Opinion - Our View

POSTED: Sunday, Aug. 23, 2009

Bellingham moving in right direction with park plans

Bellingham residents should be happy that their city government continues working to try and address one of the city's worst fairness and livability issues - the fact that there are no parks for the thousands of city residents who live north of Interstate 5 and west of James Street.

That area encompasses a huge mass of the recent growth or the city, a growth that has been allowed to occur without the long-standing commitment to quality of life that has led to many of the community's most precious gems - Whatcom Falls Park, Boulevard Park, Lake Padden Park, Fairhaven Park.

In late July, City Council members approved spending $1.7 million for 80 acres along Northwest Drive that will one day be developed into a park. The park, located between Kline and Waldron roads, is just one part of a planned trails and greenways system in the city's northern neighborhoods, where none currently exist.

Funding for the land purchase comes from the taxpayer-approved Greenways Program, which levies property taxes to fund new parks, trails and open spaces in the city.

The land the city just purchased is just outside the current city limits. It features wetlands, meadows, a few woods and some small creeks. It won't be a forested park like so many in Bellingham, but if it is developed correctly, it could become a gem of north-city living - celebrating the rural feel of the areas and the creeks and wetlands that cover so much of Whatcom County and are home to many kinds of birds, frogs and other plants and animals.

The park will not be built right away, though. There is not the money for that. We applaud city officials for their decision to lease the land to a developer for 10 years so that developer can improve the area as part of off-setting its developments elsewhere. As long as the city maintains control of how the parkland is maintained and approved, the lease seems like a good way to get improvements made for the public without taxpayer funding. That's smart fiscal thinking in a time when taxpayers can't afford new taxes.

It will be at least 10 years, then, before the park is completely developed and opened for public use. But that's OK. Buying the land now saves money later. It's this kind of forward thinking that should have gone on in the 1980s and 90s, when city officials allowed much of the area around Cordata, Meridian Street and Bakerview Road to be developed without creating the needed parks.

Bellingham neighborhoods without parks aren't really Bellingham neighborhoods. We are glad to see the city is moving forward with steps to fix its poor decision-making in the past.