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Thursday, June 29, 2006
Transportation package faces cut, councilwoman says
Mayor Greg Nickels' $1.8 billion transportation improvement package probably will be reduced before it can be approved for submission to voters, the chairwoman of the Seattle City Council's Transportation Committee said Wednesday.
Councilwoman Jan Drago wouldn't guess how much the mayor's package might get trimmed but said "there's a general feeling" it is too big " and we need to make it more reasonable."
The council is expected to take its first vote on the proposal at a meeting July 17 and a second vote in a regular council session July 24 or 31, Drago said. The city must get voter approval of a proposed property tax levy to support the package, though council members could approve a proposed 10 percent parking tax and $25-per-head employee tax without a vote.
At a hearing Wednesday night, a largely business-connected crowd of speakers condemned the parking tax, a key element of the proposal, and asked that the package be scaled back.
The parking surcharge "will harm downtown's competitiveness," said Lynn Beck, speaking for Pacific Place shopping center and Nordstrom. It would be "one more hurdle for business to overcome to attract customers."
Several parking lot operators said they shouldn't be targeted by that tax and said the city should add more street parking meters and extend their operating hours.
Others said the parking tax and the $25-per-full-time-em- ployee tax on businesses could hurt those businesses and, added to the effects of rebuilding the Alaskan Way Viaduct, could drive some away.
"Many in Pioneer Square are already struggling," said Katie Comer of the Pioneer Square Community Association.
Nickels proposed his package of taxes just over a month ago, saying they were needed to catch up on an estimated $500 million backlog of maintenance of the city's aging system of roads, bridges, stairways and sidewalks. The package also includes big outlays for several major projects, including $30 million to switch Mercer Street to a two-way boulevard between Interstate 5 and lower Queen Anne.
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