I am writing on behalf of Supporters of Camas Prairie Park, a new group of concerned citizens of Port Townsend who have united to prevent the unprecedented and irresponsible development of …
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I am writing on behalf of Supporters of Camas Prairie Park, a new group of concerned citizens of Port Townsend who have united to prevent the unprecedented and irresponsible development of historic open space now dedicated to golf and other outdoor activities.
When the Planning Commission issues its recommendation to the City Council this week on whether to allow development in Camas Prairie Park, it should reject the idea out of hand, lest it undermine public confidence in the entire planning process. That’s partly because taking public open space for private housing would set a dangerous precedent and partly because it is simply unnecessary to do so to meet our city’s housing needs.
Camas Prairie Park is the jewel in the city’s open space crown. Its imaginative and challenging golf course has a distinguished pedigree that dates to 1927 when a renowned Scottish architect was brought here to design it. That design preserved the last remnant of a native prairie that once stretched from Kah Tai Lagoon to North Beach, where the indigenous population harvested the bulbs of the beautiful camas flower for food. Development of the portion of the park along Blaine Street, as is now proposed, would destroy or disturb both – and for no good reason.
Because there are plenty of alternatives for meeting our housing needs. The most recent Housing Needs Assessment concluded that Port Townsend will need 1,670 new housing units in the next 20 years. The land capacity analysis done by the city’s planning staff has found that there is enough vacant land within 100 feet of existing sewer lines – hence, no need or cost to extend them – to accommodate as many as 6,700 housing units. For the math impaired, that’s four times what is needed. And, today, there are about 800 new units already being built, in the permitting process or on the drawing board, many of which will be affordable to lower-income residents. So, there is no rush to rezone Camas Prairie Park.
Much has been made, in defense of developing the park, of the lease the city negotiated with the Friends of the Golf Park, the group that is now operating and improving the course. That lease does contain a provision that would allow development along Blaine Street. But that provision was presented to the Friends as an ultimatum: no development, no lease. The Friends signed it under duress, just weeks before the old lease was to expire, because otherwise the golf course would have ceased to exist. Reliance on this “agreement” is yet another reason the public could question the integrity of the city’s planning and development process.
The legitimacy of this agreement notwithstanding, it is questionable whether development would be a legally permissible use of the park. City officials have been telling the public that the land along Blaine Street has no legal restrictions on it, unlike the rest of the park which was conveyed to the city for “municipal purposes only.” But the 1927 deed of conveyance stipulates that the entire property is subject to this restriction and when, soon after, the city leased the land to the Port Townsend Golf Club, it acknowledged that it had acquired the land for “golf, athletics, recreation, aviation and like municipal uses and purposes.” No mention of development of any kind. Thus, at a minimum, rezoning the park for development would violate the spirit and intent of the agreement by which the city acquired the land.
Meanwhile, the Friends of the Golf Park have invested tens of thousands of dollars and untold hours of volunteer time to improve the golf course and to develop other public recreational opportunities on the property. Trees have been trimmed, brush has been cleared, greens have been significantly improved, the irrigation system has been repaired and new equipment has been purchased. A frisbee golf course has been established and miniature golf and playground facilities are planned. And every first Sunday of the month this past year, the Friends have closed the golf course to allow unfettered public access and have hosted well-attended events featuring food trucks and live entertainment. They have kept their part of the bargain.
The city should reciprocate by dropping the pretense that our housing needs justify seizing parkland and by abandoning the ill-conceived and unpopular idea of developing Camas Prairie Park.
Edward Thompson Jr. is a Port Townsend resident.