In Mr. Watson’s “As I See It” letter to the editor, he is entitled to his own opinions, but not his own facts!
Although Black Diamond as an incorporated city is expected to take its share of growth under the state’s Growth Management Act, that growth is tempered by many, many things. The Puget Sound Regional Council set a growth target for Black Diamond of 1,900 homes, not the huge 6,050 home YarrowBay development approved by the old City Council and current mayor. Such massive development eviscerates the “Rural by Design” philosophy of our city’s comprehensive plan.
Yes, the MPD plans have been extremely controversial with our citizens throughout the area, since they all will be affected, especially by the ever expanding traffic gridlock. Hundreds of citizens testified in many public hearings, desperately trying to get their City Council to hear them. Many called for the MPDs to be downsized to something reasonable – NO. Many pleaded for traffic issues to be addressed from day one – NO. Many desperately worried about their rural character being destroyed forever – NO. After all this, Mr. Watson seems to worry more about YarrowBay’s interests than everyone else’s quality of life.
The MPD plans are not written in stone. Such growth is not inevitable. The ultimate fate of the MPDs is being decided by the Court of Appeals.
Mr. Watson then goes on to place arbitrary labels on people. There is no “stop Yarrow Bay at any cost” movement consisting of “small groups of residents.” These are people fighting to save their city and community. The vast majority of citizens deeply care about their future. In the 2010 City Council election the voters threw out the council members who chose to ignore their own citizens by an unprecedented margin of 75 percent. In the recent mayoral primary the incumbent mayor garnered only 18 percent of the vote and Mr. Watson — who now supports that mayor — received 15 percent.
Mr. Watson brings up ridiculous charges that don’t deserve to be repeated. Suffice it to say that no reasonable person believes that his opponents are trying to destroy their city.
The current mayor and her administration have not served the citizens and the city well. The three candidates who align themselves with the current mayor clearly do not understand the citizens or their concerns.
I’m voting for Dave Gordon for a mayor who will listen to the people and is not beholden to special interests. And I’m voting for Carol Benson, Janie Edelman and Erika Morgan for an independent City Council that is dedicated to protecting our rural environment and the financial health of the city.
Sheila Hoefig
Black Diamond
