Year in review – 2003

Published 7:35 am Friday, February 29, 2008

From developments at Town Center to the start of widening work on the Bothell-Everett Highway, to rare instances of crime and happenings at local schools, 2003 had more than its share of news taking place.

What follows are month-by-month summaries of the year’s events and happenings.

January

On Jan. 14, approximately 30,000 teachers, including many from the Everett School District, convened in Olympia to rally legislative support for more education funding. School officials met with legislators in early March to share information about school funding.

Millie Judge, a senior deputy prosecuting attorney in the civil division of the Snohomish County Prosecutors Office and Silver Firs resident, announced she would run for Snohomish County Executive as a Democrat.

On Jan. 24, Lowe’s Home Improvement Warehouse opened at Murphy’s Corner in north Mill Creek. The store hired 100 new employees and was expected to bring a significant boost to city revenues. Initial estimates had the store generating $300,000 per year in revenue from the city portion of the sales tax, a 23 percent boost to the current city income tax revenue of $1.3 million annually.

Statistics showed an overall increase in crime in 2002, but there was very little violent crime. The vast majority of incidents were categorized as thefts, and for the 16th straight year, no homicides took place in the city limits.

Mill Creek resident Ruth Siguenza was selected to participate in a two-year Washington Agriculture and Forestry Education Foundation agriculture and forestry leadership development program.

Betty Neighbors, president of TERRA, a staffing services company in Lake Stevens, announced Jan. 30 that she would run for Snohomish County executive. Neighbors was the second Republican to join the race, after Edmonds City Council president Dave Earling.

February

On a unanimous voice vote Feb. 4, the Mill Creek City Council ended a three-year process that placed the 25 administrative employees in city hall in a bargaining unit. In combination with an affirmative 17-4 vote by the employees on Jan. 31, all became members of the Washington State Council of City and County Employees. City workers moved to unionize in 1999 after the city moved from a cost-of-living wage system to a merit-pay system.

A funding measure for the Sno-Isle Library District was rejected by voters Feb. 4.

Archbishop Thomas Murphy High School announced that a $1.5 million capital development fund drive that was about halfway completed would enable the school to double its current 310-student population during the next few years.

The fund drive was aimed to raise money to begin construction on a second classroom building at the campus located on 132nd Street SE, east of Murphy’s Corner.

The City Council on Feb. 25 unanimously rejected an appeal about environmental dangers associated with the redevelopment of the 37.8-acre Pacific Topsoils site on 35th Avenue SE. The appeal was brought forth by Tom Murdoch of the Adopt-A-Stream Foundation. The Council’s actions enabled the city to issue permits for grading and other work at the site for the proposed 225-home Mill Creek East subdivision.

March

On March 9, a Silver Lake man shot his ex-wife before fatally shooting himself. Frederick Gene Sarazen, 54, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head after he shot his 33-year-old ex-wife in the abdomen. The shootings occurred in the home the couple shared with a friend, at 3129 117th Place SE, east of Silver Lake. The two were divorced but lived together in the home.

Two Mill Creek parks were damaged by vandals with scrawls on bathroom walls that could have been gang tags. City parks hit by the vandals were Heron Park, at 15500 block of Village Green Drive, and Pine Meadow Park, located in the 15800 block of 32nd Avenue NE. Becky Erk, public information officer for the Mill Creek police department, said graffiti incidents in Mill Creek are fairly uncommon. Both incidents of park vandalism were discovered March 17 by public works officials.

Two car prowlers were arrested March 19 after breaking into three vehicles in the Highlands neighborhood in Mill Creek after a citizen called police to report suspicious activity.

Amendments to the Mill Creek sign ordinance were approved unanimously March 25 by the City Council. In a March 11 study session on the issue, council members decided to leave monument signs and “For Lease” signs as is. The revised ordinance passed March 25 allowed internal illumination of monument signs and temporary banners for new businesses. Neither of those were allowed under previous sign code.

April

Widening work on the Bothell-Everett Highway begins with tree removal near the Mill Creek Library.

Adopt-a-Stream challenged the city of Mill Creek to revisit its environmental review process on Mill Creek East, a 225-lot single family subdivision located at the west side of 35th Avenue SE, south of Silver Crest Drive and north of 144th Street SE. Adopt-a-Stream argued that the city should consider the cumulative effects of Mill Creek East, and grading by Pacific Topsoils that is occuring on the same site. The foundation filed a Land Use Petition on April 1 in Snohomish Superior Court appealing a decision by the city to approve a Mitigated Determination of Non Significance (MDNS) for the Pacific Topsoils Reclamation and Grading Permit. Mill Creek East is the city’s last large housing development.

