September Updates From PMBC
Shoreline Walking Tours
If you would like to tour the beautiful Mud Bay Cliffs shoreline, join us on
Saturday Oct 8th, at 10:00 AM – 11:30 AM.
See this natural gem we’re working to protect – the shoreline, cliffs, woodlands, and almost certainly some wildlife, too!
This past month, Protect Mud Bay Cliffs (PMBC) volunteers toured Mud Bay Cliff’s shoreline with a group of PMBC supporters, and with the hydrologist retained to help PMBC respond to the developer’s application, including the stormwater plan.
The hydrologist who visited the public shoreline agreed with PMBC that a development on this site “would be a terrible idea.”
More than a dozen PMBC supporters who walked the shoreline echoed that assessment. We enjoyed a beautiful afternoon walk together at low tide, and also spotted several great blue herons who were hunting for lunch.
If you would like to join us for the October 8th walking tour, please call Ava Ferguson at (831) 264-3363.
We’ll meet at the public access trailhead immediately past 220 Sea Pines Road at 10:00 AM, unless weather is very inclement. Please note: we will not be walking on privately-owned property, so the tour will stay on the public shoreline at low tide.
Developers’ Application Status
The city’s Planning Department is still waiting for the applicant to address questions and provide information that was missing from the original application. Recently the city granted the applicant a 60-day extension of the required response time, so now the applicant’s response is due on or before October 25th.
We’ll continue to keep you updated on the project as it moves through the planning process. Once the city is satisfied with the application, a Public Comment period of 30 days will begin. (The city’s website about this project is at https://cob.org/project/the-woods-at-viewcrest.)
Let’s keep up the good work
We greatly appreciate all you’ve done to help protect Mud Bay Cliffs: staying aware, talking with neighbors, writing letters, displaying PMBC yard signs, volunteering and contributing tax-deductible donations.
Want to do more? Here’s a list of things you can do now (if you’ve yet to do so):
Get Your Yard Sign: To get your free, recyclable yard sign, visit https://mudbaycliffs.org/join-in, then click the “Yard Sign” button.
Write a Letter: Send a letter/email to Mayor Fleetwood (mayorsoffice@cob.org) and City Council (ccmail@cob.org) describing, in your own words, your concerns about the proposed development. The mailing address is: City Hall, 210 Lottie Street, Bellingham, WA 98225. Eventually, we’ll also write letters to the Planning Department to speak out about problems with the application itself, during the Public Comment period (dates TBD by City Planning Department).
Sign Up for City Notices: You can receive notices from the city about the development and help signal widespread interest in this project by sending an email:
To: Senior Planner Kathy Bell at kbell@cob.org
Subject: Jones Preliminary Plat
Content: Your home mailing address
Include: “Please accept this email as my request to receive all notices regarding the Jones Preliminary Plat subdivision application at 352 Viewcrest Rd / Parcel # 370213075542”
Donate: If you’re able, please make a tax-deductible donation of any amount to the Protect Mud Bay Cliffs Fund using the “Donate” button on our website at https://mudbaycliffs.org/join-in. All donations are used solely for PMBC communications, and expert services (such as legal, geotechnical, hydrological). All day-to-day work is done by our completely volunteer team.