A drowning victim whose body was recovered in the waters of Agate Passage last Saturday was a Suquamish woman, police say.

The victim was identified as Jennifer Jane Hanscom, age 51, of Suquamish, although she had some years ago changed her name and identity to that of a man, and was known to friends and associates as Paul Goodman.

Hanscom/Goodman was identified when officers showed her picture to checkers at area markets, looking for anyone who knew her.

She had been a Suquamish resident for at least five years, and was said to be writing a book on the tribe at the time of her death.

There were no signs of foul play, and the death is considered accidental, authorities said earlier this week. Toxicology results will not be available until July.

– Douglas Crist

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***Two on council fined by state

Bainbridge Island City Council members Michael Pollock and Deborah Vancil each were fined $150 this week for violation of state public disclosure laws.

The council members failed to file their annual “Personal Financial Affairs Statement” with the Public Disclosure Commission as required under state law, the PDC said in a news release Friday.

Filing of the disclosure documents is required by April 15 each year, reporting public officials’ financial activity for the preceding year.

Pollock and Vancil had previously been sent two letters asking them to comply with the reporting requirements, a PDC spokesman said.

The civil penalties were handed down after an enforcement hearing held Thursday in Olympia. They can be appealed.

“There goes a month’s salary,” Pollock said. “Seriously, it sounds like a bookkeeping error on their part. I sent the paperwork in many months ago. I’ll certainly appeal the decision.”

Vancil did not respond to a request for comment.

The council members were among 79 elected and seven appointed officials statewide to be penalized.

Elsewhere in Kitsap County, two commissioners on the South Kitsap park board were fined for similar violations.

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***Shelter saved from closure

The Island Wildlife Shelter at Bloedel Reserve will remain open, after a public appeal raised enough money to pay current debts and to continue operations for the next few months, the board of directors announced in a news release last week.

“We are encouraged by the public response which provided funds to continue operations, said board president Margaret Duncan.

The appeal for help last month when a shortfall in the $3,000-$4,000 monthly operating budget threatened to shutter the center. The shelter employs one part-time staff member, relying on volunteers to assist in its wildlife rehabilitation and public education efforts.

While the shelter receives some $10,000 a year from the city, most funds come from small private contributions.

The directors were to meet this week to consider ways to provide financial stability for the shelter, which last year treated 540 birds and animals from Kitsap County and western Puget Sound.

“We are conducting a membership drive to raise funds and we are seeking help from foundations and other fund providers,” said board member Gil Bailey.

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***Bank, city meet on sidewalk

It’s a rare compromise that makes everybody happy, but it appears that all sides have managed just that over the sidewalks in front of American Marine Bank.

The city’s master plan for downtown called for 10-foot-wide sidewalks. But across the street, Ken Schuricht at Winslow Hardware was concerned that there wouldn’t be enough room left for delivery trucks to park in the middle of the street.

The compromise: measure sidewalk width on the ground, rather than from the property line.

On the east side of the bank property, toward Town and Country, the building front is set two feet back from the property. So the city said add eight more feet of sidewalk.

The center of the property contains a concrete peninsula protruding into Winslow Way that holds a fire hydrant. There never was to be any parking against that area.

West of that peninsula will be a landscaped plaza. Five feet of the sidewalk will be on the city right-of-way, just where it was before the reconstruction began, with the other half in the privately owned plaza area.

“We worked well with the city on this, and everybody got what they wanted,” said AMB architect Dennis Kirkpatrick.

Schuricht was equally sanguine.

“We actually end up with one more parking place out of this, and we got the city’s attention about the delivery truck issue, so I’m happy,” he said.

– John Waldo

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***Walk the path to good health

A Community Wellness Walk and Fair in Winslow June 14 will celebrate non-motorized transportation and the healthy lifestyles they promote.

The event opens at 10 a.m. with community one-mile and five-mile walks departing from City Hall.

The route through town features sponsored rest stops, with random prizes to be awarded.

