Letters to the Editor, Feb. 24

Check the facts on cottage housing

I was fortunate to learn a valuable lesson in middle school: Check your facts and go to the source.

A recent example comes to mind: Cottage Housing. When I opened my email today I had several email messages from people who had read that Gig Harbor was going to allow “high density housing” and describing the concept of cottage housing as a “zoning virus.” Understandably, people were upset and concerned that Gig Harbor was going to become Seattle.

Here are the true facts about Cottage housing. It is based on the idea of “better, not bigger.” Some describe it as a group of small homes that face and relate to one another around a landscaped common area. Cottage housing often appeals to empty-nest families looking for smaller houses and less yard, where floor space is traded for higher quality amenities. Such houses are often more energy efficient than larger homes. Another benefit of this type of housing is that it helps foster a sense of community, which is something we value here in Gig Harbor.

Now back to the lesson I learned years ago. By fact checking and asking questions from the sources, many concerns and rumors can be avoided.

I encouraged the people who wrote to me to learn what the Planning Commission is considering by looking on the city’s website: www.cityofgigharbor.net/small-residential-dwellings/.

I encourage you to do the same. Whether you end up liking the Cottage Housing concept or not, at least you will know that there is more to it than what the rumors are.

Adjustments need to be made on rising tolls

Great news. We actually had a small 2.5-percent increase in traffic on the Tacoma Narrows Bridge this past year, which will allow the Transportation Commission to reduce the 50-cent toll increase slated to go to into effect on July 1 down to 25 cents instead. Wow-wee. A reduction in the increase is still a toll increase on us and continues the old-school mentality of “increase the tolls even if it strangles traffic growth” resulting in more tolls and strangled traffic growth forever.

The Citizen Advisory Committee has a better plan this year. Let’s increase the number of users on the bridge that will increase revenue so we won’t need a toll increase! We have plenty of capacity, and what a game-changer that would be!

Let’s keep that traffic growth rate momentum going forward by not strangling it with yet another toll increase. The 70 percent frequent users have been paying the debt on this bridge since Day 1 and have financially provided the structure which allows the casual toll booth users and the “Pay By Mail” folks a cheap access across the Tacoma Narrows. That’s not fair and adjustments need to be made.

The state has a standard rate for the Pay By Mail folks of $2 over the toll rate at the time they used the facility, and that applies to any facility. So if we leave the transponder rate at $5 then the Pay By Mail rate will be established at $7, the same rate that is being charged today.

So the transponder rate would remain at $5 and the Pay By Mail rate would remain at $7, and the Citizens Advisory Committee has recommended a $1 increase on the tollbooth charge to go from the current $6 to $7. The tollbooth removal has been a discussion for the past 3 to 4 years. It’s old school, outdated and manual collections are very expensive. With the cash tollbooth cost being the same as the Pay by Mail method, there would be no reason to keep the tollbooths, as the cost to the user of either would be the same and the convenience of not stopping would tend to move cash payers immediately to the Pay By Mail scenario, reducing toll booth demand.

The other consideration is that some of the tollbooth users would finally purchase a transponder just because of the $2 savings over paying $7 at the tollbooth. Over time — having these two alternative options available — we believe the tollbooths would naturally fade into the sunset and finally close. If (when) that happens we will be able to eliminate the Toll Collection Contract, which is currently being charged to every user of the facility at the tune of $3.4 million annually.

We want to grow revenue through more transactions and not more tolls. The Transportation Commission paid no attention to the CAC recommendation and decided last Thursday to increase tolls AGAIN by 25 cents for all three collection methods: $5.25 for transponders, $6.25 at the tollbooth and $7.25 for Pay My Mail.

If you are concerned as much as we are, please pick up the phone and call the Reema Griffith, executive director of the Transportation Commission (360-705-7073) or drop her an e-mail at griffir@wstc.wa.gov and tell her we are tired of toll increases and want to try a new approach. The Transportation Commission has also said they don’t need to come to Gig Harbor for a public meeting because no one will show up because they reduced the 50-cent increase down to a 25-cent increase so we’ll be ecstatic about the reduction in the increase and “no deed goes unpunished.”

Please let them know you care.

This story was originally published February 25, 2016 at 2:42 PM with the headline "Letters to the Editor, Feb. 24."