Category: Councilmember Godden

It’s easy to get blinded at L.A. Live, the glitzy entertainment complex in the heart of LA’s downtown. There are sky-high banners, dueling strobe lights, giant advertising signs and flashy promos. Everywhere you look there’s enough stimuli to power an electric substation.

The complex includes a 14-screen multiplex, a sports arena with three tiers of suites, enough restaurants to feed a ravenous army, a 1000-room hotel and a revived convention  center.

The 23-acre site once was under-utilized land, a scary part of town where no one walked alone at night.  Now thanks to can-do vision and a slew of public/private partnerships, L. A. Live is a people magnet, drawing stars and average Joes alike from all over the vast urban area. The … Continue Reading »

Nothing beats a field trip for understanding how this city’s infrastructure works. Thus, even though it was spitting rain under cloudy overcast skies last Thursday, my staff and I eagerly took a tour of a unique and amazing stormwater project.

On paper, it’s known as the Windermere Basin project.

In practice, it’s a super-sized undertaking, a 2.05 million gallon underground storage tank that’s under construction near Magnuson Park. The tank sinks several stories into the glacial till and is, literally, the size of a football field. When finished it will have state-of-the-art technology to keep heavy rainfall from flushing stormwater and wastewater into Lake Washington.

Previously, the basin area was protected by a … Continue Reading »

“Lean In,” the best seller by Facebook CEO Sheryl Sandberg on what’s holding women back, is once again shining a light on gender inequality.

It’s a topic that still merits discussion. And it’s particularly relevant in this era of states competing with one another to see which can most severely limit women’s health and reproductive choices.

Washington, a state that once earned kudos as a leader in gender equality, has fortunately avoided some of the worst of the march to the 19th Century. But we have to recognize that even this region is falling short when it comes to women representing women across the broader spectrum.

It’s true that we have had two women governors in this state. And, yes, we’re represented by … Continue Reading »

Originally published on March 5, 2013, on KPLU.

Thousands of Seattle families had their water shut off last year. A city council member is introducing a measure to help one group of them — households with young children.

Social service providers told a city council committee what it’s like for parents to lose their water: unable to clean up after changing a diaper, forced to send kids to school unwashed and to borrow buckets to flush the toilet.

One provide, Bill Talbot of the Salvation Army Seattle White Center, was not speaking secondhand. Years ago he himself suffered an accident that cost him his income.

“Our water was shut off, then the meter was pulled. When you get to that point, you’re living in a house that’s no longer habitable. It is going … Continue Reading »

Access to clean water and sanitation is in the news. Matt Damon is even on strike over it. But we don’t have to look across the globe for things we can do. It might surprise you that here, in Seattle, some children lack access to clean water in their homes. This isn’t right, and it’s time we did something about it.

When I took over as chair of the LUC (Libraries, Utilities and Center) Committee last year, I began hearing troubling stories about children living in homes without access to clean water.

And today we heard detailed accounts of what it is like. At this morning’s committee meeting, human service providers (pictured above) told me … Continue Reading »

At the Seattle Climate Action Plan open house last week, I took a seat at the “Waste” table, joining a breakout group discussing solid waste. Not a bad place to be, since Seattle has an enviable record on solid waste reduction.

Since setting a goal of “Zero Waste,” the city has dramatically reduced the tonnage hauled to landfills. It is now estimated that residents recycle more than 55 percent of its waste. But that’s not the ultimate goal. The city can do better and, in fact, the latest goal is to get to 70 percent.

How do we do it? That was the topic of discussion at the table. We talked about the big problems: construction waste and commercial buildings. And then … Continue Reading »

When the gatekeeper at the Armory carded me and fastened a paper bracelet to my wrist, there already were 500 Happy Hour celebrants making merry at the Seattle Center. Last night was debut night for the Seattle Center’s “Best Damn Happy Hour,” one of the most convivial ways I’ve found to spend the hours from work to home.

The first Best Damn Happy Hour featured deals on specialty cocktails, inexpensive ($2.50) wine and beer and delicious food from the new Armory eateries. Think giant Jenga towers, room-sized Scrabble, mini-golf, Trivia contests, DJ Alex from KEXP and raffle prizes like tickets to concerts and shows.

To all that fun add hundreds of … Continue Reading »