OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Bainbridge Island City Council Regular Business Meeting - August 25, 2026

City Council — Tuesday, August 25, 2026
BodyBainbridge Island, Washington
SessionCity Council
DateTuesday, August 25, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:13:43

Transcript — Verbatim
0:00

It is being proposed to move item 5D as in dog to regular business between current items B and C.

0:08

Is that my standing?

0:09

Okay.

0:10

That's my motion.

0:10

Second.

0:11

Okay.

0:12

Are we all clear now?

0:14

Very good.

0:15

Any further discussion?

0:16

I hope not.

0:17

All right.

0:17

All in favor, please say aye.

0:19

Aye.

0:20

Aye.

0:20

Opposed.

0:21

Council vote 60.

0:22

The chair votes aye.

0:23

70.

0:24

Now the amended agenda has been approved.

0:27

Is there any contact of interest to discuss tonight?

0:30

Deputy Mary Tapas.

0:33

Okay.

0:33

Right.

0:34

Okay.

0:34

So move to a couple of presentations.

0:36

And as a chair, I'm connected to both of these, so I will read these tonight.

0:41

Um.

0:43

First, I'm quite excited about.

0:45

This is presenting a certificate of achievement to Logan Maxwell, Ego Scout completion of his Ego Scout project.

0:51

And if I may ask, Logan, would you come forward and share with uh what you did for our city?

0:58

Yes.

0:58

Go to the go to the podium over here and okay, am I speaking?

1:04

Okay.

1:05

Um so for my Eagle Scout project, part of Troop 1496, I redid the sign at Ego Harbor Waterfront Park.

1:12

The previous sign was um directly behind the senior center, and it was in a very deteriorating shape.

1:20

It was starting to lean forward, it was becoming a little bit of a safety issue, and it was also in the way of the senior center expansion project, which I've been reading about and hearing about.

1:29

We weren't completely sure if it was going to happen, but we still decided to take the old sign out and replace it with a new sign about 150 feet to the left, right where a pathway is beyond the senior center, so it wouldn't be in the way, and it would represent that section of the park very well.

1:48

The sign itself, I had originally contacted Clarence.

1:51

You did very great job.

1:53

Thank you for hearing me out on the project and supporting me to keep kind of keep the project going and point me in the right direction with the city, because this was the first time that I was working with the city, and I know you guys were working with a youth member of the community, and we were able to kind of contact each other and um start to work out details of the project.

2:15

It just went very smoothly, so I'd like to thank you, Clarence, and thank you, City, um, for helping me out with this tremendous project and helping me achieve the rank of Eagle Scout, the highest rank and award in Scouting America.

2:29

Thank you, guys.

2:29

So Logan, have you been uh had your court of honor yet?

2:32

Do you know after life?

2:33

Still working on my Eagle Scout project.

2:35

I am targeting end of October.

2:37

All right to have Eagle Scout.

2:38

Once you're done now, you've then you'll have your border review and then you'll Yes.

2:42

Okay, you're almost there.

2:43

I am I try to get the project out of the way as soon as I could.

2:47

Um, just because the hardest part of the project I wanted to have time to do everything else.

2:51

Sure.

2:51

Yeah.

2:52

So stay there.

2:53

I'm gonna come and read you this uh Eagle Scout recognition.

2:56

This is a certified that the city of Bainbridge Island congratulates and commends Logan Maxwell in recognition of your efforts and contribution to the sustainability of the city of Bainbridge Island and for matorious achievement in achieving the rank of Eagle Scouts of America, dated August 25th, 2026, signed by me.

3:13

So come down here and take a picture.

3:15

All right, and I have one more thing.

3:34

I'd like to thank Adam here.

3:36

He helped me basically coordinate with the city and go through different people.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Comprehensive Planning█████████████████████████████████████████41%
Affordable Housing███████████████████████23%
Procedural█████████9%
Public Engagement█████████9%
Water And Wastewater Management████4%
Personnel Matters████4%
Senior Community Centers███3%
Parks and Recreation█1%
Pending Litigation█1%
Summary of Proceedings

Bainbridge Island City Council Regular Business Meeting - August 25, 2026

The Bainbridge Island City Council held a regular business meeting on August 25, 2026, at 6:00 PM in Council Chambers and via Zoom. The meeting included presentations, public comments, approvals, and discussions on key items such as interim development regulations, the Comprehensive Plan update, and the extension of a bonus floor area ratio program.

Presentations

  • Eagle Scout Certificate of Achievement: The Council presented a certificate to Logan Maxwell for completing his Eagle Scout project, which involved relocating and replacing the sign at Eagle Harbor Waterfront Park.
  • Senior Center Month Proclamation: The Council proclaimed September 2026 as Senior Center Month. City staff and community partners received the proclamation.

