High fashion, good cause
Pay more to ‘Park’
A cut above
Entrance, camping fees on the rise
Shepherd’s fest delights
A-14
Guild gives $27k boost to health community
A-8
A-3
Wednesday, June 3, 2015
SEQUIM GAZETTE www
Sequim’s Hometown Newspaper
com
75 CENTS
Vol. 42, Number 22
Sequim’s balancing act: Sustained growth vs. sustaining rural character City continues look to future, work on comprehensive plan
by MATTHEW NASH Sequim Gazette
Sequim remains in a balancing act between its small-town roots and the growth of tomorrow. City planners anticipate an estimated 3,400
people moving to the city over 20 years, but many current residents want to keep things rural and familiar. So where’s the balance? That’s the central question behind the City of Sequim’s long-gestating 2015 Sequim Comprehensive Plan. Chris Hugo, Sequim director of community
development, said in the past 100 years the average growth rate in the City of Sequim was 1.5 percent but over the past 30 years, it’s been at 1.75 percent. His estimate of 3,400 people is based on a 2-percent annual increase.
See GROWTH, A-8
Fantastic 4x4 Mike Gallagher, water resources section head for the Department of Ecology Southwest Regional, gets interviewed by a KUOW Seattle public radio reporter at the Dungeness River about the statewide drought declaration and the local impacts of drought to communities like Sequim. Sequim Gazette photo by Alana Linderoth
Warm temperatures having impact on area’s water supply Olympic Peninsula residents can anticipate a dry year by ALANA LINDEROTH Sequim Gazette
Sequim High School’s 4x400 relay team — from left, Alex Barry, Oscar Herrera, Jason Spring and Miguel Moroles — celebrate a win in the 4x400 relay at the class 2A state track and field championships in Tacoma on Saturday. The quartet broke a school record and helped the Wolves place fourth overall, their best finish in school history. See story and photos from high school state track, golf, girls tennis and fastpitch tournaments starting on page B-1. Photo by Dave Shreffler
A warm winter has kept snow from accumulating in the mountains statewide, including the Olympic Mountains. The “constant” 5 to 15 degrees above normal mountain temperatures have driven the onset of drought conditions, Scott Pattee, water supply specialist for Washington Snow Survey Office, told an audience of about 140 people gathered in Sequim on May 21 at a community drought forum. “This is just a total anomaly,” he said. In the 61 years of manual snow surveys coupled
See DROUGHT, A-10
Food bank assesses community’s needs Director seeks more visitor engagement by ALANA LINDEROTH Sequim Gazette
To define the average Sequim Food Bank visitor and create a baseline, food bank officials conducted a needs assessment for the first time in the organization’s 31-year existence. Based on the results, a local, unemployed, 50-59-year-old white female with a high school diploma and likely some college experience is the typical Sequim Food Bank visitor.
Sequim Food Bank Mission: To provide food, assistance to people and organizations in the Sequim community so that no one goes hungry. Where: 144 W. Alder St. Hours: Monday 1 p.m.-4 p.m., and Friday and Saturday 9 a.m.-noon. Phone: 683-1205 On the web: sequimfoodbank.org Within an average month, about 70,000 to 75,000 pounds of food are distributed via the food bank. Of that annual 900,000 pounds, 30 percent goes toward someone 18 years old or younger.
Ash Francis, an eighth-grade Sequim Middle School student and Sequim Food Bank volunteer, helps provide a visitor with milk, butter and eggs – all highly favored ingredients based on the March needs assessment. Sequim Gazette photo by Alana Linderoth
Throughout March the assessment compiled feedback from about a third of the monthly visitors, equating to 210 completed surveys. From the results, food bank officials were able to better understand the community they serve, identify visitors’ needs and look more closely at the root causes driving local hunger. OZIAS “I think there’s a slight, but fundamental shift in what a food bank is,” Mark Ozias, Sequim Food Bank executive director, said.
See NEEDS, A-8
Sports B-1, B-5 • Schools B-8 • Arts & Entertainment B-2 • Opinion A-12 • Obituaries A-11 • Classifieds C-1 • Crossword Section C
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