By Dawn Masko, City Administrator, City of DuPont
1. Parks Appreciation Day. The City is participating in Parks Appreciation Day on Saturday, April 16th from 9:00 AM to Noon. Volunteers are needed to clean up our local parks and must check-in at PowderWorks Park before proceeding to assigned parks. Please bring rakes, shovels, hats and gloves with you. Families are welcome but children must be accompanied by an adult. Projects will occur at PowderWorks Park, ClockTower Park, the Heirloom Orchard, and other City parks. Please contact DuPont Parks & Recreation at (253) 912-5245 with any questions.
2. Welcome New Firefighter Recruits
Three new recruit firefighters started their careers in DuPont on April 7th. Zachary Howard, Jon Roberts, and Jason Tupa reported for duty to start a six week academy. Each of the three firefighters has already completed an 11 week EMT class, a recruit school with another organization, and have obtained Firefigher I status. These qualifications give the three recruits a great head start in the firefighter training process and will allow the Chief to assign them to shifts in mid-May. Two weeks of the recruit school will be spent on the drill grounds at the Training Center in Lakewood. DuPont Training Lieutenant Larry Creekmore will evaluate their skills throughout the six week academy and may adjust the type and length of training to ensure all recruits meet current training standards. The new firefighters will be introduced at the April 12th City Council meeting.
3. Skate Park Update
The Skate Park grant funding received a glimmer of hope this past week as the current proposed House of Representative’s budget restores funding for the Washington Wildlife, Recreation & Parks Program (WWRP) and provides funding of $97,057 for the DuPont PowderWorks Skate Park in the 2011-2013 Capital Budget. This amount would be matched by local funding. We are grateful to all who have supported funding for the program and that our project has been included in the budget thus far. Staff remains hopeful that the program will be included in the Senate version of the Capital Budget which is tentatively scheduled to be released next week. We will continue to monitor the legislative session and provide updates as more information is forthcoming.
4. Joint Base Lewis-McChord Late Night Firing Announcement
Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) will be conducting day and late night firing from April 5th through the 15th. Increased levels of activity will be noticed during the evening hours, and firing of Demolitions and C4 will be conducted from numerous firing points on base.
This is normally scheduled and required training, which allows military members to practice and improve skills required during combat. As often as possible, JBLM conducts larger scale demolition training and artillery firing at JBLM Yakima Training Center in an effort to minimize inconvenience for the surrounding communities. However, some training must take place on base. Queries or comments about noise may be directed to the JBLM Public Affairs Office’s External Communication Division hot line at (253) 967-0852.
5. Upcoming Meetings – Week of April 11th – 15th
* Planning Agency Meeting Monday, April 11th at 7:00 PM
* Tree Board Meeting Tuesday, April 12th at 1:00 PM
* Tourism Board Meeting Tuesday, April 12th at 2:00 PM
* City Council Meeting Tuesday, April 12th at 7:00 PM
6. Council Agenda Items – April 12th, 2011
* Appointment: Parks Agency
* Presentation: American Heart Association Life Saving Award
* Proclamation: Arbor Day
* Introduction of Three New Firefighters
* Consent Agenda Items: Council Meeting Minutes; Claims Vouchers; Close-Out Documents for Community First Credit Union; Fed-Ex Expansion Water Easement; Replacement Police Vehicle Purchase Authorization
* New Business: Petition for Inclusion in the Pierce Conservation District; Resolution Enacting a Resource Conservation Fee; Steilacoom High School Reader Board Contribution
7. Puget Sound Starts Here Month
April is Puget Sound Starts Here month in Pierce County. Jurisdictions and non-profit organizations in Pierce County are partnering to draw attention to the health of Puget Sound and local watersheds during the month of April by organizing events throughout the county to get communities involved. For more details please go to www.piercecountywa.org/pssh. Upcoming events include:
* April 9th Citizens for a Healthy Bay restoration planting at Tahoma Salt Marsh will occur from 1:00 – 5:00 PM. Dinner will be provided to volunteers after the planting. Register to help by emailing jriss@healthybay.org or call (253) 383-2429.
* April 9th Composting and Worm Bins Class at Tacoma Envirohouse.
Learn to build and maintain your own compost or worm bin. Please pre-register, as space is limited. Open to Pierce County residents. Visit Home & Garden Workshops to register.
* April 13th Soil Prep and Planting Seedlings Class at Tacoma Envirohouse
This class will provide people with information about how to prepare soil for and plant successful seedlings. Class is open for Tacoma and Pierce County residents. Please pre-register, as space is limited. Visit Home & Garden Workshops to register.
