As a Land Bank Commissioner, I appreciated Steve Buck’s acknowledgment that the land bank tax has been good for San Juan County and should continue. Where I part ways with Steve is over his idea that we should sunset the current tax and then try to change the authorizing legislation to expand the tax to serve other community purposes such as new athletic fields or a swimming pool.

In this current environment, it will be very difficult and time consuming to put in place a new statutory structure. And, under the current legislation, some of the examples that Steve mentions for community enhancement can be and are being pursued, such as bike and walking paths – a current priority of the land bank commission.

For other types of community enhancement, we should work together to look for other possible sources of revenue. In my opinion, this approach makes more sense than to jeopardize the funding for a Land Bank that continues to work hard for our community and is a big part of what makes our community special.

Doug Strandberg

Land Bank Commissioner at-large

Friday Harbor