Monroe hospital levy passing; Terrace city hall bond failing

Voters in east Snohomish County appeared on Tuesday night to be strongly backing a proposal to double their annual financial support of Valley General Hospital in Monroe.

And a bond proposal to build a new civic center in Mountlake Terrace looked like it was doomed for failure for a third time.

About 58 percent of voters in Monroe, Snohomish, Maltby and the U.S. 2 towns of Sultan, Gold Bar and Index had cast ballots in favor of increasing their support for the hospital. It was far ahead of the simple majority needed to pass.

In Mountlake Terrace, about 53 percent of voters had cast ballots in favor of the measure of the new civic center. But that was falling far short of the 60 percent supermajority it needed to pass.

The two issues were the only measures on Tuesday’s special election. Ballots are expected to trickle in over the next several days.

Valley General officials say they need the levy increase to continue to provide the hospital’s current health care services, including emergency room and in-patient hospital care. Under the measure, a homeowner would pay $46 more or a total of $74 a year for property valued at $200,000.

The increased tax rate would bring in an additional $2.4 million at a hospital where financial losses hit about $4.5 million last year.

Eric Jensen, the hospital’s chief executive, said earlier this month that if the tax increase isn’t approved, there will be cuts in essential services.

The cuts would affect every area of the hospital, he said, and could mean closing in-patient services.

Patients who were treated at the hospital’s emergency room and needed to be hospitalized probably would be sent to hospitals 30 to 45 minutes away in Everett or Kirkland, Jensen said.

The emergency room itself could be at stake, Jensen said. The cost of running the hospital’s emergency department is about $2.6 million a year, or roughly 6.5 percent of the hospital’s $40 million budget.

Valley General has struggled financially for years, in part because of the large number of patients it treats who don’t have health insurance or who are Medicaid patients, a federal-state health care program which typically pays hospitals, clinics and physicians far less than the full costs of providing medical care.

With the first round of ballot counting, 10,285 people voted in favor of the tax levy and 7,311 were opposed.

This is the third time in the past three years that Mountlake Terrace city officials have asked for voters to support a $25 million civic center. Voters rejected an identical package in August and a larger measure in 2010. The most recent attempt fell short of the required 60 percent supermajority by just 124 votes.

City leaders for years have batted around the idea of a new civic center, a place of one-stop shopping for city services as well as a gathering point for community programs and events. Then the old City Hall was demolished in 2010 following a ceiling collapse in 2008. The campus, at 232nd Street SW and 58th Avenue W., as a whole is seen as under-used piece of property. The site also houses Fire Station 19, the police station and the library.

Mountlake Terrace resident Leonard French, who opposes the measure, said that residents already have voted down the Civic Center proposal twice already and that the city employed “scare tactics” by creating a false choice.

He said the city has other choices for many of those needs. For example, French noted the recently closed municipal golf course at Ballinger Lake — now slated to become a park — has a clubhouse, which he says would be suitable as a senior center.

Tuesday’s results showed that 1,964 people voted in favor of the measure with 1,729 voting against.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

Trader Joe’s customers walk in and out of the store on Monday, Nov. 20, 2023 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
New Trader Joe’s opens this week at Everett Mall

It’s a short move from a longtime location, essentially across the street, where parking was often an adventure.

Ian Bramel-Allen enters a guilty plea to second-degree murder during a plea and sentencing hearing on Wednesday, March 6, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘Deep remorse’: Man gets 17 years for friend’s fatal stabbing in Edmonds

Ian Bramel-Allen, 44, pleaded guilty Wednesday to second-degree murder for killing Bret Northcutt last year at a WinCo.

Firefighters respond to a small RV and a motorhome fire on Tuesday afternoon in Marysville. (Provided by Snohomish County Fire Distrct 22)
1 injured after RV fire, explosion near Marysville

The cause of the fire in the 11600 block of 81st Avenue NE had not been determined, fire officials said.

Ashton Dedmon appears in court during his sentencing hearing on Tuesday, March 5, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Everett Navy sailor sentenced to 90 days for fatal hit and run

Ashton Dedmon crashed into Joshua Kollman and drove away. Dedmon, a petty officer on the USS Kidd, reported he had a panic attack.

A kindergarten student works on a computer at Emerson Elementary School on Wednesday, Feb. 28, 2024, in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
‘¡Una erupción!’: Dual language programs expanding to 10 local schools

A new bill aims to support 10 new programs each year statewide. In Snohomish County, most follow a 90-10 model of Spanish and English.

Logo for news use featuring the Tulalip Indian Reservation in Snohomish County, Washington. 220118
Woman drives off cliff, dies on Tulalip Reservation

The woman fell 70 to 80 feet after driving off Priest Point Drive NW on Sunday afternoon.

Everett
Boy, 4, survives fall from Everett fourth-story apartment window

The child was being treated at Seattle Children’s. The city has a limited supply of window stops for low-income residents.

People head out to the water at low tide during an unseasonably warm day on Saturday, March 16, 2024, at Lighthouse Park in Mukilteo, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Everett shatters record high temperature by 11 degrees

On Saturday, it hit 73 degrees, breaking the previous record of 62 set in 2007.

Snohomish County Fire District #4 and Snohomish Regional Fire & Rescue respond to a motor vehicle collision for a car and pole. The driver was pronounced dead at the scene, near Triangle Bait & Tackle in Snohomish. (Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office)
Police: Troopers tried to stop driver before deadly crash in Snohomish

The man, 31, was driving at “a high rate of speed” when he crashed into a traffic light pole and died, investigators said.

Alan Dean, who is accused of the 1993 strangulation murder of 15-year-old Bothell girl Melissa Lee, appears in court during opening statements of his trial on Monday, March 18, 2024, at Snohomish County Superior Court in Everett, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
31 years later, trial opens in Bothell teen’s brutal killing

In April 1993, Melissa Lee’s body was found below Edgewater Creek Bridge. It would take 27 years to arrest Alan Dean in her death.

Logo for news use featuring the municipality of Snohomish in Snohomish County, Washington. 220118
Man dies after crashing into pole in Snohomish

Just before 1 a.m., the driver crashed into a traffic light pole at the intersection of 2nd Street and Maple Avenue.

Bodies of two men recovered after falling into Eagle Falls near Index

Two men fell into the falls and did not resurface Saturday, authorities said. After a recovery effort, two bodies were found.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.