— from Gregory Oaksen —
When the ex-mayor of Jackson Hole, Wyoming was visiting Orcas Island he was asked what could have been done to avoid the overdevelopment that despoiled Jackson Hole. He said expanding the airport was a major mistake. Unfortunately, we seem to be heading in the same direction.
The development of the Eastsound airport master plan has gone forward with a sad lack of community involvement.
The Port’s consultant did the absolute minimum to meet FAA requirements for involvement and the Port commissioners seemed unconcerned. At Port meetings I’ve heard commissioners say it’s just a plan, maybe it won’t happen. Then why is it in the plan? What seems to be driving the process is access to FAA dollars.
The FAA didn’t come to the Port and ask the Port to expand the airport. The Port went to the FAA and instigated the process. As Michael Triplett said in the League of Women Voters candidate forum we need to get rid of the existing commissioners and elect new ones who represent the community. I support Michael Triplett for Position #2 and Mia Kartiganer for Position #5. Both Michael and Mia are pilots, understand the needs of the airport, and want to fulfill the airport’s mission while reflecting the nature of our rural community. As Mia said what should be driving this is our community not outside needs and demands.
Two other candidates want to reign in the expansionist tendencies that have been thus far exhibited by existing commissioners: Pierette Guimond for Position #1 and Gary Abood for Position #3.
Please vote for a new attitude in planning the future of the Eastsound Airport and the future of Orcas Island.
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Greg, those are my choices also!!
Interesting, as I have posted multiple times on this forum, if Orcas wants to stop (and even reverse) growth all they need to do is shut the airport and reduce ferry service or make the cost prohibitive. Seems the ex-Mayor of Jackson Hole is telling you the same thing. Two sailings a day at 100/person and 200-250/car will do it in a few weeks. Simple solution from me and the Mayor… Obviously, JH relies on their airport for tourism and not a ferry and the number of passengers through Orcas airport is quite small compared to the ferry. So Orcasians, you have to markedly cut down ferry service if you want to get the population down to 1,000-2,000 people on the island at any time. And when you do, the bulk of stores will close, and people with kids will leave so you won’t need to fund a school, and healthcare will be unavailable. But, you’ll have an improved environment and a much smaller carbon footprint. Trade offs…
No one is trying to reduce or current population to extreme low level. In the 28 years since I have lived here, I have seen growth that had been serving us well.
School, library, senior center expansion, funhouse, Salmonberry School, Christian School. More shops and restaurants making Orcas Island, San Juan and Lopez Island our 3 main islands quite a great place to live.
Our access limits the population to folks that are happy with our way of life. But looking at the future we must ask? Where do we go from here ? How do we protect our beautiful islands ? There was an old bumper sticker that said “ We do not care how you do it on the mainland “
Pierrette, you can set the population number at whatever you think is the correct one. It could be 2000, 3000, 5000, 10000, 20000, etc. My point is that you just need to agree on the number and understand what that number means to businesses and health care and education and then you adjust ferry service (prices and number of boats/day) to reach the goal you set. It’s a very simple approach. Other islands have used this and it worked. The challenge will be getting people to agree on what the number should be. Also, the less wealthy be the first to be forced out and so those remaining will have fewer people to service them so either wages go up or people become more independent or move off. But there is a critical number needed to support multiple post offices, a good grocery store, a pharmacy, medical clinics, etc. If you want nice services and good restaurants, you will have to continue to abide those pesky tourists and second home owners.
Neil, you have your agenda…don’t try to fold all of us into it….
Merry, that’s a heck of an accusation. I’d love to know what “my agenda” is since I don’t have one, at least not until I move to Orcas and then won’t want anyone else to be allowed to join the party. You may be assuming I have a dog in the fight but I don’t.
But, as a a lover of islands who has followed many of them around the world, I can share what works and doesn’t. Orcas isn’t unique; many islands, and other communities have these same problems and issues. Why be so arrogant as to assume you can’t learn from others?
