Trolley returns, and supporters prepare for rides to start in October
August 28, 2012
The next stop for the Issaquah Valley Trolley is downtown Issaquah.
Traffic is stopped at Front Street North and Northwest Dogwood Street as the restored Issaquah Valley Trolley Project car makes its way to the Issaquah Train Depot barn. By Greg Farrar
On Aug. 23, a vintage streetcar completed a 1,659-mile trip from Ida Grove, Iowa, to Issaquah aboard a specialized flatbed trailer. The arrival marked a milestone in the $744,700 effort to refurbish the vehicle, restore downtown railroad track and prepare the streetscape for streetcar traffic.
Organizers plan to start offering rides to the public starting Oct. 14, a day after a celebration for the Issaquah History Museums’ 40th anniversary. The planned route stretches about a half-mile from the Issaquah Train Depot to the East Fork of Issaquah Creek at Darigold.
“It looked every bit as good as we expected it to — and probably better,” Issaquah Valley Trolley Project Chairwoman Jean Cerar said. “If you gave it just a cursory glance, actually, it kind of looked like the car that left, only brighter.”
Crews repainted the streetcar in the same cream-and-red color scheme, but beneath the surface, workers installed modern systems and revamped the battered interior. The result “has that new trolley smell to it,” Cerar said.
Contractor sought for downtown Issaquah parks project
August 28, 2012
The city is on the hunt for a contractor to start construction at the downtown parks along Issaquah Creek — a 15.5-acre expanse often referred to as the crown jewel in the municipal parks system.
The information for potential bidders outlines the site preparation and grading, picnic shelter construction, and sewer and water utility work planned for Phase 1. The contractor must also place a pre-manufactured restroom facility at the site, and add lighting, walkways, stone seating and walls, and plantings to the parks.
Officials allocated about $1 million for the initial phase. The amount is not enough to complete the ambitious plan for the site, but is enough to start the process.
Friends of the Issaquah Salmon Hatchery gift shop opens
August 28, 2012
The nonprofit Friends of the Issaquah Salmon Hatchery is reviving the popular hatchery gift shop, or FISHop, starting Labor Day weekend.
The gift shop debuted last year, and organizers plan to offer salmon- and Issaquah-themed merchandise for another salmon season. The shop is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays through Nov. 18.
Merchandise includes apparel, books, pins, games, toys and more. Based on the success last year, the shop will include expanded lines of merchandise to celebrate salmon and Issaquah, and offers educational materials and souvenirs for visitors.
FISHop is on the west end of the main hatchery building, 125 W. Sunset Way, near the bridge across Issaquah Creek.
FISH is also seeking artists of salmon- or watershed-themed works to sell. Contact Jane Kuechle at 392-1118 or jane@issaquahfish.org.
Spawning salmon reaches Issaquah Salmon Hatchery
August 27, 2012
NEW — 2 p.m. Aug. 27, 2012
Salmon spawning season at the Issaquah Salmon Hatchery started early Aug. 25 as a hatchery docent-in-training spotted the first fish, a small chinook in Issaquah Creek.
The recent drop in temperature aided the salmon on a long journey from the Pacific Ocean to Issaquah Creek. Cool conditions often prompt the fish to depart Lake Sammamish and head upstream.
The initial fish, a female, or hen, appeared just below the weir across the creek at the hatchery. The arrival occurred as Friends of the Issaquah Salmon conducted training for docents and other volunteers.
Late August is a typical arrival time for spawning salmon. The hatchery recorded the initial fish last year, a pair of chinook, early Aug. 23.
Issaquah unveils salmon-centric city logo
August 21, 2012
The triangle is out. The salmon is in.
Issaquah leaders plan to phase out the longtime city logo — a triangle and stylized As meant to evoke the Issaquah Alps — and use a salmon-centric emblem instead.
Issaquah’s updated city logo (above) replaces 11 former logos used to represent the city, and municipal departments and boards.
The shift comes as the city and a contractor complete a monthslong effort to overhaul the dated municipal website and forge a more modern image for city government.
Field of Champions Sports Bar & Grill to close
August 21, 2012
Field of Champions Sports Bar & Grill is closing along Northwest Gilman Boulevard within a few weeks, and a local Italian restaurant plans to move into the space.
Field of Champions Sports Bar & Grill opened in late 2010 at 385 N.W. Gilman Blvd. The space formerly housed Tiger Mountain Grill and a Jay Berry’s.
The restaurant along Issaquah Creek features walls covered by sports memorabilia from local teams.
Filos Pizza and Pasta plans to open in the space after Field of Champions Sports Bar & Grill closes.
Issaquah Valley Trolley is back on track, poised to return
August 14, 2012
The historic Issaquah Valley Trolley Car No. 519 undergoes renovation at the Gomaco Trolley Co. facility in Ida Grove, Iowa. Contributed by Gomaco Trolley Co.
Quietly, after a decadeslong coal and timber boom fueled expansion, passenger rail service to Issaquah ceased 90 years ago.
Salmon fishing season opens on Lake Sammamish
August 14, 2012
The annual salmon fishing season will open in Lake Sammamish beginning Aug. 16.
Dallas Cross
There will be a daily limit of four salmon, of which an angler may retain up to two chinook or king salmon and complete the catch limit with other salmon species. Silver or coho salmon may be part of the catch. Sockeye salmon must be released so barbless hoods are required.
Of course, the smaller kokanee salmon are still illegal to have in one’s possession and must be released.
All fishing is closed within 100 yards of the mouth of Issaquah Creek. You will find that area well-surrounded by a parade of trolling boats.
To park at the Lake Sammamish State Park boat launch you must have purchased a Washington State Discover Pass. If you launch your boat there, you will pay an additional $7 launching fee using the pay box at the ramp.
Because the feeding portion of these salmon’s lives is over, you either have to appeal to their instinct to bite what once was food, or trade on their aggressive nature. The former is touted by those who use bare, red, size 4/0 hooks trolled behind a Dodger flasher.
Giving back to Issaquah Salmon Hatchery, a community ‘treasure’
July 17, 2012
When Kelly Richardson was a child, her grandmother used to take her and her sister for picnics along Tibbetts Creek.
“We saw fish spawn, tree frogs lay their eggs, and watched eagles and blue herons fly,” she said.
These days, the Issaquah resident volunteers with the city’s historic staple attraction — the Issaquah Salmon Hatchery. Richardson calls it an “Issaquah treasure.” She works for a program called FISH, or Friends of the Issaquah Salmon Hatchery, which gives tours to thousands of visitors a year.
Fish project prompts Interstate 90 lane closures
July 17, 2012
Motorists should expect lane closures on eastbound Interstate 90 near Issaquah as crews remove a narrow culvert — a barrier to fish.
To complete the $2.8 million project, crews must work double shifts in order to wrap up construction before Aug. 31. The deadline is tied to the return of chinook and coho salmon, and steelhead, to the East Fork of Issaquah Creek.
The state Department of Transportation alerted motorists to prepare for closures through 3 p.m. July 20. Crews plan to reopen the lane for afternoon travelers and then close the lane again from July 21-27.
The project location is east of Highlands Drive Northeast and the Sunset Interchange between Issaquah and Preston.
Officials do not expect the closures to cause traffic backups. In the westbound direction, around-the-clock closures started several weeks ago.
Transportation planners envision a wider replacement to better accommodate the 25-foot-wide streambed in the area near the culvert.
The existing culvert impedes salmon and trout headed to historic rearing and spawning grounds.
