News and Opinion on Neighborhoods, Schools and Local Governments of Redmond, WA.
Sunday, March 5, 2023
Bear Creek: An Oral History of a Changing Landscape / by Gary Smith
Thursday, October 6, 2022
Indian Kokanee Salmon Event October 12th
I wanted to send a quick reminder about the Release the Kokanee event coming up next week, October 12th at 5:00 pm at the Lake Sammamish Boat Launch. We are excited to celebrate the work of this group, connect, and ceremonially release some of the kokanee we are working so hard to save. We hope you will join us at this KWG sponsored event.
Sharing: Please share the event with your staff, partners, supporters and friends! Feel free to use the attached flyer or share a post from the Lake Sammamish UWRP social media (Facebook, Instagram) or the Snoqualmie Tribe Ancestral Lands Movement (Facebook, Instagram). Event info web address: www.bit.ly/KokaneeRelease.
Please let me know if you have any questions or would like additional information.
Best,
Alix
Alix Lee-Tigner (she/her)
Lake Sammamish Urban Wildlife Refuge Partnership Coordinator
(406) 868-1902
Trout Unlimited is "a rapidly growing community struggling to save its native Little Red Fish."
-- Posted with edits by Redmond resident and Trout Unlimited member Gary Smith.
Thursday, July 7, 2022
Commissioner Gary Smith Given High Honors By Mayor Birney
Gary Smith teaching child about trees |
July is "Parks and Recreation" month. During "Special Orders of the Day" Mayor Birney honored four citizens for their contributions to the City Parks & Rec. One of them is a friend of mine, Gary Smith.
Allow me to paraphrase the Mayor's recognition of Gary.
- Parks and Trails Commission (2018 - present) Chair
- Advanced Sustainably pushing forward the East Redmond Corridor.
- ADA stakeholder working to improve access to all users of Parks and Trails
- Green Redmond Forest Volunteer for many years leading and working numerous forest restoration projects. Gary is the Forest Steward at Westside and Idlewood Parks.
- Gives valuable input on the "Tree Canopy Strategic Plan."
- Significant contribution to the pond restoration at Smith Woods Park (and project manager of the program honoring the owner who gifted the land.)
- Advocate for fish and fish habitat in and around the City.
Tuesday, March 1, 2022
Redmond Celebrates Land Donation, Develops Smith Woods Park
Don and Elaine Smith always had the idea of turning their 10 acres of diverse natural land into a public park and wanted to keep it natural for the enjoyment of others in the community. Don died in 2009 at age 94, Elaine now lives in Emerald Heights. She turned 97 on New Years Day, 2022.
(Click on pictures to enlarge)
Forest Steward LeAnne Ludwig, Rosemarie Ives and Gary Smith, Chair Parks and Trails Commission and Project manager. Gary made it all happen. Donors Don and Elaine Smith's memorial bench. Photo credit / Kerry Smith |
Rosemarie Ives with John Couch, Parks and Recreation Director of ~ 30 years Photo Credit / Kerry Smith |
r-l, Leanne Ludwig,Smith Woods Forest Steward, John Couch, Rosemarie Ives, Jon Ives,Gary Smith, Gary's daughter Kim with dogs, Gary's granddaughter Sabrina. Celebrating the new memorial Ginkgo tree. Photo credit / Kerry Smith |
Friday, February 25, 2022
"Bear Creek: An Oral History of a Changing Landscape," Produced by Gary Smith
GARY SMITH |
Gary Smith has been on the WRIA 8 Salmon Recovery Council as a community organization representative for 15 years. With the help of many partners, he set about compiling an oral history of Bear Creek and its salmon. This project tapped seven people in the community, from creekside property owners in the Basin like Terry Lavender to representatives of local governments: John Marchione, Ray Heller and Roger Dane (all now retired). He also interviewed non-profit organization representatives like Tom Murdoch of Adopt-A-Stream and past presidents of WaterTenders.
You can learn of Bear Creek from those stewards as they tell their individual stories in audio and video interviews. Gary has also provided a narrative story of the cooperation between citizens, non-profit organizations, and local governments to mitigate the impacts of urbanization and to preserve the best of the natural world remaining in the creek basin. To view the full five-minute video. To learn more about the projects.
