King Conservation District voters elected Renton resident Max Prinsen, a conservation district associate supervisor and president of a wetland-conservation group, to the district board Tuesday.

Prinsen pulled ahead of four other candidates — including former Issaquah wetland biologist Kirk Prindle — to win a three-year term on the five-member board. Prinsen received about 42 percent of the vote; Prindle placed fourth in the race.

The district promotes sustainable use of natural resources, and provides information and voluntary technical-assistance programs to landowners. The all-volunteer governing board includes three members elected by district residents and two members appointed by the state Conservation Commission.

Overall, 4,232 people headed to polling sites at King County libraries to cast ballots in the race. The total outpaced the turnout for the 2009 election, when 2,757 people cast ballots.

“The higher level of activity at the polls this year can be attributed to increased interest in the King CD, including our voluntary conservation and stewardship efforts with private landowners, and enthusiastic campaign efforts by candidates,” board Chairman Bill Knutsen said in a news release.

The district worked with Bellevue elections administrator Election Trust to conduct the location. State conservation commissioners will certify the election results in May. Prinsen will be sworn into office in June.

Meanwhile, a federal judge dismissed the Chapter 11 bankruptcy case tied to the developer, Wellington Park Pointe LLC.

U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Karen Overstreet dismissed the case after attorneys for the developer withdrew a plan to finance and build Park Pointe. Court documents dated March 3 allowed Regal Financial Bank to proceed with the foreclosure.

“The parties wish to avoid incurring additional attorneys fees, in what has been a very expensive matter, and what in all likelihood would be a very expensive trial,” the documents state.

Attorneys for the developer and Regal Financial Bank could not be reached for comment.

Despite the uncertainty surrounding the forested Park Pointe land, city officials said the plan to preserve the 140-acre tract remains unchanged. Under a complex development-rights swap, they want to allow more residences to be built in the Issaquah Highlands in exchange for preservation of the Park Pointe site.

King County records show the bank took control of the property through a $10.8 million trustee deed — far less than what the developer had said the land was worth.

The developer held $29 million in assets — with most of the value associated with the Park Pointe property — but owed about $15 million when the company entered Chapter 11 in November, court documents state. A January appraisal valued the land at $18.9 million.

Since the developer proposed the project in the mid-1990s, opponents said Park Pointe could damage the environment, lead to more vehicles on city roads and spoil views of Tiger Mountain.

Plans for Park Pointe evolved throughout the decade, from a high-density urban village in the mold of the highlands and Talus to low-density residential, the latest zoning for the land. The most recent plan presented by the developer called for up to 344 residences on 67 acres.

City and county officials announced a watershed plan in September 2008 to preserve the land through a transfer of development rights, also known as a TDR. But the process slowed as the developer entered Chapter 11, after it defaulted on a loan from Regal Financial Bank.

Warren Kagarise: 392-6434, ext. 234, or wkagarise@isspress.com. Comment at www.issaquahpress.com.

Talk about Klahanie Park, how the cities will provide animal-control services after June 30 and the future of emergency services dominated the March 9 meeting at Sammamish City Hall.

With county-run animal shelters set to end June 30, members of both city councils said no proposal exists yet to provide the services now handled by King County Animal Care and Control. Although, representatives from both cities said staffers continue to work on a solution.

A solution could result in a regional partnership among several cities, or individual cities could commission animal-control officers. Federal Way officials, for instance, announced a plan to form a city animal-services agency.

The cost of animal services and shelters will be the key factor for Issaquah and Sammamish. Neither city seems likely to take in enough money through animal-licensing fees to pay for a full-fledged animal-services program.

Issaquah, Sammamish and 30 other cities contract with King County for services, like responses to complaints about vicious animals, animal-cruelty investigations and pickups of stray animals. The agency responded to 194 calls in Issaquah and 225 calls in Sammamish throughout 2008, county figures show.

King County Councilwoman Kathy Lambert, whose district includes both cities, urged caution as municipal officials prepare for the transition.

“Be aware that this is a very volatile issue — probably one of the most volatile,” she said at the joint city councils meeting.

County officials acted after several reports showed problems with King County Animal Care and Control leadership, organization and operations.

