July 19, 2012 Shelton Mason County Journal | ![]() |
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STAFF REPORT to restore the Skokomishof estuary.
p~@masoncounty,com Estuary. This project represents
- The project, phased the single most important
during the past four habitat restoration project
The Mason Conserva- years removed three in Hood Canal. conserva-
tion District recently was miles of dikes, which tion district staff said.
named a Puget Sound restored thousands of The estuary provides
Champion by the Puget feet of tidal channels rearing habitat of the fed-
Sound Partnership for its near the mouth of the erallylisted summer chum
efforts in collaboratingSkokomish River and and Chinook salmon, bull
with the Skokomish Tribeapproximately 500 acres trout and steelhead.
Olympic National Park road opens
STAFF REPORT dent on weather conditions and road
p~(~'m.a~on.coun~),.cr~y~ safety.
....................................................................... Current road information is
available by calling Olympic Na-
Obstruction Point Road opened tional Park's information line at
from Hurricane Ridge to Waterhole at 565-3131 or online at nps.gov/
milepost 3.2 on July 13. olym/planyourvisit/current-road-
Road crews are continuing to clear conditions htm.
snow and grade the road surface be- The Obstruction Point Road is
tween Waterhole and the road's ter- Olympic National Park's highest
minus at the Obstruction Point trail- elevation road, leading from Hur-
head. ncane Ridge (5,242-feet above sea
Snowdrifts -- some of them stilllevel~ approximately eight miles
6-feet deep -- will delay full opening east to Obstruction Point at 6.150-
of the road. originally slated to occur feet.
mid-July. Park officials now antici- It is typically open mid-July
pate opening the rest of Obstruction through mid-October, depending
Point Road by early August, depen- on snow and weather conditions.
Murry, Dicks introduce Wild Olympics plan
STAFF REPORT the Wild Olympics bill will be a huge victory
pr@masonco~ty.com, for the Olympic Peninsula and Washington
state, and I am going to fight hard to get
that done."
U.S. Sen. Patty Murry and U.S. Rep.The current proposal is a compromise
Norm Dicks introduced the Wild Olympics based on collaboration between Dicks and
Wilderness and Wild and Scenic Rivers Act Murry and input from the public. Dicks said
of 2012 in the Senate and House of Repre- in a statement.
sentatives recently. "The feedback we have received from
They introduced the plan after years of everyday citizens has played a vital role in
taking input from members of the public, the development of this legislation. The re-
The legislation is intended to protect for- sult has been a consensus proposal that will
est areas and rivers while preserving local help protect these sensitive areas on the
jobs and access to outdoor recreation. Olympic Peninsula and continue our prog-
"The amazing natural treasures in the ress to protect ~nd restore Puget Sound and
Olympic Peninsula are among the crown Hood Canal for future generations." Dicks
jewels of our state, and the Wild Olympics said.
proposal will build on the strong foundation The proposed legislation designates
of conservation that has been laid down over 126,554 acres of new wilderness on Olympic
generations," Murray said in a statement. National Forest and allows for an addition-
"I was proud to work closely with Represen- al 5,346 acres to be designated by future ad-
tative Dicks and the local community for ministrations.
over two years to arrive at the compromise It also designates' 19 rivers and seven
proposal we are introducing today. Passing tributaries as Wild and Scenic Rivers.
Mason County Senior Activities Center and Resources Center
Overview of Proposed Project to Purchase the PUD No. 3 Complex
d try lage, amounting to about that are beneficial to eco-
In us,~ 20 members in its council, nomic growth and support-
Continued from pageA-1 Much of Krapkowice's ing training programs for
new infrastructure is paid small-business owners.
