City Council picks builder for SR 900 trail link
June 29, 2010
The planned trail connector across Interstate 90 at state Route 900 inched closer to reality June 7, after the City Council awarded a nearly $5.3 million contract to build the link.
The council selected the lowest bidder, Issaquah contractor C. A. Carey Corp. Grants — including $400,000 from Sound Transit — offset most of the project cost. The city contributed about $341,000 toward the link. Construction should start in July and last about eight months.
Plans call for a separate 12-foot-wide pedestrian bridge across the westbound I-90 on-ramps and modifications to the existing state Route 900 overpass to install a 10-foot-wide pedestrian crossing. Critics questioned the proposed location, but the council decided last year to proceed.
The project aims to complete a trail about 1,600 feet long, between the end of the state Route 900 boardwalk at the eastbound I-90 off-ramp on the south side of the interstate, and the Sammamish Trail on the north.
Transportation officials said the project should improve safety for pedestrians and bicyclists along state Route 900.
New admissions process at UW
June 29, 2010
High school seniors applying for admission to the University of Washington for fall 2011 will face a new admissions process.
Right now, the university processes applications to its school on a rolling admissions basis. A rolling admissions process reviews and assesses applications as they are received. If admissions officers feel the applicant falls in line with what the university is looking for, an offer of enrollment is made, a press release from the university said.
Starting with freshman seeking admittance to the university for fall 2011, admissions officers will begin using a pooling admissions process. A pooling admissions process holds all decisions until all applications have been received and assessed.
Under the new system, applications for incoming freshman will be received between Oct. 1 and Dec. 15. Applicants will be notified of their admission status between March 15 and 31.
There are several reasons for the change, the release said. The first is applications to the university have increased dramatically in the past five years. Many of those applications arrive on or before the Jan. 15 deadline in place now, causing strain on admissions office personnel.
“More importantly, we’ve found that rolling out admission decisions from December through March was causing significant anxiety among applicants and their parents, leading to thousands of phone calls and e-mails about application status and notification about decisions,” Assistant Vice President for Enrollment Philip Ballinger said in the release. “By moving to an earlier application deadline, as well as a single admissions decision window for all freshman class applicants, we hope to bring more clarity to the admissions process, relieve undue anxiety among students and their families, and improve the efficiency and speed with which we are able to process and holistically review ever-growing application pools.”
King County will continue to patrol lake
June 29, 2010
Marine patrols off the shore of South Cove, the neighborhood along southwest Lake Sammamish, will continue to be handled by the King County Sheriff’s Office, the City Council has decided.
The city will pay $16,800 for the service. The agreement goes into effect Jan. 1. The city and the agency first entered into an interlocal agreement in 2006.
Under the original agreement, the agreement renewed automatically from year to year, unless the parties decided to terminate the pact. The county, Issaquah and other customer cities along Lake Sammamish agreed to draft a new agreement to reflect updated geographic information, as well as additional shoreline annexed by Kirkland.
Rapid Response
June 29, 2010
In light of current economic conditions faced by school districts, how do you think Washington state should raise the money to provide a globally competitive education to students?
Use the money they have to start teaching kids the basics, so they will be successful in school first, and the global marketplace second.
Bryan Weinstein, Issaquah
The education system needs more competitive incentive and less nanny-state funding. Good schools and teachers are rewarded — bad schools and teachers are not. Washington state education should be far less controlled by unions and bureaucrats. Removing layers of bureaucracy, providing community equivalent standards in educator benefits, improve classroom to nonclassroom hours ratios. Consider privatization of public education with a year-round option.
Mark Bowers, Issaquah
Put educational funds in a separate legal place where politicians can’t get their hands on it. It should never be a part of the general fund.
Fred Nystrom, Issaquah
Drop a number of the school bus runs and make the kids walk to school. This will also give them some exercise.
Paul Stewart, Issaquah
Does more money spent always mean a globally competitive education? In the decline in funding, focus on creating a culture of globally relevant outcomes: Rather than training students to be consumers, train them to be creators!
Don Burnett, Issaquah Read more
Businesses can apply for bonds to fuel growth
June 29, 2010
Businesses in Issaquah, Sammamish and unincorporated King County can apply for more than $20 million in federal bonds to fund projects to create or retain jobs.
Owners can apply for Recovery Zone Facility Bonds, a type of tax-exempt private activity bond created as part of the federal stimulus package. The federal government allocated more than $34.7 million to King County.
Most businesses can apply for the federal bonds. King County will determine the recipients, and the projects will be forwarded to the Washington Economic Development Finance Authority for processing and bond issuance.
The county extended the deadline to July 30 after officials received only two applications by the original May deadline.
Contact county Economic Development Manager Ray Moser at ray.moser@kingcounty.gov or 206-205-0707 to learn more.
The flames of love still burn after 70 years
June 29, 2010
Bill (left) and Ona Bentz reflect and joke on all of the happiness their 70 years of marriage have brought them during their lives in Seattle and Issaquah. By Greg Farrar
Issaquah couple credits strong family ties for keeping them together for seven decades
Over the handlebars of William Bentz’s bicycle, Onadee Steward fell in love.
