Town Breaks into Skykomish Hotel
Skykomish has been Destroyed by Corruption.
Dishonesty and corruption aren’t bad just because they’re against our Creator’s law; they’re wrong because they cause damage and injury to all parties, including perpetrators. Corruption destroys our inner soul and the very fabric of society.
Skykomish’s desperate economic and social condition is not due exclusively to external influences, but rather its desire to achieve goals by dishonest, corrupt and thieving means.
Sky has the ability to change, but until that ability is matched with desire and action, nothing good will come.
The consequences of previous bad decisions haunt Skykomish to this day.
Today’s poor choices are poisoning Sky’s future.
Soil and Groundwater Pollution
Town soils and groundwater are severely contaminated by BNSF Railway’s diesel and bunker fuels. No amount of happy talk or wishful thinking will change this.
The Town had an opportunity to have this pollution cleaned up, free of charge, but instead, gave into corruption, selling out current and future generations for a few dollars, baubles and trinkets.
This killed what remained of the town’s economy, and now prevents its rebirth.
Who wants to buy severely contaminated real estate or live in a town where dangerous cancer causing hydrocarbon vapors will continue gassing off for thousands of years?
Soil Liquefaction
Soils beneath much of the town are now subject to liquefaction during the next seismic event… a death sentence for property owners and occupants. This condition didn’t occur by accident, but rather the result of corruption by Town officials.
Wastewater Treatment Facility
The Town had the opportunity to have BNSF Railway rightfully pay for the needed wastewater treatment facility, but instead, once again allowed Warren Buffett’s railway to dump this enormous burden onto the shoulders of local water and sewer ratepayers.
This too has negatively impacted real estate pricing, desirability, sale-ability and values. Who can afford to pay sky high water and sewer rates?
Skykomish School District 404
At a time when America’s public education is a complete disaster, our Skykomish School could have become a cutting edge model for 21st century learning, a magnet drawing new families, businesses and investors to our dying town.
Instead, corruption and ineptitude allowed our school to become a dumping ground for educators ‘in transition’ and political cronies ‘in need’.
Are the few remaining students really being prepared to prosper or even survive in a world where artificial intelligence, robotics, molecular biology, math, science and physics rule?
Sky River Inn, McEvoy House, Maloney General Store and Skykomish Hotel
Revenue producing properties that formed the backbone of Sky’s economy have been destroyed by corruption.
The Town of Skykomish recently took title to the historic Skykomish Hotel following the Town’s expropriation (theft) by Sheriff’s Sale.
If Skykomish offers such a great future, why were no private buyers willing to risk their capital?
Why are the likes of King County Council Member Kathy Lambert, Rod Dembowski and others now begging for ‘investment partners’?
The Town could have purchased the landmarked Hotel when it was in good condition and could have had its new foundation set on stable soil and raised out of the flood zone.
Instead, by trying to steal it, taxpayers ended up paying several times over for the Hotel, albeit, a structure now severely deteriorated and sitting in the flood plain.
Town finances, along with its reputation have been destroyed. The desirability, sale-ability and value of all town real estate have been negatively impacted.
Working families, businesses and investors stay away from Skykomish because it’s a place where their hard earned money is stolen.
Winners and Losers
Skykomish is a den of thieves without skills, initiative or means, who band together under cover of darkness and government to ‘appropriate’ other people’s money.
Sky is clearly the loser, its tax base and economy having been exhausted.
The ‘Bright Future’
Sure, there’s continuing talk of a brighter future, but let’s face it, who’s interested in risking their fortunes in such a cesspool of corruption?
There have been so many new visions, false starts and boondoggles that it’s hard to even keep track.
What happened to the much heralded barbershop, beauty salon and Big Bear restaurant?
What about JoAnne Menard’s Skykomish Environmental Learning Center? Imagine situating an environmental learning center above the most polluted site in Washington State. What crazy nonsense.
Didn’t the U.S. Forest Service give its compound on Old Cascade Highway to the Town for the Skykomish Environmental Learning Center and Historical Society?
Didn’t the Forest Service recently pawn off its maintenance responsibilities at Deception Falls to the Town’s maintenance crew because it supposedly experienced a ‘funding cutback’?
Is this the same U.S. Forest Service that’s now planning to occupy the Skykomish Hotel when King County’s 4Culture.org taxpayer funded renovation by Keith Meahlum’s ‘Revive Historic – Skykomish’ is completed?
What ever happened to the 2.3 million dollars that went missing from Town coffers during Mayor Fred Black’s reign of terror? Was this the same Fred Black who now crows about ‘Blax Professional Project Management’ down in Arizona?
Taxpayer subsidized kiddie trains (Great Northern & Cascade Railway), Hysterical Society kiosks, government candy stores and other nonsensical dreams requiring other people’s money, are Sky’s substitute for a real economy with real jobs and real revenues.
Skykomish is on life support, totally dependent on King County’s 4Culture.org feeding tube to regularly pour more taxpayer money into this black hole.
Honesty, Integrity and Square Dealing could have brought success, prosperity and a healthy social atmosphere to Sky.
* * * * *
Fair Use Notice: This website post may contain copyrighted material. Such material is made available for news reporting, educational and other limited purposes only. This constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in title 17 U.S.C. Section 107 of the US Copyright Law.
SkykomishHotel.com (‘SH’) have no control over and do not endorse any external Internet site that contains links to or references SH.
