Council deliberates on budget at meeting

The Sammamish City Council also passed an ordinance banning recreational marijuana businesses.

The Sammamish City Council has gotten its first look at a proposed budget for the next two years.

The council deliberated on line items well in to the night during their regular meeting Tuesday, Oct. 21, at Sammamish City Hall.

Councilmembers voted on whether to keep items on the proposed budget or to amend them. Examples which passed include funds for reforestation projects on city property, an additional $500 per month to Puget Sound Energy to purchase energy from green sources, and a $10,000 per year contribution to help pay for an executive director for Lake Sammamish State Park.

The final budget proposal will be presented for public comment at the Nov. 4 council meeting.

The council also approved an ordinance prohibiting recreational marijuana-related businesses from opening or operating inside city limits. The ordinance passed 6-1, with Councilmember Don Gerend opposed.

City officials also presented the list of approved human services grants for 2015-2016. In all, the city of Sammamish will give $170,138 in grants to 41 approved applicants, 1.7 percent less than the last grant period. Notable organizations denied funding include Hopelink Emergency Food Bank, Providence Marianwood, Habitat for Humanity, and the Eastern European Counseling Center.

The meeting was opened with a flag ceremony conducted by members of Cub Scout Pack 225 of Sammamish, which meets at Creekside Elementary and is sponsored by the Kiwanis Club at Providence Point, Issaquah.

The City Council will have its next regular meeting at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 4, at Sammamish City Hall. Along with the first reading of the final proposed budget, councilmembers will have first readings for a proposed property tax levy ordinance and a proposed school impact fee ordinance. The council also will consider resolutions over the 2015 fee schedule, salary schedule and medical premium co-pay percentages for city employees.