Reporter ISSAQUAH | SAMMAMISH
Friday, July 26, 2013
www.issaquahreporter.com
Done deal
Trust for Public Land and Kurt Erickson come to terms on Squak
Jain Garvit can’t hide his smile as he and driver Kevin Harmon cruise down Second Avenue. Below, Challenge Race founder Leo Finnegan chats with volunteers while working his 16th annual event in Issaquah. KEVIN ENDEJAN, Issaquah & Sammamish Reporter
BY LINDA BALL LBALL@ISSAQUAHREPORTER.COM
every year. Taaffe is happy for the opportunity the event gives his daughter to integrate into the community. Like many of the parents, he is grateful to the Finnegans. “[I know] how special both Rose and Leo Finnegan are ... for supporting the specialneeds community,” he said. ”They do a lot for our kids and we greatly appreciate it.”
An agreement was reached between logger Kurt Erickson and the Trust for Public Lands, for TPL to preserve 216 acres of forestland that Erickson owns, on Squak Mountain, following several months of negotiations between the parties. King County Executive Dow Constantine and The Trust for Public Land announced the agreement, signed July 18, to purchase the forestland for $5 million. “This is forest that people have cherished for generations and which, thanks to the partnership of The Trust for Public Land, will no longer be threatened, forever to be enjoyed and appreciated,” Constantine said. Erickson said he would have preferred to keep the property, but he said it was great to get this over with. “I want people to know that I worked to cooperate,” Erickson said. “It was a big driving force to cooperate for everyone to be happy.” He said he understood both sides of the issue. The residents of Squak Mountain wanted the property to remain as it is to avoid issues of flooding and erosion — but he said he views his work as a craft. “TPL worked hard to get it right,” Erickson said. He said he is concerned about the residents who live in the old camping club, many of whom have lived there for several years. He said the county will probably evict them because they won’t want the liability, but he said some of them have nowhere to go.
SEE RACES, 2
SEE SQUAK, 7
SMILES ABOUND
Challenge Races bring happiness to Issaquah streets for 16th straight year BY SAM KENYON
“It’s just a neat thing for special kids ... they’re the stars of the show.”
FOR THE REPORTER
M
ore than 30 years ago, Tim Finnegan could not participate in a soapbox derby.
“Tim really wanted to race but he didn’t have the fine motor control, so all he could do was watch his brothers race,” said Tim’s father, Leo Finnegan. Tim is developmentally disabled. His father came up with a solution. Leo had heard about an extra-wide derby car that could fit a driver and a passenger, so he built one out of wood. After the regular soapbox derby finished, the Finnegans would take out their custom car. “His brothers would take turns driving Tim and his special friends and race the regular soapbox derby cars. With that one being heavier they always won,” Leo said. What began as a way to involve the Finnegans’ middle child has since grown into an annual event across Washington state for the disabled community. The 16th annual Challenge Series Races, held Saturday, July 20 in Issaquah, brought
– Leo Finnegan together special-needs kids and paired them with volunteers from local middle and high schools. The two-person racing teams rode in special double-wide fiberglass derby cars, each painted to represent some local institution like the Issaquah Police Department and Eastside Fire and Rescue. This is the fourth year Robert Taaffe has brought his 8-year-old daughter, Hannah, to these races. They look forward to the event