INSIDE Seagull Splat, Festival fun in Port Orchard A10
OPINION Volunteers make it happen for all of us A4
SPORTS Wolves headed back to state semifinals A14
INDEPENDENT PORT ORCHARD
FRIDAY, MAY 29, 2015 ✮ VOL. 124, NO. 18 ✮ WWW.PORTORCHARDINDEPENDENT.COM ✮ 50¢
South Kitsap’s Mason Villarma takes different route to stardom Senior spends summers on Alaskan fishing boats
Uncertainty about Bremerton’s KRCC exit
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By BOB SMITH Editor
ort Orchard officials say the City of Bremerton’s decision to leave the Kitsap Regional Coordinating Council has them unsure about how it will impact the regional organization. Councilman Fred Chang said he’s “bemused” by the Bremerton council’s move. “Their decision was unanimous,” he said. “It’s unclear why they reached that conclusion. I’ve heard that a couple of their council members want more representation on issues and aren’t happy” with its makeup. Chang said Port Orchard’s KRCC representatives haven’t heard about what decisions Bremerton was dissatisfied. Port Orchard’s council, he added, has been generally “content” with the KRCC’s current makeup. Port Orchard Mayor Tim Matthes questioned how Bremerton’s departure will impact KRCC’s clout. “Will KRCC still be called a Kitsap regional organization when almost one-half of the our total cities’ populations are not represented?” Council member and KRCC representative Bek Ashby also isn’t certain why Bremerton is leaving the council. But by doing SEE KRCC, A24 Ian Terry / The (Everett) Herald
South Kitsap senior Mason Villarma, who signed with Gonzaga University to run cross country and track, will compete in the 800- and 1,600-meter runs and the 1,600 relay at Star Track XXXIII May 29-30 at Mount Tahoma High School. By CHRIS CHANCELLOR
W
cchancellor@soundpublishing.com
hile his teammates jogged the narrow inclines in Banner Forest, South Kitsap senior Mason Villarma followed an unconventional path to success. Villarma, who will compete in the 800- and 1,600-meter runs and the 1,600 relay at Star Track XXXIII, logged a fraction of the miles some of the state’s top runners produced over the summer. Instead, he has maintained a regular summer regime since 2011 for two weeks on his father’s 32-foot crab boat — dubbed “Heidi J,” after his mother — and then a couple of months on an 86-foot fishing hull.
“It’s my whole summer, so as far as my training regime — it influences that heavily,” said Villarma, who eats sockeye salmon and rice to intake carbohydrates and lean protein. “But I find ways to work around it.” That can be difficult at times. Villarma said a typical day on a fishing boat begins at 4:30 a.m. and work does not conclude until near midnight. “Some days you go for 24 hours straight,” he said, adding that he uses a jump rope on the boat and does as much cardiovascular work as possible. “It’s a rewarding job, though. I definitely love it.” While that work puts Villarma behind his competitors during cross-country season, he believes
it has shaped his work ethic — and more. “When you’re on the boat, you’re thinking you’ve just got to do all of the little things right,” he said. “There’s no room for error. The same thing applies to track. If you want to be a state champion — and if you want all of these heavy goals — you’ve got to do every little thing right.” Villarma has experience with that. In 2013, he was a member of the Wolves’ 1,600 relay team — along with LaForrest Church, Adam Gascoyne and Zach Sleigh — that won the Class 4A state championship in 3 minutes, 18.39 seconds. That team was led by
Bremerton City Council votes to leave KRCC by PETER O’CAIN Bremerton Patriot
BREMERTON — The Bremerton City Council voted unanimously to withdraw from the Kitsap Regional Coordinating Council May 20. City council president Greg Wheeler will now draft a letter to the KRCC informing them of Bremerton’s withdrawal. After the letter is submitted, Bremerton will remain a member of the KRCC for six more months. The KRCC is responsible for the Kitsap Countywide Planning Policy required by the state’s Growth Management Act (GMA); for allocating federal and state funding for transportation; and for information sharing and collaborative action on a wide range of regional issues. The city can still reverse its decision during that time and cancel its withdrawal. However, that does not appear likely. Wheeler called the move one made as a matter of policy, not because of a dispute between the two entities. He believes this will allow Bremerton
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