Community Government
Petitions on proposed sports complex presented to Gig Harbor Council
The city may face some pushback from residents if it moves forward with a proposed sports complex in Gig Harbor North before performing a “cumulative” impact study.
A petition signed by 200 people was presented to the council on Monday, April 25, asking that new studies be done to ascertain the impact the complex will have on the area. Three people also spoke on the subject at the meeting, held virtually, while another six submitted written comments.
The facility would be built in phases on 30 acres along Harbor Hill Drive near the Tom Taylor Family YMCA. It would eventually include six lighted ballfields with associated parking lots and access roads, among other amenities.
Speakers pointed out that most of the people who now live in Gig Harbor North were not involved in earlier studies or public outreach campaigns. They want to have a voice in the process.
Petitioners are asking that an environmental impact study be done to measure traffic and parking; the impacts of tree removal, including light and noise pollution; and “cumulative impacts — impacts which may occur, combining existing conditions and planned development.”
The “cumulative impacts” point is important for the petition signers. Environmental impact studies are a given for the sports complex, as they would be for any project of its scale. But the studies will be performed for each phase of the project.
A petition organizer told Gig Harbor Now earlier this month that the signers want the project studied as a whole, not phase-by-phase. Mayor Tracie Markely said at the time that performing a cumulative impact study for the overall project would be problematic, given that latter phases are years away from breaking ground.
Gig Harbor Sports Complex Phase 1B Drawing courtesy of city of Gig Harbor
Population growth in Gig Harbor North
Supporting documents submitted with the petition noted that the population in Gig Harbor North has increased dramatically since the creation of the Harbor Hill Park Master Plan in 2013-2014. That plan was completed before the construction of hundreds of homes at Harbor Hill, McCormick Creek and the Bracera apartments.
The Harbor Hill Master Plan transformed into the Sports Complex Master Plan in 2018 and what had been called “Harbor Hill Park” became Phase 3 of the new sports complex, according to the petition.
The background documents also note that “the impacts from a 30-acre regional sports facility in a residential development are of concern to the Harbor Hill community.” The possible impacts include loss of open space and wildlife habitat, removal of 20 acres of trees, increased traffic and noise, parking availability, emergency services access and stormwater runoff.
In addition to a complete EIS, petitioners ask that an analysis be performed to determine if there is a shortage of sports fields in the Gig Harbor area. The documents cite the 2022 Parks, Recreation and Open Space Plan, adopted by council earlier this year, which found that 51 percent of those who responded to a Parks Commission survey felt that there are “more than enough” or “about the right amount” of sports fields and sports courts in Gig Harbor now.
Mayor Tracie Markley and the city council agreed to discuss issues related to the sports complex at a May 26 council study session.
The city will hold an informational open house about the complex from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, May 7, at the Civic Center. It will be an opportunity for people to learn about the plans for the complex and upcoming opportunities for public input. City staff and council members will be on hand to answer questions.
Committee work
The council did away with standing its standing committees, such as the Planning and Finance committees.
Previously, three-member committees usually met monthly to discuss specific topics. The new ordinance implements more-frequent study sessions so all council members can be included in discussions.
No business will be conducted during the study sessions, just in-depth discussions. Candidates for city boards and commissions will be interviewed by an ad-hoc committee of two or three council members.
The council also adopted new Council Guidelines and Procedures, including new sections for advisory boards, council communications, proclamations and other revisions. The revised procedures also dictate that a land acknowledgement — honoring the presence and contributions of the sx̌ʷəbabš band of the Puyallup Tribe — will be read at the beginning of every regular council meeting. Previously, the acknowledgement was read only during October and November.
New sidewalks near Harbor Ridge Middle School
The council also approved a contract with Parametrix for final design of improvements planned for the area of Prentice Avenue and Fennimore Street.
According to Public Works Director Jeff Langhelm, the project includes adding a sidewalk from Harbor Ridge Middle School along Prentice Avenue to Fennimore Street, and then along Fennimore to Peacock Hill. It also adds crosswalks with pedestrian-activated flashing beacons to alert drivers that someone is crossing the street.
The project has become much more complex than was anticipated.
“It’s turned out to be a very complicated project and we’ve found some new issues,” Langhelm said. “We discovered that we needed to shift the roadway along a curve on Prentice, add some fill and build a retaining wall and add a guard rail, while retaining the trees.”
He added that in order to qualify for federal funding for the project, “we needed to increase our design effort and take extra steps that we wouldn’t take if it was just being funded by local or state funds. And so that also added to the cost.” The entire project cost is now estimated at $1.7 million.
The contract was approved 7-0.