I just learned that the Renton City Council will vote NEXT Monday on
whether to let a proposed 65-house development proceed next to our Black
River herons. Councilmember Dan Clawson requested that the decision be
moved to next week instead of it taking place tonight. The remaining
councilmembers were ready (eager may be more accurate) to vote.

Plan to attend this city council meeting. It's very important to send the
message to the Councilmembers that we care about our herons. No testimony
will be taken. Our presence speaks volumes.

REVISED SCHEDULE:
WHEN: Monday, November 1, at 7:30 pm.
WHERE: Renton City Hall, 1055 S. Grady Way, on the 7th floor in the
Council Chambers

A yes vote by the council would go against the strong recommendation of
the hearing examiner who, after four full days of testimony, recommended
an environmental impact statement evaluating the development?s impact on
the herons? habitat.

We fully expect the Council will accept the subcommittee?s recommendation
as it is consistent with the Council?s pro-development orientation.
Renton appears to be on a fast track to get the developer's 65-house
project underway as soon as possible, with as little environmental review
as they can get away with.


Additional information --
Last Thursday (10/21), a subcommittee of the Council dealt a new blow to
the herons of Renton?s Black River Riparian Forest. By a vote of 2-1, the
committee overturned the Hearing Examiner?s decision. Terri Briere, chair
of subcommittee, immediately issued her recommendation after the appeal
testimony was concluded. She said that the committee should recommend to
the Renton City Council that the Council overturn the Examiner?s
decision. Briere is the president and treasurer of Briere & Associates
whose family owns a development. She works as a developer and general
contractor.

Councilman Dan Clawson, vice chair of the committee, was the sole No
vote. He said that he disagreed with Ms. Briere, stating that he had
carefully reviewed the very substantial record from the original hearing
and concluded that the Examiner?s decision was correct. He said it was
clear that the experts testifying on behalf of Herons Forever were more
credible than the developers, and that more information was indeed needed
before any development took place on the hillside, in accordance with the
Examiner?s decision.


Casting the tie-breaking vote was Councilman Don Persson. Persson was
sitting in as a substitute member for Councilman Denis Law, who was
unable to attend the committee meeting.





On Sat, 23 Oct 2004 20:45:04 -0700 suzanne krom <szkrom at juno.com> writes:
Dear Herons Forever friends:
On October 21, Renton?s Planning and Development Committee dealt a new
blow to the herons of Black River. By a vote of 2-1, the committee
overturned the Hearing Examiner?s decision that required Renton to
further evaluate the impacts of a proposed 65-house development next to
the herons? habitat.

The committee?s recommendation now goes to the City Council THIS MONDAY,
who will vote to accept or deny it. We fully expect the Council to accept
the recommendation as it?s consistent with the Council?s pro-development
orientation. It?s clear they are on a fast track to get the developer's
65-house project underway as soon as possible, with as little
environmental review as they can get away with.

How Can We Help the Herons?
1. Attend the City Council meeting this Monday, October 25, at 7:30 pm.
It will take place at Renton City Hall, 1055 S. Grady Way, on the 7th
floor in the Council Chambers. No testimony will be accepted by the
Council. Our presence is extremely important. Please plan to attend.

2. Our attorney tells us we have an excellent chance to challenge Renton
in Superior Court and uphold the Hearing Examiner?s decision. In order to
accomplish this, we need to raise $25,000 within the next three months to
cover legal costs. With your help, we can do this. Please give what you
can to save our herons.

Emergency Fundraiser
You are invited to an emergency fundraiser Thursday, November 4, from
6:30 ? 8:30 pm to raise funds to take this to Superior Court. It will
take place at:
7009 South 130th Street
Seattle, WA 98178
425-277-2565

Details to come this week. Please plan to attend. This is an extremely
important part of our effort to save our herons.

Contribute by Mail
You can help by sending your contribution to Rainier Audubon Society.
Please contribute what you can. Every penny counts. And every penny goes
toward direct support of the herons. There is no paid staff and no
overhead. None of us are paid, all of us on the Herons Forever board are
hardworking, dedicated volunteers. Please complete the form that follows
and include it with your contribution.

***********

Dear Herons Forever,
I do not want poorly planned development to destroy the Black River heron
colony, and want to do what I can to make sure it is protected. My
tax-deductible contribution toward paying for an appeal to King County
Superior Court is:


_____ $35

_____ $50

_____ $75 Receive "A Year At Black River" CD with a collection of over
1,000 photos taken by photographer Michael Hamilton at Black River over
the past three years.

_____ $125 Receive "A Year At Black River" CD and the audio CD of the
"Black River Heronry" by Martyn Stewart, of http://www.naturesound.org


_____ $250 Receive both gifts above, plus a private field trip of Black
River for your family, friends, coworkers, and anyone else you would like
to include. Children are welcome. Black River is wheelchair accessible.

_____ Other Please fill in amount: $______________

My employer will match my gift. My employer is
____________________________.

To contribute to Herons Forever, make your check or money order payable
to Rainier Audubon Society/Black River and in the memo section, write
Black River. Send your check to: Jim Tooley, Treasurer, Rainier Audubon
Society, P.O. Box 778, Auburn, WA 98071. You will receive a receipt from
Rainier Audubon.

Your name: ______________________________________________________________
Address: ________________________________________________________________
City: ___________________________________ Zip:
____________________________
Phone including area code: ______________________ Email:
____________________


*Rainier Audubon Society is a 501c3 organization.



3. We need you to write letters to the editor. This is essential. We
need your letters now. To help you get started, several sample letters
follow. Please use these for ideas. Add you thoughts, make changes, make
your letters your own. Email your letter to the editor to the addresses
below, and include your full name (no initials), home address, and
daytime and evening telephone numbers for verification. This information
needs to be included if your letter is to be published.
Send your letters to:

Seattle Times: opinion at seattletimes.com
King County Journal: letterstoeditor at kingcountyjournal.com
Seattle Post Intelligencer: editpage at seattlepi.com

Sample letters for Herons Forever members to write to newspapers:

Dear Editor:
I am saddened and angered that Renton does not support the Black River
great blue herons, the largest colony in the region. The city's position
seems to be development at any cost, including certain death to the
herons if a proposed 65-house development next to the birds' habitat is
allowed to go ahead without further study of the impacts. With the Black
River herons, Renton has a choice -- retain urban habitat for wildlife
and make the city a nice place to live for its citizens, or disregard the
needs of the herons and make the city nothing more than a profitable
place for developers to ruin.

Dear Editor:
Why does development always seem to win out over wildlife habitat in
Renton? The largest great blue heron colony in the region is located in
Renton's Black River Riparian Forest. And yet the city takes no pride in
the big birds, as has been shown by repeated attempts to rubber stamp a
65-house development next to the colony without fully evaluating the
impacts. Without the herons, Renton will just be another ugly paved strip
mall. Is that what we want?


Dear Editor:
Why doesn't Renton support the largest great blue heron colony in the
region? Renton's Black River Riparian Forest is home to 135 heron nests,
a remarkable accomplishment that a colony of this size can flourish in an
urban area. But Renton seems determined to see the herons go away by its
repeated attempts to approve a 65-house development next to the birds'
habitat without doing a full study of the impacts. Black River makes
Renton a nice place to live. Development at any cost makes Renton a
sellout.


Together we can save our herons. The herons have never before needed us
the way they do right now.

The herons thank you.
Suzanne Krom, President
Herons Forever
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