The Bainbridge Ratepayers Alliance filed suit today against the city over the funding plan for a new Winslow sewer plant.

The plant’s bond funding is expected to increase fees for utility ratepayers in the Winslow area.

“We greatly regret that the city has pushed the ratepayers so far that it became necessary to file this lawsuit to counter the misuse of utility ratepayer fees,” alliance member Sally Adams said in a statement. “Under law, (city) utility ratepayers may only be charged for services they receive. They may not be charged for costs that benefit other public projects.”

Check back later for more details.

Councilwoman Hilary Franz submitted a guest column urging energy conservation to avert the need for a new power substation on the island. Her column is below.

This week, Puget Sound Energy held a public meeting at the Bainbridge Commons to discuss a proposed substation and transmission lines for Bainbridge Island.  As they shared at the meeting, PSE is bound by the electrical needs of our community. Due to the growth of our Island’s power demand, PSE is forecasting that they will need to begin the construction of a new power transmission substation as early as 2011.

I believe that our island is in the position of delaying or averting the installation of the proposed 25 MVA substation in 2011.  To get there, however, will take the commitment of all of our community to energy efficiency, changing energy usage habits, and alternative energy. It will require approximately 1 to 2 MW per year reduction in our peak demand. PSE announced at the meeting that they are willing to work with the community and develop ways in which conservation may be used to meet this ambitious goal. We should take them up on this offer.

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The design illustration above depicts what the prominent northwest corner of the Winslow Way and Highway 305 intersection may look like in the near future.

A new art museum would anchor the front end (depicted at right) of the proposed Island Gateway project, with about 60,000 square feet of commercial space and a new home for the Kids Discovery Museum to the rear.

The project’s plans call for the removal of the five-acre site’s three existing structures. All new buildings would incorporate green design and the overall site plan features elements to reduce stormwater runoff into Winslow Ravine.

The city’s Design Review Board balked, saying the project’s design doesn’t fit the city’s preferred aesthetic for downtown. The board’s move doesn’t kill the project. The project’s developers, owner Bill Carruthers and architect Matthew Coates, will meet with the board next week to hash out some new ideas.

For my full story on the project, click here.

Below is a site plan showing the full project.