Minutes of December 5, 2022 Meeting

Guemes Island Planning Advisory Committee

Meeting was called to Order by Chair Michael  Brown. Members Present: Michael Brown, Allen Bush, Kathy Malley, Patty Rose, Gabe Murphy­­ and Steve Orsini. Citizens present: Randy and Janice Fosse, Michael and Joanne Grey.

The agenda was approved with the addition of a letter from Skagit Public Works.

November meeting minutes were approved as posted on Linetime.

Treasurer’s Report: Roz Glazer Account:  $9,162.10 and GIPAC Account:  $12,669.35. There was difficulty changing the bank accounts to new Treasurer Jep Burdock. We created a document giving permission for the change.

There was no public comment.

Updates/New Business

It was agreed to send a follow up letter to the County Commissioners regarding our work session in October. We will ask about the county attorney’s response to our assertion that Skagit County must exert oversight on location of new wells. We will ask Kyle Loring to assist.

We agreed upon four areas of emphasis in 2023.

1.       Work with county health department on making rainwater catchment practical.

2.       Continue to press County to exercise oversight over new well drilling.

3.       Inform islanders about the results of the aquifer recharge study when they are              available.

4.       Establish better communication with islanders about GIPAC mission and            activities.

Digitizing project:  Gabe reported that Google is asking for more documentation to set up our non-profit account. Allen will help with getting records and contacting the IRS.

Rainwater catchment hurdles:  There was discussion of difficulties a homeowner is having with permitting a rainwater catchment system on north beach. We will continue to  advocate for a rainwater catchment template as a starting point to help property owners avoid extra expense and delay.

Patty Rose shared a letter from Skagit County public works to Molly Doran at Skagit Land Trust (SLT). All parties are working to resolve problems with water in the valley and erosion along south beach. SLT mentioned that they will help pursue funding for pond levelling, realizing that there are no guarantees that will be effective.

Submitted by

Patty Rose