Our great volunteers; unfeasible ferry design

First, we are reminded once again of all the wonderful volunteers we have in our region.

This week, we'll enjoy the county fair, largely run by volunteers. Last Sunday, volunteers put together a fabulous fund raiser for a cancer victim.

The weekend before, we had volunteers putting on festivals in Skamokawa and Naselle, and the weekend before that, Cathlamet's Bald Eagle Festival and a new festival at the Grays River Valley Center.

Volunteers put on a couple forums for political candidates in July. The Grays River Grange held one of their traditional forums, and The Eagle sponsored another.

Ours wouldn't have flown without the unselfish efforts of Tom Doumit, Randy Williams and Betsy Nelson, and we appreciate the Town of Cathlamet making the venue available.

Of course, more volunteers will come together August 24-26 to put on the 4th Annual Cathlamet Downhill Corral Skateboard Festival, and the weekend after that is the Chamber of Commerce's nationally sanctioned Chili Cookoff.

This is the tip of the iceberg. Volunteers make this a great place to live.

The new ferry

How big a ferry is needed for the Puget Island-Westport run?

County officials are wrestling with that and may come to a decision next Tuesday if all the players are back from vacation.

Six years or so ago, commissioners started the process to replace the ramp at the Puget Island landing. One of them suggested making it big enough to handle large trucks, and the word eventually went to the ramp designer that it should accommodate chip trucks.

Now, with a new ramp built and the ferry design nearing completion, the ramp engineer has gone over calculations and determined the current design with the new ferry won't handle chip trucks. To solve this problem, the ferry will be redesigned and enlarged.

Over the years, the projected cost of the new ferry has risen from $2.91 million in 2010 to $3.58 million as of September, 2011. Making changes to accommodate chip trucks would boost that to an estimated $4.17 million.

County commissioners are rightly concerned about the escalating costs. Is it worth the extra cost to be able to accommodate chip trucks, they're asking themselves.

I doubt that it is. The ferry is not a likely chip truck route; the mill at Wauna receives its chips by barge. Charging chip trucks a fare that would cover the cost would create a very high priced ticket. And the ferry designer said the larger vessel would need more fuel to operate, thereby raising operating costs.

I don't think it was ever a high priority goal of commissioners to have a ferry big enough for chip trucks; it was just something that would be nice if it were feasible.

I don't think it is.