School buses will be allowed to park in the city’s commercial zones after the council unanimously approved amending an ordinance for conditional use in the zones.
According to Development Director Nick Bond, the South Kitsap School District requested a minor change to the city’s general land use requirements.
Transit bus bases are allowed as conditional use in areas zoned Commercial Retail and Office, if the use is limited to “bus storage.”
Jay Rosapepe, SKSD director of transportation, sent a letter to the city, requesting a site to park 16 buses.
“Our plan is to create a satellite parking area that will reduce congestion at our current transportation facility on Lincoln and Hoover,” stated Rosapepe.
He said while the district was examining the city’s general land use requirements for commercial retail and office zones, they noted that the parking of transit buses were allowed.
Rosapepe added the revision to the general land use requirements would benefit the district’s ability to lessen the traffic and congestion near the school district office.
Earlier in the school year, neighbors near the transportation facility near East Port Orchard Elementary School complained about bus traffic and noise. The district moved the start time for buses from 4 to 5 a.m.
The council also approved a development agreement with SKSD regarding stormwater vesting in association with the Feigley Regional Stormwater Detention Pond.
SKSD originally had a contract with Kitsap County, but when the city annexed McCormick Woods it became a party in the earlier agreement.
City applying for grants for park, pathway
The council approved for the city to submit a grant application to the Recreation Conservation Office for the McCormick Village Park Phase 2 improvements and the Bay Street Pedestrian Pathway acquisition for property near the Comfort Inn and Marlee Apartments.
Deadline for the applications is May 2.
The city will apply for a $280,000 grant for the park improvement which is expected around $560,000. The city would match $220,000 and $60,000 in contributions.
In Bond’s staff report, he stated that the grant money for the pathway would be used to acquire the easements or ownership required to connect the existing pathway that ends at Marina Park to the western border of the Comfort Inn property. It would also include access to the shoreline at Rockwell Avenue.
The grant program does not allow for combined acquisition and development application.
Ownership is required before development fund may be obtained, Bond noted.
The council approved a bid for $330,364 from Sound Excavation, Inc., for the first phase of the McCormick Village Park.
The city received seven bids on the project.
More than $227,000 would be used on site improvements and utilities, while the remaining $103,000 would be for restrooms, lights, parking wheel stops and parking lot.
Public Works Director Mark Dorsey said the project is funded within the McCormick Woods Park Restriction Fund Balance for the approved 2014 budget.
