As a commercial real estate professional with more than 20 years experience, I find that property owners are often divided into two groups when discussing land use issues. One group thinks any attempt at imminently reasonable regulation is outrageous, unfair and un-American. The second wants to tell everyone else what to do with their property, often in pursuit of self-serving benefits.
Permit me to correct a few misunderstandings in the Review editorial (“Question is: To Torture or Not to Torture,” July 9).
The Harbor Square Condo Owners Association is finishing off the job that the developers started: killing the historic oak they “saved.” By planting grass within the drip line of the tree and overwatering the grass growing on the soils compacted by the developer’s heavy equipment (they parked a trailer under the oak!), the tree is getting drowned. It’s tree waterboarding. They’ve been warned by renowned Bainbridge Island arborist Olaf Ribeiro but they claim they have no money. How much money does it cost to turn off the water? I’ll rip out the grass for free.
The two letters in the July 9 Review decrying Councilman Barry Peters’ excellent and timely plea for civility totally missed the point (but I guess if the shoe fits, wear it)! He wasn’t saying there shouldn’t be constructive criticism but only that it should be objective and not personal, especially when directed at the staff.
The Eagle Harbor residential anchor-out community has been an important historic part of the community on Bainbridge Island for at least a century. It continues to provide a diverse element in an otherwise rather homogenous community.
The recent felonies perpetrated by several of Bainbridge Island’s young citizens have prompted community discussion about the proper consequences for these young men.
The Grand Old Fourth of July celebration once again reminds us all that Winslow Way really is the geographic heart of our community. It’s both our Main Street and our community living room. It’s where we shop, where we meet, and sometimes, it’s where we come together to celebrate.
Sadly, Winslow Way has also become our principal point of contention.
Schools
Letters from readers of the Bainbridge Island Review.
On May 29, I e-mailed a letter to you which you kindly printed in the May 31 issue of the Bainbridge Review entitled “Flower baskets go away… what’s next?” I thought you might be interested in following up on exactly what has transpired since my letter appeared.
A guest columnist for the Seattle P.I., Anthony Robinson, recently wrote an article on the top 10 “markers of integrity.” I believe there are two principle marks of integrity that relate to the recent vandalism by a few of our youth on Bainbridge Island.
I would like to address Rob Clark’s question (“A curmudgeonly view of muddling,” June 21), “…why are we spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to restore the Yeomalt Cabin when there are homeless people on the street?”
The recently announced arrest of two of the senior “paint night vandals” prompts me to write. Sam Bice and Colin Bowman are my neighbors. On the assumption that they were among the culprits, I am sad for them, for their parents and siblings, and for their friends. They are both good young men who are apparently guilty of serious lapses of judgment. Whatever the combination of events that led them to commit these acts, there is no reasonable justification, and there must be consequences. I just hope this community doesn’t allow those consequences to get out of hand.
