$24M to remake Snohomish’s Second Street a boondoggle

The City of Snohomish is actively seeking state transportation funds to start an expensive $24 million phased-in makeover of its Second Street, a major east-west corridor.

Mayor Kartak wants to put out a “not welcome” sign to commuters not living in Snohomish. He wants Second Street to be “more like First Street.” He wants to eliminate center left-turn lanes, change parking to “back-in angled” and plant visual-impairing vegetation, trees and install bicycle racks.

The city has placed the Second Street makeover project near the top of its Transportation Benefit District priorities. (The city is seeking to impose again another 10 year 0.2% TBD sales tax with a scheduled vote in the August, 2021 primary election).

A better solution to reduce commuter traffic on Second Street is to instead apply the $24 million to construct on- and off-ramps, connecting the Lowell-Snohomish River Road with Highway 9, and construct a roundabout, connecting Second Street with Highway 9. (Eventually, Highway 9 from the Snohomish River north to U.S. 2 will be four lanes.)

Snohomish city government has a long history of boondoggles. From wasting $300,000 stubbornly trying to build a new senior center on top of an abandoned cemetery, to a $4 million weddings/events at First and Cedar, replete with a liquor license and a six-figure city operations manager, competing with the city-owned Senior Center on Fourth Street, along with all the for-profit weddings/events venues in the Snohomish area.

But this planned $24 million Second Street makeover boondoggle tops them all.

Morgan Davis

Snohomish

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