The Mill Creek Parks Board selected three names out of 145 submissions to become the name of what would become known as Mill Creek Sports Park. The names “Trillium Park,” “Freedom Park” and “Mill Creek Sports Park” were the three finalists.

The Adopt-A-Stream Foundation organized the North Creek Watershed Coalition to save the dwindling salmon run in North Creek. The coalition aimed to develop plans for immediate “on the ground” stream and wetland restoration and water pollution prevention and monitoring projects.

Some fifth, eighth and 10th grade students in the Everett School District took a Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) science test in what amounted to a test run. Schools could voluntarily offer the test, which will become a regular part of the overall WASL test this year.

May

Cedarwood Elementary School students Lynn Bergeron and classmate Riley Richardson, both age, 11, won awards in the 12th annual Jacob Friedman Holocaust Creative Writing Contest. Bergeron won first place in the fifth-sixth grade category of the statewide contest, while Richardson won second place in the same category. There were more than 100 entries in their age level.

Representatives from county, state and local agencies gathered May 9 to celebrate the opening of the 132nd Street SE extension, known as Cathcart Way. The road was the final link in the first new east-west major arterial to be built in Snohomish County in many years. The roadway provides a connection between Highway 9 and Interstate 5, the county’s two major north-south highways.

The Mill Creek City Council voted May 13 to call the city’s newest park “Mill Creek Sports Park.” The name, one of three recommended by the city’s parks board, was suggested by Mayor Terry Ryan’s daughter, Lindsey. The mayor said he had nothing to do with the name selection. “I didn’t attend any of the park board meetings,” he said. One of the other recommendations, Freedom Park, was used for the Little League-size baseball field at the park.

Car thefts in Mill Creek were increasing during the first four months of 2003, and were on pace to nearly double 2002’s total. There were 55 car thefts in 2002, and there were 27 through April 2003. Ten were stolen from April 7 to 17. Police said apartment complexes appeared to be a prime target because of the variety of cars in them, the typically low lighting and relative lack of observation. Police also said the fact that so many complexes are located along Highway 527, which runs between Bothell and Everett, makes them an easy target.

The May 10 Friends of the Library spring book sale brought in more than $1,000 for the Mill Creek Library, exceeding the goal the organization had set for the event.

Three hours of discussion May 13 night did not result in a City Council decision as to whether or not the city of Mill Creek would annex areas east of 35th Avenue SE. But a majority of Council members indicated they were against annexing many of the residential areas to the east of the city.

An enforcement operation by Mill Creek police the week of April 28 resulted in 86 tickets being issued to drivers for crosswalk violations at six locations throughout the city. Police contacted 110 drivers during the multi-day operation.

A tax to operate the expanded Snohomish County Jail was defeated in the May 20 election, with 56 percent of voters rejecting the measure.

As many as 51 Jackson High School students were not allowed to take part in graduation ceremonies because they didn’t meet a May 15 deadline for papers that are part of their senior culminating exhibitions. The district made changes to the projects in October with input from parents, staff and students.

June

Six members of the Mill Creek City Council told city staff on June 3 that they would be open to annexing the area known as the northeast quadrant. That area is bordered on the north end by 132nd Street SE and on the east by 35th Avenue SE. Mill Creek’s current city limits form the western and southern boundary of the area. The area not only includes residential neighborhoods, but also the Thomas Lake Shopping Center, which includes a Rite Aid, McDonald’s and Albertsons among its 23 businesses.

Jill Tokumoto, an assistant principal at Madison and Lowell elementary schools, was named to take principal Greg Gelderman’s place at Cedarwood Elementary on July 1. Gelderman moved to the same position at Heatherwood Middle School.

A student who brought a prop to school for a Civil War presentation caused a lockdown at Jackson High School on June 10 after a parent reported seeing a student with a rifle. The 14-year-old Mill Creek boy was on his way to Heatherwood Middle School, located near the high school, when a parent saw him and called police around 7:30 a.m. The student was carrying a homemade prop that was meant to look like a musket.

Lively Environmental Center caretaker Phill Thorleifson, 75, retired after 18 years of service. He took the volunteer position after 31 years of teaching in the Everett School District. He and Amy, his wife of 51 years, bought a home in Marysville.

Mark Bond, a former Mill Creek Police Officer and a Snohomish County Sheriff’s Deputy, announced he would run for a seat on the Mill Creek City Council. Bond announced he would seek the seat held by two-term incumbent and former mayor Dan Hodge, who said he would not seek a third term. Bond was unopposed in his Council bid.

Jackson High School assistant principal Judy Pearson left her position to join the Peace Corps.

Bernie Cerier, a longtime volunteer for the American Red Cross’ Snohomish County chapter and Mill Creek resident, was honored for his work in communications on behalf of the local chapter during its volunteer banquet on June 25.