Sustainable farming prac- for in grants. The munici- Krapkowice was also no
rices are also more preva- pality is awarded nine out stranger to Washington
lent. of every 10 grants it ap- government. Their sister
Krapkowice also has plies for. O'Leary said.city is Camas. m southern
narrower streets and more Among the many oth- Washington.
pedestrians and bicyclists, er differences between O'Leary did not travel
O'Leary said the city and Shelton and Krapkowice. to Poland in his capacity
villages were laid out be- O'Leary said the Polish as Shelton's city Admin-
fore cars were common, city has better recreation- istrator, but instead used
and now have to accommo- al facilities for its citizens his vacation time to travel
date drivers and pedest~ri- and has Geographic In- there with his wife Sally.
ans. formation Systems (GIS) While they spent much
Also, many of the streets mapping of its water sys- of their time touring the
in the Krapkowice area tems. Also. police and pro- city and Outlying villages,
are still paved with cob- fessional firefighters in Po- looking at infrastructure
blestones. However, the land are national employ- and talkingto cityleaders.
municipality is working to ees, rather than local em- the O'Learys also explored
replace those cobblestones ployees, as in the United Poland's rich cultural her-
with more modern asphalt States. itage.
through grant funding. O'Leary also talked withThey visited local artists
Government in Krap- government leaders aboutandbrought back examples
kowice is very different the importance of encour- of embroidery and carved
from government in Wash- aging small businesg, and eggs to show the Shelton
ington. Krapkowice is a spoke about what SheltonCity Commission.
municipality includingis doing to achieve that However, O'Leary said
one large city and outly- goal. the trip could prove help-
ing villages. There are no Particularly, he high- ful to both Krapkowice and
unincorporated areas in lighted efforts to make Shelton.
Poland, so the Krapkowice more commerciallyzoned "I think the city will ben-
council has to have repre- areas available for busi- efit from the experience."
sentatives from every vil- nesses, adopting policies he said.
Mason County Senior
Activities Association
Street: 826 W, Railroad Ave. Shelton
P. O. Box 1066 • Shelton, WA 98584
360.426.7374
www.mcsac.net = info@mcsac.net
Board of Directors: Officers • John Wyatt - President, Verda 'Sam" Selby - Vice President ° Kay Smith- Secretary ° Ruth Coots - Treasurer
Board Members: Craig E3ardeli ° Vivian gentkowski ° Dolores Pickering ° Marlene Taylor ° Steve Townsend - Staff: Terri Shaw- Executive Director
The Mason County Senior Activities Association and Center would like to thank the PUD No. 3 Commissioners
for listening to our request on July 10 to consider an option to purchase plan for us to secure the old PUD No. 3
Administrative Complex. The presentation below was submitted:
We would also like to thank these respected community leaders who spoke in support of our organizafion. Thank
you to: State Representative Kathy Haigh, Executive Director of the Economic Development Council of Mason
County Matt Matayoshi, Mason County Commissioners Lynda Ring Erickson and Steve Bloomfield, Shelton Mayor
Gary Cronce, Executive Director of United Way of Mason County Tamra Ingwaldson, Regional Project Manager for
the City of Shelton Dennis McDonald, Director of the Lewis-Mason-Thurston Area Agency on Aging Dennis Mahar,
Senior Services for South Sound's Executive Director Eileen McKenzie-Sullivan and Director of their Senior Nutrition
Program Cathy Visser, Physicians of Southwest Washington's Dave Hughes, and AARP Driver Safety Coordinator Gone
Bush. We also appreciate the several MCSAA members who spoke about their enjoyment and dedication to the
current Senior Activities Center and the need for a larger facility.
For over 30 years, the Mason County Senior Activities Association (MCSAA) has been a catalyst for improving the health
and quality of life for Mason County seniors. MCSAA. working with community partners, provides a vital arra) of affordable
programs and services to more than 900 members and over 800 non-members including ~ealth. fitness and wellness classes; meal and
nutriuon programs; sooal and recreational activities, outings, educational classes, and volunteer opportunities. All of the services are
provided on a non-discriminatory basis.
The proposed project goal is to secure a long-term lease with tee goal of purchasing the PUD No, 3 Administrative
Complex in downtown Shelton. Leasing will allow us to continue to seek capital funding ~o purchase the building with the
monthly payments and costs of building improvements going toward the purchase of the property. Mortgage Loans will close these
opportunities to us.
Achieving this goal will benefit Mason County seqigrs 50 and older, will benefit our community parmer organizations and those they
serve, will be an important economic catalyst to downtown Shelton, and will lcrease commumty safet~ in emergencies,
The proposed project is designed to meet the wide-ranging needs of Mason County seniors 50 and older, through the
creation of a centralized complex that will include an expanded and improved Senior Activities and Resource Center
with a second building that MCSAA will lease to non-profits, government agencies and businesses that serve seniors.