Source: WIRIA 8 Newsletter
Reported by Bob Yoder, 2/25/2022
Saturday, January 15, 2022
Forest Steward Gary Smith Leads Work Party At Smith Woods Park
Gary is standing left side of the mulch pile, Sharon is second from the right. So sorry the photo is blurred. Click pic to enlarge. |
Internet |
Friday, January 7, 2022
VIDEO UPDATE: Bear Creek and the Stewards Who Saved a Salmon Stream
Redmond Historical Society: "Bear Creek a small stream east of Seattle – some Redmond residents don’t even know it runs through town ending at the Sammamish River between Marymoor Park and Redmond Town Center -- but Bear Creek is notable for its historically strong runs of wild salmon. In the past half-century those runs have declined, especially that of the threatened Puget Sound Chinook. That trend is sadly common in Northwest waterways, but in this case the decline has been slowed by local efforts to support the fish."
Interview with Shirley Doolittle-Egerdahl -- Water Tender President & Board member with long family history of life at Paradise Lake, the headwaters of Bear Creek.
Interview with Terry Lavender, *Founder of Water Tenders and Board Chair. Terry describes her long experience on Bear Creek working with citizen groups and county officials to preserve and rehabilitate property on and around the creek.
Interview with Mayor John Marchione.
Interview with Dick Schaetzel, past President of Water Tenders (1991.) Very active. Dick's home is 30 feet from Bear Creek.
Interview with Tom Murdock, Executive Director of "Adopt A Stream."
Ray Heller, King County Basin Steward for Bear Creek, 91-93
Written Q&A with Roger Dane C.O.R. Public Works.
Many thanks to the Redmond Historical Society for initiating and publishing "Bear Creek and the Stewards Who Saved a Salmon Stream," 1980 - 2020 (7/13/2021)
-- Bob Yoder, 1/7/2022
Friday, November 5, 2021
UPDATED OPINION, 11/7/2021: What Will Redmond Look Like In 2050?
Guy emphasized the importance of "promenades" for connecting a hierarchy of streets. Promenades are not boulevards but important avenues with canopy and wider (20')sidewalks. The Parks Director and Mayor Ives talked with excitement about street-side cafes, book stores, spilling over onto wider sidewalk promenades. (Thank you COVID for the later.)
Guy suggested improving the "green ring" along the Sammamish River by softening the eastern slope of the river with a more gradual grade to "get out of the ditch". He suggested building a bike/running trail on the west side to allow for more passive activities on the eastern slope. He thought Luke McRedmond Park had great potential. [He failed to point out King County has jurisdiction over the river corridor.]
Mayor Birney and Council, please zone for greater use of promenades, wider sidewalks and bike lanes, specifically in the Nelson Master Plan and SE Redmond Neighborhood (where new schools are planned.) Thank you. B. Yoder
READ MORE for the abridged Berger report and my opinion:
Monday, November 1, 2021
City Consults With Berger Partnership On Downtown Parks
Heron Rookery adjacent Leary Way
I was one of the few public attending the "Downtown Parks Open House" meeting on April 24 at the Old Redmond School House. (It was posted on the city website).
Saturday, August 28, 2021
UPDATED: Dog Parks In Redmond
Temporary pop up in a Kirkland park / B. Yoder |
Potential dog park area near Soul Food / B. Yoder |
Tuesday, April 13, 2021
A Walk Down Memory Lane
Friday, February 21, 2020
Our Tour Of The Keller Farm Mitigation Bank
Victor Woodward, Credit Habitat Bank LLC |
The Bank is devised to ensure that wetland and tree loss resulting from select developments are compensated for by installation of native shrubs, trees and large woody debris on the Bank. Compensation is calculated in the form of "credits" up to $100,000 or more.
Washington Department of Transportation (WSDOT,) Sound Transit, large pipeline projects and various small residential developments are planned for Bank mitigation "servicing." Other project works will be forthcoming during a 12-year lease.
Victor Woodward, the manager, operator and sponsor of the Bank gave a fascinating 2.5 hour tour of the Bank on February 17th. He's an impressive man, towering and outdoorsey. We walked the whole perimeter, stumbling on the soaked clods of the 125 year-old has been dairy farm. Several farm ditches will be restored and maintained for aquatic and hydrology purposes. After the city permit for grading is approved Victor will level the land and kill off various grasses and other invasives (with Roundup.) He was especially disturbed by the stubborn presence of Poison Hemlock.
