Part 3, May-June

May

As part of the State of Washington’s recently approved budget, the City of Mountlake Terrace received $750,000 on May 2 to help fund activities related to Phase II of the Main Street Project, including roadway and utility improvements to 56th Avenue West between 236th and 230th Streets Southwest.

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The Alderwood Terrace Rotary Club held its 7th annual dinner auction May 3, with proceeds benefiting a range of community programs. In addition, the club awarded a $5,000 check to the South Snohomish County Honor Guard to help defray uniform and operating expenses.

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Terrace Park Elementary School students were among those participating in the Edmonds School District’s second annual Digital Learning Fair on May 4. The event invited K-12 students to present classroom work from Science, Technology Engineering and Math (STEM) classes, including robotics, coding, student video production, 3D printing, engineering and more.

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The Mountlake Terrace City Council voted at its May 6 business meeting to approve an ordinance to create a city salary commission to review and set salaries and benefits for elected officials. The ordinance directs a salary commission be convened every five years to review salaries of the mayor and city council members, and determine whether salaries should be increased, decreased or remain the same.

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An Edmonds man was arrested by Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office deputies in Mountlake Terrace on May 7 after being pursued for a suspected DUI and driving in the wrong direction. Sheriff’s office deputies began pursuing the driver at Highway 525 and Highway 99 in Lynnwood. Before his arrest, the man broke into two occupied homes and a vehicle.

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In response to a $17.7 million budget shortfall for the 2019-20 school year, Edmond School District officials held a special May 8 meeting to discuss possible faculty cuts. At the time, 43 full-time employees (FTEs) of the district labeled as certificated or classified potentially faced being laid off, including teachers, paraeducators and assistant principals. During the meeting, the Edmonds School District Board of Directors, along with Superintendent Kris McDuffy and district staff tried to find solutions before a decision had to be made at the March 14 school board meeting.

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On May 13, a Mountlake Terrace High School alumna and her spouse donated $26,000 to the “Hawks Helping Hawks” athletic scholarship fund at Mountlake Terrace High School. Alumna Blair (Benshoof) Sprunk (Mountlake Terrace High School ’84) and her husband Eric, chief operating officer at Nike, donated Nike stock to the school.

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In the final hour before a state-mandated deadline, the Edmonds School Board voted on May 14 to send layoff notices to 25 teachers as part of its plan to address a $17.7 million shortfall for the 2019-20 school year. Prior to the vote, the board of directors heard three hours of public testimony from district staff, students and parents opposing the budget cuts, which district officials said are “conservative” estimates.

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After a five-year absence, the Iron Hawk Cooking Competition returned to Mountlake Terrace High School. The May 15 competition gave students a chance to showcase their culinary talents and was the first the school had held since it was discontinued in 2015.

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Prior to its May 17 opening, Hemlock State Brewing Company held a ribbon cutting ceremony on May 16 for family and friends.

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A Mountlake Terrace police officer sustained minor injuries after his patrol vehicle was struck by a DUI suspect May 16. After rear-ending the patrol vehicle, the driver attempted to flee the scene, but was unable to do so because her own vehicle was too severely damaged.

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Amid concerns of homelessness in Mountlake Terrace and Snohomish County, the Mountlake Terrace City Council at its May 16 meeting heard from community partners about causes and solutions.

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During a May 15 meeting, the Mountlake Terrace Business Association discussed plans for city development and how the city prepares for the arrival of Sound Transit light rail in 2024. Effort include investing in infrastructure — primarily road reconstruction and water projects that will serve future growth in the city’s Town Center, where the city is trying to concentrate growth and development associated with the arrival of light rail. The meeting also included a review of the city’s Town Center Plan.

