Posted Mon, Apr 9, 4:02 p.m.

Mark Hinshaw: Thank-you for the informative and balanced account of the Harborview Hall open-space dilemma, as well as for dreaming on the page a little about a compromise solution. Giving an interesting alternative version for open space for the area backed up by environmental reasons for not tearing down HH ...

Posted Thu, Dec 8, 5:33 p.m.

Thank-you for the historical perspective. It was interesting to learn that Seattle Center planners at different times considered connecting the Center to the Sound. Given a conception that relates the two, the potential “swapability” of features between the waterfront and the Center seems natural, as does the potential competition for ...

Posted Thu, Dec 1, 5:44 p.m.

Thank-you for the progress report and critique. The notion of phasing development over time within a broader scheme is a practical approach. If there is institutional infrastructure in place for developing a link between the Market, the Aquarium, and Piers 62/63 now, that’s a leg up for starting there. That ...

Posted Sat, Nov 5, 2:38 p.m.

Thank-you for the analysis of issues and context for the current ballot. Together with Jordan Royer’s explanation of how candidates choose to run for Seattle City Council, Crosscut has provided a mini-primer on local politics. That Bellevue could go either way on rail/development with legitimate justification either way makes it ...

Posted Mon, Sep 19, 6:04 p.m.

Thank-you for big picture on the park. Four special purpose parks over water strung along the waterfront is a good idea in the circumstances. Too bad there's not enough land available for one big “destination” multipurpose park. As Borkowski (above) points out, an obvious paradigm for a string of parks ...

Posted Tue, Apr 26, 4:34 p.m.

Two points of Knute’s worth repeating are right here: 1. Good design would be a cure for controversy, 2. The fact is, beautiful viaducts and bridges are being built around the world. One suspects that the selection outcome for the viaduct replacement was prejudiced by the clunky design for the ...

Posted Mon, Apr 4, 1:19 p.m.

Knute Berger: Thank-you for the enlightening historical perspective. The story behind the R. H. Thompson Expressway ramps makes the current waterfront tunnel slam-dunk seem a little more precarious. Could it be that the mayor’s determinedness coupled with a greener view of progress will ultimately prevail? Beyond a doubt he’s right ...

Posted Sun, Feb 20, 5:02 p.m.

David Brewster’s idea of scaling down to a park around Memorial Fountain sounds like a realistic holding pattern, appropriate for now. Robinson’s suggestion of reviving the idea of an urban park, but with a different paradigm for development and safekeeping, chimes with this long-range. It’s too bad Chihuly & Company ...

Posted Wed, Dec 8, 3:56 p.m.

The new Master Plan opened up the possibility of setting Seattle Center on a different track than it has been for the last 50 years, towards a big green park in the heart of the city, albeit with some “serious” cultural venues along its northern edge. But there was certainly ...

Posted Sun, Aug 22, 5:38 p.m.

Alaigo: Long-term benefits vs. up-front costs are part of the picture, as you point out, and it’s certainly exciting to think that a tunnel and waterfront promenade could spur the transformational developments you envision. The waterfront you picture is a sort of downtown Seattle version of the world on a ...

Posted Mon, Aug 9, 4:15 p.m.

Seattle Center needs to evolve into the open space envisioned in the master plan and exemplified in the FROG proposal. The growing neighborhood needs a green park. At the same time, KEXP has very attractive possibilities for infusing the Center with new visitors and energy. KEXP combined with FROG might ...

Posted Tue, Aug 3, 3:46 p.m.

Fred117 (above) makes sense to me. David Brewster’s observation that “the tunnel would likely fail in a vote because the majority of voters would not [directly] benefit from it” might, ironically, apply to the proposed central waterfront park as well. The park would benefit residents and landowners in the immediate ...

Posted Sun, Jul 25, 4:14 p.m.

R on Beacon Hill: David Brewster (June 22, “Can Seattle Make a Great Waterfront Park?”) nailed it on the prevailing rationale for a waterfront tunnel: “Keep in mind, the reason we are digging that big tunnel is the park”. Accommodating SR99 traffic to/from downtown and west and north of Queen ...

Posted Mon, Jul 19, 5:03 p.m.

If one comments on Art’s comment (above), one contradicts its premise by commenting not on the original article but the comment. Double-bind acknowledged, I agree that it would be better if people stuck to the issues raised in the articles. Skip over the drivel comments is my policy. As to ...

Posted Sun, Jul 18, 4:45 p.m.

I think it was Knute Berger who suggested on KUOW one day that the Fun Forest makes a good interim solution. Blame it on the recession that an attractive funding option for redeveloping the Fun Forest site has not materialized along with the ideas. The Fun Forest proposal offers a ...

Posted Sun, Jul 18, 4:35 p.m.

Re. interim repair-the-viaduct compromise: WADOT evaluated seismic retrofit options in 2008 and found retrofits unfeasible for a variety of reasons, including projected lifespan and uncontrollable, unstoppable deterioration of the original concrete foundations. Thus there is no reverse to retrofit, even if the political will to move forward with a tunnel ...

Posted Sun, Jul 11, 5:02 p.m.

The importance given to generating revenues by the presenters comes across clearly in your article. The KEXP proposal suddenly looks more viable against the Chihuly than the others for this reason. But it would also deliver on CEO Sevart’s goal of “bringing energy back to the campus” in a big, ...

Posted Sun, Jun 20, 3:27 p.m.

Kudos for the even-handed evaluations. As you point out, there are things to like. For sure, there’s a diversity of interests here, underlain by competing visions. The 2008 Master Plan prioritizes increasing open space. Far and away, the best plan to do that is Center Park from FROG. It is ...

Posted Thu, Apr 22, 2:13 p.m.

I appreciated your comments about McGinn’s principled stands on transportation for the region. He’s absolutely right—you don’t build more highway capacity except at the cost of perpetuating existing driving habits and aggravating all the associated problems, from greenhouse warming to local congestion to regional land use patterns. You don’t improve ...

Posted Fri, Oct 23, 4:04 p.m.

During the mayoral candidate forum at Seattle U last Saturday, McGinn mentioned in his answer to a tunnel question that north-south traffic on the west side of Queen Anne constitutes 60% of current viaduct traffic. With the viaduct this traffic is handled by ramps connecting to Western and Elliott. The ...

Posted Sat, Aug 8, 12:44 p.m.

I don’t get the rationale for the distribution of collected fees this referendum proposes. What is the simple explanation for why shopkeepers keep most of the money? MacDonald makes clear that plastic bags raise havoc for marine life. Which raises the question, what is Referendum 1 trying to accomplish? If ...

Posted Tue, Jun 5, 2:55 p.m.

Serra Underwhelming? Controlled Feeling? Critical Lingo?: Katherine Anderson asks an interesting question: Why does the Serra feel underwhelming? One possible explanation might be that it doesn't interact with the space around it. The viewer encounters the piece first from a distance, below eye level, within a "clearing" flanked by steep ...