City council hands out awards
Published 2:03 pm Thursday, October 2, 2008
SNOQUALMIE – They were in a giving mood at the Snoqualmie City Council meeting Monday night.
The mayor, City Council members and city staff all received awards for their work on the Snoqualmie Preservation Initiative (SPI), an agreement between the city, King County, Weyerhaeuser Real Estate Co., the Cascade Land Conservancy and Puget Western Inc. that would preserve nearly 10,000 acres of land in and outside the city, including 145 acres near Snoqualmie Falls.
Snoqualmie was named an Earth City by County Executive Ron Sims as part of the county’s Earth Legacy 2001 program, and Mayor Fuzzy Fletcher was singled out by Sims for his work on the initiative, receiving an Earth Hero award.
After reading a portion of Fletcher’s award, Councilwoman Colleen Johnson told him, “I think it’s an honor for you, and one the whole city should be proud of.”
She also presented an award to the City Council from the Cascade Land Conservancy, commending the council for its involvement in the agreement. Johnson said the SPI demanded a lot of work, but it was worth it.
“It’s been a long road, and it’s been one that keeps everyone satisfied that Snoqualmie’s centerpiece, which the Falls is, is protected,” she said.
The City Council honored Pat Anderson, city attorney, Nancy Tucker, director of planning, and Gary Armstrong, city administrator, for their work on completing the complex agreement. Each one received a certificate of recognition.
“We had no idea the scope of what you were actually dealing with,” said Councilwoman Cathy Reed.
Armstrong, speaking on behalf of the three city employees, said council members deserved much of the credit.
“It’s only with the leadership and the ability of the council and mayor that we were able to achieve this,” he said.
In other news, Fletcher said the state Office of Financial Management reported that the cityOs actual population was 3,416, a number much higher than that contained in the 2000 Census, which listed the city’s population at 1,610.
“We’re up quite a bit,” Fletcher said. “Thank goodness we had to do our own recount.
