[MUSIC] [MUSIC]
-- ALL RIGHT. GOOD MORNING. THE
AUGUST 20th, 2026 MEETING OF THE
SAFETY TRANSPORTATION
ENGINEERING PROJECT SPORTS AND
EXPERIENCES COMMITTEE WILL COME
TO ORDER. IT IS 9:32 A.M.. I'M
ROB SAKA, CHAIR OF THE
COMMITTEE. WILL THE COMMITTEE
CLERK PLEASE CALL THE ROLL?
-- COUNCILMEMBER FOSTER.
COUNCILMEMBER KETTLE.
-- HERE
-- COUNCILMEMBER LIN. VICE
CHAIR. RINCK HERE. CHAIR SAKA.
-- HERE.
-- COUNCILMEMBER FOSTER HERE.
-- CHAIR. THERE ARE FOUR MEMBERS
PRESENT.
-- THANK YOU. LET THE RECORD
REFLECT THAT COUNCILMEMBER LIN
IS EXCUSED UNTIL HE ARRIVES. ALL
RIGHT. IF THERE IS NO OBJECTION,
THE AGENDA WILL BE ADOPTED.
HEARING AND SEEING NO OBJECTION,
THE AGENDA IS HEREBY ADOPTED.
GOOD MORNING. COLLEAGUES.
MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC, THANK YOU
FOR JOINING US TODAY AT THIS
MORNING'S MEETING. BEFORE WE
BEGIN TODAY'S SUBSTANTIVE
DISCUSSION, I WANT TO START WITH
WHY WE ARE HERE IN DECEMBER
2023. STEVE HOLTZMAN WAS STRUCK
AND KILLED BY A CAR WHILE RIDING
HIS BICYCLE IN WEST SEATTLE IN
DECEMBER 2024. A 56 YEAR OLD
WOMAN WALKING IN A CROSSWALK IN
SOUTH PARK WAS STRUCK AND KILLED
AT 14th AVENUE SOUTH AND SOUTH
HENDERSON STREET. TRAGICALLY,
YET ANOTHER PEDESTRIAN WOULD BE
KILLED AT THE VERY SAME
INTERSECTION JUST MONTHS LATER,
IN MAY OF 2025. THIS JUNE, MAYOR
DE PADILLA WAS KILLED WHILE
RIDING HER BICYCLE IN
FAUNTLEROY. AND JUST LAST WEEK,
A 37 YEAR OLD MAN RIDING AN
ELECTRIC SCOOTER WAS STRUCK AND
KILLED NEAR 24th AVENUE
NORTHWEST AND NORTH WEST 85th
STREET PEOPLE WALKING. PEOPLE
BIKING, PEOPLE ROLLING.
VULNERABLE USERS WHOSE LIVES
WERE TRAGICALLY CUT SHORT ON
SEATTLE'S STREETS. FAMILIES AND
COMMUNITIES FOREVER CHANGED AND
TRAGICALLY, THEY'RE NOT ALONE.
AS THIS IS SIMPLY AN
ILLUSTRATIVE LIST OF PEOPLE WHO
DIED ON SEATTLE ROADS IN THE
LAST FEW YEARS ALONE. SO BEFORE
WE CONTINUE, I'D LIKE US TO
OBSERVE A BRIEF MOMENT OF
SILENCE FOR STEVE MEREDITH, THE
TWO PEDESTRIANS IN SOUTH PARK.
THIS MOST RECENT VICTIM IN THE
NORTH END, AND ALL THOSE WHO
HAVE LOST THEIR LIVES ON SEATTLE
STREETS
THANK YOU. WHEN WE LAUNCHED THIS
EXPANDED AND REORGANIZED
TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE IN
JANUARY, WE INTENTIONALLY PUT
SAFETY FIRST. IT IS THE FIRST S
AND STEPS. THE INFORMAL NAME. AT
OUR VERY FIRST MEETING, I SAID
SAFETY WOULD BE THE FOUNDATION
OF EVERYTHING THIS COMMITTEE
DOES. WE MADE VISION ZERO OUR
VERY FIRST SUBSTANTIVE AGENDA
ITEM, AND WE'VE MAINTAINED
REGULAR TRAFFIC SAFETY OVERSIGHT
THROUGHOUT THIS YEAR, INCLUDING
QUARTERLY BRIEFINGS FROM SDOT.
IN APRIL, I FORMALLY REQUESTED A
PERFORMANCE AUDIT OF SEATTLE'S
VISION ZERO PROGRAM BECAUSE
ACCOUNTABILITY REQUIRES US TO
UNDERSTAND WHAT'S WORKING, WHAT
ISN'T, AND WHERE WE NEED TO
SHARPEN OUR APPROACH. SEATTLE
ADOPTED VISION ZERO MORE THAN A
DECADE AGO. WE HAVE MADE SOME
SOLID INITIAL PROGRESS, BUT
PEOPLE ARE STILL DYING AND OUR
OUTCOMES DEMONSTRATE SOMETHING
IMPORTANT. ASPIRATION AND
ADMINISTRATIVE POLICY ALONE ARE
NOT ENOUGH. WHEN WE KNOW CERTAIN
PRACTICES CAN SAVE LIVES, WE
SHOULD ASK WHETHER THEY DESERVE
THE DURABILITY, ACCOUNTABILITY
AND FORCE OF LAW. AND THAT
BRINGS US TO THE FIRST ITEM ON
TODAY'S AGENDA, WHICH I'M PROUD
TO FORMALLY UNVEIL TODAY. THE
SEATTLE SAFER STREETS ACT. SAFER
STREETS IS A THREE PIECE
LEGISLATIVE PACKAGE INTENDED TO
TURN VISION ZERO FROM AN
AMBITIOUS GOAL INTO THE WAY
SEATTLE OPERATES. AMONG, AMONG
OTHER REFORMS, THIS PACKAGE
WOULD ESTABLISH A DURABLE
BASELINE FOR HOW SDOT RESPONDS
AFTER FATAL CRASHES WHILE
PUTTING US ON A PATH TOWARD A
FASTER AND MORE AMBITIOUS
RESPONSE. IT WOULD ADVANCE
INTERSECTION, DAYLIGHTING AND
STRONGER VISION ZERO SAFETY
REVIEWS. IT WOULD USE THE
CITY'S CONTRACTING POWER TO
ADVANCE TRUCK SIDECAR
PROTECTIONS ON QUALIFYING
VEHICLES, PERFORMING MUNICIPAL
WORK. AND IT WOULD COMBINE AND
STRENGTHEN OUR CHIEF TRAFFIC,
ENGINEERING AND SAFETY
LEADERSHIP, EMPOWERING THAT
POSITION TO MOVE MORE QUICKLY
AND CUT THROUGH INTER-DEPARTMENT
SILOS WHEN SAFETY IS AT STAKE
IMPORTANTLY, SAFER STREETS WAS
NOT DEVELOPED IN ISOLATION HERE
IN CITY HALL. WE LISTENED. WE
WORK COLLABORATIVELY WITH
ADVOCATES, AFFECTED FAMILIES,
TRANSPORTATION ORGANIZERS, LABOR
COMMUNITY MEMBERS, AND OTHERS
WHO CHALLENGED OUR CITY TO DO
BETTER. I'VE PERSONALLY GOTTEN
TO KNOW RITA HOLTZMAN, STEVE'S
WIDOW, THROUGHOUT THIS WORK IN
THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS. RITA
HAS BEEN ABLE TO TURN
UNIMAGINABLE PERSONAL LOSS INTO
PERSISTENT ADVOCACY. SHE HAS
CHALLENGED THE STATUS QUO,
CHALLENGED GOVERNMENT, AND YES,
EVEN CHALLENGED ME AT TIMES BUT
ALWAYS IN A IN A THOUGHTFUL,
RESPECTFUL WILLINGNESS TO ENGAGE
MANNER. HER THOUGHTFUL AND
EXTENSIVE FEEDBACK HELPED SHAPE
THIS LEGISLATION AND MAKE IT
STRONGER AS DID A NUMBER OF
OTHER ORGANIZATIONS LIKE CASCADE
SEATTLE STREETS ALLIANCE AND SO
MANY OTHERS. I'VE ALSO SPOKEN
WITH LONNIE MEREDITH'S DAUGHTER,
INCLUDING SHORTLY AFTER HER
MOTHER'S TRAGIC DEATH AND AGAIN
LAST WEEK AT FAUNTLEROY BICYCLE
SAFETY FORUM, WHEN FAMILIES WHO
HAVE EXPERIENCED THESE TRAGEDIES
TELL US GOVERNMENT MUST MOVE
WITH GREATER URGENCY. WE NEED TO
LISTEN NOW. NO ORDINANCE OR
POLICY DIRECTIVE CAN GUARANTEE
ANOTHER TRAGEDY WILL NEVER
OCCUR, AND NO SINGLE LEGISLATIVE
PACKAGE WILL ACHIEVE VISION ZERO
BY ITSELF. BUT THAT CANNOT THAT
CANNOT BECOME AN EXCUSE FOR
INCREMENTALISM OR INACTION. WE
KNOW MANY OF THE INTERVENTIONS
THAT MAKE STREETS SAFER. OUR
RESPONSIBILITY IS TO MAKE PROVEN
PRACTICES SYSTEMATIC, EMPOWER
EXPERTS TO ACT, LEARN FROM
TRAGEDY FASTER, AND ENSURE
IMPORTANT SAFETY COMMITMENTS,
ENDURE EVEN AS LEADERS,
PERSONNEL AND PRIORITIES CHANGE
OVER TIME. THAT'S WHAT SAFER
STREETS IS ABOUT PRESERVING WHAT
WORKS, REQUIRING WHAT MATTERS,
EMPOWERING FASTER ACTION AND
KEEP BUILDING AND ITERATING FROM
THERE. AND IMPORTANTLY, TODAY'S
BROADER AGENDA DEMONSTRATES THAT
LEGISLATION IS ONLY ONE PIECE OF
THE WORK. OUR SECOND AGENDA ITEM
CONCERNS APPOINTMENTS TO THE
TRANSPORTATION FUNDING TASK
FORCE, WHICH WILL EXAMINE LONG
TERM STRATEGIES FOR MAJOR
INFRASTRUCTURE NEEDS, INCLUDING
SIDEWALKS, BRIDGES AND PAVEMENT,
ROADS. THAT HAS A DIRECT SAFETY
NEXUS. WE NEED SUSTAINABLE
FUNDING TO IMPROVE OUR PAVEMENT
CONDITIONS, AND THOSE
INVESTMENTS CREATE OPPORTUNITIES
TO REBUILD STREETS THROUGH OUR
COMPLETE STREETS POLICY WITH
SAFETY DESIGNED IN FROM THE
START. AND WE KNOW THAT ROUGHLY
27% OF SEATTLE'S SIDEWALK
NETWORK REMAINS MISSING. CLOSING
THAT GAP AND MOVING WITH URGENCY
TO DO SO IS A CRITICAL SAFETY
IMPERATIVE, PARTICULARLY FOR
VULNERABLE USERS. SAFER STREETS
STRENGTHENS HOW WE APPROACH
SAFETY. THE TASK FORCE CAN HELP
US CONFRONT HOW WE SUSTAINABLY
FUND THE INFRASTRUCTURE NEEDED
TO DELIVER IT, AND FINALLY, A
THIRD AGENDA ITEM TODAY IS A
BRIEFING FROM ON THE SEATTLE'S
STREET IMPROVEMENT PERMITTING
PROGRAM AND HOW SDOT REVIEWS
COMPLEX IMPROVEMENTS AND THE
PUBLIC RIGHT OF WAY. IT IS
DISTINCT AND SEPARATE FROM SAFER
STREETS, BUT IT REPRESENTS
ANOTHER IMPORTANT PART OF HOW
OUR TRANSPORTATION POLICIES
ULTIMATELY BECOME PHYSICAL
STREETS, SIDEWALKS, AND
INFRASTRUCTURE THAT ARE SAFE,
ACCESSIBLE AND FUNCTIONAL FOR
ALL. AND WE'LL LEARN THERE IS
AN IMPORTANT NON-TRIVIAL HOUSING
IMPERATIVE TIED TO THAT
INITIATIVE AS WELL, IMPACTING
OUR ABILITY TO TO QUICKLY BUILD
MORE AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
THERE'S A COMMON THREAD
THROUGHOUT TODAY'S FULL AGENDA.
SAFETY MUST BE SOMETHING WE
DESIGNED FOR FUND, BUILD AND
INSTITUTIONALIZE. THANK YOU. WE
WILL NOW MOVE TO THE OPEN HYBRID
PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD. PUBLIC
COMMENT SHOULD RELATE TO ITEMS
ON TODAY'S AGENDA AND WITHIN THE
PURVIEW OF THE COMMITTEE TODAY.
CLERK HOW MANY SPEAKERS ARE
SIGNED UP?
-- CHAIR CURRENTLY, WE HAVE NINE
IN-PERSON SPEAKERS SIGNED UP,
AND THERE ARE THREE REMOTE
SPEAKERS.
-- GREAT. THANK YOU. EACH
SPEAKER WILL HAVE APPROXIMATELY
TWO MINUTES. WE WILL START WITH
IN PERSON SPEAKERS FIRST. CLERK
COULD YOU PLEASE READ THE PUBLIC
COMMENT INSTRUCTIONS?
-- SPEAKERS WILL BE CALLED IN
THE ORDER IN WHICH THEY
REGISTERED. SPEAKERS WILL HEAR A
CHIME WHEN 10 SECONDS ARE LEFT
OF THEIR TIME. SPEAKERS MICS
WILL BE MUTED IF THEY DO NOT END
THEIR COMMENTS WITHIN THE
ALLOTTED TIME TO ALLOW US TO
CALL ON THE NEXT SPEAKER. THE
PUBLIC COMMENT PERIOD IS NOW
OPEN, AND WE WILL BEGIN WITH THE
FIRST SPEAKER ON THE LIST. ROB
MCVICAR'S. AFTER ROB, WE'LL HEAR
FROM KEVIN G.
-- GOOD MORNING. MY NAME IS ROB
MCVICAR'S. WITH BUILD SOUND,
WE'VE BUILT ABOUT 400 HOUSES IN
THE LAST 20 YEARS. I'M HERE TO
SPEAK ABOUT THE BROKEN SIP
PROCESS. ACCORDING TO THE CITY
DATA, AN AVERAGE SIP TAKES 1484
DAYS, 610 DAYS OF THAT IN CITY
CONTROL. A SIP LIGHT IS 675
DAYS, 306 DAYS IN THE CITY
CONTROL. I WANT TO GIVE TWO
SCENARIOS THAT SPEAK TO THE. THE
TIME SIPS TAKE THE COST OF SIPS
AND THE LARGER PROBLEMS. THESE
ISSUES CREATE. THE FIRST EXAMPLE
IS A PROJECT WHERE WE'RE
REQUIRED TO INSTALL A NEW CURB
AND SIDEWALK. THIS PARTICULAR
SIP WAS A SIP LIGHT THAT TOOK
708 DAYS TO ISSUE, AND THE
PERMIT FEE WAS $29,230. THOSE
NUMBERS ARE SHOCKING ENOUGH, BUT
WHEN YOU TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THE
ENGINEERING THAT WAS REQUIRED
FOR THE SIP, WHICH COST $15,000,
YOU CAN SEE THE DISPARITY OF
FEES WERE ALMOST DOUBLE THE COST
OF PRIVATE ENGINEERING. TO
SIMPLY REVIEW THE WORK OF THE
ENGINEER, AS SDOT REVIEWED THIS
PERMIT FOR ALMOST 400 DAYS AND
CHARGED TWICE AS MUCH MONEY AS
THE ENGINEER THAT DID THE WORK.
THE SECOND EXAMPLE I WOULD LIKE
TO HIGHLIGHT IS THE SIP WE DID
NOT APPLY FOR. WE HAD A SITE
THAT HAD NONCONFORMING CURB ON
OUR STREET FRONTAGE, SO THE ONLY
WAY TO WEEP THE STORMWATER ONTO
THE STREET WAS TO RAISE THE
HEIGHT OF THE CURB, WHICH WOULD
HAVE TAKEN A SIP. WE DETERMINED
QUITE QUICKLY THAT TEARING A
STREET UP PART OF THE CURB
INCLUDED TO TIE DIRECTLY INTO
THE STORM MAIN WAS A CHEAPER AND
MORE CERTAIN PATH. WE HAVE
CREATED A WORLD WHERE DIGGING A
12 FOOT DEEP TRENCH ACROSS AN
ENTIRE STREET IS A BETTER
ALTERNATIVE TO GOING THROUGH THE
SIP PROCESS TO SIMPLY MAKE A
CURB THREE INCHES TALLER.
RECENTLY, SPU SERVICE
DEVELOPMENT CHARGES THAT ARE, IN
THEORY, INTENDED TO SUBSIDIZE
THE COST OF A BUILDER WOULD
WOULD BEAR TO INSTALL NEW STORM
OR SEWER MAINS. THESE NEW FAME,
NEW FEES NOT ONLY ADD TO THE
COST OF HOUSING, BUT NO BUILDER
THAT BUILDS FOR THE FOR SALE
HOUSING WILL USE THIS PROGRAM.
DUE TO THE FACT THAT ALL OF
THESE INFRASTRUCTURE WORK
REQUIRES A SIP. THE SIP PROCESS
IS SO BROKEN THAT NO BUILDER
WANTS TO DECLARE
-- YES SIR, THANK YOU AND FEEL
FREE TO LEAVE YOUR WRITTEN
COMMENTS IF YOU HAVE THEM IN
THAT BOX RIGHT THERE. ALL
COUNCILMEMBERS WILL WILL GET
THEM AND FRIENDLY REMINDER TO TO
FOLKS WHEN YOU HEAR THE CHIME,
THAT MEANS 10 SECONDS ARE LEFT
ON YOUR TIME.
-- OUR NEXT SPEAKER WILL BE
KEVIN GEE FOLLOWING KEVIN. WE'LL
HEAR FROM LONNIE BONARDI.
-- HELLO, HELLO, MY NAME IS
KEVIN. I'M A SOUTH SEATTLE
RESIDENT. I CAN'T DRIVE DUE TO
PERSONAL REASONS, SO THAT MEANS
I DEPEND ON STREET IMPROVEMENTS
AND STREET SAFETY. IT WOULD
BEHOOVE THE CITY TO THINK ABOUT
STREAMLINING BOTH THE NORMAL CIP
PERMITTING PROCESS, AS WELL AS
THE CIP LIGHT PERMITTING
PROCESS, BECAUSE IN. WHEN YOU
COMPARE IT TO CITIES LIKE FORT
WORTH, TEXAS, THEIR TIMELINES
ARE IN WEEKS, NOT MONTHS. AND WE
CAN DRASTICALLY IMPROVE SAFETY
AND THE QUALITY LIVED EXPERIENCE
OF THE BUILT ENVIRONMENT IF WE
INCREASE THE TIME. SORRY,
SHORTEN THE TIMELINES FOR
PERMITTING AND ALLOW WAY MORE
STREET IMPROVEMENTS. I SEE THE
REST OF MY TIME.
-- THANK YOU KEVIN.
-- OUR NEXT SPEAKER WILL BE
LONNIE. AFTER THAT, WE'LL HEAR
FROM MIKE. HI, CHRIS.
-- LONNIE. BUT GOOD, GOOD
ATTEMPT. SO MY MOTHER WAS MARY
BONO DILLA. SHE WAS IN GREAT
HEALTH. SHE SPENT OVER 40 YEARS
BIKING IN THIS CITY AND BIKING
AROUND THE WORLD. SHE WAS A
CYCLIST. SHE DID NOT HAVE TO
DIE. I FEEL LIKE IF VISION ZERO
HAD NOT BEEN HAD BEEN DOING ITS
JOB BETTER. AND THAT PART OF
WEST SEATTLE HAD NOT BEEN
IGNORED, SHE WOULD HAVE BEEN
SAFE ON THAT STREET. AS I SPENT
TIME AT HER SITE, IT WAS VERY
CLEAR EVERYONE WAS WELL AWARE
HOW DANGEROUS THAT STREET WAS
AND ROB TO TALK TO YOU. AND HAVE
YOU NOT KNOW ABOUT THAT STREET
AND HOW DANGEROUS IT WAS, WAS
REALLY DISHEARTENING AND I HOPE
THAT YOU'VE BEEN THERE. I'M
GLAD YOU GUYS ARE REMOVING
PARKING THERE, BUT YOU NEED TO
DO MORE. YOU NEED TO PUT WEST
SEATTLE BACK ON YOUR RADAR AND
YOU NEED TO MAKE IT SAFE BECAUSE
PEOPLE ARE AFRAID TO BIKE THERE.
PEOPLE WHO LIVE THERE ARE SCARED
OF THOSE STREETS. PEOPLE WHO
COMMUTE THROUGH THERE ARE SCARED
TO GO TO WORK ON THEIR BIKES.
IT'S JUST NOT SAFE. AND TRUCK
GUARDS ON MUNICIPAL VEHICLES
JUST SEEMS LIKE IT BARELY
SCRATCHES THE SURFACE. IT'S A
NICE GESTURE, BUT IT NEEDS TO BE
REQUIRED ON ALL TRUCKS. TRUCKS
NEED TO BE REMOVED FROM CERTAIN
STREETS THAT ARE TOO NARROW.
LIKE THIS NEEDS TO JUST BE LIKE
THE START OF IT. AND SO I HOPE
THAT YOU'LL CONTINUE TO WORK ON
THESE THINGS SO THAT YOU CAN
REACH YOUR GOAL BY 2030, BECAUSE
I WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO BE
PROACTIVE, LIKE VISION ZERO
CALLS FOR INSTEAD OF REACTIVE.
AND PEOPLE LIKE US HAVE TO COME
OUT AND TELL YOU HOW MUCH THESE
PEOPLE MEANT TO US, BECAUSE SHE
MEANT A LOT TO A LOT OF PEOPLE,
AND IT JUST DIDN'T HAVE TO
HAPPEN. SO PLEASE KEEP
YOURSELVES IN GEAR AND ADDRESS
THESE ISSUES IN WEST SEATTLE AND
AROUND THE CITY. THANK YOU.
-- THANK YOU, LONNIE.
-- OUR NEXT SPEAKER WILL BE MIKE
AFTER MIKE WILL HEAR FROM
EVEREST OROSI.
-- YEAH. MIKE HERE BUILDER HERE
IN WEST SEATTLE AREA. AND IT'S
HARD TO FOLLOW THIS. MY OWN
COUSIN IN 1963 WAS KILLED ON THE
SEATTLE CITY STREET. SO I HEAR
YOU. I'M I'M EXCUSE ME. WE
WERE VERY CLOSE. WE WERE BORN
THREE MONTHS APART. SO
JENNIFER'S MOM BECAME AN
ACTIVIST. SHE WAS A UNIVERSITY
OF WASHINGTON PROFESSOR. AND SHE
SAW TO IT TO TAKE THE HOOD
ORNAMENTS OFF THE VEHICLES THAT
KILLED MY COUSIN NATIONWIDE. IT
WAS BANNED BY 1965. THIS IS WHAT
WE COULD DO TO HELP OUR STREETS.
NOW I'M A BUILDER, OKAY? I'M
OVER HERE IN WEST SEATTLE. I'M
TRYING TO TRYING TO WIDEN ABOUT
300FT OF STREET THAT'S WAY TOO
NARROW IN WEST SEATTLE. I AM NOW
EIGHT YEARS. MY PERMIT PROCESS
FOR THIS. THERE'S NO EXCUSE FOR
THAT. I HAVE FROM MY
ENGINEERING. I HAVE SPENT THE
CITY REVIEW FEES ARE ALMOST 50.
I'VE SPENT LIKE $70,000 IN
ENGINEERING THE CITY REVIEW FEES
ARE $120,000 SPENT. TO DATE.
THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR THIS. WE
NEED OUR SIPS. WE NEED OUR
PERMITS RIGHT NOW. NOW WE HAVE
THE TECHNOLOGY HERE. WE LIVE IN
THE LAND OF MICROSOFT, RIGHT? WE
HAVE THE TECHNOLOGY NOW THAT CAN
REVIEW THESE PERMITS. I HAVE THE
SOFTWARE WILLING TO GIVE IT TO
THE CITY THAT CAN REVIEW THESE
PERMITS WITHIN 15 MINUTES, NOT
EIGHT YEARS. SO WE NEED TO
IMPROVE OUR SAFETY OF OUR
STREETS. JENNIFER DIED 65 YEARS
AGO. WE NEED TO GET ON THIS NOW.
I WANT MY PERMITS NOW. I WANT TO
BE ABLE TO IMPROVE THESE STREETS
NOW. THANKS FOR LISTENING.
-- THANK YOU. MIKE.
-- OUR NEXT SPEAKER WILL BE
EVEREST. AFTER EVEREST. WE'LL
HEAR FROM CLIVE HAYWARD
-- HI, MY NAME IS EVEREST AND
I'M A CENTRAL DISTRICT RESIDENT
AND UW STUDENT. I'M MOSTLY
CONCERNED ABOUT CURRENT
TIMELINES FOR THE STREET
IMPROVEMENT PERMITS. AS A
SEATTLE RESIDENT, I WANT TO SEE
MORE STREET SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS
AND ESPECIALLY MORE OF OUR
STREETS BROUGHT TO MODERN
ACCESSIBILITY STANDARDS BECAUSE
THERE ARE JUST TOO MANY
SIDEWALKS AND AREAS IN OUR CITY
THAT ARE DIFFICULT OR IMPOSSIBLE
TO NAVIGATE WITH A WHEELCHAIR OR
MOBILITY AID. I'M FRUSTRATED
WITH HOW LONG THESE IMPROVEMENTS
ARE TAKING TO HAPPEN. ALSO, AS
AN OCCASIONAL CYCLIST, THERE ARE
A LOT OF ROUTES I JUST DON'T
FEEL SAFE TAKING BECAUSE OF LACK
OF PROTECTION FROM FAST MOVING
TRAFFIC LANES. I'M CONCERNED
THAT THE LONG PERMIT APPROVAL
TIMES FOR BOTH CIP AND CIP LIGHT
ARE UNDERMINING OUR ABILITY TO
BUILD THESE ESSENTIAL
IMPROVEMENTS THAT WILL SAVE
LIVES AND ENABLE MORE PEOPLE TO
TRAVEL CAR, LIGHT OR CAR FREE.
THANK YOU.
-- THANK YOU, EVERS.
-- OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS CLIVE
HAYWARD. AFTER CLIVE, WE'LL HEAR
FROM JOSH FRIEDMAN.
-- THANK YOU FOR YOUR QUESTIONS.
DURING THE LAST SEATTLE
WATERFRONT MEETING ABOUT THE
FREE SPEECH SPACES AT THE
WATERFRONT. I'M NOT GOING TO
RE-ARGUE THE POLICY. I JUST WANT
TO TALK ABOUT WHAT HAPPENS AFTER
I SPEAK AFTER THE MEETING I
WROTE REGARDING WHAT THE STAFF
SAID, I OFFERED TO PRESENT IT TO
ANSWER QUESTIONS IN WRITING AND
TO WALK THE PARK WITH ANY OF
YOU. SO FAR, NO ONE REPLIED,
THIS IS NOT UNUSUAL. IT'S A
PATTERN. 15 MONTHS OF IT, NO
ENGAGEMENT, AND EVERYTHING SWEPT
UNDER THE RUG. THE ONLY WINDOW I
HAVE INTO THE CITY IS IT'S
PUBLIC RECORDS. 12 OF MINE ARE
STILL OPEN. THE OLDEST IS OPEN
FOR SINCE JULY LAST YEAR. WHAT
COMES BACK IS A DEPARTMENT THAT
CANNOT PRODUCE TRAINING RECORDS.
IT CANNOT ACCOUNT FOR A VIDEO.
ITS COMMANDER TOLD ME HE HAD
WATCHED AND IT DID NOT WRITE A
REPORT. ON THE NIGHT OF ONE OF
HIS OFFICERS PUT HIS HANDS ON
ME. I'VE LOST MY ABILITY TO
EXERCISE MY FIRST AMENDMENT
RIGHTS IN A PUBLIC FORUM. I'VE
LOST AN INCOME STREAM AND SO
HAVE MANY OTHER PERFORMERS. IF
YOU'RE NOT GOING TO ENGAGE WITH
ME, SAY SO. IF NO ONE REACHES
OUT BEFORE THE COMMITTEE
MEETING, NEXT ONE, THE NEXT
COMMITTEE MEETING, I WILL HAVE
MY ANSWER
-- THANK YOU, MR. HAYWARD
-- OUR NEXT SPEAKER WILL BE JOSH
FRIEDMAN, AFTER JOSH WILL HEAR
FROM CLARA CANTOR.
-- MR. CHAIR, AND MEMBERS OF THE
COMMITTEE. MY NAME IS JOSH
FRIEDMAN, AND I'M AN ATTORNEY
WHO HELPS AFFORDABLE MARKET AND
WORKFORCE HOUSING PROVIDERS AS
THEY TRY TO BRING NEW HOUSING
ONLINE IN SEATTLE. THANK YOU FOR
CONVENING THIS SESSION TO
INVESTIGATE THE DEEPLY
PROBLEMATIC DELAYS AND COSTS
THAT THE CIP PROCESS HAS BEEN
IMPOSING ON NEW HOUSING PROJECTS
AT ALL AFFORDABILITY LEVELS.
EVEN IN THE MIDST OF AN ACUTE
HOUSING SUPPLY SUPPLY CRISIS,
OUR CITY'S INFRASTRUCTURE
BUREAUCRACY BADLY NEEDS YOUR
LEADERSHIP TO REDUCE THE DEGREE
TO WHICH GAS GUZZLING CARS AND
DANGEROUS AUTOMOTIVE HABITS ARE
BEING SUBSIDIZED ON THE BACKS OF
RENTERS AND THEIR HOUSING
PROVIDERS. THANK YOU.
-- THANK YOU, JOSH.
-- NEXT, WE'LL HEAR FROM CLARA
CANTOR AFTER CLARA. IT'LL BE
TYLER VASQUEZ.
-- HI. HI. CAN YOU HEAR ME? MY
NAME IS CLARA CANTOR. I'M A
COMMUNITY ORGANIZER WITH SEATTLE
STREETS ALLIANCE, AND I'M HERE
TO SPEAK ABOUT THE TRAFFIC,
TRAFFIC SAFETY ORDINANCE. I DO
WANT TO THANK THE COUNCIL FOR
HIGHLIGHTING THE IMPORTANCE OF
SAFETY ON OUR STREETS AND VISION
ZERO. WE'VE HEARD FROM A NUMBER
OF PEOPLE TODAY WHO HAVE LOST
LOVED ONES. AS WE HEARD OVER THE
COURSE OF THIS YEAR, AS WE HEARD
AFTER ROB MASON WAS KILLED,
AFTER STEVE HOLZMANN WAS KILLED
EARLIER THIS YEAR, ALL OF THESE
PEOPLE IN YOUR DISTRICT, AND
I'M GRATEFUL TO THE COUNCIL FOR
TAKING THIS MOMENT TO HIGHLIGHT
THIS ISSUE. I, I THINK THIS IS
IT'S AN IMPORTANT THING TO DO,
TO HAVE A MOMENT OF SILENCE, TO
START THIS MEETING, TO CODIFY
THE LANGUAGE OF SAFETY INTO
SEATTLE'S INTO AN ORDINANCE
LIKE THIS. AND I'M ALSO EXCITED
TO KEEP WORKING WITH THIS
COUNCIL TO MAKE SURE THIS FALL
THAT WE'RE FUNDING PROJECTS THAT
WILL ACTUALLY MAKE THESE SAFETY
IMPROVEMENTS THAT WE'RE MOVING
PROJECTS FORWARD THAT WOULD HELP
SAVE LIVES ON OUR STREETS AND I
THINK WHILE THIS IS AN IMPORTANT
AND VITAL STEP, IT'S ALSO
IMPORTANT TO KEEP WORKING ON ON
THE INDIVIDUAL IMPROVEMENTS THAT
ARE GOING TO ACTUALLY SAVE
LIVES. I AM PARTICULARLY EXCITED
ABOUT INTERSECTION DAYLIGHTING,
WHICH PREVENTS PEOPLE FROM
PARKING ILLEGALLY CLOSE TO
CROSSWALKS AND STOPS STOPS CARS
FROM BLOCKING SIGHT LINES AT
INTERSECTIONS. MOST OF OUR
INJURIES AND FATALITIES IN
SEATTLE ARE AT INTERSECTIONS AND
IMPROVING THE VISIBILITY. THERE
IS A VERY QUICK, VERY
INEXPENSIVE, VERY EASY WAY TO
MAKE INTERSECTIONS A LOT SAFER.
WE CAN ALSO INCREASE
ACCESSIBILITY BY UTILIZING THAT
SPACE TO PARK SCOOTERS OFF THE
SIDEWALKS AT THE SAME TIME,
WHICH ALSO MAKES OUR SIDEWALKS
MORE ACCESSIBLE. AND IN MY LAST
10 SECONDS, I JUST WANT TO SAY
THAT I'M ALSO ON THE AGENDA TO
BE CONFIRMED FOR THE
TRANSPORTATION FUNDING TASK
FORCE. AND SO I LOOK FORWARD TO
FURTHER DISCUSSIONS WITH THE
COUNCIL TO PUSH FORWARD
PROGRESSIVE FUNDING THROUGH THAT
BODY. THANK YOU.
-- THANK YOU, CLAIRE.
-- OUR FINAL IN-PERSON SPEAKER
IS TYLER VASQUEZ.
-- GOOD MORNING. MY NAME IS
TYLER VASQUEZ. I'M WITH CASCADE
BICYCLE CLUB. I'M ALSO A
RESIDENT OF DISTRICT THREE. ONE
OF THE THINGS THAT IS VERY
PERSONAL TO ME IS I WAS
INTRODUCED TO DEATH REALLY EARLY
IN MY LIFE. ONE OF THE FIRST
DEATHS THAT I REMEMBER WAS
WARMING UP FOR A BASEBALL GAME,
AND OUR PITCHER WASN'T PRESENT
BECAUSE HE WAS KILLED THAT
NIGHT. AND THIS IS EIGHT YEARS
OLD. SO WHEN I LOOK AT THIS
TRAFFIC SAFETY, WHEN I LOOK AT
VISION ZERO, WHEN I LOOK AT MY
WORK, I LOOK AT LITTLE TYLER
WITH A LOT OF UNANSWERED
QUESTIONS. ONE OF THE THINGS
THAT MY PARENTS DID IS THEY
DIDN'T HAVE THE VOCABULARY TO
DESCRIBE WHAT THIS WAS, OR
ANSWER THE MANY QUESTIONS OF THE
WHOLE TEAM. THESE ARE THE
COMMUNITIES AND PEOPLE THAT ARE
IMPACTED DAILY BY OUR TRAFFIC
SYSTEM, REGARDLESS OF IF YOU'RE
DRIVING A CAR, IF YOU'RE RIDING
A BIKE, IF YOU'RE WALKING ON OUR
STREETS OR YOU'RE SIMPLY ROLLING
JUST TO GET FROM POINT A TO
POINT B, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT
I'M EXCITED ABOUT WITH THE
SAFETY ORDINANCE IS THE ASPECT
OF OPERATIONALIZING,
OPERATIONALIZING, AND
ACCELERATING SAFETY
IMPROVEMENTS. ONE OF THE THINGS
THAT I KNOW IS THAT SAFETY
IMPROVEMENTS ARE THE MOST
VISIBLE CONSTRUCTION THAT WE
HAVE IN OUR COMMUNITY. WHEN YOU
SEE VISIBLE TRANSFORMATION OF
YOUR COMMUNITY, YOU SEE TRUST,
YOU SEE TRUST IN YOUR WORK, YOU
SEE TRUST IN IN THE MAYOR'S
WORK. AND YOU ALSO SEE TRUST IN
SDOT. AND THAT'S WHAT I'M HERE
TO DO TODAY IS BE ABLE TO ASPECT
AND LET'S BUILD TRUST. LET'S,
LET'S BUILD THOSE BRIDGES THAT
NEED TO BE THAT NEED TO HAPPEN
WITH THE COMMUNITY. AND LET'S
MAKE SURE THAT WE WORK TOWARDS
VISION ZERO. AND IN 2030, WE
HAVE ZERO DEATHS. YOU KNOW,
THAT'S NOT ASPIRATIONAL.
THAT'S A POLICY. AND WE HAVE A
POLICY PROBLEM THAT NEEDS TO BE
SOLVED BY A MANAGEMENT ISSUES.
AND WHEN WE SEE MANAGEMENT
ISSUES, THAT'S YOUR JOB. AND SO
WHEN I TAKE AWAY THE TAKE AWAY
TODAY, WHEN YOU ASK QUESTIONS,
ASK ABOUT THE PROACTIVE STUFF
THAT'S HAPPENING, THE FATAL
RESPONSE SYSTEMS, THE ASPECTS OF
HARDENING, HARDENING,
DAYLIGHTING, INTERSECTIONS, WHY?
THOSE ARE THE QUESTIONS THAT I
HAD WHEN I WAS A LITTLE BOY
WARMING UP FOR THAT BASEBALL
GAME. SO THANK YOU AND GOOD.
GOOD LUCK TODAY.
-- THANK YOU. TYLER.
-- WE'LL NOW MOVE ON TO OUR
REMOTE PUBLIC COMMENTERS. FIRST
ON THE LIST IS SARAH SCHACHT.
AFTER SARAH, WE'LL HEAR FROM
BILLY HEATHERINGTON. SARAH,
PLEASE HIT STAR SIX TO TALK.
-- I'M A RESIDENT OF SEATTLE
MAPLE LEAF NEIGHBORHOOD AND I'M
COMMENTING TODAY REGARDING THE
MAPLE LEAF, PINEHURST OR
ROOSEVELT PINEHURST SAFETY PLAN,
WHICH HAS NOT BEEN CLEARLY
COMMUNICATED TO THE COMMUNITY
AND AYE. A LOT OF THE DETAILS OF
THE PLAN. MY HUSBAND AND I HAVE
FILED A PUBLIC RECORDS REQUEST
WITH SCOTT AND HAVE BEEN
STONEWALLED. I FIND THIS
INTERESTING BECAUSE I HAVE OVER
20 YEARS EXPERIENCE IN OPEN
GOVERNMENT AND TRANSPARENCY,
WORKING WITH GOVERNMENTS AROUND
THE WORLD, AND THAT ASSAD IS
USING A COMMON TACTIC TO STALL
AND DELAY. THEY HAVE NOT POSTED
THE ACTUAL REPORTS OF COMMUNITY
FINDINGS AND HAVE NOT TASTED
IMPACT ON PARKING ON THE
SURROUNDING AREA, AND HOW THIS
WOULD IMPACT THE DENSEST AREA IN
MAPLE ALONG ROOSEVELT WAY, WITH
THE LOWEST INCOME RESIDENTS, WHO
ARE OFTENTIMES NEW TO THE UNITED
STATES AND LIVING IN THESE LOWER
INCOME, DENSER HOUSING. WE
ALREADY SEE WHERE CONFLICTS OR
ACCESS TO EMERGENCY SERVICES IS
HAMPERED BY DELIVERIES. USING
OUR MULTIFAMILY DRIVEWAYS ON
ROOSEVELT INSTEAD OF PARKING,
AND OVER 90% OF THE PARKING IN
THIS AREA WILL BE REMOVED BY
THIS PROJECT. WE CAN, WE ASSUME
THAT THERE WILL BE HIGHER LEVELS
OF CONFLICT, THAT THESE PARKING.
THESE DRIVERS WILL BE BLOCKED BY
DELIVERIES AND THAT THIS WILL
LEAD TO SPILLAGE OF PARKING
ENFORCEMENT, PARKING ONTO SIDE
STREETS WHICH DO NOT HAVE
SIDEWALKS, AND PEDESTRIAN
DANGERS. IT IS SOMETHING THAT
DOES NOT SEEM TO BE AS TAKEN
INTO ACCOUNT BY SDOT. AND SO
I'M ASKING THIS COMMITTEE ONE
TO REQUEST AS NOT TO RELEASE ITS
REPORTS AND FINDINGS FROM ITS
RESEARCH. IT'S GONE OVER THE
LAST YEAR AND.
-- A HALF.
-- AND AGE WITH RESIDENTS ALONG
ROOSEVELT WAY ON THE IMPACT THAT
THEY WILL SEE AND NOT TO DELAY
THESE FINDINGS AND ENGAGEMENT
SINCE WORK BEGINS IN JANUARY,
AND WE'VE ONLY BEEN TOLD.
-- THANK YOU, SIR.
-- OUR NEXT SPEAKER WILL BE
BILLY HEATHERINGTON. AFTER
BILLY, WE'LL HEAR FROM GORDON
PADELFORD. BILLY, PLEASE HIT
STAR SIX.
-- THANK YOU, CHAIR AND MEMBERS
OF THE COMMITTEE. MY NAME IS
BILLY HEATHERINGTON. I'M THE
POLITICAL DIRECTOR FOR LIUNA
LOCAL 242 AND SERVE AS THE
PRESIDENT OF THE WASHINGTON
STATE GOOD ROADS ASSOCIATION. I
JUST WANT TO SPEAK TO ITEM TWO,
THE RESOLUTION APPOINTING
MEMBERS OF THE TASK FUNDING TASK
FORCE, WHICH I AM A PART OF, AND
I JUST WANT TO THANK THE STAFF
DURING THE PROCESS. THEY'VE
BEEN VERY ATTENTIVE AND
RESPONSIVE TO ANY QUESTIONS THAT
I MIGHT HAVE HAD, AND JUST
THANKFUL FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO
TO SERVE IN THIS BODY THROUGHOUT
MY CAREER AS A LABORER, I WORKED
ON SEVERAL PROJECTS THAT WERE
FUNDED BY SEATTLE TAXPAYERS
AROUND ADA, ACCESSIBILITY SAFETY
MEASURES IN AND AROUND THE
SEATTLE AREA. AND SO JUST REALLY
HAPPY THAT I CAN BRING THAT
EXPERIENCE, COUPLED WITH THE
EXPERIENCE I'VE HAD WORKING
WITH WITH LIUNA TO THIS TASK
FORCE. SO LASTLY, JUST A QUICK
NOTE FOR STAFF. I JUST WANTED TO
CORRECT THE MY LAST NAME IS NOT
SPELLED WITH AN A, IT'S HETH.
THANK YOU.
-- THANK YOU, MR. HETHERINGTON.
-- OUR FINAL SPEAKER IS GORDON
PADELFORD GORDON. PLEASE HIT
STAR SIX.
-- GOOD MORNING, COUNCILMEMBERS.
MY NAME IS GORDON PADELFORD, THE
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF THE
SEATTLE STREETS ALLIANCE. AND
I'M JUST CALLING IN TO SAY
THANK YOU FOR KEEPING A FOCUS ON
VISION ZERO AND MAKING SURE
EVERYONE GETS HOME SAFELY. MY
HEART GOES OUT TO MEREDITH
FAMILY, WHO'S IN ATTENDANCE
TODAY. WE NEED TO PREVENT
TRAGEDIES LIKE THAT FROM
OCCURRING. EVERYONE SHOULD BE
ABLE TO GET HOME SAFELY TO THEIR
LOVED ONES. I WANT TO CALL OUT
SPECIFICALLY ONE STRATEGY THAT
WE'VE BEEN EMPHASIZING THAT WE
FEEL LIKE WOULD HAVE SAVED LIVES
THIS YEAR AND IN PREVIOUS YEARS,
AND IT IS SORT OF A OBSCURE
STRATEGY, BUT IT MAKES A REAL
DIFFERENCE, WHICH IS TRUCK SIDE
GUARDS, YOU KNOW, THE US D.O.T.
REPORTS THAT, YOU KNOW, LARGE
TRUCKS COMPRISE ONLY 4% OF
VEHICLES, BUT 8% OF PEDESTRIAN
FATALITIES AND 11% OF PEOPLE
BIKING WHO ARE KILLED ARE
INVOLVED WITH A LARGE VEHICLE.
AND WE KNOW THAT 50% OF PEOPLE
BIKING IN 25% OF PEOPLE WALKING
ARE ACTUALLY HIT BY THE SIDE OF
THE TRUCK FIRST BEFORE THEY ARE
KILLED BY THAT TRUCK. THE TRUCK
SIDE GUARDS HAVE A REAL POSITIVE
SAFETY BENEFIT FATALITY RATE FOR
PEOPLE BIKING AND WALKING.
DECREASED 61% AND 20%,
RESPECTIVELY, FOLLOWING A
NATIONAL SIDE GUARD
IMPLEMENTATION IN THE UNITED
KINGDOM IN THE 1980s.
FORTUNATELY, WE CAN'T WAIT FOR
THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT HERE IN
THE UNITED STATES FOR OBVIOUS
REASONS. AND SO WE'VE GOT TO DO
WHAT WE CAN LOCALLY AND THE
STATE LEVEL. SO I APPRECIATE THE
COUNCIL'S PENSION DIVISION ZERO
AND ATTENTION ON PROVEN SAFETY
COUNTERMEASURES. YOU KNOW,
THERE'S NO ONE SILVER BULLET.
IT'S GOING TO BE A WHOLE SUITE
OF STRATEGIES THAT HELP KEEP
PEOPLE SAFE ON OUR STREETS.
THANK YOU.
-- THANK YOU, GORDON.
-- CHAIR, THAT WAS OUR FINAL
PUBLIC COMMENTER.
-- ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. IF
THERE ARE NO MORE PUBLIC
COMMENTERS SIGNED UP, WE WILL
NOW MOVE ON TO OUR FIRST ITEM OF
BUSINESS. WILL THE CLERK PLEASE
READ ITEM ONE INTO THE RECORD
-- AGENDA ITEM ONE BRIEFING AND
DISCUSSION SEATTLE SAFER STREETS
ACT DRAFT REVIEW OF TRAFFIC
SAFETY LEGISLATION.
-- THANK YOU AND LOOKS LIKE OUR
PRESENTERS HAVE ALREADY JOINED
US AT THE TABLE. WELCOME. BEFORE
INTRODUCING YOURSELVES, I WANT
TO TAKE A MOMENT TO BRIEFLY PUT
THE LEGISLATIVE HISTORY OF THIS
CRITICAL WORK ON THE RECORD. SO
AS I HOPE IS CLEAR, TRAFFIC
SAFETY IS MY HIGHEST PRIORITY AS
CHAIR, AS PART OF OUR BROADER
PUBLIC SAFETY CHARTER
RESPONSIBILITY. AND MY OFFICE
HAS INITIATED THIS LEGISLATIVE
WORK STREAM BACK IN JANUARY OF
THIS YEAR, AND APPRECIATE THAT
CENTRAL STAFF HAS DEVELOPED AN
INITIAL DRAFT THROUGH LATE
APRIL, AND A FEW WEEKS LATER, WE
NEEDED TO TEMPORARILY PAUSE THE
TO FOCUS ON THE SEATTLE TRANSIT
MEASURE, INCLUDING 30 PLUS
PROPOSED AMENDMENTS AND IN JULY,
AFTER THE. THE MEASURE WORK
STREAM CONCLUDED. MY OFFICE
DIRECTED THAT WORK RESUME AND
PROVIDED SUBSTANTIVE POLICY
DIRECTION FOR A SIGNIFICANTLY
STRENGTHENED TRAFFIC SAFETY
PACKAGE ON AUGUST 5th, CENTRAL
STAFF AND I AGREED THAT UPDATED
DRAFTS WOULD BE DEVELOPED FOR
REVIEW AT TODAY'S COMMITTEE
MEETING AND ALSO EARLIER THIS
MONTH TO HELP MEET THAT
DEADLINE, I DECIDED TO SLIGHTLY
NARROW THE FOCUS AND SCOPE OF
THE INITIAL PACKAGE, BUT STILL
PUT FORTH COMPREHENSIVE
LEGISLATION SO WE COULD ADVANCE
STRONG PRIORITY REFORMS THIS
YEAR, STARTING THIS YEAR, AND
BUILD UPON THAT LATER. RETURNING
TO EXPLORE ADDITIONAL MEASURES
AND CONCEPTS IN 27 AND BEYOND.
