Commissioners Present: Benye Weber, Marshall Bronson and Ann McDonald

Others Present: Jim Patton (Executive Director), Molly MacLeod-Roberts (Edwards & Associates), Donna Keeler (Master Site Plan Coordinator) and Virginia Bloom (Greenbank Farm Operations Manager).

Call to Order: The regular meeting was called to order at 10:35 a.m. by Commissioner Weber in the Coupeville Recreation Hall, located at 901 Alexander Street in Coupeville, WA, followed by the Pledge of Allegiance.

APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES OF THE PREVIOUS MEETING: Weber stated that the Minutes for the regular meeting of June 10, 2009, were available for approval and signatures.

ACTION: A motion was made by Bronson and seconded by McDonald to approve the meeting Minutes as submitted. The motion passed unanimously.

SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS: None.

MEETING OPEN TO PUBLIC INPUT: Weber opened the meeting to public input. No one wished to speak and Weber closed the meeting to public input and returned to the public meeting.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

Port Executive Director's Report: (Patton)

Boating and fueling activities: Patton reported that the pattern of lower fuel sales and lower moorage revenue than the previous years continues. In June, 1,500 gallons of fuel were sold compared to 1,800 gallons in 2008 and 2,000 gallons in 2007. Moorage revenue was $1,400 compared to $2,000 in 2008. The Port continues the policy of purchasing only as much fuel as is needed, rather than keeping expensive inventory sitting in the tanks.

Status of grant request for pumpout station: Patton said that yesterday Ian Jefferds of Penn Cove Shellfish confirmed that he was prepared to provide the 25% match for the grant. Patton asked Coupeville Town Planner Larry Kwarsick to expedite the shoreline permit or the exemption for the permit, and Kwarsick said he was leaning toward the exemption since the pumpout station is really just an add-on to the existing sanitary system. The grant request will be submitted to the State within the next few days, and once the State has approved the request and agreed to reimburse the Port for the cost of the pumpout station (less the 25% match), the Port will start spending the money.

Wharf, causeway and park upkeep: schedule for removal of exterior of 905 N. Main and replacement of Wharf siding: As discussed at the last regular meeting, the Port and its volunteers agreed to wait until after August 1^st to begin the removal, per the Town of Coupeville's request.

Status of formal agreement with Washington State University (WSU) Beach Watchers: Patton reported that both Beach Watchers Judy Feldman and Sarah Martin had been very busy, so he had not been able to schedule a meeting with them to discuss a formal agreement for the use of the breezeway. He anticipates meeting with them next week.

Publication of Wharf history written by Roger Sherman: As the Board requested at the last meeting, Patton spoke with Island County Historical Museum's Executive Director, Rick Castellano, to see if they are interested in publishing the Wharf history. Castellano said he wasn't sure if the Museum would be able to publish it, but they definitely want to have it in their archives. Patton will provide them with the electronic version. Bronson and Patton met with Carol Molitor of Big Rock Designs, who is working on converting the Wharf history into an attractive tri-fold brochure. Patton will update the Board via email.

Master Site Plan (MSP) draft status; schedule for public input and final adoption: There were two public briefings on the MSP held (June 29^th in Greenbank and July 1^st in Coupeville). Patton asked the Board if they wished to have any additional briefings and the Board agreed the two briefings were sufficient. Patton asked the Board if they wanted the start date of the 30-day request for public input to be July 1, the date of the last public briefing.

ACTION: A motion was made by Bronson and seconded by McDonald to accept public input on the Master Site Plan as presented through the 31^st of July, 2009, with Board adoption of the Plan to be considered at the next regular meeting of the Port on August 12, 2009. The motion passed unanimously.

Bronson felt the public had expressed a general attitude of acceptance and approval at the public briefings. Patton said he has not heard of any significant issues voiced by the public so far, but if he receives any emails, letters or phone calls of any substance he will notify the Board via email, and a special meeting can be scheduled to discuss the matter. If the Port does not receive anything of substance prior to July 31^st, he and Master Site Plan Coordinator, Donna Keeler, will present a final draft for adoption to the Board on August 12^th.

The Board directed Patton to issue a press release to the local newspapers of the public input period. The press release should also state that the draft MSP is available at the Port office and on the Port's website at HYPERLINK "http://www.portofcoupeville.org" www.portofcoupeville.org .

Conservation Easement: Patton provided the Board with copies of a map of the Greenbank Farm that includes the parcel numbers of all 13 parcels (on file at the Port office). All the parcels have well established legal descriptions. He noted that a survey of whatever area is identified for the conservation easement could be quite costly, but no survey would be needed if we built the easement out of established parcels. Patton pointed out that he had drawn a heavy black line around 9 parcels, almost 100 acres of open space (about 2/3 of the Port-owned property at the Farm) as one option to consider as an area to be placed in a conservation easement. He noted that he did not include the environmentally sensitive area because it is already well protected from development. Also omitted from the proposed easement is the area zoned "commercial" where the buildings are because the Port has plans to build an additional building and needs the ability to develop that area further. Just north of the commercial zone lies the "agriculture" zoned parcel where the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Program, the Market Farmers, and the P-Patch are located. Patton excluded that area as well as the area adjacent to the north which is being considered as a possible site for a field of solar arrays. Patton said that the assessed property value of the 9 parcels within the heavy black line is about $3 million.

