 (Martin Luther King Jr. Day) and ends Feb 10.

How to participate

  • By phone: Dial 253-215-8782 and enter the webinar ID
Design Review Board to hold meeting next week on Wintergreen Townhome proposal
The Design Review Board will hold a meeting next Monday, Feb. 1 for a second review of the Wintergreen Townhomes proposal, a 74-townhome long subdivision proposal that incorporates affordable housing (as defined in the Municipal Code) on two lots totaling 2.94 acres. The project site is located at 1332 Wintergreen Lane.

A public participation meeting on the Wintergreen Townhomes proposal was postponed last week to allow additional input from the Design Review Board before conducting the public participation meeting.

A public participation meeting provides an opportunity for the community to learn about a proposal as part of the proposed land use action process.

The Design Review Board Feb. 1 meeting begins at 2 p.m. on Zoom.
Other Updates
WSF to host February virtual community meetings
Please see the message below from Washington State Ferries.

Riders, commuters and terminal neighbors of Washington State Ferries are invited to attend upcoming virtual community meetings designed to provide updates and answer questions about the ferry system.

At 11 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 9, and 6 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 10, WSF staff will discuss the ferry system’s continued response to COVID-19 and progress made on key projects in 2020. New head of WSF Patty Rubstello will lead the meetings alongside former Assistant Secretary Amy Scarton.

Both meetings will cover the same material and are designed to give participants the option to join the meeting that best fits their schedule. Meeting participants will be able to ask questions and provide comments. Members of the public can participate in the meeting from a laptop, desktop computer or mobile device, but advanced registration is required.

Continue reading the full update and how to participate here.
'Safer Routes to School' Update
Please see the message below regarding the "Safe Routes to School" community project from Paula Holmes-Eber of Squeaky Wheels.

With children returning to school, Bainbridge faces a major traffic crisis: due to Covid, an estimated 1200 additional cars will be driving to school since most children will not be taking the the bus. Schools are encouraging children to bike and walk to school instead of drive. COBI is helping to make walking and biking safer for children by implementing two new traffic patterns:

  • A pop up bike/walk lane between the recommended parent drop off area at Island Church to Coppertop, where students can cross to the path to Sakai and Woodward.

  • A traffic calming project on Grow Ave from Winslow Way to High School Rd. to help children walk and bike safely from Winslow to the High School, Ordway, Commodore and Saint Cecilia’s.

The image below shows the drop-off plan for students at Island Church.
Important Dates
Monday, Feb. 1: Design Review Board meeting on Wintergreen Townhome proposal; 2 p.m. on Zoom
Thursday, Feb. 4: Race Equity Advisory Committee hosts 'Courageous Conversations' event; 6 p.m. on Zoom
Wednesday, Feb. 10: City Manager virtual open house; 6 p.m. on Zoom
Thursday, Feb. 11: Planning Commission meeting; 6 p.m. on Zoom
Monday, Feb. 15: City offices closed for Presidents Day
Friday, Feb. 26: Sustainable Transportation Task Force meeting; 9:30 a.m. on Zoom.
Stay Connected
Contact Information

280 Madison Avenue North
Bainbridge Island, WA 98110
Phone: 206-842-7633