Wildlife Update - 12/19/10

Illahee Orca Video Makes KIRO TV News.  We were surprised to get a phone call Friday evening from Issaquah that they saw the Illahee orca video on the Channel 7 News (they called for permission but we didn't think they would use the video), and calls from others who saw it on the Kitsap Sun website.  If a little video gets that much exposure, we are optimistic the professionally made video of Illahee's watershed issues (currently being filmed) will get even more.

Lost Cat.  While cats aren't really wildlife, they do get lost and we have always tried to pass on quickly notices such as these.  We only attached one of the photos.

A stray cat showed up at our house on Rue Villa yesterday (Saturday, 12/18).  She is a large female cat, gray with black strips, 4 white paws and a white bib.  She has no collar.  She was very hungry, but appears to be healthy.  She is friendly and used to humans and other cats.  I have attached 2 pictures.  Would you send them out to see if anyone has lost her?  They can contact me at JoannaBaas@gmail.com

Seals Vacated Float.  Since the seal eating orcas came through here we haven't seen any seals on the float north of the Illahee community dock.  We attached some photos to show what it looked like nearly every morning this fall, that is until this week.

Cormorants.  When the seals would leave the cormorants would normally take their place as you can see from this photo.

Deer Pictures.  We received some remarkable photos of deer and a couple of pileated woodpeckers.  At one time we were going to have a place for photos such as these on the Illahee Community Website.  This is something we hope to check on, as we can only include a few of the pictures sent.

Humming Birds.  We have seen lots of humming birds around this winter because people are feeding them.  The attached photo shows 2 males that are in a territorial standoff on a weather vane.

Thank You For Sharing Your Photos.  We want to thank you for sharing your wildlife photos.  We have been told by a number of you that is what you like best about the Illahee Updates.  We are still learning how to present photos and we have yet to learn how to title individual photos, so please bare with us.  We are still trying to come up with photo file sizes that are big enough for people to see the subjects, but not too big so they won't exceed the size of their email systems.  We hope these all come through.

Jim Aho

Lost Cat - 11/9/10

Returned From Trip.  We just returned from an extended road trip and need to catch up with Illahee issues.  We were able to put out an Update while on the road notifying residents of the Illahee Preserve Dedication that took place on October 26th and will put an Update regarding that event after we talk with some of those who attended, since it was not covered by the local press.  

Lost Cat.  We received the following email on November 3rd and just verified tonight that the cat has still not been found. 

We're looking for a cat - black with a little white on his neck and paws.  About 8 years old.  "Buzz"  The cat lives in Illahee North, and he's been gone since early Monday morning.  Please look in your garages and cars and anywhere a cat could go to hide.  He disappeared the morning it rained so hard.

Please e-mail me if you have seen him:  laurie@marbledog.net

Other Items?  Since returning we have noticed boats, divers and submersibles working along the shoreline north of the Illahee dock.  They appear to be looking for something and we presume they must be military since there appear to be no markings on the boats.  Let us know if you have any information about what might be going on, or if you have any other information to be passed on.

Jim Aho

Work Party Info & Miscellaneous 7/29/10

8/4 Illahee Preserve Work Party.  The East Bremerton Rotary has scheduled an Illahee Preserve work party for Wednesday (8/4/10) starting at 5:30 pm.  Also at this work party will be personnel from the aircraft carrier the USS John C Stennis.  The Illahee community volunteers are needed and will be finishing up on work on th Rain Gardens and they hope to use some of the Stennis personnel to help line the rain garden walkways with logs and create simulated rock streams in the rain garden.  It should prove to be one exciting and productive evening.  

Big Wood Chip Piles.  If you have stopped by the Illahee Preserve's Almira parking lot recently you will notice more chips have been delivered and they are spilling over into the parking lot.  Extra wheel borrows (and helpers) are being requested to help with the effort on Wednesday.

Lost Dog in Preserve?  When we were working in the Preserve on Wednesday there was a person looking for a lost dog.  The information is attached and the picture is below: 

Harriet lives just south of preserve on Olympus Dr.--

She has not been taken to any shelter or vet--she is micro chipped.

