July 4 returns
Plans are underway to bring back Bainbridge Island’s Grand Old Fourth of July celebration in-person.
The BI Chamber of Commerce reports that the week of festivities will again include a Fun Run, Parade, Street Fair and more on the Fourth, plus the BI Downtown Association’s Winslow Street Dance July 3 and the 62nd annual Rotary Club’s Auction and Rummage Sale July 2 at Woodward Middle School.
The auction will be from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Preview items the night before from 5-8. To donate items for the auction, go to bainbridgerotaryauction.com
There also will be a Pancake Breakfast, Classic Car Show, Waterfront Park Beer & Wine Garden, live entertainment and Kids Zone with games and pony rides.
All events are being planned with COVID-19 safety concerns being considered.
Kitchen fire
Combustibles place on a stove reportedly started a fire Wednesday evening at a home on Miller Road.
One person was displaced due to heat and smoke damage throughout the first floor of the residence.
Units were dispatched to a reported structure fire at 5:42 p.m. Crews encountered heavy smoke coming from eaves of the roof.
An aggressive attack was made on the fire that started in the kitchen, fire chief Hank Teran said Friday in an email.
Fire investigators determined that the blaze was accidental. There were no injuries.
BIFD was assisted by North Kitsap Fire & Rescue, the Poulsbo Fire Department and BI police department.
Bridge done early
State Department of Transportation crews have wrapped up work on the Highway 305 Agate Pass Bridge two days ahead of schedule. The work began Feb. 14.
Since the work is completed on the bridge connected Poulsbo and Bainbridge Island, daytime lane closures across the bridge are no longer necessary.
WSDOT reported that motorists avoiding the bridge during work hours as requested was a big reason why crews were able to get work done early.
Cleaning extends the life of the bridge by reducing corrosion and allowing for more thorough bridge inspections. Crews will return for similar bridge cleaning work in February 2023.
Permits faster
For years one of the biggest complaints to the city has been how long it took to get a permit.
To accelerate the building permit process and reduce the backlog, building official Blake Holmes researched and helped develop a new permit type. The permits, called subject to field inspection, or STFI, are intended for indoor projects that normally only need building review and where problems can easily be spotted during inspection.
The permits were introduced in August. Since then, 34 have been issued. The permits have been issued 7.5 days from submittal (instead of months). For every STFI permit issued, it speeds up the line for a traditional building permit.
Free movie
The city of Bainbridge Island and its Race Equity Advisory Committee will bring the film “Since I Been Down” to town as part of the community celebration of Black History Month.
The documentary spotlights the life of Kimonti Carter and a group of his peers, showcasing the experience of Tacoma and criminal justice decisions implemented in the 1980’s and 1990’s.
The film will be shown at Bainbridge Cinemas, starting at 11 a.m. Feb. 27. It will be followed by an audience conversation with filmmaker Dr. Gilda Sheppard.
Proof of COVID-19 vaccination will be required and seating will be socially distanced.
Park cleaned
About 100 volunteers helped clean the Bainbridge Island Japanese American Exclusion Memorial Saturday.
The Day of Service was the 80th anniversary of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s signing of Executive Order 9066, which set in motion the exile of 120,000 Japanese Americans from their West Coast homes.
The cleanup prepared the memorial for the March 30 commemoration of the day the entire BI Japanese American community was taken away to concentration camps.
Equity stickers
Bainbridge Island’s Race Equity Advisory Committee is distributing equity stickers to local businesses.
Those that pledge to embrace diversity and provide an environment free from discrimination based on race, gender or age can receive the free window decals.
Interested? Email James Friday of REAC at james.friday@cobicommittee.email
Groundwater talk
An information session on the Groundwater Management Plan will take place March 2 from 5-6 p.m. on Zoom.
Participants can learn about progress on the project and share input.
Bainbridge Island residents, workers and visitors rely on groundwater for all their water, from drinking water and dishwashers to toilets and garden watering. Groundwater supports healthy streams and wetlands too.
Managing this vital resource requires an islandwide Groundwater Management Plan that can be adapted as needs change. The plan will include a summary of what is known about the island’s geology; groundwater systems; streams, lakes and wetlands; climate and climate change projections; land use; and population projections.
Parenting tips
Raising Resilience, a local nonprofit parent support organization, will host a free Connections Cafe session with author Hunter Clarke-Fields March 15 from 7-8:30 p.m. via Zoom.
They will discuss her book, titled Read Raising Good Humans – A Mindful Guide to Breaking the Cycle of Reactive Parenting and Raising Kind, Confident Kids.
April Avery, executive director of Raising Resilience, said, “We hope the book will raise ideas, questions and ‘ah-ha’ moments that we can share as a community, bringing us closer together as we help raise our children.”
The book reminds parents that self-care isn’t selfish, it’s a parental responsibility and it calls parents to reflect on what they are modeling to their children, the nonprofit’s news release says.
