By Dawn Masko, City Administrator, City of DuPont
1. Commute Trip Reduction Award. The City of DuPont received the 2010 Leadership Award from Pierce County and Pierce Transit for achieving outstanding reductions in the Commute Trip Reduction drive alone and vehicle miles travelled rates since 2007. This award acknowledges exceptional efforts towards reducing drive alone commute trips which significantly decreases air pollution and traffic congestion in Pierce County, thereby enhancing our quality of life.
2. Shoreline Master Program Update
The Planning Agency will hold a special meeting at 7:00 PM on February 7th at DuPont City Hall to review the draft DuPont Shoreline Master Program and draft DuPont Cumulative Impacts Analysis. More information is available at www.ci.dupont.wa.us/development/shoreline-master-program.html.
3. AWC Well City Award Application
The DuPont Employees’ Wellness Committee applied for the Association of Washington Cities (AWC) Well City Award this past week. If awarded, the City will save 2% on their Regence insurance health premiums in 2012. At the current premium rates, that translates to approximately $10,000 savings to the City. In 2009 the City Council supported this effort by adopting a resolution creating policies and a structure for a Wellness Program. The Wellness Committee has been actively implementing the program to help support healthy lifestyles for City employees. Thank you to committee members Bernadette Moreland (Wellness Coordinator), Juanita Brunzell, Al Gasak, Police Chief Ron Goodpaster, Sandi Hines, and Justin Moore for a job well done!
4. Sight and Hearing Testing Program
The DuPont Lions Club partnered with Lakewood First Lions to conduct sight and hearing testing of most elementary and middle school students in the Steilacoom and Clover Park School Districts. The project started in Fall 2010 and finished in January 2011. In all, seventeen schools were visited and approximately 2,000 students were given a basic sight and hearing test. This program relieves the school nurses of the necessity to test every student in their school and allows them to focus on retesting students who fell below the standards. This program targets students who have not been previously identified as having a sight or hearing deficiency. City staff and officials who are members of the DuPont Lions Club participated in this effort – including Police Chief Ron Goodpaster, Fire Chief Greg Hull, Councilmembers Penny Coffey and Larry Wilcox, and Fire Operations Chief Greg Cooper.
5. Upcoming Meetings – Week of February 7th – 11th
* Parks & Recreation Agency Monday, February 7th at 7:00 PM
* Planning Agency – Special Meeting Monday, February 7th at 7:00 PM
* City Council Meeting Tuesday, February 8th at 7:00 PM
6. Parks & Recreation
Please call (253) 912-5245 or go to the City’s website at www.ci.dupont.wa.us for registration information, questions on Parks & Recreation activities, or for volunteer opportunities.
* Registration is now open for the spring yoga sessions. Classes start at 9:30 AM at the DuPont Community Center located at 303 Barksdale Ave and start in March. We are introducing a new Saturday session from 7:45 AM – 9:00 AM. Seniors are encouraged to register for the Gentle Yoga session. We have received positive feedback from all participants and space is limited. The cost is $48 for a six week session.
* The Youth Baseball registration date is fast approaching. Please be sure to register by Friday, February 11th as no registration will be accepted after this date. Once registration is closed teams will be formed and practice schedules will be distributed. Volunteer coaches are still needed. Our Opening Day Jamboree is on March 26th at PowderWorks Park.
* It’s time to purchase your tickets for our Winter Bingo Night scheduled for Friday, February 25th at 7:00 PM at the Community Center. Proceeds from this event will help purchase scoreboards for our Youth Basketball program. Tickets are available at City Hall located at 1700 Civic Drive and are $10 for two cards and $20 for four cards. Ages 12 and up are welcome. Pizza and drinks will be available for a minimal fee.
* Going Green? Mark your calendars for the 4th Annual Shamrock Family Fun, Walk & Roll scheduled for Saturday, March 12th. This is a great way to continue with your New Year’s resolution of healthier living! The walk begins promptly at 10:00 AM. Prizes for the walk are being gladly accepted. Please contact Parks & Recreation at (253) 912-5245 if you would like to donate prizes. This is a great opportunity to promote your business locally. The first 50 walkers will receive a goody bag packed with ideas for healthier living! Registration forms are available at City Hall (1700 Civic Drive) or on the City’s website.
