Later last week, Snohomish County Hearing Examiner denied Sno-King Watershed Council’s appeal of Snow Ridge. Now the clock is ticking and there are only a couple of days left before Materials Testing and Consulting INC. (MTC) begin logging of the property. They plan to install 26 residential units on 3.94 acres on 3101 and 1307 Filbert Road (SR-524) in Lynnwood.
We need your help to stop it. contact your Washington State Legislator today and demand an investigation of WSDOT why it is allowing developers to connect into its undersized SR-524 stormwater system that floods in 2-year storm events, when WSDOT requires its road design not to flood in 100-year storm events (see photos attached). Here is the background on the Snow Ridge Project why you need to tell your State legislator to investigate:
- WSDOT spent over $5-million constructing the Larch Way and Locust Way roundabouts at SR-524, completed in spring, 2019;
- SR-524 flooded twice in the 2019-2020 winter, due to undersized stormwater culverts, see photos attached;
- WSDOT approved the Forest on Filbert, which has since been constructed, and then permitted the Snow Ridge project to install a stormwater infiltration tank on a steep slope above the State Highway and adding more runoff to their undersized stormwater system;
- When SKWC pointed out in its December 2019 appeal that Snow Ridge’s infiltrating stormwater would destabilize the hillside above the State highway and endanger the public. WSDOT concurred with SKWC and rescinded its approval of Snow Ridge;
- Snow Ridge was then forced to withdraw its permit application in March 2020, but in the fall of 2020 they resubmitted a revised design using no Low Impact Best Management Practices allowing even more stormwater runoff into WSDOT’s under designed stormwater system;
- WSDOT has since acknowledged that it made a design error and undersized the stormwater culverts at the new roundabouts, resulting in flooding of the State Highway in two-year storm events, which is an environmental and life safety hazard;
- Snow Ridge contends by cutting down all the trees on a site that currently infiltrates 100% of its rainfall and paving over the site, that it will actually reduce downstream runoff;
- Unfortunately, Snohomish County Hearing Examiner Peter Camp agreed with developer, despite SKWC testimony and the attached documentary photographs;
- WSDOT Hydraulics Engineer and Geotechnical Engineer have since agreed with SKWC that the Snow Ridge development will make flooding worse on SR-524 and have recommended that Snow Ridge be re-designed to correctly model the site conditions.
- Peter Alm and the WSDOT NW Region Development Services still have not withdrawn their approval of Snow Ridge even knowing all of the above.
- Tell WSDOT to hold its Snow Ridge permit approval in abeyance until, until the legislature can investigate this matter.
To contact your State Legislator, go to https://app.leg.wa.gov/districtfinder/. When you find your state legislator, click on their e-mail link and fill out the form. Make sure you click on the tab requesting a response and then the tab sending the e-mail to your other two legislators.
See the last PDF for a demo letter for your State Legislator.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR HELP!
SR-524-Locust-Larch-Way-Intersection-Improvements-Complete-April… 2021-01-22-Washington-State-Legislature