Reports dating back to June 2006 indicated mismanagement had resulted in animal cruelty. Then, a 2008 report prepared by a consultant said the county organization had too few staffers, too little shelter space, failed to track licensed animals and had a strained relationship with volunteers. Another report delivered in December 2009 said the county used euthanasia drugs in excessive doses.

Lambert and other council members extended the original Jan. 31 deadline to close county-run animal shelters. The decision allowed County Executive Dow Constantine until June 30 to put together a regional animal-services plan.

“We have already extended the date once, and so, we have put in a substantial amount of money that we don’t have at this point, so I don’t think the county will be ready to extend too many more times,” Lambert said.

Sammamish observes fire planning ‘from the sidelines’

Issaquah officials encouraged Sammamish leaders to join a still-nascent plan to change the way local governments provide fire protection and emergency services.

Issaquah City Council members and officials from King County fire districts took the initial step last fall to consider a regional fire authority, and formed a planning group. The group met last month and organized the group.

“This is only a planning committee,” Issaquah Councilwoman Maureen McCarry said. “It’s not to establish a regional fire authority. It’s only to start seeing if it’s viable for any municipality or any fire district.”

Under a regional fire authority, the body would have the ability to tax residents within its boundaries. Contributions from each partner jurisdiction fund Eastside Fire & Rescue.

The arrangement has strained the relationship between Sammamish and emergency-service provider EFR.

Sammamish Mayor Don Gerend said the city had no intent to join the planning committee, but said a city staffer will attend future meetings of the group.

“We’ve been watching it from the sidelines because we had expressed concern about an RFA from the point of view of whether it makes sense for Sammamish taxpayers,” he said.

Participation in the planning committee does not commit Issaquah or the fire districts to joining a regional fire authority. Parties can withdraw from the process at any time. Forming a committee costs nothing to participants.

The planning process has no effect on the way EFR functions, but the formation of a regional fire authority could require adjustments to the inter-local agreement underpinning the agency.

“The fact that Issaquah is participating with the RFA planning committee doesn’t mean that we’ve made a decision,” Issaquah Councilman Fred Butler said.

“It’s an opportunity to look at what it would entail and answer some questions,” he continued.

Besides Issaquah, the group includes fire districts 10 and 38. District 10 includes Klahanie, Preston, Carnation, Tiger Mountain and May Valley; District 38 includes unincorporated King County near North Bend and Snoqualmie. Districts 27 — in Fall City — and 45 — in Duvall — also expressed interest in the regional fire authority.

Warren Kagarise: 392-6434, ext. 234, or wkagarise@isspress.com. Comment at www.issaquahpress.com.

King County Parks Director Kevin Brown offered a proposal to transfer ownership of the park to whichever city annexes Klahanie. Sammamish has proposed a takeover of Klahanie Park in unincorporated King County, but the offer has riled neighborhood residents.

If Issaquah ever annexes Klahanie — and if neighborhood residents vote for the proposal — Issaquah receives the park alongside the neighborhood.

If planners in both cities redraw long-term growth blueprints, Sammamish could annex Klahanie instead and keep the park. Although Klahanie and nearby neighborhoods border Issaquah and Sammamish, only Issaquah can annex the area under existing growth plans.

Issaquah City Council members referred the county proposal to a committee March 15. Services & Safety Committee members will discuss the legislation March 24.

The latest proposal for the park could alleviate concerns among Klahanie residents concerned about the future of the park. King County officials plan to close the park within months if a new operator cannot be found. The cash-strapped county wants to offload dozens of parks and facilities to local governments and organizations in order to end a budget crisis.

The county has plans to transfer ownership of 16 parks by June 2011 through annexations of county land by nearby cities. Agreements under consideration and potential annexations could remove another 13 facilities from the closure list.

The proposal notes how county, Issaquah and Sammamish officials believe Sammamish to be the best caretaker for the park until a city annexes the neighborhood.

Aside from Sammamish, the Klahanie homeowners group also expressed interest in running Klahanie Park. Neighborhood residents asked Issaquah to consider acquiring the park, but city officials cited prohibitive maintenance costs and said Klahanie Park should remain attached to the annexation area.

Members of the Issaquah and Sammamish city councils discussed the county proposal at a March 9 joint meeting.

