Edmonds Beacon - Your Hometown News Source

City code: It's time for an overhaul

It is past time for an overhaul of our City code!

We need to update, clarify and rewrite, especially our development codes, so Council, staff, citizens and developers know, understand, and work together towards a clear vision for our city.

Currently, and for a long time, developers have been exploiting loopholes, errors, and inconsistencies for their gain and citizens' loss. This must change ASAP! I and many of my fellow citizens strongly request adequate funds be budgeted immediately to start this process.

Once started, we want ongoing status updates as to progress made. As concerned citizens, we want to be involved, to give input, and help affect change so our city will evolve and develop as we wish.

Please put this at the top of your priority list, just as the citizens are at the top of the City's organizational chart -- this should be No. 1, and so should well. It is crucial to our city and citizens.

Please do not delay any longer. Let's get this in motion. Please confirm that you hear this and understand the urgency.

Kathy Brewer
(Council written public comment)

Caspers and Second: Changes are needed

There is a high number of cumulative issues with traffic and congestion on Caspers Street between Second Avenue North and Sunset. These issues are ripe and long overdue for change and need further investigating and resolution.

Issues:

– Excessively highly trafficked vehicle and pedestrian street – excessive for a residentially zoned area.

– Cars drive the wrong way down Caspers onto Sunset's one-way street on average two to three times daily.

– There are 25 streets signs beginning at Third Avenue. It is very confusing in this one-block section.

– Five to 10 vehicles turn around in our driveway daily. This does not account for turnarounds occurring in other driveways

– People walk in the street on Casper to Sunset 50 times on an average day. Summer months/sunny days this doubles/triples.

– High number of speeding vehicles.

– Many vehicles make a high acceleration "gun it" around the corner of Sunset onto Caspers.

– Curbs are deteriorating (mostly due to high speeds and oversized vehicles hitting them). Large RVs and semitrucks cannot maneuver the corner of Sunset to Caspers and become stuck, especially when the truck goes down the wrong way. Backing up causes major congestion and safety issues.

– Many unfriendly and upset tourists direct profanities and hand gestures at homeowners.

– There are a high number of recurring vehicle accidents in the yards of three separate homes. The majority are hit and run, which increases homeowners' problems and expenses.

– Vehicles block access to driveways.

Recommendations

– Remove all current street signage and replace with limited necessary signage

– Remove parking on north side of Caspers – special permit for local residents and guests only.

– Install speed bumps before and after the corner of Sunset to Caspers.

– Limit vehicle size and prohibit large semitrucks on Sunset and Caspers.

– Make Caspers a one-way street

– Change directions on Google Maps and Waze redirecting tourists, ferry, and beach access visitors.

I feel very privileged and love living in Edmonds. However, the aforementioned issues makes it very challenging at times. Thank you for looking into this matter.

Richard Blacklow and Janel Wohlers
Edmonds
(Council written public comment)

Why does Edmonds have multiple garbage collectors?

To the City: Please address these questions:

Why does the City have three different service providers for waste pickup? When does Republic Services contract come up for review? Can Republic contract be re-evaluated earlier, given the lack of service?

Will homeowners who are not getting pickups get refunds? What temporary solution can the City come up with?

Norma Middleton
(Council written comment)

605-611 Main will be a soulless box

I am writing to voice my opposition to the proposed development (at 605 and 611 Main St.).

The displacement of eight businesses will be a significant loss to the community. In addition, the proposed design, as I understand it, will be yet another soulless box so prevelent in urban areas recently.

My husband and I are relative newcomers to Edmonds, and one of the things that drew us to the community was the character of the downtown business district. We appreciate the variety of architecture and the repurposing of existing buildings for commercial use. Please do not let Edmonds go the way of Greenwood, Ballard and Columbia City. Keep the character of our downtown and support local businesses!

Jane Simpson
Edmonds
(Council public comment)

Proposed apartment could be at home in Miami Beach

I implore you not to approve the proposed apartment building on Sixth and Main Street as it appears now. The building is positively hideous, there are no setbacks, thus little room for attractive landscaping, plus it absolutely does not fit in with the flavor and style of this town.

Slight changes to the elevation would make a world of difference. As it stands now, it looks like it belongs in Miami Beach, no different than the awful building they built on Third Avenue several years ago.

A different color, darker Pacific Northwest colors – greens, browns, golds would be better – along with wood trim accents. It would be much more aesthetically pleasing. Developers seem to have a tendency to build and design whatever is cheapest, with little regard to fitting in with the existing community.

What they design doesn't mean it's the best for the community they are entering into. I addition to that, there are not enough parking spaces. Why is it that the developers are accommodated at the expense of the citizens?

Each unit should have, at no cost to the tenants, two on-site parking spaces. I know of three people of all the 50-plus friends that I have in town here that have one car. All are widowed, and two are in their 80s.

Other than that, the majority of people have two or more vehicles. I realize after watching the recent planning meeting that our city code allows the one parking space per unit. It is an outdated and unrealistic code, which should be addressed.

This developer is entering our town. Let's request that he or she build what fits into this area and what will realistically work for the betterment of our community. For example, he or she could add additional underground parking via another level, or purchase another lot next to his proposed building.

I sincerely hope that (the City) will have the courage to stand up these developers and hold them accountable for keeping our town the lovely, livable place that it is. Allowing them to do what they want because they meet code doesn't mean it's right for our town.

We do not want to be Kirkland or Bellevue. Kirkland made a huge effort to become a walking town only, with large apartment buildings with little parking available.

It was a smashing failure. I lived there for 10 years and saw the congested disaster the massive apartment buildings caused. The same thing occurred in Bellevue. Please don't do that to us.

Dawn Malkowski
(Council written comment)

Still waiting on Edmonds' Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan

During the Feb. 8 council meeting, Councilmember Neil Tibbott made a motion to remove public information officer (PIO) decision packet No. 16. Councilmember Laura Johnson then spoke for over three minutes about why she didn't support his motion.

She spoke about an engaged community. Does Johnson understand what the words "engaged community" mean?

Johnson said she had spoken with safety and disaster coordinator Chuck Wallace, who said the PIO can help gain and develop trust and support of our emergency management program.

Later, Johnson stated government is responsible for protecting communities during an emergency, providing critical information to the public before, during, and after.

As Johnson knows, I've been trying to find out if the City of Edmonds has a functional Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan (CEMP) since March o2020. Despite my efforts, I still haven't been provided this critical information.

Why? As a follow up to former Councilmember Lora Petso's question asked Dec. 15, 2015, do we have a real emergency plan somewhere else?

City of Edmonds Resolution No. 1386 says the CEMP must be reviewed and updated at least once every two calendar years. Despite this, our CEMP was approved April 18, 2017, and is dated January 2017.

Frustrated by the City's refusal to engage with me and answer this basic, reasonable question, I spoke in front of the State Emergency Management Council (EMC) on June 3, 2021.

I told the EMC that I hoped the EMC would review the Edmonds situation and take steps to make sure the citizens of Edmonds are protected as soon as possible by a functional Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan.

The EMC has been silent since I spoke.

Johnson went on to say, "As elected officials, we have an obligation to the public to notify the community on matters of public safety."

My opinion is that "obligation" is not respected nearly enough.

I'm very happy to provide anybody interested in a history of my attempts to get an answer to the question: Does the City of Edmonds have a functional Comprehensive Emergency Management Plan?

History shows that even with a PIO, City government refuses to engage with me and answer this basic, reasonable question.

Ken Reidy
Edmonds