Betrayal of Public Trust

Today's letter to Blaine Planning Commission:

Having written dozens of emails to you, the city council, and Community Development Services (CDS) without response, I can only assume that the intentional betrayal of public trust by the City of Blaine does not concern you. If it did, you would not be colluding with CDS director Alex Wenger on Central Business District (CBD) rezoning of parking and building heights in violation of the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) regarding public participation, consideration of alternatives, and consideration of cumulative environmental effects.

You are well aware by my many communications that the CBD rezoning process has been corrupt from the outset, when on June 6, 2023, the Downtown Advisory Committee--under CDS instruction--morphed from an advisory group to a voting body that recommended changes to development regulations that financially benefit members of the committee. This self-dealing conflict of interest involving Alex Wenger, developer Gurdeep Bains, builder Scott Meaker, port employee Greg McHenry, and Commissioner Kevin Owens should be prosecuted—not rewarded.

I have recounted to you the unresponsiveness of CDS and their withholding of evidence in the form of public documents that show these conflicts of interest. I have noted the SEPA process administered by Mr. Wenger did not allow the public to offer and consider alternatives to the developers' vision, only parking and building heights. There has not been a single visioning town hall to discuss redevelopment of downtown; only the developers' agenda. The environmental impacts of this agenda weren't even raised. Were we allowed to question Blaine officials in a public forum, Blaine citizens could examine the impacts.

These environmental impacts from the cumulative effect of proliferating four-story condos consuming all on-street parking, causing traffic congestion and air pollution from visitors looking for parking, would also look at impacts to the nearby salmon stream, Cain Creek, Semiahmoo Bay and Drayton Harbor. They would additionally consider impacts on downtown commerce from the loss of parking for customers and employees. 

The public views preservation efforts of Salishan Neighborhood Association in 2014, supported by the city council at the time, were completely ignored by CDS in the Central Business District charter, and the public participation promises in this city document were strategically undermined by CDS and Mayor Steward. This institutionalized corruption constitutes an environmental injustice under the Clean Water Act and State Environmental Policy Act.


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