Please Help find her!

Response re Dumping.  We got the following responses to the question about the dumping of trash in Illahee:

The illegal dumping if the same...was going up the hill just beyond George Schafers on the right hand side going up... mattress, bedframe plus more,  and just a ways back toward Illahee another pile of junk....

The dumping of garbage and furniture was in the Rue Villa area on Illahee
Road. It was picked up the next day by a couple of young men in a county
pickup truck.

... we had dumping along 1st Avenue and Rest Place.  Sorry we did not get any pics.  I can tell you along our street was a fireplace insert, wood and other building materials.  In front of my neighbors house was a garbage can filled with project clean up materials.  All were dumped along the side of the road.  I was nervous because some of these items were quite large and with no shoulder vehicles could have easily run into them.

Response re Sailboat Sinking.  We revived the following note and picture of the sailboat that sunk off of the Illahee community dock:  

Not a very good picture, it was taken with my cell phone.

More Responses re Beach Walking.  And we received another response regarding beach walking.

 Years ago a man who worked for one of the major Title companies (names forgotten) and was very knowledgeable about property matters, told us that the beaches were considered "ancient highways" so that walking across them was not considered trespassing. Other activities, clamming, taking  of oysters, camping etc.are different stories and in our case on two different ocassions we had to call the Sheriff. Rue Villa became a hang out for the "hippy culture" and a drug scource back in the late 60s early 70s.He also stated that we owned to the "extreme" low tide but that the State retained the mineral rights between "mean" low and "extreme" low tide.

Regarding Shoreline Walking...
I have always felt that the public has the right to access the tidelands below the high tide line. Washington is the only state on the west coast where people will try to exclude people from walking on the beach in front of their property, but I honestly doubt they have the legal authority to do so. Caminiti v. Boyle seems to affirm that.
There is an interesting ongoing discussion in response to an article by C Dunagan titled  "Beach-walkers are still waiting for a legal answer" July 8th, 2010 by cdunagan

Read more: http://pugetsoundblogs.com/waterways/2010/07/08/beach-walkers-are-still-waiting-for-a-legal-answer/#comments#ixzz0uk2xQhrJ

in the Sun.
You'll find an Interesting poll regarding this issue there also...

Response re Deer.  Many have commented on how tame the deer have become and how they don't seem to be concerned about being around humans.  We received the following video and link about how deer can be dangerous.

Thought you might find this interesting.

Cranbrook Deer Incident - deer attacks dog in city environment Wow - watch this to the end -( looks like maybe a border collie). Dog gets hurt by a doe deer  - cat almost gets it too - gees ' could have been a small child too  Good to know to keep your dogs away from the deer- good to do anyway but this dog was not that close. Go to the link below to watch a doe deer in Cranbrook last Friday pummel a dog which survived with bruises and a few cuts. http://www.youtube.com/user/fsubra

Torched Car on Fir Drive.  We received the following two reports on a car fire on Fir Drive very early last Sunday morning:

I slept thru the excitement and only heard about the event Sunday afternoon. Apparently around 3 AM the blaring of a car horn and glare of flames woke my neighbors and they saw a car parked near the big granite rock at the curve of FIR DR. on fire. The FD responded but the burning tires and ignited gasoline took awhile to control. The gas tank and tires apparently blew up  and burning gas was reported to be flowing down the road toward us. After the fire was controlled the Sheriff Deputy determined that the car had been reported as stolen. This is 2nd hand info.... many others witnessed the event and relayed some of it as having me missing  the bonfire and hot dog and marsh-mellow roast. The remains were towed away  and by morning there was no signs of the happening.

Just a little info you may want to add to one of your updates.  Sunday morning about 0300, my wife, myself and most our neighborhood were awoken by a steady car horn blaring.  Walking out the door there was a car on fire near the Wagon Wheel rock at the bend of the road on Fir Drive.  It was completely engulfed in flames shooting about 20 feet into the air. Calling 911 the fire department responded within about 5 minutes.  It was safely extinguished in minutes and investigated.  The car was traced to an owner in Vancouver, WA but was not necessarily reported as stolen.  Interesting, but no harm was done less some singed tree tops and roadside vegetation.

