Locally owned ‘Shrek’ comes to Beaver Lake Page 8
50 cents
March 26, 2014
Safety, security details changing in Issaquah schools By Neil Pierson
Shortly before Ron Thiele took the reins as the Issaquah School District’s superintendent last July, the district began looking at ways to heighten security for its 18,000-plus students. Officials chose to conduct a safety and security assessment of Issaquah’s 24 schools, as well
as its administrative, service and transportation centers. Michelle Trifunovic, the district’s executive director of middle schools, took charge of the initiative, and the district spent $30,000 to hire a professional school safety expert who could find chinks in the armor. Martin Speckmaier, a former police officer who now heads
Construction could begin by June on state park bathhouse By Peter Clark
Lake Sammamish State Park will receive its Sunset Beach Bathhouse this year, officials said. Park Manager Richard Benson said plans outlined in 2007 might finally see the light of day with the help of funding secured in last year’s legislative session. “Apparently, bids will go out around April 1 with construction beginning early enough to have substantial progress by June 13,” Benson wrote in an email. “That really is good news. It will have been 40 years since we have had
improvements like this here at the park.” The bathhouse would offer updated restroom and concession facilities, along with space for a future lifeguard program. Benson said in a phone interview that the state was providing $2.9 million in the biennium state budget, which will go into the restoration project. He fully expects construction to be under way by early summer. “We have to have some substantial progress made by June,” Benson said. “Otherwise, we See BATH, Page 2
Comprehensive School Safety, a Seattle-based firm, toured all of the district’s facilities and spoke with dozens of school officials during a six-week period last fall. He also gave principals a lengthy survey in which they were asked various questions and allowed to provide feedback on their building’s security and safety, Trifunovic said.
“It wasn’t just looking at your locks and your doors or your signage,” she explained. “It was also looking at what kind of programs you have for harassment and intimidation and bullying. It was more than just your facilities.” The district received Speckmaier’s report in December and began discussing the results with an advisory committee. The
group includes various administrators, school resource officers, and members of local police and fire agencies. Trifunovic said the committee is scheduled to meet for the second time March 26, and has identified a couple of broad areas for improvement – controlling access See SAFETY, Page 3
Happy Spring
Photo by Ari Cetron
Sheets of ice run off of the top of the bathrooms at the Sammamish Commons on March 20, the first day of spring. Freezing conditions the night before had led to a buildup on top of the roof. The morning sun beating down on the ice melted it quickly.
Design underway for parking lot at Sammamish Landing By Ari Cetron
Sammamish is looking for ways to add parking to Sammamish Landing Park, and city officials have begun the design of a new lot across the street.
At its March 11 meeting, the City Council approved a $150,000 contract for designing a new parking lot. The vote was unanimous among the four members present – Councilmen Tom Vance and Bob Keller, and Councilwomen Nancy Whitten
and Kathleen Huckabay. Sammamish Landing Park is at the far northern edge of the city and runs in a strip between the East Lake Sammamish Trail and the lake. It provides the only public access to Lake Sammamish within the city limits.
The park opened in 2011 and has been popular beyond expectations. On sunny summer days, at least two dozen cars are often parked along the parkway, while similar amounts were parked along 187th Avenue in Redmond.
Last fall, the city of Redmond re-striped 187th for bike lanes, and no longer allows parking on the road, exacerbating the parking crunch. Laura Philpot, Sammamish’s See PARK, Page 3