Written by UPDATE: This blog entry has generated two dozen comments so far, and counting. I moved it back to the top, so it was easier to find. Tomorrow, I will link to the web sites for the pro-incorporation and the pro-annexation initiatives.
We received this email at City Hall:
________________________________________________________
Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen;
This email is going out to over 100 Fairwood area residents that have
indicated that they want to make a good choice regarding the future of our
community by endorsing annexation to the City of Renton.
We are initiating our campaign “Choose Renton” on Monday, August 11, 2008, 7:00 PM at the Renton City Council Meeting (1055 So. Grady Way – 7th floor Council Chambers). In the next few weeks, we will be asking the Mayor and City Council as well as King County Officials to help provide factual information on three important choices that face the Fairwood community residents in the near future.
Like the Cascade/Benson Hill Communities annexation to Renton, we believe that choosing Renton is our best option, but want to make sure that we have all the facts to share with the Fairwood area community.
Please join us at the City Council meeting.
FAIRWOOD – Fairwood residents are proud to announce the formation of Choose Renton, a new organization created to endorse annexation of the Fairwood
Potential Annexation Area (PAA) into the City of Renton.
“Annexation of the Fairwood PAA by the City of Renton will provide a higher level of service for lower cost, preserve the residential character of our neighborhoods, and allow us to be a part of an economically stable city without the budget problems presently plaguing King County,” said Bryce Nelson, spokesperson for Choose Renton.
Recently, King County Fire District 40 signed a 20 year contract with the City of Renton to provide fire services for the Fairwood area.
Staffing levels at Station 17 on Petrovitsky Road have increased as a result of the contract with Renton, without an increase in taxes – showing that Fairwood will get more for its tax money by becoming a part of the City of Renton. The Renton Police Department would also provide significantly faster response times for the Fairwood area than its present service provider, the King County Sheriff’s Department. Residents of Fairwood voted against incorporation in 2006.
“Incorporation will provide an unknown level of service, at unknown costs, with unknown taxes, and with an uncertain ability to keep Fairwood’s residential character the same,” said Nelson. “We said no to incorporation two years ago for all of these reasons. It was a bad idea then, and it is a worse idea now.”
Choose Renton believes that Renton’s ability to provide us a significantly higher level of service for less money than a City of Fairwood makes it the obvious choice for the area.
As King County continues to cut service levels to unincorporated urban and suburban areas, remaining a part of unincorporated King County is no longer
a viable option for Fairwood.
For additional information on our efforts, endorsement forms, and future meeting dates, please go to our website at _www.chooserenton.com_
(http://www.chooserenton.com/) , which will go live on our official launch date of August 14, 2008.
Please contact Bryce Nelson at _bryce.nelson@gmail.com_
(mailto:bryce.nelson@gmail.com) or (425) 864-7771 with any further questions.
Bryce Nelson, Spokesperson
Recent Comments