REPORTER
Mercer Island
Serving the Mercer Island community since 1947
Streets, sidewalks fill with signs
Election results for the Aug. 7 primary election will be available online at www.mi-reporter.com. The election will take place on Tuesday, after the Reporter’s Monday evening deadline. All ballots must be postmarked by Aug. 7 to be counted in the election.
Political signs add to growing number of business signs
Blue Angels closures this weekend
MISD School Board meeting Thursday The Mercer Island School District Board of Directors will hold their first meeting of August this Thursday, Aug. 2, at 7 p.m.
No farmers market this Sunday, Aug. 5 The Mercer Island Farmers Market will not be held this Sunday, Aug. 5, due to Seafair. The market will return next Sunday, Aug. 12.
Arts Council art reception Monday, Aug. 6 The Mercer Island Arts Council will hold a reception on Monday, Aug. 6, from 4:30 to 6 p.m. at the Mercer Island Community and Event Center. The reception is in honor of the installation of the Apollo spacecraft sculpture, “Orbits and Pieces.”
By Brita Moore
bmoore@mi-reporter.com
Megan Managan/Staff Photo
Kids at ‘Beyond the Gold,’ the Mercer Island Covenant Church’s Vacation Bible Camp, play soccer with coach Amy Franke on Friday morning in Mercerdale Park, July 27, 2012.
Sound Transit floats idea of paying at park-and-ride By Megan Managan
mmanagan@mi-reporter.com
Mercer Islanders who try to use the park-and-ride in the morning, but who don’t beat the early rush hour commute, typically can’t find a spot. The lot, which has 447 parking spots on two levels, is consistently at capacity throughout the work week, and sometimes during the weekend for special events. Sound Transit said last week they are considering the possibility of charging to park at the various park-andrides throughout King and Pierce Counties. While nothing specific has been planned or set up, the change wouldn’t happen until at least 2013 or later, and it’s possible those looking to park could pay between $2 and $4, or use a monthly permit.
The idea is to encourage more people to use other forms of transit, like biking, walking or carpooling, to get to the transit stations before continuing on to their final destination, freeing up spots in the lots. When asked on Facebook if Islanders use the park-and-ride, Jon Hanlon responded, saying, “it really isn’t worth the trouble, since half of Bellevue uses the park-andride on MI.” While nothing specific has been discussed with the City of Mercer Island concerning the possibility of paying to park, Mercer Island City Manager Rich Conrad said they have had discussions in the past about the park-and-ride and the fact that it is routinely full. Almost all of the Sound Transit park-and-rides, especially in the South Sound, are at capacity on a daily basis.
“It’s not the first time I’ve heard of discussions with Sound Transit with the concept of paying to park,” said Conrad. “Over the last couple of years, we’ve pointed out that a lot of the people who are parking in the park-and-ride are from cities and businesses east of us. We’ve asked if they ever do consider going to a pay to park model that there be some Mercer Island-only spaces or some kind of designation to allow Islanders to be able to park.” Conrad said ideally there would be a way to give preference to Islanders looking to use the parkand-ride, and others would have to pay, but it is not a system used at any of the current park-andrides throughout the county. “That’s been our concept,” said Conrad. Currently, drivers who park at the park-and-ride on the Island only have access to buses, but like other transit stations to the south, eventually the area will also serve the light rail station. Construction
As political campaigning picks up steam for the fall elections, it is hard not to notice the growing number of signs scattered all over the Island. However, a large number of larger A-frame signs have appeared over the last several months. As of last week, there were 51 such signs counted on the Island, advertising for a variety of camps, events and businesses. While there is no official limit to the number of signs allowed, there are a few guidelines.
Signs | Page 2
REPORTER
This weekend, the Blue Angels will be in town for Seafair, which means various Interstate 90 closures. I-90 will close on Thursday, Aug. 2, from 9:45 a.m. to noon and from 1:15 to 2:30 p.m. for the practice session. On Friday, Saturday and Sunday (Aug. 3-5), the road will be closed from 12:45 to 2:40 p.m.
Mercer Island
Election results online next week
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Wednesday, August 1, 2012 | 75¢
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Park & Ride | Page 4
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