In going back to the original subject of this guest opinion and leaving Neal Kaye’s pot-stirring diversionary tactics aside:
Having been deeply involved in the Master Plan”process” for the past 1.5 years, I agree with Greg Oaksen’s editorial. We have never satisfactorily had our questions answered by the consultant or the former manager and some former commissioners. Saying things like, “it’ll never happen.” Then, “not in 10 or 20 years,” while mapping out all the projects of expansion (and yes, it IS expansion) on Plan Drawings in detail, make it likely that these projects WILL be pushed and executed unless we are vigilant every step of the way.
When we ask about the 6.5-fold FAA annual increase to $1 million a year starting Jan. 2021 – NOT INCLUDING grants – and they say “well, we won’t REALLY have the money…” (until they spend it, and these mapped-out projects give them the path to spend it) – is this not the worst of political doublespeak; intended or not? The entrance and terminal redesign has already been promised the funding; the runway separation that can be achieved without taking more lands not owned by the Port will follow closely, forcing the rest of the dominoes to fall.
This is why I can’t in good conscience vote for any commissioner who approved the Master Plan; the appointees especially disappoint me, in going along with a thing about which they didn’t even have time to vet themselves.
Troll watch.
The problem with overexpansion as I see it, is that though it *looks* the same everywhere, the process of *getting* there requires a unique process in each place, and this process asks us to look beyond our pressing present survival concerns and consider our overarching values and the needs of our children.
If we were to make a “value proposition” to the teens in our schools now, what would we say to make them feel like they had a future here? The unsustainable exploitation of our natural surroundings for a buck, the incitement and deception of our political discourse, and the refusal to speak up when those with standing abuse their position..
These things ultimately weaken our ability to create a future that appeals to the hopes and dreams of those that will inherit from us..
And attracts those who cynically want only “what will happen anyway” and goad and defeat those that can dream of something different.
Hi Folks, My first post here. I’ve just returned to the island after 38 years. Back then I think there were about 1200 people in the summer and 4-600 in the winter. The people who did live here didn’t need all the shops etc. And there was the joke back then that ‘everyone who moves here wants to be the last one on.”
Though I’ve come back every winter since leaving, and still have a few good friends here, now that I am here I am getting up to speed on the issues at hand. One thing that has been blatantly obvious to me is the noise level. Orcas has become quite loud and much of it is in the skies! Let alone all the sounds of big machinery, the Growler jets in the distance even just on their runways (some of us can hear them) etc. One sunny Sunday recently I was working outside and the planes were so frequent that I put in earplugs-and don’t even live on a flight pattern!
So the point of this post is that I feel we all need to think about how compromised our experience of living here would be with an even more increased noise level, which the airport expansion of any degree would allow. If we as humans are sensitive to it, imagine how it affects our frogs, deer, eagles, etc. What would it be like to live here without them? What would it be like to live here with the skies so loud we couldn’t hear what birds we had?
And as another observation:
One of the ways this port expansion has gotten so far, to widespread dismay, is the nature of our political process whereby those claiming to represent us may do so essentially anonymously, and therefore without accountability.
If you want to represent us, the community, show your face. Don’t sneak around in private and nestle in with your cronies on these *public* non-profit boards yet keep your identity private so that we cannot buttonhole you on the street and express our views. When you take a seat on one of these governing boards, claiming to represent others, then make sure those “others” may readily identify you and actually tell you what they want. For without this, the wonderful claims of altruism ring hollow, self-serving.
If you do not want to actually give up a measure of your privacy to take this powerful position, then what assurance do we have that you have the integrity to represent us fairly, openly, and according to normative, *Reasonable* ethical standards of conduct.
None of the folks mentioned above have deigned to post a pic. This is no longer a tight-knit community of 1500 or 2000 or 2500 people that see each other regularly at the A-1, Teezers, or the P.O. Many with the time and money do not even shop on Orcas with the rest of us. To remain anonymous is to tell those of us that do not know you on sight that our opinions are worthless, that we are effectively disenfranchised from active participation in this community, a violation of the very definition of a Public, Not-For-Profit entity.
Community & Environment First
I will always strive to find solutions that encompass the concerns of our community, even when those concerns seem at odds with each other.
