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Community Newspaper of Blaine and Birch Bay
February 22 - 28, 2018
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Photos from Bite of Blaine, page 10
Kindergarten registration day is March 15, page 3
Blaine wrestlers compete at state Mat Classic, page 7
PRSRT STD U. S. Postage PAID Permit NO. 87 Blaine, WA 98230
Healthy Youth District 42 lawmakers field questions at Blaine forum Coalition outlines goals at meeting By Oliver Lazenby
(See School, page 6)
s From l.: state senator Doug Ericksen (R-Ferndale), Luanne Van Werven (R-Lynden) and Vincent Buys (R-Lynden) fielded questions from residents at a town hall meeting on February 17 at the Blaine Senior Center. The city has requested state funding for two large infrastructure projects that would create an I-5/Exit 274 interchange and extend utilities to east Blaine.
By Meg Olson Washington state legislators representing the 42nd district chose Blaine to meet with Whatcom County voters, share their progress and ask for feedback. Mayor Bonnie Onyon welcomed the delegation, thanking them for choosing Blaine as the location for their February 17 town hall meeting as well as for their efforts to get Blaine projects on the state legislative agenda. “The southbound exit (at milepost 274) is really important for
us as well as extending utilities into east Blaine,” she said, reporting on several trips to Olympia to lobby for funds. “We work together as a team,” said representative Luanne Van Werven, referring to the trio of Republican lawmakers. “Everything we do is with Whatcom County in mind.” Serving on the house transportation, higher education and public safety committees, Van Werven said the funds for the new interchange in Blaine were in the budget last year but were vetoed by governor Jay Inslee. “It’s a new day and I
Come June, play disc golf in Lincoln Park B y S t e fa n i e D o n a h u e Lincoln Park will soon be the site of a new 18-hole disc golf course. On February 12, Blaine City Council approved the allocation of $7,489 to purchase 20 disc golf baskets, two for putting practice, to be installed at Lincoln Park on D Street. Blaine community planner Alex Wenger said he hopes to unveil the new 18-holedisc golf course at the park in June. “I’m really excited about this,” Wenger said. “I think it’s going to be a big deal.”
Similar to golf, disc golf players count strokes each time they throw a disc. Discs are thrown from a tee pad and players take turns until they finish the hole or the basket. The player with the fewest total throws wins the game. “Kids can play it and senior citizens can play it,” Wenger said. “Bring your [disc] to the park and that’s all you need.” The idea for the disc golf course was raised in 2011, when the city’s park and cemetery board approved the Lincoln Park Plan. At the time, the 27-acre park
contained walking trails that were in “adequate condition” but required vegetation management. English Ivy that posed a “serious” threat to trees in the park. The plan called for trail restoration, improved safety, entrance design, trash receptacles, parking access, picnic areas and play equipment – including a disc golf course – among other things. “Lincoln Park is a great place to take a walk and get some exercise,” read a de(See Disc golf, page 2)
Photo by Meg Olson
think we have a better project,” she said. Senator Doug Ericksen said they would be looking for $500,000 for an interchange justification study, a prerequisite to federal funding, and up to $13 million in state matching funds. Representative Vincent Buys, who serves as ranking member of the house agriculture and natural resources committee, said he had been focused on “working for a fair and equitable solution so people in (See Town hall, page 3)
INSIDE
At its most recent meeting on February 15, the Blaine-Birch Bay Healthy Youth Coalition outlined how local groups could come together to tackle youth mental health issues. The coalition, which formed late last year, hopes to bring together people from various “community sectors;” youth, parents, law enforcement, civic and volunteer groups, businesses, healthcare professionals, media, schools, youth-serving organizations, religious and fraternal organizations, government and substance abuse organizations. The sectors were well represented at the meeting held at the Birch Bay Activity Center, which organizers said drew about 75 attendees (the meeting doubled as the Birch Bay Chamber of Commerce’s monthly meeting). “It looks like we have 10 sectors here which points out what a healthy and positive force this coalition could be,” said Rod Schofield, who spoke at the meeting and consults for the coalition. Blaine School District superintendent Ron Spanjer and Bellingham-based life coach for teens Jamie Shannon also spoke at the meeting. Spanjer shared school district initiatives to provide social and emotional support for students, many of which the district has already taken on since getting results from the statewide 2016 Healthy Youth Survey last May. Fifty-three percent of Blaine High School seniors who took that survey reported feeling depressed in the previous year and 30 percent reported considering suicide. The district’s initiatives include an anonymous tip line, increased mental health training for district staff and a push to create more student clubs. The number of students enrolled in clubs doubled at the high school this year. “So many of these initiatives are about helping kids build positive relationships,” Spanjer said. Shannon, a teen life coach, spoke about
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