Central Park?

I’m writing this letter in response to the news that Bainbridge Parks is purchasing the Bainbridge Island Athletic Club, with the goal of making it the island’s sport and recreation facility that the voters were assured would be the Sakai property, when we approved the bond to acquire the property.

The Sakai property was sold to us as the island’s “central park”. It was centrally located, equally accessible to all residents, and walkable from nearby schools and library. My young friends with children encouraged me to support and vote for the bond for all these reasons.

The athletic club is on top of a steep hill on Koura Road , near the north end of the island. It is not equally accessible to all residents. And, it was conditionally approved as a private club, with limitations. It, and the surrounding Meadowmeer neighborhood were not designed for or planned for a public facility. As a commercial Architect who has designed several public projects under conditional use approval, I know that a public accommodation requires an entirely different set of planning and design criteria than a private use, and would need to be carefully evaluated during a public approval process. 

I think our Parks department needs to reconsider this irresponsible and unapproved change in direction and proceed with the ongoing development of the central park that was promised the voters and taxpayers of our island.

Rolland Reid, Architect (retired)