Category Archives: City Politics

Spending on the rise in Sammamish; heads up, taxpayers, Klahanie

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Nearly a year ago, I raised the alarm about increased spending by the City of Sammamish. At that time, I identified at least $100 million in spending and that the City could be on a path to tax increases.

Here’s what I identified in May 2014:

  • Community Center: $35 million and probably more.
  • Developing the former YMCA property next to Pine Lake School, at a cost of $15 million proposed in the park plan.
  • Sahalee Road improvements at an unidentified cost, but probably in the low millions at the least.
  • Millions of dollars in the park plan for the Sammamish Landing, the Pigott property and more.
  • Klahanie Annexation: $32 million for road improvements and who knows what else on top of this, almost certainly amounting to tens of millions of dollars more.
  • Widening Issaquah-Pine Lake Road at a cost of $16.5m.
  • Rebuilding “Snake Hill Road” (it’s really 212th Ave. SE, down the windy, snake-like drive to East Lake Sammamish Parkway): Millions of dollars.
  • Desires to take over the Northeast Sammamish and Sammamish Plateau Water and Sewer Districts: tens of millions of dollars, at a minimum.
  • Town Center improvements.
  • And this is on top of the normal operations of the city, including millions of dollars for road maintenance, parks, services and overhead.

Let’s update these: Continue reading →

Klahanie annexation vote April 28, ballots this week; impact already being felt

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Klahanie Vote Map

The Klahanie Potential Annexation Area and its voting precincts. Click on image to enlarge.

Residents in the Klahanie Potential Annexation Area will be receiving ballots this week to vote whether to annex to Sammamish. If approved, city officials hope to make the annexation effective in August.

Klahanie PAA voters rejected annexing to Issaquah in February 2014 by a mere 32 vote. Click here for the voting analysis.

Several Sammamish City Council members actively opposed the Issaquah vote, and Council Member Don Gerend served as a spokesman for Klahanie Choice, the anti-Issaquah group that instead support annexation to Sammamish. Council Member Ramio Valderrama led the Sammamish council in several votes to send messages to Klahanie residents that Sammamish welcomed the PAA with open arms.

Sammamish has wanted to annex the Klahanie area since incorporation and in 2002 entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Issaquah mayor to transfer the PAA from Issaquah to Sammamish after an annexation vote failed. The Issaquah City Council refused to approve the transfer.

Annexation to Sammamish will add between 10,000-11,000 residents to our city’s population of around 45,000. The area, in aggregate, will also have one of the largest voting blocs, which could tip future elections.

There are other ramifications as well. Continue reading →

“Yes” for Initiative/Referendum in Sammamish

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Sammamish voters should vote Yes on the April 28 Advisory Ballot for the Initiative/Referendum.

As long-time readers of this column know, I’ve been conflicted over whether Sammamish should adopt the right of Initiative and Referendum, as provided in the 1912 Washington State Constitution. But events since the first of the year convinced me this is the correct decision on the part of the voters. The Sammamish City Council informally said it will follow the outcome of the Advisory vote. This should be the case even if a Yes vote is narrow.

King County Elections is mailing the ballot this week.

Here’s why I’ve come down for the Yes.

Continue reading →

First candidate announces for Nov. 3 City Council election

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Christie Malchow

Christie Malchow

Christie Malchow is the first candidate to announce running for Sammamish City Council in the November 3 election.

She hasn’t announced what position she is seeking. Mayor Tom Vance and Council Members Nancy Whitten and Ramiro Valderrama are up for election. None has announced if they will seek reelection, although I’m told by another Council Member that Vance will do so.

Valderrama and Whitten told me about a month ago that they were undecided.

Malchow lives in Chestnut Hills at 212th SE and SE 8th St. She’s lived in Sammamish since 2011.  Continue reading →

Barricades: Promises made, promises broken over 10 years; kicking the can down the road another two years

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Perhaps the highest profile issue after the East Lake Sammamish Trail to consistently vex the City Council is “barricades.” And most specifically, the “42nd St. barricade” in the Northeast corner of the City that separates the Hidden Ridge and Timberline neighborhoods.

At the March 17 Council meeting, residents from the neighborhoods appeared during the public comment session to support or oppose removing the barricade on 42nd. The public comments sessions begins at the start the meeting, and the testimony is interspersed with comment on other topics.

The Council had some extended discussion toward the end of the meeting, beginning at 1:59 hours into the meeting. Continue reading →