Tag Archives: Sammamish

Sahalee Way project up for contract vote Tuesday

Posted on by
6

sahalee-road

“The current design includes sidewalks on the west side, bike lanes, two 11-foot travel lanes, and a center turn lane or raised median island where needed. A traffic signal is also included for the intersection at NE 28th Place/223 Avenue NE,” the City writes.

A contract for the design of the controversial Sahalee Way road improvement project is up for a vote at Tuesday’s Sammamish City Council meeting.

Whether approved or rejected, the vote appears it will be a 4-3 split along the usual lines, with Mayor Don Gerend being the swing vote.

The project calls for a sidewalk along one side, bike lanes, a turning lane and additional stop lights between NE 25th and the Sammamish City Limits.

It does not extend to SR202, which is one mile beyond the City Limits. This means no improvements to Sahalee in this section, and this is one reason why three members of the City Council oppose the current plans.

Continue reading →

Opportunities for civic participation in Sammamish

Posted on by
Reply

City_of_SammamishIt’s a new year and a new opportunity for citizen involvement in Sammamish.

Typically, this is thought of as the City asking for volunteers on various commissions and committees appointed by the City Council

But there are several organizations independent of those under the City auspices.

Here is a list, which is hoped all-inclusive. The trouble with lists is that usually someone or something gets left off inadvertently. Apologies if this is the case.

Continue reading →

“Voters have forgiven Sound Transit”

Posted on by
Reply

“Voters have forgiven us for past troubles:” Sound Transit CEO. That’s the headline of a story on MyNorthwest.com.

The CEO is reacting to the latest vote in favor of Sound Transit 3, the $54bn project, $27bn tax plan over the next 25 years.

The CEO needs to take another look.

Continue reading →

Trump’s environmental choices prompt questions locally

Posted on by
5
Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt has been nominated to head the Environmental Protection Agency. Pruitt has a record of fighting EPA regulations. The EPA adopts regs for clean water and protecting threatened/endangered species--like the Kokanee salmon in Lake Sammamish.

Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt has been nominated to head the Environmental Protection Agency. Pruitt has a record of fighting EPA regulations. The EPA adopts regs for clean water and protecting threatened/endangered species–like the Kokanee salmon in Lake Sammamish.

Scott Pruitt for director of the Environmental Protection Agency.

Ryan Zinke for Secretary of Interior.

Rick Perry for Secretary of, umm, ahh, Oops.

These are President-Elect Donald Trump’s choices for environmental departments. In the case of Perry, the Department of Energy, the agency he wanted  close but for which he famously forgot and said Oops in his 2012 run for president. Energy has no small impact on the environment.

Pruitt, the attorney general of Oklahoma, fought EPA regulations for years. Zinke, a first-term Congressman from Montana, received just s 3% rating from the League of Conservation Voters.

And now they will be in charge of clean water and endangered/threatened species regulations.

There are direct, local implications.

Continue reading →

Final Nov. 8 election results; Precinct analysis to come

Posted on by
Reply

Final results for the Nov. 8 election, posted last night by King, Pierce and Snohomish counties and Washington State, for the races and propositions affecting Sammamish, show no surprises from initial election night results.

Sammamish Comment called all but a handful of races on election night and the Too Close To Call races within the first week.

The only race that maintained suspense was for the 5th Legislative District State Senate race between incumbent Democrat Mark Mullet and Republican challenger Chad Magendanz. Mullet led by nearly 3,000 votes on election night with a six point spread in the percentages. The Comment called the race for Mullet then, noting that since 1999, final results didn’t waver by more than 1%-2% from election night.

In this case, however, Mullet’s lead shrank as votes were counted to a low of 509 and by less than a one point spread. The race concluded with 515 votes and 0.69% separating the two. Magendanz conceded Nov. 23.

The 5th LD includes the greater Klahanie area within Sammamish.

Sound Transit 3

The $54bn Sound Transit 3 proposal passed by a 54% result, but this was no area-wide mandate for the agency. Pierce County voters thumped the $27bn tax hike, giving only a 44% approval. Snohomish County barely approved the plan, with a 51%-49% result.

King County, largely on the strength of Seattle, approved it by a 57% margin.

Midway through counting, Sammamish was rejecting the plan by a 51% margin.

Certification and Precinct breakdown

Certification of the comes today. King County releases the precinct voting results tomorrow. Sammamish Comment will analyze Sammamish voting in selected races and report later this week.

The full election tally for selected Sammamish races is below.

Continue reading →