End near for Maltby Park?
Published 9:00 pm Sunday, July 8, 2001
By Marcie Miller
Herald Writer
MALTBY — They call it Maltby Mania: An annual day of fun in the sun at Maltby Park in southeast Snohomish County. But this year’s event in August will be tinged with sadness for many, as it marks the end of the park for this year — and maybe forever.
On any given summer day, 16-acre Maltby Community Park is packed with ballplayers and picnickers. With four baseball fields, four soccer fields, an outdoor stage, picnic shelter and walking trails, the park is heavily used by residents of Snohomish and north King counties.
After Maltby Mania day, Aug. 4, the park will close because last fall voters rejected two 5-year property tax levies by the East County Park and Recreation District, which manages the park.
"There is a huge need for ball fields (in Snohomish County)," district chair Mike Donow said. "Losing Maltby is certainly a step backward."
The maintenance and operations levy is going to be back on the ballot in the fall, Donow said. But even if the levy passes this time, the district won’t see the money until next year. And the district can’t stretch that far and keep the park open past Aug. 4.
The district plans to do a better job of packaging its proposal for the voters in hopes of reopening the park in 2001.
For example, while last year’s levies called for adding nine cents per $1,000 assessed value, this year the board decided to make it an even 10 cents per $1,000, to make it easier to calculate.
Donow has also created a Web site for the district, to increase its visibility.
The small park and recreation taxing district covers approximately the same area as the Monroe School District. Maltby Park is several miles southwest of the city of Monroe.
Donow said the operations budget for Maltby Park alone, excluding recreational programming, runs about $60,000 annually. Sport field leasing to local leagues and rental fees for the park shelter fall far short of that amount.
In March the board made the decision to lay off director Arlene Gaeth, a move that saved the district $30,600. Donow said the board has budgeted $20,000 just for putting the levy on the ballot.
In addition to the ball field use, the district holds many other community events, such as an Easter egg hunt, Mothers Day events, Shakespeare in the Park and youth/senior field trips all around Puget Sound.
And the park is not without its friends, with a capital F. Friends of the East County Park and Recreation District is a volunteer organization working to keep the park open. Its efforts include fund-raising, a scholarship fund to aid children in need, concessions at Maltby Park special events and campaigns for the levy.
The Internet address for the East County Park and Recreation District is: www.ecprd.com.
You can call Herald Writer Marcie Miller at 425-339-3292
or send e-mail to mmiller@heraldnet.com.
