The Town Center’s few supporters have narrow interests and little connection to existing residents’ concerns. Sammamish’s priority should be mitigating 60 years of “planned growth” absorbed within 25 years.

The goals for “sense of community” and “city focal point” forget that our centers are home, school, church, sports fields, neighborhood, natural surroundings and the city that supports them. The concepts of “walkable,” “open space,” “mixed use” and “village concept” end up as potted plants and a bench on slightly wider sidewalks in front of a gingerbread façade on another strip mall. “Mixed use” isn’t a cozy all-in-one nest.

It is simply moving the apartments on top of the same old shops. “Flexible zoning” is code for “make the development deal after the up-zoning.”

Commercial development proponents cite “There isn’t anywhere to get socks” and “Let’s not drive off the Plateau.” It took more than a year for Sammamish Highlands to fill City Hall’s vacancy. Most of Issaquah Highlands’ commercial area has been empty for more than eight years. Redmond Town Center recently lost several large tenants. Skewed public polls don’t substitute for a business plan.

“Commercial Tax Base is needed” isn’t a valid issue. Residential cities have the highest budget surpluses while delivering the highest service levels. Issaquah and Redmond bit into the commercial/retail myth and they have debt and/or seek tax increases. I’ll save the “affordable housing” issue for another letter.

Sammamish ignores the development buffer and environmental reasoning behind Town Center’s current R-1 to R-4 zoning. Citizens will subsidize the Town Center’s added fire protection, increased policing, continued school portables, added city administration and upgraded roads. The notion that city regulations have all the infrastructure concurrency, environmental mitigation and service level guarantees seriously misleads its citizens.

Put Town Center on a 10-year hold. Beside City Hall, the library and existing zoning, additional development should be an aquatic center, indoor sports arena, Farmer’s Market area and a festival gathering area on only the municipal property. A parks bond measure is five years overdue and considerably higher priority than Town Center.

Prioritize existing residents’ concerns over those of future residents.

-Greg Allan

Sammamish