We spent a lot of time hiking along Bear Creek. Coyotes were seen in the distance, Canada Geese flew overhead, we walked by a Swan carcass; trees chewed by Beaver were everywhere. Victor chortled that his design plans for the creek area might be altered by Beavers, though they are welcome. Their feeding activity (at times dropping trees into the creek) provides excellent stream habitat and shelter for the salmon.
Towards the end of the tour we hiked along a wide ditch south of the "Friendly Village" housing park. Ditch restoration and maintenance is required there for flood control. Victor's Habitat Bank LLC is fully insured and bonded. We lamented about the low populations of Chinook and coho this year.
*The Bank's "service area" is far reaching. It includes all the streams that drain into the northern portion of Lake Washington, extending to development projects in south Everett, Lynnwood, Redmond, Woodinville, Kirkland, Bellevue, Sammamish and Issaquah. This large service area will do much towards meeting Redmond's goal of a 40% tree canopy by 2050. It appears Willows are the tree of choice.
Forterra oversees the City and Habitat Bank performance activities. Indian tribes have interest since the Bank accounts for 5% of the water entering into Bear Creek upstream. The water coming off the site is important for keeping Bear Creek cool especially in the summer. This is critical for the salmon coming up the Sammamish River from Lake Washington and spawning in the many tributaries such as Bear and Evans Creeks.
After going through a 5-year permitting process, the Keller Wetland Mitigation Bank was approved for operation by the Army Corps of Engineers in late December, 2019 and was one of Mayor Marchione's last acts before retiring.
-- Bob Yoder
2/21
Above, is my story of the tour. Click READ MORE for Victor's additions and how to contact him.
Friday, December 13, 2019
Redmond Tree Canopy
Evans Creek Trail / Bob Yoder |
Why is tree canopy so important? Redmond’s character and main attraction for many community members is its trees, wooded areas, and urban forests. The benefits of trees and urban forests include reduced stormwater runoff, improved water and air quality, attractive communities, increased property values, greenhouse gas reduction, habitat for native wildlife,and improved quality of life, including finding serenity while hiking through Redmond's many wooded trails.
Currently there are 4,062 acres of tree canopy within Redmond. I'm not sure if this includes our street trees and the Redmond Preserve. (Comments?) Overall, tree canopy coverage is declining at a rate of 12 to 13 acres per year as vacant and underutilized parcels continue to develop or redevelop. During the 2019 Redmond Lights festival I ran into Gary Smith, a parks and trails commissioner. He said a large development in North Redmond involved removing a significant number of trees; he thinks and hopes the trees will be replaced in the Keller Farm Mitigation Bank.
The City of Redmond is currently at 38.1% tree canopy (as of 2017); the City is working hard to see this grow and has adopted a goal of 40% tree canopy by 2050. The 2050 goal represents a 200-acre increase in canopy from where we are today. The City currently restores and plants approximately two acres of trees and shrubs annually and is planting four acres of trees in 2019 . Green Redmond recruits citizen volunteers to plant many of these trees.
John Reinke, a Redmond photojournalist, has taken many pictures of birds and wildlife in our woodland habitat. I sent him an outstanding article WITH great pictures titled "Super Trees." It's a must see. (For more on John's tree experiences "Read More"
Monday, January 14, 2019
Idylwood Park restoration of tree removal areas
Gary Smith teaching restoration at Idylwood Park / Credit Forterra |
Restoration Plantings: Restoration of the Idylwood Park tree removal areas will occur February – March 2019. A community volunteer replanting event will tentatively take place on Saturday, February 9. Volunteers and City staff will plant trees, shrubs, groundcovers...
Source: Council business meeting, 1/15 memo
Bob Yoder
Friday, March 31, 2017
New Members Join the Redmond Kiwanis Club
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Six new members recently joined the Redmond Kiwanis Club. The new members are shown in the photo above from left to right: Bob Yoder, Roy Captain, Mark Stuart, Gary Schimek, and Don Horton. New member Tommy Smith is missing from the photograph.
Kiwanis is a global organization dedicated to changing the world one child and one community at a time. The Redmond Kiwanis Club serves the Redmond community with an emphasis on youth-oriented projects. The Club meets weekly at the Family Pancake House in Redmond. Meetings start at 7:00 a.m. and end at 8:00 a.m. If you would like to attend a Club meeting and learn more about Kiwanis, contact President Pat Vache' (425- 883-2314)'
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The Kiwanis Club in Redmond improves the lives of youth and families of Redmond and the surrounding communities through increasing hours of service, dollars of support, and positive role models for the youth and future leaders of the community.
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