Senators offer key support for same-sex marriage bill
February 7, 2012
Issaquah legislators offered key Republican support for the same-sex marriage bill passed in the state Senate on Feb. 1.
Cheryl Pflug and Steve Litzow joined the 28-21 majority to endorse the legislation.
So far, a half-dozen states — Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont — plus Washington, D.C., allow same-sex marriage. Washington state has had a domestic partnership law — or “everything but marriage” law — in place since 2009.
Cheryl Pflug
Steve Litzow
(Pflug, a former state representative from Maple Valley, represents the 5th Legislative District; Litzow, a freshman senator from Mercer Island, represents the 41st Legislative District.)
Issaquah’s other senator, Democrat Rodney Tom, also endorsed the legislation. (Tom represents the 48th Legislative District, including the Greenwood Point and South Cove neighborhoods.)
The measure heads next to the state House of Representatives. The bill is expected to easily pass the House and proceed to Gov. Chris Gregoire to be signed into law.
The governor, a Democrat, endorsed same-sex marriage legislation last month. Gregoire praised the Senate decision.
Bellevue utility tax hits some Issaquah residents
February 7, 2012
Bellevue officials decided Jan. 23 to impose a utility tax on water customers in Greenwood Point and South Cove — Issaquah neighborhoods served by the Bellevue municipal water system.
Bellevue City Council members approved extending a utility occupation tax to the water utility’s revenue, including for customers beyond Bellevue. Starting March 1, customers should start to see a 10.4 percent increase on water bills. The change does not affect customers in Bellevue.
Officials intend to use the additional dollars for fire hydrants, oversized pipes and reservoir storage.
The decision followed a 2008 state Supreme Court ruling related to how cities pay for municipal fire hydrants. The ruling in Lane v. Seattle identified hydrants as a general government service and not a utility.
Issaquah lawmakers invite residents to town hall meetings
February 7, 2012
NEW — 8 a.m. Feb. 7, 2012
Residents can join Issaquah legislators to discuss the ongoing session in Olympia at town hall meetings in Mercer Island and Newcastle soon.
Meet state Sen. Steve Litzow and state Reps. Judy Clibborn and Marcie Maxwell — 41st Legislative District lawmakers — at the Feb. 18 meetings. The sessions come as the Legislature confronts a $1.5 billion shortfall in the state budget.
The bipartisan delegation — Republican Litzow; Democrats Clibborn and Maxwell — plans to answer participants’ questions.
The morning meeting is scheduled for 10-11:30 a.m. at Hazelwood Elementary School, 7100 116th Ave. S.E., Newcastle. The afternoon session is planned for 1:30-3 p.m. at Mercer Island High School, 9100 S.E. 42nd St., Mercer Island.
Issaquah senators offer key Republican support for same-sex marriage bill
February 2, 2012
NEW — 10 a.m. Feb. 2, 2012
Issaquah legislators offered key Republican support for the same-sex marriage bill passed in the state Senate on Wednesday.
Cheryl Pflug
Steve Litzow
Cheryl Pflug and Steve Litzow joined the 28-21 majority to endorse the legislation.
So far, a half-dozen states — Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York and Vermont — plus Washington, D.C., allow same-sex marriage. Washington state has had a domestic partnership law — or “everything but marriage” law — in place since 2009.
(Pflug, a former state representative from Maple Valley, represents the 5th Legislative District; Litzow, a freshman senator from Mercer Island, represents the 41st legislative district.)
Bellevue imposes utility tax on some Issaquah water customers
January 30, 2012
NEW — 6 a.m. Jan. 30, 2012
Bellevue officials decided Jan. 23 to impose a utility tax on water customers in Greenwood Point and South Cove — Issaquah neighborhoods served by the Bellevue municipal water system.
Bellevue City Council members approved extending a utility occupation tax to the water utility’s revenue, including for customers beyond Bellevue. Starting March 1, customers should start to see a 10.4 percent on water bills. The change does not affect customers in Bellevue.
Officials intend to use the additional dollars for fire hydrants, oversized pipes and reservoir storage.
The decision followed a 2008 state Supreme Court ruling related to how cities pay for municipal fire hydrants. The ruling in Lane v. Seattle identified hydrants as a general government service and not a utility.
Latest political proposal splits Issaquah into suburban, rural districts
December 20, 2011
Washington State Redistricting Commission members Tim Ceis and Slade Gorton proposed a 41st Legislative District stretching from Mercer Island to Sammamish. Contributed
The latest proposal to redraw Washington’s political map shifts more Issaquah neighborhoods into a suburban legislative district.