SO I TOTALLY RECOGNIZE THAT THIS
IS A COMPLEX. LEGISLATION
LEGISLATIVE PACKAGE ON A
COMPRESSED TIMELINE. AND I
APPRECIATE CENTRAL STAFF'S
DILIGENT WORK AND STRONG
PARTNERSHIP ON THIS. THAT SAID,
THE PACKAGE WE. WE EXPECTED TO
HAVE BEFORE US TODAY IS NOT YET
COMPLETE. SO TODAY'S INITIAL
BRIEFING, THEREFORE MARKS
SIGNIFICANT PROGRESS, BUT IS NOT
THE FINISH LINE. OF COURSE. AND
I EXPECT US TO COMPLETE THE
REMAINING WORK PROMPTLY AND
MAINTAIN THE URGENCY. THIS ISSUE
DEMANDS. WITH THAT, I WILL TURN
IT OVER TO CENTRAL STAFF ONCE
AGAIN. PLEASE DO INTRODUCE
YOURSELVES AND BEGIN YOUR
PRESENTATION.
-- GOOD MORNING EVERYONE. AMANDA
ALLEN WITH CENTRAL STAFF.
-- I'M CALVIN CHAO, COUNCIL
CENTRAL STAFF
-- SHOULD WE JUMP RIGHT IN?
-- YEAH.
-- OKAY. TODAY WE'RE TALKING
ABOUT THE SEATTLE SAFER STREETS
ACT. THAT COUNCILMEMBER THAT THE
CHAIR CHAIR SAKA HAS PUT
TOGETHER. I'LL WALK THROUGH
SOME OF THE DRAFT CONCEPTS THAT
WE, THE DRAFT ORDINANCES AND
SOME OF THE OTHER COP. ANOTHER
CONCEPT THAT HASN'T YET BEEN
DRAFTED INTO AN ORDINANCE AND
JUST PROVIDE A LITTLE BIT OF AN
OVERVIEW. IF I CAN MOVE TO THE
NEXT SCREEN.
-- OKAY. OKAY.
-- SO THERE ARE THREE COMPONENTS
TO THE SAFER STREETS ACT. THERE
IS A DRAFT TRAFFIC SAFETY
ORDINANCE, A DRAFT ORDINANCE
THAT SPEAKS TO COMBINING
RESPONSIBILITIES FOR THE TRAFFIC
SAFETY OR SORRY, CHIEF SAFETY
OFFICER AND TRAFFIC ENGINEER.
AND THEN A CONCEPT THAT WE WANT
TO TALK ABOUT RELATED TO
REQUIRING TRUCK SIDE GUARDS. THE
FIRST PIECE OF LEGISLATION IS
THE THAT I'M GOING TO TALK
ABOUT IS THE TRAFFIC SAFETY
ORDINANCE. SO THIS LEGISLATION
PROPOSES CHANGES TO THE
MUNICIPAL CODE WORKING TO CODIFY
THE CITY'S VISION ZERO PLAN AND
TO CODIFY THE USE AND RELIANCE
ON THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF
TRANSPORTATION SAFE SYSTEMS
APPROACH. AS VISION ZERO.
PROGRAM WAS FIRST LAUNCHED IN
2015 AS A FRAMEWORK TO EVOLVE
OUR APPROACH BASED ON BEST
PRACTICES AND EVALUATION OF OUR
TRANSPORTATION NETWORK WITH AN
OVERARCHING GOAL TO END TRAFFIC
DEATHS AND SERIOUS INJURIES ON
CITY STREETS BY 2030. THIS
SEATTLE SPECIFIC PLAN IS BASED
ON THE SAFE SYSTEMS APPROACH.
THE SAFE SYSTEMS APPROACH IS A
FRAMEWORK THAT USDOT HAS CREATED
FOR SAFETY OR SORRY, FOR
TRANSPORTATION SAFETY, CENTERED
ON THE IDEA THAT THERE ARE
MULTIPLE LAYERS OF PROTECTION TO
PREVENT COLLISIONS FROM
OCCURRING AND TO REDUCE THEIR
SEVERITY. THUS, THEIR SEVERITY,
SEVERITY WHEN THEY DO OCCUR,
IT'S BASED ON SIX PRINCIPLES
ONE DEATH AND SERIOUS INJURIES
ARE UNACCEPTABLE. TWO HUMANS DO
MAKE MISTAKES. THREE HUMANS ARE
VULNERABLE. RESPONSIBILITY IS
SHARED. FIVE THAT SAFETY IS
PROACTIVE. AND THE SIXTH IS THAT
REDUNDANCY IS CRUCIAL SO THE
LEGISLATION DRAFT THAT YOU ALL
HAVE. SEEKS TO WORK. THE VISION.
REFERENCES TO VISION ZERO AND
THE SAFE SYSTEMS APPROACH
THROUGHOUT THE. THE CODE THAT
SDOT NEEDS TO FOLLOW. IN SECTION
THREE, THERE'S ALSO A REFERENCE
REQUESTING THAT WASHINGTON STATE
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
RETURN FEEDBACK ON SDOT ON. ON
AND OFF RAMP DESIGNS WITHIN 180
DAYS. AND I WOULD JUST SAY THAT
THROUGHOUT THE LEGISLATION,
YOU'LL SEE THAT IT WORKS TO IN
INFUSE THE VISION ZERO AND SAFE
SYSTEMS APPROACH THROUGHOUT
STATES PLANNING, OPERATIONS AND
MAINTENANCE WORK. LAST AND LAST
ON THIS SLIDE, THE LEGISLATION
WORKS TO LEVERAGE THE CITY'S
RACIAL AND SOCIAL EQUITY INDEX
FOR INVESTMENTS TO ADDRESS
ISSUES IDENTIFIED VIA THE HIGH
INJURY NETWORK. THE HIGH INJURY
NETWORK IS SDOT TRACKING OF
COLLISIONS AND RATING OF THE
SEVERITY OF COLLISIONS. IT
EXCLUDES PARKING COLLISIONS THAT
TOOK PLACE WHEN CARS WERE BEING
PARKED OR REAR ENDED, AND IT
ALSO FACTORS IN THE SEVERITY OF
INJURIES THAT THAT TOOK PLACE.
THE LEGISLATION GOES ON TO JUST
CLARIFY THE REQUIREMENT AND THE
NEED TO PROTECT VULNERABLE
USERS. WE WOULD SAY PEDESTRIANS,
ANYBODY ROLLING. WHETHER IT'S
ELECTRIC, MICROMOBILITY OR A
BICYCLE OR A WHEELCHAIR PERSON
IN A WHEELCHAIR WOULD ALL BE
CONSIDERED UNDER THOSE
VULNERABLE POPULATIONS AND ALSO
SPECIFICALLY ADDS REFERENCES TO
SAFETY COUNTERMEASURES, SUCH AS
LEADING PEDESTRIAN INTERVALS. NO
TURN ON RED RESTRICTIONS AND
DAYLIGHTING INTERSECTIONS. AND
IT ALSO WORKS TO CLARIFY THE
DIMENSIONS OF DATA COLLECTION IT
CODIFIES THE COLLECTION OF WHERE
THESE COUNTERMEASURES ARE BEING
INSTALLED AND HELPS TO MAKE
PUBLIC THAT DATA. THE PIECES OF
THE LEGISLATION THAT ARE STILL
UNDER DEVELOPMENT THAT THE
COUNCILMEMBER IS INTERESTED IN,
ONE WOULD MAKE A REQUIREMENT
THAT SDOT ADD INTERSECTION AT
INTERSECTIONS. DAYLIGHTING ALSO,
THAT SDOT WOULD BE REQUIRED TO
PERFORM VISION ZERO REVIEWS ON
ALL PROJECTS WITH THE ABILITY TO
REQUEST DESIGN REVISIONS PRIOR
TO APPROVAL OR FINALIZATION OF
THE PROJECT. AND LASTLY,
REQUIRES THE CODIFICATION OF
POST-CRASH POST CRASH SAFETY
REVIEWS. COUNCIL MEMBER, ARE YOU
INTERESTED IN. I'LL JUST GO
THROUGH ALL THE. THE WHOLE
PRESENTATION. YEAH, YEAH.
-- THAT SOUNDS GREAT. AND THEN
WE'LL TAKE COMMENTS. QUESTIONS
RIGHT AFTER THAT. OKAY. I MIGHT
CHIME IN WITH A FEW PIECES OF
ADDITIONAL EXPLANATORY CONTEXT
AS NEEDED, BUT LET'S JUST PRESS.
OKAY.
-- THANK YOU.
-- SO THE SECOND PIECE OF
LEGISLATION THAT YOU HAVE IN
DRAFT FORM WORKS TO COMBINE THE
POSITION, RESPONSIBILITIES. AS I
MENTIONED, THE CHIEF
TRANSPORTATION SAFETY OFFICER,
OFFICER RESPONSIBILITIES WOULD
BE COMBINED WITH THE DUTIES
CODIFIED FOR THE CITY TRAFFIC
ENGINEER. IT WOULD ADD KEY AREAS
OF OVERSIGHT FOR THE TRAFFIC
ENGINEER TO ACT AS PRIMARY
ADMINISTRATIVE AUTHORITY AND
EXECUTIVE COORDINATOR OVER
VISION ZERO, THE VISION ZERO
INITIATIVE. THIS IS
OPERATIONALLY TAKING PLACE
TODAY. THIS WORKS TO. THIS
LEGISLATION WOULD WORK TO CODIFY
THAT IT ALSO ADDS OVERSIGHT OF
THE TRAFFIC SAFETY AND OR SORRY,
THE CITY TRAFFIC ENGINEER TO
REVIEW AND PROVIDE
RECOMMENDATIONS TO ENHANCE THE
SAFETY OF ROADWAYS AND
TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE.
THERE ARE SOME ADDITIONAL NEW
AUTHORITY EMERGENCY AUTHORITY
PROPOSED FOR THE TRAFFIC
ENGINEER, WHICH INCLUDES
DIRECTING THE DIRECTING AND
EXPEDITING SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS
ON THE HIGH INJURY NETWORK,
INCLUDING REQUIRING COORDINATION
ACROSS ALL OF SDOT DIVISIONS AND
ESTABLISHING PRIORITY PROTOCOLS
FOR RAPID, LOW COST SAFETY
TREATMENTS. AND LASTLY, IT
EXPLICITLY GRANTS AUTHORITY TO
IMPLEMENT IMMEDIATE TEMPORARY OR
PILOT PILOT SAFETY INTERVENTIONS
TO RESPOND TO IMMINENT RISKS.
AND THEN THE LAST.
-- AMANDA, IF I MAY JUST CHIME
IN HERE, IF YOU WOULDN'T MIND
GOING BACK TO THAT SLIDE
BRIEFLY. SO JUST TO PILE ON FROM
MY PERSPECTIVE WITH RESPECT TO
TWO OF THE PROVISIONS LISTED
THERE, ONE, THE POST-CRASH
RESPONSE. SO I HAVE IN MY HAND A
COPY OF THE CURRENT SDOT
POST-CRASH RESPONSE PROGRAMMATIC
FATAL CRASH RESPONSE POLICY
DATED MAY 18th, 2026. IT IS
OBVIOUSLY A FAIRLY RECENT NEW
LEAD DEVELOPED INTERNAL
DEPARTMENT POLICY THAT SDOT
DEVELOPED. I THINK IT'S A A GOOD
A GOOD START, AND I'M GRATEFUL
FOR SDOT AND THEIR THEIR
LEADERSHIP IN PUTTING THIS
TOGETHER TO TO FORMALIZE, YOU
KNOW, HOW WE SHOULD SHOW UP AND
RESPOND TO, TO THESE TRAGEDIES
AND HAVING TALKED WITH MANY
MEMBERS OF VARIOUS COMMUNITIES
OVER THE PAST FEW MONTHS, I ALSO
THINK IT LEAVES A BIT MORE TO BE
DESIRED. AND SO THE INTENT IN
TERMS OF BEING ABLE TO REQUIRE
A, A STRONGER, MORE PROMPT
RESPONSE. AND SO THE INTENT HERE
IS TO CODIFY EXISTING CURRENT
DEPARTMENT POLICY WITH RESPECT
TO THIS ONE SPECIFIC PROVISION,
BECAUSE WE KNOW THEY THEY ARE
CAPABLE OF AND THEY ARE
OPERATIONALIZING IT TODAY, BUT
ALSO PUT THEM AS PART OF THIS
LEGISLATION, PUT THEM ON A PATH
TO COME BACK AND STUDY SOME
OPTIONS. WHAT WHAT ADDITIONAL
RESOURCES, PERSONNEL, POTENTIAL,
OTHER POLICY REVISIONS MIGHT BE
NEEDED AND COME BACK TO COUNCIL
WITH SOME OPTIONS NEXT YEAR THAT
LAYS THINGS OUT, IDEALLY WITH
THE GOAL OF PROVIDING A A 72
HOUR RESPONSE THAT WOULD BE THE
MOST AMBITIOUS. AND WE COULD
THEN CODIFY THAT BUT THE
DEPARTMENT IS NOT POSITIONED TO
ACHIEVE THAT TODAY. AND SO THIS,
THIS, THIS SPECIFIC ELEMENT
CODIFIES WHAT THEY ARE POSITION
TO ACHIEVE TODAY AND ALSO PUTS
US ON A STRONGER PATH TO BE MORE
AMBITIOUS, MORE RESPONSIVE, WITH
THE GOAL OF A 72 HOUR RESPONSE,
AND FOR CLARITY TO SET
EXPECTATIONS, YOU KNOW, THE
ENGINEERS, JUST BECAUSE THIS
WOULD PURPORT TO REQUIRE MORE
PROMPT RESPONSE, YOU KNOW, THE
EXPERTISE WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT,
YOU KNOW, THEY WOULD HAVE TO
THEY WOULD HAVE FINAL DECISION
MAKING AUTHORITY TO DETERMINE IF
AND WHAT SPECIFIC SAFETY
TREATMENTS ARE NEEDED. AND THEN
THE SECOND PIECE I'LL, I'LL
JUST BRIEFLY SPEAK TO IS THE
EXPANDED AUTHORITY FOR SDOT
LEADERSHIP COLLEAGUES. FRIENDLY
REMINDER OVER THE LAST FEW
YEARS, THIS COUNCIL HAS PASSED
LEGISLATION THAT GRANTS EXPANDED
AUTHORITY TO ACT TO CERTAIN
LEADERSHIP AND AND EXPERTS
WITHIN THE VARIOUS DEPARTMENTS,
PARTICULARLY AS IT RELATES TO
PUBLIC SAFETY. SO, FOR EXAMPLE,
LAST YEAR WE PASSED THE CHRONIC
PUBLIC NUISANCE ORDINANCE, WHICH
GRANTED THE POLICE CHIEF
EXPANDED AUTHORITY TO TO TAKE
STRONGER ACTION IN CERTAIN
INSTANCES, PROCEEDING. THAT BILL
WAS THE VACANT FIRE LEGISLATION,
VACANT BUILDING LEGISLATION
GRANTING THE FIRE MARSHAL AND
THE SEATTLE FIRE CHIEF EXPANDED
AUTHORITY TO TAKE STRONGER
ACTION TO TO TO ADDRESS PROBLEM
VACANT BUILDINGS AND THE BECAUSE
THEY POSE A SIGNIFICANT RISK AND
HAZARD TO FIRE AND SAFETY. AND
SO ALONG THE SAME LINES, BECAUSE
BECAUSE IF WE CAN EXPAND
AUTHORITY FOR EXPERTS IN OTHER
CONTEXTS AS IT RELATES TO
BROADER PUBLIC SAFETY, OUR
BROADER PUBLIC SAFETY STRATEGY,
SURELY WE CAN DO THE SAME THING
HERE. AND ALSO THERE ARE SOME
INTER-DEPARTMENT SILOS THAT WE
WANT TO WE WANT TO ADDRESS AND
BETTER POSITION. YOU KNOW, OUR
TEAMS TO MOVE MORE, BE MORE
NIMBLE, MOVE MORE QUICKLY. SO
THANK YOU. THANK YOU
-- OKAY. THE LAST CONCEPT THAT
WE WANT TO SHARE WITH YOU ALL
TODAY IS THAT'S CURRENTLY UNDER
DEVELOPMENT IS THE IDEA OF
CREATING AN ORDINANCE THAT WOULD
REQUIRE CONTRACTORS, CITY
CONTRACTORS, TO HAVE SIDE GUARDS
ON THEIR TRUCKS. AND SO THIS
BILL, AS ENVISIONED, WOULD
REQUIRE ALL CONTRACTORS USING
TRUCKS IN THE CITY TO DO WORK.
SORRY, ALL CONTRACTORS DOING
WORK IN THE CITY NO, LET ME SAY
THAT AGAIN. ALL CITY CONTRACTORS
WITH TRUCKS DOING OUR WORK WOULD
HAVE SIDE GUARDS INSTALLED. SIDE
GUARDS ARE THE SAFETY BARRIERS
INSTALLED ON THE SIDES OF TRUCKS
AS SEEN IN THIS VISUAL, WHICH
WILL HELP PREVENT PEDESTRIANS,
CYCLISTS AND MOTORCYCLISTS FROM
BEING RUN OVER OR CRUSHED IN.
WHEN SIDE IMPACTS OCCUR. SIDE
IMPACT COLLISIONS OCCUR.
-- THANK THANK YOU AMANDA. AND
SO SOME ADDITIONAL CONTEXT ON
THAT PARTICULAR INITIATIVE.
FIRST OFF, I WANT TO THANK
COMMUNITY FOR ALL OF THEIR
TREMENDOUS IDEAS AND, AND
INVOLVEMENT. AND, YOU KNOW,
HELPING OUR OFFICE COBBLE
TOGETHER COMMUNITY. THAT'S
EFFECTIVELY WHAT WENT ON HERE.
COBBLE, WE COBBLE TOGETHER
COMMUNITY IDEAS INTO A
COMPREHENSIVE THREE PIECE
LEGISLATIVE PACKAGE. AND THIS IS
ONE OF THOSE COMMUNITY IDEAS
THAT HAS BEEN LONG HAS BEEN
CITED, OFTEN CITED AND REQUESTED
SINCE AT LEAST EARLIER THIS
SUMMER. BUT THE CONVERSATION
PRECEDED THAT AS WELL. AND SO I
WANT TO THANK THE THE MANY
ADVOCATES, THIS ONE HERE IS
WE'RE PROBABLY, YOU KNOW, LEAST
ALONG IN TERMS OF FINALIZING,
BUT WE'RE WE'RE WE'RE STILL
FAIRLY CLOSE, WHICH IS WHICH IS
GOOD NEWS AND GOOD NEWS. I WANT
TO THANK TOM FROM THE SEATTLE
BIKE BLOG FOR HIS REPORTING
YESTERDAY REVEALED THAT THERE IS
A MODEL TO, TO BUILD OFF OF THE
BOSTON. THE CITY OF BOSTON
CODIFIED A. THE FIRST IN THE
NATION TRUCK CIGAR CONTRACTOR
TRUCK CIGAR ORDINANCE BACK IN I
THINK 2014. AND SO WE HOPE TO.
AS PART OF THIS EFFORT, LEVERAGE
THAT AS A MODEL, AS AT LEAST AS
A STARTING POINT TO TO BUILD OUT
OUR OWN SORT OF ORDINANCE. AND
FOR CLARITY, THESE ARE STARTING
POINTS ONLY. BUT CONTINUED IN
ACTION. AND, AND, YOU KNOW,
HOPING THESE BEST PRACTICES
SURVIVE AND ADMINISTRATIONS
LEADERS POLICY POLICY SHIFTS AND
CHANGES OVER TIME, YOU KNOW, IS
NOT IS NOT THE BEST APPROACH. SO
THAT'S WHY WE ENDEAVOR TO MAKE
THESE BEST PRACTICES MORE
DURABLE. IN ANY EVENT, LOOKS
LIKE WE ARE WRAPPED UP WITH WITH
THE PRESENTATION. IS THAT
CORRECT?
-- YES. I COULD JUST ONLY SHARE
THAT THIS COMMITTEE WILL BE
MEETING AGAIN ON SEPTEMBER 8th,
AND WE WOULD PLAN TO CONTINUE
BRIEFING A DISCUSSION THAT WILL
NEXT BE MEETING ON SEPTEMBER
17th, WHERE WE HOPE FOR A
BRIEFING AND DISCUSSION AND
POSSIBLE VOTE ON THIS
LEGISLATION.
-- THANK YOU, AMANDA. AND BEFORE
I TAKE ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS,
COMMENTS FROM MY COLLEAGUES, I
WANT TO JUST JUST SHARE THAT
THIS IS OBVIOUSLY A VERY
COMPREHENSIVE PIECE OF COMMUNITY
DRIVEN LEGISLATION THAT STITCHES
STITCHES TOGETHER, SAFETY
PROJECT REVIEW, POST FATALITY
RESPONSE AUTHORITY, DAYLIGHTING,
VULNERABLE USERS, TRANSPARENCY,
CONTRACTOR SAFETY AND OTHER
CRITICAL COMMUNITY LED
INITIATIVES. AND TO THAT END, I
WANT TO THANK THE MANY COMMUNITY
ADVOCATES FOR PARTNERING AGAIN
SO CLOSELY WITH ME. AND MY
OFFICE TO DEVELOP THIS PACKAGE.
I CAN'T EMPHASIZE ENOUGH HOW
INSTRUMENTAL COMMUNITY IDEAS
WERE TO FORMULATING AND REVISING
THIS PACKAGE. AGAIN, DIVERSE
COALITION OF ADVOCATES, AFFECTED
FAMILIES, YOUTH TRANSPORTATION
ADVOCATES, LABOR AND OTHERS. SO
CAN'T CAN'T THANK FOLKS ENOUGH
ALL RIGHT. WELL THANK YOU, MISS
ALLEN. MR. CHOW, APPRECIATE THE
PRESENTATION HERE, COLLEAGUES. I
WILL TURN IT OVER TO YOU ALL FOR
ANY COMMENTS, QUESTIONS YOU MAY
HAVE FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE,
STARTING FIRST WITH VICE CHAIR
RINCK.
-- THANK YOU, CHAIR SAKA. I, I
WANT TO START MY REMARKS TODAY.
JUST ACKNOWLEDGING THE GRIEF
THAT'S IN THIS ROOM. AND I WANT
TO THANK EVERY PERSON WHO CAME
HERE TODAY TO SHARE ABOUT THEIR
LOVED ONES AND THE LIVES THAT
WE'VE LOST. MARY SHOULD BE
HERE. CHRISTIAN SHOULD BE HERE.
