Open Space purchases proposed




	Aug. 16, 2001 Open Space purchases proposed King County Executive Ron Sims today recommended funds for open space purchases to ensure protection of salmon and wildlife habitat, preservation of open spaces and rural forestry and providing recreational and outdoor education opportunities. The purchases would be made possible through existing Conservation Futures funds. “With the help of a regional citizens' group, we reviewed more than $17 million in requests from King County, the City of Seattle and the suburban cities for $9.6 million in available funds,” said Sims. “We looked at the requests in terms of open space resources, the threat of losing those resources, the timeliness of opportunities presented in the proposals, identified matching funds and the geographic equity in the distribution of the funds. These efforts preserve critical open spaces and contribute to the quality of life in our region.” Conservation Futures tax levy funds are a dedicated portion of property taxes in King County and are available, by statute, only for acquisition of conservation lands. The citizens committee, composed of 16 members, one from each County Council district and three at-large members of the County, make annual recommendations on allocations. Conservation Futures Citizens Committee Chair Carol James explained, “We closely reviewed 33 proposals from King County and it cities, including six evening and weekend field trips to visit the applicant sites. We are excited about the wide range of projects we saw, and our recommendations includes habitat for threatened salmon in the watersheds of the Snoqualmie, Cedar and Green Rivers, rural forests, and urban open spaces that make our cities more livable.” Sims said, based on the citizens’ recommendations, he is proposing funding for 23 projects including: Protection of salmon habitat on Rock Creek in the Cedar River Watershed, at Kanaskat on the Green River, on the Tolt River in Carnation and on Newaukum Creek in Enumclaw; Acquisition of develop rights to protect the 446-acre Ames Lake Forest overlooking the Snoqualmie River, adjacent to Tolt-MacDonald Park; Several open spaces in the City of Seattle, including a new 3.7-acre open space for the Northgate urban village; a three acre natural area on Hitts Hill in the Rainier Valley; a 10-acre addition to the West Duwamish Greenbelt in West Seattle overlooking the Duwamish waterway; a 1.9-acre wooded greenbelt along Thornton Creek in Northeast Seattle; and four other community open spaces in high density neighborhoods; and Several suburban city projects, including acquisition of scenic and historic 336-acre Tollgate Farm in North Bend; an 80-acre completion of Clark Lake Park on the rapidly developing east Kent plateau; additions to the Bellevue Greenway system; and the 57-acre Beaver Lake natural area in the City of Sammamish. The recommendations go to the King County Council for further consideration. » List of proposed projects (25K rich-text file .rtf) Updated: Aug. 16, 2001 Executive's home \| Executive's news Executive's e-mail King County \| Executive \| News \| Services \| Comments \| Search Links to external sites do not constitute endorsements by King County. By visiting this and other King County web pages, you expressly agree to be bound by terms and conditions of the site. The details.