In a plan unveiled Dec. 16, Washington State Redistricting Commission members Tim Ceis and Slade Gorton proposed a 41st Legislative District stretching from Mercer Island to Sammamish. The proposal encompasses North Issaquah, Newcastle and most Bellevue neighborhoods.
The proposed map puts the remaining Issaquah neighborhoods in the 5th Legislative District — a more rural area stretched from Issaquah to Snoqualmie Pass.
Under a legislative map adopted a decade ago, Issaquah is split between the 41st and 5th districts at 12th Avenue Northwest.
South Cove and other neighborhoods along Lake Sammamish fall inside the 48th Legislative District. The proposal from Ceis and Gorton moves the 48th District north to encompass Bellevue and Redmond.
Latest political proposal splits Issaquah into suburban, rural districts
December 16, 2011
NEW — 4:15 p.m. Dec. 16, 2011
The latest proposal to redraw Washington’s political map shifts more Issaquah neighborhoods into a suburban legislative district.
In a plan unveiled Friday, Washington State Redistricting Commission members Tim Ceis and Slade Gorton proposed a 41st Legislative District stretched from Mercer Island to Sammamish. The proposal encompasses North Issaquah, Newcastle and most Bellevue neighborhoods.
The proposed map puts the remaining Issaquah neighborhoods in the 5th Legislative District — a more rural area stretched from Issaquah to Snoqualmie Pass.
Under a legislative map adopted a decade ago, Issaquah is split between the 41st and 5th districts at 12th Avenue Northwest.
Garbage hauler debuts recycling series
December 13, 2011
Waste Management is offering a series of online public service announcements to encourage residents to recycle food scraps and other materials.
The series — available at www.youtube.com/wastemanagement — features Waste Management Joe, a Waste Management driver moonlighting as a psychiatrist and offering recycling advice to customers.
The videos feature a quirky cast of characters and a few surprises to help drive home the recycling message.
The series’ goal is to encourage people to recycle food scraps, glass and other materials otherwise taking up space in the county-run Cedar Hills Regional Landfill near Issaquah.
Waste Management serves Issaquah neighborhoods other than Greenwood Point and South Cove.
State redistricting panel could reshape Issaquah’s political map
November 1, 2011
Washington’s political map is due to undergo a monumental change next year.
Issaquah may shift into a reshaped legislative district as a result. Or maybe not.
Democrats on the state panel responsible for redrawing the political map recommended for a redrawn 41st Legislative District to absorb all of Issaquah. Meanwhile, Republicans on the Washington State Redistricting Commission said most of the city should remain in the neighboring 5th Legislative District.
Commissioners released the proposed maps — and narrowed the number of possibilities for legislative districts — Oct. 14.
Under a legislative map adopted a decade ago, Issaquah is split between the 41st and 5th districts at 12th Avenue Northwest. South Cove and other neighborhoods along Lake Sammamish fall inside the 48th Legislative District.
The latest proposals from the redistricting commission remove the 48th District from the Issaquah equation. Instead, Democrats said the city should join Mercer Island, Newcastle and a portion of Bellevue in a suburban 41st District.
CleanScapes picks up Issaquah garbage contract
October 25, 2011
The next hauler for Issaquah garbage is CleanScapes.
In a unanimous decision Oct. 17, City Council members selected the Seattle-based garbage hauler to serve Issaquah neighborhoods other than Greenwood Point and South Cove. CleanScapes offered additional curbside recycling options, a local storefront, wildlife-resistant containers and other features to land the $3.8-million-per-year Issaquah contract.
Consumers could experience a rate decrease as the city transitions from the current hauler, Waste Management, to CleanScapes in early summer.
The rate could decrease from $13.43 to $12.74 for a residential customer putting a 32-gallon cart out for weekly curbside pickup — although a recent rate increase from the King County Council could dilute the proposed drop.
The contract runs from July 1 through June 2019.
“The public should realize that the staff of the city of Issaquah didn’t just put it out there and say, ‘Tell us what you can offer,’” Councilman Mark Mullet said. “They actually wrote the proposal saying, ‘This is what the city needs to have. These are the minimum, baseline service requirements that we’re going to ask for the citizens of Issaquah.’ Then, the different vendors were able to come back and say, ‘We’ll provide those at this price,’ and they could offer things on top of that.”
Council Utilities, Technology & Environment Committee members met representatives from CleanScapes and the other candidates, Allied Waste and Waste Management, Oct. 11 and sent the contract to the full council for approval.
