December 2017
www.AllPointBulletin.com
Taxpayers hash out gas tax ideas, page 13
IN THIS
ISSUE
Fire district approves 2018 budget, page 15
ECRWSS PRSRT STD U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 14
FREE
Poul Nielsen passes away at 95, page 18
Point Roberts, WA 98281 Postal Patron Local
Park levy Save time and money while shopping locally passes after some anxious days and nights B y P a t G r u bb A collective sigh of relief could be heard escaping from the lips of Point Roberts Park and Recreation District commissioners and many other Point residents after election vote totals were updated Thursday night, November 9, two days after the general election. They had been on tenterhooks ever since initial results from the Tuesday general election were released after the polls closed. While over 60 percent of the voters had marked Yes on the park’s annual levy request, not enough ballots had been counted to meet the minimum turnout requirement. In order to pass, the park levy required a 60 percent super-majority with votes from at least 40 percent of the voters in the 2016 general election. That being a presidential election, 805 ballots were cast in Point Roberts which means at least 322 people were needed to vote in the 2017 election to meet the 40-percent cutoff. On Tuesday night, just 196 votes were counted – another 126 votes needed to come in before the measure could succeed. Another count on Wednesday night resulted in only two more Point Roberts votes. Finally, at 5:02 p.m. Thursday, another count was released and the levy prevailed. By a count of 262 Yes votes (70%) versus 114 No, the minimum voter turnout was well and truly surpassed and the measure was successful at last. Fire District In other election news, Bill Meursing was re-elected to the fire district – perhaps not with the landslide he might have expected. Blessed with an opponent, Judson Meraw, who decided in early October to stop campaigning and give his support and presumably his vote to Meursing, most observers could have thought it would have been a lopsided result in favor of the (See Election, page 2)
s Christmas shopping at the Blue Heron Gallery will be a sad but sweet affair this year; owner Kitty Doyle is closing the gallery on December 24 and moving to Florida. Photo by Meg Olson
Make your holiday shopping a downhome affair By
Meg Olson
Here’s a plan for the most relaxing, fun and community minded Christmas shopping trip ever! Start with breakfast at the Saltwater Cafe, then stroll over to Pedal Pushers and the Blue Heron Gallery for unique gifts, big and small. Head down Gulf Road to Auntie Pam’s Country Store and plan to spend some time looking at an incredible selection of gift ideas.
Stop by Westwind Marine and snag a gift certificate for the boater on your list, then pop over to Breakwaters Bar and Grill to gift dinner to a helpful neighbor. With so many local services and eateries the possibilities for gift certificates are endless: yoga classes, massage, hair cuts, dog walking, an oil change… Up Tyee Drive you’ll find all the holiday basics at the International Marketplace and then pick up a tree at Nielson’s Building Center. At the Point Roberts Shell pick
Park district declares off-leash area a failure By Meg Olson The off-leash dog experiment at Baker Field has failed, and dogs need to be back on the leash until local park commissioners can come up with a plan for a fenced dog park. At their regular November 13 board meeting, park commissioners voted unanimously to discontinue the policy that allowed dogs to be off-leash at Baker Field during non-school hours and specified
times during the summer. The action was taken partly in response to a recent dog biting at the park, but commissioner Bennett Blaustein said there were other issues. “I have had to chase people off who had dogs loose at the playground while school was in session,” he said, adding that there is a growing problem of dog feces accumulating around the restrooms, ironically right where the poop bag station is located. Several members of the Facebook group
Point Roberts Dog Park attended the meeting to ask that the district maintain opportunities for dogs to be off-leash on the Point. “Dogs need to run and socialize,” said Noelle Newbolt. The Facebook group has 31 members but usually a dozen or less get together at the park between 4 and 5 p.m. Their initial meeting place was adjacent to the restrooms but they moved to the other end (See Dog park, page 7)
up a pound of locally-roasted coffee and ship it to Aunt Mabel. Then head back down to the end of Gulf road to Larry’s Liquor Locker where you can pick up some holiday cheer and over to the Reef Tavern to put up your feet and have a late lunch and a cold beer. Let’s make this holiday season a year to remember for our local businesses and give gifts that are as unique and special as the Point. (See Shopping, page 12)
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Inside
Church ............................................... 6 Classifieds ......................................... 17 Coming Up ....................................... 14 Crossings ............................................ 3 Obituary ........................................... 18 Opinion ............................................... 4 Senior, Library ................................. 16 Tides ................................................. 15