UGA Expansion - 124th St, Skyridge Estates

City of Sultan's Expansion Plans on 124th St. S.E. far north of the city limits:

Sound fiscal & business practice? Or something else?

(i.e., what the city means by the term "Stakeholder" and forming "Partnerships." And is it good for the taxpayers and current residents? )

[Hint: The term "stakeholder" or "partner" as used in public meetings nowadays does not include taxpayers and citizens. The common term now for taxpayers and citizens, as used in City public meetings, is "The Audience."]

Listed below are developers and other "interested parties" who were involved in behind-the-scenes discussions with Snohomish County and the City of Sultan related to the City's request to the County for their reconsideration and approval of a 60-acre UGA* enlargement north of 124^th St. SE, which the county had denied them in Dec. of 2005:

Brad Fjelstad (Skyridge Estates, LLC and Skyridge Estates II, LLC)*** (Here's an April 27, 2006 letter from Mr. Fjelstad to the county stating that the city had $4.8 million set-aside funds for WWTP improvements and another $4.0 million will come from future sewer connections.)
Neil Latta, Web Engineering (Timber Ridge Estates project engineer, as well as a financial partner in that venture)
Tim Albers, Skyridge Estates (Financial Owner in Timber Ridge Estates project)
Rusty Drivstuen, Skyridge Estates
Mark Lomack, Land Development Consultants
Courtney Flora (as described in the county records we have, an attorney "who is working with the City of Sultan")

The City's primary arguments were that it had the financial resources and means by which to make necessary capacity upgrades to its WWTP (Wastewater Treatment Plant) and that this planned UGA enlargement, which would bring 200 new homes to Sultan, was a vital lynchpin of the City's financial viability and future. Yet now the city is requesting the council for $9,000 to hire a lobbyist to "smooth the path" (known in some circles as "schmoozing") with the 2007 legislature for taxpayer-supported funding by which its WWTP improvements can be built -- an amout which, by the way, is just a wee bit shy of Chief Walser's long-awaited and well-deserved 10% increase in salary** which was denied by council (with the exception of support from C/M Jim Flower).

Discussions from early 2006 through the County's December 2006 decision to grant the City's request, focused on whether or not the City had the financial ability/resources to adequately handle new WWTP capacity demands required for this new 60-acre UGA expansion. The sole purpose of this 60-acre expansion was to fulfill developers' long-laid desires to build 200 homes north of 124^th Street S.E. at its western dead-end, an area one mile outside the current city limits and which the nearest city sewer line is located at 132^nd St. SE and Sultan Basin Road (again, one mile outside of the current city limits).

In addition to attending county meetings with the city, as well as engaging the county in dialogue to "sell" it on approving this UGA request, these developers (or others) have also "donated" to the City $30,000 to help with the development of the city's Comprehensive Plan. Here is a word-for-word Transcription of the 10/12/06 statement by Interim Finance Director Gordon Hey (here's the approx. 2 1/2-minute audio, MP3 file, 434 kb) when he dragged this smelly cat out of the bag and flung it (unwittingly, I believe) onto the council table. Readers can judge for themselves whether or not the council was aware of this "donation" by unspecified "developers" and whether or not such a "contribution/donation" carries an unspoken (at least) promise of future preferential treatment.

Notes:
* "UGA" means "Urban Growth Area," a sort of "buffer" between where a city's limits (and its jurisdiction) ends, and the County's begins and land a city can annex (add) to its city limits as growth is needed. However, per the Growth Management Act statutes, before a city decides to enlarge its existing UGA, certain mandates apply, a key one of which is for a city to justify the need for enlarging that area, as well as its capacity to handle any future growth which may result from adding that land.

**The Chief had requested a 20% salary increase to make it competitive with other police chiefs, as well as the fact that he had received nothing but COLA (Cost of Living Adjustment) increases for many years. In fact, despite the Chief's amazing unpaid time and resource commitments to the City of Sultan and the community at large since 1997, the City's negligence in increasing the Chief's salary made it commensurate with some of the officers under his supervision. The council did grant half (10%) of the 20% increase requested by Mayor Tolson. Now comes the City asking to spend that amount (or more) to fund a Begging Request to the Legislature through a lobbying contract, in addition to other expenses in the probable event that the 2007 regular biennial session runs into overtime.

*** Skyridge Estates is the current name of this 200-home development which has been on the City's unofficial "planning" map (light green rectangular-shaped Post-it note in the top left-hand corner of the linked photo) since the Council's January, 2006 retreat, yet no one was aware of this new "planned" community, nor why such an illogical growth extension to the City is needed. (Other than that being fed by the Need for Greed.)

If anyone wishes to read our file of these conversations and correspondence obtained from the County, we can make them available if you contact us.

