Skykomish Hotel Issues

Washington State Department of Ecology’s massive BNSF Railway Skykomish cleanup scam has not only failed to clean up diesel and bunker oils, but has seriously damaged, destroyed and endangered important historic icons, including the Skykomish Hotel.

The Hotel, constructed in 1904, remains a valuable state and national historic landmark, but unfortunately, the fully leased structure was not able to reopen following completion of the environmental cleanup hoax in February 2010, as it was returned to owners seriously damaged and without operational utilities.

The Hotel’s interior had suffered over $1.25 million in damage when its fire suppression system, designed for 175 pounds maximum pressure, failed following an enormous ‘water hammer’ delivered by the Town that ‘pegged’ the system gauge at 275 pounds during street removal operations directly in front of the Hotel.

Equally unfortunate, deliberate Town action preventing the Hotel’s new foundation from being properly elevated, while approving adjacent BNSF owned building foundations to be, has now exposed the Hotel’s foundation, crawlspace and first floor to damaging and expensive flooding for the first time in its 100+ year history.

Without utilities, tenants could not assume occupancy. Without occupancy, there was no income to support maintenance, repairs or restoration.

The Hotel remains seriously damaged and without utilities, tenants or income to this day. Repair costs are estimated to be approximately $3.5 million.

While many purport to speak on behalf of the environment, historic preservation and economic development, not all do so with pure intentions or goodness of heart.

Some climb aboard to promote a more familiar agenda… Apply sufficient governmental force to denigrate and then acquire private assets without the unpleasant necessity of having to pay for them… Neighbours stealing from neighbours. Friends stealing from friends.

Hotel owners regret that Washington State Department of Ecology, Town of Skykomish, Skykomish Historical Society, Washington Trust for Historic Preservation, 4Culture.org and the Skykomish Environmental Coalition choose to promote an agenda Hotel owners consider anathema to genuine environmental, historic and economic stewardship.