Wells Annexation hearing continued
to next week
A public hearing for the Wells Annexation originally slated for Jan. 5 was rescheduled for Jan. 12 by the Poulsbo City Council this week. The petition was authorized by council Dec. 3, 2003. It includes three lots near the Deer Run plat off Noll Road that total more than 2 acres, including two single family homes. There are no roads included in the annexation area.
Planner Edie Berghoff said so far, the petition has received no responses. However, the public hearing was required to be continued because of a mistake in the publication of the original hearing notice.
The Wells Annexation public hearing is slated to begin at 7:15 p.m. Jan. 12 at City Hall off Jensen Way.
Council deletes
old taxi stand
permit ordinance
At its Jan. 5 meeting, the Poulsbo City Council unanimously approved amendments to the Poulsbo Municipal Code, including the deletion of a section allowing the council to establish designated taxi stands.
The section was added to the PMC in the 1940s and had not been used in quite some time. But in November 2004, Del Mueller, owner of Taxis and Tours, LLC, used the section to petition the council for a permit for a designated taxi stand in front of Tequila’s Grill & Sports Bar on Front Street. Mueller claimed the spot would encourage more inebriated individuals to take a taxi home instead of driving under the influence.
After a heated debate, council decided not to grant Mueller the permit because of concerns from downtown business owners about the permanent loss of a Front Street parking space and the precedence of granting a space to a single business. But council did commit after the vote to continue looking into better access for all taxis to Front Street, including the possibility of taxis sharing the designated Kitsap Transit space.
Following the decision, the PMC section was forwarded to the council Public Safety/Legal Committee and City Attorney Jim Haney for consideration. Both recommended that the council strike the wording from the code.
Last piece of Oyster Plant Park gets OK
At its Jan. 5 meeting, the Poulsbo City Council unanimously approved a $9,560 contract with Mantle Industries of Blaine to build a ramp that will become part of the final phase of the Oyster Plant Park construction. The 4-foot-by-36-foot ramp will connect the park’s pier, which was constructed by members of the Poulsbo/North Kitsap Rotary during the summer of 2003, to floating piers that are currently being built by the service club. Parks and Recreation Director Mary McCluskey said the ramp, like the pier materials, is being paid for by an original $56,000 grant from Interagency for Outdoor Recreation and matching funds from the city for the park’s construction.
“The Rotary has been providing the labor for all of this and in doing so, has saved the city a lot of money on matching funds,†she commented.
McCluskey added that she doesn’t know an exact date but expects the club will install the ramp and floats sometime during the first quarter. That installation will mark the completion of Oyster Plant Park’s development, which began in 2000.
