By KATHY GEORGE
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

Once-sleepy Bonney Lake's population has jumped 31 percent since 1990. The downside is that in the rush to build and grow, the city forgot to carve out an identity.

"Bonney Lake has just kind of sprung up. There's been no real focus," says Mayor Bob Young, who took office seven months ago.

As this boomtown prepares to celebrate its 50th anniversary next year, it still has no downtown, no center of commerce or government. City Hall is nestled obscurely in the woods, across town from other city buildings.

Most folks agree the closest thing to a focal point is busy Highway 410, a collection of strip malls and stoplights.

As restaurant owner Kathy Williams puts it, "The heart of the community is a mile worth of freeway."

It doesn't help that piecemeal annexations over the years have made the town's boundaries as erratic as a pingpong ball -- a problem that's supposed to be fixed by the city's comprehensive plan.

Asked to describe the city's current shape, associate city planner Chris Hankins laughs and says "amoebalike." Under the plan, the city will look more like a block than a blob.

Perhaps the best illustration of Bonney Lake's struggle for identity is the business community's exhaustive fight to give the town its own ZIP code.

As it is, Bonney Lake is stuck with neighboring Sumner's ZIP code. Although it has absolutely no effect on mail delivery, the ZIP code can result in "Sumner" being written on Bonney Lake's mail, which rankles business leaders who want a higher profile for their town.

"It's an identity thing," says Bonney Lake Post Office manager Tom Kolash, adding that this "age-old battle" has failed to get the attention of regional postal honchos in Seattle.

Adding insult to the town's injured pride, Bonney Lake's little post office is considered a branch of Sumner's much larger postal facility. And because Sumner handles most of Bonney Lake's mail routes, Bonney Lake residents have to trek to the slightly smaller neighboring town to pick up their packages.

Sumner also is the headquarters for Bonney Lake's public schools. The Sumner School District serves most of Bonney Lake, while a small part of town falls in the White River School District.