The buildings have the unique safety feature of two large generators to provide backup power that will keep both
facilities operating in emergencies.
The population of seniors in Mason County has grown by 47% in the last 10 years and is on track to add another 20% in the next ten
years, In fact, 21% of the current total population of the County is over the age of 65.
n 2011, there were 20,463 visits to the Center during regular hours with activities participation at 11,817 visits Volunteers serving at
the Center, Nifty Thrifty Store or at MCSAA fundraisers contributed 11,255 service hours for the organization with an in-kind value of
$243.328 nor the State of Washington. guidelines
The proposed project will help fulfill current senior programming needs for the City of Shelton and Mason County, and it will provide
the flexibility to adapt to the changing needs of the growing number of new seniors.
Positive changes afforded by the new facility include:
• An increase in facility space to provide programs and services from the current Center's 6,100 square feet to 14,017 square
feet in the PUD No. 3 main building, plus added 8,412 square feet of potential office rental space in the PUD No. 3
engineering and operations building.
• An increase in dedicated facility parking from 20 spaces to 105 spaces.
• An increase in public transit accessibility for seniors. The PUD No, 3 Main Building is on the Cota Street bus route. At our
current Center, seniors must arrange bus transportation via MTA's Dial-A-Ride program.
• An increase in the number of seniors receiving nutritious meals as the new Activities Center commercial kitchen
will facilitate the preparation of 20% more meals to be served to home-bound seniors and to senmrs coming to the Center
for lunches.
• An increase in low-cost fitness and other classes to improve health and quality of life for semors.
(We currently offer: gentle tai chi, gentle yoga, line dancing, and Zumba.)
• An increase in the programs and services MCSAA can offer with community partners because activities will no longer be
limited by constraints of physical space.
• The ability to operate as an emergency shelter during power outages, cold or hot weather, or other disasters,
Also, a larger Center with even more activities will be an economic catalyst for downtown Shelton. Half of the 20,463 visits to the
Center were seniors living outside the city limits, with most of these people living within 20 miles of the Center. increasing the variety
of recreational and educational opportunities for seniors to enjoy ~ Mason County will increase the likelihood that their dollars stay
here tOO
We currently partner with several respected organizations that serve seniors at the Center,
Senior Services for South Sound (SSSS): The Center commercial kitchen is used to orovide meals for home bound area seniors and
to provide low or no cost meals to seniors at our Center Mondays mrough Thursdays. (MCSAA provides low cost meals on Fridays.)
Some of the free services provided at the Center by our community partners:
NOTE: The Center volunteer Receptionists handle the advance reservations for these activities as a service to our parmer
organizations
Providence Sound Homecare nurses do free weekly blood pressure checks.
AARP Tax Aide: AARP trained ser or volunteers do free tax preparation assistance 11 weeks a year at the Center with 360 families of
all ages receiving assistance this year.
AARP Drive Safety; AARP trained senior volunteers led low-cost full-da2 driver safety programs every other month. Over 100 seniors
received training in 2011. (Slight cost)
Lewis.Mason-Thurston Area Agency on Aging; Once a month their Mason Count~ Senior Information and Assistance specialist
meets with seniors at the Center. LMT-AAA also provides Legislative Updates, Social Security Overviews and Update Seminars.
Physicians of Southwest Washington leads a 6-week workshop series "Living Well Despite Chronic Disease" several times a year
at Center.
Other presentations include; falls prevention, walker repair workshops, and financia planning~
Shelton Timberland Library offers PageTumers book discussions free at the Center.
Mason County: The Center hosts Accessible Voting Units for the Primary and General Elections for several days so all registered
voters of any age can vote despite physical challenges.
Service Opportunities: Youth from CHOICE HS and SOCK, adults from Habitat for Humanity and United Way Day of Caring
volunteer at the Center. The Center collects food for food banks.
If you are interested in contributing time or money to help make our dream a reality,
please contact Terri Shaw at 360-426-7374 or terri@mcsac.net
Located on Hwy, 101 between Shelton & Olympia
360,426,4748
Experience We Need,
Leadership We Deserve
Page A-8 - Shelton-Mason County Journal ~ Thursday, July 19, 2012