County wins award for Towne Road project

DCD, commissioners fail to give promised update

This week’s Clallam County Board of Commissioners meeting was well attended.  Commissioner French reported that he went to an awards dinner at which Clallam County, and consultant Shannon & Wilson, won a gold award in the water resources category for the Lower Dungeness River Floodplain Restoration and levee realignment.  French reminded the gallery that, “the project did a lot of great things, we’re trying to button it up… it’s an award-winning project, as ironic as you want to think that, hopefully people have a good sense of humor about this.”  

The gallery was amused that the county’s handling of the infrastructure project was award-worthy.  Since the project’s inception, it has operated without a budget and continues to be plagued by major communication failures which have led to disastrous cost overruns.  The project was halted due to private interests and poor leadership from elected officials at least four times and it is long overdue for completion.  Additionally, this week's promised update about Towne Road was not delivered.  Indeed, a good sense of humor is required when deeming Clallam County worthy of accolades.

Few people spoke for the continued closure of Towne Road, but those who did are Towne Road residents.

Rick Lehman, who lives just north of the closure on Sequim-Dungeness Way, said, “I’ve known Derrick Eberle since he was a young man, coming into our grocery store with his grandmother, Idy Eberle.  Idy Eberle was a good friend of my grandmother, Evelyn Lehman, one of the reasons being that her great grandfather, Thomas Abernathy, sold the Eberles their farm way back when.  I know the Eberles, and a lot of these other people that have spoken up against paving the road are all enjoying driving on that road as we speak.  Very convenient.  I’m very disabled, I have yet to see the beauty and awe of this new project because I can’t walk that far.  I’m just asking everybody to do the right, logical thing for this county.  End the project as it was started: paving Towne Road.”

Lotzgesell Road resident Christy Campbell said that traffic once on Towne Road has switched to other routes and increased traffic tremendously in her neighborhood.  “All the traffic taken from Towne is on Lotzgesell and Ward '' said Campbell.  “Ward Road is falling apart.  Last year they had to fix Ward because the river cuts into it, and undermines it, that’s going to be an expense.  So, you just push the cost somewhere else and that needs to be considered.” 

Campbell also reminisced about walking on the old dike before it was removed.  “I used to walk, before the levee came in, I walked along the river all the time.  It was a beautiful walk.  I don't understand why people think the levee is a beautiful walk.  There are no trees on it.  It is rock, it isn’t natural, it’s not pretty, it’s changed and it’s sad.”

Nicki Reed, who lives near downtown Sequim, said, “It was a road, it is a road, and it should continue to be a road.”  Reed has taken an interest in Towne Road because she is a taxpayer who funds the road budget.  “People who aren’t property taxpayers in Clallam County, they’re not the ones who are paying directly from our taxes to pave the road, so our taxpayer people who are speaking about this should be listened to at a higher level than someone who has an ulterior motive or interest.”  She closed by saying, “the fish, the wildlife, and the Tribe don’t pay property taxes.”

The following public comment was also given:

Three weeks ago, on January 16th, the Board of Commissioners, the DCD, and the Road Department promised that an update on Towne Road would be provided two weeks from January 15th, or three weeks at the most.  Last week I contacted the Board of Commissioners, the DCD, and Administrator Mielke to remind these departments about the promised update and I received no reply.  Yesterday, at the three-week mark, no update was provided.  To quote Commissioner French's January 16th remarks regarding Towne Road, "When we don't have information to share, sometimes that void is a lot more dangerous than we like to realize."

Last week I had a conversation with a county employee who said, "You know, the commissioners have committed to completing ‘Option 2’ for Towne Road, so I don't understand why you people are still coming."  I can explain why we keep coming, week after week, in just five words:  We Don't Trust Our County.

Please understand that only recently we discovered that the county had a closed-door meeting in 2015 which revealed home insurance rates could more than double in Dungeness and emergency response times would increase by three to seven minutes if Towne Road were closed.  The county knew this but did not tell us.  

The road only closed because a project partner breached the old dike ahead of schedule before the new levee was completed.  Taxpayers had to foot the bill to accelerate the project.  The county knew this but did not tell us.  

The commissioners halted the project because 98 signatures had been received asking that the road remain closed, but 140 signatures had been received asking that it remain open.  The county knew this but did not tell us.

A year ago, Towne Road was going to be funded entirely by money from outside the county, but the grants were allowed to expire.  Now, county taxpayer funds must be used to complete the project. The county knew this but did not tell us. 

The county told the public that the road would reopen in September of last year but, at the same time, the county was soliciting bids for automatic, electric, taxpayer-funded gates that would keep Towne Road closed forever.  The county knew this but did not tell us.

When the county promises an update, but does not provide one, please understand that we, the voters, have lost faith in our elected leaders.  The only opportunity we are afforded to communicate this sentiment to you is when you allot us our three minutes to speak, without the ability to ask questions.

It's time to restore trust, accountability, and transparency.  It is time for questions to be asked and answered, and it's time to allow your constituents to speak for more than three minutes.  It is time for a Towne Road update, and it is time for a Town Hall.  Please make meeting with us a priority, we want to trust our elected leaders again.

Jeff Tozzer, Jamestown Road, Sequim