Seattle Forward

Big Vote On Downtown Park Boulevard

The Council voted 9-0 yesterday afternoon to create a four-block park boulevard on Bell Street between First and Fifth Avenues.  Read Seattle Times story here. 

This is a very big deal because this park boulevard will (1) improve pedestrian safety in this section of Belltown, one of the highest population density neighborhoods in the city, (2) improve public safety by bringing more people to the expanded sidewalks, and (3) increase our "green zone" in the center city. 

There is discussion underway about similar projects, including along Pike Street from the Market to the Convention Center, along Third Avenue, and perhaps in some outer neighborhoods.  All good ideas to further our goal of making Seattle the most walkable city in the country. 

More on Employee Hours Tax or Head Tax

Several people have contacted me about my sponsorship of repeal of the Employee Hours Tax (EHT), expressing fear that important pedestrian safety and other neighborhood transportation projects will be at risk.  (Read my earlier post.)

My study of this issue leads me to conclude that repeal of this tax will not negatively impact projects.  Consider these factors.

 

When this transportation tax cocktail was conceived in 2006 the total estimated revenue from the Commercial Parking Tax (CPT) and the Employee Hours Tax for the period 2007-2015 was $183.7 million.  In the Spring of 2008, this estimate was updated based on actual performance of the taxes up to $198.7 million.  This Spring, another updated estimate was produced, again based on the actual performance of the two taxes, and showed total revenues of $212.8 million.  The CPT is driving this increased revenue, not the EHT.

 

Based on the Spring 2009 estimate, and assuming repeal of the EHT effective January 1, these two tax sources will generate $191.2 million, about $7.5 million more than the original estimate.  So, by 2015 we should be able to complete an equal amount of work when compared to what was promised the voters.  Other steps that may also be taken, such as extending bond repayments from 15 to 20 years, could also free up some cash for projects around town.

Council Town Hall Meeting Thursday Night

The Council will hold a Town Hall meeting Thursday (June 25) to discuss youth violence, public education, and the city's tree canopy in West Seattle.  Dr. Gary Slutkin is our special guest.  Slutkin is head the the Chicago Ceasefire project which has had a remarkable track record in reducing gun violence, and youth violence in particular.  Join us if you can.

Date/Time:  Thursday, June 25, 2009 at 6:30 p.m. (Doors open at 6 p.m.)
Location:  The Hall at Fauntleroy, 9131 California Avenue SW (Map)

Economic Growth, City Taxes and Budget

Mayor Nickels, Council President Conlin, and I announced today that we will seek repeal of the City's Employee Hours Tax, the so-called Head Tax.  You can read the news release here: Download EHT Repeal Release 6-23-09

This tax on job creation was adopted by the Council in 2006 and first collected in 2007.  It was adopted during good economic times, but has been complicated to understand and difficult to collect.  During my campaign for the Council in 2007 I promised to work for repeal of this tax.

We worked closely with the Mayor over the past several months to identify obstacles to economic growth and we agree that repeal of this tax will encourage job growth.  The tax has generated less revenue than anticipated, but more importantly it has negative consequences because it taxes the creation of new jobs.  Repeal of this tax will signal that Seattle wants a strong local economy and will take proactive steps to create a job-growth environment where our small and large businesses can flourish.

There are other steps we can take as well.

Thursday Town Hall Meeting Reminder

The Seattle City Council is holding a Town Hall meeting this Thursday which will feature a keynote address by Dr. Gary Slutkin, the Executive Director of The Chicago Project for Violence Prevention.  Dr. Slutkin was an epidemiologist with the World Health Organization for many years, and since 1995 has worked on the violence epidemic with Chicago leaders, clergy, and law enforcement to develop and implement new strategies for violence reduction.  We hope you will attend this important presentation and share your views on how Seattle can best address the challenge of youth violence.

Doors open at 6:00 p.m. and the program will start promptly at 6:30 p.m.  

