Viva La Cola!

Founded in January 2009, PubliCola is a blog about Seattle written by journalists who are dedicated to non-partisan, original daily reporting that prioritizes a balanced approach to news. Started by longtime local editor and award-winning reporter Josh Feit, PubliCola is the first online-only news site in state history to get media credentials to cover the state capitol.

PubliCola was off and running. In June 2009, PubliCola hired another award-winning journalist, super-sourced Seattle city hall reporter Erica C. Barnett.

People were afraid that blogging would change journalism. Instead, we believe journalism can change blogging. Twenty-first century journalism may look and feel different, and yes Erica isn't afraid to get cranky, but we're committed to making sure online news still delivers independent, reliable, even-keeled coverage. And most of all, we're committed to making sure the coverage sparks honest civic debate.

Bringing you cola for the people, PubliCola is named after Publius Valerius PubliCola, the alias for the authors of the Federalist Papers—the original bloggers.

x close
The first online-only news site in state history to get media credentials to cover the state capitol and Seattle city hall, PubliCola has been called a “must-read” by the Seattle Post Intelligencer and a hot “New Media Mover and Shaker” by Seattle Magazine—which also cited our own Erica C. Barnett as the city's No. 1 news nerd.

Budget Update: Council Members Say McGinn Unlikely to Get All Fee Increases

City Hall, Politics   September 27, 2010 at 5:00 pm Erica C. Barnett

This post has been updated with comments from city council members Sally Bagshaw and Nick Licata.

Immediately after the city council meeting this afternoon, at which Mayor Mike McGinn presented his first annual budget speech, city council member Tim Burgess and council president Richard Conlin told PubliCola they think it’s unlikely that the council will pass all the revenue increases McGinn proposed in his budget.

Specifically, all three council members pointed to a proposed 5-percent increase in the commercial parking tax—on top of a 2.5 percent increase the council has already proposed to help fund the seawall—as a likely target for reduction. And Burgess said he was alarmed by the proposed utility-tax increases, which would come on top of increases in those taxes the council approved last year.

However, city council member Nick Licata said tonight that he’d be open to potentially passing McGinn’s revenue proposals—despite the fact that he says McGinn focused on parking-related fees because “he hates cars”—as, he speculated, would Jean Godden and Mike O’Brien.

“The utility taxes, on top of what we passed last year, are pretty significant,” Burgess said, and the five-percent commercial parking tax increase “will be problematic” on top of the 2.5 percent increase.

Bagshaw, echoing Burgess’ concerns, said she worried about the impact such a large tax increase—which would raise the commercial parking tax to 17.5 percent—would have on downtown businesses. “It’s a big deal for downtown merchants,” Bagshaw said. Citing an instance last month when she had to return a large package to Macy’s, Bagshaw said, “It became a real question: Do I go downtown, or do I go to Northgate, where parking is free?”

Burgess said he’s also interested to see how McGinn came up with a proposal to raise downtown meter parking rates by $1.50 an hour; “I’ve got to see analysis” that shows such a steep spike won’t hurt downtown businesses, he said. A group of Seattle business owners will respond to McGinn’s budget at a Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce press conference tomorrow morning.

Conlin said the mayor hadn’t yet sent his budget itself to the council, and no one at the council has received a briefing on the budget from the mayor’s office. “It’s really odd,” Conlin said. “Normally, we at least get a briefing on the broad outlines of the budget.” Bagshaw confirmed that the mayor’s office has not briefed the council on the budget; nor, as of 5:30 this evening, had he transmitted it to the council.

Additionally, Conlin expressed skepticism that McGinn would be as successful as he predicted in recovering $15 million in outstanding parking fines, one of several sources of new revenue he relied on to balance next year’s budget. “We all know the parking tickets were out there, but they’ve been very, very difficult to collect,” Conlin said.

And Conlin said he was surprised to hear McGinn ask the council to make a 9.5 percent cut to their own budget, commensurate with the cut McGinn made to his own budget. “We already have” taken that cut,” Conlin said. “I’m not sure why he said that. It’s in the mayor’s budget” already.




