As 2015 begins and 2014 becomes history, the Central Kitsap Reporter and the Bremerton Patriot newspapers are taking a look back at the top headlines of 2014. The Editorial Advisory Board of both papers helped the news staff to make choices about the news that rose to the top in 2014. Summaries of those stories below came from previously published stories in both papers.
The top stories of 2014 are:
• The Jenise Wright murder
Gabriel Gaeta, a 17-year-old star high school wrestler, was charged with the rape and murder of six-year-old Jenise Wright in what was probably the most heartbreaking news story of the year.
The child had last been seen on Saturday, Aug. 2, in her Bremerton home, and was reported missing by her parents the following evening.
FBI, Washington State Patrol, and local police teamed up to investigate the child’s disappearance, with Jenise’s parents being asked to undergo a lie detector test at one point during the investigation.
Her body was found on Thursday, Aug. 7, in a wooded area near the family home. Gaeta, a neighbor of the Wright family in the Steele Creek Mobile Park in East Bremerton, was arrested and charged with murder and rape of a child two days later, after investigators found DNA evidence linking him to the crime.
Gaeta is being tried as an adult and currently awaiting trail for aggravated first-degree murder and aggravated rape.
• “Red Tide” election of County Commissioner Ed Wolfe and Prosecutor Tina Robinson
The Nov. 4 general election resulted in two real nail biters. The “Red Tide” that swept the nation may have flowed through Kitsap County’s prosecuting attorney and county commission races, but certainly not by a landslide.
Republican Tina Robinson squeezed out a victory against Democrat incumbent Russ Hauge, who was seeking his sixth term as Kitsap County prosecuting attorney.
Republican Edward Wolfe also scored a narrow victory against his opponent Democrat Linda Streissguth for a commissioner seat in District 3 on the Kitsap County Board of Commissioners.
• Location selected for new Silverdale Library
In August, the board of the Kitsap Regional Library chose a Bucklin Hill Road location, referred to as the Clear Creek site due to its location parallel to the creek, among four possible locations for a new Silverdale Library.
Other options included two county-owned locations on the Central Kitsap Community Campus, and an existing structure on Randall Way, behind the Silverdale YMCA.
Following the August decision, the KRL board unanimously voted to purchase the property located at the corner of Bucklin Hill Road and Blaine Avenue at a meeting on Nov. 25.
The decision came after a request for a stay on the decision from Rob MacDermid, a long-time vocal advocate for the Central Kitsap Community Campus. According to MacDermid, the site Clear Creek selection ignored public sentiment.
Library officials said it will cost over $6 million to acquire the privately-owned 1.14 acre property and build and equip the proposed 10,000-square-foot library. Construction could begin as early as fall of 2016.
• Harrison Hospital affiliates with Franciscan; announces plans to consolidate hospitals in Silverdale; has tough contract negotiations with its healthcare workers
Harrison Medical Center is undergoing major changes after its merger with Tacoma-based Franciscan Health System last year.
In November, Harrison’s Board of Directors finalized its decision to consolidate its hospitals in Silverdale and Bremerton. The two hospitals are located seven miles from each other and offer many of the same services. Harrison officials predict the consolidation will amount to at least $10 million to $15 million in savings per year.
The new hospital will be located in Silverdale. The company asked for input from the community to determine which outpatient services to continue offering in Bremerton and expects recommendations from the Bremerton community in the spring of 2015.
Aside from deciding to consolidate the two hospitals, Harrison has also been battling with insurance company, Regence, as well as its own employees. Harrison and Regence failed to reach an agreement regarding reimbursement costs, thereby terminating their contract on Aug. 22, transforming Harrison into an “out of network” provider. Regence customers are now being offered a discount by Harrison in hopes that patients can continue seeing their doctors.
For much of 2014, the hospital has been battling with contract employees over contract negotiations regarding employee healthcare and grievance procedures, among other matters.
Union officials have accused Harrison of violating labor laws and Harrison has declared that the union has violated laws during the negotiation proceedings. The ongoing battle had resulted in the threat of a one-day strike, and church, labor, and political leaders petitioning Harrison CEO Scott Bosch.
• Pacific Avenue road work in Bremerton takes additional time and money
Bremerton residents raised concerns in February that the Pacific Avenue Project, between Sixth and 11th streets, was not being executed to code and was creating an inconvenience by using commercial parking lots and area dumpsters.
That same month, city officials announced that the project was going to cost more than expected, but would be completed early. However, the project was not completed until after the deadline of April 18, even though the budget increased by nearly $1 million dollars to $4.1 million.
According to local engineer Tom Knuckey, most of the additional funds were necessary due to poor soil discovered after excavation. Soil testing, usually done before construction, would have required closing the roadway and resulted in large potholes.
Councilwoman Leslie Daugs didn’t agree with the decision to skip the testing, saying that large projects always seemed require more money after the initial budget is calculated.
• Ordinance limiting panhandling in Bremerton passes city council
In November, the Bremerton City Council passed an ordinance aimed at eliminating panhandling on city streets.
Police Chief Steve Strachan spearheaded the campaign to limit panhandling, stating that it was not a matter of free speech, but an issue of public safety.
