Wildlife & Miscellaneous - 10-26-09

Turtles. We received the following photos with the note below:

Turtle found by my grand daughter in Illahee Creek about 1/4 mile upstream from the culvert. Is this a western painted turtle? Native or someones lost pet? Of course the turtle was returned to where it was found, but made for interesting discussion.

Young Spike. The young deer are maturing as shown in the attached photo and accompanying note below:

This little spike was in our yard on Fir Dr last Sunday. He sampled everything in our yard and wandered off after about an hour.

Port of Illahee Commissioner Position. We just heard that Don Deitch has resigned his Port of Illahee Commissioner position due to health issues, and that the Port is looking to fill the position at their November 12th meeting. Anyone interested in being a candidate for completing Don's term until the next Port Commissioner election in 2011 needs to get their information to the Port ASAP. The Port point of contact is Dennis Sheeran. Dennis can be contacted by email docsmsret@msn.com or phone 692-6971.

Bear Questions? There are a number of people who are wondering if the large black bear that has been seen in the greater Central Kitsap area, and evidently passed through the heart of the Illahee Preserve, will possibly end up staying in the Preserve, since it is a rather large un-inhabited forested area. We think it would be good to know if the bear has been sighted leaving the area, or if it may still be in the area. Let us know if you have any further information that we can pass on.

The Same Bear? One person is wondering if this is the same bear that was reported early last week. See the note they sent to us:

On Oct 19, midday, a bear was sighted crossing Central Valley Parkway, somewhere around Fairview Jr High. All the students were apprised of the situation. I feel sorry for the bear who encountered the jr high students! (LOL) but we used it as a teachable moment and encouraged them to ALWAYS WALK HOME WITH A FRIEND. You can never been too careful!

Another Sighting. Just after writing the above paragraph we received the following information:

Bear at Fraizer's Fairfield Orchards - Chris Fraizer owns the yellow house farm (once owned by Al Kurkoski) on Sylvan Way just west of Illahee State Park. Today he told me he had a big black bear in his yard eating the fruit on his apple trees. He called animal control and they said if he wanted to get rid of the bear then he should get the apples off his trees. Animal control wouldn't come and do anything.

Illahee Community Meeting on November 14th. We have been asked to remind residents that the annual Illahee Community Club meeting is scheduled for 1:30 pm on Saturday, November 14th at the Kitsap Library on Sylvan Way.

Jim Aho

Wildlife Update - 10/25/09

Black Bear Sightings.  A large black bear was sighted at 2:30 am Sunday morning in back of a Helena Drive residence along a green belt, and presumably the same bear in back of Nobles Lane residences at 7:50 am.  We assume other reports have gone into the Department of Fish & Wildlife and hopefully something will be published in the paper as it seems this might be more of a transient bear rather than a local bear.

 

Eagle Picture.  The attached photo was taken along the South Fork of Illahee Creek.

 

Jack just saw this Eagle swoop into our American Elm- which incidentally, according to Jim Trainer, is the 8th oldest in the state.  I've attached the photos.

 

Our Shih Tzu was attacked several years ago, but either shook it off or she was too heavy.  Dr. Relling confirmed it was an eagle by the claw punctures around her neck- one just missing her airway.  Later on we discovered the scratches on her ID tags which may have been why she wasn't killed immediately.

 

Side Note.  A few years ago we heard about an eagle nest that fell out of a tree near the Illahee Preserve and in the nest there were a number of pet collars from animals evidently carried to the nest by the eagles.

 

Illahee Beach Watchers.  We were happy to see that at least three Illahee residents are taking the Beach Watchers Class being offered by UW Sea Grant and WSU Extension.  There were over 50 who attended the first class that is being held at the Norm Dicks Center.  We will let you know more about the program as it becomes available.

 

Squirrel Report.  We received the following squirrel report.

 

Yesterday while backing out our lawn mower I was momentarily starred down by a small brown squirrel.  At first it appeared she had a large nut or some kind of food in her mouth.  But, we quickly realized it was a baby!  She scurried away, but later we got a better look when she came out from under the VW.  The baby wasn't in her mouth, but hanging on with his tiny feet wrapped up and around momma's neck.  Way kewl!  (sorry no picture she was too quick)

 

White Black Tail Buck.  We had a report of a very white (albino markings) black tail buck and are hoping that someone will be able to get a picture of it and forward the picture so we can pass it on.

 

Beach Nourishment Informal Appeal Denied.  The informal appeal of the Illahee Beach Nourishment project was denied by the Dept of Fish & Wildlife.  Both the Port of Illahee and the Illahee Community Club are deciding what to do next.  A formal appeal needs to be filed within 30 days which would be by November 13, 2009.

