“When developer Rod McKenzie first saw Bainbridge Island, he didn’t see new subdivisions in the woods, or starter castles on large lots. He saw what he calls urban living at its finest.We liked the village atmosphere of Winslow, McKenzie said. We chose to live here so we could walk instead of driving.And he has prospered on Bainbridge by making that option available to others. His Winslow Mews condominium complex on Wyatt Way between Madison and Ericksen avenues was a critical and commercial smash hit. And he hopes to repeat that success with his new Courtyards on Madison development.”
“For those staging A Comedy of Errors, the play’s name may seem like a bad joke. A mistake is no laughing matter when it comes to maintaining the precision this slippery piece of drama demands. Our production is intensely disciplined, says Amy Thone, who plays the shrewish Adriana in the Seattle Shakespeare Festival’s rendition that comes to the BPA Playhouse Friday. It’s like a dance – nobody can afford to miss a beat. And Shakespeare’s play certainly keeps audience and actors on their toes.”
“Fresh out of bed, Tom Berg plunges his Cannondale T7000 touring bike into the last throes of morning darkness, barreling toward the first bleary-eyed boat to Seattle.At approximately 5:07 a.m., he puts a foot down halfway up the first hill on Highway 305 and waits, glancing back at his heavily huffing partner-in-commute. In Berg’s 13 years of biking to work, only a few flat tires have caused him to miss the ferry’s 5:30 a.m. sailing. And setting out from his home on Hidden Cover Road, he says, sometimes he doesn’t even embark early.Some mornings, I’ll be leaving kind of late, he says topping the hill, but that just guarantees a better workout.Yet this morning, despite a prompt departure, he’s falling behind schedule, as another yellow-florescent commuter turns in front of him from Manitou Beach Road and pedals out of sight.”
“Illahee-to-Bainbridge bridge update: about eight people still seem to think it’s a good idea.We can relay this, having reviewed several accounts of a recent Saturday morning presentation in Poulsbo by the citizen group variously known as West Sound Connections and LINKS. The group was trying to drum up support amongst North Kitsap residents for a new span connecting the peninsula with our own Crystal Springs neighborhood, with construction of a cross-island thoroughfare to a passenger-only ferry terminal at Blakely Harbor.”
“Quick: Name three things you find delightful about Bainbridge Island.Did local parks make your list? The library? The Scotch Broom Parade, or the whimsical Dixieland Band at the Grand Old Fourth celebration? Or maybe the observatory at Battle Point Park?Anyone who answered yes to any of the foregoing owes thanks to John Rudolph. And for his myriad contributions to island life, as well as for his distinguished architectural career, the Bainbridge Island Chamber of Commerce has named Rudolph its Business Person of the Year for 2000.”
“None of the other names, Brian Alexander concedes, were any good.Thus, having rejected such monikers as The Bark and The Crowd, Alexander and his staff selected The Campus Voice to adorn the masthead of a new Bainbridge High School student publication that hit the street last week.I’m most pleased with getting it out, Alexander, a BHS junior who co-edited the newspaper with fellow student Brooke Faltermeier. It was a big, long haul. I have a few teachers who aren’t too happy with me at the moment.Lead stories for the first issue include the debate over a proposal for an armed police liaison officer at the BHS, and an account of the recent human rights youth rally hosted by school.”
“If six test scores have a mean of 71, a mode of 75, a median of 74.5, a range of 28 and a high score of 80, what was the lowest score?Still thinking? For those whose high school days haunt their sleep, numeracy oftentimes equals nightmare. For the math club at Bainbridge High School, however, conundrums like this are a dream. Math is not a chore, but a game to these kids,”
“A promising business venture started with a stubbed toe. It seems that when Mark Adams was living on his sailboat, he ran forward to secure a sail. He caught his toe on the horn of a cleat, and instead of just cursing, he thought, there must be a better way.So with his fine-artist’s eye, a design background and his knowledge of sailing, Adams sat down in front of his computer and designed a new-age cleat. He whittled a prototype out of epoxy, rounded up investors and advisors, and now hopes to be in production by fall.It’s great for novice sailors, Adams said, because if you just wrap the line around the cleathead, it will hold temporarily. You don’t need to know how to tie the proper knot.And it’s home-based, one-person ventures like Adams’ that are turning Bainbridge Island into an economic dynamo, according to city finance Director Ralph Eells.”
“It’s a dog’s life, but let’s sing about it anyway – that’s the attitude of the Kings of Mongrel Folk.Whatever folks are going through, I like to point out the ‘peopleness’ of people, says Mark Graham, one-half of the musical duo whose fusion of blues, country, harmonica and vocals is a genre unto itself. The other half, Orville Johnson, believes that all an audience needs to enjoy their music is an open mind and a funnybone. They are confident the citizens of Bainbridge will pass the test. Mark Graham last played on the island in 1976, to an audience of some 400. Now he returns with Johnson in tow to perform at Port Madison Canvas Company on Friday.”
“It was back to the drawing board, literally, for the island’s new pool.The result of which is that the facility has been redesigned, in hopes of knocking $1 million off the price tag without compromising its attractions.The new design preserves 99 percent of the aquatic experience for the average visitor, said Dave Lewis, director of the Bainbridge Island Park and Recreation District.”
“About the prospect of having an armed police liaison officer roaming the campus, Bainbridge High School students are ambivalent.Not all students welcomed the pro-environment, anti-WTO message of the singer at a recent school assembly. And the color gray as a fashion statement is, like, so out.We have new insights on these and other issues on the minds of local youths, thanks to the inaugural edition of The Campus Voice, which editors Brian Alexander and Brooke Faltermeier hope will take root as the new student newspaper at BHS.”
“With one large-scale apartment project facing significant delays, another nearby is winding its way through the city approval process. And like the Village Square that’s now on hold, the Village at Sakai Lakes project is raising general concerns about more traffic on already-busy streets.The 140-unit apartment project is planned for the 18.47-acre Sakai tract across Madison Avenue from Ordway Elementary School. The developer is island native and local real estate agent Doug Nelson, whose 27-home Woodland Village subdivision received preliminary city council approval last week after three years of review and appeals.”
“Impoverished artists are nothing new.It’s penniless patrons who are taking to the streets these days – with more places than ever to go.Art can be for everyone, says Meri-Michael Collins, coordinator of this weekend’s Arts Walk. It’s fun, informal and of course, it’s free. The quarterly event, which takes place 12-4:30 p.m. Sunday, features art in 30 venues, twice as many as events last year. Highlights will include poetry in the Pavilion, gallery and artist receptions, and musical performances throughout WInslow, all at no charge. More restaurants than in past years are also getting involved, by offering tastings and culinary demonstrations. Collins is excited by the event’s increasing popularity. Participating businesses and establishments have spread from Winslow Way up past city hall to the library, and Collins said she anticipates a mixed crown turn-out. Like Spring, the Arts Walk just keeps growing, she says.’Surround yourself with art is the Arts Walk motto. Restaurant-owner Laura Ramadan takes the maxim literally. This could be a gallery, she says, gesturing around the four walls of Bistro Pleasant Beach on Winslow Way, participating for the first time in the Arts Walk. The paintings on the wall are by Bainbridge artists whose colorful and lively work complements the Mediterranean ambience her establishment, and she warms particularly to two depictions of European city scenes.”