Monday, June 07, 2004
Lakewood news:
Walter’s Lakewood journal
Vol 1, No. 2
HEADLINES:
MONDAY MEETING: WHERE TO PUT THE POLICE?
TRANSPORTATION TALK ON JUNE 21
NEW PARK OPENS JUNE 16
(disclaimer: This is the newsletter that I promised you when I
campaigned for office in order to help people stay informed about public
affairs in Lakewood. This newsletter reflects only one person's views, and is
in no way, shape or form anything official from the city of Lakewood)
MONDAY MEETING: WHERE TO PUT THE POLICE
One of the big topics for the council meeting Monday night, the 7th,
will be what to do about a police station. Lakewood was able to reach
agreement with the county to lease the current substation for two years,
but no longer. So that means the police will need a new home in two
years. Now, this is a very serious question because Lakewood is not
brimming over with surplus funds. And, as Councilmember Claudia Thomas pointed
out at our last meeting, Lakewood also needs to find a new senior
center within an even shorter time frame.
City Manager Scott Rohlfs passed out two budgets a couple weeks ago:
remodel an existing building for $9 million or get a new building for
$10.6 (very rough estimate, based on acquiring 2.5 acres that would also
include miscellaneous space for an animal shelter, impound lot, etc,..).
It’s safe to say no one on the council jumped up and down, to no one’s
surprise, and so we’ll be asking for more details about these estimates
Monday night.
It’s likely that to afford a station, Lakewood will have to borrow
money through a bond issue. This is a good time, interest rates being what
they are, to borrow money. However, how do we pay it back? One option
is to ask you, the voters, to approve an additional tax on yourselves.
This is not an easy decision. Even if we all had spare money to pay
taxes, a bond issue will not get approved without a campaign. Who will run
the campaign? Supporters of the Clover Park School District practically
had to perform human sacrifice to get the 60 percent margin for their
levy, and those folks have been at it a while. Even the Lakewood Fire
Department’s supporters have to mobilize impressive troops for a levy
campaign that directly affects public safety.
Numbers are very preliminary, but in order for the city to pay back a
$7 million loan, given favorable circumstances, the homeowners of a
$150,000 house would pay $23 a year.
The other option is to reach within the city budget and try to find the
money. So what gets cut? What gets undone? Tough answers lie ahead –
but that’s why we’re here, right, to figure all this out? Be assured
there will be a lot more news, and much more opportunity for discussion, of
police station options.
TRANSPORTATION TALK ON JUNE 21
If you have a concern about a road or intersection, 7 p.m. on June 21
is the scheduled hearing in City Hall for the six-year comprehensive
transportation improvement program. The plan covers the years 2005-2010.
When state tax flows to cities were disrupted a few years ago, Lakewood
began shifting money from the road fund to improve police services. The
bottom line is that there is simply not a lot of money around for road
improvements. If you are a member of the council, this is worrying
because it means we cannot provide improvements for our citizens – and
people who now assume that big roadway problems will be fixed sometime soon
are only going to get more disappointed. I hardly know what to say to
folks who rightfully demand a left turn, or some other improvement, at
John Dower and Custer. And that’s just one example.
One of the reasons we as a council approve the plan is that it allows
the city staff to seek grant funds for these projects. I’ll try to get a
list of projects in one of these newsletters soon. It’s important you
know because while some projects made the list, others are not even
scheduled for attempts at funding. But even if your project is on the
list, it would not hurt to come on June 21 and speak out – or you can send
the entire council a note by writing Council@ci.Lakewood.wa.us
PARK OPENS JUNE 16TH
Ward’s Lake Park is the second new park in Lakewood’s short history,
and it officially opens 4 p.m. on June 16. I took my son there a couple
weeks ago and the driveway gate to the parking lot was shut. I parked
right next to the gate and my son and I hiked in with our fishing poles.
The 22-acre park has lovely trails to the lake, and several spots for
fishing (it wasn’t a spot for catching, but we’ll be back). The
playground equipment is very inviting – this must be first time in three or
four years that my 12-year-old and I got on adjacent swings together. We
saw eagles circling – they have a nest in the park - and as we walked
back to the car a large heron spread his wings directly above our heads
and took off. The sight was majestic. Check it out.
The place is a little hard to find – the driveway is located between
the housing complexes that sit next to the theaters at 84th and I-5. I
challenge you to find the driveway on the first pass on 84th – but the
U-turn is worth it.
LATEST COLUMN
An elected official may have to pay a high personal price for his
decision; check out my latest column at
http://www.walterneary.net/columns/6.04.html
COMMERCIAL:
This newsletter is designed to provide quick information, but it is no
substitute for reading The News Tribune and the American Community
Journal. The Journal is a local monthly newspaper produced by the valiant
Ed Kane. If Lakewood will ever have a more frequent newspaper again, the
community needs to show support. So if you can spare $15, PLEASE
subscribe to Ed’s paper – our paper. You can send your subscription to
American Community Journal, 8521 Forest Ave SW, Lakewood, WA 98498. (Be sure
to include your phone number, if only in case Ed or a volunteer can’t
read your handwriting)
Publisher and editor: Walter Neary
P.O. 99702
Lakewood, WA 98499-0702
wtneary@walterneary.net
.
