Wilson Creek growing

With small budget and big heart, community involvement keeps things moving in small town

Hidden and quiet, Wilson Creek is part of Grant County, too. And a darn good one.

That is the message Mayor Kathy Bohnet would like to spread throughout the county. The one time top city of the county is alive and well, fueled by a strong altruistic heart and a small but committed population.

"People like it here," said Bohnet. "It's quiet and it's peaceful, there is low crime and people like having the town look good."

Right now, the population of this small town is about 250 people. Even that, Bohnet said, is a small sign of growth, as 12 years ago, population was under 200 people.

The hopes for further population are always present. However, lately Wilson Creek has faced some difficulties at the federal level that has kept this growth at a slower than usual pace.

"(The Federal Emergency Management Agency) wants houses raised up seven feet for flood prevention," Bohnet said. "Right now most of them are up 3 feet and that is plenty."

Federal regulations notwithstanding, Bohnet said that there have been two people wanting to move into town and start building their homes. Furthermore, and perhaps a witness to the high quality of life offered by Wilson Creek, she said that there are only one or two houses available.

With a small budget made smaller by statewide tax-cutting initiatives, it is clear that the greatest asset Wilson Creek has is the community muscle that not only keeps the town cleaner and tidier than some bigger cities in the county, but it also flexes to keep the community in touch with itself, in ways that surprise the visitor.

At high school volleyball games, for example, the high schoolers organize a community meal, where the city gathers to eat, and later, to watch the game. Community involvement made it possible for the high school to receive a new shop, a new vocational business room and a new commons area, used by residents for all kinds of activities.

Still, Bohnet has more ambitious plans for what she calls her "family-friendly" town.

"We would like to grow more in some areas," she said. "We would like more business here."

The departure of the town's restaurant and tavern, Harvest Moon, has been a big blow to Wilson Creek. Bohnet hopes to attract another entrepreneur to the town.

"A restaurant here would help town a lot," she said.

The absence of the restaurant has fueled the stereotype that "there is nothing in Wilson Creek." Bohnet insists that there are things to do and see in her town, but adds that those who believe there is nothing in her city, "are probably looking for different things. It depends on what their priorities are"

"Time-wise, we are out no further than somebody in Seattle with horrible traffic," she said. "People tend to dwell on what we don't have and not on what we do have."

Bohnet points out the rich historical heritage of Wilson Creek, one of the oldest and once the largest city in the county, with a museum and a few historical sites.

Still, she would like to bring a restaurant.

What is needed for that, she said, is outsiders understanding what Wilson Creek has to offer a business, from the airport used by BBCC students for their touch-and-go's to the fully fiber-wired capacity of the town, as well as the town's location on the main line of Burlington Northern.

Further involvement from the Port District 6 and the Grant County Economic Development Council, both of which the town belongs to, would not hurt either, Bohnet said, pointing to a lack of cooperation from the district.

"We are trying to do things anyway, in spite of them," she said. "They had $250,000. We needed $61,000 to asphalt our truck route. They would not even bring it up."

To the good folks at the Grant County Economic Development Council, Bohnet has only one message, filled with the hope of a leader trying to recruit as much help as she can to see her town take off:

"We are Grant County, too," she said.