Danny Westneat / Times staff columnist
An odd job for the National Guard

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Overseas, 3,200 of the local guard are fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan, the largest mobilization of the state's weekend warriors since World War II.

Here in the U.S., Congress is considering assigning the guard a greater role in homeland security, such as watching borders and ports.

And now here in Seattle, the guard is on tap to help build a $60 million sports complex.

Uh, say what?

Ostensibly as part of a training program, the guard is planning to provide labor and equipment for the nine-field soccer and baseball complex at Sand Point Magnuson Park. The tentative plan to use the soldiers is being pushed by the city of Seattle and the guard.

The scope of work hasn't been decided, but backers of the sports complex say the guard's contribution could top $20 million, including grading fields and building roads, footbridges and restrooms.

"It's a way to benefit the guard by providing training, and also to benefit the city by putting federal dollars into their project," said Col. Rick Patterson, public-affairs officer for the local guard at Camp Murray, Tacoma.

It's not a new idea. It's called Innovative Readiness Training, passed by Congress in 1996. Guard units help on a civic project for free, saving local government money. In return, guard soldiers get military-style training — setting up supply lines, building roads, running heavy equipment.

The guard has done projects around the nation. A few years ago in Pacific County, local soldiers helped build part of the Lewis and Clark trail.

I'm sure there's some merit to having soldiers work at Magnuson Park — although Congress' investigative arm, the Government Accountability Office, says many similar projects have offered "no valid military training."
 
But two things especially bother me about this.

It may have been quaint, once, for soldiers to build parks. But 9/11 ought to have altered our way of thinking.

Twice this year, the U.S. Coast Guard has threatened to shut down the Washington ferry system unless more security is provided.

Instead of having soldiers pitch in to help guard the ferries, we're asking them to build soccer fields?

Two, the Seattle parks department said in a recent legal notice that "local funds are not sufficient to complete this project without National Guard assistance." The city has $14 million to redevelop Magnuson Park. That's $46 million shy of what it costs for the entire complex — nine ballfields, parking lots, roads and restored wetlands.

It's time to scale back this gargantuan project. Especially because the city says it's so strapped for money it is considering charging for parking at some other parks.

The plan for Magnuson Park is big and expensive — it's been called "The Complex from Hell." That's a problem, but it's not the kind you solve by calling out The National Guard.

Danny Westneat's column appears Wednesday and Friday. Reach him at 206-464-2086 or dwestneat@seattletimes.com.