Proper place, time for charrettes
Jason Miller of Concrete has written a letter to the editor (June 17) with a good suggestion for city of Mount Vernon leaders. He advocates the use of a public-involved planning process called a “charrette” to build consensus on choices for community growth. He is correct, and our city has already employed this technique with success.
However, it is not appropriate to the “blowback” public response he noted in the recent public hearing. The question before the council, was whether to apply to Skagit County, in the current planning cycle, for a previously approved 300 acres to add to our Urban Growth Boundary.
This is a proper step in an orderly growth process, not a license to sprawl.
When and where such an addition is granted will precede the inclusive planning that must/will be done. Without authority and a set of known boundaries, any planning effort lacks specifics and becomes a generic visioning exercise or “wish list” without reference to actual property owners and stakeholders.
It would be akin to constructing a house before you found and purchased the building lot!
We regret, as Mr. Miller further reminds us, that post WWII developments in our city have left much to be desired. However, please remember that 40 years passed from the end of the war until Mount Vernon was able to create a professional Planning Department!
During that lengthy interval our resident-formed planning commissions did the best they could with the limited resources available.
Matters would be far worse today without the thankless efforts, good intentions and dedication of so many ordinary residents who were willing to step up, face criticism and serve their community.
John C. Cheney Jr.
Councilman, Ward 2
Mount Vernon
PUD takeover of PSE a bad idea
As a PSE ratepayer and retiree, I have some concerns and questions regarding Skagit County PUD possibly getting into the power business.
First off, the economics make no sense. To condemn the electric distribution system in Skagit County would be extremely expensive. Also, the amount of equipment that would need to be purchased for this effort is beyond imagination. As I read the recent study you mention in your June 12th article, it shows that customer electric rates could go up by 20 percent.
Additionally, after the purchase of the system and related equipment there is the buying of power itself. There is no source of power cheap enough, BPA power included, to offset the costs of the purchase of the system and equipment. The same study also estimates an additional cost of $4,000 per customer to even begin this exercise.
With regard to “foreign ownership” of PSE, we need to remember that today PSE is owned by stockholders many of whom are not U.S. citizens. We also need to remember that no matter who owns PSE, the utility is still subject to the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission.
The commission has done a credible job of holding PSE to customer service standards and appropriate rates based on actual costs. PSE has one of the lowest operational costs you will find anywhere.
In addition, the PSE dams at upper and lower Baker are regulated by the Federal Energy and Regulatory Commission and will continue to be in the future. PSE has to go through tremendous scrutiny on a regular basis with the commission and will continue to be held to these standards after any change in ownership.
A local PUD, however, will be controlled by three elected commissioners and that will be the only accountability.
Virg Hofkamp
Anacortes
Letters to the Editor, June 23, 2008
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