Hospital combines diverse services for cancer patients
July 19, 2011
The Swedish Cancer Institute at Swedish/Issaquah is a one-stop shop for all things cancer related.
Patients will find doctors, surgeons, radiation, chemotherapy and magnetic oncology, not to mention naturopathic medicine, stores, social workers, clinical research and a resource library.
The institute is partnering with the American Cancer Society and providing a part-time navigator who can connect patients and families with support groups and other resources. The Be Well and Perfect Fit stores will sell prosthetics, wigs and other items a cancer patient might need.
Though the Swedish Cancer Institute has operated in the Seattle area for almost 80 years, the Swedish/Issaquah location opened July 14 and doctors are now seeing patients.
High schools’ wheelchair ramp and orchestra pit under review
July 19, 2011
When they were built in 1997, the Skyline High School orchestra pit and a Liberty High School wheelchair ramp leading to the metals lab were in compliance with building codes.
But now neither are in compliance with building codes related to the American Disabilities Act, Issaquah School District Chief of Finance and Operations Jake Kuper said. A 2009-10 facility audit of the district found several areas of concern. The state Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction carried out the facility audit and reported the results to the federal Office of Civil Rights.
“We are close to finalizing an agreement with the Issaquah School District so we can move forward on the compliance issues,” OSPI spokesman Chris Barron said. “We expect the agreement to be finalized by the end of July.”
At Skyline, OSPI auditors found that the school’s orchestra pit does not have wheelchair access.
Issaquah office building sells for $32 million
July 19, 2011
The hillside office center behind The Home Depot sold July 6 for $32 million.
The former owner, Piedmont Office Realty Trust, sold the 156,323-square-foot building to The Lake Washington Land Co., a Washington-based business.
The building at 22833 Southeast Black Nugget Road — officially the Eastpointe Corporate Center — had long been nicknamed for Boeing Co., a tenant. The building site encompasses 5.79 acres.
Eastpointe Corporate Center opened in 2001 and Piedmont acquired the building in 2003. The property management company is based in Johns Creek, Ga.
“The sale of Eastpointe Corporate Center further demonstrates our focus on select markets,” Raymond L. Owens, executive vice president of capital markets for Piedmont, said in a statement. “Although our investment in the Seattle market has proven to be positive, the disposition of this property allows us the opportunity to thoughtfully recycle our capital into our top 10 office markets nationally.”
Cedar Grove Composting ordered to pay fine for odors
July 19, 2011
The state ordered Cedar Grove Composting to pay $119,000 in fines July 14 for odor violations at a facility in rural King County near Issaquah and another in Everett.
The fines resulted from 13 violations from the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency in 2009 and 2010. The composter appealed the violations to the state Pollution Control Hearings Board, but the panel denied the appeals.
“It’s about time. We’ve been waiting for someone to hold Cedar Grove accountable for their noxious odors,” Citizens for a Smell Free Snohomish County founder Mike Davis said in a statement. “We’re tired of Cedar Grove denying any responsibility and blaming everybody else while people all around the region can’t even enjoy their own yards because of the huge stench.”
The commercial composter is near the Cedar Hills Regional Landfill between Issaquah and Renton.
In a 66-page ruling, the Pollution Control Hearings Board said “odors emanating from the facilities have interfered with the reasonable enjoyment of life and property of a large number of surrounding residents.”
State ban on BPA affects children’s products
July 19, 2011
The initial step in a state law banning the chemical Bisphenol A, more commonly known as BPA, started July 1, as the state banned BPA-containing bottles, cups and other containers for children younger than 3.
State legislators passed a law last year to ban the sale of certain products containing BPA. The chemical is used to keep plastic containers airtight, but has been linked to health problems, including miscarriages.
Starting July 1, 2012, the ban also applies to sports bottles containing BPA. However, cans designed to hold or pack food can still contain BPA.
Many food and drink cans include a lining of epoxy resin containing BPA.
Numerous national and international scientific organizations have expressed concerns about how BPA can interfere with the body’s hormonal system.
The state Department of Health created a website, www.doh.wa.gov/ehp/oehas/ bpa.htm, dedicated to answering questions about BPA and the state ban.
Issaquah Highlands Self Storage opens
July 19, 2011
Issaquah Highlands Self Storage has officially opened its doors.
The storage facility is located on High Street between Ninth Avenue Northeast and Northeast Highlands Drive, adjacent to the Issaquah Highlands Park & Ride.
In early May, customers began moving items into storage units just in time to rotate storage of seasonal items.
The storage facility is six stories high and 68,000 square feet, containing 503 heated storage units that protect possessions from the damp Northwest weather. Sizes range from 25 square feet to more than 200 square feet. The transit center next door contains reserved parking for customers in addition to the main loading area in front.
West Coast Self-Storage is the management company.
Office hours are from 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday and from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Customers have access 365 days a year via a keypad from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Learn more at www.issaquahhighlandsselfstorage.com or call 295-2959.
Issaquah, Skyline students blast into aerospace program
July 19, 2011
Four students from the Issaquah School District will soon be studying a manned mission to Mars.
In November, 290 students applied for the Washington Aerospace Scholars Summer Residency program at The Museum of Flight. After months of homework from the program, the top 160 students — Neha Saraf and Keith Luu, from Issaquah High School, and Andrea Liu and Andrew Pedroni, from Skyline High School — earned places in the camp’s summer residency programs.
The students will team up with other high school juniors from across the state, participating in hands-on engineering challenges, such as the design, construction and deployment of robotic rovers, model rockets, lander devices and payload lofting systems.
City Council rezones creekside land for downtown park
July 19, 2011
The effort to create a downtown park along Issaquah Creek inched ahead July 5, as the City Council rezoned the open space for a 15.5-acre park.
The city needed to rezone the park parcels from open space to community parks before the development process could proceed.
The site encompasses Tollë Anderson, Cybil-Madeline and Issaquah Creek parks. The city Parks & Recreation Department intends to develop the parcels as a single park.
The city cannot develop a community park on open space due to zoning restrictions.
Though such a rezoning is a routine step, the city Planning Policy Commission raised questions about possible uses for the site in April.
The city pitched the park as a location for trails and other passive recreation options. Restrictions attached to the land limit the uses on the land.
The rules supersede the zoning and prohibit certain features, such as ball fields, allowed in a typical recreation area from the creekside park.
Ultimately, the Planning Policy Commission endorsed the rezoning and council members rezoned the land in a unanimous decision.
Issaquah Gliders hold final meet of summer season
July 19, 2011
Young athletes from Auburn, Renton, Snoqualmie and Issaquah who are in the Gliders program, pound Skyline High School's track as they dash towards the finish line of a girls race. By Quinn Eddy
The Issaquah Gliders program held its final track meet of the 2011 summer season July 14. The event at Skyline High School hosted teams from Renton, Auburn and Snoqualmie. Whether the young athlete comes in first or last, every youngster is a winner.
Health Classes
July 19, 2011
Overlake’s Issaquah clinic offers health classes
Overlake Hospital Medical Center offers the following classes at its Issaquah clinic, 5708 E. Lake Sammamish Parkway S.E., Suite 103. (Register at www.overlakehospital.org/classes. Call 688-5259 for class information.)
“You and Your New Baby,” 10 a.m. to noon, Thursdays July 28 through Aug. 25, $55
“Happiest Baby on the Block,” 10 a.m. to noon July 30, $60 per family
“Condensed Series Preparation for Childbirth & Newborn Care,” 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. Fridays, Aug. 12-19, $95 per couple
