SEE INSIDE: Fewer prisoners and falling revenues could mean closure of Buckley Jail, page 5 . . . . Man thanks East Pierce for saving life, Page 4
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Wednesday, July 18, 2012 | 75 cents
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Growth Management Board ruling stalls Sumner’s Orton Junction project Board sides with appeal, rules that county was ‘clearly erroneous’ in decision to approve land deal By Brian Beckley Staff Writer
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A ruling by the state’s Growth Management Hearings Board has placed the future of Sumner’s Orton Junction project in jeopardy. In a decision issued July 9 and made public the next day, the Board found mostly in favor of the appeal, siding with opponents of the proj-
ect who argued the Pierce County Council overstepped its bounds by approving controversial comprehensive plan amendments that would pave the way for the 182-acre multi-use development. At the heart of the matter is the County Council’s decision to dedesignate 125 acres of agricultural resource lands (ARL) in order to allow building on those parcels.
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commercial and residential development as well. The County Council in October approved the Urban Growth Area amendments after a process that included a “Seven Principles Agreement” that included a promise to provide “four acres of land suitable for agricultural production protected by permanent conservation easements for every one acre of land currently designated ARL.”
See Orton, Page 4
Historical society gets filmmakers’ treasures Daniel Nash Staff Writer
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“The Board finds the County’s de-designation of the Orton Junction ARL lands is clearly erroneous,” the decision reads. “Farm lands with prime soil are an irreplaceable resource. “The Board concludes a mistake has been made,” it reads. Orton Junction is a large development project located at the 66th Ave, Exit of state Route 410, to the south of Sumner city limits. The project would be anchored by a new YMCA building and include
Bonney Lake Police Records Clerk Jamie Amsbaugh and Administrative Assistant Louise Emry clear plates during a flapjack fundraiser Saturday at Applebee’s. The department was raising money for Chief-For-A-Day William Knight, III, right with Chief Dana Powers. Photos by Dennis Box.
The Greater Bonney Lake Historical Society has found itself in the desirable but unexpected position of curator to a small historical fortune. The executor to the estate of Alfred and Elma Milotte, a documentary filmmaking power couple from Bonney Lake’s early history, has given the historical society possession of more than 60 boxes of the couple’s personal possessions and records. The Milottes were nature documentarians who produced films for Walt Disney Studios. Their projects ranged in subject matter from the Yup’ik Eskimo tribe to the lions of the African
See Milottes, Page 3
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