Pilchuck Audubon proposes renaming Edmonds native-plant demonstration garden for volunteer Susie Schaeffer; public hearing set

Pilchuck Audubon Society has submitted a formal request to rename the Edmonds Wildlife Habitat and Native Plant Demonstration Garden to the Susie Schaeffer Wildlife and Habitat Community Garden, city staff told the Planning Board at its Jan. 8 meeting.

Angie Fesser, Parks and Recreation and Human Services director, and staff described the garden’s history and the formal naming process under the city’s park-naming policy. Fesser said the demonstration garden sits at the southeast corner of the Edmonds Marsh, adjacent to the Willow Creek Hatchery and Watershed Education Center, and is accessible from Pine Street and from the Watershed Education Center.

Volunteers and community groups developed the garden. Gary Pfeiffer, who described himself as a steward in the Edmonds park system and one of the volunteers who continued work after Susie Schaeffer stepped back, said Susie “put her life into this program.” Pfeiffer told the board that Schaeffer started the project in February 2009, recruited volunteers, cleared invasive species and planted hundreds of native plants, and that the site later became a certified wildlife habitat through the National Wildlife Federation.

City staff clarified the scope of the naming request: the proposal would name the demonstration-garden component — the planted garden area and its paths and interpretive signs — rather than the entire hatchery parcel or the larger Watershed Education Center complex. Jen Leach, who has worked closely with the garden and with Schaeffer, described Schaeffer as “a real true community builder” who founded local conservation activities and helped start Puget Sound Bird Fest.

No decision was made at the Jan. 8 meeting. Staff told the board a public hearing on the naming request will be scheduled at the Planning Board’s next meeting (two weeks after Jan. 8); the board will then forward a recommendation to the City Council, with council consideration anticipated on Feb. 8. Staff asked the board whether the naming scope and signage clarity should be emphasized in the public hearing materials; board members requested clearer framing in the public notice so the public understands whether only the garden component — not the entire hatchery parcel — is being considered.

Key details from staff and volunteers: - Proposed new name: Susie Schaeffer Wildlife and Habitat Community Garden (application supplied by Pilchuck Audubon Society). - Location: southeast corner of Edmonds Marsh, adjacent to Willow Creek Hatchery and Watershed Education Center; accessible from Pine Street and the Watershed Education Center. - Origin: Susie Schaeffer began the volunteer-driven garden in February 2009; a year later the site was certified as a wildlife habitat; the site is used for education by Sound Salmon Solutions and Edmonds College horticulture. - Next steps: public hearing at the Planning Board (scheduled two weeks after Jan. 8), then recommendation to City Council (anticipated Feb. 8). No formal renaming action was taken on Jan. 8.

The board also asked staff to ensure the public notice and the staff memo distinguish between renaming a component of a park and renaming an entire park parcel so residents know the scope of the request.