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The Mountlake Terrace City Council voted at its May 20 meeting to approve New Terrace Townhomes, a 12-unit townhome development. The vote came after the council held a public hearing on the proposal, which drew testimony from a nearby resident who expressed concerns that the new development will cause parking issues for neighbors.

~~~~Washington State Sen. Guy Palumbo, who represented Mountlake Terrace and Brier in the 1st Legislative District, announced May 24 that he would be resigning from the Senate, effective immediately. Following his resignation, Palumbo took a job with Amazon, where he worked earlier in his career as a senior manager.

June

 

Mountlake Terrace High School students were among those who participated in the Edmonds School District’s first TEDx talk event on June 8. During the event, students discussed topics ranging from autism to cancer to mental health. The theme of the talks was “Being Heard” and speakers shared stories that made audience members rethink their ideas around judging others and the world around them.

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Terrace Foursquare Church held the first Sunday morning service in its new home — Mountlake Terrace Elementary School — on June 9. Since the church began in September 2017, services had been held in the Mountlake Terrace High School theater. The church moved to the recently-rebuilt elementary school for cheaper rental costs and better amenities.

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The Edmonds School District Board of Directors unanimously voted June 11 for a $200,000 increase in the capital projects budget to clean up the district’s former maintenance and transportation site so it can be sold. The board also heard from the district’s Equity in Funding Work Group and discussed the budget impacts from unpaid ASB fines and fees in the district. The group aims to resolve inequality in areas like school fees, fines and ASB card-related costs.

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On June 12, Mountlake Terrace High School graduate Jared Maxfield was named the starting pitcher for the semi-pro Everett Merchants in an exhibition game against the Everett Aquasox. Maxfield started for the Merchants in their annual Everett Cup matchup against the Aquasox at Funco Field.

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The Mountlake Terrace Safeway held a grand reopening and ribbon-cutting ceremony June 13 for the newly-remodeled store, located at 4301 212th St. S.W. During the ceremony, a check for $5,000 was presented to the Concern for Neighbors Food Bank in Mountlake Terrace. The store’s transition from an Albertsons to a Safeway was the result of the grocery chain merger between Albertsons and Safeway.

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Mountlake Terrace High School students have created Terrace Thrifts, a collection of donated non-perishable food items, clothing, toiletries, blankets and other items available to students in need at no cost. Student Daisy Ramirez described the venture as “a completely free thrift store that has anything and everything that’s essential to living.”

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Tenants of the Greenview Apartments complex visited the Mountlake Terrace City Council meeting June 17 after receiving notice that their tenancy was being terminated, and they would need to move within 20 days to make way for major building renovations. Following the meeting, the council sent sent a letter to the business manager of the complex — renamed Capri Apartments after the sale — requesting that the building ownership give tenants more time to move out prior to the planned renovations.

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During its June 18 meeting, the Mountlake Terrace Arts Advisory Commission recommended proposals from two of the four finalists selected to present designs to the community for the future Town Center Park/Plaza. The plaza will be located between the new city hall and the corner of 232nd Street Southwest and 58th Avenue West. Selected works include sculpture designs inspired by native grasses from the Mountlake Terrace area and three-dimensional figures that reflect the family-oriented spirit of Mountlake Terrace and the community’s diversity.

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A new indoor play structure opened June 22 at the Mountlake Terrace Recreation Pavilion in the space formerly used as a racquetball/handball court. The area was converted into a play area for kids ages 5 and younger, and received a mini-renovation.

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Hoping to reduce student lunch debt, the Edmonds School Board of Directors approved a proposal from district staff at its June 25 business meeting to implement a $15 charge limit for students’ meal accounts for all schools in the district. The decision came after the charge limit was previously implemented at high schools.

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Before starting construction on the Mountlake Terrace Link Light Rail, Sound Transit faced its final hurdle on June 27 as representatives from the transit authority presented to a hearing examiner representing Mountlake Terrace. City officials recommended to the hearing examiner that the applications from Sound Transit be approved overall. The permits include a Conditional Use Permit, approval of the site development plan, and A Critical Areas Reasonable Use Exception.

–By Cody Sexton