We commend Mukilteo City Council’s decision Monday to ask residents how they feel about annexation. The council had agreed to put the question on the ballot last year, but upset many residents by withdrawing the advisory vote (the only legal way citizens can weigh in on annexation) when Snohomish County Fire District 1 appealed the Boundary Review Board’s approval of Mukilteo’s revised plan, effectively blocking those in the potential area from voting.

Mukilteo voters are once again deciding whether to renew the Emergency Medical Services levy, and if so, at what amount and for how long. Currently before voters is a measure that would increase the current levy – due to expire Dec. 31 – to 50 cents per $1,000 of assessed property value, and this time, the council is asking it to be permanent.

Tim Eyman, at least in his public rhetoric, is suspicious of every move government makes. As he does with all of his initiatives, he repeatedly voiced concerns that elected officials – in this case, Mukilteo city and/or staff – would find a legal loophole to try to block Mukilteo Initiative 2 from going on the ballot.

City staff and council have worked hard in recent months to become more transparent and involve residents earlier in the process. We’ve seen what happens when communication works well and when it doesn’t. After lengthy discussions and reversed decisions regarding where to site the new City Hall, the council seated at that time rammed through a location at the far end of town without notifying the public it would make the final decision that evening, pleasing almost nobody.

It’s true we can’t legislate against stupidity, nor can we write enough laws – or hire enough officers, or buy enough technology – to prevent every single idiot from injuring an innocent bystander with irresponsible behavior. However, we can take some steps to prevent needless injuries and deaths, particularly when it comes to protecting our children. We cautiously support the council’s decision to install traffic safety cameras on SR-525 in front of Olympic View Middle School, to monitor speed in the 20 mph zone, and at the intersection of Harbour Pointe Boulevard North and SR-525, to monitor red light runners, on a one-year trial basis.

Monday's meeting, originally planned as a work session in which no decisions are made, morphed into one of the shortest, yet most productive council meetings on record. After approving the city's purchase of 16.75 acres in Japanese Gulch, the council followed up by nixing the planned green roof on the new community center, then raced to the finish with a small solution to some of the parking crunch in the north end of town.

Mukilteo city staff headed down the wrong road when it recommended allocating up to 23 parking spots along 1st Street to commuters, essentially wiping out most of the available parking for tenants of the art building on 2nd Street, and those businesses' employees and patrons.

Right now, some 40-45 Whidbey Island commuters are scrambling to find spots to park their cars overnight night after June 1, when the city officially ends the years-long practice of leasing space in Lighthouse Park. A total of 75 received eviction notices Friday, 30 of which will hopefully luck out with interim parking solutions. The rest? Nobody knows.

Before the accident that left him quadriplegic and dependent upon a ventilator, Larry Busch was an energetic, fun-loving, outgoing prankster, always there for his friends with a smile, a laugh, encouraging words. After his accident, Busch was an energetic, fun-loving, outgoing prankster, always there for his friends with a smile, a laugh, encouraging words. Busch passed away unexpectedly Friday morning, four years after the accident that severely damaged his spinal cord. He leaves behind more friends than can possibly be counted, each an example of the many lives he touched in his 26 years.

Mukilteo staff, councilmembers and planning commissioners have a difficult task ahead: overhauling the city’s complex sign code to comply with state law as related to recent court rulings, and at the same time both remain business friendly and not allow unsightly clutter to detract from the beautiful views.

Mariner High School is competing for a once-in-a-lifetime honor – to have President Barack Obama come speak at the 2010 commencement ceremony in June. It’s a long shot to be sure – thousands of schools throughout the country are battling to become a part of history, in Obama’s Race to the Top competition. Visual Communications students Vinh Tran, Dennis Tran, Lewis Do and Robin Jones, with help from their Mariner classmates, shot extensive footage of the school’s numerous academics, sports, and activities. Somehow they condensed their school’s rich history and embracement of diversity into a two-minute, tightly edited synopsis of the many cultures that make up the staff and student body.

As long as we have legislators collecting and spending our tax dollars, we're going to have Mukilteo resident Tim Eyman cranking out initiatives, asking for donations and making life hell for our elected officials. From the looks of the recent legislative session, he's going to be around a long time.

We read of Community Transit's drastic budget cuts last week with dismay. To close what it says is an $11 million shortfall, the agency announced it will raise local and paratransit fares by 25 cents per trip and eliminate Sunday and holiday service entirely, effective June 13. While we understand the need to cut costs, this is a step in the wrong direction. Many people rely on transit entirely to get to work and be productive members of the community. For some, including many seniors, transit is their only way to get out and into their communities.

When the city polled residents in 2007, its results indicated 36 percent would like to see an off-leash dog park in town, placing it 15th on a long list of park priorities. That number may seem low as to the amount of people who would benefit. But we think everyone can win with this venture if it's done correctly, even non-dog lovers.

We’re happy the new community center is finally taking shape. We’re encouraged by the rapid pace of construction and the sights and sounds of equipment signaling progress at the site. However, we’re reeling from sticker shock at the numbers Recreation and Cultural Services Manager Jennifer Berner presented to Mukilteo City Council at Monday’s work session.

Just as economists argue the road to recovery is “jobs, jobs, jobs!” educators know the road to good jobs is “education, education, education!” In this current downturn now being called the Great Recession, many of the unemployed are returning to school to retrain for the jobs of the future.

Working in public education is no walk in the park these days, not that it ever was. But each year brings more and more state and federal regulations on...

We commend the city staff, council and residents for the tremendous amount of work and thought that went into the downtown sub area plan approved Monday...

After the past few weeks of dire budget news and painful cuts, the Mukilteo City Council got a brief reprieve in the form of an additional $118,000. Finance...

Mukilteo department heads, including Police Chief Mike Murphy, were asked to make drastic cuts to their 2010 budgets, paring down nonessentials and, in...