What an honor is was to serve with the Patriot Guard as we held a flag line to honor the coming home of the A-3 Skywarrior.  

It was nice to see the Whidbey Camano Land Trust seeking some property in the accident protection zone (APZ) of Coupeville's Outlying Field, NAS Whidbey.  It was listed under Conservation Futures on the Consent Agenda, so I felt the need to move it to the regular agenda and get some answers "on the record."

The purchase will be jointly funded by the State and the Department of the Navy.  Ongoing maintenance will be provided by the Land Trust, so the County, really has no cost impact at all.  And best of all, it will be staying on the tax rolls.    

With the help of the other two Commissioner's, this one passed unanimously.    

Does the State own all the shoreline?  NO and if you are a shoreline landowner you better get out there and tell your County Commissioners that.  

Take a look at the following section of Island County Code 17.05.030 Shoreline Management Regulations - Purpose: 

It is the expressed and implied intent of this Ordinance to fully protect and enhance to the maximum extent possible the natural shoreline systems and critical areas while at the same time protecting the rights of the private property owners for the timely and reasonable use and enjoyment of their properties not inconsistent with the protection of the natural systems.

Click here for a great story about Burien City Council standing up for Property Rights over State Agency requests.   

The program is suppose to be about "restoration" not creation.  But creation is what they are talking about doing down on our Camano State Park.   

Would you like to see most all of the land by the boat launch become a Salmon Harvesting area?  Sure isn't going to leave you much room for walking your dog.   

Please let me know how you feel.   

Even though your Property Tax checks are divided into several different pots, the overall amount you write the check for is what you care about.  Trying to convince my cohorts to consider anything other than just the Current Expense cost to taxpayers, seems to be an exercise of futility.

Yes, it's true, a large portion of our Taxes are voter approved but it seems voters are now starting to consider that.  I put together a couple of charts when I was on the Committee against Proposition 1 last year.  You can find links to those on my blog, (CamanoKelly.com).  Look for the post, "Information on Property Tax."   

The National Association of County Officials, Western Region event was in Wenatchee this week.  At a whopping $470.00 for registration, (not including food and lodging), I didn't think we could afford it.  My counterparts did, so let's hope we get a report that shows it was worth the expense.   

It would have been nice to hear what Representative Doc Hastings had to say.  But it is also nice having some quiet time at the office.

There are some openings for Citizen Advisory Committees.  Please take a look and consider volunteering your time.

Conservation Futures 

Northwest Senior Services  

Law & Justice Council

Please SAVE THE DATE, June 23rd, all day long.  I will be opening up my private Oak Harbor Office for business.   

The location is 1591 SE Fort Nugent Road and I will be available there on Tuesday's by appointment from the 23rd of June on.

No appointment necessary on June 23rd, please stop by.  We'll have some snacks, drinks and entertainment.