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Newspaper Archive of
The Issaquah Press
Issaquah, Washington
May 30, 1984     The Issaquah Press
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May 30, 1984
 
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Grosscnb.,cher ros. 1146 ] Te. lat j,.¢. Portl,':n:t Or(v;orl 97232 THE 1 SSAQUAH PRESS Thirty-five ceres per copy SERVING ISSAQUAH SINCE 1900 Vol. 84, No. 22 May30, 1984 Water sliding in the rain About 250 youngsters dared the rain Saturday and spent the day at Lake Sammamish Waterworks Park. The park was ]ampacked during the good weather on Memorial Day, even with only seven of the 22 rides in operation. Youngsters still were able to enjoy the white water ride, the Banzai Screamer and four large water slides. Photos by Mark Chappell. town LID does not meet,its expectations, says report, designs a plan and sells bonds of the pro- to finance the construction. Business These bonds retire through Improvement an assessment against real a dis- property in the improved after a area and are paid as a fee city staff added to property taxes. ,ID package The proposed LID is an its stated image enhancement project focused mainly on beautify- ing Front Street with a Revitiliza- pedestrian park, improved theCham, parking lot, new street lights, first pro- banners and landscaping. COncept to the The plan, developed by Seat- Februray and tie urban design group to initiate Makers, calls for strengthen- resolution, ing the area's retail and commercial services by is Used to raise attracting new visitors and PUblic improve- shoppers to the downtown are Started either area, promoting the down- or a town as a center for com- 50 percent munity life and rein- area's vigorating the historic city then downtown. Makers estimates construction cost at about $610,000. But the city staff, stating that they are very supportive of the efforts and whose opi- nions should not be con- strued as opposition, said the proposal did not fully ad- dress all the possible prob- lems the LID would affect. The staff reported possible problems with public safety, traffic circulation, land use and repair and maintenance. The police department ex- pressed concern for parking in the downtown area. Traf- fic congestion was another main problem. Added traffic will greatly affect the public safety at the Dogwood Street-Rainier Boulevard-- Front Street intersection dur- ing peak hours, the report says. The report states that the LID should address the r meeting attracts r 150 property owners crowded Community to ml the East water- of hands, those atten- and half b sewers cam- dOWn East Parkway ltely In- toSE43rd Was Presented organiza-, ners a Utility District in for- to obtain sent out ago, and ac- District 82 21 per- lan- the peti- at the is a noticeable lack Qf support from several areas, including lnglewood Hills. If support doesn't pick up, it would be possible to withdraw these areas from the proposed district, he said, which would result in increasing the percentage from 21 to 28.4 percent. The boundaries of the proposed ULID can be decreased but not expanded he explained. The project would involve construction of a sewer in- terceptor and other facilities in the East Lake Sammamish Parkway corridor and a local sewer system. A pressure sewer rather than a gravity- type system would be built to decrease costs, said Spahr. A base assessment of approx- imately $500 to $600 would be charged to all residents whether or not they choose to hook up to the sewer. The assessment would be based on the number of homes that could be built on the Inn- downer's lot under current zoning regulations. For in- stance, if three homes could be built on a lot, the lan- downer would pay three times the base assessment. The cost of actual sewer hook-up would vary ac- cording to the location, topography and the number of homes requesting service. About 1,275 residences could hook into the system. Cur- rently the cost is estimated at $2,000 to $5,000 per developable lot. In addition, landowners opting for sewer service would be charged a monthly Metro fee. The project would be financed by selling municipal bonds at low interest rates, said Spahr. Landowners would then pay off the amount over 15 years, with the assessment based on the interest rates at which the bonds were sold. The meeting May 23 was informational only, but if the required petitions are obtain- ed, at least two public hear- ings will be conducted so that the opposition can present their viewpoints. Herb Giibo, spokesperson for Group S-5, stated that the organization will soon be contacting all landowners in- volved to make sure they are aware of the proposed ULID. increase in traffic volume directly proportional to the increases in traffic caused by the improvement. The proposed LID may also conflict with the yet-to- be-developed Downtown Subarea Plan, according to the report. Although Plan- ning Director Dwight Hart- man said the proposal does not appear to be at odds with the direction of the city's subarea plan to be completed until 1985, he was reluctant to make a judgment about the proposal adding, "it might be advisable to com- plete the broader vision Subarea Plan before turning too much of the area into an old downtown with a new im- age." The Parks Department stressed concern over the maintenance of the street banners, street lighting poles, canopies, and trees. The wooden light poles and sign posts are a great target for "four-wheeled vandals," according to the report. In general, the staff report says the proposal to revitalize the downtown area does not meet its goal. It states that the trend over the past 20 years is for retail shoppers to frequent a centralized shop- ping area with a variety of stores and easy parking, add- ing that "if those things are not present the shopper will not consistently frequent the area no matter how nice the area may be aesthetically." Downtown Improvement Committee Chair Jean Thomas disagreed with that assessment. "We are going to end up with an LID no different than a shopping center," she said. "It would be the same size but just not under one ownership. Thomas said she was very upset after reading the staff report, but after talking to ci- ty administrators, thinks that the problems can be "ironed out." "It is a starting point," she said. "If you read the report carefully, it is not as negative. I don't think the committee should put traffic in the scope of the