From: John Marchione
To: Bob Yoder ; Jim Robinson
Cc: MayorCouncil
Sent: Monday, June 11, 2007 3:50 PM
Subject: RE: Perrigo Heights has been cleared
Dear Mr. Yoder, I am responding as Ombudsman (Council spokesman) for the month of June. As you know, Perrigo Heights has been an emotionally charged issue for a few years. Many neighbors requested the City purchase all of the land and preserve it as a park. The City did purchase a portion of the land to buffer the trail that runs up 99th street. This reduced the plat from about 36 homes to about 24. The Parks Board and the City Council have been aware of your request for the City to purchase the land. In general, the land was considered very expensive and Education Hill is served by more parks than any other neighborhood in Redmond. Forbidding development was not an option. A property owners retains his rights to build with in the community standards. This issue has been discussed with community input in previous years.
Sincerely,
John Marchione
OMBUDSMAN for Redmond City Council
OPINION: The above photo is "Perrigo Springs Historic Marker and commemorative Willow". The abuse you see was NOT CAMWEST' DEVELOPMENT INC's doing.. The City of Redmond Public Works contractors dumped the rock and debris on this Landmark site during city road & utility work. Historic Perrigo Springs was the source of Redmond's first water supply.
Please mail your diary entries to redmondblog@gmail.com or call me. I will not post your name unless you tell me.
The following entries may or may not be accurate; Not all entries have have been confirmed. Bob Yoder, 6/17/07
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
09/30 - While working on the water easement, workers dumped about 3 wheelbarrows full of crushed rock into the Hartman Wetlands/riparian. Someone - probably a trail user - bent all the posts holding up the landscape screening. Looks like Camwest got their wet vault and stormwater system installed in time for the winter. How will it handle 20 & 50 year floods? Will the creek seriously erode?
9/23 - Historic Marker for Perrigo Springs -- Raked out gravel, spread bark, circled rock around the willow, picked up trash -- the creek bed was dry but the spring was flowing.
9/6/07 - Regarding the 3.5 acre "Greenway" purchased from Camwest by the city and request for a survey map of the Greenway. FROM Development Dept: "Unfortunately, it seems that such a map has not yet been created. I have been assured that as part of the Final Plat for Perrigo Heights, a map based on a survey will be created that has the information you requested. I think this should occur within the next 60 to 90 days. Please let me know if you have any questions about this or any other matter". 9/6 Jim Roberts, Asst. Dir. of Planning -Development.
8/20/07 - the rusty plumbing couplings were removed. now we will have to rake the gravel away from the rock marker. weeds are already growing in the gravel. // on another note - a gigantic wet vault is being constructed to the left of where the "Perrigo tree" used to be. It's 25 feet tall and 30 feet long. BY.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
After weeks of asking city staff to remove the construction materials (crushed rock pile and construction "junk") the staff's contractor apparently raked the crushed rock onto the area of the original historical rock Marker and Willow! This rock pile had been sitting "on top" of the Marker for over two months! Why wasn't it raked out months ago? Where is the construction boundary tape to mark off the historical site? Since contacting Public Works "someone" has dumped a pile of large, rusty, metal plumbing couplings right next to the site! Where is the city's sensitivity to the people who pay their wage? We can only hold the contractor responsible for so long. Now , the city must step up. Richard Morris, 8/1/07
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The easements for water, sewer and stormwater are 20 feet wide. Some trees can be planted on the outer edges of the easement so as to maintain a minimum 8 foot clearance from the utility line in the easement. The re-vegetation of the easements will be a mixture of trees and shrubs."
Mr. Jim Roberts, Assist. Dir. of Planning/Development - Permit Center
___________________________________________________________________________________
High maintenance parks are not scalable. We definitely need to examine alternative ways to reduce maintenance. Also we should explore creating "Park Teams" (local people) that organize to assist with maintaining and being an advocate for parks in Redmond. While I enjoy using the parks, I also enjoy ensuring they are preserved and in as good a shape as they can be so all can enjoy for generations. - neighbor S
Sunday July 22, 2007 - 07:12pm (PDT)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Blog Entry: 7/16, The city's new "shell game" with our capital funds
I'd hope some day the city would invest in a "passive" natural park -- low on maintenance-- and meeting the needs of our growing 60 year + demographic. It's fantastic we have many well-maintained active recreational parks but natural space gets scarcer every day.