Petitions?  We have been asked a number of times about when the Illahee Community Club petitions will be sent out or distributed.  There was an initial limited petition distribution, and because of the responses to the Kitsap Sun article, a list of "frequently asked questions" (FAQ) sheet was developed to answer some of the questions being raised.  We heard the FAQ sheet  is being finalized and will likely be available or distributed with the petitions.  The last report from the early distribution was 53 yes responses and 3 no responses.  Once the FAQ sheet is made available to us, we will pass it on.

Jim Aho

Miscellaneous - 3/9/10

Saturday Rain Garden Planting.  On Saturday 21 volunteers from Illahee, and those with various connections to Illahee, showed up to plant 5 demonstration native plant rain garden plots at the Illahee Preserve Almira parking lot.

Botanist Aimee Weber Supervised The Planting.  The rain garden plot plantings were coordinated by Aimee Weber, a volunteer botanist with rain garden installation experience.  Aimee helped develop the plant order, picked up the plants, and worked with her plans and the plans of landscape architect Jenny Morgan and four Master Gardeners and the installing volunteers to come up with the final layouts.  She was one busy person trying to keep up with so many helpers and so many different plants going in so many different locations.

Earlier Plot Preparation.  Before the planting could begin, volunteer plants that were emerging from the rain garden area had to be transplanted, weeds had to be removed, and the plots had to be rake graded.  The plot designs were laid out earlier and the three paths separating four of the demonstration areas were covered with wood chips.  And prior to that Parks Department had the parking lot center area prepared with the amended soils required for rain gardens.  In other words there was lots of work that had to be done before the actual planting, by a number of different groups that was finally completed by the Saturday's volunteers.

Over 300 Native Plants Planted.  The number of native plants that were planted on Saturday numbered over 300, which included some sword ferns that came from the Illahee Preserve.  The number of different species is about 20.  Because of security issues the taller native species rain garden plants were not installed.  Note that there will likely be other native plant species eventually planted in the representative species plot at a later date.

Rain Garden Interpretive Signs Later.  Now that the Rain Garden is essentially complete the planning for the interpretive signs will begin.  There are eight interpretive signs being planned to describe and promote rain gardens for area residents.  

Demonstration Rain Garden Authorized by DOE/Port Grant.  The demonstration part of the rain garden is authorized as part of Port of Illahee/Department of Ecology grant Parametrix report that found bio-retention facilities (or rain gardens) would help both with storm water and aquifer issues.

Rain Garden Plots are Primarily for Illahee Residents.  The demonstration part of the rain gardens are installed primarily for Illahee residents.  There are two important reasons for informing residents of the need to consider installing rain gardens on their properties.

To Help Decrease Storm Water Surges.  There are places in Illahee and north of Illahee where storm water is tight-lined into Illahee Creek rather than being slowed down and retained in detention ponds.  This was done before retention facilities were required.  Those areas greatly contribute to the storm water surges that run through the Illahee Creek corridor and then out into Puget Sound waters with brown silt laden storm water that can be seen for miles out in the bay.  Residents in these areas provide one of the keys to solving the sediment pollution problems in Puget Sound if they would install a rain garden on their property.

To Help Replenish Critical Aquifers.  And in other parts of Illahee there are critical aquifer recharge areas where rain garden infiltration of storm water is crucial for maintaining the stream flow (called base flow) in Illahee Creek.  

Pictures Coming.  Photos of the planting event were taken and we are expecting to put them on the illaheecommunity.org website.  We will provide a link to the photos at a later date.

Another Tree Planting Event to Note.  We have attached a pdf file that notes that in April 2010 Illahee resident and arborist Jim Trainer will plant his 1,000,000 tree on Blake Island.  Congratulations Jim!!

Lost Dog in University Point Area.  We just received the following lost dog report that was sent to our website (illaheecommunity.com).

