Joshua Schaer is first City Council member from Talus
January 8, 2013
Councilman Joshua Schaer moved to Talus late last month and, in the process, became the first City Council member from the Cougar Mountain urban village.
Joshua Schaer
The change offers Schaer a perspective on city issues from the quiet urban village perched above state Route 900.
Construction escalated in the late 1990s and early 2000s in Talus and the Issaquah Highlands, both hillside urban villages, but the neighborhoods existed for more than a decade before a resident achieved citywide elected office.
In 2010, Mark Mullet became the first resident from the highlands to join the council. (Mullet, a state senator elected in November, recently resigned from the post to serve in Olympia.)
Issaquah Alps Trails Club aims to get edgier, hipper — and younger
April 17, 2012
Despite its adventurous name, the Issaquah Alps Trails Club looks more like your local Lions Club.
“Most of the club members are getting pretty long in the tooth,” said board member George Potter, 63. “The average age of our board is almost 70.”
The graying of this grass roots hiking-and-environmental advocacy group has spawned a new goal: to get younger, edgier and hipper, if only for its very survival.
Save Lake Sammamish founder Joanna Buehler departs
January 3, 2012
Joanna Buehler, founder and president of Save Lake Sammamish, has planted and kept runoff-filtering native wetland species on the lakeshore of her longtime South Cove home. By Greg Farrar
Issaquah trailblazer led efforts to protect lake from threats for decades
Joanna Buehler earned top honors for environmental efforts for decades spent on a difficult struggle to shield Lake Sammamish from constant pressures from a population boom occurring along the tree-lined shore.
20 reasons to ♥ Issaquah
July 2, 2011
The spectacular landscape is a reason to love Issaquah. By Connor Lee
Discover 20 reasons to love Issaquah, from the highest Tiger Mountain peak to the Lake Sammamish shoreline, and much more in between. The community includes icons and traits not found anywhere else, all in a postcard-perfect setting. The unique qualities — Issa-qualities? — start at the city’s name and extend into every nook and neighborhood. (The lineup is not arranged in a particular order, because ranking the city’s pre-eminent qualities seems so unfair.)
Salmon Days
The annual salmon-centric celebration is stitched into the city’s fabric. Salmon Days serves as a last hurrah before autumn, a touchstone for old-timers and a magnet for tourists. The street fair consistently ranks among the top destinations in the Evergreen State and, for a time last year, as the best festival on earth — in the $250,000-to-$749,000 budget category, anyway.
Issaquah Alps
The majestic title for the forested peaks surrounding the city, the Issaquah Alps, is a catchall term for Cougar, Squak and Tiger mountains. (Credit the late mountaineer and conservationist Harvey Manning for the sobriquet.) The setting is a playground for outdoors enthusiasts. Trails — some official and others less so — for hikers, bikers and equestrians crisscross the mountains, like haphazard tic-tac-toe patterns.
Maureen McCarry receives city’s top environmental award
March 22, 2011
Maureen McCarry smiles March 21 as her husband Tom Knollmann and the City Hall audience applaud her for receiving the Ruth Kees Environmental Award. By Greg Farrar
The latest recipient of the top environmental honor in Issaquah acted as a guiding force — in public and behind the scenes — in the long-running effort to shape neighborhoods and preserve undeveloped land.
Leaders elevated Maureen McCarry into the pantheon alongside other important conservation activists, and bestowed the Ruth Kees Environmental Award for a Sustainable Community on the former councilwoman at a City Hall ceremony March 21.
Maureen McCarry receives city’s top environmental honor
March 21, 2011
NEW — 8 p.m. March 21, 2011
The latest recipient of the top environmental honor in Issaquah acted as a guiding force — in public and behind the scenes — in the long-running effort to shape neighborhoods and preserve undeveloped land.
Leaders elevated Maureen McCarry into the pantheon alongside other important conservation activists, and bestowed the Ruth Kees Environmental Award for a Sustainable Community on the former councilwoman at a City Hall ceremony Monday night.
Mayor Ava Frisinger cited the countless hours McCarry contributed to forge agreements outlining construction in the Issaquah Highlands and Talus, preserve forested Park Pointe near Issaquah High School and strengthen tree-protection rules.
The mayor and Council President John Traeger selected McCarry for the honor after receiving numerous nominations for the former councilwoman, a Squak Mountain resident.
Nominate environmentalists for Ruth Kees award
January 25, 2011
Nominate environmentalists for the top city eco-honor — the Ruth Kees Environmental Award for a Sustainable Community.
The annual award recognizes people for a record of outstanding commitment to natural resource preservation. Kees, a teacher, mentor and role model, advocated open space preservation and environmental protection.
The application is available on the municipal website. Submit nominations until 5 p.m. Feb. 25.
Then, a committee reviews nominees and recommends a group of finalists to Mayor Ava Frisinger and City Council President John Traeger for selection.
The award is usually presented at a spring or summer council meeting.
Nominate Issaquah environmentalists for top ‘green’ honor
January 21, 2011
NEW — 4 p.m. Jan. 21, 2011
Nominate environmentalists for the top city eco-honor — the Ruth Kees Environmental Award for a Sustainable Community.
The annual award recognizes people for a record of outstanding commitment to natural resource preservation. Kees, a teacher, mentor and role model, advocated open space preservation and environmental protection.
The city put out a call for applications Friday. Submit nominations until 5 p.m. Feb. 25.
Then, a committee reviews nominees and recommends a group of finalists to Mayor Ava Frisinger and City Council President John Traeger for selection.
The award is usually presented at a spring or summer council meeting.
Greenway pioneer receives top environmental honor
July 13, 2010
Mountains to Sound Greenway pioneer Ted Thomsen — “the unsung hero” behind the 101-mile greenbelt — received the highest environmental honor in Issaquah in a City Hall ceremony last week.
The late Thomsen received the Ruth Kees Award for a Sustainable Community — the prize named for the late environmentalist, a tireless advocate for open space preservation. The city selected Thomsen for the yearslong effort to establish a billboard-free greenbelt from Seattle to Central Washington along Interstate 90.
Cynthia Welti, Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust executive director, nominated Thomsen for the honor.
“He was essential to bringing the greenway vision to fruition,” she recalled in the nomination. “Ted is the unsung hero of the launch of this tremendous coalition effort.”
Greenway leader receives top environmental honor
July 6, 2010
NEW — 7:50 p.m. July 6, 2010
Mountains to Sound Greenway pioneer Ted Thomsen — “the unsung hero” behind the 101-mile greenbelt — received the highest environmental honor in Issaquah on Tuesday night.
The late Thomsen received the Ruth Kees Award for a Sustainable Community — the prize named for late environmentalist, a tireless advocate for open space preservation. The city selected Thomsen for the yearslong effort to establish a billboard-free greenbelt from Seattle to Central Washington along Interstate 90.
Cynthia Welti, Mountains to Sound Greenway Trust executive director, nominated Thomsen for the honor.
“He was essential to bringing the greenway vision to fruition,” she recalled in the nomination. “Ted is the unsung hero of the launch of this tremendous coalition effort.”
