October 7 -13, 2021
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Community Newspaper of Blaine and Birch Bay HHHECRWSSHHH Postal Customer
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Drayton Harbor Oyster Company expands, page 3
School board candidates, page 6
PRSRT STD U. S. Postage PAID Permit NO. 87 Blaine, WA 98230
County council at-large candidates, page 15
First responders parade through Birch Bay Birch Bay Realty donates to future library By Grace McCarthy With the goal to create a community hub in central Birch Bay, a local real estate company is donating big to the future Birch Bay Vogt Community Library. As of late September, Birch Bay Realty owner and managing broker Ron Kulman and broker James Danger are now contributing 5 percent of commissions to the future library. Kulman is a former agent at Birch Bay Village Realty and purchased the company which developed Birch Bay Village, and changed its name at the beginning of June. Kulman had two aspirations for the company: Expand its market into Whatcom County while continuing to connect with the Birch Bay community. “We were looking for a project we could really get behind,” Kulman said. “This is something we really believe in.” Kulman said the company will donate a portion of its commissions until at least December 31, 2022. Commissions could bring in about $500 for an average Birch Bay home during the strong housing market, he said. A ballot measure that could fund the Birch Bay library will be on November 2 general election ballots. If passed, Proposition 14 would establish a Birch Bay Library Capital Facility Area (LCFA) that would increase property taxes by 11 cents per $1,000 for Birch Bay homeowners. The library is estimated to cost $6.5 million. To defray costs, Friends of the Birch Bay Library (FOBBL) secured a $2 million state appropriation that expires at the end of 2023. Proposition 14 would pay for the remaining costs. Regardless of whether the measure passes, Kulman said they’re committed to donating commissions. Holly Witte, FOBBL director, said since the LCFA only funds library construction, donations would then go toward expenses such as books and staffing costs. Donations would also reduce the amount of time property owners would pay the LCFA tax if it passes.
s First responders and emergency vehicles paraded through Birch Bay October 5 for National Night Out, an event across the U.S. that celebrates creating community between first responders and neighborhoods. North Whatcom Fire and Rescue, Blaine Police Department, Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office and Blaine-Birch Bay Park and Recreation District 2 started the one-hour parade at Birch Bay Waterslides. Photo by Grace McCarthy
(See Library, page 5)
(See Funds, page 2)
City submits ARPA funding requests to county Blaine City Council unanimously approved city manager Michael Jones to submit two requests to Whatcom County to use the county’s American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds. The city is requesting $2.5 million for a sewer rehabilitation project in the Lettered Street neighborhood, part of the large east Blaine sewer project, and $500,000 for a North Harvey Road water pump station. Their $2.5 million ARPA funds would pay for only one-third of the estimated $7.5 million east Blaine sewer project. The project is needed to support current residents, in addition to east Blaine construction that is expected to bring 1,400 homes in the next 15
years. The city of Blaine’s public works department alerted council of the dilapidated east Blaine sewer in March 2021, after sewage leaked into streets west and southwest of Blaine school district in summer 2020. The project will require repairing existing lines, some that are 90-years-old, and will add a new 1,550-foot line. The city is still finding funding resources to pay for the sewer project, but anticipates borrowing most of the money, using $500,000 from the city of Blaine’s ARPA funds and applying for a $500,000 capital allocation from the state. “The city would still be contributing the lion’s share of funding to develop that project,” Jones said during the meeting. The North Harvey Road water pump
Former Whatcom corrections deputy pleads guilty to smuggling contraband, gets one-month sentence By Ian Haupt A former Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office (WCSO) corrections deputy from Blaine was sentenced September 28 to one month in jail for smuggling items into the jail for a female inmate. Christopher Frederic Baetz, 42, pleaded guilty last week in Whatcom County Superior Court to introducing contraband in the second degree and was sentenced
to one month in jail, according to court documents. Baetz will serve his sentence on electronic home monitoring through Friendship Diversion Services. WCSO spokesperson Deb Slater said in an email to The Northern Light that Baetz was placed on administrative leave following his arrest February 8. He resigned April 20 before the completion of an administrative investigation. Slater said the findings of the completed investigation determined
that discipline was warranted and would have resulted in the termination of Baetz employment as a corrections deputy. Baetz had worked for the sheriff’s office since 2006. On February 7, an inmate at the minimum-security Whatcom County Work Center handed a letter to another corrections deputy relating to concerns about (See Deputy, page 3)
will serve areas adjacent to and east of the road, according to a memo Jones prepared for city council. The $500,000 of county ARPA funds would only pay for one-third of the estimated $1.5 million project. As east Blaine development increases demand for water usage, the city will increase the number of pumps in the area, according to the memo. The city had also considered asking for money for the downtown streetscape rehabilitation project, Jones said, but ultimately decided the project didn’t fall into the full purview of the county’s ARPA funds. The city is still looking for $500,000 for the $1.7 million project. “We’re going to look at that
INSIDE
By Grace McCarthy
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