Patton reminded the Board that the State Attorney General's opinion about the legality of a port surrendering / transferring its development rights on property it owned stipulated that the port must establish a value for those development rights, and the Board previously agreed that it would be fair to assign a value equal to the balance of the bond debt as of January 1, 2010 ($831,000). Patton asked the Board to consider authorizing him to discuss with Island County staff the option of placing the outlined 9 parcels into a conservation easement.

Bronson said it's a very good starting point for discussion and he liked it. Weber said she would have to think about it, because she believed there would be input from the public on it. She explained that she thought the MSP focus group volunteers would come up with recommendations for the conservation easement area. McDonald asked Keeler if there was a lot of discussion within the group regarding the conservation easement, and Keeler said there was. Although they weren't able to reach a consensus on one option she reported that the overall consensus was that everyone agreed there needed to be a conservation easement. Since the Port plans to apply for Conservation Futures funding as well, the group did not want to do anything that would infringe on the county's program.

ACTION: A motion was made by Bronson and seconded by McDonald for the presented option for the conservation easement area to be used as a basis for initial discussion with Island County in order to move forward with the conservation easement. The motion passed unanimously.

Status of Puget Sound Energy (PSE) request for vegetation control easement at Greenbank Farm: Patton noted that the Port had finally received the $1,560 check from PSE for the easement.

Status of the Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) project at Greenbank Farm: Patton said it is progressing very, very well. Greenbank Farm Operations Manage, Virginia Bloom, reported that Maryon Atwood of Northwest Agriculture Business Center has been helping with the weeding 5-8 hours a day, and that's been a great morale boost for everyone there.

Greenbank Farm Management Report: Bloom was on hand to answer any questions the Board had regarding the June Report previously emailed to the Board, which is included in these Minutes as follows:

Following the adoption of Farm off-leash rules adopted by the Commission at its last meeting, new signs have been prepared and installed to notify dog walkers of current standards. In addition, the Farm is preparing to redirect dog walkers to areas that are not adjacent to active agricultural areas and reiterate responsibilities of owners of aggressive dogs.

The CSA training project continues to produce weekly produce for subscribers. An additional trainee is now working in the project.

Sunday farmers markets are also continuing. Last Sunday, Chef Gordon (from Gordon's on Blueberry Hill) put on a cooking demonstration at the market, which was attended by more than 70 observers.

Rob Schouten and Mark Van Wickler, two local artists, have proposed a floating rock garden for the pond adjacent to Barn A and the Whidbey Pies Café. Made of non-toxic materials, the realistic display would be donated by the artists. Approved by the GFMG Board, the project is currently under review by the Port.

The GFMG has been able to secure three summer interns through the Work Source program, two providing office assistance and one providing outdoor assistance. Funded through stimulus money, these interns have been of great assistance in working through a list of important tasks for the Farm.

Planning goes forward for the annual Loganberry Festival, which will be held on July 25 and 26. Expectations are high for another successful festival. The events and activities are set out on the Farm's website.

The 2008 Annual Report of the GFMG on the operations and financial results of the Farm has been completed and delivered to the Port.

Bloom added that several local restaurants have begun buying fresh produce from the farmers at Greenbank Farm. One of the gallery artists told Bloom that in the 1^st week of July he had already done 30% of the business he did in the entire month of June. The wine shop and other businesses are also doing very well and are vastly improved over last year. Bloom noted that the Freeland and Central Whidbey Chambers of Commerce would hold a joint Business After Hours event at the Farm tonight from 5:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m. The Board thanked Bloom for her report.

Presentation of GFMG financial report for 2008: The report is on file at the Port office. Patton noted that in 2007 the operation of the Farm was in "a financial nose dive," but by changing management and in particular by hiring Bloom, the GFMG has managed to turn that around. The Board agreed that the noticeable changes were great improvements and congratulated Bloom on her success to date.

ACTION: A motion was made by Bronson and seconded by McDonald to accept the 2008 Annual Report of the Greenbank Farm Management Group (June 30, 2009) as submitted. The motion passed unanimously.

Weber directed Patton to have the 2008 Annual Report of the GFMG posted on the website at HYPERLINK "http://www.portofcoupeville.org" www.portofcoupeville.org.

GFMG fee for remainder of management services agreement: Patton noted that the 10-year agreement that expires in May 2014 allows for only two opportunities to renegotiate the fee. The current annual fee is $49,950 (renegotiated from $45,000 two years ago). The GFMG is expected to present a new fee proposal to the Port in August. If the GFMG can't justify a higher fee, Patton suggested the Board might want to consider whether or not to grant the GFMG the opportunity to come back in succeeding years and ask for cost of living increases based on U.S. Consumer Price Index (CPI).

The Board agreed the GFGM should have the opportunity and authorized Patton to draft an amendment to the management services agreement to allow the GFMG to request an annual increase up to the current CPI.