Officials said the park issue could not be detached from the overarching question about annexation. A vote by Klahanie residents to be annexed into Issaquah faltered in 2005.

“We feel that, in terms of the Klahanie annexation, that it’s really up to Issaquah to let us know what they’re going to do,” Sammamish Deputy Mayor Nancy Whitten said.

Officials noted how neighborhood residents protested last summer after Sammamish officials offered to take on the park. Klahanie residents worried Sammamish could upgrade the facility, change the character of the park and attract more outsiders and traffic to the quiet neighborhood. Residents also raised concerns about ceding the park to Sammamish, where they lack the ability to vote in local elections.

“I would just like to perhaps acknowledge the fact that the city of Sammamish did step forward in an effort to solve a problem and to keep a park open,” Issaquah Councilman Fred Butler said. “You should be commended for that, but it sort of fell into the category of ‘no good deed goes unpunished.’”

Although officials from both cities expressed support for the county proposal, Sammamish council members questioned whether the city could recoup money spent to upgrade the park if Issaquah annexes Klahanie and receives the facility.

But council members said the annexation issue must be addressed in concert with the Klahanie Park discussion.

“We’d love to have Klahanie if they wanted us,” Whitten said. “But if they don’t want us, we don’t want to force ourselves on them. We don’t want to do something that they regard as hostile to the best interests to their community.”

Warren Kagarise: 392-6434, ext. 234, or wkagarise@isspress.com. Comment at www.issaquahpress.com.

Issaquah landscape architect Dar Webb re-envisioned Pedestrian Park. Downtown boosters hope the proposal launches a discussion about the future of the park. Contributed

Advocates for downtown Issaquah want to transform the space between Jak’s Grill and Mandarin Garden from a blah concrete expanse into a vibrant park for pedestrians, musicians and festival vendors.

Michael Johnson, events director for the DownTown Issaquah Association, asked Dar Webb, a landscape architect and a downtown tenant, to re-envision the space known as Pedestrian Park. Webb presented a park lined with trees, planters and public art.

“That place would be unbelievably packed if we opened it up like this,” Johnson said.

The proposal received a warm reception from the city Arts Commission when Johnson and Webb presented renderings and discussed the idea March 8. However, any proposal to remake the park must go through the public process for all city projects.

The proposal presented last week merely shows how Pedestrian Park could be improved. Any eventual upgrades to the park will look different from the renderings Webb prepared.

Johnson said he hopes the proposal will encourage business owners, city officials and residents to re-envision the space.

City Parks & Recreation Director Anne McGill said the park needs improvements, but said the city lacks money to complete the project.

“We know it needs a makeover,” she said.

Should the city move forward with plans to remake the park, McGill said, the effort will proceed with input from the municipal Park Board, downtown businesses and property owners, residents, city officials and other stakeholders.

McGill included a Pedestrian Park proposal in the Capital Improvement Program last year. The plan outlines city projects related to — among others — city facilities, parks, transportation and utilities. The sweeping document prioritizes projects and determines the order in which city staffers will tackle efforts.

The plan called for $100,000 to be spent on design work next year, but McGill said she expects another lean city budget to delay the project.

The document notes how the park “needs improvement for pedestrian movement, space for gathering during events and renovation to improve visibility for safety.” But the Pedestrian Park plan ranked near the bottom on the list of parks and recreation projects.

Johnson, organizer of the annual Music on the Streets performances, uses the space as a venue. He said he envisions a mixture of public and private dollars used to revamp the space, possibly with a small stage for musical acts.

Webb, president of Darwin Webb Landscape Architects, said he hopes the proposal will initiate a conversation about the high-profile public plaza.

“We want the space to be comfortable with three people in it or 200 people in it,” he said.

Warren Kagarise: 392-6434, ext. 234, or wkagarise@isspress.com. Comment at www.issaquahpress.com.

Salmon Days earned eight Summit Awards from the Washington Festivals and Events Association, a group dedicated to promoting activities throughout the Evergreen State. The group announced the honorees March 9 at a conference held in Seaside, Ore.

Salmon Days hauled in a first-place Gold Summit Award in the highest category at the conference: Best Overall Promotional Campaign. Honorees receive the award for outstanding promotion, including marketing, media and merchandising.

