The Marysville City Council Meeting met for its meeting Monday. Chief among the concerns that night were the 6 month data center moratorium, and the Lidar project with Snohomish County to map the tree canopy throughout the region.
This meeting saw four public comments submitted, but only three allowed to speak. Michele, the first individual to come up to the podium thanked the council on its proposed moratorium. She also went on to request the city look into banning large Amazon facilities outright due to their destructive nature in the community. The next person to speak was Julie, a local citizen who echoed Michele's point, asking the council to re-examine Amazon's heavy-handed influence in the Cascade Industrial Complex. Finally, Mary O'Farrell re-affirmed the previous two comments, also thanking the council for pursuing the partnership with the county in regards to tree mapping. While a fourth person intended to speak, Mayor Nehring, on the advice of legal counsel, did not allow them too. Afterwards, it was revealed that they had intended to introduce the candidacy of Brad Bender for the 38th Legislative District's Senate seat.
Some updates to topics we have previously covered were discussed. The boundary line adjustment code was amended as discussed at a previous Planning Commission meeting without much discussion. The Marysville PD also presented the clarification regarding E-Bikes that the city has been working on, in order to help citizens know what is and is not allowed on city streets, trails, and sidewalks. This is to bring the city in line with recent changes in the state law regarding E-Bikes. This presentation also showed the grand unveiling of an interactive city biking map on the city’s website. This map shows the paths that are available for all types of biking, as well as where it is prohibited, and the various speed limits which are enforced. Several concerned citizens have brought forth stories recently regarding the dangers of E-Bikes on our streets, not laying the blame on the riders, but on the lack of regulation of them.
During the meeting, the council also accepted a gift from the Marysville Rotary Club for the outdoor portion of the Marysville Community Center. This new outside seating area will provide a place for residents to enjoy the beautiful weather of the Pacific Northwest while in-between, or waiting for activities. In the past, there was no outdoor seating for the Community Center at all, so we thank the Rotary Club for this gracious donation to our city. The council also reviewed the new utility box wraps that will be put in place soon at ten locations around the city. These beautify the corners of the road, as well as add historical and natural scenery to the environment.
Two items of environmental importance were voted on during the meeting. Firstly, the agreement between Snohomish County and the city for Lidar detection to catalog the tree canopy throughout the county was accepted. This data will provide both environmental protection data, as well as invaluable information for infrastructure projects. Shading information is particularly important for our city engineers as it helps determine where heat mitigation will be needed during infrastructure expansion. Secondly, the city is continuing the Geddes Marina revitalization plan. For those uninformed, the Geddes Marina was formally a checkpoint along the Ebey Slough for timber companies in the 1800s. Later on, it was turned into the marina it is today, however not much thought was given to the environmental impact of its location. Due to this, the city is considering ways to fill it back in, and turn it back into a natural wetland like it was before settlers came to this area more than a century and a half ago.
The hot-button issue of the night, that being the six month data center moratorium, was passed without much fanfare or discussion. Importantly, the moratorium does not disallow medical, police, governmental, or any “incidental” data center sections within a building that are not the building’s main purpose. The city is required to set up a public hearing at most 60 days from the date of the vote. This will most likely be, according to the city’s legal team, on September 7th.