The Tumwater City Council will discuss a proposed agreement with the Port of Olympia that would allow them to declare some of their communications confidential "Protected Material" about the development of the Bush Prairie Habitat Conservation Plan (HCP).
The agreement proposed covers communications between the city and port regarding the Bush Prairie, which includes Olympia Regional Airport and nearby port and city properties.
Several local residents contacted The JOLT concerned about provisions in the draft that would retroactively cover existing documents, declare certain information "Protected Material," and require both the city and the port to notify each other whenever they receive public information requests along with other clauses.
The agreement is shown as a consent agenda item on the agenda for the council's meeting tomorrow, October 3 at 7 p.m., but it will not be included in it.
Councilmember Eileen Swarthout told The JOLT, "Councilmember [Leatta] Dahlhoff and I had some questions about the proposed agreement, and we asked that the item be pulled from the consent calendar and put on council considerations so we'll have time to discuss it."
Tumwater's Council Rules & Procedures requires in section 4.7 states that "any Councilmember may remove any item(s) from the consent agenda for separate discussion and action."
City attorney Karen Kirkpatrick presented the draft agreement to the council but is not expected to participate at tomorrow's meeting, according to Councilmember Dahlhoff. She told The JOLT, "I don't want to vote on it tomorrow," adding, "Why can't we wait until she is present to answer and clarify any questions?"
The Port of Olympia Commission has not scheduled this agreement for discussion or consideration.
The two parties have been jointly developing the HCP since 2016. The HCP is a planning document required to develop habitat areas where species listed under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) occur. The document describes the effect of harming the habitat and proposes measures to mitigate the impact.
The HCP will be submitted to the US Fish and Wildlife Service, which would be expected to issue a "take permit" to authorize the port or city "to harass, harm, pursue, hunt, shoot, wound, kill, trap, capture, or collect" listed species in the course of managing various properties in the Bush Prairie area.
The scope of the agreement includes communications relating to the regulations of and compliance with oversight agencies, as well as applications for an identical take permit. The agreement extends to the two parties' attorneys and relevant consultants.
The draft agreement states that either party may withdraw from the agreement after sending the other a written notice. Any confidential materials obtained by the withdrawing party before its exit would remain protected under the agreement.
To submit a comment to the Tumwater mayor and city council members, send an email to council@ci.tumwater.wa.us, no later than 5:00 p.m. tomorrow. Comments will not be read individually into the record of the meeting, according to the city.
Residents seeking to comment directly to city officials during the meeting must register by 6:45 p.m. tomorrow using this link.
To watch the meeting live online, go to https://tcmedia.org/stream.php, select "Watch, Streaming Now, Channel 26." The meeting will be available over Zoom via this link and enter the Webinar ID 826 0501 1346 and Passcode 973852.
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Larry Dzieza
Excellent article informing the public about an issue of widespread concern that would have likely snuck under the radar (yes, a aeronautical reference appropriate for the airport) by being placed on the "consent" calendar. Consent calendars are supposed to be for routine, non-controversial matters.
Better yet, The JOLT provided an excellent "How to Participate" section. I think that it would be great to have that in all the articles about local government issues. An informed electorate is key to a functioning democracy.
Well done!
Monday, October 2, 2023 Report this
johnvaneenwyk
really, was the pannatoni fiasco not enough for tumwater? or the coca-cola bottling plant? is money all that tumwater cares about, the environment be damned?
that it is not acceptable to the general public is evidenced by resorting to confidential agreements.
what's next? financial arrangements with narco-traffickers?
Tuesday, October 3, 2023 Report this
ejpoleii
Looks like the Port is trying to sneak something in. There are state and federal laws and rules. Were they addressed? Typical governmental bureaucracy that tries to avoid what private individuals have to obey. This is not just an "environmental" issue. There are legal issues here that are complex. Laws are laws. Rules are rules. They apply to everyone including governmental bureaucrats.
Tuesday, October 3, 2023 Report this
Tom_Hyde
That’s not a good look. Tumwater City Administrator Lisa Parks was with Port for two years as Executive Services Director and Environmental Programs Director before joining the city in June. Why would the city and the port feel a need to do this? The lack of transparency on an attempt to restrict transparency, even retroactively, was obviously going to cause community concern, if not outrage. Seems, at best, a significant misstep. Very strange and begs many questions.
Tuesday, October 3, 2023 Report this
rhenda
Why is the Port always so squirrelly? Really? Not a rhetorical question. We elect people we think are sensible and respect the public and the next thing we know they've eaten the squirrel treats and we see this kind of thing. It's confounding.
Tuesday, October 3, 2023 Report this
Southsoundguy
The problem is that ports exist at all.
Tuesday, October 3, 2023 Report this