HomeMy WebLinkAboutFW_ Public Comment message for delivery to JCPRAB members for their April 6_ 2023 meetingLinda’s public comment for the record, with attachements.
Thanks
From: Linda Herzog <linda.herzog2@gmail.com>
Sent: Wednesday, April 5, 2023 11:55 AM
To: Matt Tyler <MTyler@co.jefferson.wa.us>
Subject: Public Comment message for delivery to JCPRAB members for their April 6, 2023 meeting
________________________________
ALERT: BE CAUTIOUS This email originated outside the organization. Do not open attachments or click on links if you are not expecting them.
________________________________
Dear JCPRAB members,
First let me express my gratitude for your service to all of us. Your volunteer time and energy to advise one of our Jeff County public agencies -- one that provides material and substantial
service to the entire community - is a valued part of our governance
This message is to offer my sincere thanks for your gracious welcome, your insightful questions and suggestions, and your enthusiasm for the Quilcene Art, History and Culture Trail when
I presented to the P/R Advisory Board at your April 2022 meeting. The first attachment below is that power point presentation, as a memory-refresher. Count Me In for Quilcene, our
501-c-3 nonprofit, has been working tenaciously on this project since the AARP granted the funding to design, build and install the 11 kiosk displays. (Note that we have modified the
name of the project to "Quilcene Discovery Walk" to accommodate nomenclature concerns . . . we will not be building a compacted or paved "trail" as the more formal use of that term
might imply. Thank you to Parks for that advice!)
This morning in a phone conversation with Mr. Tyler I learned that the proposal I was intending to share with you at your Advisory Board meeting tomorrow will not be possible. Cited
were requirements for professional design, concern about possible ("likely") vandalism, and esthetic fit with the campground environment. With these new realizations, I need to close
out our expectation of the partnership we assumed after last April's discussion. I am attaching the minimal set of power point slides I had intended to back up my Public Comment to
your Board tomorrow, with thanks for your prior receptivity.
Community-consistent design, aesthetic "fit" with the Quilcene environment, and possible vandalism have been thoroughly discussed by Count Me In for Quilcene as we have worked our way
through this project. There exist in Quicene a number of Quilcene-appropriate structures that have been in our public spaces for many years -- a totem pole in front of our school,
paintings on a 300-ft fence and the side of the Peninsula Market, many many custom made benches, carved artwork on the exterior of our Community Center, antique gas pumps across the
street, etc. None have been defaced.
Since the beginning, now 12 months ago with submission of our AARP proposal, we have examined all options. There is only one alternative to publicly displaying the artworks that have
been gifted to our community by their artists -- keeping them in storage, as they have been for 7 or 8 years. This has not been and still is not a reasonable option. Our commitment
to the AARP grantors and to our community remains.
Respectfully and regrettably,
Linda Herzog representing
Count Me In for Quilcene