LID nor do I think the city expects us to." Another committee member, Dave Kingery, ex- pressed anger over the staff report saying the report is "diametrically opposite of the past views of the members of the staff. "We (the committee) did look at the traffic problems, but that is the city's problem to solve," he said. He said his anger has sub- dued since he received a letter from Mayor A.J. Culver stating that the city is "op- timistic that the council will be able to work with you all to develop a viable plan" that is "sorely needed to maintain the strength of the downtown." City Administrator Leon Kos said he is aware the staff report appears more negative than optimistic. "We were trying to pro- vide information and not be opposed to the LID," he said. "We see a real need for the downtown LID. The real question is what things should be added and how to address the impact of the LID. "Maybe the bottom line is people reacting more may be an asset to get more interest in the LID," Kos said. "I hope that will happen, be- cause 1 am for it." The Downtown Revitaliza- tion Committee will meet with the council's community and Intergovernmental Rela- tions Committee within a week and later with the whole City Council at its July 18 meeting. Issaquah man charged with prostitution by Dtmidl¢ Clarneux David L. Vandeventer, 29 of Issaquah, was charged last week with three counts of prostitution involving two male minors. State charges were flied with the King County Pro- scouter by the Issaquah Police Department, stating that the suspect allegedly of- fered money to the minors in return for an act of sex. Police began investigating Vandeventer last March after being contacted by one of the victims. The investigation led officers to other victims in the community. In addition to three counts of prostitution, Vandeventer, a long-time local resident and past student of Issaquah High, is also charged with four counts of com- municating with a minor for immoral purposes, one count of furnishing alcohol to a minor and three counts of simple assault. The 11 charges involve a total of four minors ranging in age from 15 to 18 years old. The victims will be called upon to testify in the case. Vandeventer was subpoen- ed late last week to appear for arraignment before Court Commissioner Jeanette A. Voss on June 5 at the Issa- quah District Court. At this time he will enter his plea. Bridge debate to be heard by city Talk of building a bridge over the east fork of Issa- quah Creek in the northeast quadrant of the city may be the featured topic of the Six- Year Comprehensive Street Improvement Plan public hearing slated for 8 p.m., June 4 at Community Hall. Each year the city must up- date its street improvement plan for the following six years in order to receive federal aid or gas tax monies for its improvements. The street plan to be discussed this year only listed various arterial and collector streets that needed improve- ment until Councilor Don Raybuck recommended at last Monday's council meeting that the hearing should include discussion of a bridge in the northeast sec- tion of the city. The motion, opposed by Councilors Darlene McHenry and Dick Mitchell, passed, and the item will be included at the public hearing. Although not labeled as such, talk of the bridge is reminiscent of the talk of a Third Avenue bridge two years ago. In May, 1982, the city's Traffic Circulation and Plan- ning Study was complete and ready for adoption. One of the items the study listed under future projects was a bridge over Issaquah Creek at Third Avenue. Presently, the road dead-ends at both sides of the creek. The study proposed the bridge to provide another connection to N.E. Gilman Boulevard, enabling traffic to by-pass the Front Street and Sunset Way intersection. The study reported that, ex- cluding the potential connec- tion via N.E. Creek Way, the area north of East Sunset Way is land-locked. It reported that the total daily demand from this area with destinations to the north through Front Street at that time was 600 vehicles per day. It also reported that the impact to the neighborhood on Third Avenue would have been relatively severe when contrasted with current levels of traffic. During the public hearing before the adoption of the traffic study, the Third Avenue bridge was hotly debated. While the city's Utilities Committee chaired by Councilor Mitchell recom- mended no bridge be built, others, including then Chamber of Commerce president Dave Kingery, Police Chief Dag Garrison, Fire Chief Tony Singleton andd Mayor A.J. Culver all supported a bridge. One resident who opposed the bridge said the council should consider the "human impact" on the residents in that area who do not want the bridge. The council adopted the traffic study with the excep- tion of the Third Avenue bridge plan. City Administrator Leon Kos said the council Monday night did not decide whether the bridge would be a project or not, but simply an item to be discussed at the hearing. He also said the location of the bridge was never discuss- ed. The streets to be discussed for the six-year improvement plan include: Wildwood Boulevard from S.W. Clark to Forest Drive (1984); Gilman Boulevard from Front Street N. to the Renton-lssaquah Road (S.R. 900)(1984); Lake Sam- mamish Road from 12th Avenue N.W. to easterly city limits (1985); Rainier Boulevard from Gilman Boulevard to Front Street N. (1986); Wildwood Boulevard from S.W. Forest to Moun- tainside Drive (1986); W. Sunset Way from Mr. Olym- pus to Mr. Park Boulevard (1987); 12th Avenue from N.W. Gilman Boulevard to Newport Way (1988); Newport Way from SR 900 to westerly city limits (1989); and S.E. 56th Street from 19th N.W. to westerly city limits (I 990). Streets included in the ci- ty's funding applications to the Urban Arterial Board of the Federal Aid to Urban Systems Program are: Front Street N. from Dogwood Street to Sunset Way; Front Street N. from Gilman Boulevard to Dogwood Street; Front Street S. from S.W. Clark to the southern city limits; and E. Sunset Way from Front Street to 3rd Avenue N.E. I Historical Society honored for work on museum Isuquah Historloal Society Chair Greg Spranger (right) and committee advisor Calen Daniel stand in front of Gilman Town Hall with a plaque awarded to the group by the Association of King County Historical Organizations. The plaque wae given in recognition of the group's efforts to refurbish the museum located at 165 S.E. Andrews.