Put a Snohomish County campus into writing

SNOHOMISH County lawmakers cannot agree on a site for a new state university but they must unite to get a commitment that north Snohomish and Skagit and Island counties are first in line for startup money when the economy rebounds.

Get the 2009 Legislature to put it into law. The stalemate over whether to build a new campus in Everett or in Marysville, a dozen miles north, cannot be allowed to let the momentum toward a new college grind to a halt.

Legislators making the argument have to be ready for a few eye rolls. The 2007 Legislature approved an infusion of money to get started. A year ago, Gov. Christine Gregoire put $1 million in the budget to start classes at a temporary location. Her only prerequisite was final, local agreement on a site. It never happened.

Sites were studied, poked, prodded and dismissed until it came down to two: 30-plus acres in downtown Everett, adjacent to Everett Station, a commuter transportation hub; and 400-plus acres in Marysville, with room to grow.

Everett offered a second location, known as the Riverside site, but it was eliminated over environmental questions and broad issues of cost-effectiveness. As the standoff loomed, a late, largely unreviewed alternative on land now home to golfers was introduced.

Local and state lawmakers arm wrestling over an economic trophy cannot lose sight of the long line of students from the region queuing up for college admission. Estimates top 11,000.

A new campus with a student population of 5,000 and an emphasis on science and technology is an opportunity for them and the entire state.

The 2009 Legislature has its hands full with deficits and hemorrhaging budgets. Enthusiasm to start a new university is not there, but a commitment to filling a recognized need is entirely appropriate.

Snohomish County lawmakers and others must speak with one voice.