After a year of citizen input, the Issaquah City Council will ask voters in November to pass a $10 million parks bond.
Five million will be used for improvements at the aging Julius Boehm pool, $1.55 million will be spent on artificial turf and lighting at Central Park Pad 1 in the Highlands, $200,000 will go to improved drainage at Tibbetts Valley Park fields one, two and five and the community center green, $2 million will be set aside for acquisition of open space, including creekside lands and land around the “green necklace” that will surround the city, $900,000 for additional improvements to what is now called the Confluence Parks, $100,000 each for new playground equipment at Meerwood and Gibson Parks – these two neighborhood parks contain the oldest and most outdated playground equipment in the city’s park system — and $150,000 for bond and attorney fees.
There was over an hour of public testimony at Monday night’s meeting, filled with passionate pleas in particular for Boehm pool as well as doing something about Issaquah’s troubled skateboard park, which is not part of the bond.
A phone survey by EMC Research, an online survey and public input meetings did not put the skateboard park on top of the public’s wish list.
However, council is well aware of the problems at the skateboard park, so its future has been included in a separate agenda bill which has been referred to the safety and services committee. The council may decide to fund a skateboard park through the general fund or park mitigation fund. The Issaquah School District, Issaquah Police and the department of parks and recreation are all concerned about the skate park.
Paula Phelps, former principal at Issaquah High School, now the Issaquah director of high schools said most kids view the skate park as “sketchy.”
“You go there to get drugs or get into a fight,” she said.
With construction of a new Issaquah Middle School set to begin next spring, and the old middle school to be remodeled, Phelps pointed out that it would be a good time for the school district to partner with the city to do something about the skate park, which is right next to the Rainier trail and 2nd Ave.
Judy Brewer from the Issaquah Community Network asked the council to keep ICN and the Issaquah Drug-Free Coalition in the loop.
“It’s a terrible location because it’s secluded,” she said. She produced a petition with over 200 signatures to close the park and construct a new one in a family-friendly location.
Tim Baynes, a former IHS student and now a teacher at the school said he has watched the skate park since day one.
“The skate park has deteriorated as have the kids who use it,” he said. “It’s best kept out of sight and out of mind is how the these kids feel.”
He said the school resource officer, Karin Weihe patrols the skate park, but it’s impossible for her to be there every minute.
Support for the pool was unquestionable. IHS swim coach Laura Halter pointed out that IHS, Skyline and Liberty all use the pool for training. If the pool were not available for her team, which had 80 girls on it last year, they would have nowhere to train. The swim coach for Liberty, Kris Daughters, said she has 50 girls and about 35 boys on swim teams, the girl’s team being the largest girl’s team of any sport at Liberty. And senior citizen Mona Taylor spoke on behalf of all seniors as to the importance of the pool to them, since water aerobics and classes for those with arthritis are often the only activities they can engage in.
Boehm pool was built in 1972, and has had little to no improvements made to it.
If the bond passes it would equate to a $60 property tax increase annually, on a home assessed at $420,000. In order for the bond issue to pass, 60 percent of voters must approve it.
