March 15, 2012 Shelton Mason County Journal | ![]() |
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Courtesy of Doug Sells
The Shelton track and field team runs in the snow during practice on Tuesday, March 13. During the past several days, Shelton experienced light
and heavy rain, light and heavy snowfall and bouts of hail. Despite poor weather, the track team continued to practice in preparation for the first
Mason County Jamboree, a track meet between the 4A SHS team, the 2A North Mason Bulldogs and the 1B Mary M. Knight Owls track and field
teams.
Bridge is open, work remains
STAFF REPORT
The new Weaver Cree~k
Bridge on Skokomish Valle'.y
Road opened for public use
this past Friday.
Officials say that final
work required to complete
the project is weather depen-
dent and will be completed as
soon as conditions allow. It is
anticipated that the remain-
ing work could take up to two
weeks to complete.
That work includes deck
membrane installation, road-
way paving, miscellaneous
earthwork, guardrail instal-
lation, and site cleanup.
During the final work on
the bridge, traffic will need
to use the detour route on
Courtesy photo
The Weaver Creek Bridge on Skokomish Valley
Road is now open for public use.
the old bridge down to one
lane of traffic under signal
control.
The speed limit through
the project site will remain
at 20 mph until all construc-
tion activities have been com-
pleted.
Community leaders ask residents to test minds
By NATALIE JOHNSON
na~alie~asoT~cour~tyocoT~
Community leaders, non-
profits, churches and repre-
sentatives of local govern-
ment want to hear what you
think about Mason County's
health through online quiz-
zes and a survey, part of a se-
ries called, "Test Your Mason
County Mind."
A group of about 30 com-
munity leaders are currently
working toward creating a
Community Health Improve-
ment Plan (CHIP) to help one
another coordinate efforts to
improve the health of county
residents, said Mason Matters
Executive Director Kim Klint.
The group is tasked with
identifying priorities for the
future.
Patti Kleist, executive di-
rector of the non-profit group
Faith in Action in Belfair, sits
on the panel.
"Some of the priorities that
stand out for me are the lack of
low-income housing in the coun-
ty in general and particularly
in North Mason (and) the lack
of chemical abuse and addic-
tion services," she said. 'qgVe've
been having a real resurgence
of property crime. Businesses
have been pummeled."
All of the members of the
panel have their own priori-
ties for improving the overall
health of Mason County, but
Klint said they need more in-
formation.
"We want to make sure we
have opportunities for public
input." she said.
In December 2011, the
panel invited a group of Uni-
versity of Washington School
of Public Health graduate
students to help them in-
crease public input on the
CHIP program.
"They're the ones who came
up with the germ or the seed
of the 'Test Your Mason Coun-
ty Mind' series," Klint said.
The series includes four
quizzes and a survey on com-
munity health priorities.
Klint said the series func-
tions "as a way for the com-
munity to give us input as to
what their priorities are," she
said. "We're trying to find a
balance to make sure we pick
the right issues."
The first quiz poses ques-
tions about basic demograph-
ics in Mason County, and
asks participants what per-
centage of people they chink
live m poverty, can afford to
buy health insurance or are
supported by programs such
as Social Security.
The second quiz includes
questions about youth in
Mason County, asking how
many students get free or
reduced meals through their
school district, are obese or
have no health insurance.
The third includes questions
about adults, asking how many
people over 18 years of age in
the county are obese, have is-
sues with mental or physical
health or get food stamps.
The fourth quiz focuses on
the health of entire house-
holds, environmental health
issues, such as maintenance
of water and septic systems,
and pregnant women.
All the quizzes are avail-
able at Mason County's web-
site at www.co.mason.wa.us.
The answers to each question
appear at the end of the quiz,
so participants can learn from
the experience, Klint said.
After the quizzes, partici-
pants are encouraged to take
a short community health
survey to help the CHIP pan-
el focus on priorities for im-
proving the county's health.
Klint said the survey and
quizzes haven't been avail-
able for long enough to get
much feedback.
"There's a lot we could be
doing to make Mason County
healthier." she said.