The pair spent the mid- to late 1930s riding miles together through the Yakima countryside on their way to and from school and town.
“He wasn’t nearly as wild as some of the young men,” Onadee, or Ona as she likes to be called, now 89, recalled. “He was clean cut and didn’t pay much attention to girls.”
“In that day, bicycling was big. I’d pick her up and pump up the hill to school and back. She really outsmarted me,” Bill, 90, said with a chuckle. “You would have thought I would have caught on. I was the one doing all the work and she got to ride with me.”
Seventy years later, their love still burns brightly. Their closest family and friends helped them celebrate their 70th anniversary at a party at Mandarin Garden on May 23. Read more
Ed Baker, 100, receives Legacy Award from Arc of King County
June 29, 2010
Local resident Ed Baker, who recently turned 100, is greeted by a mascot at Legoland, where he has celebrated his birthday for the past 10 years. By Jack Austin
One hundred years ago in Seattle, Minnie Baker, a local schoolteacher, had given birth to her son Ed, who had a developmental disability. When Ed was old enough, his mother tried to enroll him in a public school, but he was denied entry. At the time, children with disabilities were not allowed to attend public schools.
However, Minnie Baker did not give up on her son’s education; she moved to a chicken farm in Issaquah and opened a two-room schoolhouse for Ed. She had founded the first special-education program in the country, which formed the roots of what would later become the Issaquah School District.
The Bakers’ chicken farm is now a development, but two acres of the property, including the old farmhouse, have been set aside for Ed Baker.
“Ed gets to live on the family farm for the rest of his life. He’ll never move off of it,” said Bill Dussault, Baker’s lawyer. “We asked the developer to keep the old farmhouse. If you drive by, you’ll see this little white farmhouse in front of the development, so Ed can still have that sense of living on the chicken farm.”
Baker recently celebrated his 100th birthday and was honored by the Arc of King County with the Living Our Legacy Award at a luncheon May 27. (ARC is the oldest nonprofit organization serving children and adults with developmental disabilities and their families in the Greater Puget Sound area.)
“I know of no one who is even within 20 years of his age who has been diagnosed with a developmental disability,” said Dussault, who is on the national board of the Arc and has been intensely involved in the disabilities movement since the late 1960s. “His life duration is truly remarkable, and I think, in large measure, it is because he did have the opportunity to live on the farm, and to grow up in a natural environment where he was valued.” Read more
To The Editor
June 29, 2010
Relay for Life
Many contributors helped make event a success, raising $242,000
On June 5, members from our community took to the track at Skyline High School for another great Relay For Life event. While the sunny weather was a great addition, it was the people involved who truly made this year’s Relay For Life an outstanding event and fundraiser for the American Cancer Society.
We’d like to extend our gratitude to the following contributors: the planning team of volunteers who spent the year organizing the event; the team captains and team members who raised money and awareness for cancer education during the relay season; our day-of-event volunteers who helped set up and prepare; and our sponsors and community businesses that made generous donations.
Most importantly, we want to recognize the individuals who demonstrated determination and passion for life as they walked the first lap, dedicated for cancer survivors and their caregivers. Thank you to those who chose to recognize loved ones by dedicating a luminaria in their name for the evening ceremony. And thank you for those who walked through the night and continued on in the rain. Together, everyone who attended this year’s relay event was a great example of why we fight back to support the American Cancer Society’s efforts to create a world with more birthdays.
We are happy to announce that we have surpassed our goal and have so far raised $242,000 in the fight against cancer. Thank you! The 2010 Relay For Life of Issaquah is continuing to raise money until August. If you would like to make a donation or participate in next year’s event, please go to www.issaquahrelayforlife.org.
Karen Conley and Stacy Strickland
Issaquah Relay For Life Event co-chairs
Parks, Siburg
June 29, 2010
Parks, Siburg
Allison Parks, of Issaquah, and Timothy Siburg, of Poulsbo, are engaged to be married Aug. 7, 2010, at First Lutheran Church, in Poulsbo.
The bride to be, the daughter of Rob and Jakki Parks, of Issaquah, is a 2005 graduate of Skyline High School. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in religion from Pacific Lutheran University in 2009. She is a student at Luther Seminary in St. Paul, Minn.
The future groom, the son of Dave and Tricia Siburg, of Poulsbo, is a 2005 graduate of North Kitsap High School. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and religion from Pacific Lutheran University in 2009 and earned a master’s degree in management in 2010 from Claremont Graduate University. He, too, is a student at Luther Seminary.
Johnson, Van Gundy
June 29, 2010
Coulstan Van Gundy and Holly Johnson
Holly Johnson and Coulston Van Gundy, both of Issaquah, announced their engagement to be married Oct. 2, 2010, at Villa Academy in Seattle.
The bride to be, the daughter of William and Suni Johnson, of Roseville, Calif., is a 2002 graduate of Roseville High School. She earned a degree in 2006 in global logistics at the California Maritime Academy and works at Northland Services Inc.
The future groom, the son of Dr. Jeff Van Gundy and Dr. Elaine Van Gundy, of Granite Bay, Calif., is a graduate of Granite Bay High School. He earned a degree in mechanical engineering in 2006 at the California Maritime Academy. He works at Crowley Marine Services.