Kenmore Air has an opportunity to give back to this community. Retrofitting their planes to hybrid/electric would lessen our collective carbon footprint while lowering their noise pollution up to 66%. I’ve spoken with Ampaire, a company in the business of making these upgrades. And Kenmore has shown interest.
An immediate low-impact way to address the safety on Mt. Baker Rd is to install caution lights that the pilots can trigger on approach, as they can the landing lights on the runway. I’m researching sensory alternatives that circumvent human fallibility. Moving Mt. Baker Rd. isn’t a viable option to my mind. But it is the truck route so increasing driver awareness of incoming flights is as important
as using turn signals.
“Ports provide the public a direct way to own and manage important community assets such as waterfront land and airport facilities. Ports are also the only public agency whose primary mission is to promote economic development, and with it businesses and jobs.”
Commissionerresourceguidemarch2010
It’s time for this Port to focus on its primary mission, beyond tourism, beyond the runway. There are so many entities on Orcas doing wonderful things for this community, the Port’s role should be that of partnership, advocacy, support and service to those efforts that thoughtfully strive to increase our quality of life.
Orcas Island is our home and as hosts we have the right to invite our guests to enjoy what we have to offer in a way that doesn’t demand that we lose the essence of why so many of us are here. Growth for the sake of growth or for the benefit of the few is neither sustainable nor responsible to our Community and Environment.
As an entrepreneur who’s taken multiple “wouldn’t it be great if…” ideas and brought them to life, I enjoy thinking about ways new technology can be deployed to improve Orcas Island – economically, environmentally and quality of life. I think it is great that the community has and will engage in these important activities. One need not be a Port Commissioner to take on these projects.
From a pragmatic view, I see our Port has a budget of approximately $950,000 with unrestricted funds of $500,000 per year. This year there is approximately $90,000 in free cash flow. The Maintenance and Operation (M&O) budget does not include any substantive maintenance in 2020, predominately only operations are funded. I have heard from fellow candidates and community members that they are concerned about the state of port facilities and the need for maintenance. Maintenance will need to be done, and we must fund it. Therefore, in the absence of tax increases, the primary mission of the Port of Orcas MUST be to maintain present operations and maintain our facilities. Economic development will need to be undertaken and funded by other organizations and entities due to financial constraints. The reality of finances is rarely pleasant.
One of the questions posed at the League of Woman Voters related to carbon footprint and ways to reduce the Port’s emissions. I also commend my opponent for her research and finding the California company Ampaire. They have technology that could result in a substantial reduction of carbon emissions. But again, I come back to the pragmatic side. Ampaire is a start-up company. They are projecting their first prototype aircraft will be FAA certified in 2021, and they have not even completed building it yet. If we benchmark their new technology against a similar alternative energy for transportation company, Tesla raised $105M before delivering their first car, and nearly went bankrupt twice. Also, important to consider is that 70% of start-up companies fail before delivery of their first product. Other than monetary investments by individuals, how is Orcas Island, or even Kenmore Air, planning to make a difference in the delivery of this technology? Many say it was critical that the Prius, with its hybrid technology, was developed inside Toyota, as the costs were monumental. Again, I think it is vitally important for a Port Commissioner to be realistic and thorough.
My goals are basic, pragmatic and you can hold me accountable to deliver. As I have stated before, I will:
• Assure the port maintains existing services in a cost-effective manner
• Assure good governance practices that allow for full public participation in the matters affecting the Port
• Assure that no decisions are made by the board of commissioners without providing adequate time for public discussion. I will see that appropriate community discussions are held surrounding any major Port decisions. Additionally, I will continue to offer my time for individual and small group discussions.
Welcome back to Orcas, Susan Shannon! You may not remember me – I had another name before when you lived here, but I go by Sadie now and if I see you and recognize you I’ll re-introduce myself.
Thank you for your thoughtful comment about the deafening NOISE level – it’s astute and accurate. Anyone who’s been away for even a few years notices it and comments on it. We should not be going full steam ahead to make Orcas an even noisier place. I appreciate your observations. Living directly under the flight path for 17 of the 38 years I’ve lived here has caused deafness and I now need hearing aids. But most of that noise increase has happened within the last 5 years or less… So…
Thank you for noticing and for sharing your observations.