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Improvements taking shape at Tracyton dock BY LESLIE KELLY
LKELLY@SOUNDPUBLISHING.COM
It may not look like much to some. But for Ted Hilliard and those who support the Port of Tracyton, it’s a start. What it is, is a park bench that will have an etched outline of the Cascade Mountains on a backrest, and hopefully a mural painted by art students at Bremerton High School. “It’s the first tangible step that things are happening here at the Tracyton dock,” said Hilliard, the newest of the three commissioners at the Port of Tracyton. “And it’s a sign that we are finally getting things done.” According to the port’s website, on June 1, 1929, voters in Tracyton approved the formation of the Port of Tracyton. Members of the Tracyton com-
munity, an unincorporated area of Kitsap County on Dyes Inlet, petitioned the Board of County Commissioners for the election in order to allow the purchase of a dock on the Tracyton waterfront. The dock would be used to facilitate access to Mosquito Fleet steamers that connect the area to downtown Bremerton, just across the Port Washington Narrows, and other towns on Puget Sound. But a year later the Manette Bridge opened and connected the Tracyton area with downtown Bremerton, decreasing use of the steamers. For several decades the port district was inactive except for providing access to the beach and to a boat launch. In the 1990s, an effort was made to dissolve the Port of Tracyton, which caused a con-
troversy among board members. But the port remained intact and in 2008, Tracyton voters approved a measure to expand the port district in order to increase the tax base and fund a series of projects to enhance the community’s waterfront facilities. The port is now actively working on improvements at the Tracyton dock, a place where non-motorized boats are launched into the waters of Dyes Inlet. The dock, which is really a short road into the water, is one of just a few properties that the Port of Tracyton owns and operates. To try to drum up some support for the Tracyton waterfront dock, port officials purchased the eight-foot bench made from reclaimed plastic milk bottles. The seat
Leslie Kelly/staff photo
Ted Hilliard stands next to the park bench that has been added to the Tracyton dock. of the bench is in place, but a back is still in the process of being etched and painted. It will be placed soon, and a ded-
Unicycle Club teaches endurance BY SERAINE PAGE SPAGE@SOUNDPUBLISHING.COM
They teeter, they totter and they fall all over. But the students in the Unicycle Club at Cottonwood Elementary refuse to give up their balancing act. Each week, three times a week, students of all levels gather in the gymnasium for unicycle lessons. Not all schools have a unicycle program, so other students will attend the after-school event, said Gail Smith, unicycle instructor and physical education teacher at Cottonwood. “I have so many kids coming,” she said. “They need an hour to work on lots and lots of skills. Seeing the sparkle in their eyes and they get really good at something, I love that part.” On a recent Wednesday, Smith separated the advanced and beginner students for some skill coaching. Smith has a regular volunteer, a former unicycling student of hers, who also helps out with the lessons. In one room, Katy Perry’s “Roar” encouraged the begin-
ners to keep trying. Inside, Smith instructed advanced level students to the beat of “Move it, Move it” as they flew past her, maneuvering about in circles and twisting about while holding another unicyclist’s hand. Nate Collins, 9, careened around during a recent practice with fellow beginners. He started two months ago, and since then, he’s learned how to ride forward unassisted and to hold the hand of a buddy while performing a trick or two. “I learned a lot of skills. Our P.E. teacher is the best,” he said. “It’s fun to learn and get to know new people and it’s a good thing to do. It’s really fun.” Once the beginners and advanced levels have practiced a routine a few times, they mix all together again for free style where they can cycle around, try tricks like the “human teeter-totter” or bounce up and down over boards doing bunny hops. To wrap up a lesson, students pedal out of the gym and circle the school before packing up their things to go
home. For Smith, a student’s willingness to get up and down on a unicycle numerous times after falling is an indicator to her of that child’s strength and future success. Like baby giraffes standing for the first time, early level unicyclists wobble as they try to sit upright on their bikes. One student recently came to her first lesson after trying for a year and a half to get her three laps in. To Smith, that was the ultimate lesson in endurance. In order to join, a student has to prove they are willing to give it a try — they must do three laps around the gym on the unicycle, Smith said. After that, most will purchase their own for home use to practice since they cannot take home the school unicycle. “It takes about nine hours (of practice) for them to get across the gym (on their own),” she said. Smith, who founded the club, learned from another teacher how to use a unicycle. Smith’s sons then wanted to learn, and in turn, the family began unicycling. That’s
ication is planned at the dock on Sunday, May 11 at 2 p.m. “We’re calling it the Ride the Tide to Tracyton,” Hilliard
BY LESLIE KELLY
Seraine Page/staff photo
when Smith decided a club was necessary for the school. With fund-raising efforts and local grants, she was able to purchase unicycles for club activities. “If they’re struggling academically, they shine someplace else,” said Smith. “This is one place they can shine.” Faith Harer, a sixth grader, has been at it for three years. A friend of hers joined and she decided it sounded like a SEE UNICYCLE, A13
SEE TRACYTON, A13
Fire district will form citizen advisory group LKELLY@SOUNDPUBLISHING.COM
Marissa Quitevis practices balance on a unicycle.
said. “We have kayakers who will ride from Port Orchard and arrive here for the dedica-
Commissioners for the Central Kitsap Fire & Rescue District have agreed to ask a citizens advisory committee to take a look at the economic conditions of the fire district. That step was taken Monday, after commissioners approved spending more than $50,000 on an employee exercise facility and investing up to $60,000 in internet technology upgrades throughout the district’s facilities. With those upgrades, commissioners and the public will have Wifi in the commission’s meeting room. Fire Chief Scott Weninger told commissioners that the internal group that has been looking at the district’s finances is almost ready to make a report to the board. The group, including staff, administration, two commissioners and union firefighters, has been meeting monthly for the past several
months under the name of the “economic summit group” Weninger said at the same time that the group’s recommendations are given to commissioners, he thought it would be a good idea to have a group of external stakeholders -residents and taxpayers in the district, business owners and community group representatives — weigh in on the recommendations made by the economic summit group. “I’d like to get a reading from those folks on whether we are headed in the right direction,” Weninger said. Commissioners will then have recommendations from internal and external sources before moving forward with necessary changes in the district’s finances. Weninger hinted that the district may be looking at adding a maintenance and operations levy, which SEE FIRE DISTRICT, A13