Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe's Design for Rayonier Property

Salish Village would be the name for the proposed "living community" on the former site of the Rayonier mill. It would be a mix of light industrial, commercial, cultural, residential, lodging, retail, convention and park uses. It would also include a restored waterfront pier, urban farmland and wildlife habitat.

The idea comes from Jamestown S'Klallam tribal Chairman Ron Allen and various architects, planners, environmentalists and residents. Ron Allen said:

"This attempt is designed to say to the community there is a way to develop a win-win proposition. Everybody has their own ideas, of leaving it in its natural state to development. We're just suggesting that we think seven generations down the road, looking into the 22nd century, and needing the latest development techniques."

He described the plan as "a very dense development that allows light commercial and industrial kinds of activities that balance with the cultural site and the creek and estuary."

“Illegal” Dams in Clallam and Jefferson Counties

This really sucks for the property owners — four in Clallam County, two in Jefferson County — who suddenly found out that the “dams” on their properties are illegal. I’m all for environmental protection, but you’re not supposed to have the rules changed in the seventh inning.

Doug Short is one of the people who was informed by the Dam Safety Office of the Department of Ecology that his pond is actually a high-hazard earthen dam; and it’s illegal. He has a salmon-bearing waterway running through his property. He leased it to the State of Washington to help revive Jimmycomelately Creek. He also fenced his portion of the creek with a 200-foot setback even though only a 50-foot setback was required.

He said: “I never really looked at it as a dam. It's a pond. It's for watering cattle, to feed my hatchery, which does endangered species. When you do good deeds, you're supposed to get it back — that karma thing. It seems like it's not working out that way with this property.”

The required changes — enlarging the pond — will cost about $100,000 and the State of Washington isn’t providing any financial help. Short is hoping for help from the Clallam Conservation District or the Jamestown S'Klallam tribe.

The other five owners on the North Olympic Peninsula who received this notice all said they thought they just a pond on their properties; not a dam.

The responsibility for correcting these dams lies with the present owners. There’s no allowance for “grandfathering” if the dam was already there when the current owner purchased the property.