Special Election Ballot to be Mailed this Friday

Pierce County Elections sent ballots and voters pamphlets for the April 23 special election to military and overseas citizens already on March 22. This coming April 5, local voters should see the same in their mailboxes. Here is a rundown of issues you'll be voting on.

Parks and Bonney Lake

Campaign signs have sprouted up across Bonney Lake with less than one month before the April 23 special election. The sometimes hotly debated issue of whether or not a metropolitan park district - with its own taxing authority - should be created to provided a dedicated stream of revenue for city parks, trails and recreation is going strong within Patch's Local Voices community where bloggers Fred Jacobsen and Grant Sulham have been writting in support and opposition, respectively, of the proposal.

Both sides have also set up Facebook pages in support of their positions:

• Families for a Responsible Bonney Lake
• Bonney Lake Metropolitan Park District

Patch has been following the community dialogue over the question of parks in the city since the first Parks Summit in May 2012 and through the Park Board's decision in November 2012 to recommend putting the MPD question to voters.

Below are a few highlighted stories that chronicle the timeline leading up to April 23:

• $5.2 Million Shaved from Bonney Lake's Work-in-Progress Parks Plan, Sept. 28, 2012
• , July 30, 2012
• , May 16, 2012
• , May 10, 2012
• BONNEY LAKE PARKS PART III: What Voters Could See on the Ballot in 2013, May 7, 2012
• May 3, 2012
• May 1, 2012

East Pierce Fire and Rescue District

Residents served by Pierce County Fire District No. 22, or East Pierce Fire and Rescue, including those in Sumner and Bonney Lake, will be voting on whether or not the district should annex the city of Milton into its service boundaries. According to this statement issued by the department this week, "The annexation will not impact either rates or levels of service for existing East Pierce residents or businesses."

The statement read:

If approved by the voters, the district’s boundaries are adjusted around the city and the district accepts responsibility for fire and emergency medical services (EMS) within Milton. “In this case, the City of Milton Fire Department has already joined with East Pierce by operational agreement. If the annexation is approved, I expect this will be a smooth transition,” says East Pierce Fire and Rescue Fire Chief Jerry E. Thorson.

East Pierce has provided fire and paramedic services to the residents of Milton since the agreement was implemented January 1, 2011.

Milton residents will also be voting on whether they should annex into East Pierce.

More from Pierce County:

• To view voter pamphlet information for Proposition No. 1, City of Bonney Lake, click here.
• To view voter pamphlet information for Proposition No. 1, Fire District No. 22, click here.
• For information about ballot drop boxes and voting centers, visit Pierce County Elections.