FRIDAY, MAY 13, 2016
YOUR LOCALLY OWNED NEWSPAPER SERVING SNOQUALMIE AND NORTH BEND
SNO★VALLEY
STAR
WILDCATS ZAPPED
Mount Si loses in title match to ‘electric’ Skyline Page 10
Development projects draw protests
City Council unanimously approves tribe-opposed plans at May 9 meeting BY DYLAN CHAFFIN dchaffin@snovalleystar.com
Armed with a petition signed by more than 800 people, the Snoqualmie Tribe and dozens of its supporters filled Snoqualmie’s City Council chambers to testify against “irresponsible” development during the May 9 council meeting. There were three public hearings regarding development on the agenda, including restating and amending the Salish Lodge expansion project with the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe, a Tokul roundabout capital improvement project latecomer agreement, and a development agreement for traffic mitiga-
tion at the Old Mill site. The City Council voted unanimously to approve all of three of the development agreements. Before the first hearing, City Attorney Bob Sterbank gave a presentation to dispel prior misunderstandings with the proposed Salish Lodge expansion and housing development that the Snoqualmie Tribe said was too close to Snoqualmie Falls. The initial development agreement for the Salish Lodge expansion has five amendments to it that were agreed to and adopted by the City Council and the involved parties. The amendments date to 2004,
DYLAN CHAFFIN | dchaffin@snovalleystar.com
SEE PROTESTS, PAGE 7
Tribal Chairwoman Carolyn Lubenau (Center) waits to testify against development near Snoqualmie Falls at the Snoqualmie City Council meeting May 9.
Timber Ridge school nears final phases BY DYLAN CHAFFIN dchaffin@snovalleystar.com
It’s hard to imagine that just over 13 months ago, the Snoqualmie Valley School District broke ground on what now stands as the final months of construction for Snoqualmie’s newest Timber Ridge Elementary
Corrections
A May 6 story about Snoqualmie’s April 28 town hall meeting contained the following errors: n The limit on a property-tax increase the city can impose without a public vote is 1 percent annually. The story incorrectly quot-
School. While one wing of the school lags slightly behind the other two, crews have already begun laying carpeting and installing lights. Each wing is also colorcoded to help students with directions. SEE SCHOOL, PAGE 6
ed Mayor Matt Larson as saying the increase could be up to 6 percent annually. n The potential amount of money generated by a Salish Lodge expansion was incorrectly reported. The actual figure is approximately $457,000 per year beginning in 2022.
Charter-school advocates send money Mullet’s way BY SCOTT STODDARD sstoddard@snovalleystar.com
An examination of campaign contributions to the two Issaquah candidates in the 5th Legislative Sen. Mark District’s Mullet Senate race reveals the incumbent is holding a slight advantage. Sen. Mark Mullet (D) has amassed $83,094 while his challenger, Rep. Chad Magendanz (R), has raised $74,011. Both have spent roughly $25,000 to this point in the race. More than 10 percent of Mullet’s cash contributions this election cycle are from
proponents of charter schools. Mullet and Magendanz were co-sponsors of a bill to salvage the state’s charter-school law after it was struck down by the state Supreme Court in 2015. Katherine Binder, a selfdescribed education advocate from Bellevue, gave Mullet $1,900. In 2014, Binder contributed $200,000 in support of Initiative 1240, which permitted the creation of up to 40 charter schools in the state. William P. Binder of Bellevue also gave Mullet $1,900. Other charter-school advocates contributing to Mullet’s re-election campaign include Democrats for Education Reform WA PAC ($1,900), WA Charters PAC ($1,000) and the Education Voters Political Action Fund ($950). “It’s solely a policy issue,”
said Mullet, who then described his visit to a Seattle charter school. “The kids that were there, they were really happy with them and the parents were really happy with them. “The testimony in Olympia was really powerful,” Mullet said. “I’m really happy they’re not getting closed down.” Mullet was one of only two of the Senate’s 23 Democrats
SEE MONEY, PAGE 3
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