JULY FOURTH IN THE SAN JUANS
SOUNDER THE ISLANDS’
Serving Orcas, Lopez and San Juan County
– pages 8 and 9
WEDNESDAY, July 1, 2015 VOL. 48, NO. 26 75¢ islandssounder.com
Elevating the game on Orcas Sex Orcas Island Booster Club joins the Positive Alliance Coaching program by COLLEEN SMITH ARMSTRONG Publisher/Editor
The Vikings are about to get new inspiration for playing better on and off the field. Thanks to local donations through the Orcas Island Community Foundation's Partners in Philanthropy, the Booster Club has received funding to participate in the Positive Coaching Alliance program. “It uses sports as a means to teach life lessons,” said Justin Paulsen, who is coordinating the initiative. “The program educates coaches, parents and kids. Right now we don’t have any continuity with training. Keeping kids involved and keeping it a positive experience is hard when not everyone is working off the same page.” The coaching alliance was originally launched at Stanford University. Now schools across the country can join the program for workshops, online courses and books. A personal advisor is assigned to participating schools to make sure it's a smooth process. Trainers will be arriving on Orcas in August to work with coaches and middle and high school students on positive leadership, good sportsmanship and more. There will be additional training in the fall and spring, and the Booster Club hopes to supplement the program with visits from athletes and coaches from around the region. The OICF grant brought in $9,000 and there is $6,000 left to raise.
by ANNA V. SMITH Journal reporter
three-year initiative. “This program has been a successful working model throughout schools, park and recreation and other organizations across the country,” said Kim Ihlenfeldt, program coordinator for OIPRD. “With tools for coaches, parents, athletes, officials and administrators it provides support for all facets of each of our
A survivor of sex trafficking shared her story last week, in hopes that she could keep others from experiencing the life that she was forced into A resident of Orcas Island for the past 11 years, she was forced into the sex trade by her family from age 3 until age 23. Eventually she was put in the victim witness protection program and legally changed her name. Now in her 50s and a mother of four, she has gone on to higher education, received therapy and been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, explaining that she hadn’t known what had happened to her was defined as sex trafficking until after she had escaped. “There are things that will
SEE COACHING, PAGE 6
SEE TRAFFIC, PAGE 5
The Lady Vikings soccer team celebrating after a game in the 2014 season. “The program is essentially funded for the first year and we are building on it for the next two years,” Paulsen said. “We are also still looking for accommodations and food for the trainers when they are here.” While the Booster Club is the lead entity on the grant, the public school and Orcas Island Park and Rec District are partners on the project. There is a committee of teachers, coaches and community members that will oversee the
Amy Masters photo
OPAL responds to housing crisis By MEREDITH M. GRIFFITH Sounder Contributor
OPAL Community Land Trust has obtained a purchase agreement on a 3.7-acre property on North Beach Road, just across the street from Children’s House. If funding is secured, the soonest the property sale will close is in the summer of 2016. It is planned to have 30 housing units that can accommodate 45 to 50 residents. “We want to honor the village of Eastsound, and the site,” said OPAL Director Lisa Byers. Last Tuesday, OPAL asked islanders to share their needs regarding affordable housing during a public meeting.
traffic on the island?
Statistics Community planner Jason Robertson of Olympia-based strategic planning and public communications firm J Robertson and Company shared data on the need for additional affordable housing on the island. Gathered from American Community Survey 2009-2013, Claritas 2015, and the University of Washington’s Runstad Center, the combined data showed that of Orcas Island’s 4,543 total housing units, 1,861 were vacant. Of these, 1,503 were reserved for seasonal or recreational use and 57 were for rent. The number of vacation rentals was not given, but VRBO.
com alone currently lists 164 units for short-term rental. “Not too many are available for annual, stable rentals,” commented Robertson. While income earned on Orcas is 3-10 percent below the state average, nearly 54 percent of Orcas Island housing is valued at over $500,000, compared to just 17 percent of housing across the state. As a result, San Juan County ranks a dismal 39th among the 39 counties in the state for affordability to first-time home buyers. “The gap … is huge,” said Robertson. He added that while the government poverty line is set at incomes below $24,250 for a family of four, families earn-
ing $50-74,000 are finding that an Orcas Island home purchase is out of reach. And while some people may use their social or family connections to find a home, “There’s just not enough volume of homes for everyone to get lucky. At some point, the people who [provide basic services] just can’t afford to live here,” he said. On the open market, 72 percent of Orcas homes cost at least $500,000; less than 22 percent of homes cost under $300,000. In Washington state as a whole, fewer than 20 percent of homes cost $500,000 and up. One contributor to the
SEE HOUSING PAGE 6
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