Letters to the editor
Published 1:30 am Friday, June 12, 2026
Clear choice for city manager
To the editor:
This is a crucial time for Bainbridge as we work to balance the very real constraints of our long-term water supply with demands of growth. Our new city manager will play a vital role in managing that process.
Council has established clear requirements for this role: a decade of municipal experience, proven executive leadership, and a demonstrated track record as a city manager. These are not optional characteristics. They are minimum requirements.
Two candidates have now been identified: Jeff Niten and John Mauro.
Niten’s record is straightforward and aligned with the role. He has served as city manager in multiple jurisdictions and brings direct, relevant experience managing complex municipal operations. Importantly, his background reflects not just technical qualifications, but the kind of leadership Bainbridge Island needs.
Mauro does not meet the minimum job requirements. His city manager experience is limited to a single city manager position in Port Townsend since 2019. A slim resume for a vital leadership position.
Why would council consider a candidate who does not meet their minimum standards? If the city establishes qualifications but does not enforce them, those qualifications lose meaning—and public trust erodes.
City manager is a vital leadership position. We need to get this right. Demand that council hires based on track record and merit, not vibe.
We must.
Ellen Lockert
Bainbridge Island
Farmers Market not a battleground
To the editor:
Reasonable people can disagree about the proposed LIHI development project. Many on our island do. Passionate debate about issues that shape our community is expected and healthy.
What is not healthy is directing anger and hatred toward people who are simply doing their jobs.
The Bainbridge Island Farmers Market invited LIHI to have a booth at the market. In response, the market manager received a barrage of mean-spirited and hateful messages.
To those who sent them: please check your humanity.
You may be frustrated. You may be angry. You have every right to express your views about the project. But you do not have the right to demean, intimidate, or verbally attack someone who neither created the controversy nor has the authority to resolve it.
Too often, we excuse cruelty as passion and hostility as honesty. We see it in our national discourse every day. When we allow anger to override decency, we become part of the problem.
Bainbridge Island prides itself on being a compassionate community. Let’s live up to that ideal, especially when we disagree.
Oppose the project if you wish. Write letters. Attend meetings. Just don’t sacrifice your humanity in the process.
Jackie Fabbri
Bainbridge Island
A question of impartiality
To the editor:
Public records from June 2025 show then-Bainbridge Island Mayor Ashley Mathews expressing strong support for LIHI. Mathews served as mayor at the time; she is now a member of the City Council.
In emails released through public records requests, she wrote that she was “so impressed” with LIHI and had “talked them up” to officials in Poulsbo.
The records also show that former city manager Blair King helped facilitate introductions between LIHI and Poulsbo officials, and LIHI later thanked Mathews for helping make those introductions.
To be clear, I am not alleging any wrongdoing.
However, LIHI’s 625 Winslow Way project still faces unresolved zoning, land-use, and implementation issues that may still require city decisions.
Should a former mayor, now serving on the City Council, promote or facilitate introductions for an organization while that same organization has a major project pending before the city?
Some will see this as appropriate support for affordable housing. Others may believe elected officials should avoid actions that create an appearance of partiality while matters are still pending before the city.
Is disclosure enough? At what point should an elected official consider abstaining from decisions to avoid the appearance of partiality?
David Schutz
Bainbridge Island
Remove/improve billboard
To the editor:
While waiting in the ferry line recently, I was surprised to see an obtrusive digital billboard mounted on the side of the ferry terminal, flashing bright lights and advertising off-island businesses.
After posting my concern on SeeClickFix, I learned that the city has received several complaints regarding this new sign. Following a review of the matter and the regulations governing the ferry terminal, the city determined that the property is owned and operated by WSDOT and that the sign is therefore not subject to the City of Bainbridge Island’s sign regulations.
As a result, community members who wish to provide feedback, comments, or concerns are encouraged to contact WSDOT directly. Please join me in making our voices heard by submitting feedback to WSDOT: https://wsdot.wa.gov/about/contacts/send-us-your-feedback
Let’s encourage WSDOT to remove, relocate, or improve this sign. A prominent gateway feature should reflect the character, history, and culture of Bainbridge Island—not serve as a flashing advertisement visible to residents and visitors arriving by ferry.
As a community, we deserve to be included in decisions that shape our public spaces and to have our local identity respected in the design process. If not now, what’s next—an oversized LED sign overlooking the Strait of Juan de Fuca proclaiming, “Welcome to Deception Pass”?
Vicki Milander
Bainbridge Island
Disappointing coverage
To the editor:
I am writing to express my disappointment in the Bainbridge Review for its uneven coverage between the BHS Spartans boys baseball and soccer teams when compared with the BHS girls water polo and track teams. All four of these teams absolutely deserve full praise and recognition for their incredible accomplishments. However, the two boys’ teams split the top of the front page and most of the bottom as well, with multiple pictures, while the girls’ water polo and Bainbridge track and field were put back on the fourth page with less than half the space and minimal coverage of the water polo game. The 80s called, and they want their editors back.
I don’t have relatives or personal connections with any of the teams, but I just found the disparity glaringly obvious, especially since the boys teams were both playing as 2A teams against other 2A teams while the girls team was also undefeated as the only 2A team playing in a league comprised entirely of other 3A and 4A teams (pause for a moment and think about that). A freshman was named the state MVP! First state title since 2004! More awards, but I don’t want to go over my 250-word limit to be relegated to the internet page. This is an unbelievable accomplishment that deserved significantly more coverage.
You can do better than this.
Tim Bailey
Bainbridge Island