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City of Sultan's Expansion Plans on 124th St. S.E. far north of the city limits: Sound fiscal & business practice? Or something else? *(i.e., what the city means by the term "Stakeholder" and forming "Partnerships." And is it good for the taxpayers and current residents? )*** [Hint: The term "stakeholder" or "partner" as used in public meetings nowadays does not include taxpayers and citizens. The common term now for taxpayers and citizens, as used in City public meetings, is "The Audience."] Listed below are developers and other "interested parties" who were involved in behind-the-scenes discussions with Snohomish County and the City of Sultan related to the City's request to the County for their reconsideration and approval of a 60-acre UGA* enlargement north of 124^th St. SE, which the county had denied them in Dec. of 2005: Brad Fjelstad (Skyridge Estates, LLC and Skyridge Estates II, LLC)* (Here's an April 27, 2006 letter from Mr. Fjelstad to the county stating that the city had $4.8 million set-aside funds for WWTP improvements and another $4.0 million will come from future sewer connections.) Neil Latta, Web Engineering (Timber Ridge Estates project engineer, as well as a financial partner in that venture) Tim Albers, Skyridge Estates (Financial Owner in Timber Ridge Estates project) Rusty Drivstuen, Skyridge Estates Mark Lomack, Land Development Consultants Courtney Flora (as described in the county records we have, an attorney "who is working with the City of Sultan") The City's primary arguments were that it had the financial resources and means by which to make necessary capacity upgrades to its WWTP (Wastewater Treatment Plant) and that this planned UGA enlargement, which would bring 200 new homes to Sultan, was a vital lynchpin of the City's financial viability and future. Yet now the city is requesting the council for $9,000 to hire a lobbyist to "smooth the path" (known in some circles as "schmoozing") with the 2007 legislature for taxpayer-supported funding by which its WWTP improvements can be built -- an amout which, by the way, is just a wee bit shy of Chief Walser's long-awaited and well-deserved 10% increase in salary which was denied by council (with the exception of support from C/M Jim Flower). Discussions from early 2006 through the County's December 2006 decision to grant the City's request, focused on whether or not the City had the financial ability/resources to adequately handle new WWTP capacity demands required for this new 60-acre UGA expansion. The sole purpose of this 60-acre expansion was to fulfill developers' long-laid desires to build 200 homes north of 124^th Street S.E. at its western dead-end, an area one mile outside the current city limits and which the nearest city sewer line is located at 132^nd St. SE and Sultan Basin Road (again, one mile outside of the current city limits). In addition to attending county meetings with the city, as well as engaging the county in dialogue to "sell" it on approving this UGA request, these developers (or others) have also "donated" to the City $30,000 to help with the development of the city's Comprehensive Plan. Here is a word-for-word Transcription of the 10/12/06 statement by Interim Finance Director Gordon Hey (here's the approx. 2 1/2-minute audio, MP3 file, 434 kb) when he dragged this smelly cat out of the bag and flung it (unwittingly, I believe) onto the council table. Readers can judge for themselves whether or not the council was aware of this "donation" by unspecified "developers" and whether or not such a "contribution/donation" carries an unspoken (at least) promise of future preferential treatment. *Notes:* * "UGA" means "Urban Growth Area," a sort of "buffer" between where a city's limits (and its jurisdiction) ends, and the County's begins and land a city can annex (add) to its city limits as growth is needed. However, per the Growth Management Act statutes, before a city decides to enlarge its existing UGA, certain mandates apply, a key one of which is for a city to justify the need for enlarging that area, as well as its capacity to handle any future growth which may result from adding that land. The Chief had requested a 20% salary increase to make it competitive with other police chiefs, as well as the fact that he had received nothing but COLA (Cost of Living Adjustment) increases for many years. In fact, despite the Chief's amazing unpaid time and resource commitments to the City of Sultan and the community at large since 1997, the City's negligence in increasing the Chief's salary made it commensurate with some of the officers under his supervision. The council did grant half (10%) of the 20% increase requested by Mayor Tolson. Now comes the City asking to spend that amount (or more) to fund a Begging Request to the Legislature through a lobbying contract, in addition to other expenses in the probable event that the 2007 regular biennial session runs into overtime. * Skyridge Estates is the current name of this 200-home development which has been on the City's unofficial "planning" map (light green rectangular-shaped Post-it note in the top left-hand corner of the linked photo) since the Council's January, 2006 retreat, yet no one was aware of this new "planned" community, nor why such an illogical growth extension to the City is needed. (Other than that being fed by the Need for Greed.) If anyone wishes to read our file of these conversations and correspondence obtained from the County, we can make them available if you contact us.