Neighboring cities jockey to grab North Highline

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Tuesday, May 30, 2006

Neighboring cities jockey to grab North Highline
Mayor seeks to annex area, but Burien may make bid

By ANGELA GALLOWAY
P-I REPORTER

It's known by lots of names: White Center. Rat City. North Highline.

PHOTO GALLERY

See photos of White Center.

The 6-square-mile "island" of comparably inexpensive homes, ethnic restaurants and family-owned repair shops beyond Seattle's undetectable southern boundary is truly a no man's land.

That's about to change. Soon, the more than 32,000 residents of this diverse and relatively impoverished area of unincorporated King County will get to choose their hometown.

The decision could have a big, if not yet fully understood, effect on Seattle.

Mayor Greg Nickels wants to stretch Seattle's southwestern border to absorb White Center and the surrounding neighborhoods between Seattle and Burien, Tukwila and SeaTac.

Some City Council members question the wisdom of assuming responsibility for the entire "North Highline" community, which they say is sure to drain city coffers with its especially high social-service needs and low tax base.

Meanwhile, Burien officials are considering making their own bid for North Highline, potentially doubling Burien's size and population. And a community council that the county considers the official voice of North Highline has voted to side with Burien.

Incorporation as a new city is not a fiscally viable option, according to a county-funded study commissioned by the North Highline Unincorporated Area Council. After receiving that report, the council voted nearly unanimously to choose Burien.

"We would be half the size of the city of Burien rather than just a little blip on the radar screen for Seattle," said Russ Kay, president of the council.

Nickels' office hasn't given up -- even if it means divvying the North Highline spoils, such as they are, with Burien.

Within the two city halls, "there is a growing perception that despite its challenges, it's kind of a diamond in the rough," said Elissa Benson, a senior policy analyst with the county. "It takes a lot of vision. It's not like you're annexing this superrich community."

Seattle, Burien and King County have agreed to try to reach a deal this summer.

But the ultimate where-goes-the-neighborhood decision rests with the residents of North Highline -- nearly half of whom live in White Center. Those citizens would likely make that determination in a vote next year.

What's at stake

So far, the only point of agreement is this: Things won't stay the same for residents of North Highline.

King County now provides the area's law enforcement, libraries, parks and local court services. Polling shows most residents would prefer things stay that way.

"It seems like King County has worked out pretty well," said Kim Waligorska, who has spent 13 years in a community that allows her to shoot off July Fourth fireworks in her one-third-acre yard.

But county politicians have made it clear they expect annexation, which is the stated preference of government regional growth guidelines. In 2004, the county set aside $10 million to encourage cities to incorporate 10 areas with a combined population of about 218,000.

At the same time, the county warned residents of those areas that it would be reducing services in coming years.

North Highline is the largest single area within County Executive Ron Sims' annexation initiative.

For those who live there, the only assured constant is schools. Under state law, Highline School District would continue to serve the area however the annexation debate turns out. Everything else -- from tax bills and property values to services including police protection and garbage pickup -- is likely to change.

North Highline is a largely residential area with little commercial activity beyond the core of White Center. Housing prices are relatively low. In 2004, the median home price was $215,000 -- about two-thirds of Seattle's median.

Seattle has slightly lower property taxes than Burien and a reputation for richer services, but the big city's business taxes are many times higher than Burien's.

Many locals worry that becoming part of Seattle would drive up their property costs. Others, such as Hazel Warlaumont, welcome the potential boost in equity.

Seattle has "the infrastructure to provide the services that those of us who live in North Highline have been missing," added Warlaumont.

Warlaumont said she recently had to turn to an acquaintance to repair a pothole near her driveway after the county said it would take three years.

The paramount concern for many here is not a dilemma founded on revenue streams and bureaucratic offerings, but something more sentimental: Where does North Highline belong?

It's a question of whether to become one-twentieth of the state's largest city, or about half of one of its newest municipalities. And Burien is known for a lighter regulatory touch -- one of the qualities that drew many folks to North Highline in the first place.

