Issaquah/Sammamish Reporter, December 16, 2011

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ISSAQUAH | SAMMAMISH

Friday, December 16, 2011

www.issaquahreporter.com

Council rejects $3 million request Highlands retail development discussions to continue

Karen Grande of Sammamish feeds the reindeer at Cougar Mountain Zoo earlier this week. Below, er 3-year--old granddaughter, Grace, sits in Santa’s lap for a photo.

BY CELESTE GRACEY CGRACEY@ISSAQUAHREPORTER.COM

CHAD COLEMAN, Issaquah & Sammamish Reporter

REINDEER GAMES Festival in 23rd year Cougar Mountain Zoo BY KEVIN ENDEJAN KENDEJAN@ISSAQUAHREPORTER.COM

“People get to know that reindeer are real, they do exist, and they’re really cute.�

T

hey have Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donder and the newest addition, 5-month-old Blitzen.

– Robyn Barfoot

SEE RETAIL, 13

the zoo hidden in Issaquah’s foothills. “It’s very unique.� For Sammamish resident Karen Grande and her 3-year-old granddaughter Grace, the event has become a bit of a tradition. SEE REINDEER, 7

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Then there’s the most famous reindeer of them all, Rudolph. And be sure not to forget the backup, Olive. For the 23rd straight year, Cougar Mountain Zoo is hosting Santa and his entire team of flyers the entire month for its annual Reindeer Festival, which runs Dec. 1-23 and 26-30. “It is a very unique fun, family event, said Robyn Barfoot, zoo curator. “People get to know that reindeer are real, they do exist and they’re really cute.� For Steve and Jessica Talacki of Woodinville, the experience provided a perfect afternoon escape with their 4-year-old son, Max. “We were just looking online for things to do for kids for Christmas and saw this,� said Steve, admitting he didn’t know about

City Council gave a resounding “no� to the Highlands developer who asked for an unprecedented $3 million to complete a long-awaited business district. “I thought that was pretty outrageous,� said John Traeger, council president. “Nobody has asked for that kind of money before.� The request would have come from the 2012 budget, which is being finalized next week. It would have made up about a tenth of the city’s total budget for next year. The council is now waiting for Regency Centers to make its next move. So far it hasn’t presented a plan for what the Grand Ridge business district would look like. It did, however, suggest including a plaza and about 1,700 parking spots for the 14 acres. Presumably the money would go toward making the development more walkable. When first conceived, the land was supposed to follow an urban village concept, which encourages people to walk to shops and drive less. So far, the area has proven to be car dependent and there hasn’t been much retail, but there is still hope, Traeger said.

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