Government

Gig Harbor Now provides citizens the information they need to oversee and participate in the city of Gig Harbor, Pierce County and smaller governing bodies.

Phase IV purchase is ‘last piece of the puzzle’ for new conservation area

Sep 12, 2024 | By: Carolyn Bick

Since 2022, the city of Gig Harbor has worked to create a conservation area, called the txʷaalqəł Conservation Area, spanning 40.5 acres of land near the heart of downtown. The city’s recent purchase of property from two private landowners increased those 40.5 acres to just shy of 52 total acres.  The city acquired the land

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Owner of huge Crescent Valley forestland threatens logging, selloff to preserve dream of Canterwood-like development

Sep 11, 2024 | By:

Unpaved peninsula: The Harbor’s hidden forests and fields Note: Growing up on the Gig Harbor Peninsula used to entail some familiarity with the woods. If you knew the routes, you could cross the peninsula on trails, sticking to fields and forests (and occasionally crossing a country road). That’s much harder today, yet undeveloped land remains

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Lawsuit alleges Kopachuck at risk of landslide from redevelopment

Sep 10, 2024 | By:

A neighbor whose home was damaged by a 2017 slide seeks to stop Kopachuck tree cutting until tests show it’s safe.

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City council to consider increasing many fees

Sep 05, 2024 | By:

Every year, the Gig Harbor City Council reviews fees for everything from dog licenses to renting city-owned facilities, from business license fees to building permits. On Monday, Sept.9 the council will consider updating fees to recoup the costs of processing each permit, license or service. The new schedule is based on the time it takes

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Gig Harbor needs more housing density, but where? Comp Plan update will help decide

Aug 28, 2024 | By:

The state requires the city to accommodate the development of 892 units by 2044. A majority of those need to be affordable to people making below median incomes.

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Commission seeks more specifics in Comprehensive Plan arts element

Aug 27, 2024 | By: Carolyn Bick

Last year, as the city of Gig Harbor prepared to update its Comprehensive Plan — the outline for the way city government will strategize, create, and operate towards the year 2044 — it conducted surveys at various events known to be a bustle of Harbor activity. Several centered around the Downtown Waterfront Farmers Market. The city

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Primary election certified; here are official results for local races

Aug 23, 2024 | By:

The Washington Secretary of State’s office certified the Aug. 6 primary election on Thursday, Aug. 22, confirming local results that were largely clear on election night. The certification affirms that Democrat Adison Richards of Bremerton and Republican Jesse L. Young of Gig Harbor will face off for House Position 1 in the 26th Legislative District.

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In the Margins | Elections workers are democracy’s foot soldiers

Aug 22, 2024 | By:

During the final months of any presidential election cycle, it’s tempting to grow cynical about politics and the process we use to propel our democracy. My own Grinch-like outlook toward elections began during the 1980s when, as a community reporter and editor here in Gig Harbor, I stayed glued to my desk into the wee

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PenMet, property owners stalled over Madrona Links lease

Aug 15, 2024 | By:

Two local businessmen who bought a portion of the property on which Madrona Links Golf Course sits sought support for their attempt to lease the facility during a public meeting Tuesday evening at the course’s restaurant, Hackers. Not all of the 30 golfers and neighbors who attended readily jumped on board. The city of Tacoma,

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Our Fisherman, Our Guardian remains broken, with mold growing

Aug 14, 2024 | By: Carolyn Bick

Mark Anderson’s voice is a bit crackly on the phone and sometimes drops in and out — the reception isn’t great where he is. But his voice is clear when he says: “‘Our Fishermen, Our Guardian’ — this was a community-based effort and community-funded, and a cooperation with the Puyallup Tribe to remember the first

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