Some residents are turned off by Seattle's sometimes-maligned politics, such as the long-running controversy over the now-canceled monorail expansion and the pricey vehicle tax that accompanied it.

"I like Seattle, but I don't want to be a part of their government," said Christine Waldman. "I just prefer a small community, and with Seattle's government, we would have a smaller voice."

'Right thing to do'

So what's in it for the cities?

It's still unclear what the bottom line of annexation would be for the rest of Seattle, according to Nickels' staffers. But it will be worth the price, they insist -- simply because it's the "right thing to do."

"Government is not a profit-making venture," Deputy Mayor Tim Ceis said recently. "The residents (there) are in need of resources that we can provide."

Plus, he said, "These are great neighborhoods to add to Seattle."

Longtime local political observer David Brewster added that size matters a great deal in political clout and bragging rights. "I've never known a mayor who didn't want to annex," he said.

Brewster suggested there is more motivating Nickels than the "right thing to do" justifications offered by Ceis, who's known as "The Shark" of local politics. "Maybe that's the new Tim Ceis (and) he's gone all soft on us," Brewster said. "But I doubt it."

Brewster said there's more to the financial picture than simple tax comparisons. For one, he said, larger cities qualify for more state, federal and private grant funding.

Nickels' staffers have focused on the feel-good aspects of annexation.

"We'll add another diverse community to Seattle -- one that I think has a lot of energy," said Kenny Pittman, a senior policy analyst for the mayor.

It's yet unclear what that "energy" would cost taxpayers.

Two years ago, the City Council approved a resolution demanding such information before it would consider asking North Highline voters to join Seattle. Pittman is working on a fiscal assessment and plans to present it to a special City Council annexation committee July 6.

Councilwoman Jan Drago suspects Seattle can't afford to take in a "new area with huge infrastructure needs," she said. "The human-service needs are also immense."

Decades ago, Seattle politicians promised residents of a large area north of North 85th Street that annexation would bring sidewalks and better drainage, she said. For the most part, it still hasn't happened.

Ceis dismissed concerns that absorbing North Highline would further strain a city budget that some say fails to meet the needs of existing neighborhoods. "I don't believe that we're underserving anybody," he said.

Councilman Richard Conlin, chairman of a committee studying annexation, predicts it would have "pretty minimal effect on the rest of the city." At the same time, "It would give us an addition to the diversity and the resiliency and the quality of the city as a whole," he said. "I don't really see any downsides."

Burien officials say their city will pay a price no matter how the annexation battle turns out. The costliest scenario is if Seattle takes the whole region, they say.

That's partly because Burien contracts with the King County Sheriff's Office for its law enforcement, said David Cline, interim city manager. Deputies patrolling North Highline can share duties with those in Burien, offering economies of scale.

If Seattle police were to take over patrol duties for North Highline, Burien would have to add more deputies, at a cost of $2.2 million a year, to retain the same level of staffing. Also, Burien would have to build a fire station because it is now served by two stations in North Highline.

If Burien annexes all or part of North Highline, it would still lose money, partly because it would have to boost fire services. But the cost would be much lower than if Seattle takes the whole area, more like $500,000 to $600,000 a year. And most of that would be covered by a sales-tax credit the Legislature approved earlier this year, said Scott Greenberg, community development director for Burien.

Because of its size, Seattle doesn't qualify for the credit.

What's next?

In March, Nickels signed a deal with Sims and Burien officials to work together on how the area should be divvied up. Neither Seattle nor Burien voters would get a say, but their councils would have to sign off before any plan would go to North Highline voters. The goal is to reach a deal by the end of this year and go to voters in November 2007.

Burien officials plan to hold informative open houses for their residents Wednesday, Saturday and June 7.

In the meantime, both cities continue to woo North Highline residents.

Nickels' office has taken City Council members on tours of the White Center area. Twice, the city has taken White Center residents and leaders on bus tours of the Delridge area of Seattle -- highlighting what they say they've done for that area.

And Burien's Greenberg boasted last year in a questionnaire from the North Highline council that annexation "is one of the seven major goals for the city this year. Where is it on Seattle's priority list?"