Money was the first topic on Bothell City Manager Bob Stowe’s mind as he made his annual State of the City speech to the Greater Bothell Chamber of Commerce Jan. 13 at Country Village’s Courtyard Hall.
According to Stowe, Bothell rode out the country’s biggest recession in decades by keeping spending in line, but also thanks to good decisions made when times were financially more stable.
Stowe said Bothell City Hall continuously monitors its revenues and expenditures, making adjustments as needed. He stated that unlike many other municipalities and government entities both locally and across the U.S., Bothell did not have to take extreme measures to balance its budget during the economic crisis.
For example, Stowe said a study showed some 44 percent of American municipalities had to dip into their reserve funds to make ends meet. Bothell did not have to make that move, preserving a reserve equal to 20 percent of the city’s general fund operating budget. Stowe further noted the city did not lay off employees or force staff into mandatory furlough days in order to save money.
As the country and the Puget Sound region recover from the recession, Stowe believes Bothell has positioned itself well to take advantage of that comeback. He was referring to the much-advertised plans for Bothell’s future, which range from the expansion of the downtown to the closely related Crossroads project that will realign the city’s state routes.
Stowe said it seemed appropriate that major milestones in those projects arrived in 2009, the year that marked the city’s centennial and a worthwhile celebration of its history.
“I believe Bothell’s best years are in front of us,” Stowe added.
One milestone was the finalization of an agreement to purchase from the Northshore School District 18 acres along Bothell Way Northeast north of Main Street. The land will be redeveloped commercially.
“The city has been planning and preparing for this opportunity for years,” Stowe said.
In addition to mixed residential and retail development, Stowe also talked about the acreage possibly becoming home to some sort of parking structure and perhaps a community/aquatic center.
The latter might become a hot topic as development moves forward. Community pools — one in Bothell and one in neighboring Kenmore — have closed in recent months due to financial problems suffered by their private operators. The odds of those pools reopening is difficult to gauge.
Stowe sidestepped an audience question on the future of the Anderson Building, the historic former schoolhouse that sits on a patch of the 18 acres slated for redevelopment. Rumors have been swirling about a brew pub coming into the building. Stowe said he could neither confirm nor deny those rumors, but added he hopes to be able to make an announcement about the Anderson structure sometime soon.
Closely related to the expansion of the downtown, the so-called Crossroads project is expected to begin in earnest this year. Just outside the existing downtown, businesses in the path of the realignment were vacated Dec. 31. Demolition of those structures should begin soon, though Stowe said no bids have been let as of yet.
Set to follow on the heels of the Crossroads work is a revamping of the existing downtown. One downtown businessman said some street repairs might not be able to wait that long.
Paul Desilet of retailer Paul Richards Clothing referred to the stretch of Main between 102nd and 104th avenues as the “ugliest piece of street in the city.” He said downtown’s primary roadway suffers from a major depression in one spot and “washboard-like sequences” elsewhere. Stowe didn’t have a ready answer regarding repairs, but said his staff would look into the situation.
Other capital improvements touched on included scheduled work on Wayne Curve, which will revamp State Route 522 near the Yakima Fruit Market. Stowe said construction should start early this year, with completion coming in 2011. Only design work should begin this year on the city’s planned new municipal complex.
On an entirely different front, Stowe expects Bothell officials will once more take up the idea of annexing the city’s northern urban growth area in Snohomish County. He also mentioned the city will look into taking over pockets of unincorporated King County.
Partly because of concerns over the city’s ability to supply emergency services, Snohomish County officials turned down Bothell’s annexation move last year. But Stowe said there is still plenty of interest in the annexation among residents and businesses in the Snohomish growth area.
