Rewriting history

Commissioner invents new Towne Road narrative

The following were adapted from public comment at Tuesday's Commissioner meeting:

These three quotes are all from Commissioner Ozias.  The first is from a seven-page open letter penned by Ozias when plans for Sequim's Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) clinic were unveiled, and he had the monumental task of uniting a divided community.

"Many have expressed belief that this work has taken place in private, without informing the public. One core belief I have as an elected official is that local government only works when citizens participate. It troubles me greatly to think that so many feel they have been left out of the process."

On May 5th, 2022, in the Peninsula Daily News, Commissioner Ozias said,

“Once the new levee is built, the new Towne Road will be on top of the levee, and the section of Towne Road will be removed as part of the restoration of the floodplain.” 

Earlier this month, Commissioner Ozias said during a weekly meeting,

"From the very beginning, this project was always intended to feature a trail.  The road component was always considered optional," explained Ozias.  "From the very beginning, the trail was a given; the road was not."

Three quotes from the same Commissioner. One emphasizes the importance of transparency in County government, another states that Towne Road was planned to be on top of the levee, and the third asserts that Towne Road was never intended to be on top of the levee.

Commissioner Ozias left the public out of the process when determining the fate of Towne Road, and as a result, his constituents have reasonable questions. Was the levee planned with Towne Road on top of it, as Commissioner Ozias said in 2022, or was the road never intended, as he says now?

Commissioner Ozias and County Engineer Joe Donisi were interviewed on KSQM radio in Sequim on May 10th to discuss road projects. However, the Commissioner didn't say a word when Towne Road was mentioned.  

On May 16th, KONP radio in Port Angeles scheduled an interview with Commissioner Ozias, but he didn't attend.

Commissioner Ozias is becoming increasingly distant and isolated. Emails to him are unanswered, he is absent from public events held in his district, and he’s the first Commissioner to slip out the back door after weekly meetings are adjourned. It's becoming clear that the Commissioners of Districts Two and Three will be leading and representing the constituents of District One.  

Jeff Tozzer, Sequim

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“Admittedly, I’ve been to too many of these meetings, and in my time here, I have noticed a pattern that seems to transcend the issue. Repeatedly, people ask for the commissioners’ ability to respond to public comments rather than just listen to them.

I was at a [County] Planning meeting a couple of weeks ago and saw an agenda item that made perfect sense to me, which I want to share. They had a “Public Comment” agenda item, followed by a discussion of the public comment agenda item. I would suggest you consider “discussion” either routinely or repeatedly in this public comment because I’ve watched you hear from people who say, ‘We want to have answers. We want to have an open discussion.’ And that may allow this to occur.”

Tom Ash, Sequim