Bonney Lake is reexamining the sewer problem in Eastown, with the council taking another hard look at who should be responsible for the cost.
, after almost two years of planning. Councilmembers who voted against it said the risk was too great for the city - the plan would have made Eastown landowners responsible for $200,000 of the cost of a sewer line, about 5 percent of the $4 million project.
Now that the city is back to the drawing board, councilmember Tom Watson proposed an idea: why not build a shorter system, at half the cost, and have the city pick up the tab?
Watson argued at the Tuesday night council meeting that the city may not recoup financial losses in an agreement with landowners, who have their own interests to watch out for. The city has already invested $1.3 million in sewer studies for the area, so, he argued, "something must be done."
A $2 million sewer pipeline into Eastown would cover about half the area initially planned.
Another thought proposed by councilmember Katrina Minton-Davis: why build out there at all?
Minton-Davis voiced her concern that the old motto "build it and they will come" may not be practical for taxpayers or the city's future. Where is the assurance or guarantee that a developer (like Costco) will come in and invest in Eastown?
So we put it to you, Bonney Lake residents:
Do you think Bonney Lake should develop sewers on its own, continue working with the landowners or just let it sit until something better comes along? Tell us in the comments.
