Preliminary 2026 budget presentations dominated much of the Sept. 23 Town Council meeting, with Public Works Director Brian Lease and Wastewater Treatment Plant Supervisor Kevin Wynn outlining spending challenges and priorities.
Lease said his proposal focuses on operations and maintenance, noting that he has withdrawn several capital projects in order “to get in the black.” He presented estimates for line items in Park & Port, Facilities, Streets, Water, and Drainage.
He also flagged needed repairs to the historic La Conner Civic Garden Club building, which could cost $150,000. “The longer we wait, the more expensive it will be,” Lease said. “Structurally, the building is fine. It has a good roof on it. The siding is the issue. The siding has to be milled.”
Lease added that “Streets is another fund that’s difficult.” He said he removed the purchase of a new street sweeper from consideration, calling it a “big ticket item.” While the town’s current sweeper “works great,” Lease said it is costly to maintain. Contracting street sweeping services could cost $50,000 to $55,000 annually.
Wynn said given La Conner’s 50-year-old wastewater treatment plant is due for a major mandated upgrade in the next few years, he was “ trying to be easy,” with his preliminary budget proposal.
In other business, council members approved changes to annual hotel-motel tax revenue disbursements, raising the Museum of Northwest Art’s (MONA) allocation to $11,000 from $9,000.
“I think they bring in quite a bit,” council member Ivan Carlson said of MONA’s impact on tourism, which hotel-motel tax monies are intended to support.
The council also set Oct. 14 as the date for a public hearing to consider the vacation of a portion of a right-of-way on south Maple Avenue. A petition for vacation has been signed by the owners of more than two-thirds of the property abutting the part of the street sought for vacation.
In addition, Hanneman said she, Lease, and Town Administrator Scott Thomas had met with Channel Drive residents to discuss how to move forward with a plan to replace the aging water line there. Lease said the estimated cost for that project is $3.8 million.
The council also set an Oct. 14 public hearing on a petition to vacate a portion of right-of-way on south Maple Avenue and heard an update on a $3.8 million plan to replace the aging Channel Drive water line.
The next Town Council meeting is schedule for 6 p.m. Oct. 14 in the upper Maple Center and will be live streamed. Link to live stream
Bill Reynolds is a general assignment reporter for La Conner Community News.
