Fire District 10 voters approve $5.5 million bond to relocate fire station
February 15, 2012
NEW — 12:05 p.m. Feb. 15, 2012
Fire District 10 — May Valley, Mirrormont and other communities near Issaquah — received approval to build a fire station and upgrade other facilities as voters approved a $5.5 million bond in a special election Tuesday.
Officials plan to use bond dollars to relocate crews from Fire Station 78 at 16135 S.E. 113th Place near Renton to a modern facility at a more central location at Southeast May Valley Road and 207th Avenue Southeast.
The district asked the electorate to OK the bond to fund a rebuilt Station 78 and improvements to other fire stations throughout the sprawling district. The price tag for the rebuilt station alone is expected to reach $4.5 million.
Homeowners should pay about 9 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value — or about $3 per month for a home assessed at $400,000 — to fund the bond. The district last asked voters to approve a bond in the mid-1990s.
King County Elections predicts 38 percent turnout in February election
February 7, 2012
NEW — 8 a.m. Feb. 7, 2012
King County Elections mailed 186,500 ballots for a half dozen special districts late last month, and officials expect voters to return almost 71,000 ballots in the Feb. 14 election.
In the Issaquah area, Fire District 10 officials asked citizens to decide on a $5.5 million bond to fund a fire station replacement and other capital projects. The district — a partner in Eastside Fire & Rescue — includes Klahanie, May Valley, Preston and Tiger Mountain in the Issaquah area, plus Carnation in rural King County.
Fire District 10 officials said a fire station built in May Valley could improve response times for rural residents and alleviate the workload for Fire Station 71 along East Sunset Way in downtown Issaquah — a station responsible for serving many neighborhoods inside city limits.
Register to vote in Feb. 14 special election on fire station bond
February 4, 2012
NEW — 4 p.m. Feb. 4, 2012
The deadline for people to register in person to vote in the Feb. 14 special election is Monday.
Many Issaquah-area residents received ballots late last month as Fire District 10 asks voters to approve a bond for a replacement fire station meant to improve response times.
Officials said a fire station built in May Valley could improve response times for rural residents and alleviate the workload for Fire Station 71 along East Sunset Way in downtown Issaquah — a station responsible for serving many neighborhoods inside city limits.
The district is asking voters to approve a $5.5 million bond to fund a rebuilt Station 78 and improvements to other fire stations throughout the sprawling district. The price tag for the rebuilt station alone is expected to reach $4.5 million.
Press Editorial
January 31, 2012
Fire District 10 station bond makes sense
King County Fire District 10 commissioners are asking voters to approve a construction bond for the first time in nearly two decades. It’s a reasonable request that voters should consider.
It’s a bit confusing, since both the city of Issaquah and Fire District 10 are served by Eastside Fire & Rescue, a cooperative of multiple jurisdictions. But only Issaquah residents outside the city limits pay taxes for fire protection to District 10. City property owners are paying for the new fire station near the Issaquah Transit Center.
If you got a ballot in the mail last week, you live in District 10.
Cleanup continues after snowstorm and ice cause havoc
January 24, 2012
State Route 900 remains barricaded at midafternoon Jan. 20 to motorists wanting to go southbound past Northwest Talus Drive, a day after a downed tree blocked access to the urban village. By Greg Farrar
In the days after a snowstorm pummeled the region, blackout chased whiteout, as residents uneasy about thorny commutes and missed meetings instead confronted sinking temperatures and toppling trees — all sans electricity.
The major snowstorm dropped 3 to 6 inches across the Issaquah area Jan. 18, but the struggle started the next day, as a rare ice storm led to widespread power outages and caused trees to send ice- and snow-laden branches earthward.
The harsh conditions tested road crews, prompted spinouts and fender benders around the region, and led officials to cancel school for almost a week.
“It was like a 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 punch,” Bret Heath, city Public Works Operations and emergency management director, said Jan. 23, as cleanup efforts continued. “For awhile there, I wasn’t sure if we were ever going to see the light at the end of the tunnel.”
Voters to decide fire station replacement
January 24, 2012
Many Issaquah-area residents should receive ballots in the days ahead as Fire District 10 asks voters to approve a bond for a replacement fire station meant to improve response times.
By Dona Mokin
Officials said a fire station built in May Valley could improve response times for rural residents and alleviate the workload for Fire Station 71 along East Sunset Way in downtown Issaquah — a station responsible for serving many neighborhoods inside city limits.
