A petition with 166 validated signatures was presented to the Whatcom County Auditor’s Office at the end of May this year to allow voters to decide on the formation of a Lummi Island Park & Recreation District. The proposed district, according to a story on Lummi-Island.com, stemmed from a desire to finance the building and maintaining of “a facility that could be home to a variety of activities and events such as senior programs, before school, daycare and after school care, community classrooms, visiting nurses, and YMCA programs.”
As a result of successfully petitioning the County (only 115 signatures were required) and after a public hearing, Whatcom County Council adopted an ordinance calling for voters to determine whether the district should be formed and if a property tax levy of $0.60 per $1,000 of assessed valuation (e.g. $180/yr for a property assessed at $300,000) shall be imposed for a 6-year period to fund recreational facilities.
Property valuations for the island are approximately $250,000,000 according to the Whatcom County Assessor’s Office. At $0.60 per $1,000, the levy can be expected to raise approximately $150,000 per year and $900,000 over the 6-year period.
The proposed Lummi Island Park & Recreation District would be managed by 5 elected commissioners. This means, in addition to voting on the district on the November 7 General Election ballot, Lummi Island voters will also be asked to vote on the candidates for the 5 commissioner positions so they will be in place in the event the district is approved by the voters.
The Auditor’s Office recently announced a special 3-day filing period for candidates for the commissioner positions. Candidates can file between 8:30am on Wednesday, August 2nd to 4:30pm on Friday, August 4th. Candidates can file online or in-person at the Auditor’s Office. Commissioners are empowered to, per RCW 36.69.120, “Initiate, direct and administer district park and recreation activities, and select and employ such properly qualified employees as it may deem necessary.”
If voters do not approve the formation of the park district, election of the five commissioners would be considered null and void.