10 years ago 1998
Under considerable pressure from angry residents, the city of Marysville will lower it water rates for users outside city limits. More than 15 people spoke at a hearing Monday, at which the City Council voted 6-1 to lower the bill for the majority of water users. Karen Elder, a leading activist against a big rate rise last year, is still unsatisfied with the way the city bills for water residents inside city limits pay less for water than their counterparts outside. She said she will continue to boycott Marysville businesses until the rates are equal. Its like we dont fit we dont belong, she said of the citys treatment of county residents. The 1998 rates will be considerably lower than last year. In July and August residents got a rude shock when their water bills came in the mail. Many at Mondays meeting told of having their bimonthly bills double. Suzanne Lamb said her summer bill went from $42 to $93 despite not watering last year and her eldest son moving out of the house. I felt that what happened to me was tantamount to a criminal act, she said. Last years increase was the first time the Council adjusted rates in seven years, said city consultant Larry Wade. The biggest change was a penalty for high summer water use more than 7,500 gallons a month. The penalty, however, affected 42 percent of the users last year, according to Wade in 1998, the city doubled the amount of water a household can use in the summer before the penalty kicks in. The also reduced the amount of the penalty from 150 percent to 120 percent. Another big change was the amount charged per 1,000 gallons over the base rate. County residents saw their rates rise from $0.85 to $2.60. This year they will pay $2.20. City water users will continue to pay $1.75. We are giving the most amount of relief to those who got hit the hardest, City Administrator Dave Zabell said. Harold Shoemaker told of his shock 20 years ago when his bill tripled when he moved out of the city. He was told it was the cost of running the pipes. If its the pipes, Ive been paying for those lines for 28 years, he said. The price of water should be the same for everyone, he said. It all tastes the same, agreed Earl Rhodes. Zabell said the bottom line was that it costs more to provide water to county residents. He sad the rates are based on how much the water costs, how much it costs to operate the system and pay off the debt to build it. Councilmember NormaJean Dierck was the lone dissenting vote. She said she would like the rates studied further with more citizen input.

Coming on the heels of two failed school bonds, Lakewood officials are hoping the standard maintenance an operations levy and transportation levy will both pass next week. The vote is by mail only, which could change the results a little officials hope it will bring in more votes. By Monday this week, 1,500 people had mailed in their ballots. A majority of the nearly $4 million maintenance and operations levy for Lakewood pays for books and salaries. Smaller portions pay for buildings and food service. Lakewoods tax rate is among the lowest in the county with a rate of $2.61 per $1,000 of assessed value, just a $0.30 increase above the current tax rate of $2.31 for the current levy. the commercial growth of Smokey Point has been a factor in keeping the tax rate low. As we are shifting from rural and residential to more commercial it helps, said Superintendent Wayne Robertson. School officials estimate the levy will bring a tax increase of $3.75 per month to the owner of a $150,000 home. The school bus levy will provide $191,000, split between 1999 and the year 2000, to purchase school buses in 1998. The tax rate for this levy is $0.12, bringing a tax increase per month of $1.50 for owners of a $150,000 home. If the levy passes we would purchase two buses with the levy funds, said Fred Owyen, director of support services for the district. We would purchase a third bus from mitigation fees from developments in the district. Lakewood needs the school buses to keep up with growth and to replace an old bus. Safety standards for school buses changed in 1977, and the district has one bus left from before 1977. This is the last one we need to retire, said Owyen. Additionally, district officials hope to surplus a 1977 bus that has become expensive to maintain, since its manufacturer is no longer in business. The Lakewood School District, with an enrollment of 2,200, projects growth of at least 4 percent for next year. The district witnessed tremendous growth last year of 9.6 percent, with completion of the Navy Housing Development in Smokey Point, Owyen said. Several portables were added to the elementary school and an addition to the school is under construction. If the maintenance and operations levy fails, the district would first cut transportation and co-curricular activities, then staff resulting in larger class sizes, Robertson said.`

25 years ago 1983
Arnold Garka put a question before the Downtown Redevelopment Commission Monday afternoon a question he has wanted an answer to for many months. What is the goal of the proposed redevelopment? Is it to bring in more money to the city or to provide parking for businesses? he asked the commissioners and city staff. I thought the aim was to clean up the blight not put in a shopping center. Garka also wanted to talk about the inconsistencies of the plan. You keep saying the existing businesses wont be hurt, which means retailers. You cant say you wont hurt D&R Cedar and myself (Garka Mill), Garka said. Of deep concern to Garka is the railroad which provides rail service an average of two to three times per week to the waterfront. Garka is afraid his business will be harmed if the railroad is removed. Although he does not use it at present, he said he might have plans further down the road. Is the railroad going to stay? he asked. Currently the Downtown Redevelopment Commission has no plans for removing the rail line, owned by Burlington Northern, but have allocated $72,000 to relocate the spur to First Street alignment if they choose. In the draft Environmental Impact Statement it reads: The Downtown Redevelopment Commission will assume responsibility for the railroad spur through the downtown site. The Commission may temporarily relocate the spur should this become necessary to accommodate development of the northern portion of the site and continue service to the waterfront saw mill. The Commission may also permanently realign the spur onto First Street to provide access to present property owners east of State Avenue if such owners agree to pay the full costs of service and repair. Otherwise, the Commission will discontinue service and remove the spur from the downtown site. Project consultant Tom Beckwith, explained Burlington Northern owns the railroad. However, if the city were to change the railroad, it would become the legal owner. Burlington Northern provides service to any business which has an agreement with the company. Beckwith said the only mill having an agreement with BN is D&R Cedar. Garka disagrees with Beckwith, saying he has used the railroad several times. City Attorney James Allendoerfer said the paragraph concerning Burlington Northern found the the DEIS should be run by them again. Commissioners asked that a letter of findings be written and brought back to them at a future meeting. Garka also noted his problems with the parking situation in the downtown redevelopment. The parking problem has never been addressed, he said. He noted that the proposed development was supposed to bring in 1,200 jobs and that the parking lots were planned for 1,200 cars. Thats one space for each employee.

50 years ago 1958
At its Monday meeting Marysville City Council accepted an agreement to purchase nine acres of land from Don Lewis. The land lies in the watershed area which surrounds the citys main source of water at Edwards Springs near Lake Ki. In the agreement is a provision permitting Lewis to log off the merchantable fir and hemlock on the land, within one year. He is also given permission to use the towns roads in the area during the logging operation. Purchase price of the plot was $900. Another item of interest in the Monday meeting was the acceptance of a bill of sale for a new sewer extension which has been completed by property owners in the N. Beach Street area. The bill of sale was signed by Eugene Rochon Jr., R.B. Wickham, Stanley Wicklund and Walter Falstich. The extension adds 273 feet of line to service homes in the area. The Council decided to make official request for a new survey of the town for insurance rating purposed to the Washington Insurance Rating Bureau. This had not been done since important improvements to the city water distribution system had been made.