LILIANA SHOULD BE HERE. SO MANY
OTHERS SHOULD BE HERE. I KNOW
MANY PEOPLE IN THIS COMMUNITY
FOLLOW URBANIST JOURNALIST RYAN
PACKER, WHO REPORTS ON OUR
NEIGHBORS WHO ARE INJURED AND
KILLED ON SEATTLE STREETS AND I
ALWAYS GET NERVOUS WHEN I SEE A
POST FROM FROM RYAN FOR WHAT IT
MEANS KNOWING THE RIPPLING
IMPACTS THAT EVERY INJURY OR
DEATH IN OUR COMMUNITY AND WHAT
IT WHAT IT DOES TO ALL OF US. I
FOUND OUT MY FRIEND DIED FROM
ONE OF THOSE POSTS SO I THIS
CONVERSATION, EVERY DISCUSSION
WE HAVE ON VISION ZERO IN THIS
COMMITTEE FEELS VERY REAL, AND I
WANTED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT
BECAUSE WE ARE TALKING ABOUT OUR
NEIGHBORS WHO EVERY SINGLE ONE
OF THESE DEATHS IS ENTIRELY
PREVENTABLE. AND WE'VE LACKED
THE POLITICAL WILL AND FOCUS TO
BE ABLE TO MOVE THE ACTION THAT
HAS BEEN SO NEEDED. I KNOW MY
OFFICE HAS EXPLORED A NUMBER OF
THINGS. THE CITY CAN BE TAKING
UP. WE'VE HIT DEAD ENDS. WE'VE
FOUND WAYS, BARRIERS IN THE
WORK, BUT THERE'S STILL MUCH THE
CITY CAN AND SHOULD BE DOING.
BUILT ENVIRONMENT CHANGES.
THERE'S ACTION AND PARTNERSHIP
THAT WE NEED ON THE STATE LEVEL
TO BE ABLE TO MAKE THE CHANGES
THAT WE NEED. AND I KNOW ALL OF
US ON THIS BODY WANT TO BE ABLE
TO PUSH FORWARD FOR THAT CHANGE,
BECAUSE MEANINGFUL ACTION IS
OVERDUE. SO I'M GRATEFUL FOR
THE DISCUSSION TODAY, AND I'M
GLAD THAT WE ARE CONTINUING TO
MAKE THIS A FOCUS IN THIS
COMMITTEE. I UNDERSTAND THIS
DRAFT BILL BECAME PUBLIC
YESTERDAY, SO I HAVEN'T SPENT
AS MUCH TIME WITH THIS
LEGISLATION AS I WOULD HAVE
LIKED BEFORE THIS COMMITTEE. SO
MY QUESTIONS ON THIS TODAY ARE
MUCH MORE CLARIFYING ON WHAT
THIS LEGISLATION DOES
OPERATIONALLY AND PARTICULARLY
HOW THIS TRANSLATES TO
MEANINGFUL ACTION THAT OUR
COMMUNITY IS DEMANDING AND
FRANKLY, DESERVES. SO ON THAT
NOTE, THANK YOU, AMANDA, FOR
WALKING THROUGH THESE PIECES OF
LEGISLATION FOR IN JUST THE
SIMPLEST OF TERMS, CAN YOU
HIGHLIGHT WHAT ASPECTS OF THE
TWO DRAFT BILLS THAT ARE
DEVELOPED BEFORE US? I KNOW
THERE'S A THIRD BILL THAT IS
STILL PENDING DEVELOPMENT, BUT
FOR THE TWO DRAFT BILLS WHAT ARE
THE KIND OF CLEAR DIFFERENCES
BETWEEN CURRENT SDOT WORK AND
WHAT THESE BILLS ARE PROPOSING
TO DO?
-- YEAH. THANK YOU,
COUNCILMEMBER. I WOULD SAY THE
THE LEADING FOCUS OF THESE BILLS
IS REALLY TO WORK TO CODIFY
THINGS THAT ARE ALREADY TAKING
PLACE THAT WE THINK ARE BEST
PRACTICE AND ARE ALIGNED WITH.
IN THE TRANSPORTATION INDUSTRY
IS CONSENSUS AS WHERE WE WANT TO
BE GOING. SO IT WORKS TO CODIFY
VISION ZERO, WHICH IS A POLICY
THAT'S BEEN OPERATIONALIZED
WITHIN SDOT. IT REALLY WORKS TO
INFUSE AND ENSURE THROUGH THE
CODE THAT VISION ZERO IS SHOWING
UP IN ALL ASPECTS OF SCOTT'S
WORK. AND THEN AGAIN, WORKS TO
OPERATIONALIZE OR SORRY, CODIFY
WHAT'S BEEN OPERATIONALIZED
WITHIN SDOT AS FAR AS THE THE
TRAFFIC ENGINEERS ROLES AND
RESPONSIBILITIES OF FORMALIZING
THE TRAFFIC. THE CHIEF SAFETY
OFFICER ROLE WITHIN. SO REALLY,
WE'RE WE'RE LOOKING AT OUR
LEGISLATIVE RESPONSIBILITY OR
OUR LEGISLATIVE OPPORTUNITY TO
CODIFY THINGS THAT HAVE BEEN
OPERATIONALIZED I THINK IT ALSO
ASKS SDOT TO CREATE ADDITIONAL
DATA AROUND THE SAFETY
COUNTERMEASURES AND TO MAKE
THOSE COUNTERMEASURES. THE
INSTALLATION OF THOSE
COUNTERMEASURES VISIBLE TO THE
PUBLIC AND ADDITIONALLY,
FORMALLY GRANTS THE
RESPONSIBILITIES OF IMMEDIATE
RESPONSE TO THE TRAFFIC
ENGINEER.
-- THANK YOU FOR THAT, AMANDA.
WHEN I LOOK AT
-- SECTION ONE OF THE FIRST
DRAFT BILL. I'M NOTICING JUST IN
THE THE BEGINNING PORTION,
THESE. SECTION ONE READS AS
RECITALS. SOME OF THESE. SEEM I
WANT TO SAY JUST. I'M JUST
NOTICING SOME LANGUAGE
DIFFERENCES HERE IN THE RECITAL
SECTION IN TERMS OF DECLARING
AND THAT THAT FIRST PORTION. AND
I'M WONDERING WHY THESE ARE.
THIS LANGUAGE IS REFLECTED THIS
WAY AND THAT WE'RE PUTTING SOME
OF THIS INTO CODE RATHER THAN
HAVING THESE AS TYPICAL RECITAL
PARAGRAPHS
-- PERHAPS THE CHAIR WANTS TO
RESPOND TO THAT.
-- YEAH, I CAN SPEAK ON THAT.
APPRECIATE THE QUESTION. AND
I'LL LET CENTRAL STAFF CHIME IN
IF THEY HAVE ANY OTHER THOUGHTS.
BUT RECITALS ARE IMPORTANT.
THEY'RE ALSO NON-BINDING. AND
SO THE GOAL AND INTENT HERE IS
TO PUT THE THE MOST IMPACTFUL
FINDINGS OF FACTS. I THINK
THAT'S WHAT THE THE FRAMING
HERE IS FINDING COUNCIL FINDINGS
OF FACT AND DECLARATIONS THAT
UNDERLIE THIS IMPORTANT WORK AND
REALLY SHOW OUR INTENT, POLICY
GOAL AND RATIONALE, AND SORT OF
REALLY SPEAK TO WHY AND, AND,
BUT DO SO IN, IN A MORE
STRINGENT AND BINDING MANNER.
AND, BUT IT'S AN ASTUTE
OBSERVATION THAT THEY, THEY
DEFINITELY READ LIKE RECITALS,
BUT THAT IS AN INTENTIONAL
POLICY CHOICE TO STRUCTURE IT IN
SUCH A WAY TO MAKE IT MORE
DURABLE AND BINDING.
-- THANK YOU FOR OUTLINING THAT.
I WAS THAT WAS JUST A POINT OF
CURIOSITY. AND SO UNDERSTANDING
THAT A DIRECT DECISION TO PUT
THIS INTO CODE, TO ENSURE THAT
THESE COMPONENTS ARE BINDING IS
HELPFUL TO UNDERSTAND AND
WONDERING. JUST IN THAT SAME
SPIRIT, I KNOW WE TALKED A
LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE NEW FATAL
CRASH POLICY THAT THE DEPARTMENT
HAS DEVELOPED. I AM UNCLEAR AT
THIS TIME WHAT THE EFFECTIVE
DATE OF THAT HAS BEEN. I DON'T
KNOW IF WE'VE PUT THAT POLICY
INTO PRACTICE YET. I MEAN, AND
IF IT'S ACTUALLY BEEN INTO PLAY,
WOULD LOVE SOME ADDITIONAL
DETAIL ON THAT POINT.
-- SO THE THE POLICY MEMO THAT
THE COUNCILMEMBER WAS REFERRING
TO EARLIER, THE MAY 18th, 2026
PROGRAMMATIC FATAL CRASH
RESPONSE POLICY IS SOMETHING
THAT'S IN EFFECT IN STOCK
CURRENTLY.
-- CERTAINLY. THANK YOU. AND
WONDERING TO JUST THIS MATTER OF
HEARING THAT THE INTENT IS TO
INCORPORATE THIS LANGUAGE INTO
CODE, I I'M WONDERING HOW WE CAN
STRIKE THE BALANCE TO
UNDERSTANDING HAVING FLEXIBILITY
FOR THE DEPARTMENT TO BE ABLE TO
ITERATE AS THEY IMPLEMENT THIS
NEW POLICY, AND WONDERING IF
CENTRAL STAFF HAS AN ANALYSIS ON
WHETHER SOME OF THESE MOVES MAY
BIND THE DEPARTMENT IN A WAY
THAT COULD BE COUNTERINTUITIVE.
-- THE. THE FATAL CRASH RESPONSE
POLICY DOES HAVE TWO DIFFERENT
PHASES OF RESPONSE. THERE IS
PHASE ONE, WHICH THEY DESCRIBE
AS FATAL CRASH RAPID RESPONSE,
WHICH IS TYPICALLY 2 TO 4 WEEKS
AFTER A POLICE. AFTER THE FINAL
POLICE TRAFFIC COLLISION REPORT.
SO THAT'S NOT AFTER THE ACCIDENT
HAPPENS, BUT RATHER AFTER WE GET
THE POLICE REPORT. AND THAT IS
TO ADDRESS MAINTENANCE AND
REPAIR OPTIONS AND PROVIDE
REPAIR OPTIONS AS APPROPRIATE,
WHICH THEN WOULD BE BUILT WITHIN
1 TO 3 MONTHS. AND IT HAS A
PHASE TWO RESPONSE, WHICH TAKES
A MORE PROGRAMMATIC REVIEW OF
FATAL CRASHES. AND IS SOMETHING
THAT TAKES PLACE EVERY SIX
MONTHS. SO IT'S NOT IT'S NOT
BOUND TO ONE SINGLE CRASH AT ONE
LOCATION. IT'S A BRIGHTER,
BROADER, CITY WIDE VIEW. SO
ANYTHING DEPARTING FROM WHAT'S
IN THE POLICY CURRENTLY IS
SOMETHING I WOULD HAVE TO
EXPLORE WITH THE DEPARTMENT. AND
AS I UNDERSTAND IT, THIS
RESPONSE POLICY IS A SIGNIFICANT
CHANGE FROM WHAT SDOT HAS
COMMITTED TO IN THE PAST WITH A
SHORTER TIME FRAME
-- THANK YOU AMANDA. AND JUST TO
PILE ON, APPRECIATE THE
QUESTION, VICE CHAIR RINCK, JUST
TO PILE ON FROM THE AUTHOR'S
INTENT PERSPECTIVE I, I SHARE
100% SHARE YOUR GOAL. YOU KNOW,
LIKE AS IMPLIED BY THE QUESTION
THAT, YOU KNOW, LIKE WE DON'T
WANT TO HAVE ADVERSE OR
UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES. AND SO,
AND THAT'S WHY, YOU KNOW, I ASK
CENTRAL STAFF TO WORK CLOSELY
WITH THE DEPARTMENT TO CODIFY
WHAT THEY DO TODAY. IT IS I NOTE
THAT THIS IS A FOUR PAGE
DOCUMENT. SO OBVIOUSLY WE WOULD
NOT, YOU KNOW, DETAIL WITH WITH
THE PROLIXITY OF A CODE, ALL
FOUR PAGES, BUT INCLUDE JUST
HIGH LEVEL ELEMENTS ONLY. AND
THE INTENT GOAL THERE. JUST WANT
TO EMPHASIZE IS DURABILITY. WE
KNOW THE DEPARTMENT IS ABLE TO
DO THIS TODAY, AND THEY'RE DOING
THIS TODAY. AND, AND IT'S A GOOD
START. WE ALSO WANT STRONGER,
MORE RAPID ACTION AS WELL. AND
THE INTENT IS TO PUT US ON A
PATH. BUT I SHARE YOUR GOAL AND
LOOK FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU
AND, AND CENTRAL STAFF TO
FINALIZE THAT LANGUAGE.
-- THANK YOU. CHAIR SAKA. AND IF
I MAY, I JUST HAVE ONE LAST
QUESTION ON THIS. IF WE CAN GO
TO PAGE FOUR OF THE
PRESENTATION, IT IT LISTS SOME
AREAS HERE THAT ARE STILL
UNDECIDED OR UP IN THE AIR, BUT
A PART OF THE CONVERSATION ON
THIS ARE JUST FOR THE PURPOSES
OF MY UNDERSTANDING, ARE THESE
POLICIES MEANT TO BE INCLUDED IN
THIS BILL, OR ARE WE GOING TO BE
CONSIDERING THEM AT A LATER
DATE? AND I ASK BECAUSE JUST
THINKING ABOUT DIGGING INTO THIS
TOPIC, I'M I'M JUST WONDERING
KIND OF WHAT IF THERE'S GOING TO
BE MAJOR CHANGES TAKING PLACE
WITH THIS BILL? I KNOW WE'RE
WORKING UNDER A VERY COMPRESSED
TIMELINE.
-- THE GOAL CURRENTLY IS TO TRY
TO INCLUDE AS MANY OF THESE INTO
THE CURRENT BILL FOR FOR THE
SEPTEMBER MEETING DATES.
-- OKAY. THANK YOU, THANK YOU,
THANK YOU.
-- THANK YOU, VICE CHAIR, AND
GREAT QUESTIONS. APPRECIATE THE
FEEDBACK THERE. AND I CAN'T
EMPHASIZE ENOUGH THE THE
CONSTRUCTS UNDERLYING THIS, THIS
WHOLE PACKAGE OF DURABILITY. SO
AS, AS WAS NOTED, YOU KNOW, WITH
VICE CHAIRS, QUESTIONS AND, AND
SOME OF THE PUBLIC COMMENT WE
HEARD TODAY, THIS PACKAGE
CODIFIES KEY ELEMENTS OF S
DOT'S CURRENT APPROACH. THAT'S
AN INTENTIONAL CHOICE BECAUSE
AGAIN, ADMINISTRATIVE POLICIES
AT THE DEPARTMENT LEVEL CHANGE
LEADERSHIP CHANGES, PRIORITIES
CHANGE, PRACTICES DISAPPEAR.
WAYNE. SO THE PURPOSE OF
LEGISLATION IS IN PART TO DECIDE
WHICH PRACTICES ARE SUFFICIENTLY
IMPORTANT THAT THEY SHOULD
OUTLAST THE PEOPLE CURRENTLY
RUNNING CITY HALL. SO ON THE ONE
HAND, THIS PACKAGE CERTAINLY
DOES CODIFY KEY ELEMENTS OF S
DOT'S APPROACH. ON THE OTHER
HAND, IT GOES BEYOND THAT IN A
MORE COMPREHENSIVE MANNER AND
DOES OTHER THINGS, INCLUDING
MANDATORY SAFETY PROJECT
REVIEWS, EXPANDED CROSS SILO
AUTHORITY, SYSTEMIC AND
AUTOMATIC DAYLIGHTING,
CONTRACTOR CIGAR PROTECTIONS,
AND LEGISLATIVELY REQUIRED
PATHWAY TOWARD FASTER FATAL
CRASH RESPONSE, AMONG OTHER
THINGS. AND SO DURABILITY IS THE
HALLMARK OF OF THIS LEGISLATIVE
PACKAGE. ALL RIGHT. BUT GREAT
QUESTIONS. COUNCILMEMBER FOSTER
YOU'RE RECOGNIZED.
-- THANK YOU SO MUCH, CHAIR. AND
I'LL JUST START BY SAYING I
APPRECIATE EVERYONE THAT WAS
HERE TODAY. AND JUST MY
GRATITUDE TO THE DEPARTMENT FOR
THEIR WORK AND, AND JUST FEELING
THE HEAVINESS OF LISTENING TO
THE FAMILIES HERE TESTIFY THIS
MORNING AND OTHER COMMUNITY
MEMBERS, JUST TESTIFY ABOUT YOUR
EXPERIENCE. AND I KNOW THAT THAT
IS NOT EASY TO BOTH HAVE THE
EXPERIENCE AND THEN COME SHARE
IT WITH US IN THE PUBLIC. SO I
JUST WANT TO TAKE A MOMENT AND
SAY THANK YOU FOR, FOR DOING
THAT WORK. AND YEAH, JUST
FEELING HEAVY. BUT I'M REALLY
LOOKING FORWARD TO CONTINUED
THOUGHTFUL CONVERSATION ON HOW
WE MAKE PROGRESS AS A CITY TO
ACHIEVE VISION ZERO. I WANT TO
ASK A QUESTION AROUND THE THE
CODIFICATION OF THE THE SAFETY
STANDARD AND FOLLOW UP A LITTLE
BIT ON COUNCILMEMBER RINCK
QUESTIONS AND VICE CHAIR RIGGS
QUESTIONS. SO, YOU KNOW, AS WE
SEE THE NEW SAFETY STANDARD CAME
FROM THE DEPARTMENT, I THINK IN
IN MAY, DO WE HAVE EXAMPLES OF
WHERE THE SAFETY STANDARD HAS
BEEN APPLIED ALREADY?
-- ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT THE
FATAL POST CRASH?
-- YEAH.
-- THAT'S CORRECT. THE FOUR
PAGE DOCUMENT.
-- AND YOU'RE WONDERING IF IF
WHAT INSTANCES SDOT HAS ALREADY
YOU KNOW, I'M I AM NOT AWARE
WITH AWARE OF SPECIFIC
APPLICATIONS. AND I UNDERSTAND
THAT THIS IS ALREADY IN PLACE.
AND I HAVE TO BELIEVE THAT.
WELL, I, I BELIEVE WE'VE HAD
SOME FATALITIES. WELL SINCE MAY
HAVE WE HAD.
-- SO I CAN FOLLOW UP WITH THE
DEPARTMENT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT
THE APPLICATION OF THE NEW
STANDARD. AND IN PART, THE.
THAT'S RELATING TO MY OTHER
QUESTION, WHICH IS JUST THROUGH
THE PROPOSAL HERE TO CODIFY THIS
STANDARD. WOULD THAT REQUIRE.
THEN START COMING BACK TO
COUNCIL IF THEY WANT TO CONTINUE
TO MAKE IMPROVEMENTS IN THEIR
SAFETY RESPONSE, WOULD THEY THEN
NEED TO COME BACK TO US TO GET
THAT RESPONSE APPROVED, OR WOULD
THEY BE ABLE TO KEEP MAKING
IMPROVEMENTS AND ITERATING
WITHOUT COUNCIL APPROVAL?
-- YEAH, THAT'S A GOOD
QUESTION. COUNCILMEMBER. I THINK
IT WOULD DEPEND. WE HAVEN'T
FINALIZED LANGUAGE, PROPOSED
LANGUAGE FOR AN ORDINANCE, AND
IT WOULD DEPEND ON HOW STRINGENT
THAT LANGUAGE IS, HOW NARROW THE
LANGUAGE IS. IF IT REFERS ONLY
TO S DOT'S PROGRAMMATIC FATAL
CRASH RESPONSE POLICY. IN BROAD
TERMS, THEN I WOULD SAY THAT
WOULD ALLOW THEM TO CONTINUE TO
ITERATE AND MAKE CHANGES. IF IT
WAS PRESCRIPTIVE AND SAID THAT
CERTAIN THINGS HAD TO HAPPEN
WITHIN A CERTAIN TIMELINE, THAT
MIRRORED THE CURRENT POLICY,
THEN THAT WOULD REQUIRE THEM TO
COME BACK IF THEY DECIDED THEY
NEEDED TO MAKE CHANGES.
-- OKAY. THAT'S HELPFUL. AND I
THINK I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE
THAT IN THE PURSUIT OF THIS,
THIS POLICY, I WANT TO MAKE SURE
THAT WE ARE ALLOWING THE
DEPARTMENT TO CONTINUE MAKING
IMPROVEMENTS. AND I THINK IT
WAS, YOU KNOW, THEIR THEIR WORK
INSIDE THE DEPARTMENT THAT PUT
TOGETHER THIS NEW RESPONSE IN
MAY. AND I WOULDN'T WANT US TO
TAKE AN ACTION THAT HAMPERS
THEIR ABILITY TO CONTINUE TO
INNOVATE AND SPEED UP THEIR
RESPONSES IN PURSUIT OF
ACHIEVING VISION ZERO. SO
THAT'S SOMETHING WE CAN
CONTINUE TO ENGAGE ON AS THIS
LEGISLATION GETS FURTHER
DEVELOPED AND FLESHED OUT.
-- THE COUNCILMEMBER FOSTER, IF
I MAY, BECAUSE I APPRECIATE THAT
QUESTION. I KNOW IT WAS DIRECTED
AT CENTRAL STAFF, BUT I'LL JUST
PILE ON JUST FROM, YOU KNOW, THE
THE AUTHOR'S PERSPECTIVE, 100%
SHARE THE THE GOAL. THEY'RE NOT,
YOU KNOW, IN TERMS OF NOT
WANTING TO LIMIT OR IMPEDE THE
DEPARTMENT'S ABILITY TO, TO
FURTHER ITERATE TO, TO OPERATE,
TO OPERATIONALIZE AND IMPROVE
THE CURRENT STANDARD. AND
COULDN'T AGREE MORE. IT REALLY
DEPENDS ON HOW IT'S STRUCTURED.
BUT I'LL SHARE, YOU KNOW, FROM
AN AUTHOR'S PERSPECTIVE,
DEFINITELY SHARE THAT GOAL. THE
INTENT HERE IS TO CODIFY THE
CURRENT EXISTING POLICIES AS THE
NEW BASELINE, AS THE NEW
BASELINE. THAT SDOT IS FREE TO
AND FULLY FLEXIBLE ENOUGH TO ON
ITS OWN, ITERATE, IMPROVE, MAKE
BETTER. THEY JUST COULDN'T. THE
THE LEGISLATIVE INTENT THERE,
THEY JUST COULDN'T WATER IT DOWN
OR PARE IT BACK IN ANY WAY. IF
ANYTHING, YOU KNOW, THEY, THEY,
THEY, YOU KNOW, WOULD, I WOULD
APPRECIATE IF THEY MAKE IT MORE
STRINGENT. AND THEN THE NEXT
PIECE OF THAT, YOU KNOW, IS WHAT
I MENTIONED EARLIER IS, YOU
KNOW, PART OF THIS WOULD REQUIRE
THEM TO COME BACK WITH A PLAN
AND A PROPOSAL AND WITH SOME
OPTIONS TO INCLUDING WHAT
RESOURCES AND PERSONNEL, YOU
KNOW, WOULD BE REQUIRED TO HAVE
A MORE STRINGENT, EXACTING
STANDARD, YOU KNOW, IDEALLY WITH
THE GOAL OF GETTING A 72 HOUR
RESPONSE, YOU KNOW, WINDOW. SO
BUT GREAT QUESTION. THANK YOU.
