February 2024
IN THIS
ISSUE
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Water district manager to retire, page 3
Why your assessment increased, page 6
ECRWSS PRSRT STD U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 14
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Fire district planning purchases, page 10
Point Roberts, WA 98281 Postal Patron Local
School district looking for voter support By Nolan Baker Point Roberts, Blaine and Birch Bay voters will be faced with school district funding decisions on their ballots for the February 13 special election. Ballots are expected to be mailed and drop boxes will be open Wednesday, January 24, according to the Whatcom County Auditor’s Office. The Blaine school district is asking voters to approve a replacement levy to help pay for district operations, which they say is especially needed in light of dwindling state funding and a $70 million bond to fund a host of capital improvement projects. Proposition 1: Blaine school district replacement levy Roughly 17 percent of Blaine school district’s operating budget comes from property tax levies paid for by residents of Point Roberts, Blaine and Birch Bay. While state funding takes care of many expenses for the district, the levy is needed to fill in the gap between what the state will pay for, and what the students of Blaine need, superintendent Christopher Granger said. If passed, the 2025 levy rate will be $0.98 per $1,000 of assessed property value, and increase to $1 in 2026, $1.03 in 2027 and $1.04 in 2028. Over the course of the four-year levy, the tax would raise around $32 million. Granger said the levy is crucial for the school district to retain staff and reduce the impact of a looming budget reduction. “This is mission critical,” Granger said of the levy. “This is funding the gaps between the state model and what we actually need. I can’t emphasize enough to people how important this is for our students and staff and the community.” The Blaine school board made it clear it doesn’t want “new taxes.” The proposed levy could, if property values rise two percent or less year over year, be a slight reduction in property tax payments, according to the district. The levy would raise roughly $7 million annually for the district and raise to $8.5 million by 2028. For a home valued at $500,000, homeowners would pay roughly $490 annually. (See School, page 3)
All Point Bulletin
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WEEKLY NEWS BULLETIN
s Most everyone stayed home after the Point was smothered in a quiet cloud of white on January 17, 2024.
County parks dribbles out cash B y P a t G r u bb If Point Roberts residents were hoping to see significant improvements in county parks facilities on the Point, they should temper their expectations. In fact, they shouldn’t expect anything for the next five or six years. Every six years, Whatcom County updates its park, recreation and open space plan in order to be considered for grants from Washington state. The plan sets out the county parks departments plans and goals for the next six years. Last updated in 2016 and delayed due to the Covid-19 pandemic, a draft plan is
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expected to be approved by county council in early 2024. Including a budgeted $168,350 that paid for new roofing and siding at Lighthouse Marine Park last year and planned expenditures in 2025 of $255,000 on parking lot improvements at Lily Point, the county parks department has earmarked just $435,250 for Point Roberts for the period of 2023-2028. That figure represents just 1.4 percent of the park department’s planned expenditures of $30,275,425 in that same period. Who’s getting the money? For starters, Birch Bay. The department is planning to
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Inside
Church ............................................. 12 Classifieds ......................................... 12 Coming Up ....................................... 13 Crossings .......................................... 12 Obituaries ......................................... 11 Opinion ............................................... 4 Sheriffs, Library ............................... 14 Tides ................................................. 14
(See Parks, page 5)
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Photo by Louise Mugar