Roosevelt Neighbors' Alliance 17 May 2001
Seattle City Council
Municipal Building, Ste. 1100
600 Fourth Avenue
Seattle, WA 98104Dear Members of the Council,
Roosevelt Neighbors Alliance wishes to register our concern on recent developments at Sound Transit. At the 10 May Sound Transit Board meeting Executive Sims and Mayor Schell outlined a proposal to change the first phase construction of Link Light Rail. Instead of going from S. Lander St to University District, the Federal MINIMUM OPERATING SEGMENT [MOS] would be changed and the new first phase would go from Convention Place Station or Royal Brougham to some undetermined terminus in south King County (either Southcenter or SeaTac Airport).
As soon as this changed first segment was proposed, a number of other Board members lined up to support funding for other projects, especially Sounder e.g. Ballard Sounder station, building Sounder rail improvements to Everett faster, a Link Beacon Hill station etc.. This leaves even less money to build the most productive part of the system.
Even together, the Link south segment AND Sounder will carry 20,000 FEWER riders per day than the Link north segment. That is because for the past 5 years Seattle City planning has been wildly successful, dictating that Urban Centers take the bulk of new population. In Seattle, the First/Capitol Hill and University Urban Center census tracts have 4-5 times the densities of southeast Seattle AND over the 1990-2000 census period have increased population at a rate of 50-100%. The two densest census tracts in the State, located in Capitol Hill and University Urban Centers, have over 40,000 persons /sq. mi., the density of Rome.
But the taking of additional population was based on the promise of new mass transit infrastructure, in particular Link Light Rail, to DIRECTLY serve the Urban Centers. The densest census tracts had been scheduled for direct, walking distance service by Link. (See King County Land Use Policies 42 and 46.)
From the particulars of the Sims/Schell proposal it is pretty clear that, if adopted, this southern segment will insure that the Link northern tunnel alignment will be greatly delayed and potentially NEVER built. Thus three Urban Centers, the three densest neighborhoods in the State, might never be DIRECTLY served by light rail. This will be a BROKEN PROMISE of regional magnitude. It will upset the population settlement plan established by the Urban Center Plans, Seattle Comprehensive Plan, and King County Land Use Planning Policies.
We hope that the Seattle City Council, does not support this change and broken promise to Seattle's neighborhoods. We trust that you will instruct your member on the Sound Transit Board, Mr. McIvar, accordingly.
Nancy Bocek, President
Hans Aschenbach M.B.A., Transportation Chair
Jay Regenstreif P.E., Secretary/Transportation Committee
Roosevelt Neighbors Alliance