Channel Landing residents press city for safety measures after repeated crashes on Oaks Avenue

Two Channel Landing residents urged the Anacortes City Council on Feb. 24 to take additional safety measures on Oaks Avenue near Channel Landing after a Dec. 26 hit‑and‑run crash that destroyed part of a yard fence.

Janine Jolley told the council she and her husband live on Navigator Lane and that a westbound vehicle crashed through their fence on Dec. 26; the driver fled. She said similar incidents occurred three times during the three years she has lived there, and she criticized the city’s written response, saying the city engineer described the crash as unlikely to recur. Jolley asked the city to explain why the Portales frontage received a guardrail while Channel Landing did not, and requested guardrails, improved lighting, speed signs or other measures.

Shauna Kitsan, who lives adjacent to the damaged fence in the 4000 block of State Route 20/Oaks Avenue, described three recent incidents in the same location and said the city’s plan to install only a reflector sign at the curve “falls woefully short.” Kitsan said ownership of the frontage between the highway and the fence appears to be city property, not private, and urged the council to coordinate with neighbors and staff on protective measures such as guardrails, flashing beacons, speed enforcement and better lighting.

Mayor Mary Miller said city staff will continue to communicate with neighbors. Staff did not announce an immediate engineering remedy at the meeting; councilors asked staff to follow up with more detailed analysis and to clarify ownership and the data used for the city’s initial decision.

The comments were made during the public‑comment portion of the meeting; no formal action was taken by council on the issue that night.