When my wife and I moved to the area several years ago, we had a choice as to where we would build our home. Buying a home in Snoqualmie Ridge was an option, but we decided that we wanted the privacy of a rural community instead. We chose Lake Alice for its peaceful beauty and had to make sacrifices for that choice. Instead of getting a brand-new home with modern amenities, we were left with far fewer housing options. We ended up buying a 40-year-old house but were happy with our decision.

Snoqualmie Ridge residents have made a choice as well. Instead of living closer to Seattle and the Eastside, Ridge residents wanted a community with schools, pools, shopping and modern amenities for a reasonable price. These residents made educated decisions, as well.

For the city of Snoqualmie to break its promises to us by initiating an effort to connect the road, it is deliberately trying to sacrifice our quality of life for its own convenience. Hundreds of Ridge cars have been trespassing along the power line road during the past few years to use Lake Alice Road as a shortcut. When the barriers were repaired, they were literally ripped out of the ground. These barriers have now been reinforced and those hundreds of commuters have been forced to return to their old routes.

The priority of the city of Snoqualmie to connect the two communities is not safety, it’s to give back a shortcut to their commuters. To pursue a connection would cause traffic bottlenecks and would place every driver at significantly greater risk. To use safety as a guise under which to pursue a connection is both irresponsible and transparent.

The city entered agreements with the county and residents to not build a road. How can elected officials deliberately ignore legal obligations? What kind of message does that send to the children of Snoqualmie?

Why not hold hearings about a new road through their golf course? We all know how short that meeting would be.

Richard Werlein

Fall City