Almost every week this is the "What's on the city council's plate this week" review. I don't cover everything, so if you want the full rundown, read the packet and agenda yourself.

I haven't been slacking for the past month and a half, there really just hasn't been anything that tickled my fancy enough to write about. There were two weeks in there with no council meetings, so it was actually just a month of boring stuff.

Even this week is kind of boring, so I'm going to force myself to write about a $50,000 donation towards the Woodland Trail. The Eastside street entrance is opening this next Tuesday by the way.

The Woodland Trail Greenway Association is going to help the city greatly by donating a large chunk of money to spruce up a section of the trail:

Olympia Woodland Trail Phase II is from Dayton Street to the Chehalis Western Trail. The majority of the Phase II trail corridor is impacted by past railroad usage and adjacent commercial and industrial properties. In order to make this section more in keeping with the Woodland Trail name and desired values for the trail, WTGA applied for and received a grant for landscape enhancements along this segment. Funds received from this grant are being donated to the City so that the City may contract with the Washington Department of Transportation Landscape Restoration Crew to help restore this trail segment. In addition to the cash donation, WTGA will be contracting for the delivery of compost and mulch to the corridor. WTGA volunteers will help plant and maintain the plantings.

ANALYSIS AND OPTIONS:
Without WTGA’s donation and landscape enhancements, this corridor would probably not be planted and enhanced for many years. Although the City’s appropriations for OWT Phase II are adequate to construct the trail, funds are not adequate for the additional amenities identified in the master plan including planting and maintaining the plantings. The grant WTGA received allows the city to accelerate the landscape enhancements. WTGA’s commitment to not just plant but to help maintain the plantings until they are fully established is a significant gift to the City and it citizens.

The pro/con section of the staff report is funny because they can't find any reasons to vote against it:

Option 1. Approve Woodland Trail Greenway Association Agreement, Donation and Appropriation Ordinance for Olympia Woodland Trail Phase II Landscaping.

Pros
1. Trail will be landscaped in keeping with the City’s desired values for the Olympia Woodland Trail.
2. Approving the donation and appropriating the funds will mean less reliance on future City funds to landscape the Phase II segment of the trail corridor. 2

Cons
1. None identified.

Option 2. Do Not Approve Woodland Trail Greenway Association Agreement, Donation and Appropriation Ordinance for Olympia Woodland Trail Phase II Landscaping.

Pros
1. None identified.

Cons
1. The public would not benefit from this generous donation.
2. The character of the Phase II segment of the OWT would not be in keeping with the trail’s name and the desired values for the trail corridor.
3. City funds would have to be appropriated in the future to implement the needed landscape improvements along this segment of the OWT.