My name is Gabriela Jablonski and I live off of University Point Circle.  Yesterday as I walked my dogs on the beach, one of them wriggled out of her collar and took off in full sprint after something.  I was unable to retrieve her and she is now lost.  Her name is Koda, she is a large white fluffy Great Pyrennees without her collar.  If you see her or have her please call 633-7224 or cell: 832-528-5167.

Jim Aho

Miscellaneous Items - 12/6/09

What Happened to the Updates?  We have had inquiring about why there have not been any recent Illahee Community Updates, especially in light of the frequency of past reports and the Timbers Edge appeal, that was reported in the Kitsap Sun.  The short answer is we have been impacted by a combination of travel, visitors, internet and router problems, and a relocation to put in an oak floor.  This Update is being written from a temporary location in the garage.

Bear Report in Gilberton?  We are very late on getting the following email report out.  It came in on Nov 25th.

We didn't see him but are sure a bear attacked our bird feeders last nite.  Stole the suet --broke a bolt tearing a rebar down to get it.  We are on Sandy rd. in Gilberton.

Missing Great Dane?  We had a call about the possibility of the missing Great Dane being in Illahee.  We called and relayed the message and didn't heard anything back.  

White Trash Bags Along Illahee Road.  We noticed lots of white trash bags along Illahee Road and are wondering what group did the trash pick up all the way to Brownsville.  It appears they did a great job as there are lots a bags along the road.  If anyone knows please let us know so we can thank them.

Christmas Ships Coming on December 18th.  We heard the Christmas ships from Brownsville will be coming along the Illahee shoreline on December 18th.  More on that later as we get more information. 

Timbers Edge.  We were out of town when the Kitsap Sun reported about the Illahee Community Club (ICC) appealing the Commissioner's Timbers Edge decision.  The link to the article is attached below.

http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2009/nov/23/illahee-community-challenges-approval-of-timbers/

Appeals Dependent on Community Funding.  As we understand it the ICC filed the appeal when it appeared the pledges to fund the appeal began to come in.  The appeals are costly and we have been asked to remind residents that funds can be sent in to the Illahee Community Club, P.O. Box 2563, Bremerton, WA 98310.

Court Date.  We spoke briefly with the ICC lawyer before the Thanksgiving holiday and remember the first appearance before the Superior Court as being on January 10, 2010.

Shorelines Hearings Board Appeal.  We also understand the ICC has also filed an appeal of the Timbers Edge project with the Shorelines Hearings Board (SHB).   We will see if we can pass on these appeals in a future Update.

Illahee Dock Outfall Appeal.  It was approximately a year ago that the ICC filed the Illahee Outfall appeal with the SHB, which was eventually resolved to most every ones satisfaction, and possibly with less construction cost to the Canadian developer.  We think this was as close to a win - win situation for most parties as we could get, and a great win for Puget Sound waters.  The finishing touch to that project, which is not the developers responsibility, would be to install a rain garden on Fern Street and an infiltration pit at the second cell of the Illahee North detention pond, and that would nearly fully protect the Sound for that drainage area.

Community & Developer Agreement?  We were provided a copy of a letter addressed to Mr. James, the developer, and Mr. Kuhlman, his engineer, stating that the Community would like to see if an agreement could be reached, similar to the Outfall settlement, rather than going forward with appeals and litigation.  Since the letter was also sent to the press we felt we should pass it on to the community, so it is attached at the end of the Update.

Rain Garden Response.  We had a number of people volunteer to help with the Native Plant  Demonstration Rain Garden project being proposed at the new Illahee Preserve parking lot at Almira.  We will keep you apprised of how this project is progressing. 

Jim Aho

Illahee Community Club

P.O. Box 2563

Bremerton, WA 98310

November 18, 2009

Mr. James, Beach Drive Development

3538 Beach Road East

Port Orchard, WA  98366

Mr. Kuhlman, Team 4 Engineering

5819 NE Minder Rd 

Poulsbo, WA 98370

Mr. James and Mr. Kuhlman:

The Illahee Community Club appreciates the response of September 16, 2009 to the Community’s proposal request of August 5 and August 31, 2009.  We hoped to respond to Mr. Kuhlman’s email earlier, but wanted to wait until the appeal to BOCC was decided and disseminated, which happened on or about October 29, 2009. 

