It’s time to save our baby Grand Forest | LETTER TO THE EDITOR

Published 9:39 am Tuesday, March 8, 2016

To the editor:

Preserve the mature grove of forest! Build more affordable housing!

These were the two predominant and competing themes to emerge from the recent city hall community discussion (Feb. 23) on the fate of the Suzuki property.

Are those two worthy goals mutually exclusive? No. But we do have to prioritize our limited options and make major changes to the existing proposals.

Anyone who has walked through the irreplaceable, towering cedars and firs on the southeast corner of the property, many more than 100 years old, would probably consider it a crime to even consider cutting them down. With the exception of the parks and recreation plan to maintain the entire property as a park, all three other proposals show only a token effort to preserve any of the majestic grove.

Yes, affordable housing is a pressing community need. But where best to place it? As suggested, with some thoughtful re-zoning and possible exchanges of land, perhaps it could be scattered in the denser Winslow core, in outlying community centers or on a small portion of the recently acquired, much larger and more conveniently located Sakai Central Park.

At any rate, in order to preserve our rapidly disappearing natural legacy, if any of the Suzuki property is to be used for affordable housing, it should occupy a much smaller footprint while leaving in tact as much of the mature grove, pond and wildlife corridor as possible.

Here’s a call to action: “Save our Baby Grand Forest!”

ROBERT WESCHLER

Bainbridge Island