Friday July 20, 2007 - 10:50pm (PDT) - Bob Yoder
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
".... the trail connecting Lookout Ridge to the waterline trail was granted by an easement and we, the public, should have had access to it. The City, on the citizens' behalf, should have negotiated (or even demanded) that the 20' water easement along the northwest edge of the property be converted to a temporary trail when Camwest started construction and closed the trail along the existing easement. How hard would it be to move the fence along the water easement over 10 feet and put down some wood chips so that we could walk up to Lookout Ridge from the waterline trail? The easement was an asset to the people of Redmond and should not have been given up so easily. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to attend the Perrigo Heights hearing on July 17 to voice my objections, but I don't know that being there would have made a difference."
Susan Wilk--- 7/23
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"We investigated the source to the pile [and construction debris?] that you asked about. It is material being used as part of the rehabilitation of the ...water tank nearby. They have not completed all of their work but once done the remainder will be removed and the area cleaned up appropriately. This is the same contract that is doing work on the tanks up the hill. We expect the Perrigo tank portion [and clean-up?] to be completed in the next two to four weeks."
Bill Campbell, Acting Public Works Director, 6/26
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thx for update. Doesn’t sound like it’ll be done by derby days parade, when perrigos have family reunion and might want to check out the springs. But better late than never! Miguel Llanos, 6/26
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Today, on my daily dog walk thru, I noticed that a large, landmark maple tree was fallen one-foot outside the stormwater easement construction fence. The 30 inch clear cut stump was easy to see from the trail. The new cut appears to be outside the clear cut limits. Other large trees just a close to the stormwater easement were NOT cut. Why this one?
- two neighbors from Ed. Hill., 6/21/07 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My wife and I walked by the large clear cut area previously known as Perrigo Heights. My wife asked me, "where is the land the city bought from Cam West"? I could not really say, as I have seen no maps of the land purchased by the city.
Monday June 18, 2007 - 12:40pm
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Today I walked down the steep slope trail that runs along side of Perrigo Creek. On the hike down the trail I first heard the click clank of a large tractor, and then I couldn’t help but notice the rather large (20 feet) new clear cut path for the planned sewer line serving Perrigo Heights. This swath of bare earth looks like a ski run in the middle of the forest. The soil appears to be very unstable. The slope for the sewer line is very steep and stands as a reminder of the dangerous risk of a serious land slide. Fortunately, there are no homes in the path of a serious land slide at this site. However, Perrigo Creek and a City Water Tower could be in harms way.
Richard Morris, 6/20
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I was walking my dogs and saw some straw next to Perrigo Creek in the level area of Perrigo woods trail - just above the steep trail leading to Avondale Road. A doug fir used to be rooted here. I saw a 20 foot clearing of trees which I think is the stormwater easement. It looks like the stormwater line will be dug under the trail to the creek. Does Camwest plan to dump the stormwater directly into the creek? Confirmed, BY
Richard Morris, 6/19
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When I got home last night, I saw a very large raccoon wandering around my street… 169th, near the high school. Apparently this habitat destruction is going to see a lot of wild animals displaced and looking for new homes. I don’t think city council thought of the animal habitat before they approved this clearing! Also saw a raccoon not too far from here that was dead beside the road. Reminder to make sure our domestic animals are up to date on their vaccinations!
Laura Hammond, 6/18 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I walked the woods on Sunday from the Perrigo Springs Well... they have laid piping and plastic next to the historical willow that has no fencing around it! Yikes... they have NO respect for the trees! This one has a marker in front of it and everything. I made a call to Jim Roberts. Jill, a neighbor told me that Public Works NOT Camwest trashed the site. BY Jill Richardson, 6/18
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Richard Morris and I saw a 1- inch crush rock pile 2-feet from the Perrigo Springs Memorial. A neighbor told me Camwest did NOT do this. Public Works Dept. contractors working on the water tower apparently trashed the site. BY
Bob Yoder, 6/18
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CAMWEST DEVELOPMENT, INC. contractors felled a landmark Big Leaf Maple "the wrong way". It fell towards the creek landing right on the main trail. Someone could have gotten seriously hurt. Thankfully, no one did. The real damage was to the small alderwood saplings, salmon berry, and other under-story vegetation. It was flattened - ruined. A gaping 25 foot hole in the understory was created. Without the Greenway screening the construction site now shows it's ugly head. A CAMWEST contractor worker clearing the debris told me the tree inadvertently fell on the trail and understory.
