REPORTER
Mercer Island
Wednesday, March 20,2014 2013 | 75¢ Wednesday, JULY 30,
Serving the Mercer Island Community Serving community Since since 1947 1947
House fire out in 20 minutes
Bright harvest
Council to discuss Transportation Benefit District The Council will hold a public hearing at its regular meeting on Monday evening, Aug. 4 to discuss the possible establishment of a ‘Transportation Benefit District.’ For details, see Page 2.
24 firefighters respond to fire on narrow lane near Fruitland Landing
Blue Angels in the skies on Thursday
Reporter Staff
The U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels will be headed our way several times in the next few days. Make sure you plan your viewing points and trips across I-90 accordingly. For details, see Page 2.
Dance along with ‘Spirit of Ojah’ Find your rythym with African dance music beween 7 and 8:30 p.m. tomorrow, July. 31 at Mercerdale Park. It is part of the 2014 Mostly Music in the Park program produced by the Mercer Island Arts Council. FREE. Families are encouraged to bring picnic dinners, lawn chairs and blankets.
National Night Out is Tuesday, Aug. 5 Between 5 and 7 p.m. on Tuesday, August 5, residents in neighborhoods throughout Mercer Island and across the nation are asked to lock their doors, turn on outside lights and spend the evening outside with neighbors, or join City officials and police at the Sculpture Park in the 7800 block of Sunset Highway for a hot-dog cook out. If you would like to register your neighborhood for National Night Out contact Police Dept. Specialist Janelle Timm at 2757933 or Janelle.timm@mercergov.org.
Mary L. Grady /Staff Photo
Bright colors spill from baskets of tomatos, zuccini and summer squash at the Farmers Market last Sunday. Tempeste Langille at upper right, with Glenn Clark, from Alm Hill Gardens in Everson manned, the booth .
City may consider taking over buses City considers contracting with Metro to save bus service on the Island By Celina Kareiva
ckareiva@mi-reporter.com
On Monday, July 21, King County Council unanimously passed an ordinance enacting Metro bus service cuts, effective in September. The cuts, which will be rolled out in phases, will continue through the end of 2015, when bus service on the Island will largely disappear. “These cuts are very significant
for Mercer Island in terms of the fraction of service that we're going to see,” said Mayor Bruce Bassett. “One of the things that dawned on me, was the realization that we rely on Metro not only to provide service but analysis of service... [The] priority for us is to ease the pain [of these bus cuts] for citizens.” For Mercer Island, the cuts will mean a combination of deletions and consolidated routes. Thirteen of the Island’s 16 routes will be deleted or reduced. Five routes – the 201, 202, 203, 204 and 205 (and in effect the 213), will be consolidated to service on Island
Crest Way, with operational hours between 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. Buses would run every half hour during peak traffic times (between 6 a.m. and 9 a.m. and again between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m.), and then hourly during the middle of the day. In September of 2015 – a year behind the rest of the cuts – the 201, which serves the South Mercer Park-and-Ride via Mercer Way, will be eliminated. Regionally, the actual cuts were a small compromise over earlier projections: 72 routes would be eliminated, compared to the 74 originally expected. At first Metro anticipated only 25 routes would be left untouched, but that number is now closer to 58. But like Seattle, which is pushing for a measure similar to Proposition 1, with a 0.1 percent sales and use tax and a $60 car tab fee, Mercer Island is consid-
Mercer Island, Bellevue, and Eastside Fire and Rescue Departments responded to a house fire at 3406 97th Ave S.E. around 8:30 p.m. Friday, July 25. Firefighters responded to a 911 call from a neighbor who noticed flames and smoke coming from the two-story house, which was under renovation. Nine vehicles with 24 firefighters responded, including seven firefighters from Mercer Island, 14 from Bellevue and three from Eastside Fire and Rescue. No one was home at the time of the fire. First responders were guided by neighbors down a 1,500-foot long, narrow lane to
FIRE | Page 3
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Bus | Page 4
A New PArtNershiP is Formed
Betty DeLaurenti, John L. Scott Real Estate Mercer Island Top Producer for 22 years, is pleased to welcome Martin Weiss as her business partner. Martin brings his knowledge of real estate, finance and customer service to her 30 years of trusted experience. Together Betty and Martin look forward to providing both insight and innovation while meeting all of your real estate needs.
Martin Weiss • 425.417.9595 martinweiss@johnlscott.com
Betty deLaurenti • 206.949.1222 bettyd@johnlscott.com