Mercer Island was not immune from the effects of the global economic recession this past year.
The effects were perhaps most keenly felt at Island institutions that serve others. Island churches, schools, Youth Theatre Northwest and social service agencies all suffered as funding dried up. Yet Islanders, resilient as ever, forged ahead to make their lives, and those of others, better.
The larger region remains a looming presence whether we want it to or not. Our aging and overburdened transportation network continues to give us pause as we contemplate our daily commute or trips to the doctor.
Within the pages of the Reporter, Islanders read about everything from the lighthearted to the serious to the tedious. Islanders continue to embrace their role in the larger world and push us all toward a more sustainable community in how we live and what we consume. Islanders sent us photos of the deer and wildlife that roam the Island in spite of human presence.
Major issues right here held the attention of Islanders for months. They included the aftermath of Tent City — evaluating the process and the permits that govern the camp’s stay here. Changes to the intersection of Island Crest Way at Merrimount brought dozens of letters to the Reporter and citizens to City Council meetings. The controversy led a group of Islanders to start their own Web site on the issue. Questions regarding the impact and financing of the Boys & Girls Club PEAK project continued from 2008 until and after construction began at the site near Mercer Island High School.
JANUARY
January saw a new day in the history of the United States as Barack Obama was inaugurated as president on a very cold Tuesday. Many Islanders attended the frigid ceremony in Washington, D.C.
In the last days of 2008, Former City Attorney and deputy City Manager Lindell files a lawsuit against the city alleging sexual harassment in her firing.
FEBRUARY
Mercer Island School Board members continued to follow the progress made by the Boys and Girls club in collecting funds pledged for the PEAK project.
Youth Theatre Northwest warns it may close without financial help from the community.
A fire started by coals in a garbage can nearly burns a house to the ground on 68th Avenue S.E.
Plans for a pedestrian plaza on 78th Avenue S.E. between two new residential mixed use buildings in the Town Center, take shape.
Eileen Mintz, the Reporter’s irrepressible food columnist and friend, dies from cancer.
MARCH
Insufficient public school funding becomes critical as the state slashes budgets. School district administrators warn the community of a serious funding shortfall.
Long time Mercer Island high school basketball coaching legend, Ed Pepple, retires.
Susan Empey and Robinson Howell take first place and second respectively of all Islander runners in the half-marathon race at the annual Mercer Island Rotary run.
A car plunges into lake Washington early in the morning of March 4 in the East Seattle neighborhood. The single occupant inside drowns.
A late spring snow surprises commuters and delights Island children.
APRIL
The Boys & Girls Club PEAK project begins final preparations to begin construction. Questions continue about finances and the collection of money pledged for the project. A chart published in the Reporter on April 29 indicated that just $4 million of the $8 million pledged had been collected.
A lawsuit brought by neighbors against the city regarding its handling of Tent City 4 is dismissed by a judge.
A huge rash of car prowls rattles the Island on April 15.
A teen is injured when the bicycle he is riding rear-ends a car that stopped suddenly in front of him. He goes head-first through the rear window.
Controversy regarding what the city plans to do to improve the ICW-Merrimount intersection ramps up.
Goats come to Mercer Island to clear up brambles.
MAY
Three fundraisers to pay for research into the cause and treatment for cancer are staged on the Island.
Islander Ted Mogil receives a telephone call from an Iowa boy who found a prayer book that belonged to him. The book had been lost more than 50 years ago.
A group of Islanders led by Terry Pottmeyer began a campaign to purchase new marching band uniforms. The campaign brings in $130,000.
An Islander is diagnosed with swine flu.
Island natives and notables, Greg Palmer and Delores Erchinger die.
The Mercer Island Schools Foundation pledges to raise more money to ‘bridge the gap’ in state funding for the Mercer Island School District — and they do.
Discussions continue about Tent City.
The city of Mercer Island joins the social networking chorus by announcing that news and announcements will be broadcast via Twitter in addition to on-line sources.
The median price for homes sold in May falls to $685,000 down from the May 2008 median price of $1.1 million. Fewer homes sell for lower prices. Many sellers adjust their prices down accordingly and by June, the number of listings rebounds.
JUNE
Two Islanders: Tom Babcock, a city maintenance engineer and Malcolm Davis, 9, win the Big Read writing contest that was part of the centennial of the Yukon Pacific Alaska Exhibition.
Mercer Island High School sends 325 graduates off into the world at a ceremony held at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle. Islander grads plan to attend colleges across the globe from Boston to Scotland to Beijing.
Candidates begin to announce for the fall election. They include long time city activist Ira Appelman, who ran against Council incumbent Dan Grausz for Pos. 2. Grausz announced his campaign in February. Dave Myerson announced his intent to run for the seat on the Mercer Island School District Board of Directors left vacant by board member John DeVleming. Islander PTA activist and attorney Terri Caditz, vies for the same seat.
The Mercer Island Farmers Market begin a second year along S.E. 32nd Street adjacent to Mercerdale Park.