Kevin Iverson, a 17-year-old Jackson High School student, rescued a man from drowning at Martha Lake Park on June 27. In December Iverson was honored by the Red Cross of Snohomish County for his deed.

July

Construction on Park Place Center, a retail-restaurant-office building and the second building in Mill Creek Town Center, began.

Camp Silverton, a rite of passage for generations of Everett School District fifth-graders, was mothballed for a year in a cost-cutting move. The decision saved the district $76,000 toward a $2.5 million budget shortfall. Camp Silverton has been an outdoor classroom for students dating back to the late 1940s. It is a place where children can walk beneath old-growth trees, including two 500-year-old Douglas firs, pan for gold or sing around the campfire.

During the Fourth of July weekend, July 3-6, approximately 40 percent of all calls Fire District 7 crews responded to were fireworks related.

On July 12, hundreds of area residents participated in the annual Run of the Mill 3.4 mile race and subsequent Mill Creek Festival, which took place in the parking lots at four local shopping centers.

Recreation fees for people who don’t live in the city of Mill Creek were bumped up 15 percent beginning in the fall as the result of a City Council vote July 8. The move was expected to bring in an estimated $9,000 in revenue.

Mill Creek’s Design Review Board on July 17 approved a design and color scheme for an entry sign that will be at the two eastern entrances of the development, at the northwest corner of the Bothell-Everett Highway’s intersection at 153rd Street SE, and the other will be located at the southwest corner of the highway’s intersection with 151st Street SE.

Mill Creek City Council members on July 22 delayed setting a rental rate structure for the Mill Creek Sports Park after representatives of local youth sports organizations said the proposed fees were too high. Council members sent the issue back to the Parks Board for review.

The opening of the sports park was moved to Sept. 28 to coincide with the city’s 20th anniversary celebration. The reason the opening date was pushed back was that contractors couldn’t guarantee the park would be completed by Labor Day.

Rescue Pup’s annual Strutt Your Mutt event on July 26 raised $3,600 for the non-profit organization.

The Everett School District spent the first two months of the summer upgrading its phone systems, computers and software at all its facilities and schools.

August

Five men filed for three positions for Mill Creek City Council when filing ended Aug. 1. Incumbents John “Jack” Start and Dale Hensley drew challengers. Start drew businessman Jeff Smart while Hensley drew businessman John Ware. Bond was unopposed. Numerous positions, such as fire and water district commissioners and school board, went unopposed.

McCollum Park was the site of a National Night Out event sponsored by Mill Creek Police and the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office. The event took place on Aug. 5, and included a variety of activities, such as demonstrations of the sheriff’s office K-9 Unit, basketball free throws, speed pitch machine, food and drinks, and a variety of information on public safety topics.

Stephen Scott Lowber of Mill Creek pleaded guilty in Seattle federal court Aug. 7 to federal felony charges of being an accessory to wire fraud. Lowber, 52, is a former Chief Financial Officer of Seattle-based clothing retailer Cutter &Buck, Inc. Lowber admitted as part of his plea that he knew by late 2000 that Cutter &Buck’s recognition of the $5.7 million of revenue, and SEC reports containing false financial statements, was part of a fraudulent scheme.

The Mill Creek Library closed Aug. 17 for a month of remodeling. The library closed so crews could construct a new, glass-enclosed entrance that will better comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, and install new, high-use bathroom fixtures and diaper changing tables in both the men’s and women’s restrooms.

Jeff Smart was the only Mill Creek City Council candidate who did not file any financial information with the state Public Disclosure Commission (PDC) by the Aug. 15 deadline. The other four candidates pledged to spend less than $3,500 total on their respective campaigns.

September

The results of the Washington Assessment of Student Learning (WASL) tests, which were given to fourth-, seventh- and 10th-graders, were released by the state. With the exception of only a few areas in several schools, significant gains were made throughout the district in all four categories, including reading, writing, math and listening. However, under the new federal education law, No Child Left Behind, Everett was listed among more than 400 other districts in the state that failed to meet annual yearly progress by not having all students, including special education and English language learners up to the same state WASL standards in reading and math.

Council candidate Smart faced a PDC hearing because the agency did not receive any financial information from Smart, and a hearing date was set. The hearing, however, was cancelled when his documents were found, and postmarked on the date he told The Enterprise he would mail out the documents.

During a Sept. 9 Mill Creek City Council study session, Paul Schlesinger of Fort Worth, Texas-based Buxton Company presented the city with a list of possible national retailers and restaurant chains for Town Center, as well as detailed reports as to not only the city’s demographics, but those of a “trade area,” around the city, which he defined as those living within a five-minute drive to Town Center. Among the retailers and restaurants cited in the report were Best Buy, Borders Books and Music, Pottery Barn, California Pizza Kitchen and Claim Jumper.