* Registration is now open for Challenger Sports Spring Break Soccer Camp. This camp will occur April 4th thru 8th at DuPont PowderWorks Park and is open for ages 6 thru 12. The cost is $116. Registration forms are available online at www.ci.dupont.wa.us.
* Follow the Yellow Brick Road to the City Parks & Recreation spring auction on Friday, May 13th! This year’s event – “There’s No Place Like Home” – will benefit ongoing recreational programs, events, and the Community Center. Auction details will be available on the City’s website starting March 1st. Volunteers are needed to help plan the auction.
* Northwest Landing ROA is proud to sponsor its 6th Annual Daddy Daughter Valentine’s Dance. This year’s dance, The Magic of Daddies, is on Friday, February 11th. Daddies and daughters will dance the night away to a timeless Frank Sinatra impersonator. Magician John Amidon, a Northwest favorite, will perform a magic show and has guaranteed to pull a live bunny out of his hat! Dinner and family-friendly drinks will be served. This is event is full as it has quickly become a favorite in DuPont but volunteers are still needed. Please contact Gina Irvin at irvjam@msn.com if interested. Event details can be found at NW Landing ROA.
7. Free Master Gardener Pruning Class
Learn how to prune apple trees at a Free Master Gardener pruning class on Thursday, February 10th at 7:00 PM at United Church located at 3912 Grandview Drive West in University Place. Please register by calling Molly Wolfe at (253) 564-2562. This class is sponsored by CORE – Curran Orchard Resource Enthusiasts – and people who attend the class are also invited to attend future pruning parties at the Curran Orchard to practice their new skills.
8. DuPont Historical Society Lecture Series
The DuPont Historical Society is kicking off their 2011 Lecture Series on Sunday, February 20th at 2:00 PM with “Arrowheads, Dart Points and Knives, Oh My! Stone Technology of South Puget Sound”. The archaeological record of southern Puget Sound displays a rich and varied history of stone tool types and technologies. Scott Williams, Cultural Resources Program Manager at the WA State Department of Transportation will discuss these technologies and some of the unique characteristics of the artifact types in a slideshow and hands-on artifact display. The lecture will be held at the DuPont Presbyterian Church located at 502 Barksdale Avenue in the Historic Village.
9. Pierce County Rivers Flood Hazard Management Plan
As part of the development of the Flood Plan, Pierce County will be completing an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) to identify the potential adverse environmental impacts of the plan and four early action projects. A Determination of Significance and Scoping Notice were recently issued to initiate the EIS process.
Agencies, affected tribes and members of the public are invited to comment on the scope of the EIS. Comments must be made in writing (either email or hard copy) and may focus on alternatives, mitigation measures, probable significant adverse environmental impacts, and licenses or other approvals that may be required. Comments must be submitted by Tuesday, February 22nd to Adonais Clark, Senior Planner/Environmental Designee; Pierce County Planning and Land Services; 2401 S. 35th Street, Suite 175; Tacoma, WA 98409 or email to aclark@co.pierce.wa.us.
Additional information is available about the Flood Plan and early action projects at www.piercecountywa.org/floodplan or contact P.C. Surface Water Management at (253) 798-2725.
10. Comcast/NBC-Universal (NBCU) Merger
As part of the recent merger approved by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), conditions were imposed to ensure that the transaction serves the public interest. One of those conditions concerned Public, Educational, and Governmental (PEG) Programming, and ensured that Comcast will safeguard the continued accessibility and signal quality of PEG channels on its cable television systems and introduce new on-demand and online platforms for PEG content. Local governments were following this issue closely as our programming and City Council meetings are aired on PEG channels. Under the new merger, Comcast has indicated that they will start offering Video On Demand (VOD) to PEG access channels and will start a pilot program in a few communities. Kudos to the Rainier Cable Commission (RCC) for being ahead of the curve as this service has been available to our citizens for more than a year now.
11. National Emergency Grant for Displaced Military Families
The National Emergency Grant was recently awarded to WorkForce Central and the Pacific Mountain Workforce Development Council in partnership with WA State Employment Security Department, Thurston County Economic Development Council and the City of Lakewood. The grant is a result of the Base Realignment and Closure action (BRAC) of 2005 and subsequent relocation of military personnel and families to Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM). Services, which include career coaching, case management, job training, supportive services, and employment linkage, will be available at JBLM and WorkSource Centers within Pierce and Thurston Counties. For more information or to see if you qualify for these services, contact www.workforce-central.org.