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Committee advances 'Little Bear Creek' naming proposal to final consideration
Summary
The committee voted May 7 to forward a proposal to formally name a stream 'Little Bear Creek' in King and Snohomish counties to final consideration in November, asking the applicant and staff to provide additional local documentation and letters of support.
On May 7, 2026, the Committee on Geographic Names voted to advance to final consideration a proposal to designate a stream that flows from Snohomish County into King County as Little Bear Creek.
Jared, committee staff, summarized the application and said multiple government datasets and publications — including entries used by King County, Snohomish County, the Department of Ecology and WSDOT — already refer to the feature as Little Bear Creek. Nikki McKenna, who identified herself as the GIS analyst for the city of Woodinville and the applicant, told the committee she had discussed the proposal with her city manager and public works director and could provide supporting materials.
The committee’s discussion focused on confirming local support and ensuring the correct tributary was identified among several nearby "Bear Creek" features. Mike Isle, the committee’s tribal representative, and other members said a formal recommendation or letters from the local jurisdiction would make the final review easier. Dean Foster encouraged consideration of renaming other nearby tributaries where confusion exists to improve mapping clarity.
Mike Isle moved to forward the proposal to final consideration with the caveat that additional documentation and letters of local support be submitted; Grant Smith seconded. Members verbally recorded their approval and the motion carried.
Jared told the group that final consideration will occur at the committee’s November meeting and that any further comments or evidence should be submitted roughly a month in advance so members have time to review them.
Next procedural steps: proponents should collect letters of support from local jurisdictions and other stakeholders and deliver them to committee staff ahead of the November meeting for final consideration.