The Illahee Community Club had met earlier this year with community members to determine what the community wanted with Timbers Edge.  It was a long process to get everyone to agree with what was eventually decided upon, and was forwarded to you on August 5, 2009. As stated in the proposal, the majority of the community is not against development, but is desirous of a development that conforms to its existing neighborhoods and without negative impacts to existing roadways, streams and aquifers.

The Illahee Community Club Board left the decision of whether to appeal the BOCC ruling or not with the community.  We are informing you that the community, with the ICC Board’s concurrence, has decided to appeal the BOCC decision to Superior Court and to the Shorelines Hearings Board and expect those appeals to be filed soon.

While those appeals go forward, we would like to continue to seek a settlement and would like to begin by responding to Mr. Kuhlman’s email of September 16, 2009.  We also want to thank Mr. James for looking at diminishing the impact on Illahee Creek through infiltration attempts, and fault the Commissioner’s for allowing the use of ambiguous language in the new conditions. 

However, in addition to infiltration, a major issue for the greater community and specifically those around the development is that of sewers.  Mr. Kuhlman implies in his email response that sewers are required by the Health District while the opposite is the case as county code and the Health District allows for septic systems in this area, albeit with the current zoning designation. 

The community feels that the change to septics will result in such a reduction in the infrastructure costs that the profit margin will be similar.  Our estimates are based on the new sewer line installation going under Illahee Creek, rather than in the roadway above the creek, along with the elimination for roadway requirements and modifications, and possibly the elimination of a shoreline outfall.  Also eliminated are the costs of further studies and much of the infrastructure engineering charges.

The community has asked that we convey to you that they hope we can come to an agreement.

                                                                                                                Barney Bernhard, President

                                                                                                                Illahee Community Club

Copies:  Ryan Vancil, Ron Templeton, DCD, Kitsap Sun

Missing Dog & ICC Membership Info - 11/4/09

Missing Great Dane. We have been asked to pass the following note on:

Please keep your eyes peeled for the gray/white (blue merle) Great Dane w/purple collar. She is a stray that has been wandering for over a week. She is extremely skinny now and skittish. She has been seen in traffic on Wheaton Way, as well as Sheridan, Cherry Ave, Halvorson, Callahan, Trenton, and Illahee. She has been spotted in Harrison Hospital parking lot, YMCA and Albertson’s parking lot. I spotted her at 1617 Sheridan Ave scratching at door. I went and knocked and no one answered but there was a Great Dane inside. I think she is seeking out other dogs. I want to set up a spot (probably church off Sheridan) to set out food on a routine basis to lure her. Maybe someone could make contact w/Albertson’s personnel and see if they would be willing to keep eye out and call us? Lastly, I would like to organize a search and rescue effort for this weekend if she is not caught by then. Could everyone spread the word and let’s help organize this and rescue this poor girl of the dangerous streets please?

I will be at WSP Academy in Shelton rest of this week, but will be checking my messages (360) 509-5347 and email: BlackDogLady22@gmail.com and Teresa’s cell (360) 731-8826.

Thanks, Liz
Collar of Hope – All Breed Dog Rescue

ICC Membership? In the last Update (11/2/09) we included the Appeal Letter being distributed in the area around the Timbers Edge development. We have had some questions about how one becomes a member of the Illahee Community Club and what the purpose or the charter of the club is.

Application for Membership. We have attached the application for membership to this email and attached it below but without the pictue of the community dock on it.

For 2009 or 2010? We were asked whether a person would need to pay for both 2009 and 2010 if they were planning on attending the November 14th meeting (at 1:30 pm at the Sylvan Way library). The answer we received was that any membership received in the final quarter would cover the rest of the year and the following year.

Purposes of the ICC? The purposes for which the ICC was reorganized are listed on the attached application. In earlier years it was a 501.c.4 organization, which is more of a social organization. In 2008 it reorganized to become a 501.c.3 non-profit corporation with the IRS and the State of Washington with an emphasis on restoration and preservation.

