The city of Mount Vernon wants to add to its commercial and industrial acreage so it can generate the tax revenue it needs to pay for the services needed by its expanding population.

Whether the city actually needs the full 322 additional acres it seeks remains to be seen. But we remain skeptical of the city’s designs on the Riverbend area, that diked, 670-acre peninsula of land west of the interstate.

This issue is of paramount importance to both city residents and the many supporters of keeping Skagit Valley farmland in agriculture and must involve the public even in the early stages.

The mayor has shown a tendency to want to work issues through behind closed doors before public input is invited. In a recent meeting with representatives of Skagitonians to Preserve Farmland, Mayor Bud Norris expressed his preference that the group not take its concerns to the media.

We differ from the mayor’s statement that “the process hasn’t started and when it does, it will be very open.” Actually, the process began two years ago when the city hired a consultant to start analyzing acreage in and around the city for possible commercial or industrial use.

Norris has identified Riverbend as his preferred location for commercial expansion. Given that Wal-Mart plans to build a superstore at the northeast edge of the Riverbend area there is some logic to the idea of putting more commercial development nearby.

But first, it is agricultural land, something we as a community have clearly indicated in many ways that we want to preserve.

Second, Riverbend is in a flood plain protected by a dike system that, should it fail, would turn the peninsula into a veritable bathtub.

Finally, the city has barely solved the traffic problem posed by the coming Wal-Mart superstore, let alone what will come with more commercial development.

Is the City Council on board with the full, 322-acre proposal? Is it committed to the principal of “no net loss of Skagit farmland to development”? What alternatives are there to expanding the city’s urban growth boundaries? Is there already zoned but underutilized commercial land within the city limits?

Finally, current projections have Mount Vernon absorbing more of the projected population growth than all the county’s other cities combined, growing from its present 28,000 to 55,000 by 2025.

Is that a reasonable expectation? Should the city convert some of the residentially zoned land to commercial use?

We trust that our elected officials and staffs in both the city and the county will consider the alternatives very carefully as we go forward.

* Editorials reflect the consensus opinion of the editorial board and are written by its members: Publisher L. Stedem Wood, Editor Don Nelson and City Editor Dick Clever. Signed columns reflect the authors’ viewpoints.