FORKS — Mayor Bryon Monohon emphasized a need for emergency preparedness and discussed the Elwha River bridge replacement and other issues confronting the city of Forks during his State of the City address Wednesday.
Monohon delivered his annual address during a Forks Chamber of Commerce meeting.
The mayor called 2016 a long and difficult year in the political world.
“We’ve got quite a few new people to work with now across all political levels, but I’m only expecting good relationships and open dialogues,” Monohon said.
He outlined issues that will impact the community in 2017.
Emergency preparedness
Cascadia Rising, a regional drill conducted last summer to prepare for a massive earthquake in the Cascadia Subduction Zone, and the October storm showed the need to constantly hone skills, the mayor said.
“It was a year to check our planning,” Monohon said later Wednesday. “We will continue to practice.”
Transportation
Monohon expressed frustration with funding issues around the replacement of the bridge across the Elwha River on U.S. Highway 101 just west of Port Angeles.
The piers of the 90-year-old bridge, which is on the primary highway to Forks from the rest of the state, are being undercut by the now-free-flowing Elwha River.
The state has not yet decided upon an alignment for replacing the bridge — using the existing alignment, a parallel alignment or a new alignment to the north. Funding is not in place now.
“Keeping all of the highways and the Elwha bridge open is very important,” Monohon said. “I don’t really understand why with a federal highway around a national park, we’re supposed to be competing for funds or asking some of the questions that we ask.
“If all of the highways were closed, you would expect the outside world to be clamoring to get to the area, not us justifying why we need to get out.”
Rep. Mike Chapman, who sits on the state Transportation Committee, has said he is confident that funding will be in place this legislative session.
Monohon also said he would continue to work with the National Park Service on its plans to repair Highway 101 around Lake Crescent — a three-year project set to begin this spring.
“We’re trying to make sure that we know what’s going on and what their plans are,”Monohon said after the meeting.
He said that Forks officials had presented the Park Service with a list of questions — for instance about access for ambulances, public buses and school buses — and have not received answers.
Crime
Asked about crime, Monohon said: “We’ll keep arresting folks that break the law. That’s what we do as the city. We try to prevent and we arrest.”
Most crime in Forks has to do with drugs and car prowls, he said later.
Public works
Monohon praised the work of the city’s new director of Public Works, Paul Hampton.
“We’ve got projects coming with water tank overhauls and some new sidewalks,” Monohon said. ”Eventually, we’re going to be dealing with some sort of sewer expansion as well but that is still a few years away.”
Timber arrearage
Monohon discussed timber arrearage, saying: “We’ll continue to make sure that our citizens and businesses have a voice and are treated fairly and comparably to other areas.
”It is really hard to have a constructive discussion about timber as people are so entrenched in opinions that are not often based in fact.”
Officials of the city of Forks have said that the state Department of Natural Resources’s failure to sell logs that were authorized to be sold on North Olympic Peninsula trust lands hastened the closures of timber mills.
The mayor was thankful that the Olympic Experimental State Forest Plan was completed in 2016.
“We have maintained an excellent working relationship with the DNR and the Public Lands Commissioner,” he said.
He congratulated Clallam County Commissioner Bill Peach, who was in attendance, on his vice-chairmanship of the DNR board.
West End Thunder
Talks are resuming this year with the Federal Aviation Administration about continuing to use the Forks Municipal Airport for summertime West End Thunder drag races.
The city has a special exemption from the FAA that must be renewed after this year.
“I’m not expecting any problem with that,” Monohon said.
Emergency dispatch
Monohon said the city will continue to work with PenCom dispatch service.
Later he said that among the problems residents have described is being asked for addresses instead of giving directions as they are accustomed to doing — for instance describing the house at the white rock rather than a street address.
________
Christi Baron is the editor of the Forks Forum of the Olympic Peninsula News Group, which also is composed of other Sound Publishing newspapers Peninsula Daily News and Sequim Gazette. Reach her at editor@forksforum.com.
