The City of Poulsbo should be learning a valuable lesson in the wake of a failed Referendum 51. Projects that live by the state buck can die by the state buck.

Even so, they are pushing forward with a transportation plan that doesn’t make a whole lot of sense when one takes utilities into consideration.

That’s right folks, we’re talking about raw sewage — and plenty of it.

Those with short-term memories might think the proposed State Route 305 corridor is the best way for Poulsbo to move its sewage to the treatment plant in aptly-named Brownsville. But those of us who remember the old days (just a few years back) likely recall a time when the city had sewer options.

Pumping sewage down new pipes on 305 to Lemolo and under Liberty Bay was just one of these. Another route, and one that had much less potential for an environmental catastrophe, was running these lines down Viking Avenue.

That option is all but gone now. Instead, the city went ahead and renovated the entire strip (and did a magnificent job, we might add). However, if council thinks that Viking Avenue business owners won’t complain if the city suddenly opted to tear up their corridor again, it is mistaken.

Lemolo seems to be the preferred choice. And has been even before Kitsap County asked the public for input on location of the new Lemolo sewer pump house. In 1999, former public works director George Mason had the dubious honor of dropping the bomb at a hearing on the matter.

When asked whether the county was set on the Lemolo site, Mason replied that the county had already bought the property for the station. Whoops.

As R-51 has snared half the kitty for the SR 305 project though, Poulsbo officials are now trying to phase in much needed widening work on the city’s other large commercial strip. This should meet the communities transportation needs but what about the sewer?

Right now, it’s to be postponed. So, after a failed test of one of the sewer pipes under Liberty Bay (the preferred route), the city could have two relatively new roads and be pretty much faced with a coin toss over which one to tear up to accommodate sewage.

Heads — you lose. Tails — you lose.

Should be interesting.