-- THANK YOU. AND THEN THE OTHER
QUESTION I WANTED TO ASK, I
APPRECIATED THE REFERENCE WITH
THE CONTRACTOR SIDE GUARD
REQUIREMENT. I APPRECIATED THE
REFERENCE TO BOSTON AS I THINK I
THINK MAYBE THAT CAME FROM THE
CHAIR EARLIER TODAY. I'M JUST
WONDERING, WHEN IT COMES TO SOME
OF THE OTHER COMPONENTS THAT ARE
IN THE THE TWO PIECES OF
LEGISLATION ARE THERE, AND I
KNOW MUCH OF WHAT YOU KNOW, IT
SEEMS THAT WE'RE PROPOSING IS
THE CODIFICATION OF EXISTING
STANDARDS. AND WE KNOW THAT
INTERSECTION DAYLIGHTING IS AN
ONGOING NEED AND AN ONGOING BODY
OF WORK. BUT MY QUESTION IS, ARE
THERE ANY OTHER PIECES OF THE
PACKAGE THAT ARE SORT OF BUILT
ON SUCCESSFUL WORK IN OTHER
CITIES? I THINK ONE OF THE
THINGS WE WANT TO CONTINUE TO DO
WITH VISION ZERO IS LOOK AT WHAT
WORKS AND WHAT'S PROVEN, AND
MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE KEEPING
PACE AND IMPLEMENTING. AND I
WONDER IF YOU CAN JUST SPEAK TO
ANY OF THE PROPOSED CHANGES HERE
AND HOW THEY MIRROR OR REFLECT
KNOWN BEST PRACTICES.
-- SURE. SO, I MEAN, AS, AS I
MENTIONED EARLIER, VISION ZERO
WAS FIRST LAUNCHED IN 2015.
IT'S NOT A STATIC POLICY. AND
SDOT HAS CONTINUED TO ITERATE
AND IMPROVE UPON IT BASED ON OUR
OWN EXPERIENCE AS A CITY AND
ALSO ON OTHER CITIES.
EXPERIENCES. THAT BEING SAID,
THERE'S NOTHING IN THE CURRENT
DOCUMENTS THAT SPECIFICALLY IN
THE LAST MONTHS WAS INSPIRED BY
ONE PARTICULAR JURISDICTION.
-- GOT IT. THANK YOU. AND THEN
FINALLY, I KNOW THAT THE THE
THIRD PIECE OF LEGISLATION IS
UNDER DEVELOPMENT. DO WE KNOW
WHEN WE'RE. WELL, WE CAN EXPECT
TO SEE A DRAFT OF THAT
LEGISLATION, OR ARE WE
ANTICIPATING THAT THAT WOULD NOT
BE PART OF THE SEPTEMBER
COMMITTEE?
-- THE CHAIR'S GOAL IS THAT IT
WOULD BE PART OF THE SEPTEMBER
COMMITTEE REVIEW. I THINK WHAT
WE'RE WORKING ON RIGHT NOW IS
TRYING TO IDENTIFY REALLY HOW TO
CODIFY THAT REQUIREMENT, BECAUSE
IT WOULD IF WE'RE GOING TO MAKE
A REQUIREMENT, WE WOULD NEED TO
KNOW. WE NEED TO HAVE MORE
INFORMATION ABOUT THE TYPES OF
TRUCKS THAT WOULD BE IMPACTED.
AND POTENTIALLY COST IT COST TO
OUR CONTRACTS. AND THAT
INFORMATION IS NOT SOMETHING
THAT WE HAVE AT THE MOMENT.
-- OKAY. THANK YOU SO MUCH.
THANK YOU CHAIR.
-- THANK YOU, COUNCILMEMBER
FOSTER. EXCELLENT QUESTIONS AND
AND, AND APPRECIATE CENTRAL
STAFF COMMENT ON THAT AND, AND
REVEALING THE OPPORTUNITY. YOU
KNOW, GOOD NEWS IS THERE'S A
MODEL TO, TO, TO USE AND, YOU
KNOW, FIGURE OUT THE SEATTLE
SPECIFIC LEGISLATIVE
IMPLEMENTATION, WHAT THAT WOULD
BEST LOOK LIKE FOR THIS. WHEN WE
TALK ABOUT THE 2014 BOSTON
ORDINANCE. SO APPRECIATE MEDIA
JOURNALISTS, TOM, FOR, FOR
SURFACING THAT OPPORTUNITY. ALL
RIGHT. ANY FINAL COMMENTS
QUESTIONS COLLEAGUES ON THIS
PARTICULAR ITEM. ALL RIGHT.
LOOKS LIKE HEARING AND SEEING
NONE. THANK YOU. MR. CHOW. MISS
ALLEN AGAIN FOR YOUR
PRESENTATION TODAY. AND MORE
IMPORTANTLY FOR THE WORK, THE
TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF WORK THAT
HAS GONE INTO THIS PACKAGE
TODAY. AND AND WE'LL GO INTO IT
IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS FOR CLARITY
IN THE RECORD, I EXPECT THE
COMPLETE LEGISLATIVE PACKAGE TO
BE INTRODUCED, REFERRED TO THIS
COMMITTEE AND READY FOR
CONSIDERATION AT OUR SEPTEMBER
8th SPECIAL MEETING OF THIS
COMMITTEE SO THAT WE CAN FULLY
CONSIDER IT. AND THEN REMAIN
POSITIONED FOR POTENTIAL
COMMITTEE ACTION ON SEPTEMBER
17th, BEFORE OUR ANNUAL BUDGET
DELIBERATIONS PAUSE REGULAR
COMMITTEE WORK, WHICH WILL ALLOW
US TO TREAT THIS IMPORTANT ISSUE
WITH THE. THE URGENCY AND ACTION
THAT IT DESERVES FROM A
LEGISLATIVE PERSPECTIVE. SO, SO
PLEASE WORK WITH ME. CONTINUE TO
WORK WITH ME IN MY OFFICE AND
ORGANIZE THE REMAINING DRAFTING
AND REVIEW ACCORDINGLY. I ALSO
WANT TO THANK THE CITY ATTORNEY,
EVANS, FOR HER PARTNERSHIP ON
THIS AND THE CITY ATTORNEY AND
THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE. I
ESPECIALLY APPRECIATE HOW THEY
GRACIOUSLY AGREED TO HELP
PRIORITIZE AND EXPEDITE LEGAL
REVIEWS OF THIS PACKAGE AND SOME
SOME IMPORTANT LEGAL GUIDANCE TO
TO HELP SHAPE THIS. SO REALLY
APPRECIATE THE PARTNERSHIP HERE.
AND THANK YOU FOR THE INITIAL
BRIEFING. ALL RIGHT. WE WILL NOW
MOVE ON TO OUR SECOND ITEM OF
BUSINESS. WILL THE CLERK PLEASE
READ ITEM TWO INTO THE RECORD.
-- AGENDA ITEM TWO BRIEFING,
DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE VOTE
RESOLUTION 32215 A RESOLUTION
APPOINTING THE MEMBERS OF THE
TRANSPORTATION FUNDING TASK
FORCE.
-- ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. LOOKS
LIKE OUR PRESENTERS ARE JOINING
US AT THE TABLE. WELCOME. WHEN
YOU'RE READY, PLEASE DO
INTRODUCE YOURSELVES AND BEGIN
YOUR PRESENTATION.
-- BELL SEATTLE DEPARTMENT OF
TRANSPORTATION.
-- MEGAN SHEPHERD, DEPARTMENT OF
TRANSPORTATION DIRECTOR OF
POLICY AND PLANNING
-- SARAH STRAND, SEATTLE.
-- DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
POLICY AND PLANNING.
-- I WOULD LIKE TO BEGIN TODAY
BY THANKING ALL OF THE ATTENDEES
WHO ARE HERE, AS WELL AS THE
MEMBERS OF THE COMMITTEE AND THE
CHAIR, FOR HAVING US HERE TO
ADVANCE THIS IMPORTANT WORK. I
THINK THE COMMENTS THAT WE'VE
HEARD TODAY CONNECTED TO SAFETY
AND CONCERNS ABOUT SAFETY TIED
DIRECTLY TO THE WORK THAT WE'RE
GOING TO BE ASKING THE
TRANSPORTATION FUNDING TASK
FORCE TO ADVANCE. AND I
APPRECIATE YOU MAKING THAT
LINKAGE. IN YOUR OPENING
COMMENTS, CHAIR, WHEN THE 2024
SEATTLE TRANSPORTATION LEVY WAS
COMING TOGETHER, THE LEVY, WHICH
WE'RE SO THANKFUL TO THE VOTERS
FOR APPROVING BECAUSE OF THE
DEDICATED, STABLE FUNDING THAT
ALLOWS US TO PUT INTO SAFETY
IMPROVEMENTS AS WELL AS THE
OTHER NEEDS OF OUR
TRANSPORTATION NETWORK. BUT WE
REALLY HEARD A LOT FROM THE
STAKEHOLDERS WHO WERE INVOLVED
IN THAT PROCESS ABOUT NEEDS
BEYOND THE EIGHT YEAR LIFE OF A
LEVY, THAT THEY WERE REALLY
ASKING US TO CONSIDER AND
ADDRESS AS WELL. AND SO THESE
NEEDS WENT INTO THE ACTUAL FINAL
LEGISLATION FOR THE LEVY. AND
SARAH'S GOING TO TALK A LITTLE
BIT ABOUT WHAT THAT MEANS, BUT
SOME OF THE THINGS PEOPLE WERE
SAYING TO US, RIGHT, WERE LIKE,
WELL, THE LEVY IS GREAT. IT'S
GOING TO BUILD 350 NEW BLOCKS OF
SIDEWALKS. BUT HOW DO WE
CONTINUE TO BUILD THEM IN A CITY
THAT'S, YOU KNOW, MISSING
AROUND 11,000 BLOCKS OF
SIDEWALKS? AND THE CITY HAS 134
VEHICLE BRIDGES. AND HOW DO WE
CONTINUE TO PREPARE FOR
REPAIRING AND REPLACING THESE
AGING STRUCTURES? AND PAVING,
YOU KNOW, OUR ARTERIAL STREETS
CARRY PEOPLE MOVING, WHETHER
THEY'RE IN CARS, TRUCKS,
BUSSES, BIKING, WALKING,
THEY'RE, YOU KNOW, THE ARTERIES
OF OUR NETWORK. AND WHEN WE
REPAVE THEM, THAT IS OFTEN OUR
OPPORTUNITY TO REALLY THINK IN A
SUBSTANTIALLY DIFFERENT WAY
ABOUT HOW THAT STREET CAN BE
SAFER. SO THESE QUESTIONS LED TO
THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE NEED
AND OUR CALL TO ACTION TO CREATE
THIS TRANSPORTATION FUNDING TASK
FORCE AND INVITE STAKEHOLDERS
AND MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC TO SIT
AND LEARN WITH US AND TACKLE
SOME OF THESE REAL QUESTIONS
THAT WE HAVE. SO I WANT TO THANK
THE MAYOR'S OFFICE FOR THEIR
PARTNERSHIP. I WANT TO THANK
COUNCIL FOR THEIR PARTNERSHIP ON
GETTING TO THIS POINT. I REALLY
WANT TO THANK THE FOLKS OF YOU
WHO ARE HERE IN THE AUDIENCE
TODAY, AS WELL AS THE ONES WHO
ARE ONLINE, WHO HAVE AGREED TO
JOIN US ON THIS ADVENTURE
JOURNEY PROCESS TO EXPLORE OUR
NEEDS. AND SO THANK YOU ALL VERY
MUCH. I WANT TO TURN IT OVER TO
SARAH STRAHM STRAND, WHO IS THE
PROJECT MANAGER FOR THIS WORK,
AND SHE'LL JUST QUICKLY COVER
HOW A LITTLE BIT MORE ABOUT HOW
WE GOT HERE.
-- THANKS, MEGAN. AND AS MEGAN
SO POIGNANTLY GAVE THE
BACKGROUND ON HOW THIS
ORIGINATED FROM THE 2024 VOTER
APPROVED SEATTLE TRANSPORTATION
LEVY. THIS IS A COMPLEX
CHALLENGE THAT THESE TASK FORCE
MEMBERS ARE GOING TO BE HELPING
US WORK THROUGH. WE HAVE SOME
REALLY BOLD AND AMBITIOUS GOALS
THAT WE ARE GOING TO BE
EXPLORING THROUGH THIS WORK.
THREE DIFFERENT FOCUS AREAS FOR
ASSET CONDITION, INCLUDING OUR
PAVING, OUR SIDEWALK NETWORK,
OUR BRIDGES, AND SOME REALLY
SPECIFIC TOOLS THAT WE WANT TO
DIG IN AND EXPLORE AS WELL. AND
SO WE MADE THIS COMMITMENT
THROUGH THE LEVY. AND IF WE CAN
GO TO THE NEXT SLIDE. AND
COUNCIL BUILT UPON THAT INITIAL
LEGISLATION OUT OF THE LEVY TO
GIVE US SOME MORE DIRECTION ON
HOW WE'LL GO FORWARD AND DO
THIS WORK. AND SO WE ARE
CONVENING THE TRANSPORTATION
FUNDING TASK FORCE. WE HAVE A
CLEAR SCOPE AND GUIDELINES FOR
WHAT WE WILL EXPLORE THROUGH
THIS WORK WILL BE CONVENING
THESE MEMBERS TO REVIEW THE
CURRENT FUNDING POLICIES AND
ASSET MANAGEMENT PRACTICES THAT
SDOT CURRENTLY OPERATES WITH,
AND WE'RE GOING TO BE LOOKING
ACROSS A VARIETY OF DIFFERENT
POLICY AND FUNDING TOOLS AND
MECHANISMS TO CONSIDER HOW THEY
MIGHT ADVANCE THOSE ASSET
CONDITION TARGETS AND BUILD OUT
THE NETWORK FURTHER. WE'LL BE
BACK TO CITY COUNCIL WITH
UPDATES AT SIX MONTH INCREMENTS
TO PROVIDE INFORMATION ON WHERE
WE'RE AT WITH THE TASK FORCE'S
WORK, AND WE'LL BE BRINGING
FINAL RECOMMENDATIONS TO CITY
COUNCIL. THE RESOLUTION DEADLINE
IS DECEMBER 2027. THERE'S ALSO
DETAILS IN THE GUIDING
RESOLUTION RELATED SPECIFICALLY
TO THE TASK FORCE COMPOSITION
AND MEMBERSHIP. AND THIS WAS
INTENDED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE
HAD ALL THE RANGE OF VOICES AT
THE TABLE THAT WILL HELP MAKE
THIS A STRONG AND SUCCESSFUL
PROCESS, WHETHER IT'S PEOPLE
WHO LIVE IN THE NEIGHBORHOODS
THAT WILL BE AFFECTED BY THIS,
BUSINESSES, ACCESSIBILITY
ADVOCATES, MOBILITY ADVOCATES,
LABOR DEVELOPMENT, AND PEOPLE
WHO DO THIS AS A PROFESSION OR
HAVE EXPERTISE, WHETHER IT IS IN
FUNDING, FINANCE, POLICY,
DELIVERING AND BUILDING THIS
WORK, AND THE OTHER PIECE OF
THIS RESOLUTION IS THAT WE BRING
IT HERE TO YOU TO BE APPOINTED
BY CITY COUNCIL, BY RESOLUTION
AND SO WE WENT THROUGH A VERY
ROBUST PROCESS TO MAKE SURE THAT
WE BUILD A MEMBERSHIP SLATE THAT
MEETS THE CHARGE OF THAT
RESOLUTION. WE HAD A PUBLIC
PROCESS, A CALL FOR
APPLICATIONS, AND WE CAST A
REALLY WIDE NET. WE REACHED OUT
TO SO MANY DIFFERENT NETWORKS
ACROSS THOSE AREAS OF
REPRESENTATION. WE THANK YOU ALL
AGAIN ON COUNCIL AND IN THE
MAYOR'S OFFICE AND ALL OF OUR
NETWORKS OF STAKEHOLDERS AND
PUBLIC AGENCY PARTNERS WHO
HELPED GET THE WORD OUT AND
SPREAD THE WORD AND INVITE
PEOPLE AND ENCOURAGE FOLKS TO
APPLY. WE DID MULTIPLE Q&A
SESSIONS TO ANSWER ANY INQUIRIES
FOLKS HAD ABOUT WHAT TO EXPECT,
WHAT THIS PROCESS WOULD LOOK
LIKE. AND WE HAD A REALLY GREAT
RESPONSE. AND SO WE WORKED
THROUGH ALL OF THE WRITTEN
APPLICATIONS THAT WE RECEIVED.
WE INTERVIEWED CANDIDATES TO
CONSIDER THE BEST FIT AND REALLY
THOUGHT THROUGH THE BALANCE OF
REPRESENTATION AND MAKING SURE
THAT WE HAD THAT DIVERSITY OF
VOICES AT THE TABLE. AND WE
COORDINATED REALLY CLOSELY PER
RESOLUTION WITH COUNCIL
LEADERSHIP AND THE MAYOR'S
OFFICE, TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAD
ALL OF THOSE VOICES COVERED. SO
WE'RE HERE TODAY TO SUBMIT FOR
YOUR CONSIDERATION, APPOINTING
THESE MEMBERS. WE CAN JUMP TO
THE NEXT SLIDE. AND SO HERE YOU
HAVE YOUR TRANSPORTATION FUNDING
TASK FORCE APPOINTEES SUBMITTED
FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION TODAY.
AND I JUST WANT TO PAUSE AND DO
A REALLY, REALLY BIG SHOUT OUT.
AND KUDOS TO ALL OF THESE FOLKS,
AS WELL AS THE FOLKS NOT SHOWN
HERE, WHO WE WERE NOT ABLE TO
SELECT BECAUSE WE HAD MORE
CANDIDATES THAN WE WERE ABLE TO
TAKE ON, AND STILL BALANCE THAT
REPRESENTATION AND SIZE OF THIS
GROUP. AND I DON'T WANT TO
UNDERSTATE THE VALUE OF FOLKS
WHO ARE WILLING TO RAISE THEIR
HANDS AND ROLL THEIR SLEEVES UP
AND VOLUNTEER THEIR PUBLIC
SERVICE, THEIR TIME TO THIS
REALLY IMPORTANT TOPIC FOR THE
CITY. AND SO HUGE THANKS. AND IF
THERE ARE FOLKS IN THE AUDIENCE
WHO ARE BEING APPOINTED TODAY,
IF YOU WOULD LOVE TO LOVE, IF
YOU WOULD RAISE YOUR HAND AND
JUST IDENTIFY YOURSELF. AND SO,
AND FOLKS ONLINE AS WELL, AND
FOLKS WHO ARE NOT ABLE TO JOIN
US TODAY, HUGE THANK YOU. WE'RE
REALLY EXCITED TO WORK WITH
THESE INDIVIDUALS WHO REALLY
DEMONSTRATED JUST GREAT CALIBER
AND EXPERTISE AND PERSPECTIVES
TO ADD AND CONTRIBUTE TO THIS
WORK. AND SO LAST BUT NOT LEAST,
WE ARE GETTING TO WORK. PROGRESS
IS HAPPENING. THIS WORK IS
HAPPENING. WE'RE GOING TO BE
DOING ONE ON ONE ONBOARDING
MEETINGS WITH ALL OF OUR NEWLY
APPOINTED TASK FORCE MEMBERS.
WE'RE GOING TO BE HOSTING A
WELCOME RECEPTION AND
ORIENTATION TO KICK OFF THE
WORK, AND WE WILL BEGIN OUR
MONTHLY CADENCE OF MEETINGS TO
REALLY DIG IN AND WORK THROUGH
THIS PROCESS. IN OCTOBER. AND
AGAIN, WE'LL BE BACK WITH SOME
CITY COUNCIL UPDATES AT A SIX
MONTH INCREMENT. AND WE CAN. GO
ON. AND SO WITH THAT, I'LL PASS
IT OVER TO THE CHAIR.
-- THANK YOU SO MUCH, MISS
STRAND. MRS. SHEPHERD. MR.
LABORDE, FOR PRESENTING TODAY
AND YOUR PARTNERSHIP AND
CRAFTING THIS THIS PACKAGE AND
ALL THE WORK THAT YOU ALL DID.
AND THANK YOU TO THE MAYOR'S
OFFICE AS WELL FOR FOR ALL THE
WORK YOU ALL LED IN CREATING
THIS PANEL OF EXPERTS. AND JUST
TO KIND OF FRAME THE
CONVERSATION AND PILE ON FROM MY
PERSPECTIVE, IS ONE OF THE SORT
OF ARCHITECTS OF THIS, OF THIS
EFFORT. A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO,
THIS FLOWED FROM A RECOGNITION
THAT AT THE TIME, WHAT WAS A THE
LARGEST LEVY IN SEATTLE'S
HISTORY, $1.55 BILLION. AT THE
TIME. THERE WERE CALLS FROM SOME
COMMUNITY ASKING FOR A $3
BILLION LEVY THAT DIDN'T INCLUDE
FUNDING FOR BRIDGES AND, YOU
KNOW, SORT OF WHERE WE LANDED IN
THE LEGISLATION IS A $1.55
BILLION PACKAGE AND INCLUDED
SOME GREAT THINGS TO IMPROVE
SAFETY, ADD MORE BIKE LANES,
SAFER CONNECTIONS TO TRANSIT,
IMPROVE THE OVERALL PAVEMENT
CONDITIONS, PROVIDING A
GENERATIONAL INVESTMENT AT A
BARE MINIMUM. PROBABLY THE
SINGLE BIGGEST, LARGEST CITY
INVESTMENT IN SEATTLE'S HISTORY,
BUT AT A BARE MINIMUM,
GENERATIONAL INVESTMENT IN NEW
SIDEWALKS AND COMPLETING OUR 27%
MISSING SIDEWALK GAP. BUT THIS
WAS THIS WAS SORT OF BORN OUT OF
THE FACT THAT EVEN IF WE HAD A
LARGER LEVY, WHICH, BY THE WAY,
WOULD HAVE IMPEDED OUR ABILITY
TO TO MAKE DECISIONS TO, TO
BOLSTER OUR LIBRARY. RECENTLY,
VOTER APPROVED LIBRARY LEVY AND
THE LIKE. BUT EVEN IF WE HAD
HEEDED SOME OF THOSE CALLS FOR
SIGNIFICANTLY LARGER, LARGER
PACKAGE, IT STILL WOULDN'T HAVE
BEEN ENOUGH TO MEET THE. THE
ROBUST NEED. WHEN WE TALK ABOUT
THOSE THREE ASSET CLASSES, IN
PARTICULAR NEW SIDEWALKS OR
PAVEMENT CONDITIONS AND ROADS.
AND THEN THIRD AND FINALLY,
BRIDGES. AND AS WAS NOTED,
THERE'S 130 SOMETHING BRIDGES IN
THE CITY'S INVENTORY MY
UNDERSTANDING, MEGAN, WE'LL
TALK OFFLINE. I THOUGHT I
DIDN'T THINK THAT WAS THE THE
YOU MENTIONED. THAT WAS THE, THE
VEHICLE BRIDGE. I THOUGHT THAT
WAS ALL OF THE INCLUDING
PEDESTRIANS IN OUR INVENTORY.
BUT WE'LL ITERATE OFFLINE. SO
SO I CAN GET THE CLARITY I NEED.
I DEFER TO YOU FOR NOW, BUT BUT
WE HAVE A LOT OF BRIDGES THAT
THE CITY OWNS AND IS RESPONSIBLE
FOR MAINTAINING. SO THIS HELPS
BETTER POSITION US TO ACTUALLY
FUND AND PROPERLY TAKE CARE AND
SUSTAINABLY FUND OUR, OUR ROBUST
TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE
AND NETWORK ACROSS THE CITY. SO
THANK YOU AGAIN FOR THE
PRESENTATION AT THIS TIME. I
WELCOME ANY COMMENTS, QUESTIONS
FROM MY COLLEAGUES, STARTING
FIRST WITH VICE CHAIR RINCK.