Why Get Involved? We were asked why residents should join the ICC? The short answer is we have found that a small community doesn't get much respect from government officials and county staff unless they are organized. Some of us have found out that the county doesn't really care about a small salmon stream like Illahee Creek, or the underlying aquifers. If the community hadn't completed some studies, and paid for them through resident's donations, we would have had increasingly devastating impacts to Illahee Creek. Those studies, and the Port of Illahee studies, helped get some areas down-zoned, though Timbers Edge was "grandfathered" with a higher density. The ICC was also successful in eliminating a new stormwater outfall at the community dock and getting the developer to use bioretention features to clean the stormwater. With the new Community Plan we are hoping for no more costly legal battles after Timbers Edge and residents can work at restoration and preservation of our community and its natural features, which are many.

ICC Opportunities. The reorganized ICC is a young organization that is open to those who would like to help and participate. There is a list at the bottom of the application form for areas where help is needed.

Please Complete and Send In. The ICC would like to have all residents become active (voting) members.

Jim Aho

DOWNLOAD ILLAHEE COMMUNITY CLUB APPLICATION HERE

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

Miscellaneous Items - 9/21/09

Shoreline Meetings Tonight (Monday 9/21/09) & Thursday (9/24/09). The Illahee community has been blessed with 3 miles of shorelines. We want everyone in Illahee to be aware that the Shoreline Management Plan (SMP) is in the process of being updated and that informational meetings are being held nearby. Attached is the information that was posted on the Kitsap County website.

County Hosts Shoreline Update Outreach Meetings

Stakeholders Asked to Join Kitsap County Shoreline Management Plan Update Advisory Group

(Port Orchard) - Kitsap County is required to update its Shoreline Management Master Program (SMP) by 2012. The Washington Department of Ecology is providing funding to conduct the update. The SMP is a comprehensive land and water use management plan that includes policies and regulations for use and development of Kitsap’s shoreline. Kitsap County has about 230 miles of saltwater, stream and lakefront shorelines that support diverse environmental, economic, and recreational uses. The Department of Ecology ultimately approves the updated plan, but citizens and County government cooperatively develop an updated plan that is proposed to Ecology. We planned several information outreach meetings to kick-off this effort, and encourage stakeholder participation in an advisory group to guide these efforts. The meetings start at 6:30 PM and wrap-up at 8:00PM.

Meetings are scheduled at these locations:

• Tuesday, September 15, 2009
  Kingston Fire Station
  26642 Miller Bay Rd NE, Kingston
• Monday, September 21, 2009
  Keyport Bible Church
  15270 Washington Ave NE, Keyport
• Thursday, September 24, 2009
  Kitsap County Fairgrounds, The Eagle’s Nest
  1200 NW Fairgrounds Rd, Bremerton
• Tuesday, September 29, 2009
  Seabeck Christian Conf. Center “Dining Hall”
  15395 Seabeck Hwy NW, Seabeck
• Monday, October 5, 2009 at the
  Kitsap County Administration Building, Chambers
  619 Division St., Port Orchard

Illahee Preserve Parking Lot Logs. We received the following update from Vic Ulsh on the status of the log pile next to the new Illahee Preserve parking lot along Almira:

Logs at Almira

Lori Raymaker has made arrangements with Kitsap Community Resources and AmeriCorp to cut up the logs at the Almira parking lot at Illahee Forest Preserve. They will cut the logs as fire wood for those in need. Target date for their big work party is Friday, October 16th. They also expect to be available to do a few other chores while their personnel are on-site. I suggested weeding the rain garden (it will need it again by then). I plan to meet with Lori and a rep from KCR at 9AM on Wednesday, October 14th to go over a game plan, especially hoping to have them avoid driving over the sidewalks to get to the logs.

