Record South Whidbey
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 2012 | Vol. 88, No. 13 | www.SOUTHWHIDBEYRECORD.com | 75¢
INSIDE: Broken-hearted, Sports, A7
Law on medical marijuana leaves Langley in a fog BY Brian Kelly South Whidbey Record
Ben Watanabe / The Record
Beth Stout and her partner Lisa Toomey raise a cup of sparkling cider to toast Gov. Chris Gregoire’s signature of the gay marriage law on Monday.
South End celebrates marriage equality BY Ben watanabe South Whidbey Record
FREELAND — There were plenty of cheers and a few tears at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Whidbey Island on Monday night. More than 40 people celebrated Gov. Chris Gregoire’s signing of the gay marriage bill into law with laughter, hugs, a few raised cups and a few songs.
The governor’s signature marked the end of a prolonged fight for gay marriage supporters. “This has been an issue for my church for a long time,” said the Rev. Kit Ketcham. A couple of organizations set up the celebration; Ketcham with the Universalists, and Cyn Vecker of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays. Together they hosted the assembly of
congregation members, community folks and other supporters who were there to mark the historic day when Washington state moved to support marriage equality and became the seventh state in the nation to bestow such civil rights on its residents. Vecker was at the capitol building in Olympia earlier that day to See marriage, A16
LANGLEY — City officials met again this week with the Freeland man who hopes to open a medical marijuana “access point” in Langley, but admitted that they’re still unsure what the city can do given the hazy legal fog surrounding medical marijuana issues. Lucas Jushinski has been in talks to lease space on Second Street, behind Living Green and All Washed-Up Laundromat, as a location for his nonprofit, Island Alternative Medicine. The business would provide medical marijuana to patients who are legally authorized to use the drug. The Langley City Council will hold a special council workshop on medical marijuana issues in Fellowship Hall at Langley United Methodist Church at 3 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 15. Jeff Arango, Langley’s planning director, said Jushinski will be given time to explain his business plans at the meeting. Arango also said he will present background information on
federal legal issues on marijuana, as well as an outline of Washington state law and what other communities have done Lucas Jushinski to regulate medical marijuana enterprises. “Basically, we’re just trying to provide enough information so that the community can weigh in and everyone understands the issues. But I don’t think we’re really going to be close to understanding what we’re going to do,” Arango said. Mayor Larry Kwarsick and Arango met with Jushinski on Monday, and Arango said they’ve reviewed the recent experience of the city of Mukilteo in regulating “collective gardens” where medical marijuana is grown. Mukilteo adopted interim regulations for collective See fog, A6
Good news for Langley boat ramp: No sand lance eggs found BY Ben watanabe South Whidbey Record
It was an egg hunt that came up empty. And Port of South Whidbey officials are thrilled. The port district has spent the past four months inspecting the sand at the Langley Marina boat ramp for Pacific Sand Lance eggs — so small they blend in with grains of sand — before the buried ramp could be cleared for boaters. The search for the next generation of sand lance, also called candlefish, has cost the port time and money. But state officials say sand lance are vital for the survival of salmon and
other important marine life, so sand sample tests must be completed before sand can be removed from the port’s facilities. The extra time and procedures have added costs to the regular cleanups. Samples were taken near the boat ramp and inspected in Port Townsend for any eggs or spawn. Port Manager Ed Field said the cost of testing added about $300 to each ramp cleaning, which is necessary for boat trailers to unload boats into Saratoga Passage. “It about triples the cost of a ramp cleaning,” Field said. Sand lance, though not endangered, are an important food for
salmon and seabirds in Puget Sound. The state Department of Ecology reports that 35 percent of juvenile salmon diets consist of sand lance, and the rate is even higher among juvenile chinook, at 60 percent. “They’re somewhere near the foundation for other species,” said Craig Bartlett, a spokesman with the Department of Fish and Wildlife. The tiny fish, between 5- and 8-inches long at adulthood, lay their eggs in sandy-gravel beaches all over Puget Sound, and there are 140 miles of known spawning beaches. See eggs, A24
Photo courtesy of Department of Fish and Wildlife
Sand lance, about 5- to 8-inches long, are a vital food source for juvenile salmon. They lay their eggs on sandy, gravel shores, such as those around South Whidbey. Their habits caused an egg hunt for the Port of South Whidbey recently.