Town council decisions

The Sept. 13 town council meeting will be over before you read this. I hope that the council will determine “who’s on first” so you know what to expect at the Sept. 20 planning commission public hearing. (This situation is described in the letter I posted on the town website. The issue is that we really don’t know what recommendations will be made for updating the town’s municipal code on the 20th and what year it will be accepted.)

If you attended the council meeting or read the Sept. 21 Weekly News you will know that the town is behind on permit applications. By state law, these will be automatically granted if they are not acted upon in a certain number of days.

You will also learn that a generous gift of property has become the property of the town – with the condition that it become a public park, or go to parks and recreation or other needs of the town as determined by the buyer – the town. (That didn’t work out so well last time.)

A little park there could make up for the hurt caused to the town by the Maple Street disaster. I can imagine kids going there through an easement path – since there is no road into it. I can also imagine some truly affordable houses as defined by the state. Just have the town give it to the Community Action or the Skagit Home Trust or Habitat for humanity. I can also imagine giving it the Skagit Land Trust to be put into a conservancy area.

Any of those would be suitable. And only those. It should not be sold to a developer.

Let your voice be heard.

Cheers,

Linda Talman

La Conner