Spokane Street Viaduct gets a green light

A Seattle City Council committee agreed Tuesday that the Spokane Street Viaduct-widening project should go ahead next year, but members want more assurances of financing for Mercer Street improvements before construction begins.

After lengthy arguments from advocates on both sides, council members attending a council transportation committee meeting voted 6-1 to approve the $168.5 million Spokane project and to require a documented plan from the Nickels administration to raise nearly $88 million needed for the $192 million Mercer project.

Councilman Nick Licata voted against funding the Mercer project, saying it hadn't been fully justified and wasn't beneficial. Other members, however, said the project would help solve the Mercer Mess for traffic and improve the South Lake Union neighborhood.

"It is time for leadership to be bold," said Councilwoman Jan Drago, the committee chairwoman.

The full council is expected to vote on the proposal Monday.

The Spokane Street project would widen the Spokane Street Viaduct and add a new loop-ramp to Fourth Avenue South. Funding is $40 million short.

The Mercer project would make Mercer a two-way street between Fairview and Dexter avenues north, and add bike paths and trees. The city needs to find $87.9 million to cover costs.

The Nickels administration has proposed making up cash shortfalls with state and federal grants. It also proposes raising $36 million for the Mercer project from private sources.

Both projects are considered ways to expedite cross-city traffic during building to repair or replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct.

John Coney, vice president of the Uptown Alliance on Queen Anne, told the committee Tuesday, "The Mercer Mess will become a much bigger mess if we don't do something."

Rebuilding the street and creating westbound movement from nearby Interstate 5 offramps will relieve freeway backups and improve traffic overall, city officials said. A measure approved by the committee Tuesday allows the city to complete more engineering work and begin right-of-way property acquisitions this year, but asks for documentation of more federal and state money to help pay for construction, set to begin in 2009.

The measure also asks for funding contingency plans, an assessment of need for interim financing and an explanation of when the additional money would be available. It says additional funding for the Mercer work won't be granted until the council can evaluate progress toward getting needed cash.

"We want Mercer, but we want validation of more funding," Drago said.

Others tried without success to get the project killed or delayed. City studies have shown that, in some cases, driving times could be greater on Mercer between Seattle Center and I-5.

John Fox of the Seattle Displacement Coalition supported the Spokane Street Viaduct widening but said the Mercer work is designed to direct traffic away from new South Lake Union developments, and the city will end up having to buy back property it sold to Microsoft Corp. co-founder Paul Allen's development company, he said.

Gene Wasserman of the North Seattle Industrial Association, a business group, said improvements should be considered "all the way through the corridor" to Elliott Avenue West.

But Grace Crunican, the city's transportation director, said the Mercer project would improve westbound traffic flow from I-5 25 percent.

Asked about benefits to Allen's development, Crunican also said the project "has nothing to do with anything but transportation improvement." She could not say whether the city would buy back property from Allen.

The measure approved by the committee says the city intends to work with the state to make improvements to Mercer as far as Elliott Avenue West.