The one-mile walk will make a loop around Ericksen Avenue, Knechtel Way and Madison Avenue. The five-mile course will proceed up Madison Avenue, to Island Way and Lovell Avenue, to Weaver Road, along the Shepard Way pedestrian way, and down Grow and Wood avenues to Parfitt Way.

Both walks will end at Waterfront Park and the Commons with a Wellness Fair.

“Healthy samples” at booths will include Virginia Mason’s seated massages and blood pressure screenings; chiropractic’s posture screenings; energy-screening from Nikken; and free information on health and safety issues provided by the fire department and the Kitsap County Health District.

The event, which concludes at noon, features live music and food.

For more information, contact Nicole Silva at 780-3709 or nsilva@ci.bainbridge-isl.wa.us.

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***Winslow plan takes shape

The city council will hear presentations and take public comment on two elements of the Winslow Way Improvement Project, 6-9 p.m. June 18 in the city council chambers.

At 6 p.m., the Downtown Winslow Gateway Advisory Committee and consulting artists Buster Simpson and Maggie Smith will present their final recommendations for the proposed gateway features. The revised proposal from the committee incorporates feedback collected at a May 19 open house on the Gateway project.

At 7 p.m., public works staff will present their final recommendations for the Winslow Way/Ericksen Avenue intersection alignments, including information on parking, pedestrian access, street scope opportunities and Winslow Master Plan compliance. Public comments are welcome.

Information: 842-2016.

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***Museum to break ground

The Bainbridge Island Historical Society will break ground in Winslow on July 5, as it begins the process of moving its museum into town.

The museum’s two buildings will be moved from Strawberry Hill Park to a parcel west of the BPA Playhouse sometime between August and November.

The contractor will be the Reijnen Company of Bainbridge.

One building – the 1908 Island Center schoolhouse – houses museum exhibits. The second building – a modular “annex” – houses a protected collection, a restroom, and the McCracken Reference Library.

New construction is also planned. A basement will be dug and lobby/gift shop added to connect the two buildings.

The annex will also be extended to add an office and a required second ADA-compliant bathroom. Also required by the city is the addition of a peaked roof to the annex to fit in with the Ericksen neighborhood.

The buildings will be placed at the rear of the lot, near the Playhouse, preserving three large trees on the front part of the property.

The city has leased the former “pet shop property” at 315 Ericksen Avenue, also known as Three-Tree Park, to the museum for 90 years.

The schedule of the move and construction has yet to be finalized, but a ground-breaking ceremony is planned for noon July 5.

The mayor and council will join the Bainbridge Island Historical Society board, staff and building committee, Reijnen principals and architects Rohleder-Borges-Fleming to mark the start of the project. The community is invited.

The Reijnen Company was selected for the project for their expertise in the moving, restoration and adaptive reuse of historic buildings, as well as their experience working with community non-profit organizations on construction projects, BIHS Executive Director Joan Piper said in a news release.

Impetus to begin construction this summer came from a bequest received in April from the Helen Bucey estate. The BIHS board earmarked $100,000, about one quarter of the bequest, to match the $100,000 already raised by April through the “History on the Move” capital campaign.

The campaign target is $350,000, said campaign chair Judy Gibbs, and BIHS is still calling on members and community members to meet that goal. About $230,000 has been given or pledged so far.

The museum may be closed for four to six months, with programming and administrative functions continuing off-site in temporary quarters. BIHS is now seeking a “free or incredibly cheap temporary office,” Piper said.

“We need space for three desks and three file cabinets, at least, plus a phone line,” she said. A larger space could even accommodate a small exhibit or two, like the Mosquito Fleet exhibit or the part of the World War II exhibit that honors island veterans.

Volunteers will be solicited to help pack up the museum later this summer, once the schedule is finalized.

“We feel like this move is moving the museum into the heart and consciousness of the community, whose heritage it preserves and promotes,” Piper said. “It’s a major milestone in our community’s history and future.”

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