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Community Newspaper of Blaine and Birch Bay
July 6 - 12, 2023
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Blaine and Birch Bay crime, page 3
County council meeting roundup, page 5
PRSRT STD U. S. Postage PAID Permit NO. 87 Blaine, WA 98230
Fourth of July photos, pages 8-10
Blaine Harbor Fourth of July celebration takes over Blaine Music Festival returns July 9-15 By Madisun Tobisch
(See Festival, page 2)
s Mikael Kenoyer throws candy from the Blaine Community Theater float during Blaine’s Old-Fashioned Fourth of July parade along Peace Portal Drive. Thousands of people donning red, white and blue attended the Independence Day celebration sponsored by Blaine Chamber of Commerce in downtown Blaine. Festivities included a pancake breakfast, car show, street fair, live music and book sale. See more Fourth of July photos on pages 8-10. Photo by Louise Mugar
Blaine City Council tables vote on further research into downtown zoning changes By Grace McCarthy A debate on whether the city should make zoning changes that would increase the building height on the west side of Peace Portal Drive as well as reduce parking requirements is ongoing in Blaine City Council. City council was slated to vote during its June 26 meeting on zoning code recommendations proposed by the ad-hoc downtown development committee but tabled the vote to the July 10 council meeting. Councilmembers said during the meeting that they pushed the vote to allow two absent councilmembers, Garth Baldwin and Eric Davidson, to vote and to gather more information. The committee recommends reducing the required residential parking by half. The parking proposal would also look into building a municipal parking garage, according to city documents. The building height recommendations would allow rooftop recreational amenities and appurtenances to extend above a building. The recommendations would also give developers the option to increase building heights if they fund additional public amenities such as a boardwalk, widened sidewalks, benches, water features or other amenities, according to
city documents. If approved by council, the resolution wouldn’t immediately greenlight the downtown zoning changes. The resolution would merely be a nod from council to the ad-hoc committee’s recommendations, including them in the 2023 land use legislative work program, which would be subjected to further review by the public, planning commission and council. Council approved forming an ad-hoc downtown advisory committee last fall to discuss proposed policy changes, code amendments and provide city staff with recommendations for downtown development. Impetus to change the downtown zoning, which was last updated in 2018 after seven years of public process, came after developers told city staff current zoning impacted their ability to build. Seated on the ad-hoc committee were Canadian architect Bruno Freschi, Port of Bellingham employee Greg McHenry, former planning commissioner Susan Sturgill, builder and business owner Scott Meaker, developer Gurdeep (Zeal) Bains, business owner Mia Richardson and Glen Pentland, who is a resident of the Salishan neighborhood adjacent to downtown. Davidson served as the councilmember and Kevin Owens served as the planning com-
missioner on the committee. Council discussion Council discussed the zoning changes during its June 26 work-study session before the council meeting. During the discussion, councilmember Mike Hill brought up concerns that Davidson, who attended half of the eight ad-hoc committee meetings, did not represent the city well. “It’s really hard to run a business downtown because we don’t get any help from (See Zoning page 6)
INSIDE
People out and about in Blaine July 9-15 will have the opportunity to hear worldclass artists perform daily – for free. The Blaine Harbor Music Festival is back in full swing with more participants and events than years prior. Pacific Arts Association (PAA) is the nonprofit behind organizing the week-long event where campers ages 12-20 are offered a wide selection of music lessons. The music instructors put on public concerts every day at noon at G Street Plaza and 7 p.m. at several locations. Campers’ talents are showcased during public performances at the end of the week. The festival and camp started in the early 2000s and continued until Covid-19 halted operations in 2020. The following two years were spent scaling up to pre-pandemic levels. “We’re coming back big time this year with the most that we’ve had in a very long time,” PAA co-president Kitty King said. Camp registration is still open and organizers are happy with the goal-exceeding turnout, King said, adding that she will recruit campers as late as opening day. Among the evening concerts is Rockin’ the G Street Plaza, a Semiahmoo Golf and Country Club Big Band swing dance and the campers’ Friday showcase. Rockin’ the G Street Plaza is a new event that King said is sure to draw a crowd. The high-energy music event is free and will start at 7 p.m. Wednesday, July 12. Food and beer will be available for purchase. The event will also coincide with Blaine Chamber of Commerce’s Night Market by the Sea that will sell local products 5-9 p.m. on the plaza. A ticketed event will take place Thursday evening, so plan ahead. A swing dance will start at 7 p.m. in the outdoor pavilion of Semiahmoo Golf and Country Club. The event features legendary Greg Hopkins directing the Big Band with special guests Greta Matassa and Clipper Anderson. There will be appetizers, desserts and a cash bar. Tickets can be purchased for $50 at blaineharbormusicfestival.org. Camp students will demonstrate what they learned during a 7 p.m. Friday performance at the Blaine Performing Arts Center, 975 H Street. King said this event is often the most fulfilling for students. Don’t forget to wish the staff and campers farewell at the last event of the week. Jazzby-the-Sea brings free student music performances and an arts street fair from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at G Street Plaza. For a full concert schedule and performers, visit the festival website, blaineharbormusicfestival.org. Professional singer and songwriter Camille Bloom is one of the renowned musicians instructing the camp. Bloom has returned for every camp since she was invited over 10 years ago. “Staff and community at this camp are so closely knit, it feels like a homecoming every
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