Forward this post
Walter’s Lakewood journal
Vol 1, No. 2
HEADLINES:
MONDAY MEETING: WHERE TO PUT THE POLICE?
TRANSPORTATION TALK ON JUNE 21
NEW PARK OPENS JUNE 16
(disclaimer: This is the newsletter that I promised you when I
campaigned for office in order to help people stay informed about public
affairs in Lakewood. This newsletter reflects only one person's views, and is
in no way, shape or form anything official from the city of Lakewood)
MONDAY MEETING: WHERE TO PUT THE POLICE
One of the big topics for the council meeting Monday night, the 7th,
will be what to do about a police station. Lakewood was able to reach
agreement with the county to lease the current substation for two years,
but no longer. So that means the police will need a new home in two
years. Now, this is a very serious question because Lakewood is not
brimming over with surplus funds. And, as Councilmember Claudia Thomas pointed
out at our last meeting, Lakewood also needs to find a new senior
center within an even shorter time frame.
City Manager Scott Rohlfs passed out two budgets a couple weeks ago:
remodel an existing building for $9 million or get a new building for
$10.6 (very rough estimate, based on acquiring 2.5 acres that would also
include miscellaneous space for an animal shelter, impound lot, etc,..).
It’s safe to say no one on the council jumped up and down, to no one’s
surprise, and so we’ll be asking for more details about these estimates
Monday night.
It’s likely that to afford a station, Lakewood will have to borrow
money through a bond issue. This is a good time, interest rates being what
they are, to borrow money. However, how do we pay it back? One option
is to ask you, the voters, to approve an additional tax on yourselves.
This is not an easy decision. Even if we all had spare money to pay
taxes, a bond issue will not get approved without a campaign. Who will run
the campaign? Supporters of the Clover Park School District practically
had to perform human sacrifice to get the 60 percent margin for their
levy, and those folks have been at it a while. Even the Lakewood Fire
Department’s supporters have to mobilize impressive troops for a levy
campaign that directly affects public safety.
Numbers are very preliminary, but in order for the city to pay back a
$7 million loan, given favorable circumstances, the homeowners of a
$150,000 house would pay $23 a year.
The other option is to reach within the city budget and try to find the
money. So what gets cut? What gets undone? Tough answers lie ahead –
but that’s why we’re here, right, to figure all this out? Be assured
there will be a lot more news, and much more opportunity for discussion, of
police station options.
TRANSPORTATION TALK ON JUNE 21
If you have a concern about a road or intersection, 7 p.m. on June 21
is the scheduled hearing in City Hall for the six-year comprehensive
transportation improvement program. The plan covers the years 2005-2010.
When state tax flows to cities were disrupted a few years ago, Lakewood
began shifting money from the road fund to improve police services. The
bottom line is that there is simply not a lot of money around for road
improvements. If you are a member of the council, this is worrying
because it means we cannot provide improvements for our citizens – and
people who now assume that big roadway problems will be fixed sometime soon
are only going to get more disappointed. I hardly know what to say to
folks who rightfully demand a left turn, or some other improvement, at
John Dower and Custer. And that’s just one example.
One of the reasons we as a council approve the plan is that it allows
the city staff to seek grant funds for these projects. I’ll try to get a
list of projects in one of these newsletters soon. It’s important you
know because while some projects made the list, others are not even
scheduled for attempts at funding. But even if your project is on the
list, it would not hurt to come on June 21 and speak out – or you can send
the entire council a note by writing Council@ci.Lakewood.wa.us
PARK OPENS JUNE 16TH
Ward’s Lake Park is the second new park in Lakewood’s short history,
and it officially opens 4 p.m. on June 16. I took my son there a couple
weeks ago and the driveway gate to the parking lot was shut. I parked
right next to the gate and my son and I hiked in with our fishing poles.
The 22-acre park has lovely trails to the lake, and several spots for
fishing (it wasn’t a spot for catching, but we’ll be back). The
playground equipment is very inviting – this must be first time in three or
four years that my 12-year-old and I got on adjacent swings together. We
saw eagles circling – they have a nest in the park - and as we walked
back to the car a large heron spread his wings directly above our heads
and took off. The sight was majestic. Check it out.
The place is a little hard to find – the driveway is located between
the housing complexes that sit next to the theaters at 84th and I-5. I
challenge you to find the driveway on the first pass on 84th – but the
U-turn is worth it.
LATEST COLUMN
An elected official may have to pay a high personal price for his
decision; check out my latest column at
http://www.walterneary.net/columns/6.04.html
COMMERCIAL:
This newsletter is designed to provide quick information, but it is no
substitute for reading The News Tribune and the American Community
Journal. The Journal is a local monthly newspaper produced by the valiant
Ed Kane. If Lakewood will ever have a more frequent newspaper again, the
community needs to show support. So if you can spare $15, PLEASE
subscribe to Ed’s paper – our paper. You can send your subscription to
American Community Journal, 8521 Forest Ave SW, Lakewood, WA 98498. (Be sure
to include your phone number, if only in case Ed or a volunteer can’t
read your handwriting)
Publisher and editor: Walter Neary
P.O. 99702
Lakewood, WA 98499-0702
wtneary@walterneary.net
.
