Page A2
www.WhiDBEYNEWSTIMES.com Wednesday, September 11, 2013 • Whidbey News-Times
Island Transit looks at future projects By Nathan Whalen Staff reporter
With construction of its new headquarters near Coupeville nearly complete, Island Transit leaders are looking at future projects. The Island Transit board of directors approved a six-year capital plan outlining the routes and park-and-ride lots that officials hope to add in coming years. Though the projects are on transit officials’ radar, there is one crucial element missing. “We don’t have the money to add any of those routes,” Island Transit Executive Director Martha Rose said. The agency doesn’t yet have the money to add park and ride lots either, Rose added. Even though there isn’t cash available, it’s important for transit officials to keep a list of potential projects. Then they can qualify for grants if they come available. The updated list comes as Island Transit’s new headquarters nears completion. Staff recently moved into new buildings on the campus located on Highway 20 near Outlying Field. The expansion project, which includes a new administration and operations center along with a larger maintenance bay, cost $22.4 million. About $17.9 million of that came from a federal grant. The project list includes additional routes for the Langley area — the Langley Circular, $677,000; Langley/Clinton via Wilkinson
Road, $697,000; and Central Langley to Freeland, via Goss Lake, $718,000. Other potential new routes are extending Route 3 to Monkey Hill Road via Jones Road, $522,000; Houston Road to Freeland, $740,000; and North Oak Harbor Bay, $381,000. Island Transit has purchased land for two additional park and ride lots, but officials are looking for funding to pay for them, Rose said. Those future commuter lots are located at the intersection of State Highway 525 and Race Road and near the intersection of Highway 525 and Bush Point Road. The six-year capital improvement plan has a couple of items that Rose described as “piein-the-sky” projects. The first is a tunnel, called the Kinneth Underpass, which would allow pedestrians and hikers a safe passage across the State Highway 20 near Island Transit’s campus. That project is estimated to cost $1.5 million. Rose said Island Transit tried to obtain a grant to fund the project, but the agency didn’t get the award. Another project is the solar skyway shuttle, which she said would be a demonstration project for a solar-powered skyway shuttle, that would be a demonstration of solar powered vehicles in the form of a pod car. She said no money received for such a project.
School of Opportunity Support Students while getting the local news! ASSOCIATED STUDENT BODY SUBSCRIPTION DRIVE When you renew you current subscription or newly subscribe today, The Whidbey News-Times will donate $10 for every 12-month and $20 for every 24-month subscription to a local school of your choice, listed below:
OAK HARBOR ASB
COUPEVILLE ASB
NAME:
OAK HARBOR CHRISTIAN SCHOOL PHONE:
ADDRESS: CITY:
STATE:
ZIP:
*12 MONTH SUBSCRIPTION - $45.00 ($10 DONATION) *24 MONTH SUBSCRIPTION - $75.00 ($20 DONATION) CREDIT CARD
Credit Card Number
CHECK OR MONEY ORDER
Expiration Date
CVC Number
Signature:
Circulation Dept. P. O. Box 930 • Everett, WA 98206 1-888-838-3000 • www.whidbeynewstimes.com
* OFFER EXPIRES OCTOBER 31, 2013. NO CASH VALUE. NOT TO BE COMBINED WITH ANY OTHER OFFER(S).
Driftwood assault may lead to life sentence By JESSIE STENSLAND Staff reporter
An Oak Harbor man may be facing his “third strike” for allegedly attacking two strangers with a piece of driftwood in an unbalanced attempt to protect the community, according to court documents. Eric P. Raster, 31, pleaded not guilty in Island County Superior Court Monday to two counts of seconddegree assault with a deadly weapon and one count of fourth-degree assault. Raster is being held in jail in lieu of $2 million bail. Raster is accused of attacking people who were camping Aug. 23 at the city’s RV park on South Beeksma Drive. The alleged victims said they saw Raster, who seemed “out of it,” while they were walking on the beach, according to the police report. The trio said Raster followed them as they returned to the campsite. Raster suddenly sprinted
to the campsite and hit one of the men in the head with a piece of driftwood. He chased the other man around, swinging at him with the wood, while the women screamed for help, the police report states. The woman later identified Raster from a photo line-up. Two days later, a deputy arrested Raster after responding to a prowler complaint on Shorecrest Drive. At the police station, Raster allegedly admitted to hitting one of the campers with a stick, the report states. Raster said he did it because he thought he “was protecting the community,” the officer wrote. Officer Lisa Powers-Rang asked him what he meant, but he just “started staring, thousand yard stare, at the wall.” Later that day, Raster allegedly attacked a cell mate, punching the man until blood was splattered all over the man’s face, clothes and the floor of the cell, the report states.
Raster told a corrections officer that he was doing “God’s work.” Raster was charged earlier this year after he allegedly crashed his car through barriers during the city’s Holland Happening event, forcing pedestrians to flee as he drove past vendor tents on the closed-off road, according to court documents. In that case, Raster allegedly admitted to snorting methamphetamine prior to the dangerous joyride. He was charged with attempting to elude a pursuing police vehicle, DUI and hit and run, but the case is still ongoing. If convicted of the charges against him, Raster could face a life sentence under the state’s “third strike” law. Court documents state that his criminal history consists of eight felonies, including robbery, burglary and assault. Senior Deputy Prosecutor Eric Ohme said he doesn’t know yet whether Raster will be evaluated by a mental health expert.