Randy Lord, Council President, Parks and Arts Commission has been enthusiastic and instrumental in helping us move from restricted diving access to the possibility of getting a Scuba Diving Park somewhere in the Mukilteo area. He and the rest of the Commission and Council deserve a big Thank You from all of us.
4/21/09 Got a thank you note off to the City Council members.
4/20/09 I ... and enough people to fill the city Hall to standing room only ... meet with the City Council to discuss the ban on diving at Lighthouse Park. A majority of the contingent of divers that were there wore North West Dive Club T-shirts, complete with the obligatory red and white dive flag. As a result of our previous discussion with the Parks and Arts Commission and the interest, the open mindedness, and responsiveness of the City Council, the ban has been lifted - by a unanimous vote of the City Council. A special “Thank You” to Mayor Joe Marine, Council President Randy Lord (Parks and Arts), and Recreation & Cultural Services Manager Jennifer Berner and an equally heart felt thank you to the rest of the City Council and the Parks and Arts commission for being so very open minded helpful, and responsive to us and to the general public.
4/17/09 Sent a Thank You to Rebecc Carr a for a wonderful article that she wrote Mukilteo Could Become a Dive Friendly Destination for the Mukilteo Beacon and got a nice response back.
4/8/09 Sent a Thank You to Christopher Fyall for a wonderful article that he wrote Mukilteo May Reverse Rule Against Diving at Lighthouse Park for the Mukilteo Herald and got a nice response back.
4/7/09 Started an e-mail tree to keep interested parties informed as to what's happening with the Mukilteo Scuba Diving Park. (DL on record) If you would like to be added to this list, send me an e-mail.
4/6/09 Requested of the webmaster that we start a page dedicated to the status of the Mukilteo Scuba Diving Park.
4/5/09 Randy Lord wrote:
This is the fun stuff for me; watching a wild idea turn into a valid plan! By all means, share this with the excitable ones! And while we are at it, why couldn't we tie it into the schools too? Biology, PE (scuba in the schools!), ecology, etc.
I talked to the mayor and he is just as delighted with the concept. He will talk with the chamber of commerce about it.
4/5/09 Asked Randy Lord to propose to the P&A commission that I would provide Scuba training to any of them that were interested in becoming certified.
4/3/09 Got the following e-mail from Randy Lord:
George, I appreciate your kind words; thank you!
Last night, even though I am the council president, I testified as a citizen and Chairman of the Mukilteo Lighthouse Festival Association (MLFA). As your group was testifying before I did, it inspired me that we could completely change our perspective towards divers, from prohibiting them to encouraging them. It seems like such a great win for your group, our local businesses, the kids, and our city.
As a member of the MLFA, we are always trying to imagine new ways that we can Celebrate by the Bay (our official motto of the Festival). Well, the entire scuba world is something that we've never discussed before, but it certainly fits the Celebrate by (in?!) the Bay mold.
I'm not sure what exactly can be done yet, but the concept is exciting to me! I'm hoping the idea starts to germinate and take root, and turn into something I can't even imagine!
I have a feeling your group is already brainstorming options. If you want me to be a catalyst or conduit to the city or festival board, please don't hesitate to contact me.
Thanks,
Randy Lord
4/3/09 Sent a formal "Thank You" to Randy Lord rlord@ci.mukilteo.wa.us (copy on record).
4/3/09 Good news. Not only were we able to get the Parks and Arts Commission to recommend removing the signs that implied that Scuba divers were not welcome in Mukilteo, we were able to get them to recommend that installing an Underwater Scuba Diving Park in the Mukilteo area would be a good idea. Granted, that doesn't mean that we're going to get a Dive Park, but it's an important first step. Council President Randy Load was instrumental in making this happen. Sadly, I have not been able to find his e-mail address to thank him. If somebody know his contact information, please forward it to me.
Next, this recommendation goes to the City Council. We'll have to see what comes of that. I believe that they meet on the 1st and 3rd Mondays.
4/2/09 I sent out an e-mail to everybody that lives in the northend, requesting that they attend the Parks and Arts Commission meeting that was happening that night. It was extreamly short notice but we still managed to get a half dozen Seahorses to show up and with the members of the other clubs ... it resulted in a turn-out of about a dozen people, and included people from:
Emerald Sea Dive Club www.emeraldseadiveclub.org,
Northwest Dive Club http://www.nwdiveclub.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=6998,
REEF http://www.pnwscuba.com ,and
WSA http://www.wascubaalliance.org
4/2/09 We were informed: ... shore diving access to the Mukilteo Lighthouse Park was recently removed by the parks administrator