Issaquah’s only locally owned newspaper
THE ISSAQUAH PRESS
117th Year, No. 20
Thursday, MAy 19, 2016
issaquahpress.com
REI pitches partnership with Lake Sammamish State Park
Preservation group ramps up effort to save Providence Heights campus
By Lynn Thompson The Seattle Times Outdoor retailer REI has proposed relocating operations for its national outdoor school to Lake Sammamish State Park and building an outdoor-activities center that would provide administrative offices for its programs as well as space for a ranger station, classroom training and equipment rental. In a 20-page statement of “partnership opportunities” that outlines its experience with similar ventures in other areas of the country, the co-op also proposes an outdoor stage or pavilion for movies and concerts, and an array of new programs including cycling, hiking, navigation, photography and paddle sports. “Cultivating relationships to increase engagement, participant growth and program offerings in outdoor recreation is what we do best,” REI officials said in a November response to the state parks system’s call for redevelopment proposals at Lake Sammamish. The proposal notes that REI Outdoor School operates in more than 300 See PARK, Page 3 Jerry Klein / aerialnw.com
Worker falls to his death at Atlas project By Christina Corrales-Toy ccorrales-toy@isspress.com A 46-year-old masonry worker died after falling from elevated scaffolding on the Atlas apartments construction site in Issaquah on Monday morning. The man was pronounced dead on the scene after Eastside Fire and Rescue crews attempted CPR, Deputy Chief Richard Burke said. The man was working on the 344-unit project’s brick facade at the time, said Eric Olson, Andersen Construction’s operations manager. See DEATH, Page 3
The former Providence Heights College campus is part of a 40-acre site where Brixton Homes, a Bellevue developer, wants to build a 141-home subdivision. The 220,000-square-foot campus buildings, including the green-roofed midcentury chapel with sculptured stained glass windows by French artist Gabriel Loire, would be demolished. Additionally, Brixton wants the City of Issaquah to approve a reduction in trees from nearly 48,000 diameter inches to 9,300 diameter inches.
Washington Trust wants city to require environmental impact statement from developer The Providence Heights chapel’s 33-foot-high stained glass windows were crafted by Gabriel Loire in 1957 in Chartres, France. Windows on one side of the chapel illustrate the Seven Sorrows of Mary. The remaining seven windows depict works of mercy performed by the Sisters of Providence. Michael Sladek msladekphoto.com
By Scott Stoddard sstoddard@isspress.com The Washington Trust for Historic Preservation last week issued an “advocacy alert” as the clock ticked down on a public comment period for a project that would reduce the former Providence Heights College campus to a pile of rubble. The trust suggested concerned citizens write or email the City of Issaquah and “ask that city officials require the developer to conduct an environmental impact statement for the project. If required, an EIS would compel the developer to consider alternatives to demolition and would provide critical time to identify potential preservationfriendly uses for the site.” Representatives for the site’s
For Educator of the Year, ‘the kids always come first’ By Christina Corrales-Toy ccorrales-toy@isspress.com If Briarwood Elementary School teacher Stephanie Mayo had it her way, no one would know she won a big award last week. That’s just who she is, said Briarwood Principal Drew Terry. “She’s a true educator,” he said. “The kids always come first.” Try as she might, the longtime teacher could not keep it a secret after accepting the Issaquah Education Association’s Educator of the Year Award at the Issaquah Community Awards ceremony May 10. As the news broke, more than 40 community members left Mayo congratulatory comments on The Issaquah Press’ Facebook page. Tricia Wescovich Romo thanked Mayo for making her family’s transition into the Issaquah School District a smooth one. See AWARD, Page 2
developer, Brixton Homes LLC of Bellevue, have repeatedly refused to comment about the project, a 141-home subdivision that would scrape the 40-acre site of not only the 220,000-square-foot campus buildings but also many of its trees. The trust calls the entire campus, especially the chapel, “an irreplaceable modern masterpiece designed by regionally-renowned architect John Maloney and world-renowned stained glass artist Gabriel Loire.” The trust also points out that the campus has national significance as being one of two colleges in the nation built during that time period specifically for the education of Catholic sisters, which was “a very See CAMPUS, Page 2
Unsightly hole in I-90 overpass above Front Street now just a memory By Scott Stoddard sstoddard@isspress.com
Scott Stoddard / sstoddard@isspress.com
Call it a Front Street beautification project. It took longer than planned, but construction crews last week finally replaced the damaged concrete girder on the Interstate 90 overpass that crosses above Front Street North. On May 10, two heavy-duty crane trucks moved into position to start the removal process, but slow-going by crews cutting the girder free from the rest of the overpass caused a one-night delay. The next evening, the crews returned and continued to struggle cutting the girder free. Also, it was discovered the rigging for the two cranes was insufficient to lift the girder, which was cut into two pieces.
Briarwood Elementary School teacher Stephanie Mayo was named Educator of the Year at the Issaquah Community Awards on May 10.
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