Thursday, June 25, 2009 

Doors Open - 6:00 pm

Program Starts - 6:30 pm

The Hall at Fauntleroy 

9131 California Avenue SW

Beware: More Police Stings to Protect Pedestrians

Here is the text of an email received this afternoon from Seattle police related to their continuing stings aimed at drivers who fail to yield to pedestrians in crosswalks.  As we've written many times before . . . drivers beware!

"Members of various traffic squads conducted a pedestrian crosswalk enforcement operation at two locations  on Wednesday, June 17 - the first at 41st & Stone Way in North Precinct and the second at Martin Luther King Way & Alder in East Precinct.  We were joined and observed at roll call for the 41st & Stone operation by three people from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, including former SPD Captain John Moffatt.

 

"From 10 AM to 11 AM we conducted operations at 41st & Stone.  In that time we wrote 32 citations for driver's failure to yield right of way to pedestrians and 27 other citations, including 12 insurance, 11 expired tabs, 2 no valid license, 1 passing in turn lane, and 1 seat belt citation.

 

"From 12:30 PM to about 1:45 PM we worked the MLK & Alder location.  This crosswalk has been repaved recently by SDOT as a raised crosswalk.  Here we wrote 23 right of way pedestrian citations and 10 others, including 7 insurance, 2 expired tabs and 1 driving with license suspended citation.

 

"This totals 55 right of way pedestrian citations and 37 others.  During the operations, there were 161 police crosswalk crossings  and 33 civilian crossings, totaling 194 pedestrian crossings.  Approximately 28% of these crossings resulted in failure to yield to pedestrian citations.  With a total of 92 citations, this was our most productive day of operations in recent memory.

 

"Our next operation date will be scheduled in the near future."

A City's Future

Read this article from Saturday's Wall Street Journal.  It's about Chicago and the planning done there 100 years ago by Daniel Burnham, a man who had a grand vision for his city.  He wasn't afraid of aspirational goals and today's Chicago is grateful. 

Burnham is the guy who said, "Make no little plans; they have no magic to stir men's blood."  Nice.  He also plays a key role in the book, The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson, a Seattle-based writer.

Burnham got it right in Chicago and we can get it right here in Seattle.  Chicago's absolutely wonderful park on the lake could inspire what we might do along our central waterfront once the Alaskan Way Viaduct is removed.  Chicago's boulevards and parks that connect neighborhoods are not unlike what the Olmsted's designed for Seattle.  The Seattle Parks' Foundation Bands of Green project casts a great vision that would see the Olmsted plan completed. 

There are many other examples of forward-looking—visionary—projects in our good city: our Urban Centers and Villages, designed to accommodate higher residential density; the Spokane and Mercer Corridor projects, linked strategically with the replacement of the Viaduct with a new deep-bore tunnel; and, a city-wide streetcar network building on the success of the South Lake Union line. 

This is a great time to be in Seattle.  Fifty, even 100, years from now, people will look back and talk about leaders who had vision to get things done.  Burnham did it for Chicago.  We can do it for Seattle.

What's ironic about all this is that unless the buses run on time, unless the streets are clean, unless the electricity comes on when you flip the switch, unless political leaders are engaged and available to the people, the future is brushed aside.  That's why the basics of city government are so important, and that's an area where we need some additional focus. 

 

QA Farmer's Market Open for Business

I participated in the opening of the Queen Anne Farmer's Market this afternoon.  It was a wonderful event!  In the above photo, I'm recognizing Julie Whitehorn, the community leader who was the catalyst and passionate advocate for the market and almost single-handedly rescued it from oblivion.  Mayor Nickels was there, as was Council President Richard Conlin (partially hidden behind me).

There are 14 farmer's markets in Seattle.  Last year they did $10 million in business.  That's right, these neighborhood market's sold $10 million worth of fresh vegetables, fruits, meat and fish, and specialty products.  Amazing! 

