By Debra Smith Herald Writer
EVERETT — The city wants to put aside $4 million to deal with three landslides on its property.
One slow-moving slide is above the main road leading to Howarth Park.
Another has reduced a portion of Lowell-Larimer Road to one lane. A third in the Stratton Hill Neighborhood is eroding a stream channel just below a line of homes.
Howarth Park: A section of Olympic Boulevard, the main access road to Howarth Park, has remained closed off for several months, blocking access to the park’s largest parking lot.
Howarth Park is one of the few places available for the public that provides access to the beach in Everett. A slide dumped some debris on the road. That’s since been cleared away, but alders growing from the hillside now tilt at an odd angle over the roadway.
The city hopes to remove the tilting trees and get the road open sometime this summer, Davis said.
The park is still open and visitors can park at two small upper lots accessed from Seahurst Avenue off Mukilteo Boulevard.
Lowell-Larimer Road: A deep-seated slide has eroded the ground from under the shoulder of the road near the Lowell neighborhood.
The city shut down one lane of traffic in August. Since then, it has been negotiating with the property owner for access to the land to fix the road.
The city has worked on the road several times before but this time the problem is more serious, said public works director Dave Davis. The city hopes to have work completed by fall.
Stratton Hill: A drainage way cutting through the neighborhood near the intersection of 26th Ave. W. and 58th St. SW has severely eroded.
The city plans to restabilize the channel and banks in order to protect the homes above, Davis said.
The city’s administration is proposing setting aside $4 million to deal with the costs of maintaining these areas. The city spent $5 million less than budgeted last year, and the money for a fix would come from those savings.
The City Council is scheduled to make a decision on that matter as part of a budget amendment April 25.
The city is not setting aside any money to repair another landslide last spring in the Valley View neighborhood. That slide destroyed one home. The city declared two others off-limits. Other neighbors have seen their property values drop.
The city isn’t fixing that land because it’s not owned by the city, said city spokeswoman Kate Reardon.
Debra Smith: 425-339-3197 or dsmith@heraldnet.com