In a measure put before voters in a Feb. 14 special election, the district is asking voters to approve a $5.5 million bond to fund a rebuilt Station 78 and improvements to other fire stations throughout the sprawling district. The price tag for the rebuilt station alone is expected to reach $4.5 million.
Ballots should start to reach residents in unincorporated King County near Issaquah after Jan. 25.
Fire District 10 is the Eastside Fire & Rescue partner serving residents in Klahanie, May Valley, Preston and Tiger Mountain in the Issaquah area, plus Carnation in rural King County. The district encompasses about 130 square miles and about 28,000 people.
Officials plan to use bond dollars to relocate crews from Fire Station 78 from 16135 S.E. 113th Place near Renton to a modern facility at a more central location at Southeast May Valley Road and 207th Avenue Southeast.
State highways near Issaquah reopen after crew clear downed trees
January 21, 2012
NEW — 5:30 p.m. Jan. 21, 2012
The slushy sections of state highway near Issaquah left closed after a snowstorm and subsequent ice storm reopened to traffic, state Department of Transportation officials announced Saturday.
State Route 18 from Interstate 90 to Auburn — closed after hundreds of downed trees littered the roadway — reopened at 2 p.m. Saturday. State Route 900 at Southeast May Valley Road reopened Friday afternoon.
“Drivers are anxious to have things back to normal and we are working to make that happen,” said Dave McCormick, Department of Transportation regional maintenance manager.
Crews spent the night removing sand, slush, branches and other debris from storm drains. Flooding could result on roadways as temperatures increase and snow melts.
“Hundreds of trees fell,” McCormick said. “It’s the worst we’ve seen in the last several years.”
Power is still a problem for thousands of residents and Department of Transportation traffic engineers. Engineers cannot see cameras or gather in-road sensor data on large sections of major highways in the region. The agency has backup generators in place at the communications hub, but the power to individual systems is still down. The state has no estimate on restoration of the affected systems.
Downed trees prompt state Route 900, Southeast 56th Street road closures
January 19, 2012
NEW — 10 a.m. Jan. 19, 2012
Downed trees and power lines prompted road closures on state Route 900 in Issaquah and rural King County early Thursday morning.
Crews responded a downed tree and power lines before 7:50 a.m. between Northwest Talus Drive and the southern city limits. The stretch between the access road to the Talus urban village and the city line remains closed as Puget Sound Energy crews tend to the downed tree.
Outside city limits, in rural King County, the state Department of Transportation said state Route 900 is closed at Southeast May Valley Road due to a downed tree.
In Issaquah, Southeast 56th Street from 229th Avenue Southeast to East Lake Sammamish Parkway Southeast is closed due to downed power lines.
The closures came as ice weighted down trees and power lines, contributing to road closures and power outages throughout the region.
PSE reported more than 12,000 customers in the Issaquah area without power at 9:55 a.m.
Voters asked to approve $5.5 million to build fire station
December 20, 2011
Officials said building a fire station in May Valley could improve response times for residents in the Issaquah area.
The issue is due to go before Fire District 10 voters early next year.
Officials plan to ask district voters to approve a $5.5 million bond in a Feb. 14 special election. Fire District 10 is the Eastside Fire & Rescue partner serving residents in Klahanie, May Valley, Preston and Tiger Mountain in the Issaquah area.
Officials plan to use bond dollars to relocate crews from Fire Station 78 from 16135 S.E. 113th Place just outside Renton city limits to a modern facility at a more central location at Southeast May Valley Road and 207th Avenue Southeast. Such a move is meant to shift a fire station about three miles east, deeper into the district.
Proposed 2012 King County budget touts savings
October 18, 2011
Residents call for human services support at local budget hearing
As the King County Council begins to listen to hours of public testimony at a series of budget hearings, one overall theme became clear at its Oct. 13 session — support human services now, before it’s too late.
Kathy Lambert
Derek Franklin, a Sammamish resident and representative of the Alliance of Eastside Agencies, said the county must begin to formulate a dedicated and stable long-term funding source for human services, such as those aimed at protecting residents from homelessness, domestic violence and inadequate legal counsel.
“Although sometimes obscured by the high socioeconomic status of the Eastside, human service needs here are quite high,” he said during a public hearing at Pacific Cascade Middle School near Issaquah. “We urge the budget committee to establish a long-term fix for the human services safety net. It’s been significantly dismantled over the years by budget cuts, and people … are beginning to fall through the cracks.”
King County Executive Dow Constantine’s 2012 budget proposal earned praise from County Council members for eschewing cuts to services in the general fund — elections, law enforcement and other basic government functions. The overall budget proposal is $5.3 billion, including $648 million in the general fund.