A new farmer's market will open on City's Hall's 4th Avenue plaza next week.  It will be operated by Pike Place Market. 

Farmer's markets encourage locally-owned businesses, bring fresh foods to our neighborhoods, support farmers, and encourage community-building.  They are a great example of sustainable communities.

The Mayor announced at today's Queen Anne event that he will soon send the Council legislation amending city rules related to farmer's markets that are designed to make them easier and less expensive to operate.  One aspect of the Mayor's proposal will reduce street use permit fees from as high as $8,200 per year to less than $300 per year. 

Monday's Night Town Hall Meeting

The Council held a town hall meeting last night on supporting excellent city schools, how to improve the city's tree canopy, and preventing youth violence.  About 35 people attended the event held at Eckstein Middle School on N. E. 75th Street. 

Even though attendance was low, I found the conversation one of the most productive in my short 17 months on the Council. 

The next Town Hall Meeting is Thursday, June 25 in West Seattle.  The same three topics will be discussed.  Dr. Gary Slutkin, executive director of Chicago Ceasefire, will be the keynote speaker.

Here's a quick summary of what I heard last night.

23% to 25% of city kids "opt out" of Seattle Public Schools, that's 1 in 4 children being diverted to private schools by their parents; the City should designate the school district as a "priority customer," wave certain procedures and regulations and provide stronger support; the City should form a closer partnership with the school district, even consider "taking over" certain support functions such as exterior landscaping, building management, and other non-academic functions.

Seattle had a tree canopy of 40% in the early 1970s, that's declined to 18% to 12% (depending on which study you believe) today; tree preservation and planting should be encouraged through positive incentives (e.g., tax credits, land use waivers, etc.); responsibility for tree issues should be consolidated in one City department; stricter regulations that prevent cutting down trees should be imposed, including the necessity of a cutting permit.

Nearly everyone in the audience had heard about the Seattle Youth Violence Prevention Initiative and was concerned with youth violence and gangs.  The primary focus of our conversation was on stronger partnerships with the school district, increase city-provided security in and around schools, the value of mentorships, and the need for better job training and job opportunities for young people.  The city's Initiative does provide significant funding for summer youth jobs, and the Council will be hiring several individuals to work in our offices. 

Affordable Housing Levy Heading for Renewal Vote

(Corrected, June 15, 2009) My colleagues and I voted on a number of key provisions related to renewal of the City's affordable housing levy this afternoon, including setting the amount of the levy at $145 million over seven years beginning in 2010.  We will take our final vote next Monday afternoon at 2 p.m. to place renewal of the levy before the voters.  If passed, Seattle voters will make a final judgment about the levy this November. 

The affordable housing levy develops rental housing, provides rental subsidies and offers assistance to home-buyers.  New rental units help our lowest income neighbors find housing in Seattle that they can afford.  The rental assistance prevents low income renters from becoming homeless.  And home-buyer assistance encourages home ownership by those who otherwise might not have access to the market.

When approved, the vast majority of levy funds will target those earning 50% or less of the area median income (about $29,500 for a one-person household).  Some funds may also be spent on those earning 51% to 80% of the area median income (between $29,500 and $44,800).

Seattle voters first approved an affordable housing levy in 1981, and then renewed it in 1986, 1995, and 2002.  Another renewal of the levy is fully justified because of the excellent track record of the previous levies and because the current economic crisis the nation is suffering is placing many working families at risk.

Approval of the levy can also be seen as part of our city’s economic stimulus effort.  Administration of the levy involves a public-private partnership among the City, the nonprofit sector, and private industry.  That partnership creates jobs.  The private sector especially benefits as thousands of jobs are created for architects, engineers, and construction workers. 

If approved by voters in November, the levy will cost the owner of an average ($460,000) assessed value Seattle home approximately $6.60 per month.  The owner of a median ($379,811) assessed value home will pay about $5.45 per month.