Robin Kelley, festivals director at the Issaquah Chamber of Commerce and the chief Salmon Days organizer, said she and her team could not wait to share the award with community members.

“It’s a wonderful thing to have people appreciate the hard work that so many people here do,” she said.

In all, Salmon Days received four first-place Gold Summit Awards, two second-place Silver Summit Awards and two third-place Bronze Summit Awards within the $150,000 and more budget category. Salmon Days had a budget of about $450,000 last year.

The top-most competition tier also includes the likes of Bumbershoot, Bite of Seattle and Fremont Oktoberfest — festivals with bigger budgets and wall-to-wall promotion.

Organizers emphasized the long history of Salmon Days with the 2009 event theme — “Celebrating 40 Years of Great Returns. Still fresh. Still fun. Still free.”

Among the first-place awards, Salmon Days also won for Best Community Service Program, Best Merchandise Item and Best Sportswear Item for a black jacket emblazoned with the festival logo.

The festival earned second-place awards for Best Souvenir Pin and Best T-shirt Design, for a children’s T-shirt featuring a watercolor fish and the words, “If fishes were wishes.”

Organizers netted third-place honors for Best Website and the Best Newspaper Insert — the Ohfishal 2009 Festival Program published by The Issaquah Press.

“Issaquah Salmon Days is one of the region’s premier festivals, educating thousands of people about the local environment while celebrating all that the city of Issaquah has to offer,” Issaquah Chamber of Commerce Chairman Chris Hysom said in a news release.

The chamber presents Salmon Days. Festival organizers submitted entries based on the chamber campaign and designed by Robin Dale Spicer — a longtime designer of Salmon Days themes — to the Washington Festivals and Events Association.

Kelley credited Spicer for creating a theme and then carrying graphic touches through Salmon Days promotional items and merchandise.

“She makes sure these all complement each other and have the same look and feel,” Kelley said.

The awards competition attracts entries from festivals and event producers from across the state. The competition recognizes people in the industry who work to improve the quality and image of festivals and special events in the eyes of the community and the news media. Salmon Days earned seven awards from the organization for the 2008 festival.

More than 180,000 people attended the 2009 festival during the sunny weekend of Oct. 3-4.

“Salmon Days also serves a vital economic development role by shining the spotlight on Issaquah’s businesses, restaurants, artisans, recreation opportunities and entertainers,” Hysom continued. “Congratulations to festival staff and their volunteers on this important recognition from WFEA.”

Sponsors — or spawnsors in Salmon Days lingo — for the ’09 event included Snoqualmie Casino, Overlake Hospital Medical Center, Microsoft and Issaquah-based Costco. More than 70 businesses sponsored free activities for festival attendees. Dozens of local nonprofits also raised money at the festival.

In addition to statewide attention, the festival received international honors last year, when judges at a worldwide festival association ranked the 2008 Salmon Days as the premier festival in the world.

The event received the prestigious Grande Pinnacle Award for Best Overall Festival Presentation during the International Festivals & Events Association awards ceremony last September.

Salmon Days won seven awards in the category for events with budgets between $250,000 and $749,000.

Organizers will submit the entry packet for the 2009 festival by June. Winners will be announced at a September conference in St. Louis.

The next Salmon Days will be held Oct. 2-3. Organizers will announce a theme for the fish-centric festival by late spring. Kelley said the festival team had yet to decide on a theme. Spicer will again design the Salmon Days emblem.

Pauline Middlehurst, spawnsor and public relations manager for the festival office, said in addition to organizers, sponsors, vendors, volunteers, performers and attendees made the event successful.

“We would like to thank everybody that contributed to be a part of Salmon Days,” she said.

Warren Kagarise: 392-6434, ext. 234, or wkagarise@isspress.com. Comment at www.issaquahpress.com.

A bald eagle takes flight over Pine Lake March 9 after it was released. By Christopher Huber

A rescued bald eagle is flying free again after being released from the Ek family’s Pine Lake waterfront home March 9.

The male eagle spent nearly a week recovering from a range of injuries at an aviary in Arlington, according to its rescuers — Tim Brown, of Snoqualmie, Dennis Brown, of Sammamish, and various Pine Lake residents.

