By LESLIE MORIARTY
Herald Writer
SULTAN — The city may be getting its second stoplight soon, even though the first one hasn’t been a big hit with everyone.
At a Town Hall meeting this week, Police Chief Fred Walser said the city plans to get another stoplight at Fifth Street and U.S. 2 sometime within the next year.
"It’s still on the table," he said.
The city got its first stoplight at Old Owen Road and U.S. 2 in August 1999. While residents like it because it allows them to make left turns onto U.S. 2 without waiting on traffic, drivers on U.S. 2 oppose the light.
A variety of other issues were discussed at the Town Hall meeting:
The subject came up when resident Ed Boucher mentioned that the former Windmill gift shop next to the Dutch Cup restaurant may become a coffee stand.
"But in order for that to happen, we have to do a traffic study, and that’s just going to be too costly," he said.
City planning officials told him that the state requires a traffic study if the business fronts the highway.
Councilman Bob Ostrom said the city doesn’t own land where residential growth is happening, but noted that developers are required to hold back 15 percent of the development as "passive space."
City council members and staff said they would look at whether that is a reasonable percentage as usually that doesn’t leave enough space for ball diamonds or playgrounds.
While the waterfall still needs repairs, Rowe said the $370,000 federal grant that the city received for the park is valid until September 2001.
Rowe and councilman Rob Criswell have been looking for train cars that might be used as park structures for a visitor’s center and possibly a museum. Rowe said that will allow the city to save money on construction of a structure.
The waterfall and park were a subject on which the council had not agreed in the past. But Rowe promised that the federal grant money would not go to waste and that plans for a park will proceed.
"I’d just hate to see it get passed by simply because politics is involved," resident Brian Copple said.
He said the city needs to pursue industrial, commercial and business park plans in order to gain the revenue that will make a difference in the city’s income.
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