Brownsville Appreciation Day (BAD) on Saturday (9/26/09). You have undoubtedly seen the signs for Brownsville's Appreciation Day on September 26, 2009, so don't forget our Port of Brownsville neighbors to the north on Saturday. The link to their web site is attached below.

http://www.portofbrownsville.org/wether_events/events/BAD/bad.html

Passing of John King. Illahee lost a good friend on September 8, 2009, when John King passed away. A number of us enjoyed talking with John as he worked on his vintage cars in the Sunset Avenue area. His obituary link is attached.

http://kitsapsun.com/news/2009/sep/10/john-d-king-83/

Lost Cat - Was it Found? We have been asked if the lost cat was ever found. We have not heard what happened, even though information was passed on. If you have any information, please let us know so we can pass it on.

Send in Information. Keep sending us your information and we will try to pass it on.

Jim Aho

Wildlife Update & Preserve Info - 9/11/09

Missing Cat.  We were asked if there was a picture of the cat that went missing that we reported in our last Update.  Before we had a chance to check on one, someone forwarded a photo of the actual cat.  If anyone has seen "Fiona" let us know and we will pass the information on.

 

Owl Pictures.  Thanks to Ed who told us how to access the owl photos from an email.  The owl in a barred owl, and looks similar in color to a spotted owl.  The difference is the breast feathers on a barred owl are vertical, while those of a spotted own are horizontal.  Some were hoping it was a spotted owl as the picture was taken close to where the Timbers Edge project is proposed to go in.

 

Dead Blotted Seal.  We were advised by one of the local Area Habitat Biologists to report the dead seal to the Marine Mammal Investigations, which we did.

 

Missing Doe?  The doe one resident was worried about is still around, according to those responding back.  On a walk this evening we observed five dear with none having the distictive white markings of the deer in question.

 

Illahee Preserve Work Party Sunday Morning.  We receive the following notice regarding an Illahee Preserve work party scheduled for Sunday morning.

 

ILLAHEE FOREST WORK PARTY.  We are planning a work party for this Sunday to accomplish a couple tasks within Illahee Forest Preserve.  The work will include gathering up limbs (which have already been cut) and piling onto an adjacent parking lot AND removing pieces of an abandoned car body which has already been dismantled & cut into manageable pieces by Central Kitsap Fire & Rescue.  We had hoped to utilize some Navy volunteers but they have not yet confirmed.  We welcome any volunteers who may be willing to help.  Our target was 16 people for 1.5 to 2 hours.   Gloves would be handy.  Meeting location is the Almira parking lot at Illahee Forest Preserve located behind/above Lowe's in East Bremerton near the corner of Fuson and Almira.  Target time for meeting is 9:00 AM this Sunday morning, September 13th.  Muffins and coffee to be available. 

I welcome any questions.  Thank you.

Vic Ulsh
WK (360) 479-6900
HM (360) 373-4824

 

Illahee Preserve Damage to Red Elderberry.  We just received the following email regarding what looks like deliberate damage to red elderberry plants in the Preserve.  Let us know if you see anyone doing the damage.

 

Just wanted to let you know about an evolving challenge at Illahee Forest.  For reasons I cannot explain, somebody or somebodies have been wreaking havoc with red elderberry plants in the Forest.  They are bending/breaking the stalks and leaving the damaged plant material to die.  Mostly near the trail system, but some of the carnage is off trail.  We had another round of damage to red elderberry shrubs in the past 1-2 days.  This seems rather odd.  The damage is only to red elderberry, but it's torn up pretty badly.  As always, let's keep alert and monitor/investigate any suspicious behavior.    Thanks.

By the way, I think there is some type of dead animal very near the Thompson parking lot, but I could not determine just where.  Peeeeewwww!

 

 

Jim Aho

Wildlife Update and Monday Invite - 9/5/09

Blue Parrot Update.  We were hoping the lost blue parrot notice that we sent out Monday evening (8/24/09) would have resulted in some success, but the parrot did not return and no one reported seeing it. 

 

Fish in Illahee Creek.  The last four years we have been walking up Illahee Creek to do upstream water quality monitoring.  This past year, moreso than other years, we have been concerned about the low flows in the creek and not seeing fish.  However, on Tuesday, September 1, 2009, during our water quality trek up the stream, some fish were finally seen, though not nearly as many as in past years.