Bob Yoder, 6/18
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FROM JIM ROBERTS, ASSIST. PLANNING DIR. -- I asked the Public Works inspection division about the (Big Leaf Maple) incident. They were fully aware and had actually been on the site when the tree fell. The contractor attempted to direct the fall of the tree, but unfortunately it fell in the wrong direction. Cam West is fully aware of the situation and between them and the contractor, the impacts you described will be fully mitigated. I can't tell you specifically what that means at this point, but I'm told that additional plantings will occur . Please contact me if you have any other questions. 7/17/07
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My daughter noticed a lot more flickers in our huge cherry trees and flying around our street for a few days after the trees were cut. My Lunch Buddy, Dallas-2-fast saw a deer near the dirt bike jump; it left the cleared forest. A Mann mother sees deer walking on 128th.
Neighbor, 6/18
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Three easements have been cleared (sewer, stormwater, and vacation/water). Really chops up the forest and trail. Birds flying all over the place. Lots more light hitting the wetlands now.
I noticed on the Clearing Map that a house will be built on top of the vacation easement. So at least we know the vacation easement has a market value of about $500K (.64 acres X $700K/acre market value).
Public service announcement: for anyone who has anything to say about the clearing, you may attend a Public Hearing on July 17, 7:30pm at council chambers.
Bob Yoder, 6/19
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Neither John Marchione or Jim Robinson reported my complaint (or anyone else's) about the PH WOODS clearing during tonight's 6/19 Council OMBUDSMAN REPORT. For those who read my Redmond Reporter column this email documents my reporting.
To: Bob Yoder ; Jim Robinson
Cc: MayorCouncil
Sent: Monday, June 11, 2007 3:50 PM
Subject: RE: Perrigo Heights has been cleared
Dear Mr. Yoder, I am responding as Ombudsman (Council spokesman) for the month of June. As you know, Perrigo Heights has been an emotionally charged issue for a few years. Many neighbors requested the City purchase all of the land and preserve it as a park. The City did purchase a portion of the land to buffer the trail that runs up 99th street. This reduced the plat from about 36 homes to about 24. The Parks Board and the City Council have been aware of your request for the City to purchase the land. In general, the land was considered very expensive and Education Hill is served by more parks than any other neighborhood in Redmond. Forbidding development was not an option. A property owners retains his rights to build with in the community standards. This issue has been discussed with community input in previous years.
Sincerely,
John Marchione
OMBUDSMAN for Redmond City Council
OPINION: The above photo is "Perrigo Springs Historic Marker and commemorative Willow". The abuse you see was NOT CAMWEST' DEVELOPMENT INC's doing.. The City of Redmond Public Works contractors dumped the rock and debris on this Landmark site during city road & utility work. Historic Perrigo Springs was the source of Redmond's first water supply.
Please mail your diary entries to redmondblog@gmail.com or call me. I will not post your name unless you tell me.
The following entries may or may not be accurate; Not all entries have have been confirmed. Bob Yoder, 6/17/07
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
09/30 - While working on the water easement, workers dumped about 3 wheelbarrows full of crushed rock into the Hartman Wetlands/riparian. Someone - probably a trail user - bent all the posts holding up the landscape screening. Looks like Camwest got their wet vault and stormwater system installed in time for the winter. How will it handle 20 & 50 year floods? Will the creek seriously erode?
9/23 - Historic Marker for Perrigo Springs -- Raked out gravel, spread bark, circled rock around the willow, picked up trash -- the creek bed was dry but the spring was flowing.