Democrat Aaron Reardon and Republican Dave Earling won their respective party nominations for Snohomish County Executive at the Sept. 16 primary election.

Mill Creek’s 20th anniversary celebration took place Sept. 28, one day prior to the actual anniversary date of the city’s incorporation. Construction delays at the Mill Creek Sports Park, however, forced the celebration to move to City Hall.

October

Jamie Boyd, a 27-year-old Oak Harbor woman, was charged with third-degree assault after a Sept. 23 confrontation with Mill Creek police. She punched and kicked at two officers who tried to remove her from her vehicle during a traffic stop for having expired plates and driving with a suspended license.

A majority of City Council members, during a straw vote, favored moving a proposed community center off Main Street in Town Center to elsewhere in the development. Those voting in favor of the move cited the prospect of having more retail on Main Street to bring in addtional sales tax revenues. The city obliged, selling the remaining parcel of land in mid-December while getting an option to purchase land elsewhere in Town Center for such a development.

The Everett School District eliminated the Iowa Test of Basic Skills in part to save an estimated $50,000, but also because the WASL test became the primary means of assessing student progress.

Mill Creek resident Lynn Perry asked City Council member Mary Kay Voss to resign her post during the Oct. 14 Council meeting. Voss was asked to resign after she was quoted in a front-page Seattle Post-Intelligencer newspaper article calling Mill Creek “snooty.” Voss declined to resign, and said the remark was taken out of context.

Schools throughout the Everett School District, with help from the Everett Fire Department’s Medic One Foundation, received Automated External Defibrillators to keep on campus.

A man robbed the U.S. Bank branch in Mill Creek in the afternoon of Oct. 23, making it the first bank robbery within the Mill Creek city limits in four years, according to police.

November

Incumbents John “Jack” Start and Dale Hensley defeated Jeff Smart and John Ware, respectively, to retain their seats on the City Council in the general election. In addition, in the race for Snohomish County Executive, Democrat Aaron Reardon, a state Senator from Everett defeated Edmonds City Council president Dave Earling, a Republican. In other county races, Cindy Portman easily won election to the county assessor’s office over Stuart Stavig. In the county auditor’s race, Bob Terwilliger won re-election over Jerry Goodloe with more than 76 percent of the vote. Pam Daniels also won another term as county clerk, defeating Sandra Fitzpatrick with 69.26 percent of the vote. Sheriff Rick Bart and treasurer Bob Dantini were unopposed. In addition, Fire District 7’s property tax levy easily passsed. The Sno-Isle Library levy increase was losing in early returns, but later won passage.

On Nov. 11, the Mill Creek City Council unanimously passed a series of mid-term budget adjustments, but with a few alterations from initial proposals. The Council opted not to add a part-time receptionist at $13,000 a year, among other minor adjustments.

A Jackson High School science teacher was charged Nov. 13 with two counts of first-degree sexual misconduct with a minor. Robert Vincent Beresford, 35, of Everett allegedly carried on a romantic affair with a 17-year-old female student between August and October, engaging in sex numerous times. Beresford was placed on administrative leave in October, when the allegations were first brought to the Everett School District’s attention.

About 500 houses in the Mays Pond area were without power for several hours on Nov. 14, after a car crashed into a utility box. Woodside Elementary School was closed for the day because of the outage. The crash happened about 2:20 a.m. in the 1800 block of 20th Drive SE, and the driver fled and could not be located.

The Washington Association of School Administrators, a statewide professional association, named Everett School District Superintendent Carol Whitehead as the state’s Superintendent of the Year on Nov. 14.

Snow on Nov. 19 caused a few problems in the greater Mill Creek area. Fire District 7 crews were flooded with calls of downed trees and power lines. Classes at local schools began two hours late because the snow made streets slippery, and morning and afternoon kindergarten and preschool was canceled for the day.

The Snohomish County Council rejected a 1 percent increase in property taxes on Nov. 19 when it passed the 2004 budget, which is roughly $572 million. Even so, the council approved two smaller property tax increases.

December

Douglas Leroy Kiesz, a 60-year-old Mill Creek man, was arrested Dec. 1 as the main suspect in the death of his estranged wife, 44-year-old Leta Kay Kiesz of Covington. The couple met at a Kent restaurant Dec. 30 to finalize details of their divorce. Douglas Kiesz pleaded guilty to second degree murder charges on Dec. 15, and is scheduled to have another court appearance on Monday, Jan. 5.

The city Mill Creek announced Dec. 11 that the long-delayed sports park would be ready for use on Monday, Jan. 5.