Lacey man maintains stance on trees, dead bear

Lacey area resident Rob Kavanaugh continues to pressure the city of Lacey on its tree policies, once again appearing before the Lacey City Council Thursday night to deliver his own report on whether the city is abiding by its tree protection ordinance.

Kavanaugh has said he was spurred to action in June after walking through Lacey Corporate Center, a business park that curls between College Street and Yelm Highway, where he discovered a development lot that had been cleared of all its trees. Alarmed, he has since sought more information from the city and has appeared before the council to share his concerns.

On Thursday, he delivered copies of his assessment during public comment.

For example, Kavanaugh alleges that the city has violated its tree tract requirements, but has followed its street tree requirements.

He also asked the council for a show of hands about whether they support a section of the tree and vegetation protection and preservation ordinance called “purposes and permit criteria.”

Councilman Michael Steadman raised his hand, while the other council members remained silent and unmoved. Deputy Mayor Cynthia Pratt, who was filling in for Mayor Andy Ryder, said she would need more time to read over his document.

Kavanaugh, too, was alarmed by the recent shooting of a female black bear in Lacey by an official with the state Department of Fish and Wildlife. He didn’t speak about the shooting at the council meeting, but shared a copy of the public records request he has filed with the state.

It is a detailed request in which Kavanaugh seeks 19 items of information about the shooting.

Here is some of what he is requesting:

▪ Records showing that the shooter was a qualified rifleman.

▪ A list of other alternatives considered before the bear was shot.

▪ Records showing why the bear was not field dressed, quartered and put in a cold box to prevent spoilage.

▪ Records showing why the bear could not be tranquilized, leg-trapped or netted once it came down from the tree.

The black bear was shot and killed on Aug. 22 after it was located by Fish and Wildlife officials in a green belt between neighborhoods on Timberline Drive in Lacey, according to an incident report obtained by The Olympian.

Although Fish and Wildlife officials were prepared to shoot the bear with a tranquilizer gun, it scurried up a tree and out of range of the tranquilizer dart. They also were concerned that the bear might be “trap shy,” making it difficult to trap the animal.

After the decision was made to shoot and kill the 200-pound bear, the carcass was donated to the Nisqually tribal elders, according to the report.

This story was originally published September 10, 2015 at 11:50 PM with the headline "Lacey man maintains stance on trees, dead bear."