Proposal for floating rock garden: The proposal is on file at the Port office. Bronson noted that it is a temporary exhibit, so he questioned whether it required Port approval. McDonald noted that the proposal is "for two years, with an option to renew" so it could potentially be permanent. Weber said as long as there were not any environmental concerns, she thinks it would be an interesting display.

ACTION: A motion was made by Bronson and seconded by Weber to accept the proposal for the floating rock garden for the specified two-year period.

Weber said the floating rock garden would re-establish the thought that the area is an art center. It would be visually pleasing to visitors and enhance the ambience of the pond. McDonald said he would like the motion to include, "conditional upon the artists' providing a manufacturer's data sheet on the materials confirming that they are non-toxic." The Board agreed.

Weber called for a vote on the motion with the additional text and the motion passed unanimously.

COMMITTEE REPORTS: Greenbank Farm, Puget Sound Partnership (PSP), Economic Development Council (EDC), Regional Transportation Planning Organization (RTPO): (Bronson) Greenbank Farm: Bronson noted that the Farm had been covered earlier in the meeting, so he just added that it is progressing nicely and becoming a center of activity for the central part of Whidbey Island. PSP: Bronson and Patton attended the PSP meeting yesterday morning and it was well done and well attended. They said it was the last meeting for Lynda Lyshall as the Regional Liaison for the Whidbey Basin, and noted that she had done a lot of work during her time there. EDC: No meeting. RTPO: No meeting.

Penn Cove Water Festival Committee (PCWF), Marine Resources Committee (MRC); Northwest Straits Commission (NWSC) and Central Whidbey Chamber of Commerce (CWCC), Council of Governments (COG): (Weber) CWCC: The next meeting is tomorrow, July 9th at 8 a.m., and the Commander of NAS Whidbey will be the guest speaker. PCWF: Weber noted that the PCWF received a grant, and the Washington State Arts Commission and the Washington State Department of Community Trade and Economic Development were so pleased with the grant application, report and accompanying documentation PCWF submitted that they requested that PCWF send them a packet to be used as a model for other grant applicants. She suggested that any doubts about the $1,000 Port contribution to the PCWF should be allayed by the plaudits received from the State agencies. Weber showed all the items that will be included in the packet (brochures, shirts, newspaper articles, etc.). MRC: (Minutes on file at the Port office and available at HYPERLINK "http://www.islandcountymrc.org" www.islandcountymrc.org) Weber reported that the new interpretive panel for the pigeon guillemot has been installed at Keystone, thanks to the donation of pre-mix cement bags by the Audubon Society. NWSC: Weber noted that the NWSC was awarded $4.6 million in economic stimulus funding from NOAA to pull derelict fishing nets from Puget Sound. COG: The June meeting was cancelled. The next meeting will be July 22^nd in the Island County Commissioners' Hearing Room. Coupeville Arts Festival: The art gallery opening and wine tasting will be July 31^st at 7 p.m., and the Festival will be held August 1^st and 2^nd. Bronson noted that on Evening Magazine, it was announced that the Coupeville Arts Festival is the longest continually running festival in Washington State.

Washington Public Ports Association (WPPA): (McDonald) No meeting. Weber noted that the WPPA puts out a fine newsletter and the Board agreed. Patton said he would be attending the WPPA Executive Directors' meeting that evening, and he would pass along their praise.

NEW BUSINESS:

Response to Sandy Dubpernell of Washington State University Beach Watchers: Patton reported that Dubpernell had emailed the Port regarding the hanging of the new skeleton on the Wharf. She asked for an estimate as to how much they should pay Port Handyman Dick Tackett for that installation. Patton noted that in the past, the Port has paid Tackett and has not charged the Beach Watchers for his labor. It will probably take Tackett 4-5 hours at $33/hour, so it would cost about $200. Bronson felt that since the Port provides the space at no charge, the Beach Watchers should pay the cost of installation; especially since the Port has no money. Weber agreed, noting that the Beach Watchers have 400 volunteers and are able to generate funds. McDonald also agreed, and Patton said he would inform Dubpernell of the estimated cost to the Beach Watchers for Tackett to install the skeleton.

ANNOUNCEMENTS & ADMINISTRATIVE ACTIONS:

Next Port regular public meeting: The next regular monthly meeting of the Port's Board of Commissioners will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, August 12, 2009, at the Service Alternatives Building at 206 North Main Street in Coupeville, WA.

Monthly Financial Status Report: MacLeod-Roberts submitted the final May 2009 financial statement.

ACTION: A motion was made by Weber and seconded by McDonald to accept the final May 2009 financial statement as submitted. The motion passed unanimously.

Approval of Current Vouchers: MacLeod-Roberts submitted vouchers audited and certified by the auditing officer as required by RCW 42.24.080. She also submitted expense reimbursement claims certified as required by RCW 42.24.090.

ACTION: A motion was made by Bronson and seconded by McDonald to approve by signature the July 2009 vouchers, numbers #1074 - #1094 for a total amount of $26,311.57. The motion passed unanimously.

ADJOURNMENT: There being no further business to come before the Board, Weber adjourned the meeting at 12:22 p.m.