A new sewer connection for the southern/eastern side of Olympia, and there were some interesting minutes on the Oly-Rafah Sister City thing.
 
Almost every week this is the "What's on the city council's plate this week" review. I don't cover everything, so if you want the full rundown, read the packet and agenda yourself.

1. The space for all that poop coming from my end of town is quickly running short, so the city is awarding a bid so they can start creating more room. From the staff report:

Southeast Olympia is growing rapidly. In order to serve the future needs for sanitary sewer collection and reduce the number of STEP system users, this project will extend the gravity sewer main from 31st Court south to Log Cabin Road.

The project includes the installation of approximately 2,050 linear feet of 18-inch gravity sanitary sewer main along the centerline of Boulevard Road. In addition, three STEP systems are being removed and converted to gravity sewer.

Construction is scheduled to start in late June, with completion by the end of August. Road closures of Boulevard Road are planned in two phases, north of Morse Merryman and then south. Construction signs will be installed two weeks before the construction starts to notify the public of the closures. A newsletter will be sent to all residents within a 300 feet radius of the project; this newsletter will inform the residents about the project activities, schedule, bus route impacts, and detour routes. Traffic control will be utilized to assist homeowners within the project limits and also all emergency vehicles.

What I want to know is, will this expansion facilitate the connection of current septic users in the old parts of SE Oly that never had the chance to hook up?

2. Note to people who testify in front of the city council, they publish your address in the minutes. Word to the wise. Beyond that, the minutes from last week's meeting reveal an interesting debate (emphasis mine):

Mayor Foutch closed the public hearing.

Mayor Pro Tem Ware moved, seconded by Councilmember Johnson, to sanction an official sister city relationship with Rafah. Mayor Pro Tem Ware spoke to the motion and said we can’t change the world if we don’t honor person to person relationships at the local level. Councilmember Johnson spoke to the motion and said he approves of reaching out and talking to people in order to reduce violence and promote peace. He indicated the belligerent actions of a government shouldn’t influence whether a sister city relationship is established and said if that were the case he would be prepared to dissolve the sister city relationship with Kato City because of the Japanese government’s policy direction away from pacifism toward militarism.

Council discussion:

• Consider voting against the motion because it’s divisive and will cause the Council and community to choose sides and make a political statement.
• Support a trilateral arrangement that will allow Olympia to play a reconciliation role between Israel and Palestine.
• People to people relationships are important, but Rafah sister city activities can be successful without an endorsement from City government.
• The community as a whole doesn’t support establishing a sister city relationship.
• Councilmembers are elected to lead regardless of whether the decision to be made is comfortable. If being divisive gets people talking, it can be a good thing.
• The Olympia community is too divided on the issue to be able to consider entering into the proposed Olympia-Rafah sister city relationship.

Motion failed 2-4; Mayor Pro Tem Ware and Councilmember Johnson for, Mayor Foutch and Councilmembers Kingsbury, Mah, and Messmer against.

Councilmember Johnson moved, seconded by Mayor Pro Tem Ware, to immediately dissolve the sister city relationship with Kato City Japan, to send word to the people organizing the sister city relationship with China that Olympia will not be endorsing it as a City, and to repeal the City’s sister city ordinance. Councilmember Johnson spoke to the motion and said if the Council is using the rationale of taking sides as a factor in deciding whether to have a sister city relationship, the current actions of the Japanese government are contrary to long-term peace. He noted there is no evidence the community supports the sister city relationship with Kato City, so the City of Olympia shouldn’t have a formal sister city relationship with them.

Council discussion:

• Sister city relationships are appropriate but if there isn’t one established when all the criteria has been met, there shouldn’t be any.
• Tonight’s public hearing was specific to the Olympia-Rafah sister city relationship. Perhaps the Council should explore the ordinance about sister cities in general and discuss the current sister city relationship and future ones, but it shouldn't be decided tonight.

Motion failed 2-4; Mayor Pro Tem Ware and Councilmember Johnson for, Mayor Foutch and Councilmembers Messmer, Mah, and Kingsbury against.