March 10, 2000

Commissioner Bob Hart

Skagit County Board of County Commissioners

205 Kincaid Street

Mount Vernon, Washington 98273

Re: Rally to Save Rural Fidalgo Island

cc: Commissioner Anderson, Commissioner Wolden, Mr. Gary Christensen, and Mr. Ian Munce

Dear Commissioner Hart:

Thank you for taking the time to attend our rally for rural Fidalgo Island, and thank you for making an off-the-cuff reply to our audience. The standing-room-only crowd bears evidence to the fondness that we Fidalgo residents feel for our island. At the rally, 180 people signed the petition requesting that Skagit County not increase densities in rural Fidalgo Island, that the County not conduct a study, and that the County continue to comply with the 1997 agreement with the City of Anacortes. I have included copies of the petitions with this letter.

According to Mr. Munce, the 1997 plan allows an additional 3,000 people in the city and another 3,000 people in rural Fidalgo. As stated in the proposed comprehensive plan amendments, the Fidalgo Island “community plan” will consider both the expansion of the Anacortes Growth Area and an increase in the rural densities beyond the 1997 numbers. The potential ramifications of opening this Pandora’s box are as follows:

With the addition of the 3,000 people allowed with the 1997 zoning, our quality of life will be significantly diminished by increased traffic, increased demands on services, increased pollution of our bays, and increased taxes. Increasing the rural densities beyond the 1997 numbers will devastate the rural quality of Fidalgo Island.

Sincerely yours,

Tom Glade

Vice President