Less-stringent fire codes, ‘Move to Bremerton’ campaign considered by city

The Bremerton City Council held its annual retreat at Gold Mountain Golf Club Feb. 7. The council used the informal meeting to present new ideas and gauge support from other members.

The Bremerton City Council held its annual retreat at Gold Mountain Golf Club Feb. 7.

The council used the informal meeting to present new ideas and gauge support from other members.

“Time to do something about empty buildings”

Bremerton has also developed a reputation for not being business-friendly. Council chair Greg Wheeler hopes relaxing some codes will help fill the many unoccupied commercial buildings in Bremerton.

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In many cases, the city’s codes are more stringent than state requirements.

Heavy fire codes can make opening a business difficult. New businesses must ensure their building meets city code before opening, which can be expensive.

“It’s made retrofitting old buildings not cost effective,” Wheeler said.

While state fire codes can’t be changed by local government, Wheeler hopes to assemble a team to go through fire codes line by line and to find which local amendments can be changed.

Wheeler wants to have a developer’s perspective, but Mayor Patty Lent said realtors were present when the city’s codes were put in place.

Nevertheless, Wheeler intends to put a spotlight on the policies.

“I’ve already got the resources ready to go,” Wheeler said.

“Move to Bremerton”

Councilman Eric Younger suggested marketing Bremerton housing directly to Seattle with a “Move to Bremerton” campaign.

“I don’t think we have an affordable housing problem, Seattle does,” Younger said. “I think we have an undiscovered gem.”

Younger even proposed using MxPx’s “Move to Bremerton” as the campaign’s song.

Councilman Dino Davis said all three members of the famous punk rock band still live in Bremerton.

Davis supported Younger’s idea and said there’s no better place for affordable waterfront property than Bremerton.

“Our community, you can just walk to work, walk to the ferry terminal,” Younger said. “A lot of people are working from home.”

Due to budget constraints, Younger suggested finding a retired person to spearhead the idea. He also suggested crowdsourcing a commercial, similar to some recent Doritos’ Super Bowl ads.

Councilman Roy Runyon noted that the city would need to address negative aspects of Bremerton’s image.

“Marketing Bremerton as affordable is great as long as we’re dealing with perception problems,” Runyon said.

Runyon specifically mention a perceived high number of sex offenders in the area. There are 35 sex offenders registered in Bremerton, according to the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office. The state averages 311 sex offenders per 100,000, according to NPR. Per capita, Bremerton is much lower at about 89 per 100,000.

Also at the meeting:

• Roy Runyon proposed restructuring the Parks and Recreation Department. Parks would merge with with Public Works and Recreation would fall under the Finance Department. Runyon estimated this could net the city a savings of up to $250,000. The idea received little support.

• The council discussed options for filling the void when Harrison Medical Center moves to Silverdale. Dino Davis suggested the city “fight fire with fire” by offering another major health care provider a lucrative deal to move into Bremerton. Mayor Patty Lent said the city is moving forward with what’s in place and will not pursue another provider.

• Facebook pages will likely be created for each council district. Wheeler said council members would need to commit to be being active users. The pages would also need a disclaimer stating that all posts and comments are for public record.

• Eric Younger proposed creating a parks foundation to raise funds for capital improvements to Bremerton parks. Parks Director Wyn Birkenthal said a parks foundation would be an asset to the Parks Department.

 

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