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Seattle City Councilmembers to take public comment on Seawall replacement bond levy

News Release:
City Councilmembers today announced the public hearing date to discuss a proposed 30-year property tax bond measure of $290 million to provide public safety and protection of the Central Waterfront and related public infrastructure. The measure under consideration would be on the November 6, 2012 General Election ballot. The 30-year bond for $290 million would cost the owner of a $360K home about $59 per year.

Seattle City Councilmember Richard Conlin proposes Northgate access strategy

News Release:
Sound Transit Board Member and Seattle City Councilmember Richard Conlin will propose a coordinated access strategy for the Northgate Link Light Rail Station at the Sound Transit Capital Committee on Thursday, June 14, 1:30 p.m. at 401 South Jackson Street. The proposal will commit Sound Transit to:...

Earthquake Lessons from Chile

Last month I was one of 40 Seattle business, government, labor, and academic leaders on a study mission to Santiago and Valparaiso, Chile.*  One of my major reasons for going was to identify lessons from the recent Chilean experience with a major earthquake.  Chile, like Seattle, is on the Pacific Rim of Fire.  In February, [...]

How Your Property Taxes Will Pay for the New Arena

Seattle property owners will actually fund about $15 million of the City’s proposed $120 million investment in the proposed basketball/hockey arena to be developed south of Safeco Field, even though publicity for the project has suggested that repayment of this investment will come entirely from revenues associated with the arena, not taxpayers, and, further, that [...]

Seattle City Council to hold hearing on taximeter rate increase legislation

News Releases:

The Seattle City Council's Government Performance and Finance Committee will hold a public hearing on Wednesday, June 6 to receive comments on Council Bill 117465, which calls for an increase in the taxicab meter rate and an increase in the flat rate from downtown Seattle to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.

Clean Water Consent Decree

Seattle and the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) have completed negotiations on a historic consent decree that opens the door for a more thoughtful and effective approach to promoting clean water in Seattle and Puget Sound.  The Council is now reviewing this decree, and will vote on whether to endorse it in the near future. [...]

Walmart, SEPA, and Neighborhoods

Walmart (photo from Wikipedia) The Council is working on changes to the way the City implements the State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA) in the regulatory reform legislation now under consideration.  The goal of this component of the legislation is to encourage development in areas that the City has identified for future growth by eliminating redundant [...]

Seattle City Council passes resolution opposing transportation of coal through Seattle

News Releases:
Today the Seattle City Council unanimously passed Resolution 31379 stating Seattle’s opposition to the transportation of coal through Seattle. The resolution highlights the negative impacts on the climate as well as regional impacts on human health and rail and freight traffic from the significant increase in coal trains that would run through Seattle.