The autumn weather has arrived and the harvest is upon us. Yes, this is the time to reap the glorious bounty of your efforts. The winter squash is plump for picking. The apples are nearly ready for sauce and the pumpkins waiting to become jack-o-lanterns.

This is also a time for departing. Just as the tree leaves turn vibrant colors and fall to the ground, so too, do some ideas, aspirations, and endeavors. Nevertheless it is a cycle, one that makes way for a renaissance.

Well, here we go again, starting the next year off with three new tax hikes and yet it will not be enough. It's certainly not enough to rebuild the Sheriff's department to 2008 levels as he would like, but I don't see that happening for some time.

Yes, the revenue generated from the new "Clean Water" Utility (CWU) did manage to free up several hundred thousand dollars of general fund, but most of that is lined up to be spent already. Some will be going to the Sheriff who sure can use it, but I disagree with spending that money right now.

After all, the CWU is the fourth fund set up to deal with storm water runoff. What does storm water runoff have to do with clean drinking water, you ask? Almost not a thing, and neither does the CWU.

You see, the CWU is all about clean Puget Sound waters. It's not about drinking water (as if a rural county such as ours, with all the forested areas for filtration and lack of almost any industry, contributes much at all to the pollution levels of the Sound).

I recently opposed the county engineer's six year Capital Improvement Plan because not only did it include spending of the CWU fund, but it also depleted the REET (Real Estate Excise Tax) reserve to not much more than $100,000. I have been saying my colleagues were balancing budgets by depleting reserves and this proves it. Our budget director admitted off the record that my idea of how to shore up that REET fund would do so to the tune of maybe a million dollars.  

It is definitely true the county does not have the money to be all things to everyone or even close. It is also true the taxpayers cannot afford to continue to pay full medical (for some departments), sick leave, and vacation leave in amounts twice that of the average private sector benefit.

The public hearing on the budget is set for Monday, October 1st at 6pm in the commissioners' hearing room in Coupeville. It will also be available via videocast at the Camano Annex.

With the usual Navy fanfare and on a fine Navy day, the ceremony marking the 70th year of operation was enjoyed by all in attendance. Former Commissioner Mac McDowell, Navy League President Jim Slowik, and Oak Harbor City Councilwoman Beth Munns were among those.

Captain Jay Johnston's speech told of the long and valuable military history. Dr. Allyson Brooks, of the WA State Historic Preservation Society, spoke jubilantly about how ideally compliant NASWI is with state and federal regulations. And Mayor Scott Dudley graciously acknowledged Island County for its part in creating the Accident Potential Zone standards that are now the US model.

Presenting the Captain with the Proclamation.

One evening that week I wrote a proclamation which my colleagues were willing to approve without too many changes. As we went inside for the cake cutting, I initiated that portion of the ceremony by presenting the proclamation. I first spoke of the deeply entwined roots of NASWI and Island County. You can view the proclamation by clicking on this link: NASWI 70th.  As the only county commissioner in attendance, I proudly exchanged gifts with the Captain.

The POW/MIA ceremony with the Patriot Guard Riders followed this celebration. 

Some of you may not realize that the Skagit Valley Hospital operates an office with a physician in the county's health building at the Camano campus. They are currently our only tenant and fortunately for us, they are looking to grow.

They want to expand our building by adding a workroom and exam rooms plus upgrading the entry so that they can bring a second provider to Camano.

This will, of course, add to the cost of maintenance which is a little bit of a problem for us now. However, there will still be capacity in the building for more tenants, and this upgrade may help us secure someone for that space.      

The Gallery Golf Course, which is part of the Ault Field portion of the Naval Air Station Whidbey Island (NASWI), is open to the public and, although I haven't had a chance to play it yet, it looks to be a fine course. As with most things these days, it is running into financial hardships and that has forced the management at the base to look for areas to reduce costs.

The course, like any Morale, Welfare & Recreation activity, is a key ingredient in the formula to keep the base off of closure lists. So the decision was made to seek the right to use an old well on the property, in a cost saving measure, to irrigate the greens.

The Department of Ecology (DOE) is the state agency tasked with the responsibility and authority for granting water rights. Much of the law they work under is a western states water rights law. The DOE is required to research and issue a permit utilizing an established formula based on maximum possible water usage regardless of the application request. Then after five years they re-issue the permit based on the actual water usage during that period of time. Monitoring, metering and recording are part of the permitting requirements.

A flaming sunset over Puget Sound, possibly as seen from the Gallery Golf Course.

Most of the research for the Navy's water rights to irrigate the golf course was done based on the quantity of water required by DOE's formula, which was substantially more than the amount requested by the Navy. A portion of the research was done for the lesser quantity that the Navy had requested. Either way, the state agency (DOE) saw no problem with issuing the permit.

Ultimately, when the current permit was established, it was done according to DOE rules at the highest amount. Required public notice had been made in the local newspaper of record, but few people read the legal notices in the back of the newspaper. When the homeowners in the area finally got wind of what was going on, they understandably became very concerned about how the increased golf course use of ground water would affect their own wells in the same aquifer. The water withdrawal right had already been issued.

Unfortunately, it appears the homeowners organized and settled on a solution before hearing out the agency's explanation. For several months they consulted with our Water Resources Advisory Committee, our health department, the commissioner's office and the Department of Ecology, seeking relief. That meant reducing the allowed water withdrawal.

I tried to convey that to my constituents in a number of ways, but they were dead set on their determined solution. That being to have the Navy ask the DOE to re-write the permit for an amount about half of what the Navy had originally requested.

I could not bring myself to make such a request. With all of our technical directors and scientists standing firmly behind their work, with checks and balances established in the process to protect the homeowners, I could find no justifiable cause to suggest the Navy change course.

So while my colleagues Commissioners Price-Johnson and Homola sent a letter to the NASWI Captain suggesting he have the permit changed, I sent my own letter stating my confidence in the science provided, and the honor of our Navy neighbors. (You can view that letter by clicking here.)