REVIEW BAINBRIDGE ISLAND
Friday, December 11, 2015 | Vol. 90, No. 50 | WWW.BAINBRIDGEREVIEW.COM | 75¢
INSIDE: A timeless tradition, A6
VIVA LA SALMON
A fishy delegation shows up to the COP21 demonstrations in Paris Drawing courtesy of the city of Bainbridge Island
BY JESSICA SHELTON
Suzuki Farm, one of the four proposals, would feature 52 homes and a community center.
Bainbridge Island Review
When Debra D’Angelo left for Paris last week, she lugged a suitcase full of fish. A founding member of Salmon is LifeBainbridge, D’Angelo had been tasked with distributing salmon-decorated lanterns to hundreds of dancers for the COP21 demonstration scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 12. Three hundred and fifty silk batik sockeyes would swim through the streets to deliver a simple message: take a stand for salmon. Each was a labor of love, taking seven hours to complete. Members of Bainbridge Island Watershed Council, Arts and Humanities Bainbridge and Earth Art Bainbridge hand-painted 80 of them back in November, and others poured in from Oregon and elsewhere in Washington. D’Angelo’s friend Denise Henrikson, a community artist, is the one who envisioned the massive display. “Standing for salmon is standing for nature,” explained Henrikson. “Wild salmon indicate healthy forests and streams. When waterways can no longer support salmon, nature’s ability to continue supporting any life there is also at risk. People all over the world are already suffering the terrible consequences of climate change, but together we can turn this around.” That was the plan, anyway, as dignitaries gathered for the United Nations convention on climate change, seeking a new international agreement to keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius. “The idea is to show salmon in their full form and full beauty, with a full vision of what’s possible,” D’Angelo added. But then the terrorist attacks happened, and everything changed. Public demonstrations were canceled; the city was in a state of emergency; some friends in the activist community were even put on house arrest. D’Angelo wondered whether she should still go. She spent many sleepless nights sick to her stomach with worry. Everything was up in the air; she no longer had the French government’s permission to protest. But when D’Angelo looked to her traveling companion, a member of the Lummi Nation, she knew she couldn’t waver. “Indigenous people all around the globe depend on salmon for their sustenance,” D’Angelo explained. “I don’t want to be pepper-sprayed; I don’t want to feel a strong police presence. But if that’s what it’s like to be an indige-
Four plans under review for city’s Suzuki property BY BRIAN KELLY
Bainbridge Island Review
Jill McIntyre Witt photo
The salmon found their place in Paris as they “amplified the lonely voice” and drew attention to the Lummi Nation delegation. nous person, impacted by these climate issues, I’m willing to get uncomfortable. “I’m not saying that like a hero or a martyr; there are a lot of people who step into it TURN TO SALMON | A11
Members of Bainbridge Island Watershed Council, Arts and Humanities Bainbridge and Earth Art Bainbridge hand-painted 80 of the salmon lanterns in November. Each took seven hours to complete. Elizabeth Robson photo
Four proposals have been submitted to the city of Bainbridge Island for the development of the city’s Suzuki property. Proposals to develop the land with housing — and one submitted by the Bainbridge parks district to preserve the land as open space — were submitted to city officials last week. The development proposals all include plans for dozens of homes, with participation by Housing Kitsap or Housing Resources Bainbridge to include “affordable housing” as part of the building projects. The fate of the property, once eyed by Bainbridge as a potential police station site, has caused concern for many months to islanders in nearby neighborhoods, who are worried about increased traffic and the loss of the forested land. Many residents have called for the land to be preserved as open space, or turned over to the school or park district. The city earlier issued a “request for proposals” for developing the property — a 13.83-acre undeveloped parcel at the southeast corner of New Brooklyn and Sportsman Club Roads — and the deadline for proposals was Nov. 30. Under the different development scenarios submitted to the city, the city would be paid between $2.4 million and $2.6 million for the Suzuki property. Development plans were submitted by: Housing Kitsap, AKA Investors and Blue Architecture; Housing Resources Bainbridge, Housing Kitsap; and Olympic Property Group/ Davis Studio Architecture + Design. The city said a community workshop will be held early next year to go over the proposals.
Proposal by Housing Kitsap, AKA Investors and Blue Architecture The plan by Housing Kitsap, AKA Investors and Blue Architecture envisions the eventual construction of 60 homes, TURN TO SUZUKI | A10