-- THANK YOU, CHAIR SAKA. FIRST
AND FOREMOST, I JUST WANT TO
NOTE MY EXCITEMENT THAT THIS IS
ALL COMING TOGETHER AND FOR THE
WORK OF THIS TASK FORCE TO
REALLY BEGIN. AND I'M JUST SO
GRATEFUL TO THE PEOPLE WHO WILL
BE A PART OF THIS TASK FORCE. SO
FOR THE FOLKS IN PERSON, THANK
YOU. THANK YOU FOR BEING WILLING
TO SPEND YOUR TIME WITH US AND
PROBLEM SOLVING AROUND THIS SO
WE CAN FUND OUR IMPORTANT
TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS ACROSS
THE CITY. TRULY APPRECIATE IT.
AND THANK YOU FOR PULLING
TOGETHER SUCH AN INCREDIBLE,
DIVERSE SET OF STAKEHOLDERS TO
BE A PART OF THIS TASK FORCE. I
DO HAVE JUST ONE QUICK QUESTION,
AND MAYBE YOU CAN READ THROUGH
THE LINES JUST HOW EAGER I AM TO
HEAR FROM THIS TASK FORCE. YOU
MENTIONED THAT THERE WILL BE
REPORTING BACK TO COUNCIL IN SIX
MONTH INCREMENTS. WHAT CAN WE
EXPECT TO SEE IN THOSE REPORT
BACKS? WHAT KIND OF LEVEL OF OF
INFORMATION? AND I UNDERSTAND A
FINAL REPORT WILL BE COMING IN
DECEMBER 2027. BUT AGAIN, FOR
THOSE SIX MONTH INCREMENT
UPDATES, WHAT CAN WE EXPECT TO
SEE?
-- YEAH. SO WE'RE WORKING WITH
THE TEAM TO ROADMAP OUT
BASICALLY MODULES THAT WILL STEP
THROUGH. THERE WILL BE A LOT OF
CONTEXT SETTING UP FRONT, BUT BY
THE SIX MONTH PERIOD, WE SHOULD
HAVE A SENSE OF THE BREADTH OF
TOOLS THAT ARE BEING EXPLORED
AND WILL BE GOING THROUGH A
NARROWING PROCESS. WE'LL BE
LOOKING AT WHAT IS LEGALLY
VIABLE, WHAT HAS THE HIGHEST
REVENUE POTENTIAL, A LOT OF
DIFFERENT CRITERIA THAT WILL BE
IN LARGE PART GUIDED BY THE TASK
FORCE AS WELL. AND SO WHEN WE
COME BACK, WE'LL BE ABLE TO
PROVIDE AN UPDATE ON WHERE WE'RE
AT IN THAT CONVERSATION.
-- THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH,
CHAIR.
-- THANK YOU, VICE CHAIR.
APPRECIATE YOUR QUESTIONS THERE.
AND IF IS THERE ANY OTHER
COMMENTS, QUESTIONS ON THIS
ITEM? ALL RIGHT. WELL, HEARING
AND SEEING NONE, I WILL JUST
CONCLUDE THAT ALSO AN IMPORTANT
FEATURE OF THIS PARTICULAR TASK
FORCE IS, IS WE WANTED TO GET
COMMUNITY EXPERTS TOGETHER TO
COME UP WITH SOME SPECIFIC
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR HOW WE CAN
SUSTAINABLY FUND THESE THREE
CRITICALLY IMPORTANT ASSET
CLASSES. BUT AS PART OF THAT
BACKDROP, WE ALSO WANTED TO MAKE
SURE THAT THE SPECIFIC IDEAS AND
PROPOSALS THAT ARE BEING PUT
FORTH FOR RECOMMENDATION AND
CONSIDERATION ARE TRULY
ACTIONABLE. YOU KNOW, THERE WAS
A GREAT REVENUE STABILIZATION
TASK FORCE A FEW YEARS BACK.
SOME OF THOSE IDEAS DIDN'T
FULLY HAVE THE THE FULL AND
COMPLETE LEGAL VETTING. AND
THEREFORE, WE'RE NOT TRULY
IMPLEMENTABLE, TRULY
OPERATIONAL, CAPABLE OF BEING
IMPLEMENTED AT THE CITY LEVEL
BECAUSE OF STATE PREEMPTION
ISSUES IN THE LAW, FOR EXAMPLE,
LIKE VACANT BUILDING FEES AND
THE LIKE. AND SO THAT'S WHY WE
BACKED THIS TASK FORCE WITH
APPROPRIATE FUNDING TO, TO MAKE
SURE WE CAN FULLY VET THE IDEAS
THAT THAT COME FORTH. SO THAT
SHOULD THIS BODY AND SHOULD THIS
MAYOR DECIDE TO PASS AND
IMPLEMENT ANY OF THESE
RECOMMENDATIONS, WE KNOW WE CAN
ACTUALLY DO IT. SO APPRECIATE
THE, THE PARTNERSHIP THERE AND
THE RESOURCES THAT WE COMMITTED
TO SDOT AND THIS BROADER WORK
STREAM TO MAKE SURE WE HAVE
FULLY VETTED, FLESHED OUT IDEAS.
IN ANY EVENT, THANK YOU AGAIN.
APPRECIATE THE PRESENTATION
HERE. LET'S SEE. I MOVE THE
COMMITTEE RECOMMEND ADOPTION OF
THIS RESOLUTION. IS THERE A
SECOND?
-- SECOND.
-- THANK YOU. IT HAS BEEN MOVED
AND SECONDED TO RECOMMEND
ADOPTION OF THIS RESOLUTION. IS
THERE ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION
HEARING AND SEEING? NONE. WILL
THE COMMITTEE CLERK PLEASE CALL
THE ROLL ON THE RECOMMENDATION?
-- COUNCILMEMBER FOSTER.
-- YES.
-- COUNCILMEMBER KETTLE.
-- AYE.
-- VICE CHAIR RINCK.
-- YES.
-- CHAIR SAKA.
-- AYE.
-- CHAIR. THERE ARE FOUR VOTES
IN FAVOR AND ZERO OPPOSED.
-- ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. THE
MOTION CARRIES AND THE COMMITTEE
RECOMMENDATION THAT THE CITY
COUNCIL ADOPT THIS RESOLUTION
APPOINTING MEMBERS OF THE
TRANSPORTATION FUNDING TASK
FORCE WILL BE SENT TO THE
SEPTEMBER 15th, 2026 CITY
COUNCIL MEETING. THANK YOU
AGAIN, SCOTT. COLLEAGUES. WE
WILL NOW MOVE ON TO OUR THIRD
AND FINAL ITEM OF BUSINESS. WILL
THE CLERK PLEASE READ ITEM THREE
INTO THE RECORD.
-- AGENDA ITEM THREE BRIEFING
AND DISCUSSION. SEATTLE STREET
IMPROVEMENT PROGRAM
-- EXCELLENT. THANK YOU. AND
LOOKS LIKE OUR PRESENTERS ARE
JOINING US AT THE TABLE.
WELCOME. WHEN YOU'RE READY,
PLEASE DO INTRODUCE YOURSELVES.
BEGIN YOUR PRESENTATION. BEFORE
WE GET THERE, I WANT TO THANK
ALL THE 20 PLUS MEMBERS OF THE
COMMUNITY LEADERS FOR STEPPING
UP TO SERVE ON THIS IMPORTANT
TASK FORCE, A HANDFUL OF WHICH
ARE IN THIS ROOM. REALLY
APPRECIATE YOUR LEADERSHIP, YOUR
YOUR EXPERTISE AND WILLINGNESS
TO SERVE IN SUCH A TRULY
PROFOUND AND IMPACTFUL CAPACITY.
THIS IS QUITE LITERALLY GOING TO
HELP SAVE LIVES AND PROVIDE
SUSTAINABLE FUNDING PATHS SO WE
CAN BETTER LOOK AFTER OUR OUR
ROBUST TRANSPORTATION NETWORK
AND INFRASTRUCTURE. SO YOUR WORK
MATTERS AND IS GREATLY
APPRECIATED. ALL RIGHT,
PANELISTS, WELCOME AGAIN. PLEASE
DO INTRODUCE YOURSELVES AND AND
SDOT HAS A FORMAL KIND OF
PRESENTATION. AND WE HAVE SOME
COMMUNITY VOICES AS WELL.
-- GREAT. THANK YOU. COMMITTEE
CHAIR SAKA. I'M LIZ SHELDON,
DEPUTY DIRECTOR AT S DOT.
-- I'M ELISE NELSON.
-- THE STREET USE DIVISION
DIRECTOR FOR SDOT.
-- GOOD MORNING. I'M CURRENTLY
OUT OF CLASS OPERATIONS MANAGER.
-- I'M LUCAS HERRERA WITH
BLUEPRINT CAPITAL, DIRECTOR OF
LAND USE POLICY
-- LOGAN SCHMIDT WITH THE MASTER
BUILDERS ASSOCIATION OF KING AND
SNOHOMISH COUNTIES. I AM OUR
SEATTLE GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS
MANAGER.
-- ALL RIGHT, WITH THAT, WE'LL
BEGIN OUR PRESENTATION. I WANT
TO SET THE STAGE HERE A LITTLE
BIT. WE WERE ASKED TO COME AND
GIVE THIS PRESENTATION ABOUT
CIPS. THERE IS SO MUCH TO BE
COVERED IN STREET USE
PERMITTING. SO AND I THINK WE
HAVE TEN MINUTES TO GIVE THIS
PRESENTATION. SO WE'LL MOVE
THROUGH THIS AT A PRETTY HIGH
CLIP. BUT WANT TO OFFER, IF
THERE ARE ANY THREADS THAT WOULD
BE HELPFUL TO TO COME BACK AT
PRESENT OR GIVE BRIEFINGS AT A
LATER DATE, HAPPY TO DO THAT. SO
THAT'S A LOT TO COVER IN A VERY
SHORT PRESENTATION WITH THE NEXT
SLIDE. THIS SLIDE, LET'S GO BACK
TO THE PREVIOUS SLIDE. I DO WANT
TO TAKE A MINUTE THOUGH TO ONE.
THANK OUR MASTER BUILDER FRIENDS
FOR BEING AT THE TABLE WITH US.
AND ALSO REFLECT A LITTLE BIT ON
SDOT AND OUR TRANSPORTATION,
VISION AND GOALS. AND JUST
REALIZE THAT AND RECOGNIZE THAT
WE CAN'T DO THIS WITHOUT HAVING
THE, THE PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT
COMMUNITY AND OTHERS ON THE KIND
OF THE, THE PRIVATE SIDE OF THE,
THE CITY RECOGNIZE OUR VISION TO
HAVE A PLACE THAT ALL PEOPLE,
BUSINESS AND BUSINESSES CAN
ACCESS THEIR DAILY NEEDS AND
FEEL CONNECTED TO THEIR THEIR
COMMUNITY. THERE WOULD BE NO
COMMUNITY WITHOUT KIND OF THAT
BALANCE BETWEEN DEVELOPMENT AND
RIGHT OF WAY AGAIN, THIS IS
GOING TO BE A FAIRLY QUICK
STREET USE AND CIP 101. WE CAN
COVER THE AGENDA AS WE GO. ALL
RIGHT. SO I WANT TO BACK UP A
LITTLE BIT. AND OFTENTIMES YOU
HEAR HEAR THE ACRONYM SIPS OR
STREET IMPROVEMENT PERMITS OR
STREET IMPROVEMENT PLANS. AND
SOMETIMES THAT REALLY REFERS TO
SIPS. SOMETIMES THAT REFERS TO
THE KIND OF THE BROADER WORLD
AND REALM OF STREET USE
PERMITTING AS A WHOLE. SO
LOOKING AT KIND OF WHAT THAT
MEANS IS WE ISSUE A FEW
CATEGORIES OF PERMITS. ONE ARE
OUR SIMPLE PERMITS. THESE ARE
THINGS THAT TAKE VERY LITTLE
REVIEW CAN BE ISSUED FAIRLY
QUICKLY. THINGS LIKE RESIDENT
GETTING MOVING POD, OR KIND OF
THOSE SMALL KIND OF IN AND OUT,
LOW IMPACT USES OF THE RIGHT OF
WAY. THE SECOND, AND BY FAR MOST
ISSUED PERMIT THAT WE HAVE ARE
WHAT WE CALL RIGHT OF WAY USE
PERMITS. AND THOSE CAN INCLUDE
EITHER LIKE A PRIVATE DEVELOPER
DEVELOPER USING THE PUBLIC SPACE
FOR STORAGE OR CRANES, OR
LOADING. IT ALSO INCLUDES ALL OF
OUR UTILITY PARTNERS AS THEY ARE
DOING KIND OF MAINTENANCE WORK
IN THE RIGHT OF WAY. SO PSRC
HAVING TO, YOU KNOW, FIX A GAS
VALVE OR SOME SMALL AMOUNT OF
WORK THAT IS BASICALLY STRAIGHT
RESTORATION. AND THEN OUR LARGER
CONSTRUCTION PERMITS ARE CALLED
MAJOR PERMITS, AND THEY ARE BOTH
STREET IMPROVEMENT PERMITS,
WHICH ARE GENERALLY KIND OF
PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT OR CIVIC
PROJECTS. AND THEN UTILITY MAJOR
PROJECTS WHERE UTILITIES ARE
ACTUALLY ADDING NEW
INFRASTRUCTURE INTO THE INTO THE
PUBLIC RIGHT OF WAY. I THINK
IT'S ABOUT TWO THIRDS ONE
THIRD. IT VARIES A LITTLE BIT ON
THOSE MAJOR PERMITS BETWEEN KIND
OF THE PERMITS AND THE UTILITY
MAJOR PERMITS. AND THEN FINALLY,
OUR PUBLIC SPACE MANAGEMENT
PERMITS. SO THESE ARE NOT
CONSTRUCTION USE OF THE RIGHT OF
WAY. GENERALLY ACTIVATION
PERMITS. SO THINGS LIKE SIDEWALK
CAFES, BLOCK PARTIES, AND THEN
THEY CAN BE USED FOR KIND OF
LONG TERM MANAGEMENT OF THE
RIGHT OF WAY. SO THINGS LIKE IF
SOMEONE NEEDS TO BUILD A
RETAINING WALL IN THE RIGHT OF
WAY OR A ROCKERY. NEXT SLIDE. SO
AGAIN, IN CONTEXT, STREET
IMPROVEMENT PERMITS ARE UNDER
OUR MAJOR PERMIT CATEGORY AND
ARE REALLY ABOUT MAKE UP 5% OF
THE OVERALL NUMBER OF PERMITS
THAT WE ISSUE THROUGH THE STREET
USE PERMIT DIVISION. BUT THEY
ARE A CATALYST. SO THEY ARE A
CATALYST FOR A LOT OF THOSE
OTHER PERMITS. SO BOTH FOR KIND
OF THOSE USE OF RIGHT OF WAY
PERMITS AS DEVELOPERS ARE
WORKING ON PRIVATE PROPERTY,
USING SPACE IN THE RIGHT OF WAY.
AND ALSO THEY, THEY KIND OF ADD
TO THE ABILITY TO THEN CREATE
THAT PUBLIC SPACE THAT WE WANT
IN THE PUBLIC REALM. SO THEY
OFTEN LEAD TO THOSE PUBLIC SPACE
MANAGEMENT PERMITS. I KIND OF
THINK OF IT AS A, AS AN OVERALL
CYCLE, RIGHT? SO YOU HAVE THE
STREET IMPROVEMENT PERMIT.
THAT'S KIND OF THE START OF THAT
DEVELOPMENT. AND THEN AFTER
THAT, YOU HAVE THE PUBLIC SPACE
MANAGEMENT PERMITS THAT ARE
REALLY MANAGING THE RIGHT OF WAY
AND THE ACTIVATION AND THE RIGHT
OF WAY. AND THEN YOU START
GETTING INTO MORE OF THOSE RIGHT
OF WAY MANAGEMENT PERMITS WHERE
THERE STARTS TO NEED TO BE SOME
MAINTENANCE IN THE RIGHT OF WAY,
EITHER THE UTILITIES OR PRIVATE,
PRIVATE BUILDINGS NEEDING TO DO
WORK ON THEIR FRONTAGES. AND
THEN YOU GET TO THE END OF KIND
OF THAT BUILDING LIFE CYCLE AND
ARE STARTING TO LOOK AT AGAIN,
WHAT THAT REDEVELOPMENT LOOKS
LIKE. AND BACK TO THE CIP
PERMIT. ALL RIGHT. SO NEXT.
-- ONE.
-- I THINK THIS IS WHEN I TAKE
OVER. ALL RIGHT. SO WHAT IS A
CIP? IT'S OUR MOST COMPLEX
PERMIT TYPE. THEY INVOLVE NEW
INFRASTRUCTURE WHERE WE NEED AN
ENGINEER AND A SURVEY TO HELP
DESIGN AND GUIDE THE DESIGN. IT
INVOLVES MULTIPLE STAKEHOLDERS,
A VARIETY OF CITY INFRASTRUCTURE
ASSETS, AND MANY DIFFERENT CODES
AND RULES. WE HAVE TO CONSIDER.
THERE'S ALSO SCL RECORD RECORDS
AFTER THE CONSTRUCTION SO WE CAN
DOCUMENT THOSE THAT NEW
INFRASTRUCTURE THAT WAS ADDED.
THE SEATTLE DEPARTMENT OF
CONSTRUCTION AND INSPECTIONS OR
SDCI FOR SHORT. THEY DETERMINE
WHAT IMPROVEMENTS ARE REQUIRED
FOR A PROJECT BASED ON THE LAND
USE CODE. OUR ROLE IS TO REVIEW
AND APPROVE THE IMPROVEMENTS IN
THE PUBLIC RIGHT OF WAY AND
ISSUE PERMITS FOR THEIR
CONSTRUCTION. TYPICAL PROJECTS
THAT REQUIRE CIP INCLUDE
PROJECTS THAT HAVE NEW CURBS,
SIDEWALKS OR FRONTAGE
IMPROVEMENTS. WATER, SEWER OR
STORMWATER MAINTENANCE, AND
EXTENSIONS, NEW PAVING OR STREET
WIDENING PROJECTS WHERE YOU'RE
ADDING MORE THAN 2000FT OF NEW
IMPERVIOUS SURFACE, AND ALSO
MAJOR PROJECTS SUCH AS OUR LIGHT
RAIL EXTENSIONS. HERE, I DON'T
EXPECT YOU TO BE ABLE TO LOOK AT
THIS PLAN SET, BUT WE WANTED TO
INCLUDE A FEW SCREENSHOTS SO YOU
CAN SEE KIND OF WHAT A CIP LOOKS
LIKE. THIS IS THE GRAND STREET
COMMONS PROJECT NEAR JUDKINS
PARK LIGHT RAIL STATION, AND IT
INCLUDES OVER 700 NEW HOMES,
INCLUDING A MIX OF AFFORDABLE
HOUSING NEAR A TRANSIT STATION.
YOU MAY RECALL THIS PROJECT
BECAUSE IT CAME TO CITY COUNCIL
FOR A STREET VACATION, AND LIKE
I SAID, I DON'T EXPECT YOU TO
BE ABLE TO SEE THESE PLANS, BUT
THE POINT IS THAT CIPS ARE QUITE
COMPLEX AND COMPREHENSIVE, AND
THE REVIEW INCLUDES CONSIDERING
ROADWAY UTILITIES, PEDESTRIAN
AND BICYCLE FACILITIES, AND HOW
THEY'LL CONNECT WELL WITH THAT
PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT. HERE'S
HERE'S ANOTHER PICTURE. THIS IS
FROM GOOGLE STREET VIEW. SO YOU
CAN SEE THE SAME PROJECT BEFORE
AND AFTER. CIP PROJECTS ARE
CRITICAL IN HELPING CREATE
LIVABLE AND VIBRANT
STREETSCAPES. AS WE DEVELOP MORE
HOUSING AND JOBS IN SEATTLE. AND
JUST IMAGINE HOW GREAT THIS WILL
LOOK IN A FEW YEARS AS THE
STREET TREES CONTINUE TO GROW
LARGER AND NEW BUSINESSES AND
RESIDENTS CONTINUE TO MOVE IN
AND ADD AMENITIES SUCH AS
OUTDOOR CAFES, THAT WILL ONLY
ADD TO THE VIBRANCY. WE HAVE
CRITICAL LINKS WITH SDCI, AND WE
WORK CLOSELY TO MAKE SURE THAT
THE ON SITE IMPROVEMENTS AND
STREET IMPROVEMENTS WILL WORK
WELL TOGETHER. WE HAVE TIE INS
WITH OUR CIP PROCESS AND SDCI
PROJECT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE
DESIGN DOESN'T MOVE TOO FAR
AHEAD OF THE BUILDING PERMIT. WE
ALSO DON'T HOLD UP THE ISSUANCE
OF THE BUILDING PERMIT, BUT WE
DO CONTINUE TO WORK WITH
APPLICANT ON THEIR CIP. AND THEN
DURING CONSTRUCTION, WE'RE
COORDINATING BETWEEN OUR
INSPECTORS AND SDCI INSPECTORS
TO MAKE SURE THAT ALL THE
REQUIRED STREET IMPROVEMENTS ARE
COMPLETED BEFORE THE CERTIFICATE
OF OCCUPANCY IS ISSUED. IN
SUMMARY, WE WANT TO RELAY THAT
CIP PROJECTS HELP TRANSFORM
STREETS TO CREATE THE FUTURE
STREETSCAPE WE ENVISION FOR
SEATTLE. IN ADDITION, THESE
TYPES OF PROJECTS THAT WE'RE
TALKING ABOUT TODAY, IN ADDITION
TO THE PROJECTS WE'RE TALKING
ABOUT TODAY, CIPS ALSO ARE TOOL
FOR PERMITTING MAJOR CIVIC
PROJECTS. THIS SLIDE FEATURES
SOME OF OUR MORE RECENT
EXAMPLES, INCLUDING THE OCEAN
PAVILION ON THE WATERFRONT
CLIMATE PLEDGE ARENA, WASHINGTON
STATE CONVENTION CENTER, AND
SOUND TRANSIT FACILITIES. LIKE
LIZ TALKED ABOUT DURING THE
BEGINNING OF OUR PRESENTATION,
WE WANT TO KEEP CIP PERMITS IN
THE APPROPRIATE CONTEXT. THERE
ARE MANY MORE SDCI CONSTRUCTION
PERMITS ISSUED THAN CIP OR CIP
LIGHT PERMITS TRIGGERED. WE SEE
LESS THAN 3% OF OVERALL
CONSTRUCTION PERMITS REQUIRING A
CIP OR SEATTLEITE PERMIT. AND
WITH THAT, I'LL TURN IT OVER TO
SAILAJA, WHO WILL GO OVER THE
HIGH LEVEL PROCESS FOR CIP AND
CIP LIGHT PERMITS.