The ordinance made it unlawful to panhandle within 25 feet of an ATM or bus stop, creating no-panhandling zones on many of Bremerton’s busiest streets, including Sixth, 11th, and Burwell streets; Charleston Boulevard; Sheridan Road; Kitsap Wheaton and Sylvan ways; and Naval and Washington avenues.
• Man survives watery crash into Sinclair Inlet
On the morning of May 8, an 88-year-old man drove his white Cadillac straight into the Sinclair Inlet. Witness Francoise Deighan, who was tending to her yard with her husband Jim, said the man did not attempt to apply the vehicle’s brakes.
Francoise made the 911 call as Jim ran to help. The elderly man, later identified as Jack Doninger, was rescued by team effort, as Jim, two boaters, and eventually two Bremerton police officers and two Bremerton firefighters all contributed to the rescue efforts.
Jim applied CPR until EMTs arrived on the scene and transported the man to Harrison Hospital in Bremerton. Suquamish police sent a dive team to retrieve and remove the vehicle.
• The Trails at Silverdale breaks ground
The official groundbreaking for the Trails of Silverdale, a 17.6 acre retail development southwest of Greaves Way and Clear Creek Road, took place on Aug. 28.
The 210,000 square-foot center is expected to open in the fall of 2015 and will house a movie theater, restaurants, grocery store, fitness stores and retail outlets.
Developer of the proposed new hospital, California-based CenterCal Properties, submitted applications to the Corp of Engineers and the Department of Ecology in 2013, that laid out the company’s plans for the shopping center and how it will handle the wetlands that are on the property.
No tenants have been announced yet by company officials.
• New building/location for CK Food Bank
The Central Kitsap Food Bank’s new location opened in April on NW Anderson Hill Road in Silverdale. Formerly the Tri-Star Installation building, the structure underwent extensive upgrades and renovations before it was ready to house the organization’s operations.
Now there is more space to accommodate clients and plenty of food storage space. Space was lacking at the previous location, resulting in off-site storage which ran up additional expenses.
The new location was funded in part by a C. Keith Birkenfeld Memorial Trust grant, while the rest of the money was raised through donations and fundraising events over the past five years.
• Seabeck Conference Center begins 100th year
In June, the Seabeck Conference Center celebrated the beginning of its 100th year with a public open house that included an ice cream social, hot dogs, hamburgers, popcorn, and Pepsi.
The Navy’s Northwest jazz band, along with local recording artist Tom Rawson and bagpiper Tyron Heade, provided entertainment. Classic cars were on display, including a restored Model-T pick-up truck and children enjoyed the use of a bounce house.
Volunteers gave tours of the grounds, which was once considered somewhat of a ghost town after a fire devastated the once prosperous mill town and logging community that was previously located where the conference center is today. The Centennial Year will continue through 2015 with additional special events planned.
• County passes mental health sales tax, new sign ordinance and gun range ordinance
This year saw many changes, from new ordinances to implementation of a new sales tax.
In June, Kitsap County commissioners approved nine proposals for spending the estimated $2.26 million generated by the .01 percent mental health sales tax passed last September.
Programs receiving finds include Healthy Start Kitsap, Martha and Mary Health Services, West Sound Treatment Center, Bremerton Police Department, Kitsap Superior Court, Kitsap Juvenile Court Services, Peninsula Community Health Services, and the Olympic Educational School District. A portion of the money, $700,000, will be set aside in case for a possible crisis center.
In September, commissioners approved a new gun range ordinance requiring shooting ranges to obtain a five-year operating permit and reduce noise during “recreational and educational shooting activities.”
In November, a new sign ordinance was passed, allowing electric signage. Electronic signs are restricted to only non-residential zones within an Urban Growth Area except for schools, churches, and government or quasi-government signs which are allowed in any zone within an Urban Growth Area.
The new ordinance requires that messages on electronic signs must remain constant for eight seconds and may not change more than three times a minute. The ordinance also includes a stipulation that the county revisit the issue in six months.
• CKSD superintendent Hazel Bauman resigns, is replaced with McVicker; CKSD moves 9th graders to the high school
In school news, CKSD superintendent Hazel Bauman resigned in March, citing health reasons. David McVicker was named as her replacement in October.
After a decision last September to move ninth grade students to high school, students enrolled at Central Kitsap, Ridgetop and Fairview junior high schools transferred to Olympic or Central Kitsap high schools for the 2014-15 school year, one year ahead of schedule. Klahowya Secondary School continued to include ninth grade.
• Central Kitsap Fire & Rescue closes station, grievances filed, lack of communications lead to a summit
Central Kitsap Fire & Rescue has had a tumultuous year including staffing issues at the Chico station in Silverdale and the closure of the Tracyton station, which suffered from an aging structure and high operating costs.
After a decision in late 2013 by CKFR to reduce staffing requirements, the administration and union have had tough communication. The International Association of Fire Fighters Local 2819 filed an unfair labor practices complaint against Central Kitsap Fire & Rescue Chief Scott Weninger and CK Fire District Board Chairman Dave Fergus in March. Internal issues escalated in August when CKFR filed a grievance against its union firefighters. To try to improve relations, Weninger created a summit group including employees and members of the community to work through the issues. This November, each side dropped its complaint and reached an agreement, signing a contract which has been in negotiations for about a year.