Kleist said she is optimis-
tic that the CHIP. when com-
pleted, will help organiza-
tions in the north and south
ends of Mason County work
well together.
"I think it's been really posi-
tive ... for the different groups
and their issues," she said.
Page A-2 - Shelton-Mason County Journal-Thursday, March 15, 2012
Board delays decision on
,Be/fakir sewer clarification
County codes conflict
on sewer connections
By NATALIE JOHNSON
The Mason County Board of Com-
missmners voted 2-1 Tuesday to con-
tinue a public hearing to amend Title
17~of the county's code, which covers
zoning ordinances, as it relates to
mandatory connections to the Belfair
sewer system, until April 17.
In January, the county commission
voted to amend Title 13 of the county's
code, which relates to sewers, to re-
quire residents and businesses within
500 feet of the sewer line to connect,
Barbara Adkins, director of planning
and community development said.
However, language in the county's
Title 17 code requires all structures in
the Belfair Urban Growth Area (UGA)
to connect to the sewer, she said.
"That language is now in conflict
with itself," she said.
Adkins asked the county commis-
sion to take action to address the con-
flicting codes during Tuesday's public
hearing.
During the hearing, she presented
three possible options to resolve the
situation.
First. Adkins said the board could
choose ~o take no action to change the
language in Title 13. If the board took
this option, the more restrictive code,
Title 17, would continue to override
Title 13, and would require all struc-
tures in the UGA to connect to the
sewer.
Second, the board could choose to
amend the language in Title 17. to
only require structures within 500 feet
of the sewer line to connect, making it
identical to Title 13.
Third. the board could vote to amend
Title 13 to resemble Title 17, requiring
all structures to connect, regardless of
how close they are to the sewer line.
Tom Moore. interim director of utili-
ties and waste management, proposed
a fourth alternative.
"The basis of this proposal is the
county and the utilities department
needs three things to happen to this
system to make it ... viable," he said.
In order to make the system work,
Moore said it needs revenue, wastewa-
ter and to serve the entire UGA.
"What I would propose is that in-
stead of allowing septic tanks and
drainfields, that we explore the option
of a utility operated holding tank oper-
ation for those single family dwellings
within the UGA," he said.
Moore said trucking wastewa-
ter from these private holding tanks
would provide revenue to the county
through sewer fees, wastewater to the
system, and would include areas of the
UGA beyond 500 feet from existing
sewer lines.
"I think this idea, if it had to be de-
fended, it could be defended," he said.
"I think it's doable and I think it's an
option that might be palatable to all
those concerned."
However, since it was not included
m the scope of the public hearing, the
county commission could not vote on
this option during the hearing. The
scope of Tuesday's public hearing only
allowed the commission to vote on
whether or not to amend Title 17 of the
county code.
Greg Zentner, of the Washington
State Department of Ecology's water
quality program, commented on the
proposal.
"As we understand it this is the sec-
ond of two changes to the county code
that if adopted would allow septic to be
adopted." he said.
According to Title 13, new struc-
tures outside the 500-foot limit could
build and use a septic system until
sewer lines came within 500 feet of the
structure.
"We'd appreciate if the commission-
ers would defer action on this item,"
Zentner said. "We see a couple issues
with the proposal. The more people
you leave out of the system the harder
it is on the business owners and the
homeowners who are in the system
and left with the bill."
The commission voted 2-1 to con-
tinue the hearing in order to further
consult with organizations like Ecolo-
gy and Washington State Department
Health, as well as Belfair UGA land-
owners. Commissmners Steve Bloom-
field and Tim Sheldon both spoke in
favor of continuing talks with stake-
holders.
However Commissioner Lynda Ring
Erickson voted against continuing the
discussion until mid-April, expressing
a desire to not "kick the can down the
road."
The board also approved a recom-
mendation from Moore. to award a
contract to AAA Septic Tank Pump-
ing of Shelton to haul sewage from the
Belfair wastewater treatment plant to
the North Bay/Case Inlet wastewater
treatment plant for 10 cents per gal-
lon.