 

Send Info In and We Will Pass It On.  Please send us info such as the bear sighting reports and we will pass them on to the community.  We have roughly about 400 who receive the updates (blind copies) and we hear it is the wildlife updates they most like to get, so please help us with any reports you think your neighbors would like to hear about.

 

Jim Aho

Miscellaneous Items - 10/20/09

Stray Dog?  We just were sent an email with a picture of a dog that showed up at an Illahee residence.  If anyone knows who this dog belongs to please call Rodney Mansfield or send us an email and we will pass the info on.

 

Passing of Long Time Residents.  We are sad to report the passing of two long time Illahee residents - Ron Grunden, age 78, on September 19, and Ed Fisher, age 95, on October 13.  Attached are the links to their obituaries in the Kitsap Sun.  It was from Ed Fisher that we were given a glimpse of the number of salmon that came up Illahee Creek to spawn in the early 1900's.  There is a notation in the Illahee Community Plan that "He also remembers scooping salmon out of Illahee Creek (then referred to as Lamotte's Creek) and bringing them home where his mother would smoke and can the fish for the winter."

 

 http://kitsapsun.com/news/2009/oct/08/ronald-dean-grunden-78/

 http://kitsapsun.com/news/2009/oct/16/jacob-edward-ed-fischer-95/

 

Timbers Edge Decision Appeal?  We have been asked if the Illahee Community is going to appeal the Commissioner's Timbers Edge decision.  We haven't been able to get an answer yet to that question.  We were told the written decision has to be prepared and sent out and then a 21 day period begins, during which an appeal must be filed.

 

Illahee Preserve Logs.  When the new parking lot at Almira was put built it was felt that the non-marketable logs should be put to some use, and they were therefore set aside.  It was good to see that a good use was found for them, and that the story made the front page of the Kitsap Sun.  Below is the link to the story.

http://kitsapsun.com/news/2009/oct/15/volunteers-pitch-in-to-help-keep-kitsap-warm/

 

University Point Dock Approved.  We reported on the hearing for this private dock in an earlier update, and attended the first hearing.  The hearing was continued to get the Suquamish Tribe's input, and from what we hear other testimony was also given.  Below is the story in the Kitsap Sun that the dock was approved by the Hearing Examiner.

 http://kitsapsun.com/news/2009/oct/06/dock-for-home-near-illahee-approved/

 

Illahee Community Club (ICC) Annual Meeting.  We just got word that the Illahee Community Club's annual meeting will be held on November 14, 2009 at the Kitsap Regional Library on Sylvan Way, beginning at 1:30 pm.   The ICC meets quarterly with meetings in Feb, May, Aug, and Nov, with November being the annual meeting.  

 

ICC Membership.  Any Illahee resident is eligible to be a member and the dues are only $10 a year, which we understand will cover the rest of this year and 2010.  We have attached the membership form.

 

Jim Aho

Wildlife & Miscellaneous - 10/15/09

(Note that this Update began to be written over 2 weeks ago so some of this is dated.)

 

Wintering Waterfowl Returning.  It seems a little early for our wintering waterfowl to be returning (early October), but it may only seem so since we have had such nice weather this fall.

 

American Wigeon Back 10/2/09.  We were surprised to see a flock of wigeon at Schutt's Point on October 2nd.  We don't know if they are still there or were just passing through, since we haven't been in town for awhile.

 

Common Loons in Fall & Spring.  We see common loons passing through every fall and spring, but never very many.  Attached is a picture of three.

 

Seals Back.  The seals are back on the area floats.

 

Pacific Tree Frogs.  There seem to be lots of small pacific tree frogs around this year, but not many of the bright green variation as shown in the attached picture.

 

Blue Dragon Flies.  We were surprised to see so many large blue dragon flies this summer.  This one landed on the Illahee Road while we were on a walk.

 

Deer.  This deer was seen on Sunset.  We heard from one couple who came back from an extended trip to find two deer had taken up residence in their back yard under an apple tree and had decimated their garden and other foliage.

 

Power Outage.  Thanks for the photo of the downed power lines a few Sunday's ago (10/4/09).  For many residents the power went out at 10:30 am and didn't come back on until 12 hours later, at 10:30 pm.  Those who walked down Illahee Road to see what the problem was, found the crews ready to go to work, but the Aspland crew that needed to cut down the tree hadn't shown up.  Many were asking why the Power Company couldn't use their chain saws on the wayward maple, but were told it was a union thing.