-- THANK YOU. AS YOU CAN SEE
HERE, THIS IS A FLOW SCHEMATIC
HIGH LEVEL FLOW SCHEMATIC. WE
HAVE TWO GROUPS THAT CLOSELY
WORK ON THE CIP PROJECTS FROM A
VERY EARLY ON IN THE PROCESS, WE
PROVIDE EARLY GUIDANCE TO OUR
APPLICANTS AND THE DEVELOPMENT
COMMUNITY. RIGHT FROM THE
PRELIMINARY ASSESSMENT REPORT
WHERE WE INFORM THEM OF THE
VARIOUS TYPE OF PERMITS THAT ARE
REQUIRED AND THEN GUIDE THEM
THROUGH ONCE THEY SUBMIT AN
APPLICATION WITH US, WHERE WE
PROVIDE INITIAL CONCEPTUAL
APPROVAL ON WHERE THESE CURBS
AND SIDEWALKS THAT ALICE HAS
SHOWED HAS TO BE PLACED. AND AS
WE GET THAT CONCEPTUAL APPROVAL
AND THEN TIE IN WITH SDCI, THEIR
APPLICATION, WE MOVE FORWARD
INTO MORE DETAILED DESIGN REVIEW
OF THE 60% DESIGN. AND THAT IS
WHERE WE MAKE SURE ALL THE
UTILITIES ARE COORDINATED AND
MAKE SURE THAT BOTH THE RIGHT OF
WAY AND THE PRIVATE PROPERTY IS
SEAMLESSLY CONNECTED SO THAT AS
PEOPLE ARE MOVING AND VEHICLES
ARE MOVING, THERE IS A
CONTINUOUS PATH FORWARD. AND
AFTER THAT, WE FURTHER DEEP DIVE
INTO THE HOLISTIC REVIEW OF THE
90% STAGE WHERE WE MAKE SURE
EVERYTHING IS COORDINATED ON
THIS COMPLEX DESIGN, AND WE
CONTINUE TO PROVIDE THEM THE
APPROVAL PROCESS AND ALSO
OVERSIGHT DURING CONSTRUCTION AS
WELL AS SIPS, AS WE HEARD, IS
DEFINITELY MORE COMPLEX. AND AS
YOU HAVE SEEN, AND AS MORE AND
MORE PEDESTRIAN CIRCULATION
IMPROVEMENTS ARE IMPORTANT IN
THE CITY, WE WE INTRODUCED A
FAST TRACK PROCESS IN 2020 IN
THE HEIGHT OF THE PANDEMIC. AND,
YOU KNOW, THIS IS FOR SMALL
SCALE STREET IMPROVEMENTS. BUT
AFTER WE AFTER WE IMPLEMENTED IN
2020, WE STARTED WORKING BACK
WITH OUR MBA PARTNERS IN 2023.
AFTER WE CAME BACK INTO THE
OFFICES AND UNDERSTOOD THERE
WERE SOME, SOME PAIN POINTS. SO
WE CLOSELY WORKED WITH THE MBA
COMMUNITY ON THE ENGINEERING
COMMUNITY AND THEN FURTHER
REFINED THE PROCESS. IN THE LAST
ONE AND A HALF YEAR, WE DID
PILOT TESTING OF A MUCH FASTER
PROCESS. IF YOU GO TO THE NEXT
SLIDE, PLEASE, WHERE WE HAVE
FURTHER REDUCED SOME OF THE TIE
INS, THESE ARE LIKE SMALL SCALE
PROJECTS, BUT YET VERY PROFOUND,
LIKE CURB RAMPS, WHICH HAPPEN AT
THAT INTERSECTION. AND AS YOU
KNOW, WITH MORE COST OF INCREASE
IN THESE INFRASTRUCTURE, IT IS
VERY IMPORTANT TO MAKE SURE WE
ARE IN THE CITY AS A CONSENT
DECREE WITH THE FOR THE ADA. AND
WE MAKE SURE THAT THESE ARE WELL
DESIGNED AND CONSTRUCTED. AND SO
HENCE, YEAH, WE REDUCED SOME OF
THE INITIAL TIE INS AND THEN
VERY STREAMLINED PROCESS. WE
BELIEVE THAT THE ENGINEERING
COMMUNITY IS DOING A GOOD JOB.
AND SO HENCE WE MOVED IT FROM
THE 3060 WE REMOVED AND THEN
DIRECTLY MOVING IT TO 90% LEVEL
PROCESS. LIZ, BACK TO YOU.
-- ALL RIGHT, SO I'LL WRAP THIS
UP.
-- SO SIPS MATTER. THEY MATTER.
AND THEY'RE REALLY IMPORTANT
FOR REALLY CREATING THAT, THAT
LIVABLE CITY THAT WE WANT AND
THAT WE CAN SEE AND THAT REALLY
CONNECTS TO THE, THE
NEIGHBORHOOD, PARTICULARLY AS
DEVELOPERS ARE BUILDING OUT, YOU
KNOW, PREVIOUSLY SINGLE FAMILY
AND SMALLER AREAS THAT WE'RE
ABLE TO CREATE AND REFLECT THAT
DENSITY IN OUR, OUR PUBLIC
TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE. I
DO WANT TO RUN FAST. OKAY.
LET'S SEE. SO NEXT SLIDE. THEY
ARE REALLY COMPLEX. AND I THINK
ONE THING TO NOTE IS WE HAVE
HISTORICALLY BEEN MANAGING OUR
REVIEW PROCESSES ON EACH REVIEW
CYCLE. AND SO I WANT TO
ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THERE IS WORK
TO BE DONE TO HELP US CONTINUE
TO STREAMLINE AND MAKE SURE THAT
THEY ARE BOTH THAT WE ARE
GETTING WHAT WE NEED OUT OF THE
CIP PROCESS, AND THAT IT IS NOT
AN UNDUE BURDEN, AND THAT WE ARE
CONTINUING TO BE REFLECTIVE OF
AS SMALLER SCALE DEVELOPMENTS
COME ONLINE. HOW TO BE
RESPONSIVE TO THOSE NEEDS. SO WE
HAD HISTORICALLY BEEN MEASURING
THINGS AT A REVIEW CYCLE, TIME
FRAME, AND HAVE BEEN MEETING
THOSE GOALS FAIRLY CONSISTENTLY.
BUT WHAT WE HAVE NOTICED OVER
TIME IS THAT AS YOU MANAGE THAT,
MANAGING TO REVIEW CYCLES HAS
ACTUALLY LED TO A LONGER PROCESS
AND MANY REVIEW CYCLES. SO THE
KIND OF OUR NEXT STEPS OF WHAT
WE WANT TO LOOK AT IS REALLY HOW
TO DRAW DOWN THOSE OVERALL TIME
FRAMES FROM PERMIT APPLICATION
OVER TO PERMIT ISSUANCE. THERE
ARE LIKELY SOME SOME NEEDS FOR
SOME LAGS IN THERE. AS WE
COORDINATE WITH SDCI, BUT REALLY
WANT TO BE MINDFUL AND
UNDERSTAND HOW WE'RE WE'RE
BECOMING MORE EFFECTIVE AS WE
CONTINUE REVIEWS. WE ARE WORKING
CLOSELY WITH AN
INTER-DEPARTMENTAL TEAM TO KIND
OF CONTINUE OUR IMPROVEMENTS. SO
I MENTIONED THE THE SIP LIGHT
PERMIT, AND THAT WAS REALLY
INTENDED TO GET TO KIND OF SOME
OF THE SMALLER DEVELOPMENTS AND
REFLECTING KIND OF THE LOWER
COMPLEXITY OF THOSE, BUT NEED TO
DO WORK. SO JUST WANT TO
ACKNOWLEDGE THAT IN KIND OF THIS
WRAP UP SLIDE. NEXT SLIDE.
AGAIN, THIS IS AGAIN, LOOKING AT
A DIFFERENT VERSION OF HOW LONG
IT TAKES TO GET TO A PERMIT IN
CALENDAR DAYS. SO LOOKING AT
THERE'S A, THERE'S A GOOD CHUNK
OF TIME THAT IS KIND OF UNDER
CITY CONTROL. THERE'S ALSO A
GOOD CHUNK OF TIME THAT'S UNDER
APPLICANT CONTROL. SO REALLY
LOOKING AT HOW TO BALANCE AND
ALIGN WHERE WE ARE ASKING FOR
REQUIREMENTS AND HOW TO MAKE
SURE THAT WE AREN'T GOING
THROUGH MULTIPLE REVIEW
ITERATIONS, I THINK IS KIND OF
WHERE, WHERE OUR NEXT STEPS ARE
TO LOOK AT IMPROVEMENTS. SORRY,
I CONDENSED THAT REALLY FAST,
BUT HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS.
NEXT SLIDE IS JUST QUESTIONS.
-- SURE. WELL, FIRST OFF, THANK
YOU SO MUCH TO SDOT FOR THIS
THIS VERY HELPFUL OVERVIEW. SUCH
A TRULY IMPACTFUL PROGRAM.
REALLY APPRECIATE THAT AND
APPRECIATE YOUR, YOUR
FLEXIBILITY HERE BECAUSE IN
ABOUT TEN MINUTES AT 1130, WE'RE
GOING TO LOSE AT LEAST ONE
MEMBER AND POTENTIALLY THEREFORE
LOSE QUORUM. SO, SO I APPRECIATE
YOUR, YOUR WILLINGNESS TO, TO BE
FLEXIBLE AND PRESENT THE HIGHEST
LEVEL OVERVIEW OF THE, OF THIS
IMPORTANT PROGRAM. BEFORE I TURN
IT OVER TO ADDITIONAL COMMENTS
OR QUESTIONS, I DO, WE DO HAVE A
SOME STAKEHOLDERS HERE DIRECTLY
FROM THE COMMUNITY AND WOULD
LOVE TO FOR YOU ALL TO SHARE
YOUR OWN WORDS, YOU KNOW, KIND
OF HOW THIS PROGRAM IMPACTS
YOUR, YOUR WORK AND YOUR ABILITY
TO, TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN WHAT YOU
DO.
-- GREAT. THANK YOU AGAIN FOR
HAVING US HERE TODAY. YEAH.
MEMBERS SEE FIRSTHAND WHERE
PROJECTS STALL AND WHERE THESE
COSTS COMPOUND AND WHERE THESE
POLICY CHANGES CAN MEANINGFULLY
REDUCE THE BARRIERS. THE REASON
FOR IMPROVING PROCESSES LIKE THE
CIP IS PRETTY SIMPLE. TIMELINESS
AND PREDICTABILITY DIRECTLY
TRANSLATE TO HOUSING
AFFORDABILITY AND AVAILABILITY.
COMMUNITY MEMBERS HERE HAVE HAD
A DIRECT HAND IN SHAPING THE ONE
SEATTLE PLAN AND OUR GROWTH
STRATEGY. IN ORDER FOR THE ONE
SEATTLE PLAN TO BE SUCCESSFUL,
WE NEED TO ADDRESS THESE
INFRASTRUCTURE AND PROCESS
BARRIERS THAT WILL PRESENT THAT
OR PREVENT THAT VISION FROM
BECOMING ACHIEVED. AND WE WANT
TO SEE THAT THAT VISION ACHIEVED
TO AT MAX, ONE THING I
DEFINITELY WANT TO FRAME IS, YOU
KNOW, WITH THE ISSUE OF WITH
INFRASTRUCTURE IS THAT OUR
MEMBERS ARE NOT OPPOSED TO THE
ACTUAL INFRASTRUCTURE
IMPROVEMENTS THAT ARE REQUIRED.
IT'S THE ISSUE OF THE TIMELINE
AND PROCESS AND SCOPE, AND
RATHER THE UNPREDICTABILITY OF
THIS PROCESS IN TRYING TO DO
THOSE UPGRADES. AND SDOT IS NOT
ALONE IN THIS BARRIER. THERE'S
MANY OTHER INFRASTRUCTURE
BARRIERS THAT WE'RE SEEING WITH
SEATTLE CITY LIGHT IN THEIR
UNDERGROUNDING, SEATTLE PUBLIC
UTILITIES AND THEIR WATER MAIN
EXTENSIONS. BUT NEARLY ALL OF
THOSE DEPARTMENT'S
INFRASTRUCTURE REQUIREMENTS ALSO
DO ROOT THROUGH THE CIP PROCESS,
WHICH KIND OF MAKES IT A VISIBLE
CHOKE POINT IN MAKING ALL OF
THOSE A REALITY I'LL HAVE LUCAS
KIND OF TALK A LITTLE BIT TO
SOME OF THE COSTS WITH SOME OF
THESE PROJECTS, BUT FOR US,
YEAH, WE WE WOULD LIKE TO SEE
SOME MORE, MORE PUBLISHED
STANDARDS AND REVIEW TIMELINES,
AS WELL AS SOME OF THOSE
PERFORMANCE BENCHMARKS AND
HAVING THOSE BROKEN DOWN BY
PROJECT SIZE AND TYPE, AS WELL
AS SOME OF THE ACTUAL
INFRASTRUCTURE REQUIREMENTS
CLARIFYING AND REDUCING THE
NUMBER OF REVIEWERS. I THINK
THAT'S A BIG ISSUE IS, AS SDOT
MENTIONED, THERE'S A LOT OF
THIRD PARTY REVIEWERS THAT GOES
TO SDCI TRAFFIC OPS, SPU FOR
OTHER FOR OTHER COMMENTS WHICH
DO DELAY THE PROCESS OUTSIDE OF
S DOT'S CONTROL TO SOME DEGREE.
YEAH. JUST WANT TO SAY THANK YOU
AGAIN TO MY COUNTERPARTS HERE
FOR, YOU KNOW, FOR THIS AND
CHAIR SAKA FOR, FOR HAVING US
ALL HERE TODAY. THE BRIEFING IS
THIS BRIEFING IS JUST SORT OF
THE START OF THIS WORK. AND
WE'RE JUST LOOKING TO BE A
HELPFUL PARTNER.
-- YEAH.
-- THANKS, LOGAN. YEAH. I'LL
JUST SAY FOR BLUEPRINT, WHAT WE
MAINLY WORK ON IS INFILL MIDDLE
HOUSING PROJECTS. AND, AND I
THINK YOU'LL SEE IN THE
PRESENTATION TODAY, YOU WON'T
SEE ANY PROJECTS THAT ARE 4 OR 6
UNITS OR LESS, BUT THEY'RE,
THEY'RE SUBJECT TO THE CIP
PROCESS. AND IT'S A MAJOR
REASON WHY WE DON'T DO PROJECTS
IN THE CITY. WE JUST CAN'T,
ESPECIALLY DURING THIS TIME. WE
CAN'T TAKE ON THE RISK AND THE
THE YEAR PLUS TIMELINE OF
GETTING A CIP PERMIT WITH THE
FOUR UNIT PROJECT. SO IT'S JUST,
IT'S JUST A A CHOKE POINT FOR
MIDDLE HOUSING THAT THAT REALLY
NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED. IT'S NOT
SCALABLE FOR SMALL PROJECTS.
SOME EXAMPLES ARE, YOU KNOW,
MINOR IMPROVEMENTS LIKE ALLEY
CRUSHED ROCK CAN COST US, YOU
KNOW, UP TO $45,000 IN TOTAL
FEES AND ABOUT 10,000 OF THAT IS
REALLY CONSTRUCTION. THAT MEANS
FOR EVERY DOLLAR WE'RE SPENDING
IN CONSTRUCTION, WE'RE SPENDING
ABOUT $4 ON PERMITTING AND
DESIGN AND ENGINEERING. SO IT'S
JUST A REAL CHALLENGE,
ESPECIALLY RIGHT NOW WITH THE
MARKET. AND, YOU KNOW, WE CAN
GET A BUILDING PERMIT IN THE
CITY OF SEATTLE IN ABOUT 3 TO 6
MONTHS. AS YOU CAN SEE BY THE
NUMBERS, THE CIP CAN TAKE 3 TO 6
TIMES THAT, THAT LENGTH. SO IT
JUST DOESN'T WORK WITH SMALL
DEVELOPMENT. AND, YOU KNOW, WE,
WE WANT TO DO THESE
IMPROVEMENTS, AS LOGAN ALLUDED
TO, WE WANT NICE SIDEWALKS. WE
WANT NICE ALLEYS. IT'S JUST THE
PAIN TO GET TO THAT POINT IS TOO
MUCH OF A STRETCH FOR SMALL
DEVELOPERS TO DO. AND RIGHT NOW,
MIDDLE HOUSING IS SUFFERING
BECAUSE OF IT. AND THE LAND USE
CODE. MAYBE THAT'S FOR ANOTHER
TIME. IT HAS A BIG PART TO PLAY
IN THIS. AND SO SPU AND SODA
CITY, AND LIKE I SAID, THE CIP
PROCESS WAS DESIGNED AT THE
HEIGHT OF MIXED USE DEVELOPMENT.
THEY'RE DESIGNED FOR BIG
PROJECTS THAT ARE TAKE TWO YEARS
TO BUILD, A YEAR TO PERMIT. THAT
WORKS FINE IN THAT TIMELINE FOR
UNIT SITES THAT TAKE THREE THREE
MONTHS TO PERMIT AND SIX MONTHS
TO BUILD, DON'T WORK WITH A SIP
PROCESS AND I'LL JUST USE
KIRKLAND AS AN EXAMPLE. THEY
HAVE AN INTEGRATED PROCESS WITH
THEIR BUILDING PERMIT. YOU
SUBMIT ONE PERMIT WITH ALL YOUR
ON SITE IMPROVEMENTS, WITH YOUR
BUILDING PERMIT, AND ALL OF YOUR
INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS IN
THE RIGHT OF WAY. AND WE CAN GET
THAT PERMIT IN SIX MONTHS WITH
EVERYTHING, IT'S A LITTLE BIT
MORE UPFRONT AND DESIGN. AND FOR
US, A HEAVY LIFT TO GET IT ALL
DESIGNED AND SUBMITTED. BUT IN
THE END, A SIX MONTH TURNAROUND
IS WORTH IT FOR US. AND WE WOULD
MAKE THAT LEAP IF WE HAD MORE
SURETY IN SEATTLE. IF WE HAD
THOSE NUMBERS. THANK YOU.
-- THANK YOU. APPRECIATE THE
COMMUNITY PERSPECTIVE AND VOICE
ON THIS IMPORTANT POLICY TOPIC
AS WELL. AND WE WANT TO GIVE YOU
THE SURETY THAT YOU NEED TO TO
BE SUCCESSFUL. AND I APPRECIATE
OUR PARTNERS AT SDOT WORKING
HARD EVERY DAY TO, TO DELIVER ON
EXACTLY THAT. IT SOUNDS LIKE
THERE'S SOME OPPORTUNITIES FOR
CONTINUED ITERATION. OF COURSE,
WITH ANY PROGRAM, BUT REALLY
APPRECIATE THE PERSPECTIVE.
WE'LL NOTE BEFORE I TURN IT
OVER TO QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS,
WE'LL KNOW A COUPLE THINGS.
FIRST OFF, AS WAS ALLUDED TO,
THIS IMPORTANT PROGRAM COULD
HAVE VERY GIVEN THE CROSS
FUNCTIONAL CROSS POLICY NATURE
OF THIS PROGRAM, IT COULD HAVE
VERY WELL EASILY BEEN PRESENTED
IN THE LAND USE COMMITTEE,
CHAIRED BY COUNCILMEMBER LYNN.
THE. GIVEN THE HOUSING NEXUS
COULD HAVE BEEN VERY EASILY
PRESENTED IN THE HOUSING, ARTS
AND CIVIL RIGHTS COMMITTEE,
CHAIRED BY COUNCIL COUNCILMEMBER
FOSTER. YOU KNOW, GIVEN THE
IMPORTANT ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
AND LABOR PIECES COULD HAVE BEEN
IN, YOU KNOW, YOUR COMMITTEE
THAT YOU. CHAIR, VICE CHAIR,
RINCK CITY LIGHT, ANY NUMBER OF
COMMITTEES. BUT I WANTED TO AT
LEAST INITIATE THIS IMPORTANT
CONVERSATION HERE TODAY BECAUSE
IT DOES TOUCH SO MANY DIFFERENT
ASPECTS OF VARIOUS POLICIES, NOT
JUST LIMITED TO THE THE RIGHT OF
WAY. WHICH OF COURSE, SDOT
GENERALLY OWNS AND MANAGES OR
BEARS, I'LL SAY PRIMARY
RESPONSIBILITY, NOT EXCLUSIVE
RESPONSIBILITY. AND. ALL RIGHT.
LET ME LET ME ACKNOWLEDGE WE
HAVE SOME SOME YOUTH IN THE
ROOM. WE HAVE THAT JUST ARRIVED
A MOMENT AGO. MEMBERS OF THE
TRANSPORTATION EQUITY WORKGROUP
YOUTH MENTORSHIP PROGRAM.
WELCOME, EVERYONE. LOOKING
FORWARD TO CONNECTING WITH YOU
ALL OFFLINE FOR A BIT AFTER
THIS, THIS COMMITTEE MEETING
ENDS, BUT WELCOME AND GLAD
YOU'RE ABLE TO TO KICK THE
TIRES A LITTLE BIT. AND IN TERMS
OF THE NUTS AND BOLTS, NITTY
GRITTY NUTS AND BOLTS OF LOCAL
GOVERNMENT. ALL RIGHT.
COUNCILMEMBER RINCK YOU ARE OR
VICE CHAIR RINCK YOU'RE
RECOGNIZED.
-- THANK YOU AND WELCOME. AND
THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR THE
PRESENTATION. APPRECIATE THE
WORK THAT YOU DO ON THIS REALLY
IMPORTANT POLICY MATTER. AND SO
THANK YOU FOR WALKING US THROUGH
BOTH THE BODY OF WORK AND THEN
THE STEPS YOU ALL HAVE TAKEN TO
TRY AND, AND STREAMLINE THINGS
AND ALSO WANT TO APPRECIATE THE
INSIGHTS THAT THE BUILDERS AT
THE TABLE HAVE SHARED ON THIS
MATTER I, IN ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF
SOME OF THE DATA SHARED TODAY
FROM SDOT, WE SEE THAT THIS
PROCESS CAN TAKE MANY MONTHS AND
AN ACKNOWLEDGMENT THAT SIP LIGHT
BEING BROUGHT ONLINE AS A WAY TO
TRY AND MAKE THINGS A LITTLE BIT
FASTER. WE KNOW THAT THIS TIME
STILL CAN. OFTEN WITH A
CONSTRUCTION PROJECT, TAKING
ADDITIONAL TIME CAN INCREASE
COSTS AND CREATE AGAIN, THAT
UNCERTAINTY. AND SO I'M
WONDERING, BEYOND PUBLISHING A
DASHBOARD, WHAT WOULD IT LOOK
LIKE FOR US TO LOOK AT CREATING
SOME MORE PERFORMANCE BENCHMARKS
OR A PUBLIC TIMELINE FOR
REVIEWING, REDUCING REVIEW
TIMES? AND CAN THAT DATA
POSSIBLY BE BROKEN UP BY PROJECT
SIZE OR TYPE?
-- YEAH, I'M.
-- HAPPY TO ANSWER THAT. SO TO
YOUR FIRST QUESTION ABOUT ADDING
MORE GRANULAR DATA. ABSOLUTELY.
WE CAN WE CAN LOOK AT THAT. I
THINK, YOU KNOW, THE THING THAT
I'VE BEEN WANTING TO LOOK AT
NEXT IS REALLY FORMALIZING THAT
STRUCTURE. AGAIN, I TALKED ABOUT
LIKE EACH REVIEW CYCLE IS TAKING
IS, IS GENERALLY CLOSE TO ON
TIME. AND WE'RE GENERALLY
MEETING OUR OR CLOSE TO MEETING
OUR METRICS. BUT REALLY THE
NUMBER OF REVIEWS IS WHAT'S
DRIVING THAT LENGTH OF TIME. SO
WHAT I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO DO
IS START LOOKING AT HOW MANY
REVIEW CYCLES AND BEING ABLE TO
PUBLISH HOW THAT HAPPENS, AND
THEN ALSO LOOKING AT PROCESS. IF
PROJECTS ARE INDEED MAKING, LIKE
WHY ARE PROJECTS GETTING INTO
MULTIPLE REVIEW CYCLES? IS IT
SOMETHING, YOU KNOW, WHERE,
WHERE IS THAT BREAKING DOWN? AND
SO LOOKING AT FOR IMPROVEMENTS
THERE, THE QUESTION, THE SECOND
QUESTION IS A LITTLE BIT MORE
DIFFICULT OF LIKE PROJECT SIZE.