JULY
Mercer Island Thrift shop volunteer Chloe Dauwalder finds $9,000 worth of bonds in a donation and later the same day helps a woman who had a seizure at the store.
The organizers of the Farmers Market are named ‘Citizen of the Year,’ and, as such, rode in the Grand Parade of Summer Celebration! Islander Peter Tongalo also rides in honor as the first recipient of the Flash Family Inspirational award.
Closures of the I-90 bridge allow engineers to test and replace key structural components of the bridge. The State Department of Transportation engineers warn the region about delays. The work goes smoothly and is finished ahead of schedule.
Largely due to the efforts of Islander Myra Lupton, the first sailing classes for Island youth run by the city, begin.
7700 Central opens its doors; another one of the mega-mixed-use development projects on the Island.
AUGUST
Islanders sweat through an exceptional heat wave at the end of July, where temperatures remained high for several days and reached into the triple digits.
The Blue Angels burst into nearly flawless blue skies at the annual Seafair celebration.
After King County Executive Ron Sims’ departure to serve in President Obama’s administration, regional politicians including Mercer Island’s Fred Jarrett join the race for his replacement. Dow Constantine and Susan Hutchison gather enough votes to move on to the November general election.
A teen employee at a Town Center tanning salon is held up by an armed man. The assailant is later arrested for the hold-up and similar crimes.
The Community Center at Mercer View hosted an art exhibit featuring native art as part of the Yukon-Alaska-Pacific Exhibition Centennial.
Everyone from the Girl Scouts to the King County Republican party hold picnics and other events at Island parks. In August, the Republicans hosted Susan Hutchison and Rep. Dave Reichert and Ed Nixon, the brother of the former president.
The field surface at Islander Stadium is determined to be unsafe for athletes and is replaced just before school begins.
After a wildly successful season, the Boys & Girls Club-sponsored boys Little League Team qualifies to play in the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa. The team loses in the second round of play to a team from Iowa.
Brothers Dave and Marty Ulrich Jr. purchase the former Shell gas station the family has long operated on Sunset Highway. The business was begun by their father, Marty Sr., at the site in 1965.
SEPTEMBER
The design program at Bellevue College largely inspired by late Islander Doris Katz is honored by the establishment of a new bachelor degree program at the newly minted four-year institution.
Sunnybeam School founder and Island pioneer Nuky Fellows dies.
Worries about the spread of the H1N1 virus renew as the school year begins.
The Mercer Island Post Office, responding to lower mail volumes and revenues, changes routes and establishes cost-cutting measures.
Signs, boats and trailers begin to crowd Island streets. The city modifies the parking ordinance to discourage the storage of large vehicles on Island streets.
The new sport of ‘paddle surfing’ is seen off Island shores.
A man in a giant hot dog suit appears on the cover of the Reporter.
OCTOBER
The Mercer Island Reporter, along with Sound Publishing newspapers in east and south King County, publish “Navigate the Future,” a 40-page look at the changes ahead in transportation for the region.
Discussions on Tent City continue still. Letters about the election and Island Crest Way fill the Opinion page of the Reporter.
The Mercer Island Reporter takes first place for General Excellence in the Washington Newspaper Publishers’ Association Better Newspaper Contest. It is the second year in a row the paper takes first place.
Dallas Otter fishes a set of keys owned by a North Bend woman out of a drain along S.E. 32nd Street during the Farmers Market.
The Reporter, along with the League of Women Voters, holds its annual voters forum on Oct. 14. The forum includes candidates for School Board, City Council and King County Executive.
A new stainless steel sculpture by renowned Northwest artist Harold Balazs is unveiled out side the newly opened 77 Central building.
Boys & Girls Club officials tell the School Board that they need to borrow money to cover construction expenses on the PEAK project until all pledges are collected.
The Mercer Island School Board prepares levy requests for the February 2010 elections
The school district announces that it will lock Islander Stadium to protect the new field turf.
Fifty-nine tons of trash is collected at the city-wide recycling event, held at the boat launch on Oct. 24.
NOVEMBER
Dan Grausz retains his City Council seat and Dave Myerson is elected to the School Board in the general election.
Islanders turn their attention once again to the coming decision on what to do with the troublesome intersection of Island Crest Way at Merrimount. A group of Islanders set up their own Web site about the issue.
An Islander who disposed of sacks full of shredded currency that he legally obtained for an art project finds himself being questioned by local police and the Federal Secret Service.
A new cell tower is approved for the Island with relative ease, a far cry from the outpouring of concern from the community in past years.
The city reports that the years-long sewer lakeline replacement project is ahead of schedule and within budget.
Long-time Islander tennis coach, Joyce Hedlund, dies suddenly.
A historic military site is remembered at the South end in time for Veterans Day. The base kept watch over Lake Washington and the skies over Boeing during WWII.
DECEMBER
The Recycling Center is slated to shut down but remains in use. Hollywood Video closes.
After listening to testimony from citizens on all sides of the issue regarding the reconfiguration of the Island Crest Way at Merrimount, the City Council decides to make the roadway into three lanes at the contested point.
