Tag Archives: Ramiro Valderrama

State Sen. Litzow slams Trump; Valderrama ducks and weaves

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Valderrama

Ramiro Valderrama

With the certainty that Donald Trump will be the Republic nominee for president, State Sen. Steve Litzow (R-Mercer Island) was quick to denounce the billionaire in no uncertain terms. Litzow, of the 41st District (the southern half of Sammamish), is targeted by Democrats in this election. The 41st trends Democrat. Litzow’s full comments are below the jump.

Former State Attorney General Rob McKenna, a Republican, said he’ll write in John Kasich’s name for president. But Sammamish Deputy Mayor Ramiro Valderrama, who is running for the State House as a Republican for the 45th District seat held by Democrat Roger Goodman, ducked and weaved when Sammamish Comment asked whether he supports Trump or not. The 45th trends Democratic. The north half of Sammamish is in the 45th.

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Sheffer quits 45th District race, says GOP favored Valderrama

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March 25, 2016: Charlie Sheffer, who last year began running for State Representative from the 45th Legislative District, has withdrawn from the race.

Sammamish City Council Deputy Mayor Ramiro Valderrama declared his candidacy yesterday. He will challenge incumbent Democrat Roger Goodman, who has held the seat since 2007.

“On February 15…I informed the House Republican Organizing Committee (HROC) that we would be withdrawing from our 2016 bid for the state House,” Sheffer wrote in an email to Sammamish Comment.

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Mars Hill Church, ELST appeal thoughts

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  • Sammamish Comment has been silent since Feb. 8 because of travels. We’re back in town now for a while and are back with coverage of Sammamish.

Mars Hill Church

The former Mars Hill Church on 228th Ave. in Sammamish. Photo via Google.

The former Mars Hills Church on 228th appears to be on the verge of becoming the proverbial white elephant.

Purchased in a hasty manner for nearly $7m when the church organization collapsed, with the expectation that colleges were interested in opening a campus here, this dream went up in smoke due to circumstances beyond the City’s control.

At the March 1 meeting, Deputy Mayor Ramiro Valderrama moved to lease the building for five years while the Administration sought to find a long-term solution. Members Christie Malchow and Tom Hornish supported the motion. Members Tom Odell, Kathy Huckabay and Bob Keller opposed it as premature and suggesting too long a period. Mayor Don Gerend, who would be the swing vote, instead moved to put the issue over to the March 15 Council meeting. This passed unanimously.

HereĀ is some background information.

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Hearing Examiner OKs Conner-Jarvis project, says Kempton Downs failed to meet burden

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City_of_SammamishJan. 20, 2016: The Sammamish Hearing Examiner Tuesday rejected the appeal by the Kempton Downs Homeowners Assn. of the Conner-Jarvis project. Approval was given with minor modifications to conditions.

The approval, by Examiner John Gault, was a sweeping victory for Conner-Jarvis and the City’s Development and Public Works departments. Gault ruled that Kempton Downs failed in issue after issue to meet the burden required under state law to overturn the professional judgment of the City’s staff.

State law says that deference to the professionals takes preference. This means that in appeals, the burden of proof that the staff erred is on the appellants.

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Sammamish Retreat analysis

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The Sammamish City Council’s 2016 Retreat wrapped up Saturday. Here are thoughts and analysis:

  • Ā Retreat location: This was the first time in about 10 years Sammamish held its Retreat on this side of the Cascade Mountains. Given how often Snoqualmie Pass closed this season (including City_of_Sammamishtwice on Saturday alone), holding it in Tacoma was good from this perspective alone. Council members and the Administration liked the remote location because it discouraged public participation and afforded total candor–sometimes to the point of open warfare (as occurred last year, despite presence by Sammamish Comment and others). In Tacoma, The Comment and others were present all three days, with the public attendance of almost a dozen on Saturday. The sky didn’t fall in. The atmosphere was far more civil this year as well (see below).

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