“Now he’s checked out and now he’s going back home to his mate,” said Tim Brown, a raptor specialist who calmed and handled the bird after the eagle injured itself March 2.

Pine Lake neighbors and other community members gathered on the Eks’ lawn to watch the eagle’s quick but much-anticipated exit.

“It was exciting to see the eagle — looks like he’s back to full strength,” Sammamish Mayor Don Gerend said. “It’s very encouraging to see the natural species thriving on our lake up here.”

At about 4:30 p.m. March 2, the eagle became entangled in a rope tied between the Eks’ dock and shoreline. It had captured a duck in the middle of the lake, but could not carry the weight, said Dennis Brown, an across-the-lake neighbor. He noticed the bird struggling in the shallow water after swimming to shore with its wings. That’s when he hopped in his canoe and came to help.

“I had never seen anything like this happen,” he said.Dennis Brown and Polly Ek called the state Department of Fish and Wildlife, but when the agency could not send an officer until the next day, they called 911.

Tim Brown — now being called an “eagle-whisperer” — was in the area and arrived in time to pull the weakened bird out of the lake.

“It was amazing,” Ek said. “He calmed the bird down, untangled the bird and we put it in a dog cage provided by our neighbors.”

Tim Brown then drove the bird to a 24-hour veterinary clinic in Bellevue.

“It was so wonderful that he just happened to be here in the area,” Dennis Brown said. “I almost thought it was like a prophetic parable about our nation. Here it is, the nation’s bird.”

Tim Brown said the group had considered releasing the eagle earlier in the week, but wanted to ensure its recovery. Its mate had searched for it throughout the week it was missing, he said.

“It’s very nice to see him head back to his mate, back in the wild,” he said. “This guy was really a pretty nice guy, really, compared to some. Not that aggressive, compared to some. They know you’re trying to help them.”

On the Web

Watch a video of well-wishers releasing the rehabilitated eagle at www.issaquahpress.com.

John Starbard

John Starbard — the former Newcastle city manager fired by the City Council in January — will spearhead the effort to reform the way King County handles building and land-use permits.

County Executive Dow Constantine appointed Starbard as director of the Department of Development and Environmental Services six weeks after the Newcastle council abruptly terminated his contract without cause. The executive praised Starbard for efforts to upgrade Coal Creek Parkway and remake downtown Newcastle into a pedestrian-friendly destination.

But officials cited issues with the relationship between Starbard and other organizations and residents. Before the council fired Starbard during a Jan. 12 meeting, Newcastle Deputy Mayor Steve Buri said the relationships had “been damaged beyond repair.”Constantine announced the appointment March 1, the same day Starbard started at the county agency. The appointment requires approval from the King County Council.

“I have directed John to examine the current system and recommend to me ways we can reduce the cycle time for review of permit applications and increase predictability for our customers, without sacrificing our high expectations for quality, safety and environmental protection,” Constantine said in a news release.

Starbard now oversees the county agency responsible for issuing building and land-use permits for properties in unincorporated King County. Agency employees also enforce county building and land-use codes, issue business licenses and staff the King County Fire Marshal Division.

Starbard will manage a budget of nearly $22 million and a staff of about 150. In Newcastle, Starbard managed about 25 to 30 municipal employees and a nearly $7 million budget.

Newcastle Mayor John Dulcich defended the decision to fire Starbard. He said he wished the former city manager well in his new role.

“We made the right move at the right time,” Dulcich said. “It was the most cost-effective thing for the city to do.”

Frank Abe, a spokesman for Constantine, said the Newcastle City Council seated in January had chosen a different direction for the Eastside city. The council hired Rob Wyman as interim city manager moments after members fired Starbard.

“Bringing in a different city manager in that situation is part of the normal course of public life,” Abe said. “It created the opportunity for the executive to bring in John to lead our reform of the county’s building and land-use permitting processes.”

Abe praised Starbard for the efforts he undertook to improve the county development agency in the early days of his tenure.

“In his first week, John has talked to staff and already developed some ideas, and we are looking forward to working with him on a fast track to reform,” Abe said.

Starbard earlier served as the city manager in Maple Valley and as a planner for Bellevue, where he managed 39 annexations to the city.