 

Turtle in Illahee Creek.  Also on Tuesday's trip up the creek, we saw a turtle in the stream, a first for us.  Someone said it must be a Western Pond Turtle, since they are what would normally be around the area.  We have attached a photo that may help with any identification.

 

Moles.  Lots of mole activity has been seen recently, including a baby dead mole on the pavement along Sunset.  We have attached the photo. 

 

Illahee Preserve Fair Info.  It was nice to see information on the Illahee Preserve at the Kitsap County Fair last week.  One of the most picked up items was a map of the Preserve.  Many people have gone into the Preserve, which is forested, and have gotten lost and have been requesting maps.  The architectural firm of Rice, Fergus, Miller designed the map and brochure.  Let us know if you need a copy.  Attached is a photo of the information that was available at the Fair. 

 

Monday Get-Together Invite.  Iris Friday, who lives next to the area where the Timbers Edge project is planned to go in and next to the Illahee Preserve, has invited residents to see the area and share some food.  Her email invite is below:

 

As a resident of Illahee and one of the families most affected by the Timber's Edge project,  I am once again vehemently stating my opposition to the Timber's Edge project that stands to drastically impact our day to day routine here at 4829 Charmont Lane NE.  Where, you say, is Charmont Lane NE?  Well, imagine for one moment that you and your family found yourself tucked at the end of a Cul de sac with neighbors to your south and east.  To the west, you found nothing but old growth and blackberry brambles.  imagine again, that your only exist consisted of a primitive two lane street with no sidewalks, but treacherous hills (think Dec 2007) storm.   But, first, you must exit off a single dirt road up a very treacherous hill.  And, then imagine your precious six year old daughter walking up a hill with no sidewalks which now has 200 vehicles exiting above her exit street (with no lights) on their way to work. The lots in our neighborhood far exceed those proposed by the developer and we don't have sidewalks.

 

This labor day weekend, I invite you to come and join us at 4829 Charmont Lane Ne on Sept 7th so that you can see for yourself the unrealistic plans proposed for Timber's Edge.  Please mark your calendar for Monday, September 7th at 1:00 P.M.  Please feel free to share a salad or just hang out.

 

Thanks!  Thanks for all your input to these Updates.

 

Jim Aho

Help! Lost Blue Parrot in Illahee! - 8/24/09

Lost Bright Blue Parrot - We just received the following email note and decided to send out a single issue Update.

........we have a neighbor on Illahee Rd. that just "lost" a bright blue parrot today.  It was hand raised and did not have clipped wings.  The family is devastated as most likely the parrot will not last long in "the wild."  Would you be able to put this on the "message board?"

If anyone in our area sees this parrot John Snell would appreciate a call:

*82-271-2259

We're not sure about the phone number prefix so if you have any information on this parrot and can't reach the owner, pass the information on to us.

Jim Aho

Lost Dog Found & Photos - 1/5/09

Lost Dog Report. When we found out about a lost dog, Laurie Jones our web manager put the information on the illaheecommunity.com website and we also sent out the information on an Illahee Community Update email that goes out to about 300 recipients. It appears the email did it this time. Alison O'Sullivan, a biologist with the Suquamish Tribe, forwarded the following:

Happy Ending!!

I forwarded your email to a friend of mine who still works at the shelter. She went out and checked the kennels and sure enough the dog was there. She called them and they came and got the dog @1p Friday.

Local Seals Resting Photo. There are a number of local seals that use area floats to get out of the water. There have been reported more than twenty seals on this float at one time. It is also used by river otters, cormorants, shorebirds, seagulls, and bald eagles.

Snow Goose Photo. Every now and then a snow goose is seen with the Canada Geese. This photo shows the snow goose on Sunday (1/4/09) eating along side the Canada geese and wigeon ducks.

Squid Fisherman in the Snow Photo. Last evening (1/4/09) during the snow storm we were surprised to see two hardy squid fisherman at the Illahee Community Dock.

Other Bird Sightings. A female loon on 1/5/09, which are usually seen only in the fall and spring. And the following:

Pileated woodpecker at our suet feeder this morning (10:40) AM. Also, a downy woodpecker.

Jim Aho