Metropolitan Park District idea to be explored at March RBCA meeting

By Tom Petersen

The idea of creating a Metropolitan Parks District for part of Shoreline, Woodway, and, significantly, Point Wells, will get its first full public discussion at the Tuesday, March 13, RBCA meeting, at 7:30pm in the basement of the Richmond Beach Congregational Church.

City officials from Shoreline and Woodway, plus representatives from Save Richmond Beach and the Finn Hill Park and Recreation District will be on hand to discuss the costs, benefits, and strategic advantages of creating such a cross-boundary authority. At stake would be the new district’s authority to regulate the degree of development allowed at Point Wells, through the voters’ say on the appropriate use of the land and how much should be devoted to natural restoration, preservation, and recreation. 

What’s being researched is the impact on local taxation and also how intergovernmental agreements might bring state and federal clean-up assistance to the site of the aging asphalt depot at Point Wells, rather than having to trade an urban center for beach detoxification.

Polls show 94% of Richmond Beach residents oppose adding the equivalent of another Richmond Beach on the 64 acre sand spit at the end of Richmond Beach Drive. Many have said they would welcome a much smaller development, but strongly believe that the anticipated traffic and construction impacts be mitigated by road and parks improvements.

The idea of a Parks District had been going around informally among people who recalled the creation of the Finn Hill district in Kirkland in 2000 to save O.O. Denny Park and schemes that were proposed for old Port of Seattle sites and a gravel pit on Maury Island (that were later resolved by other means). 

The notion got a big boost during the 2011 election campaign when Shoreline Councilman Chris Eggen floated such a plan as a way to give Shoreline some leverage in negotiations with Blue Square Real Estate Point Wells LLC, which wants to build 18-story condos at the same latitude as Woodway, with Snohomish County’s blessings.

At the moment, the proposed Point Wells development has been stalled by a ruling that its “urban center” designation is in violation of the definitions in the state Growth Management Act. The decision said the plan cannot vest according to the rules in place at the time of the permit application if those rules were defective and illegal. BSRE is appealing.

See you there!