AND I WANT TO RECOGNIZE THAT A
LOT OF THE. WORK IN THE PUBLIC
RIGHT OF WAY CAN BE COMPLEX,
COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT OF HOW
BIG A PROJECT IS, PARTICULARLY
WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING AT
SOMETHING LIKE A 4 TO 6 UNIT
BUILDING. IF IT HAPPENS TO BE IN
A LOCATION WITH, YOU KNOW, EASY
GRADES TO MATCH INFRASTRUCTURE
THAT'S ALREADY THERE, CLOSE TO
AN ALREADY DEVELOPED STREET,
THAT'S AN EASY, EASIER KIND OF
CONVERSATION ABOUT THE
ENGINEERING. THEN WHEN YOU ARE
LOOKING AT MAYBE THAT SAME
DEVELOPMENT IN A CLOSED CONTOUR
ALLEY THAT HASN'T BEEN IMPROVED
WITH OTHER SINGLE FAMILY
DEVELOPMENTS THAT HAVE COME AT
DIFFERENT GRADES OVER TIME, WITH
POTENTIALLY BUILDING INTO OUR
EXISTING RIGHT OF WAY. RIGHT.
AND SO IT, IT, IT'S HARD TO
EQUATE THE NUMBER OF UNITS WITH
THE COMPLEXITY THAT YOU'LL HAVE
TO SEE AS FAR AS THE ENGINEERING
THAT GOES INTO MAKING AN
ACCESSIBLE BUILDING THAT
DOESN'T HAVE DRAINAGE PROBLEMS
AND HAS THE UTILITIES THAT ARE
NEEDED TO SERVE IT. SO THAT'S A
LITTLE BIT OF A DIFFERENT WE'VE
THOUGHT A LITTLE BIT ABOUT IT,
BUT AND I KNOW LUCAS AND I HAVE
HAD CONVERSATIONS ABOUT THIS,
BUT IT'S, IT'S A LITTLE BIT
HARD TO GET AT LIKE WHAT THAT
METRIC IS SPECIFICALLY FOR.
LIKE, IF IT'S ONE UNIT, IT
SHOULD BE THIS AMOUNT. IF IT'S
FOUR UNITS, IT SHOULD BE THIS
TIME FRAME. DOES THAT ANSWER
YOUR QUESTION?
-- YEAH, IT DOES. I THINK JUST
HOLISTICALLY WAYS THAT WE CAN
MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE DRIVING
TOWARDS, AGAIN, IMPROVING
PERFORMANCE AND SHORTENING THOSE
TIMELINES. IT WOULD BE
TREMENDOUSLY HELPFUL. AND I
DON'T KNOW IF BUILDERS AT THE
TABLE HAVE ANY RESPONSE OR
FEEDBACK TO, TO THAT OR ANY
ADDITIONAL INSIGHTS TO SHARE ON
THIS TOPIC.
-- I GUESS I WOULD, I WOULD LEAN
BACK TO THE LAND USE CODE WHERE,
YOU KNOW, AND THERE'S THINGS
THAT CHANGE OVER TIME, BUT TWO
UNITS IN A SINGLE FAMILY ZONE
WAS ALL YOU COULD BUILD. AND
THAT'S ALL THE CODE EVER
DIDN'T REQUIRE IMPROVEMENT. AND
NOW WE WENT TO FOUR UNITS. AND
THAT REQUIRES A SIP OR IT'S
KIND OF JUST, IT'S KIND OF KIND
OF ELIMINATING THE BENEFIT OF
HAVING THAT FOURTH UNIT. NOW
WITH HB 1110. SO IT'S A THING
WHERE I THINK, I THINK THERE WAS
WIDE EYES AT HB 1110 AND THE NEW
PERMANENT CODE THAT JUST PASSED
UNTIL YOU LOOK AT DEVELOPMENT
THROUGH ALL LENSES, NOT JUST THE
LAND USE CODE, BUT LOOK AT THE
IMPACTS, ALL THE TRIGGERS. A SIP
WAS THAT BASICALLY GOING TO
NULLIFY THE BENEFIT OF ADDING
THAT LAND USE CAPABILITY? AND I
THINK THAT'S, THAT'S WHERE,
YOU KNOW, I THINK THE COUNCIL
AND THE CITY NEED TO LOOK AT
THAT IN SEATTLEITE AND SPU
POLICIES IS LIKE, WHAT IS
IMPORTANT? IS THE HOUSING
IMPORTANT OR IS THE ADDITIONAL
CRUSH ROCK ON THE ALLEY
IMPORTANT? SO I THINK DECISIONS
NEED TO BE MADE
-- APPRECIATE. MAYBE WE'LL TAKE
A PART OF THAT CONVERSATION. AND
LAND USE COMMITTEE WOULD LOVE TO
CONNECT THE DOTS THERE. JUST
MAKE SURE WE'RE TAKING A
HOLISTIC APPROACH. AND MY NEXT
QUESTION YOU STARTED TO ANSWER
THIS, BUT I'M WONDERING IF WE
CAN DIG IN JUST A LITTLE BIT
MORE, JUST A MATTER OF HOW WE'RE
LOOKING TO SIMPLIFY THE SIP
PROCESS BY REDUCING OR
CLARIFYING THOSE NUMBER OF
REQUIREMENTS, OR THE REVIEWERS
INVOLVED, WHILE ALSO
ESTABLISHING A CLEAR PATH FOR
RESOLVING THOSE COMPETING
REQUIREMENTS FROM DEPARTMENTS.
-- SO
-- REGULATIONS ARE ALWAYS HARD
AS THINGS GET ADDED OVER TIME,
RIGHT? AND I THINK THERE'S
ALWAYS A NEED PERIODICALLY TO GO
BACK AND KIND OF REFRESH WHAT
EACH OF THOSE REGULATIONS HAVE
MEANT. AS FAR AS ADDITIONAL
REVIEWERS AND ADDITIONAL
CRITERIA, AND MAYBE REFLECT ON,
YOU KNOW, A NEW REQUIREMENT
COMES ONLINE, WE ADD A NEW
REVIEW, STOP A NEW AND, AND A
LOT OF THAT IS, IS RIGHTFULLY
NEEDED. AND WE ALSO NEED TO LOOK
PERIODICALLY ABOUT, OKAY, NOW
THAT'S BEEN FIVE YEARS OF US
DOING THAT KIND OF INCREMENTAL
REVIEW. HOW DO WE THEN GO BACK
AND LOOK AT THE EFFICIENCIES OF
THOSE REVIEW STOPS AND HOW TO
BEST PRIORITIZE? AND SO I THINK
THAT'S AN EFFORT WE'RE PLANNING
ON, ON UNDERTAKING KIND OF THE
TAIL END OF THIS YEAR. I THINK A
LOT OF OUR FOCUS, WE'RE THE SAME
GROUP THAT'S BEEN DOING A LOT OF
THE WORK TO BUILD UP TO FIFA AND
KIND OF THE PUBLIC SPACE
MANAGEMENT WORK. AND SO I THINK
WE CAN SHIFT A LITTLE BIT TO
REALLY TAKING THAT ON AND
LOOKING AT HOW TO REDUCE THOSE
REDUCE AND TO MAKE SURE THAT
EVERYONE WHO IS REVIEWING IS
ADDING VALUE THROUGH OUR EXCEL
AND THE PERMITTING SYSTEM, AND
THAT WE HAVE SOME CONSISTENCY
IN, IN MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE
TRACKING AND HOLDING PEOPLE
ACCOUNTABLE FOR EACH OF THOSE
REVIEWS, BECAUSE THEY DO BUILD
UP OVER TIME. SO I THINK THAT'S
SOMETHING THAT WE WANT TO LOOK
AT IS, IS AS WE HAVE BUILT AND
ADDED PEOPLE, IS THERE A WAY TO
CONSOLIDATE THOSE AGAIN? SO
THAT'S SOMETHING WE'LL LOOK AT,
AND I DO ABSOLUTELY AGREE WITH
YOU. I THINK THE GETTING STUCK
IN THE REVIEW CYCLE CHURN. I
KNOW THIS IS SOMETHING THAT IS
IS A PAIN POINT FOR EVERYONE. SO
REALLY LOOKING AT FORMALIZING A
STRUCTURE TO HAVE SOME OVERSIGHT
IN THOSE REVIEW STRUCTURES. AND
ONCE YOU HIT A CERTAIN NUMBER TO
LIKE TAKE A STEP BACK AND SAY,
IS THIS WHAT'S NOT WORKING
ABOUT GETTING THE PERMIT THROUGH
THE PROCESS? SO I THINK THOSE
ARE TWO IMPROVEMENTS THAT WE
REALLY WANT TO DIVE INTO. KIND
OF THE TAIL END OF THIS YEAR.
-- I REALLY APPRECIATE THE
THOROUGHNESS OF THAT RESPONSE
AND ACKNOWLEDGING THE COMPLEXITY
OF EVERYTHING YOU'RE HOLDING IN,
IN TRYING TO DO THIS. I KNOW
WE'RE ALL UNITED IN FINDING
TRYING TO FIND A WAY TO NOT GET
STUCK IN THE CHURN OF CONSTANT
REVIEWS AND JUST GET THINGS
GOING AND STREAMLINE THE WORK.
AND IF I MAY, MY MY LAST
QUESTION. SO IT'S MY
UNDERSTANDING THAT RIGHT OF WAY
IMPROVEMENTS UNDER CIP HAVE TO
BE COMPLETED AND ACCEPTED BEFORE
SDCI CAN ISSUE A CERTIFICATE OF
OCCUPANCY. SO IF THE CIP PROCESS
IS DELAYED, IT DIRECTLY DELAYS
WHEN HOUSING CAN ACTUALLY BE
OCCUPIED OR SOLD, EVEN AFTER THE
BUILDING ITSELF MAY BE FINISHED.
AND AS WE DISCUSSED ON SMALLER
PROJECTS, ESPECIALLY, THOSE
DELAYS CAN INCREASE THE AMOUNT
OF BONDING REQUIRED TO KEEP THE
PROJECT OPEN, CREATING A
SIGNIFICANT AND ADDITIONAL
FINANCIAL BURDEN WHILE TYING UP
CAPITAL THAT COULD BE UTILIZED
ELSEWHERE. SO I'M WONDERING,
HOW ARE WE ACCOUNTING FOR SOME
OF THE COSTS OF CIP DELAYS FOR
UNITS THAT MIGHT BE SITTING ON
UNOCCUPIED? WHEN WE'RE
EVALUATING SOME OF THESE
TIMELINES.
-- I'D.
-- ACTUALLY PASS THAT TO OUR
MASTER BUILDERS FRIENDS. I'M
NOT SUPER AS FAR AS THE LIKE
POST CIP PERMIT ISSUANCE, I'M
NOT SURE. I KNOW THERE'S A LOT
OF DELAYS IN THE REVIEW PROCESS.
I DON'T KNOW HOW THAT TIES UP
WITH ONCE THE BUILDING IS BUILT.
IF THERE ARE LAGS GETTING THE
CIP.
-- YEAH, I MEAN, YEAH, I MEAN,
WE DON'T DO A TON OF SIPS JUST
BECAUSE THEY'RE A BARRIER TO
ENTRY FOR US. WHEN WE HAVE DONE
THEM IN THE PAST IN A BETTER
MARKET, WE'VE HAD SALES FALL
OUT BECAUSE WE COULDN'T GET THE
CFO AND WE HAD TO BEG. BEG, BEG
FOR A TEMPORARY CFO. AND SOME
BANKS DON'T WANT THAT. SO IT
JUST CREATES A BIG FRICTION
POINT. AND RIGHT NOW THE MARKET
IS TERRIBLE TO SAY. THE THE BEST
OF WHAT IT IS. SO RIGHT NOW
IT'S IT'S A BIG PART OF IT. I
MEAN, IT FACTORS INTO THE TIME,
THE TIME AND REVIEW TO GET TO
GET IT SUBMITTED, YOU NEED TO
HAVE 60% APPROVAL ACCEPTED BY
SDOT. THAT CAN TAKE THREE MONTHS
PLUS TO GET TO THAT STAGE BEFORE
YOU CAN EVEN SUBMIT YOUR
BUILDING PERMIT. SO FOR A SMALL
PROJECT RIGHT THERE, RIGHT NOW,
THAT IS A NO. FROM THE START, A
FEW PROJECTS THAT MAY WORK FOR
VARIOUS REASONS. THE MAJORITY OF
THEM ARE JUST A NO RIGHT NOW.
AND I THINK THIS THIS BONDING
REQUIREMENT. WE HAVE ONE. I HAVE
ONE RIGHT NOW. EMBARRASSED TO
SAY IT'S WE IT WAS A TOWNHOUSE
PROJECT WE STARTED FIVE YEARS
AGO. IT IS NOT DONE. AND WE HAD
TO RE-UP OUR BOND. AND I THINK
WE PAID TEN GRAND FOR IT. SO
IT'S, IT'S IT'S A REAL DEAL
FOR BIG AND SMALL PROJECTS. AND
I'LL JUST SAY THIS AFFECTS NOT
JUST MARKET RATE DEVELOPERS. IT
AFFECTS HABITAT, ALL LOW INCOME
DEVELOPMENT. THERE IS NO
EXEMPTION OR ANYTHING. THEY GO
THROUGH THE SAME PAINS. THEY
AVOID PROJECTS FOR THE SAME
REASONS AS MARKET RATE
DEVELOPERS.
-- I APPRECIATE.
-- THAT RESPONSE AND ALSO
APPRECIATE THE FACT THAT WE ARE
TALKING ABOUT STRATEGIES TO
ADDRESS OUR HOUSING CRISIS HERE
IN THE TRANSPORTATION WATERFRONT
AND COMMITTEE. AND SO THANK YOU,
CHAIR, FOR PULLING TOGETHER THIS
TABLE TO BE ABLE TO DISCUSS THIS
REALLY IMPORTANT ISSUE. THIS
FEELS WORKABLE AND SOLVABLE. AND
SO HERE IS A PARTNER TO FIGURE
OUT HOW WE CAN STREAMLINE THESE
PROCESSES AND GET MORE HOUSING
ONLINE. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR
THE PRESENTATION. THANK YOU
CHAIR.
-- THANK YOU, VICE CHAIR RINCK.
WELL SAID.
-- THOUGHTFUL QUESTIONS AS
ALWAYS, COUNCIL MEMBER FOSTER,
YOU'RE RECOGNIZED.
-- THANK YOU SO MUCH, CHAIR, AND
THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION.
I APPRECIATE ALL THE WORK THAT
YOU ALL ARE DOING, AND I'M JUST
GOING TO. I HAVE SEVERAL
QUESTIONS, BUT I UNFORTUNATELY
HAVE A FINANCE COMMITTEE MEETING
TO ATTEND, SO I'LL JUST ASK ONE
OF THOSE, WHICH IS IT'S MY
UNDERSTANDING THAT AS WE TALKED
ABOUT THE KIRKLAND PROCESS, ONE
OF THE THINGS THAT CUTS DOWN ON
THE TIMELINE THERE IS THAT
THEY'RE DOING CONCURRENT REVIEW
AS OPPOSED TO SEQUENCED REVIEW.
I WANT TO CONFIRM THAT THAT'S
CORRECT. AND THEN I WANT TO ASK
WHETHER WE HAVE TRIED TO DO THAT
KIND OF REVIEW HERE AT THE CITY.
-- YEAH. I MEAN, I JUST SAY
KIRKLAND. IT IS A UNIFIED
SUBMITTAL. YOU SUBMIT ALL YOUR
RIGHT OF WAY IMPROVEMENT. THEY
REQUIRE MAIN EXTENSIONS AND
IMPROVEMENTS, JUST LIKE SEATTLE.
IT DOES TAKE US A LITTLE MORE TO
DESIGN BOTH PACKAGES TO GET YOUR
CIVIL DESIGN, ARCHITECTURAL
DESIGN, THEY NEED TO WORK
TOGETHER. IT TAKES A LITTLE MORE
COORDINATION, BUT YEAH, WE CAN
GET A PERMIT RIGHT THERE IN
ABOUT SIX MONTHS. I MEAN,
PERMITS ARE DOWN ALL OVER, BUT
THERE REVIEW TIMES ARE ABOUT SIX
MONTHS TO GET A PERMIT RIGHT NOW
FOR ALL THE WORK.
-- YEAH. AND PART OF THAT TOO IS
SEATTLE IN MOST INSTANCES HAS
CONCURRENCY IN THEIR REVIEW
PROCESS. SO IT'S NOT
NECESSARILY AN ISSUE OF THE
SEQUENCING. IT'S JUST THAT
THERE ARE THERE'S MULTIPLE
OWNERS OF THESE PERMITS AND
VARIOUS PERMIT PROCESSES. SDCI
SORT OF LIVES IN THEIR OWN WORLD
WITH THEIR CONSTRUCTION PERMIT
AND BUILDING PERMIT S DOT
OBVIOUSLY OVERSEES THE CIP. AND
SO THOSE DO RUN CONCURRENTLY.
BUT ARE. THE, YOU KNOW, FOR
BETTER OR FOR WORSE, JUST SORT
OF OUR EXISTING IN THEIR IN
THEIR OWN WORLDS. KIRKLAND AND A
LOT OF OTHER NEIGHBORING
JURISDICTIONS HAVE SORT OF ALL
IN HOUSE JUST ONE TEAM OF SENIOR
PLANNERS, OTHER REVIEWERS WHO
ARE OVERSEEING EVERY SINGLE
ASPECT OF THE OF ALL REVIEWS AND
PERMITS. SO IT'S, IT WOULD TAKE
A REALLY HUGE OVERHAUL OF, OF
SEATTLE'S ENTIRE PERMIT SYSTEM
ACROSS ALL DEPARTMENTS TO, TO
GET TO SOMETHING LIKE WHAT WE
HAVE IN A PLACE LIKE KIRKLAND.
BUT THERE'S DEFINITELY WAYS THAT
WE CAN, YOU KNOW, HAVE A LITTLE
BIT MORE OF THAT
CROSS-DEPARTMENTAL COORDINATION
THAT CAN, CAN ABSOLUTELY SLOW
DOWN OR SORRY, THEY CAN
ABSOLUTELY SPEED UP THE PROCESS
THAT WE'VE SEEN HERE TODAY
-- JUST ECHOING WE DO. YEAH, WE
DO TRY TO RUN CONCURRENTLY AND
KIND OF THE PROCESS THAT I WAS
HIGHLIGHTING HAS KIND OF THE
TOUCH POINTS THAT WE HAVE THAT
TRY TO DRIVE TO THAT, THAT
CONCURRENT REVIEW.
-- GOT IT. AND I'LL JUST SQUEEZE
IN ONE MORE QUESTION BEFORE I
HAVE TO RUN, WHICH IS AND I
APPRECIATE SOMEBODY BRINGING UP
THE IMPACT, NOT JUST FOR INFILL,
WHICH WE ARE TRYING TO SUPPORT.
AND THE WAY THAT THIS HAS
IMPACTED THE IMPLEMENTATION OF
HB 1110. I REALLY APPRECIATE
THAT, AND I APPRECIATE THAT YOU
ALSO BROUGHT UP THE CONNECTION
TO OUR AFFORDABLE HOUSING
PROVIDERS AND THEIR COSTS. AND I
WONDER IF WE HAVE DONE ANY
ANALYSIS OR LOOKED AT THE OUR
UNDERSTANDING OF THE TIME THAT
THAT ADDS TO THAT. OUR PROCESS
ADDS TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF
AFFORDABLE HOUSING OR THE
AVERAGE COST THAT IT ADDS TO THE
DEVELOPMENT OF AFFORDABLE
HOUSING
-- I KNOW.
-- OFFICE OF HOUSING HAS DONE
SOME OF THAT WORK. I DON'T HAVE
IT HERE, BUT I CAN GET IT FOR
YOU AS WELL.
-- AND COUNCILMEMBER FOSTER,
I'VE ALSO WE'VE BEEN IN
CONVERSATION WITH HABITAT FOR
HUMANITY AND SOME OF OUR OTHER
AFFORDABLE HOUSING PARTNERS WHO
ARE VERY MUCH IN SUPPORT OF
TODAY'S BRIEFING. WE'RE KIND OF
TIED UP WITH WITH OTHER
COMMITMENTS TODAY, BUT WE CAN
ABSOLUTELY WORK TO SORT OF GET
YOU SOME OF THAT DATA BECAUSE
THEY WANT TO BE PART OF THIS
CONVERSATION, TOO.
-- YEAH, THANK YOU FOR THAT. AND
I THE REASON I RAISED THAT
QUESTION, OBVIOUSLY, AS CHAIR OF
HOUSING, WE I'VE HEARD THIS
CONCERN FROM A NUMBER OF OUR
AFFORDABLE HOUSING DEVELOPERS,
AS WELL AS OUR MARKET RATE
DEVELOPERS. AND IT SOUNDS THE
SAME, RIGHT? I THINK PEOPLE
BELIEVE IN WHAT WE ARE TRYING TO
CREATE WITH THE STREETS AND THE
KIND OF ACCESSIBILITY AND THE
DESIGN THAT WE WANT TO HAVE. AND
I'VE ALSO JUST TALKED ABOUT THE
IMPACT TO THEIR PROJECTS. IN
PARTICULAR, WHEN I HEAR FROM
FOLKS THAT'S AROUND WHEN
THEY'RE WORKING IN AREAS WHERE
THERE ISN'T A LOT OF NEIGHBORING
DEVELOPMENT, AND SOMETIMES THAT
MAKES IT A PLACE THAT IS EASIER
FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROVIDERS
TO ACQUIRE, BUT THEN SHOWS UP
WITH ADDITIONAL COSTS BECAUSE
THERE IS NOT A LOT OF
NEIGHBORING DEVELOPMENT, MEANING
THAT THERE'S A LOT OF STREET
IMPROVEMENT TO DO. AND SO WE'VE
HEARD THAT CONCERN FROM FOLKS,
AND IT'S SOMETHING I LOOK
FORWARD TO WORKING WITH YOU ALL
TO CONTINUE TO ADDRESS. THANK
YOU SO MUCH, CHAIR.
-- THANK YOU.
-- COUNCILMEMBER FOSTER
APPRECIATE YOUR FEEDBACK HERE.
AS ALWAYS, COLLEAGUES, ANY OTHER
COMMENTS QUESTIONS ON THIS ITEM
OF BUSINESS HEARING. SEEING
NONE, I WILL JUST SAY THANK YOU
AGAIN. FIRST TO OUR PARTNERS AT
SENATE FOR BEING HERE AND
PROVIDING THIS PRESENTATION,
HELPING TO TO SHED LIGHT AND
BRING BRING TRANSPARENCY ONTO
THIS IMPORTANT WORK. AND THEN
ALSO OUR COMMUNITY PARTNERS AS
WELL, WHO, WHO HELP, WHO ARE
DIRECTLY IMPACTED BY THIS WORK.
AND, AND KIND OF BROUGHT TO LIFE
SOME OF THE, THE CROSS
FUNCTIONAL CROSS POLICY
IMPLICATIONS OF THIS PROGRAM. SO
APPRECIATE EVERYONE. AGAIN. WE
HAVE REACHED THE END OF TODAY'S
ROBUST MEETING AGENDA. OUR NEXT
MEETING WILL BE HELD ON TUESDAY,
SEPTEMBER 8th. SPECIAL MEETING
AT 2 P.M.. PLEASE NOTE THAT THIS
AGAIN WILL BE A SPECIAL MEETING
OUTSIDE OF OUR TYPICAL CADENCE,
IS THERE ANY FINAL BUSINESS TO
COME BEFORE THE COMMITTEE BEFORE
WE ADJOURN TODAY? HEARING AND
SEEING NO FURTHER BUSINESS TO
COME BEFORE THE COMMITTEE, WE
ARE ADJO