Letters to the editor
Published 1:30 am Friday, December 19, 2025
Say no to 625 Winslow
To the editor:
The lead article in the latest Bainbridge Review about the looming “625 Winslow Decision” adds no clarity to the poor proposal for an affordable housing solution. Laughlin Taylor rambles on and on about the complexities of the plan with her statement, “we call them three legs of a stool.”
Depending on your definition of the final word of that sentence, we have the answer to whether such an offensive proposal makes sense. We cannot destroy something good (the beauty and character of Bainbridge Island), for a project (a 6-story monstrosity) that will not begin to solve the affordable housing issue but will instead create more congestion and a traffic disaster. Furthermore, this proposal does not abide by our comprehensive plan. Please say NO!
Angela Sandri
Bainbridge Island
COBI violated process
To the editor:
The actions of the City Council, the city manager and the COBI machine are outrageous. They were determined to push through the unpopular six-story building at 305 & Winslow Way by crafting a zoning ordinance specifically designed to give the developer what it demanded before new councilmembers could stop it. People want affordable housing, but are appalled by this behemoth.
To change the zoning before the election, they violated proper process. They knew they were supposed to update the Comprehensive Plan, approve a Groundwater Management Plan, and vote on the Winslow Subarea Plan first, then revise the zoning. Instead, they called for a vote on an ordinance that would raise building heights to 65 feet, increase density and reduce parking in the ferry district, for which the boundaries had not even been determined, and rushed a SEPA (State Environmental Policy Act) review. The city’s SEPA Determination of Non-Significance lacks a full Environmental Impact Statement, ignores cumulative impacts (traffic congestion, ferry queuing, parking demand, utility strain), lacks meaningful analysis of groundwater, stormwater runoff and infrastructure capacity, and fails to evaluate water quality, noise and habitat impacts.
A concerned citizen justly filed an appeal to put a pause on those actions. The city has the hutzpah to spend your taxpayer dollars to defend its egregious behavior. They knew what they were doing. Using your tax money, the COBI defense could outlast the money raised by the legal challenge. The nerve! Tell them to call off the costly legal defense.
Mary Clare Kersten
Bainbridge Island
