Check vashonbeachcomber.com for preliminary bond election results Wednesday morning.
NEWS | Harbor School will welcome new leader. [4] COMMENTARY | Supporting local farmer has rewards. [6] ARTS | Catch up with island [10] poets laureate.
SUNRISES CAPTURED Islanders take photos of colorful winter dawn. Page 12
BEACHCOMBER VASHON-MAURY ISLAND
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2016 Vol. 61, No. 6
www.vashonbeachcomber.com
75¢
New radio studio, exercise space open in town Former quilt shop transformed after nearly yearlong process By ANNELI FOGT
Nonprofits ask county for more funding
Editor
By SUSAN RIEMER
February’s First Friday festivities were far more than the artistic celebration of a weekly Vashon tradition for islanders, as the town welcomed a new businesses and Voice of Vashon’s new radio studio. As rain pounded down and wind howled outside, dozens of islanders huddled together in the back of the building between Zombiez and Glass Bottle Creamery, now Kelly Macomber Straight’s Vashon Recess Lab, for a ribbon cutting. The group then headed to the front of the building for the ribbon cutting and unveiling of Voice of Vashon’s (VoV) storefront radio studio. Vashon Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Jim Marsh was on hand at both events, serving as the master of ceremonies for the ribbon cuttings. He applauded the Macomber-Straights, as well as VoV for what he called their bravery and investment in the community. “We wanted to revive the ribbon cutting tradition because these businesses are who we are and how we define ourselves,” Marsh said as he addressed the crowd at Macomber Straight’s studio. “We want to recognize those who are brave enough to take on opening a new business. Any time anyone invests in this community we think it will be great, and we want to celebrate that. Good luck.” Friday’s festivities marked the end of a long
Staff Writer
don’t want to take business away from places already here or have more of what’s already here. That’s why we wanted something new.” She said that she is planning on hosting teen nights where island teenagers can watch a movie while riding a spin bike or climbing the
Less than two months after the head of Vashon’s largest social service agency met with local government officials to request increased county support for island nonprofits, it appears Vashon may benefit from additional funds or services as early as next year. Kathleen Johnson, the executive director of Vashon Youth & Family Services (VYFS), says that since she began at the organization three years ago, she has been troubled by the fact that agencies on the island are not eligible for money many other nonprofits in the region have access to: city funds. In urban areas, municipal funds help support social services addressing the needs of that city, but because Vashon is unincorporated, Johnson said the island’s agencies do not receive that type of financial support, leaving them chronically underfunded. In December, hoping to change that picture, Johnson took action and met with King County Councilmember Joe McDermott. “There is something about having that (funding) hole that has grated at me,” she said. “I got to the point where I said we need to do something about this or at least give it a shot.” Reached on Monday, McDermott agreed that municipal funds are important to the work of many nonprofits, and he noted
SEE NEW BUSINESSES, 18
SEE FUNDING, 19
Anneli Fogt/Staff Photos
Top: Voice of Vashon radio hosts Jeff Hoyt and Susan McCabe broadcast live Friday night from the station’s new Storefront Studio grand opening. The studio has been in the works since summer 2015. Bottom right: Voice of Vashon Board President Jean Bosch cuts the ribbon on VoV’s Storefront Studio. Bottom left: Zabette Macomber (left) and Kelly Macomber Straight (third from left) stand with their children as their son Ian cuts the ribbon to their new exercise studio, while Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Jim Marsh looks on. The ribbon-cutting officially opened the Vashon Recess Lab. process for both projects that started in the spring of 2015 when the MacomberStraights bought the building, which was known to be for sale. The building was the home of Island Quilter for three years, a quilt shop that became world famous for its fabrics and workshops. Island Quilter’s cus-
tomers, and many others in the Vashon community, reacted negatively to the sale. Macomber Straight said the following months were tough, but her focus all along has been to bring some new offerings to the island. She is a personal trainer who holds certifications in numerous exercise modali-
ties and bought the building with the intention of creating an exercise studio in the back and a storefront business in the front. “That’s been Zabette and my focus all along: What can we offer the community? And this is it,” Macomber Straight said. “There’s lots of opportunities to do stuff here. We