Tollgate levy up to voters

Published 1:57 pm Thursday, October 2, 2008

NORTH BEND – A little less than a week is left until the Sept. 18 primary that will determine whether the city of North Bend will pay more than $3.5 million for a farm that has been the center of a heated debate since it was planned for development in 1996.

Supporters of the proposed bond levy know they have to convince at least 485 North Bend voters that the purchase is the best thing for a city struggling with the economic and environmental issues that come with growth.

They have been distributing information to the North Bend public, and some local residents agree that the city should preserve the 410-acre farm as open space.

“This town is not made for this kind of development,” said Marjorie Wilson, who works at the Natures Marketplace store in North Bend. “It’s the mom-and-pop atmosphere that makes this town great. By developing the land, we are inviting growth in and it will become a driving city [bedroom community].”

The farm’s natural and historical aspects have touched a chord with many North Bend residents, who see it as one of the town’s links to the past. It was the first dairy farm in the Valley and was a hunting ground for the Snoqualmie Tribe who inhabited the Valley before settlers came.

“It would be good to keep the farm,” Wilson said.

Although many are nostalgic about Tollgate Farm, some feel North Bend is not the city it once was.

“I’ve got mixed feelings about the project,” said Samantha Storm of North Bend. “Everyone wants to have a view, but progress is progress.”

For others, the Tollgate Farm proposed development is another thorny that the city must confront.

“First it’s the gravel pits, and then it’s the Meadowbrook Farm, and then it’s putting hotels near the highway,” said Chuck Dills, owner of Somerset Auto Glass in North Bend.

Dills said he has been frustrated with projects that have been drawn out over the past few years while North Bend still suffers from its water moratorium.

“I like Joan and all of them [the city staff]; they’re good people,” Dills said. “But it’s time for the mayor to put some closure on things.”

North Bend City Councilman and Tollgate Farm levy opponent Jim Gildersleeve said some residents may not be able to bear the extra cost of the levy, and he is leery that future school bond measures could fail because people would not support additional taxes.

He planned to send out a mailing to every home in North Bend this week, outlining why he thinks the purchase is a bad idea.

Although support for the bond has been vocal and he has received support for his opposition to the bond, Gildersleeve said he is unsure of how the vote will turn out.

“We’ll see what the silent majority says at the vote,” Gildersleeve said.

In order for the vote to be valid, at least 40 percent of the 2,019 people who voted in last year’s presidential election must go to the polls again. At least 60 percent of them, 485, will need to vote for the bond for it to pass.