“I am honored to be able to serve Executive Constantine, and I am looking forward to working with the staff to learn how best to adapt DDES to meet its mission in the future,” Starbard said in the release. He could not be reached for further comment.

Starbard stepped in at the county development agency just as Constantine implements a plan to make the department more responsive to applicants.

“Long-term reform will take time and careful analysis, but John’s track record of fostering partnerships and delivering outstanding customer service suggests he is the right person to help us change the way the department does business,” Constantine said in the release.

King County Councilman Reagan Dunn — who represents Newcastle and unincorporated King County south of Issaquah — said Starbard brings experience as a city manager to the role, but said the county post required “some different skill sets and qualifications.”

Sean Kronberg said the new director should strive for better communication, outreach and consistency in the application of county codes. Kronberg, a founder of the Cedar Hills Preservation Alliance, faced off against the department during a long dispute about a former alcohol treatment facility south of Issaquah.

YWCA officials proposed reopening the facility as Passage Point — residences for parents recently released from incarceration or hospitalization to be reunited with their children.

Kronberg and other Cedar Hills Rural Preservation Alliance members filed a lawsuit against the county in 2007 for violating land-use codes.

“Equal application of King County codes produces fairness and it lends credibility to the county and eases trust issues that some have had with the county over the years,” he said. “They also need to engage the public sooner.”

Officials from the county and preservation group reached a deal in January to allow a downscaled Passage Point to be built.

“From our experience with Passage Point, if Joe Citizen walked into DDES and said, ‘I want to continue a nonconforming use that was discontinued six or seven years ago,’ Joe Citizen would never be able to do that,” Kronberg said.

Warren Kagarise: 392-6434, ext. 234, or wkagarise@isspress.com. Tim Pfarr: 392-6434, ext. 239, or newcas@isspress.com. Reporter Chantelle Lusebrink contributed to this report. Comment at www.issaquahpress.com.

The executive announced the appointment and 27 others Feb. 22. King County Council members approved the appointments March 1.

The panel includes elected officials and representatives from business, labor, education and human service agencies, as well as Metro riders.

Constantine also appointed AtWork! Chief Development Officer Jane Kuechle to the group.

The nonprofit organization operates a recycling facility in Issaquah. AtWork! helps people with disabilities learn marketable skills and find and maintain jobs.

“The diversity of this group will attempt to balance that suburban and rural areas receive attention to transit needs in addition to urban areas,” Councilwoman Kathy Lambert, who represents Issaquah, said in a March 1 news release. “The depth of knowledge and experience brought together on this task force is extraordinary. I am grateful these community leaders are willing to serve in the pursuit of varied and creative transit funding solutions.”

A sharp drop in the sales tax revenue led to a projected $213 million revenue shortfall for Metro through 2011. The transit agency raised fares, and plans another fare hike next year. But a projected shortfall remains forecast 2012 through 2014. The gap could require officials to cut about 500,000 annual service hours.

To respond to the problem, the council directed Constantine to convene a task force to address the issue.

The task force — with members from across King County — will develop policy options for discussion by July and adopt recommendations by September.

Butler, a longtime councilman, acts as the resident expert on transportation issues. He also serves on the Sound Transit Board of Directors. Constantine reappointed Butler to the Sound Transit post late last year.

“I’ve asked this cross-section of regional leaders and transit users to engage in a discussion about how we can best deliver transit service for all parts of the county within the resources we have,” Constantine said in a Feb. 22 statement. “I deliberately sought a group of people who are willing to put aside political divisions and think creatively about how to plan a transit system that will serve us well in the future.”

David Lingenbrink (left) provides a ‘fine specimen’ with a pinprick of blood for a free blood sugar check administered by Timi Harvey, a registered nurse care manager from Virginia Mason Issaquah during the Health and Safety Fair held March 13 at Pickering Farm. Health care professionals from 40 companies, hospitals and public agencies provided information, screenings and complimentary services during the free event.

Sakura Dean, 3, rolls her eyes while trying out a new toothbrush from a gift bag provided by Dr. Thomas R. Quickstad as mom Chieko looks on.

Oleg Lozovskyy, a medical assistant at Overlake Medical Center Issaquah, administers free blood pressure, pulse and respiration checks. Photos by Greg Farrar