 

Beach Watchers Program.  There was a nice article in the Kitsap Sun regarding the beach watchers program that was going to be offered in Kitsap County.  Attached is the link to the article.  The deadline is Friday (10/16/09) for signing up so if you are interested call quickly. http://kitsapsun.com/news/2009/oct/08/beach-watchers-will-keep-their-eyes-on-kitsaps/

 

Timbers Edge Decision.  We came back from a trip to find the following article in the Kitsap Sun:  http://kitsapsun.com/news/2009/oct/13/commissioners-approve-big-illahee-development-cond/

We aren't sure exactly what happened as it appears the Commissioners either did not receive the Community Brief sent in to the county (i.e., it wasn't forwarded to them), or they didn't read it.  Either way, it is hard for the Community, who worked on the brief with their lawyer, to understand how this could happen.  It also leaves many wondering what to do about it.  As we understand it, the ICC Board will be meeting soon to discuss what the options are.  We will keep you posted on what we know.

 

Jim Aho

Timbers Edge Decision Monday Evening - 10/11/09

Important Decision Monday.  The Illahee Community's future look will in many ways be decided on Monday, October 12, 2009, when the County Commissioners decide on how to rule on the Illahee Community Club's (ICC) appeal of the Hearing Examiner's Decision that approved the Timbers Edge project.

Many Concerns.  The community concerns are many and they have been presented in earlier updates.  The big ones are the the small lots (mostly 3400 sq ft), the number of houses (112 on roughly 12+ acres), the traffic on a small roadway (Fir Drive), stormwater issues, sewer issues, and the impact on Illahee Creek and the underlying aquifers.  

Complex Appeal.  Because there are so many issues the chances of the Commissioners making a decision favorable to the community appears remote based on what we have seen so far.

ICC Brief.  At the last Commissioners meeting the two sides were asked to prepare briefs regarding the Modified Proposal introduced by Commissioner Brown.  The ICC was given until Friday to complete their brief.  At the Commissioner's work study session this past Wednesday none of the Commissioners had seen the brief even though it was sent to the Board person on Friday, and therefore there was no discussion regarding the Modified Proposal and the submitted briefs. 

ICC Brief Attached.  We are attaching the brief the ICC attorney, Ryan Vancil, sent in.

Attendance at Commissioner Meeting Important.  We have been asked to remind community members that attendance at the Commissioner meeting is important.  The Commissioner meeting starts at 7 pm on Monday evening October 12, 2009.  Decision only agenda items are normally at the end of the meeting.  Comments can be made after the decision when 3 minutes is allowed for public comment.  The meeting agenda is always posted on the county website.

Update Being Sent From Midwest.  We just were able to get sustained internet services while traveling in Minnesota, Iowa and Wisconsin, so much of this information is gathered from emails provided to us.

Jim Aho

Beach Nourishment Hearing Report - 10/1/09

Informal Hearing Held 10/1/09.  The informal hearing of the the Illahee Beach Nourishment project was held at the DFW offices in Port Orchard on Thursday (10/1/09).

 

Illahee Attendees.  The Illahee Community Club (ICC) members attending were Jim Brady, Don Jahaske, Linda Hinde, Judith Krigsman, and Jim Aho, and consultant Dale Thoemke.

 

Primary ICC Issue #1 - Siltation.  The primary issue for many of the Illahee residents living near the mouth of Illahee Creek is the excessive siltation that is destroying shellfish, clam and oyster beds.  Pictures showing the gooey mud that exists north of the mouth of Illahee Creek were presented.  It was noted that the depth of the silt under the nearshore float of the dock is 32 inches at the south end, and 24 inches at the north end.  The concern is that by placing the dredged material, which contains silt along with sand and pebbles, on the beach we are increasing the sedimentation problem in the area and further damaging the shellfish.  Dale Thoemke noted that it doesn't take much sediment to damage eel grass and shellfish beds.

 

Primary ICC Issue #2 - Human Intervention.  The other issue that was presented was trying to understand why we are trying to interject human intervention into an area that has not been documented as needing "beach nourishment."  The response was that all beaches need sediment and because littoral drift is moving sand down the beach, then any extra sediment in the area should be placed on the beach, evidently because you can never have too much sediment.  We tried to explain that our problem with Illahee Creek already is excessive sedimentation caused by unmitigated storm surges, and we really don't have a sediment deficiency problem.  In other words, why would DFW propose human intervention into a natural process that has not exhibited any problems? and especially when that human intervention will accelerate or exacerbate the siltation problem further?

 

Community Input?  So far, from the people who we have talked with, the concensus is this is a really dumb idea.  We generally try to stay neutral when reporting, but we have to agree that we don't understand the rationale behind this project.

 

Results In November.  The results of the Port of Illahee informal hearing in Olympia, and the Illahee Community Club informal hearing today in Port Orchard, will be issued in November 2009.  If the informal appeal fails, and they most often do, then either or both groups could file a formal appeal that would go before a judicial person. 

 

Your Thoughts?  The ICC would like to know your thoughts on this issue.  Please let them know by responding to this Update with a short note so they know how the community feels about it.  If it is just a few waterfront owners around the mouth of the creek who are concerned and others could care less, then the ICC needs to know it.

 

Jim Aho