By CLAYTON PARK

Community activists' efforts to restore the Thornton Creek Watershed as a fish habitat throughout Northeast Seattle received a big boost in court this past month regarding a property just north of the Seattle City limits.

On June 19, King County Superior Court Judge John Erlik ruled for plaintiffs Tim and Patty Crawford and their group, Twin Ponds Fish Friends, against defendants Aegis Assisted Living Development and the City of Shoreline regarding a development proposed by Aegis along Peverly Pond, just east of Twin Ponds Park.

Peverly Pond - located on a site bordered by 1st Avenue NE, I-5 freeway, NE 155th and NE 150th - is part of Thornton Creek's North Branch, which flows southeast into Jackson Park golf course in North Seattle.

The Crawfords, who live just north of Peverly Pond, challenged the City of Shoreline's approval of Aegis' plans to construct buildings, driveways and parking lots as close as 10 feet from the water's edge despite sensitive areas protection restrictions that require a shoreline buffer of 100 feet.

The couple also challenged the City of Shoreline's contention that the exemption to the land use code would have no significant adverse environmental impacts.

Fish have been spotted in the Peverly Pond area, including coho salmon and cutthroat trout, say the Crawfords.

Judge Erlik, in his ruling, affirmed that Thornton Creek is a salmonid-bearing stream and concluded that the City's Hearing Examiner incorrectly upheld the City's conclusion that a 100-foot buffer was not needed at Peverly Pond. He also ordered an immediate Stay on all construction on the site and that all construction vehicles, tools and equipment must be removed from the buffers.

Janet Way, a member of the Thornton Creek Legal Defense Fund (TCLDF), who has provided the Crawfords with assistance, called Judge Erlik's ruling an important victory because it establishes a legal precedent recognizing that "salmon can get up (Thornton Creek) that far, even under the freeway."

As of press time, Aegis has not yet indicated whether it will appeal Judge Erlik's ruling because it has been remanded back to the hearing's examiner for more information.

Patty Crawford, who says her mother was also a community activist who waged an unsuccessful campaign to save street trees in Forks, Wash. ("the logging capitol of the world"), said "I come from sort of a losing activist family so I'm glad we won here."

The Crawfords' battles aren't over yet. They are also fighting in court to block another developer's plans to build a project along Thornton Creek, just to the north of their home.

SOUTH LOT UPDATE:

Meanwhile, in Seattle, TCLDF and other groups, including Citizens For a Liveable Northgate (CFLN) and the Maple Leaf Community Council, have been involved in discussions with Security Properties, a multi-family housing developer that is exploring plans for a mixed-use project on a parking lot just south of Northgate Mall that could include daylighting a stretch of Thornton Creek that is currently culverted beneath the site.

"The talks with Security Properties are going great," said Way, who added that TCLDF has been encouraged by the developer's preliminary drawings for the project, which include daylighting the creek as well as a library, grocery store and a multi-family housing complex.

Jeanne Muir, a spokeswoman for Security Properties, said the preliminary drawings are just that: preliminary. "The drawings are strictly conceptual. All they are is an exploration of whether there's room for the creek" on the site, she said. Nevertheless, Muir said the talks with the community groups continue to be positive. Security Properties has taken an option to possibly buy the 12.8-acre South Lot from Northgate Mall owner Simon Property Group.

Security Properties' next step is to see whether it can reach an agreement with the activists to avert the kind of litigation that brought Simon's South Lot development plans to a halt. Simon wanted to build a mixed-use project on the South Lot that would have included a multi-screen movie theater, hotel, offices, shops and multi-family housing.

Unlike Security Properties, Simon's South Lot plans did not include provisions for daylighting Thornton Creek. Instead, Simon tried to argue in court that there was no evidence that the creek ever existed on the property.

King County Superior Court Judge Steven Scott ruled last year that Thornton Creek does in fact still exist on the property even though it is currently culverted underground. Simon eventually put the South Lot up for sale, which opened the door for Security Properties and its South Lot plans several months ago.

While talks between Security Properties and the community groups have been taking place, TCLDF and CFLN have continued their legal battle opposing Simon's proposed General Development Plans for the South Lot site.

Way reports that TCLDF and CFLN recently won a summary judgment that upholds Judge Scott's ruling regarding the presence of the creek on the South Lot site.

TCLDF and CFLN are seeking donations from the public to continue their efforts. Way reports that TCLDF recently received a small grant from the Brainard Foundation to develop funding strategies for daylighting the South Lot, as well as a grant from the Bullitt Foundation a couple months ago to help pay the group's legal costs.

For information, contact Bob Vreeland of TCLDF at 522-5919 or Jan Brucker of CFLN at 526-5342. Security Properties can be contacted by calling Jeanne Muir at 547-1008.

INITIATIVE 63 CAMPAIGN:

In related news, Knoll Lowney, the attorney for TCLDF, and Pam Johnson, field director for People for Puget Sound, an environmental group, have spearheaded a petition drive to get Initiative 63, the "Water Conservation for the Environment" initiative, on the ballot this fall.

The initiative encourages increased water conservation efforts within the City of Seattle, while preventing the City from selling conserved water to suburban areas.

To get the initiative on the ballot, "We need a little over 18,000 signatures" by mid-July "and we have 13,000 signatures so far," as of late June, said Lowney.

For more on Initiative 63, call 956-8050 or visit the Web site www.yesforseattle.org. (