* April 16th Soil Prep and Planting Seedlings Class at Tacoma TAGRO Facility
Please pre-register, as space is limited. Visit Home & Garden Workshops to register.
* April 19th Natural Yard Care Workshop – Lakewood
Participants will learn to implement natural yard care practices. Event is free; please pre-register by emailing grinehart@tpchd.org or call (253) 798-4587.
Other hints to remember during Puget Sound Starts Here month and throughout the year:
* In your yard – use fertilizer and pesticides sparingly, or just use compost.
* Around your dog – scoop up dog poop, bag it, tie securely and place it in the trash.
www.piercecountywa.org/petwaste
A list of more local events to celebrate Puget Sound Starts Here month is available here.
8. Structural Pruning for Young Trees Workshop
Horticulture consultant Chris Pfeiffer will teach a workshop on Structural Pruning for Young Trees on Thursday, April 14th at DuPont City Hall. The workshop will run from 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM. Ms. Pfeiffer will focus on training young trees for structural strength and integrity through proper pruning. This course is an advanced practicum workshop being sponsored by the Pacific NW International Society of Arboriculture Chapter. Participants will need to bring their own hand tools for the field practicum. For more information and to register, visit wa16structuralpruning.eventbrite.com.
9. 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.
* Join the entire community for our Annual Springtime Egg Hunt on Saturday, April 23rd at 11:00 AM sharp. This annual event is proudly sponsored by Northwest Landing ROA. Egg hunting times will remain the same – rain or shine! (The Easter Bunny is on a very tight schedule). Our local Youth Baseball teams will be on site with a hotdog sale. The days events are as follows:
1. 11:00 AM – Welcome
2. 11:10 AM – Ages 0-3
3. 11:20 AM – Ages 4-6
4. 11:30 AM – Ages 7-9
5. 11:30 AM – Ages 10 and Up
6. 11:50 AM – Adults
· “There’s No Place like Home” – Follw the yellow brick road to our largest fundraising event of the year! Join your friends and neighbors as we raise our paddles to for Parks & Recreation programs and events. Your Park Agency is hard at work procuring items and selling tickets to this OZsome fundraising event! Donated items include weekend getaways, fabulous gift baskets, yard care and much, much more. The cost is $15 and includes hors d’ oeuvres and desserts. This is an adult only evening. Donations are gladly being accepted. Please contact Parks & Recreation at (253) 912-5245 to purchase your tickets today.
* Got Junk? The semi-annual yard sale is scheduled for Saturday, June 18th from 8:00 AM – 3:00 PM. Watch for ads in our local newspapers. Unsold items will be happily accepted by Goodwill at Chloe Clark Elementary between the hours of Noon – 5:00 PM. Used books will also be accepted by Friends of the DuPont Library at the same location. This event is sponsored by Northwest Landing ROA. Please visit www.nwlandingroa.org for details.
* Visit our website for information on other programs and events including Summer Sports Camps, Yoga, Track, Cheerleading, Dance4Life, Karate, Baseball Day at Cheney Stadium, and more!
10. Cherry Blossom Tea
The 2011 Cherry Blossom Tea and Vintage Fashion Show will be held on Saturday, April 30th beginning at 2:00 PM at Chloe Clark Elementary School. This year’s theme is “Women of the Greatest Generation: Fashions and Memorabilia from the 1930’s, 40’s and 50’s”. Tickets are $12/individual or $10 per person for a table of 10. All ladies are encouraged to come for an afternoon of fun, sweet treats and nostalgia for the good old days! Proceeds benefit the DuPont Historical Society and the DuPont Museum. For information please contact Lee at (253) 267-5267 (evenings, weekends) or Joh at (253) 964-2399.
11. Community Development Department Update
* Electric vehicles and electric vehicle charging stations are coming to Washington State. In 2009 the Legislature recognized this as both an economic and environmental priority and with the support of the Governor, enacted a new law designed to encourage electric vehicles. In support of the law, DuPont is required to adopt an ordinance regarding the installation of charging facilities and battery replacement stations. The SEPA decision for the draft ordinance was issued on April 6, 2011. Comments will be accepted until 4:00 PM, April 20, 2011. Appeals will be accepted from 8:00 AM, April 21, 2011 until 4:00 PM on May 5, 2011. The Planning Agency hearing will be scheduled following the close of the SEPA decision appeal period. Click here to view the SEPA decision on the City’s website.
* DuPont submitted its annual population estimate to the Office of Financial Management (OFM) this past week. Based on the calculations, DuPont’s population is over 8,200 people. OFM will issue the official population on June 30, 2011.
