Hood Canal Bridge closes
The Hood Canal Bridge closed and a massive park-and-ride opened in Port Gamble as the state Department of Transportation began rebuilding the bridge May 1. Contractor Kiewet-General replaced the east span of the bridge at a cost of $500 million.
A passenger ferry ran travelers between South Point and Lofall, while other commuters camped out to avoid the hassle. Ridership on the Kingston to Edmonds ferry dropped 30 percent and area businesses saw a dip in traffic as well.
Relief came early. The bridge reopened to vehicles June 3, eight days ahead of schedule. Sporadic closures for construction and testing will continue through January.
House of Awakened Culture opens
The Suquamish Tribe celebrated the opening of the House of Awakened Culture on March 10, a gathering hall with architecture reminiscent of the tribe’s historical Old Man House.
“It’s been a long, long time since we’ve had a home to call our own,” tribal elder Marilyn Wandery said in a prayer blessing at opening ceremonies for the house. “It’s the dreams of our ancestors, our people to have our own place to be who we were meant to be.”
The hall is part of a series of revitalization projects in Suquamish that include a new pier, a refurbishment of Chief Seattle’s gravesite and soon, a new museum.
Kingston mourns Mike Bookey
Kingston lost a leader in March when port manager Mike Bookey died suddenly. Bookeys joined the port in 2007 and championed its plans for a passenger ferry route to Seattle along with waterfront improvements.
Bookey was a broadband internet expert who owned several technology companies and authored “America at the Internet Crossroads.” His love of sailing drew him to the port and North Kitsap.
“The port has really lost a very dynamic person and we’ve all lost a really close friend,” Port Commissioner Pete DeBoer said soon after Bookey’s death. “He just embraced the whole community.”
The job of port manager has since been divided. Port commissioners hired a harbormaster, Willis Hill, to oversee the marina. Planning duties are being handled by the port commission.
The port dedicated a new stage in memory of Bookey at the “Concert in the Cove” performance in August.
White Horse collapses
While White Horse Golf Club was heralded as a world-class course when it opened in 2007, the attached housing development was headed for the rough.
In March it was announced that White Horse was in foreclosure. About 50 of the White Horse homesites off South Kingston Road had been sold and developed, but the remaining vacant lots languished in a slow housing market. Owner and developer Bob Screen owed millions to lenders, American Marine Bank chief among them.
Screen filed for bankruptcy for White Horse in August, shortly before development was scheduled for auction. The course closed in November but reopened a few days later under the management of American Marine Bank.
White Horse was finally put to bid on Dec. 10 but there were no bidders. American Marine Bank took ownership of the course and vacant land.
Firehouse theater brings cinema to Kingston
Kingston rolled out the red carpet for its first movie theater in May, one of several North End businesses to open shop in 2009.
The Firehouse Theater was a coupling of inspiration and location.
Craig Smith was already the owner of the Peninsula Video store but he had long wanted to bring a big screen, or two, to his hometown. Investors Rick Lanning, Dave Wetter and James Wetter had the right building: the cavernous old Kingston firehouse, which sat vacant off State Route 104.
A remodel by Lanning made space for a two-screen, 188-seat theater. The Oak Table Cafe moved a restaurant into extra space in the building. The businesses threw a black-tie grand opening May 14.
Other businesses in the spotlight in 2009 were the Grub Hut, a new eatery on SR-104, and the Lil’ Sprouts Toy shop in downtown.
