LWVSJ Observer Corps | County Council March 18, 2025

||| FROM NECIA QUAST for LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS |||

In public comment a San Juan Island resident said a school bus sign was needed on Beaverton Valley Road coming from town and the speed limit should be lowered to 25 until past the business park for the safety of children.

After public hearings, the Council approved a resolution to sell a portion of the Land Bank property to the National Park Service and an ordinance amending the county Code to account for the recent extension of the Land Bank.

The Council approved a resolution for the Parks and Fair Advisory Board, reducing the terms from six years to 3 three for board members and removing the requirement to meet monthly. The Council passed a resolution revising the fee schedule for county parks, with all events charged based on length of time and number of participants.

The Council moved to drop the proposed Zylstra Lake Trail and to explore using the federal grant for a multimodal transport project for expanded trails including across the marsh at the Land Bank’s Beaverton Valley Marsh property. The Council agreed to move forward to vacate and abandon the roadway on the fairgrounds which is officially designated a county road, but which is not used as such. This will remove an incorrect designation and make it easier to maintain and upgrade the fairground property.

The Council again discussed a potential McKay Harbor Road project on Lopez. The bank under part of the road is eroding and eventually part of the road must move inland. Stabilizing the bank is, at best, a medium-term solution. To secure $3.9 million in federal funds, the county itself must commit $3 million, commit to acquiring needed rights of way, and to environmental mitigation for critical areas. The Road Fund has $10 million with a target to keep $4 million in reserve. Current capital projects like the Bailer Hill/Douglas Road project, fleet replacement, deferred road and marine facilities maintenance will bring the fund near its minimum in the two years. McKay Harbor is not the only threatened county road. The Council will look at how to prioritize competing demands and review the Six-year Transportation Improvement Plan. They will discuss the project again at the March 25 Lopez meeting.

Council member Fuller attended the National Association of Counties meeting in Washington, where the group met with legislators and got a grim picture of federal funding issues. Medicaid cuts could mean the end of many rural hospitals. Paulsen said it would impact local mental health services and reported that a federal grant for an affordable housing project Orcas had been revoked.

The League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan organization encourages informed participation in government. The Observer Corps attends and takes notes at government meetings to expand public understanding of public policy and decisions. The notes do not necessarily reflect the views of the League or its members.