* The Draft DuPont Shoreline Master Program dated March 2011 and the Preliminary Draft DuPont Cumulative Impacts Analysis dated March 31, 2011 were sent to the Department of Ecology this past week for review. Both documents are posted on the City website under Shoreline Master Program Update. The document titled “Next Steps of the DuPont Shoreline Master Program Update has been revised and is also available on the website.
* The Planning Agency will continue their discussion of buffers around cultural resource markers at their April 11th meeting.
12. Rainier Country
Liz Jackson of HeroToHero is featured on the April edition of Rainier Country. The program begins airing this Saturday and will air several times per week for the next few months. A “sneak preview” is available at the following link: Rainier Country. (Please note this is not the final edited version.)
13. Army Proposed Aviation Growth, Realignment and Stationing Decision
The Army has reviewed the Final Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) for Realignment, Growth, and Stationing of Army Aviation Assets and made the decision to proceed with the implementation of their preferred alternative. As a part of this decision, JBLM will receive existing aviation units that will be realigned from other locations to complement the aviation units already stationed there for a total of 1,400 new Soldiers and 44 helicopters. CAB training would occur at JBLM and the Yakima Training Center. Specific details of the decision are captured in the Army’s Record of Decision (ROD) which is available along with the Final PEIS to download and review at aec.army.mil/usaec/nepa/topics00.html.
14. Daffodil Grand Floral Parade
The Daffodil Festival Grand Floral Street Parade takes place Saturday, April 9th – four parades in four cities all in one day! More details are available at www.daffodilfestival.net.
* First Parade – Tacoma: Starts at 10:15 AM at South 11th Street and Pacific Avenue and travels along Pacific Avenue, concluding at South 21st Street.
* Second Parade – Puyallup: Starts at 12:45 PM at the intersection of 7th Ave SW and 5th Street SW.
* Third Parade – Sumner: Starts at 2:30 PM at Kincaid Ave and Main Street and concludes just past the High School at Lewis Avenue.
* Fourth Parade – Orting: Starts at 5:00 PM at Bridge Street and Washington Street and concludes at the north end of town. Orting is the last stop for the Grand Floral Parade.
15. Licensing Fair
The Pierce County Auditor’s Office will be open on Saturday, April 9th from 9:00 AM to Noon for citizens to renew license tabs, apply for a passport, or purchase a marriage license. The office is located at the Pierce County Annex at 2401 So. 35th Street, Room 200 in Tacoma.
16. Download Music for Free from Pierce County Library System
A free downloadable music service is now available through the Library’s website at Freegal Downloadable Music. Downloading of songs is completely free and legal for anyone with a Pierce County Library card. Each library cardholder may download up to three songs per week and keep the songs permanently. Downloads include more than 500,000 songs that span 100 music genres and 50 record labels. Downloading music requires no special software and has no digital rights management restrictions. Songs download in a universally compatible MP3 format so they can be saved to any computer. More information and answers to frequently asked questions about this service as well as information on getting a library card is available at www.piercecountylibrary.org.
17. Free Tax Preparation Services
AARP Tax-Aide, an AARP Foundation program, helps low to moderate income taxpayers have more discretionary income for everyday essentials, such as food and housing, by assisting with tax services and ensuring they receive applicable tax credits and deductions. AARP Tax-Aide is available free to taxpayers with low and moderate income, with special attention to those ages 60 and older. Tax-Aid volunteers will be providing one-on-one tax consultations, no appointments necessary, at the following locations during the designated dates and times:
* Lakewood Library – 6300 Wildaire RD SW, Lakewood
o Saturday, April 9th from 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM
o Friday, April 15th from 12:00 PM – 4:00 PM
* Lacey Library – 500 College Street SE, Lacey
o Saturday, April 9th from 12:00 PM – 4:00 PM
o Tuesday, April 12th from 12:00 PM – 4:00 PM
o Thursday, April 14th from 12:00 PM – 4:00 PM
18. Pierce County Reads Event
Hear old-fashioned storytelling at its best at the DuPont Library on Saturday, April 9th at 1:00 PM. Hear the exciting and often humorous stories of the first two Mount Rainier climbs with Jim Ross from Mount Rainier National Park. This event is part of the Pierce County Reads program.
19. Tourism Update
* The Tourism Board is currently looking for volunteers to help plan our two-day Fall Festival in September. Interested volunteers should contact Amy Walker at awalker@ci.dupont.wa.us. Many helping hands are needed and fresh ideas are always welcome.
* Mark your calendar for Saturday, June 4th to celebrate National Trail Day by walking the Sequalitchew Creek trail! Walking and hiking clubs from the entire Pacific Northwest will be invited to attend. This event will be held in conjunction with the DuPont Fire Department’s Safety Fair. Please watch the City website for event details.