  • http://manywordsforrain.blogspot.com/ Mr. Baker

    Wait, I thought he was supposed to deliver his budget today.
    When is that suppose to happen?

  • alexjon

    Fabulous, the council is uninterested in moving the budget forward in a friendly and constructive way.

  • alexjon

    Oh hey, let’s play spin the message:

    “And Conlin said he was surprised to hear McGinn ask the council to make a 9.5 percent cut to their own budget, commensurate with the cut McGinn made to his own budget. “We already have” taken that cut,” Conlin said. “I’m not sure why he said that. It’s in the mayor’s budget” already.”

    Seattle Times: SEATTLE CITY COUNCIL REFUSES TO CUT OWN SALARIES, BUDGET

    Seattle P-I: CITY COUNCIL OPPOSES MAYOR ON CUTS TO OWN BUDGET

  • Brent

    It’s no secret I strongly support the mayor. However, I would like to hear a little more on how libraries can run without librarians.

    I’d rather keep the librarians, and cut the daytime neighborhood library hours when Seattle Public Schools are in session, than cut the librarians and keep the hours. Adults all over town have easy access to the downtown library during the day.

    Librarians might not be thrilled to lose the libraries’ midday dead hours and have to work later into the evening, but that is preferable to having the libraries cease to be libraries.

    Laying off park maintenance is also ill-advised. Our soccer and baseball fields get very heavy use. They don’t maintain themselves. Plus, allowing litter to collect in parks goes against the mayor’s efforts to reduce crime through more focus on “the built environment”. If the cost of reserving a soccer field for an hour has to go up so that the field can be maintained, so be it.

    And keep raising the parking tax until the “market clearing rate” is approached. Downtown businesses won’t be hurt by higher parking rates if the spots are all getting filled. Indeed, if those willing to pay more for parking can park downtown, more money will flow into businesses’ coffers.

  • Brent

    I think Mr. Conlin had a Freudian slip. He seems to have been referring to the council’s budget when he said the cut to council staff was already in “the mayor’s budget”. Someone remind him he isn’t mayor.

  • Brent

    You just aren’t on the invite list to the right soires. The council will gladly be friendly with you once you get yourself on the big donor list.

    And, yes, plenty of construction is going on. Who will pay for it? Who cares. They’re too young to vote, anyway.

  • Tim

    “Do I go downtown, or do I go to Northgate, where parking is free?”

    Oh Sally, don’t you know you’re supposed to spend 2 hrs going by bus like all the barely-employed commentators here do because…well, they have time to waste.

  • Jen

    I agree that library hours could be tweaked, staggered, something.

    However, Brent’s idea that “adults all over town” can “easily” get to the library during the day is ridiculous. I live in Lake City and without a car it takes me at least 45 minutes to get downtown. I don’t really have 2 hours to spare in the middle of the day to take a bus to and from the library … not to mention that having great neighborhood libraries is why I voted for the library levy in the first place.

  • Jen

    Interesting how out of all these fee increases, not one mention of implementing bicycle licenses … not even a one-time fee? C’mon, McSchwinn, spread the pain a little!

  • tpn

    Austerity.

    Moreover, collections as a revenue item? That is not realistic. They are in collections in the first place because of people’s unwillingness or inability to pay. There are costs associated with collections, and for small amounts often exceed the cost of the debt, if it can be recoved at all after the expendeture has been made to collect.

    This is aside from the fact that Alliance One is horrendous. They can knock someone’s credit FICO by 50 to 100 over a handful of parking tickets. It takes disputing all three agencies and a letter to the AGs office to get their over reporting removed. This doesn’t benefit anyone.

    The city would probably save money if they simply charged off these small debts and focused staff in areas besides managing collections. Keeping uncollectable accounts as a budget income line item is a huge red flag.

  • kurisu

    So you couldn’t put a hold on the book at the fabulous downtown library?

  • SeattleRez

    Hey Pierce County! Get ready for another wave of migration from the North.

  • Jen

    I am perfectly capable of putting a book on hold and going downtown during non-work hours. I was responding to Brent’s comment that “Adults all over town have easy access to the downtown library during the day.” It’s really not that easy for most working people.