1. Fourteen state representatives have introduced a bill that would create a statewide version of the “complete streets” policy already adopted by Seattle. That policy effectively says that whenever a city is rebuilding a street, it has to accommodate pedestrians and cyclists, not just cars.
The bill wouldn’t go quite as far as Seattle’s law (which, by the way, was pushed by now-Mayor Mike McGinn when he was heading up his non-profit gr0up Great City), but it would create a grant program to fund complete streets programs at the local level; and it would require the state department of transportation to “consider the needs of all users,” not just cars, when retrofitting or repairing state highways that function as arterial streets (like Aurora) or “main streets” (like many state highways do in small towns).
Andrew Austin, lobbyist for the Transportation Choices Coalition, says he isn’t optimistic the bill will pass this year—when legislators are focused on fixing the budget—but says “getting the conversation going now will really set us up for success next year.”
2. Austin predicts more success for Senate Bill 6366, the bill that would severely limit cities’ control over major state transportation projects like the viaduct and 520. (The bill would exempt the state department of transportation from the requirement to get local government permits to build state highway projects, and would push all appeals of state permits directly to superior court, bypassing all local avenues of appeal). Austin says he expects the bill will make it out of the senate transportation committee, where most of the members have expressed support, and perhaps even out of the senate itself.
And although Gov. Chris Gregoire has told advocates her office will not be supporting the legislation, the only person testifying in favor was one of her representatives—WSDOT deputy director David Dye, who ticked off a long list of reasons the transportation department favored the bill.
Austin says “the precedent [the bill] sets is scary. The sponsors of the bill claim they’re not attacking or supporting any specific project, but it has huge implications, obviously, for 520.” Transportation leaders in the legislature want to build a six-lane bridge with two HOV lanes and a new drawbridge over the Montlake Cut—an option opposed by Seattle legislators and by Mayor Mike McGinn.
3. Yesterday, former city council member Peter Steinbrueck sent out an email to dozens of environmentalists and transportation advocates speculating that Mayor McGinn “wants a fall referendum on the [downtown waterfront] tunnel,” which McGinn does not support. Asked about the email, McGinn’s office said only, “We’re not responding to rumors.”
4. Exciting news about PubliCola’s anniversary party, at the Crocodile in Belltown on January 27: We’ve added a third band to the bill: 80s-dance-pop-gurus CMYK, of whom MusicNerd Anand Balasubrahmanyan wrote this:
The center of CMYK songs are drums, fussily constructed for maximum impact. The bass drum thuds and the claps slap the slapiest slap.
It serves the music well, always underscoring T-minus’, Shorty Circuit’s and Sex Brains’ ponderous vocals with an insistent beat. As is to be expected from a musician named Sex Brains, the songs are mostly concerned with nasty business time.
CMYK join Song Sparrow Research and THEE Satisfaction. More party details to come.
5. The state Senate is fast tracking South Seattle State Sen. Margarita Prentice’s (D-11) furlough bill. The bill, which had a public hearing yesterday and is expected to get sent to the Senate floor asap, would require state agencies to close one day per month for the next 16 months (excluding essential services like the state patrol).
It would affect about 40,000 employess and save about $75 million.
