Issaquah organizations earn King County honor for ‘green’ practices
July 26, 2012
NEW — 8 a.m. July 26, 2012
King County Executive Dow Constantine honored the Issaquah School District and Issaquah businesses for efforts to reduce waste and increase recycling Wednesday.
The school district, Outsource Marketing, PCC Natural Markets, Pogacha of Issaquah and Rowley Properties ranked as Best Workplaces for Waste Prevention and Recycling. Countywide, 92 businesses and government and nonprofit organizations achieved the distinction.
“From recycling Styrofoam and cellphones to creating new programs for composting, the innovation these organizations have shown proves that sound environmental practices can go hand-in-hand with a successful business,” Constantine said in a statement.
The county put Outsource Marketing, PCC Natural Markets and Rowley Properties on a Business Honor Roll for making the Best Workplaces for Waste Prevention and Recycling list for at least five consecutive years.
Sammamish Symphony Orchestra to perform classics at POPS! Goes Issaquah concert
July 24, 2012
Listen as the Sammamish Symphony Orchestra performs homegrown classics Aug. 17 at the POPS! Goes Issaquah concert.
The concert is free for audience members, due to support from longtime Issaquah developer Rowley Properties. POPS! Goes Issaquah is meant to support arts on the Eastside and open the arts to a broader audience, including families unable to otherwise afford to participate in the arts.
City Council decision advances dam project
July 10, 2012
Plans to replace a problem-plagued dam upstream from the Issaquah Salmon Hatchery surged ahead July 2, as City Council members steered dollars to complete designs for a proposed replacement.
Crews intend to add boulder weirs to Issaquah Creek and demolish the dam, perhaps as early as next spring.
The legislation approved by the council increased city dollars for the project by $268,700 from the $155,000 municipal leaders initially set aside in the 2012 municipal budget for the replacement. Now, after the council decision, the total amount in the budget is $423,700.
Offer input on Central Issaquah Plan for business district
July 10, 2012
The historic proposal to transform more than 900 acres near Interstate 90 and state Route 900 in the decades ahead is a step closer to implementation, but before city leaders act on the plan, citizens can comment on the bid.
The long-term Central Issaquah Plan is meant to guide redevelopment from shopping centers and low-rise office buildings to a taller neighborhood meant for businesses and residences.
Before the proposal reaches the City Council for discussion and possible implementation, citizens can comment July 12 at a public hearing hosted by the Planning Policy Commission.
City adds Economic Vitality Commission, but could shrink other boards
May 1, 2012
City leaders appointed a group of civic-minded citizens to boards and commissions April 16, although the number of positions could shrink in the months ahead.
In a unanimous decision, City Council members appointed applicants to openings on 12 boards and commissions. The groups advise the council on issues related to the arts, cable TV, development, parks and, in more specialized realms, city cemetery operations and sister-city relationships.
The decision included the inaugural appointees to the municipal Economic Vitality Commission, a key piece in a renewed focus on attracting and retaining businesses.
Citizens can comment on long-term plans for business district
April 17, 2012
Citizens can comment soon on a historic proposal to transform more than 900 acres near Interstate 90 and state Route 900 in the decades ahead.
The draft Central Issaquah Plan is meant to guide redevelopment from shopping centers and low-rise office buildings to a taller neighborhood meant for businesses and residences.
The city is in the midst of a key environmental study for the 915-acre business district, or Central Issaquah. The council is poised to decide on the proposal as early as July. In the meantime, the municipal Planning Policy Commission plans a public open house and public hearing on the draft environmental study April 19.
City hosts meetings on Central Issaquah redevelopment
March 20, 2012
The long process to transform more than 900 acres in the decades ahead is due to continue in the months ahead — and residents can offer input on the far-reaching proposal.
City Council and Planning Policy Commission members plan to delve deeper into the Central Issaquah Plan — a long-term proposal to remake more than 900 acres in the business district along Interstate 90.
The next meeting related to the Central Issaquah Plan is the Committee-of-the-Whole Council on March 27.
The council, council committees and the commission plan a series of public meetings in March, April and May to discuss details proposed in the plan. In recent years, planners outlined a broad proposal to turn acres of low-rise office buildings, shopping centers and self-storage units on land near Interstate 90 and state Route 900 into pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods.
Group urges residents to open ‘Eyes on Issaquah’
March 13, 2012
The black-and-red signs started to appear on Issaquah street corners and road medians just as city leaders prepared to delve into a long-term blueprint for growth.
Ava Frisinger
In bold letters, the signs asks passers-by, “Re-development at what cost?” and directs onlookers to a website for more information.
The campaign, called Eyes on Issaquah, is the latest effort to encourage citizen oversight as the Central Issaquah Plan advances from proposal to policy.
The organization behind the eyes is the Issaquah Environmental Council, a watchdog group, and the face behind the organization is leader Connie Marsh, a longtime citizen activist and former City Council candidate.
“It seemed important enough to try to get as many eyes as possible on it, so it would be the people’s plan, too, and not just something laid upon them by their government,” she said.
The campaign urges residents to learn more about the Central Issaquah Plan — a proposal to remake more than 900 acres in the business district along Interstate 90 in the decades ahead.
U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert relocates district office to Issaquah
February 28, 2012
U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert plans to open a district office in Issaquah after redistricting shifted the former office on Mercer Island into another district.
Dave Reichert
The GOP congressman plans to open a district office in a Southeast 56th Street office building uphill from East Lake Sammamish Parkway Southeast.
The relocation reflects a monumental change in the district Reichert represents. The redrawn 8th Congressional District stretches from Auburn in South King County to Wenatchee in Chelan County. The former district encompassed only communities in King and Pierce counties.
(The reshaped district goes into effect for the House of Representatives election in November.)
“We felt like Issaquah was probably the most accessible and easy to get to for both sides of the Cascades,” Reichert said in a Feb. 24 interview.
The district office employs seven staffers responsible for handling constituents’ questions related to Social Security entitlements, veterans benefits, immigration issues and more.
City announces employee layoffs amid reorganization
February 7, 2012
Officials announced cuts to the city workforce — including six layoffs — Feb. 1, as City Hall launches a broad reorganization.
Overall, leaders reduced staff through layoffs, a severance program and vacancies. The total includes five positions eliminated through voluntary separations and two vacant positions.
Because limited funding is available for capital projects, officials did not need as many employees for engineering and inspection functions. In November, officials announced plans to start employee layoffs in February.
The city also plans to add three positions for a beefed-up economic development effort. The plan is for Keith Niven, the longtime Major Development Review Team manager, to serve as economic development director and hire economic development managers.
