The July 28 story “Bridge idea lacks Vancouver support” reported a “bridge across the Columbia River at Southeast 192nd Avenue doesn’t have the necessary support at the Vancouver City Council.”
How pathetic our government representatives can be is exemplified by the Vancouver City Council’s immediate and negative reaction to a proposed crossing at 192nd Avenue. At about one-third the cost of the Columbia River Crossing, 192nd Avenue makes sense.
Vancouver has expanded inexorably eastward, eventually touching Camas’ boundaries. Apparently, the city council won’t acknowledge that they created the right-of-way through the quarry to state Highway 14 and the population increases to the east. Growth motivated Vancouver to move its operations center east and Vancouver Police moved their precinct east as well.
It appears that, even at Mayor Tim Leavitt’s low tier on the totem pole, megalomania takes precedence over common sense. The Columbian’s report shows that city council is more concerned with what they say they can’t do rather than what can be done.