9/6/07 - Regarding the 3.5 acre "Greenway" purchased from Camwest by the city and request for a survey map of the Greenway. FROM Development Dept: "Unfortunately, it seems that such a map has not yet been created. I have been assured that as part of the Final Plat for Perrigo Heights, a map based on a survey will be created that has the information you requested. I think this should occur within the next 60 to 90 days. Please let me know if you have any questions about this or any other matter". 9/6 Jim Roberts, Asst. Dir. of Planning -Development.
8/20/07 - the rusty plumbing couplings were removed. now we will have to rake the gravel away from the rock marker. weeds are already growing in the gravel. // on another note - a gigantic wet vault is being constructed to the left of where the "Perrigo tree" used to be. It's 25 feet tall and 30 feet long. BY.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
After weeks of asking city staff to remove the construction materials (crushed rock pile and construction "junk") the staff's contractor apparently raked the crushed rock onto the area of the original historical rock Marker and Willow! This rock pile had been sitting "on top" of the Marker for over two months! Why wasn't it raked out months ago? Where is the construction boundary tape to mark off the historical site? Since contacting Public Works "someone" has dumped a pile of large, rusty, metal plumbing couplings right next to the site! Where is the city's sensitivity to the people who pay their wage? We can only hold the contractor responsible for so long. Now , the city must step up. Richard Morris, 8/1/07
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The easements for water, sewer and stormwater are 20 feet wide. Some trees can be planted on the outer edges of the easement so as to maintain a minimum 8 foot clearance from the utility line in the easement. The re-vegetation of the easements will be a mixture of trees and shrubs."
Mr. Jim Roberts, Assist. Dir. of Planning/Development - Permit Center
___________________________________________________________________________________
High maintenance parks are not scalable. We definitely need to examine alternative ways to reduce maintenance. Also we should explore creating "Park Teams" (local people) that organize to assist with maintaining and being an advocate for parks in Redmond. While I enjoy using the parks, I also enjoy ensuring they are preserved and in as good a shape as they can be so all can enjoy for generations. - neighbor S
Sunday July 22, 2007 - 07:12pm (PDT)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Blog Entry: 7/16, The city's new "shell game" with our capital funds
I'd hope some day the city would invest in a "passive" natural park -- low on maintenance-- and meeting the needs of our growing 60 year + demographic. It's fantastic we have many well-maintained active recreational parks but natural space gets scarcer every day.
Friday July 20, 2007 - 10:50pm (PDT) - Bob Yoder
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
".... the trail connecting Lookout Ridge to the waterline trail was granted by an easement and we, the public, should have had access to it. The City, on the citizens' behalf, should have negotiated (or even demanded) that the 20' water easement along the northwest edge of the property be converted to a temporary trail when Camwest started construction and closed the trail along the existing easement. How hard would it be to move the fence along the water easement over 10 feet and put down some wood chips so that we could walk up to Lookout Ridge from the waterline trail? The easement was an asset to the people of Redmond and should not have been given up so easily. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to attend the Perrigo Heights hearing on July 17 to voice my objections, but I don't know that being there would have made a difference."
Susan Wilk--- 7/23
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"We investigated the source to the pile [and construction debris?] that you asked about. It is material being used as part of the rehabilitation of the ...water tank nearby. They have not completed all of their work but once done the remainder will be removed and the area cleaned up appropriately. This is the same contract that is doing work on the tanks up the hill. We expect the Perrigo tank portion [and clean-up?] to be completed in the next two to four weeks."
Bill Campbell, Acting Public Works Director, 6/26
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Thx for update. Doesn’t sound like it’ll be done by derby days parade, when perrigos have family reunion and might want to check out the springs. But better late than never! Miguel Llanos, 6/26
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Today, on my daily dog walk thru, I noticed that a large, landmark maple tree was fallen one-foot outside the stormwater easement construction fence. The 30 inch clear cut stump was easy to see from the trail. The new cut appears to be outside the clear cut limits. Other large trees just a close to the stormwater easement were NOT cut. Why this one?
- two neighbors from Ed. Hill., 6/21/07 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My wife and I walked by the large clear cut area previously known as Perrigo Heights. My wife asked me, "where is the land the city bought from Cam West"? I could not really say, as I have seen no maps of the land purchased by the city.
