Tunnel almost buried
Published Thu, Jan 18 2007 12:11 AM
Technorati Tags: News and Politics, Transportation, Open Trackbacks
Mayor Nickel's pipe dream for Seattle is nearly buried. Now thanks to the childish stubbornness of the Mayor and the Seattle City Council the funds to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct may be allocated to other things. From the Seattle Times:
Nickels on Wednesday unveiled a new, smaller viaduct proposal that he said would shave $1.2 billion from the $4.6 billion estimated cost of the previously proposed six-lane tunnel.
After a meeting between Nickels, Gov. Christine Gregoire, House Speaker Frank Chopp and other officials, the governor released a statement saying the proposal doesn't meet her timeline for a Seattle vote on viaduct replacement options. She has said the vote must occur before the Legislature adjourns April 22, but the city proposed an April 24 vote.
The statement also said the assumptions contained in Nickels' new tunnel plan hadn't been verified the state Department of Transportation.
...
Nickels, however, said he wasn't giving up and would continue to fight to place the smaller tunnel option on the ballot.
"I'm very disappointed by the statement from the governor, after asking us to put the issue to voters, that she's not interested in the opinion of Seattle citizens," Nickels said. "I find it hard to believe any other city in the state would be treated in this manner."
I'm very disappointed by the mayor and the city council's decision to ignore the timeline mandated by the governor. In their childish insistence upon a tunnel to build their legacy at any cost, they may have just lost the funding for any Viaduct replacement.
...Here is the complete statement from the governor:
"We all understand that we need to move forward. No action is not an option. Mayor Nickels and Seattle Transportation Chair Jan Drago believe that the city could place a ballot before voters April 24 on a new hybrid tunnel design and finance plan.
"Legislative leaders, transportation chairs and the governor rejected that timeline because it is beyond the scheduled Legislature adjournment. They are also concerned about the assumptions that have not yet been validated by the Washington state Department of Transportation.
"This leaves us with a very difficult decision. There are two remaining options:
"-- move forward with an elevated viaduct replacement or, "-- reprogram funding to the 520 replacement project. "We thank all parties for a candid discussion."
Considering that the Seattle City Council and the Mayor have both promised to slow-roll the permitting process and otherwise put roadblocks in the way of building an elevated structure we may see 520 replaced before the viaduct is ever repaired.
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Cross posted at NWBloggers.com
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