Glacier Northwest

There’s no shortage of gravel

In the Aug. 19 issue of The Beachcomber, Kate Hunter asked important questions about our need for sand and gravel and options available for environmentally responsible access to the resource.

I wanted to offer a bit of information that I hope answers her questions — particularly in relation to Maury Island and Glacier Northwest’s proposed mining project.

Due to the grade of the material and state regulations, the gravel at the Glacier site cannot be used to make concrete or to build roads; it can only be used as basic fill material. In fact, that’s the only application the materials were ever used for. Not only is there very little in-state demand for this material, simple dirt and recycled glass can be used instead.

As for the materials we need for road and construction projects, I echo Kate’s thoughts. As a society we need to ensure that our aggregate consumption is done with a commitment to environmental protection.

In the course of our fight against Glacier, Preserve Our Islands identified multiple sites that could be used as environmentally responsible replacements to the Maury property. Information on each was offered to Glacier. However, each viable option was dismissed outright.

Finally, although the industry would like you to believe otherwise, we have no shortage of construction aggregates here. In fact, a recent study by the Canadian government found a high volume of supply available in active mining sites throughout the Puget Sound region.

Coupled with the use of recycled aggregates, there is little current need for expanded mining operations throughout the region, unless, of course, like Glacier or the Fred Hill proposal in Hood Canal, the interest may be to barge materials out of the state or country for corporate profits.

— Amy Carey, president, Preserve Our Islands

Homelessness

VIPP’s no waste of resources

As a Vashon Island Pet Protectors volunteer, I read the letter contrasting Vashon-Maury’s commitment to homeless people versus pets with a feeling of frustration.

No one would deny that homelessness in this country is an enormous problem and we could all do more to ensure that everyone has a key to their own door.

However, I don’t see the work that Vashon Island Pet Protectors does as a waste of resources. Humans develop deep bonds with their pets and suffer when they can no longer care for them. The least we can do for those whose lives have taken a turn for the worse is to spare them the misery of dropping off a beloved cat or dog at the pound where it will likely be killed.

VIPP has been there for people who have to move because of evictions and foreclosures. We take in pets of people who have to enter the nursing home or those who go into drug rehabilitation or jail. Recently VIPP volunteers arranged for a cat to re-join a relocated military family who thought they would have to give her up.

Providing care and services for dogs and cats is a mission of compassion for the people in our community and not just for the dogs and cats themselves.

— Leslie Frye

Historic school building

Wonderful gym will be missed

Time has run out. The old historic gym, which proudly sat on a grassy field north of town for nearly 100 years, will be gone forever. Built in 1919 out of what is now called “old growth” douglas fir trees felled near the site, the building is a fine example of wooden structures built near the turn of the century. And it was the only one of its kind left in the state.

Up until a few years ago, my family enjoyed classes and activities in that old gym, soaking up the warmth of old wooden walls that have seen many generations playing on the fir floor below. It’s not hard to imagine how it once looked with light streaming in the windows, now boarded up. It’s easy to imagine what it could look like again. I have missed being inside that gym since the school district locked it up due to disrepair a few years ago. It is my favorite public building on the Island.

Now we have lost this piece of Island history. Neither the school district (which owns it) or the park district (which manages the property) had use for the building or the resources to repair it. It has been left to private citizens to step forward and take on the task of organizing, fundraising and putting together an operating plan to save it. That didn’t happen, and now time has run out.

I will miss that wonderful, old gym.

— Glenna Mileson

Gym was a treasure

Sorry to see the old gym go. I remember first seeing the building about 1955, when I was 6.

My father had driven me there to watch what I believe was some kind of renovation. I was under the impression that it was an old school building being cleaned up. But it was our gym in the ’50s, and it seemed like an old building then.

It was a rainy day recess center with years of class pictures taken on the wood bleachers. We made use of the outside also, kicking balls up onto the roof and playing dodge ball against the building. It represents Vashon’s unique sense of community in its construction and long use.

May the laughter of the children long echo in our memories.

— Larry Trotter