Board Meeting Cancelled, RBCA Meeting Tonight, Hidden and Echo Lakes Polluted

Innis Arden Board Meeting Cancelled

 The Innis Arden board meeting scheduled for September 8 has been cancelled due to the travel schedules of certain board members.  The meeting may be rescheduled for September 22 if enough board members are available on such date.

Rick Leary has resigned as president and as a member of the board.  Dave Fosmire, the vice president, will be the acting president until the board meets to select a new president.

Aaron Bush has announced that he is moving and will resign from the board on Tuesday, September 8.

Residents who are interested in filling one of the open board positions should contact a member of the board.

What’s Happening in and around Richmond Beach
(Now that the IA meeting has been cancelled, please consider attending this meeting)

On September 8 at 7 PM, the Richmond Beach Community Association’s general meeting is designed to bring you up to date on critical Point Wells issues. Following this presentation, Shoreline City Council candidates in the November election will speak to specific questions about these issues. Time permitting after the candidates’ comments, we will field questions from the audience. This will be a very important meeting you won’t want to miss.

Below are the major topics that we will discuss at the September community meeting.

Shoreline/BSRE Transportation Corridor Study (TCS)

Come learn why City Manager Debbie Tarry says it is unlikely that the City will complete the TCS until sometime later in 2016. Find out why BSRE’s assumptions designed to guide the TCS analysis were sent back to the drawing board.

Two Access Roads to Point Wells

We will update you on the City’s acceptance of our recommendation to incorporate a second access road into the TCS, as well as Snohomish County’s agreement to include in the draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) the feasibility and impacts of a second access road.

Tolling on Richmond Beach Drive

We will discuss the City’s decision (thanks to our efforts) to amend the City’s Transportation Benefit District rules to permit the District to authorize tolling, subject to voter approval. Find out why we believe strongly that tolling should be studied now, not later, and why we contend that tolling provides a viable alternative to annexation as a means for paying for road impacts and improvements.

90 Foot Maximum Height on Point Wells Buildings

BSRE’s project application calls for at least 20 towers taller than 90 feet at Point Wells. Come learn about our legal arguments why Snohomish County Urban Center Code limits a maximum building height of 90 feet, not 180 feet as proposed by the developer.

Status of Draft EIS

We will update you on the status of the Snohomish County EIS, an estimated publication date and their agreement to include a 90-foot alternative in the EIS.

Fiscal Analysis of Annexation Alternatives

Find out why we successfully argued that a “no annexation” alternative should be included in the proposed analysis of the financial impact of annexation to the City and Woodway, and learn about our position that the financial analysis should include a scenario that assumes only 1,500 units at Point Wells.

City of Shoreline Leverage to Influence the Traffic and

Scale of the Development

The City Manager and Council Members have consistently maintained that they have no leverage over the scale of the Point Wells development. The prevailing view expressed is that the City can only potentially influence traffic volume. Based on our cumulative legal research on this issue, we will submit specific areas where we are confident that the City Council has strong leverage to influence the size of the development, as well the number of vehicle trips.

In closing, we want to clear up a misperception. Some residents mistakenly assume that there is not much on the Point Wells agenda that the City Council or community members can influence. This is just plain wrong! From this point forward, the City Council has the power to make critical decisions about Point Wells that could reduce the scale and traffic impact, in turn preserving the rich character of our Richmond Beach community. That is why the upcoming City Council election is extremely important.

On many fronts your active participation is needed now more than ever. Community participation includes your active involvement leading up to the November elections. Become an informed voter. Demand accountability from both the current and new City Council.

Your community participation also includes your ongoing financial contributions to help support our community efforts. Make checks payable to Richmond Beach Advocates, and mail to P.O. Box 60186, Richmond Beach, WA 98160-0186. Or donate online at richmondbeachadvocates.org .

We look forward to seeing you on Tuesday, Sept. 8, 7:30 p.m. at the Richmond Beach Congregational Church, 1512 NW 195th Street.ep

UPDATE 9/3 – Echo and Hidden Lakes remain CLOSED

Yesterday’s resamplings continue to show high levels of bacteria. Results from the next resampling will be available Wednesday, September 9.

Echo Lake and Hidden Lake are both CLOSED for recreational use due to high bacteria levels.

For questions, contact Surface Water Quality Specialist Melissa Ivancevich at (206) 801-2453 or mivancevich@shorelinewa.gov.