UW North: Which site is closest to foolproof?

Almost from the start, the site-selection process for a new four-year college to serve the north Snohomish, Skagit and Island county region has been about not repeating the mistakes of the past.

Don't build on a wetland, which added significantly to the cost of the University of Washington's Bothell branch campus. Don't buy land outside an urban-growth area, as the state did initially when seeking property for the Bothell campus, only to find it couldn't develop the land.

Don't build where you have to add expensive road improvements or freeway access — or, if you do, make sure you know upfront what the costs will be.

Eight days from today, Gov. Christine Gregoire's office is scheduled to recommend a campus site and an academic plan for a new UW branch campus to serve the three-county region. Today, we examine each of the sites.

Over the past three months, more than 1,000 people at town-hall forums, chambers-of-commerce luncheons and meetings among business and community leaders have endorsed the idea of a college to meet the region's higher-education needs.

But it's the site-selection process that has attracted the most interest, speculation and civic lobbying.

The four site finalists — two in Everett, one each in Marysville and Lake Stevens — have been thoroughly vetted by a team of land-use analysts and planners working under a $1 million state contract designed to avoid past pitfalls.

"We're digging in dirt and costing out onramps," said Deb Merle, higher-education policy adviser to the governor.

Merle said each of the four sites could accommodate the UW's academic goals, which include an emphasis on science and technology as well as opportunities for real-world learning partnerships for students.

"The UW has said it wants students to have access to experiential learning. That doesn't mean the sites have to be within walking distance to the experiential learning," Merle said.

The finalists offer great contrasts, from the compact 32-acre Everett Station site to the large but more isolated, 369-acre Marysville property.

Marysville and Everett have both hired lobbyists to promote their locations. The Greater Everett Chamber of Commerce solicited letters of support from more than 80 regional businesses, including Boeing and Kimberly-Clark.

The chamber bused college supporters to UW Tacoma last spring to view firsthand an urban branch campus. It also tapped former Everett Mayor Ed Hansen to lead a fund-raising campaign for the UW.

Marysville's lobbying firm, in turn, has raised questions about environmental contamination at the two Everett sites. The lobbyist also suggested that a consultant on the site-selection team had a conflict of interest because he previously was Everett Mayor Ray Stephanson's campaign manager. That consultant, Reid Shockey, resigned two weeks ago.

Lake Stevens backers have had to deal with neighbors angry that 35 acres of its 98-acre site had been slated to become a county park. Last week, the owner of another 35-acre section in the middle of the site said he wasn't willing to sell. Merle said the site-selection team will consider a Lake Stevens site of about 40 acres.

"We're at a disadvantage because we don't have the resources of Marysville or Everett, but we're still in the game," said state Sen. Steve Hobbs, D-Lake Stevens.

The state has repeatedly tried to downplay the politics, saying it will base the site selection on the properties' merits a0nd suitability for a four-year college. But the competing cities continue to maneuver for advantage, without quite knowing whether any of their efforts will make a difference.

On a recent sunny afternoon, Marysville spokesman Doug Buell gave a tour of that city's site to a reporter and photographer. As they drove alongside strawberry fields and pastureland, a coyote approached the road and warily eyed the passing cars.

As the photographer began to squeeze off pictures, Buell mused, "I wonder if that will help us or hurt us?"

Lynn Thompson: 425-745-7807 or lthompson@seattletimes.com