Monday June 18, 2007 - 12:40pm
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Today I walked down the steep slope trail that runs along side of Perrigo Creek. On the hike down the trail I first heard the click clank of a large tractor, and then I couldn’t help but notice the rather large (20 feet) new clear cut path for the planned sewer line serving Perrigo Heights. This swath of bare earth looks like a ski run in the middle of the forest. The soil appears to be very unstable. The slope for the sewer line is very steep and stands as a reminder of the dangerous risk of a serious land slide. Fortunately, there are no homes in the path of a serious land slide at this site. However, Perrigo Creek and a City Water Tower could be in harms way.
Richard Morris, 6/20
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I was walking my dogs and saw some straw next to Perrigo Creek in the level area of Perrigo woods trail - just above the steep trail leading to Avondale Road. A doug fir used to be rooted here. I saw a 20 foot clearing of trees which I think is the stormwater easement. It looks like the stormwater line will be dug under the trail to the creek. Does Camwest plan to dump the stormwater directly into the creek? Confirmed, BY
Richard Morris, 6/19
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
When I got home last night, I saw a very large raccoon wandering around my street… 169th, near the high school. Apparently this habitat destruction is going to see a lot of wild animals displaced and looking for new homes. I don’t think city council thought of the animal habitat before they approved this clearing! Also saw a raccoon not too far from here that was dead beside the road. Reminder to make sure our domestic animals are up to date on their vaccinations!
Laura Hammond, 6/18 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I walked the woods on Sunday from the Perrigo Springs Well... they have laid piping and plastic next to the historical willow that has no fencing around it! Yikes... they have NO respect for the trees! This one has a marker in front of it and everything. I made a call to Jim Roberts. Jill, a neighbor told me that Public Works NOT Camwest trashed the site. BY Jill Richardson, 6/18
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Richard Morris and I saw a 1- inch crush rock pile 2-feet from the Perrigo Springs Memorial. A neighbor told me Camwest did NOT do this. Public Works Dept. contractors working on the water tower apparently trashed the site. BY
Bob Yoder, 6/18
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CAMWEST DEVELOPMENT, INC. contractors felled a landmark Big Leaf Maple "the wrong way". It fell towards the creek landing right on the main trail. Someone could have gotten seriously hurt. Thankfully, no one did. The real damage was to the small alderwood saplings, salmon berry, and other under-story vegetation. It was flattened - ruined. A gaping 25 foot hole in the understory was created. Without the Greenway screening the construction site now shows it's ugly head. A CAMWEST contractor worker clearing the debris told me the tree inadvertently fell on the trail and understory.
Bob Yoder, 6/18
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
FROM JIM ROBERTS, ASSIST. PLANNING DIR. -- I asked the Public Works inspection division about the (Big Leaf Maple) incident. They were fully aware and had actually been on the site when the tree fell. The contractor attempted to direct the fall of the tree, but unfortunately it fell in the wrong direction. Cam West is fully aware of the situation and between them and the contractor, the impacts you described will be fully mitigated. I can't tell you specifically what that means at this point, but I'm told that additional plantings will occur . Please contact me if you have any other questions. 7/17/07
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My daughter noticed a lot more flickers in our huge cherry trees and flying around our street for a few days after the trees were cut. My Lunch Buddy, Dallas-2-fast saw a deer near the dirt bike jump; it left the cleared forest. A Mann mother sees deer walking on 128th.
Neighbor, 6/18
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Three easements have been cleared (sewer, stormwater, and vacation/water). Really chops up the forest and trail. Birds flying all over the place. Lots more light hitting the wetlands now.
I noticed on the Clearing Map that a house will be built on top of the vacation easement. So at least we know the vacation easement has a market value of about $500K (.64 acres X $700K/acre market value).
Public service announcement: for anyone who has anything to say about the clearing, you may attend a Public Hearing on July 17, 7:30pm at council chambers.
Bob Yoder, 6/19
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Neither John Marchione or Jim Robinson reported my complaint (or anyone else's) about the PH WOODS clearing during tonight's 6/19 Council OMBUDSMAN REPORT. For those who read my Redmond Reporter column this email documents my reporting.
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