Heroin battle
Snohomish County is facing an unprecedented heroin epidemic with devastating consequences for our families, schools and quality of life.
Experience has shown that you cannot arrest your way out of drug addiction, homelessness and mental illness.
Therefore, we fully support the Snohomish County Council’s decision to give voters the opportunity to decide how we will address the heroin epidemic and associated problems. There is a complicated relationship between mental illness, drug addiction, homelessness and crime, and we need to address that nexus of problems by taking a holistic, system-wide approach that actually works.
Public safety and social service professionals have known for many years that more comprehensive approaches to addiction- and mental illness-fueled crimes are more effective than a revolving door of arrest and jail. We think today’s public is more aware and better informed than ever before and likely recognizes the need for a new commitment as well.
We are happy the public will be able to make this decision.
To create and sustain new programs that address the causes of crime, and not just crime, requires new approaches. We think the public will be willing to adopt these new, system-wide strategies because this affects all of us, every day.
This proposal would allow Snohomish County to expand its Office of Neighborhoods initiative, pairing more law enforcement officials with more social workers. This would allow us to hire additional, needed sheriff’s deputies and social workers. The proposal would also allow us to expand alternative sentencing programs, drug addiction treatment, mental health services and other social services that can help get at the root of addiction, mental health problems and homelessness. These programs have a proven track record of success and need additional capacity to bring them to scale to address the current crisis. The recent county council vote is the first in many steps to create long-term solutions for our heroin epidemic and related problems.
Of course, for those who would sell drugs or commit violent crimes, we will use every tool at our disposal to see them face justice. The additional public safety resources will ensure we are arresting, prosecuting, and jailing drug dealers and violent criminals. For those from the cartels or even smaller drug dealing operations, we will make Snohomish County an extremely unwelcome place for them to operate.
In addition, cities will also receive resources to implement coordinated efforts to work against the heroin epidemic. We believe this partnership between the county and cities will bring a truly regional approach to this difficult and painful problem. To ensure the plan addresses concerns from across our community, we will work with cities, law enforcement, the county council, county executive and other partners. In addition to current efforts to find added efficiencies and opportunities for coordination across the region, we will work with our partners to establish a Snohomish County Public Safety and Human Services Alliance. The alliance will help us implement and coordinate efforts across the region.
Working together, we will put the heroin epidemic behind us.
Dave Somers, county executive
Ty Trenary, sheriff
Mark Roe, prosecutor
Praise to AHS
The Arlington High School drama program has recently made history by earning 10 nominations and four honorable mentions in the 5th Avenue High School Musical Awards for their recent production of the musical “Pippin.”
This is a statewide competition where each school submits a Broadway musical production to be judged. Not only did AHS earn more nominations than they ever have before, they also earned more nominations than any other school this year.
They have been invited to perform during the awards ceremony as they are honored as one of the top three casts in the state, yet another AHS first. Scott Moberly, the director and drama teacher, has cultivated hundreds of students and created a thriving theater program in Arlington.
Excellence deserves to be recognized, and Scott, his cast, and crew deserve a loud round of applause. I am looking forward to their performance at the 5th Avenue Theater June 6, as well as their future productions. The arts are alive and well in Arlington.
Nathan Braaten, Marysville
Clean M’ville
Too much of Marysville has “suburban blight,” which attracts crime, lowers property values and sends a “We don’t care” message to anyone who is considering living here. This is especially true in north Marysville. A cancer has infected our neighborhoods with derelict houses that have:
·Trash all over the yard;
·Junk vehicles and/or vehicles all over the yard;
·Absentee owners, which attract squatters, drugs, vandalism, graffiti and worse.
The city does not deal with this. I have watched this decay since coming to live here in 1975 and have not acted – until now. We can eliminate these problems. How? First step is to contact Marysville Code Enforcement and insist on action.
Deryck McCleod, code enforcement officer.
Email: deryck.mcleod@marysvillewa.gov
Phone: 360-363-8208
Unlike law enforcement, our code enforcement officer rarely acts on a violation he sees. Why? Unbelievably, Marysville, the second-largest city in Snohomish County, has only one full-time code enforcement officer. So action is only taken when many people file many complaints. Even then, action is erratic, slow and not very effective, as our neighborhoods show. Not good.
So keep calling and respectfully work up the ladder to planning director Dave Koenig, and then to Mayor Jon Nehring. After that, it will be time to visit the City Council. It is customary to give up when we hear there are other priorities. But this time, our only hope is to help each other by never giving up.
Marysville citizens, I am calling for no more neighborhood neglect, where trash piles grow, junk cars multiply and houses deteriorate.
Our community will continue a slow death if we remain passive. Families and jobs we want here will choose to go elsewhere if we do not clean up our city. Where do you want to live?
Ron Friesen,
Marysville