Consent Agenda

  • Approved the agenda as amended (moving item 5D to regular business).
  • Approved accounts payable and payroll, meeting minutes, and cancellation of the September 1, 2026 study session.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Angela Bennick (Kitsap Public Utility District): Urged the Council to expedite an interlocal agreement for a water intertie to support the South Bainbridge water system, citing reliability and emergency preparedness needs. Noted that the Utility Advisory Committee (UAC) has not yet provided a recommendation after four months.
  • Mary Heckman: Suggested that the Council, not the interim city manager, make decisions on the Lehigh master development plan extension. Recommended a 2- to 3-month extension to allow time for a second legal opinion on the contract's design-build nature.
  • David Schultz: Supported a short-term extension for Lehigh, arguing that failing to extend does not void the contract and allows the new city manager to assess the project.
  • Ellen Lockard: Encouraged the Council to have an outside expert review the Lehigh agreement, citing potential risks and the need for careful spending of tax dollars.
  • Lisa Neal: Expressed concerns about the intertie's impact on groundwater and sewer capacity, questioning whether mandatory inclusionary zoning (2026-10) would worsen the situation compared to the builder's remedy. Requested better quantification of impacts.
  • Phaedra Elliott (Housing Resources Bainbridge): Expressed support for the interim development regulations, particularly the mandatory inclusionary zoning provisions, and urged flexibility in refining the ordinance this fall. Highlighted the importance of parking flexibility and financial feasibility for affordable housing developers.
  • Don Jano: Criticized the lack of early and continuous public participation in adopting interim zoning ordinance 2026-10, citing a recent Growth Management Hearings Board ruling in Port Townsend. Argued the emergency claim does not meet legal thresholds.

Discussion Items

  • Ordinance 2026-10 – Interim Development Regulations (7:00 PM): The Council discussed and adopted an interim ordinance that includes mandatory inclusionary zoning for developments of 10+ units (10% at 50-80% AMI and 10% at 80-110% AMI). A motion to amend the income bands to "up to 80% AMI" and "up to 110% AMI" failed 4-3. The original ordinance passed 6-1, with Councilmember Nelson dissenting. The public hearing was rescheduled from October 13 to September 22, 2026.
  • Comprehensive Plan Update (7:15 PM): Interim Planning Director Emily Terrell presented a timeline and key milestones, including the need for a land capacity analysis with mandatory inclusionary zoning, supplemental environmental impact statements, and addressing Department of Commerce concerns. The Council approved a study session on September 1, 2026, to discuss modeling assumptions.
  • Ordinance 2026-11 – Bonus Floor Area Ratio Extension (7:30 PM): The Council discussed extending the sunset provisions for the bonus FAR program (Ordinance 2021-10) until June 30, 2027. The item was forwarded to the September 8, 2026 consent agenda for final approval.
  • Appointments to Human Services Funding Advisory Task Force (7:45 PM): The Council unanimously approved the appointments of Brian Lindgren, Bert Rinderley, Marcy Lynn, Cynthia Huffman, and Teo Welde to the task force for the 2027-2028 funding cycle.

Key Outcomes

  • Ordinance 2026-10 adopted: 6-1 (Nelson nay). Public hearing set for September 22, 2026.
  • Comprehensive Plan study session approved: September 1, 2026, at 6:00 PM.
  • Ordinance 2026-11 forwarded: To September 8, 2026 consent agenda (vote 7-0).
  • Human Services Funding Advisory Task Force appointments approved unanimously.

Meeting Transcript

It is being proposed to move item 5D as in dog to regular business between current items B and C. Is that my standing? Okay. That's my motion. Second. Okay. Are we all clear now? Very good. Any further discussion? I hope not. All right. All in favor, please say aye. Aye. Aye. Opposed. Council vote 60. The chair votes aye. 70. Now the amended agenda has been approved. Is there any contact of interest to discuss tonight? Deputy Mary Tapas. Okay. Right. Okay. So move to a couple of presentations. And as a chair, I'm connected to both of these, so I will read these tonight. Um. First, I'm quite excited about. This is presenting a certificate of achievement to Logan Maxwell, Ego Scout completion of his Ego Scout project. And if I may ask, Logan, would you come forward and share with uh what you did for our city? Yes. Go to the go to the podium over here and okay, am I speaking? Okay. Um so for my Eagle Scout project, part of Troop 1496, I redid the sign at Ego Harbor Waterfront Park. The previous sign was um directly behind the senior center, and it was in a very deteriorating shape. It was starting to lean forward, it was becoming a little bit of a safety issue, and it was also in the way of the senior center expansion project, which I've been reading about and hearing about. We weren't completely sure if it was going to happen, but we still decided to take the old sign out and replace it with a new sign about 150 feet to the left, right where a pathway is beyond the senior center, so it wouldn't be in the way, and it would represent that section of the park very well. The sign itself, I had originally contacted Clarence. You did very great job. Thank you for hearing me out on the project and supporting me to keep kind of keep the project going and point me in the right direction with the city, because this was the first time that I was working with the city, and I know you guys were working with a youth member of the community, and we were able to kind of contact each other and um start to work out details of the project. It just went very smoothly, so I'd like to thank you, Clarence, and thank you, City, um, for helping me out with this tremendous project and helping me achieve the rank of Eagle Scout, the highest rank and award in Scouting America. Thank you, guys. So Logan, have you been uh had your court of honor yet? Do you know after life? Still working on my Eagle Scout project. I am targeting end of October. All right to have Eagle Scout. Once you're done now, you've then you'll have your border review and then you'll Yes. Okay, you're almost there. I am I try to get the project out of the way as soon as I could.

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