crosscut.com : Alaskan Way Viaduct

Sausage Links, blame-game edition

Crosscut — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 13:05:01 PDT

David Goldstein at Horse's Ass says everyone has missed the boat about the latest mess surrounding the "top-two" primary. The Seattle Times blamed the parties. The parties blamed the state. Others blamed the lawyers. Goldstein, however, says the person to blame for what could be the "most monumental legal fuck up in state history — one which puts the legitimacy of our entire 2008 election in jeopardy" — is state Attorney General Rob McKenna.

Last stand for the Alaskan Way Viaduct

Crosscut — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 20:00:01 PDT

As the process to replace or remove Seattle's elevated waterfront freeway grinds on, a last-ditch pitch is being made to keep it standing.

The Sonics decision that wasn't

Crosscut — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 22:19:01 PDT

The last-minute settlement over the Seattle SuperSonics is sadly typical of politics around here. Why settle something when you can drag it on for years to come? Maybe we should call the new team, in the unlikely event it ever arrives here, the Seattle Viaducts.

Settling in a firm way a heated public debate like this one is risky for politicians, which is why they look for face-saving irresolution. Once something is settled, the losing side goes into permanent opposition, rather than holding out hope and courting favor with all the parties. The plan is to hold out a win-win solution, sometime in the hazy beyond.

Seven premonitions you can take to the bank

Crosscut — Sun, 29 Jun 2008 22:00:01 PDT

Predictions at mid-year regarding sweet deals for developers, a Sonics boon, the precarious viaduct, a Boeing handout, Sound Transit, Pat Davis, and cleaning up Puget Sound.

Sausage Links, attack-ad edition

Crosscut — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 12:24:01 PDT

Gov. Chris Gregoire unleashes her latest "hit" campaign on GOP challenger Dino Rossi today, primarily attacking Rossi's state Senate record. Now, of all outlets that would come to the defense of a Republican, the first place not to look would be a local left-leaning blog like Horse's Ass. But after yesterday's political circus surrounding Gregoire's previous ad, backhandedly comparing Rossi to TV mob boss Tony Soprano, Horse's Ass blogger David Goldstein rushes to Rossi's defense. ...

Getting ready for the Big One

Crosscut — Mon, 19 May 2008 05:00:01 PDT

The images of the quake aftermath in China raise the question: What would the wake of a major quake look like in Seattle? Fortunately, we have the answer. Or at least a pretty good guess.

Greg Nickels' rebel yell

Crosscut — Mon, 05 May 2008 23:00:01 PDT

Seattle's mayor waves the flag of secession. In so doing, he may have waved goodbye to a future in state politics.

Psst! Wanna see the Viaduct disappear?

Crosscut — Thu, 01 May 2008 13:58:01 PDT

The debate about Seattle's Alaskan Way Viaduct used to be a very public, contact sport, but as many local politicians were carted off the field, the controversy moved to a 30-person stakeholders group, who meet very quietly. Meanwhile, the politicians edge back onto the playing field and hint at solutions.

Sound Transit did not hear us

Crosscut — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 12:00:01 PDT

Prop. 1 was soundly defeated, but the leadership of Sound Transit plans to deliver Son of Prop. 1 to the voters this fall. The agency better get used to rejection.

Is Dino Rossi a moderate?

Crosscut — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 05:00:01 PDT

I wouldn't call him that, but the Republican candidate for governor has no need to run to the right to beat Christine Gregoire. Just as he did in the election cliffhanger of 2004, he can present himself as a comparatively moderate candidate, one in touch with the state's mainstream aspirations. He's starting to do that.

Chopp, Chopp! The method in the speaker's maddening ways

Crosscut — Wed, 02 Apr 2008 05:00:01 PDT

How Frank Chopp rules Olympia, and why he left the Sonic saviors sputtering. He's become a classic political boss, but he also remains true to the values of helping the poor.

More evidence that Washington infrastructure collapse is over-hyped

Crosscut — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 05:05:01 PDT

Okay, classify this as a pet peeve, but it bugs me when politicians, including Christine Gregoire, wave the bloody shirt of the Minnesota bridge collapse as an all-purpose rationale to boost infrastructure spending. Gregoire has done this often. She raised the specter of the Minnesota disaster as an argument in favor of Proposition 1 last fall; she raised it again to argue for a new toll bridge across the Columbia River, and yet again at a national governor's meeting in February. I have no quarrel with repairing or inspecting roads and bridges--please, let's do that. But the fact is, we still don't have the final word on what happened in Minnesota, so the lesson there is unclear.

When government swings the wrecking ball

Crosscut — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 05:00:01 PDT

Plans for Seattle Center, the University of Washington and the Capitol Campus in Olympia suggest that public agencies, like private developers, are willing to flatten historic buildings if they get in the way. What kind of historic preservation message is that?

At City Hall, a showdown over historic preservation

Crosscut — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 22:00:01 PDT

Trouble is brewing as critics and defenders of Seattle's landmarks process prepare to face off at a public meeting. Meanwhile, a lawsuit over the recent designation of a Ballard diner hangs over the debate.

Traffic's so bad, we might actually be willing to pay a toll

Crosscut — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 05:00:01 PST

Puget Sound policy-makers have been taking the public pulse. Their surveys reveal that people are generally pessimistic about the future, frustrated with traffic, and willing to pay to cross Lake Washington in a car — as long as it's really cheap.

New cure for collapsing bridges: state and union pension funds?

Crosscut — Fri, 29 Feb 2008 14:00:01 PST

With Washington facing mounting costs for roads, transit, and bridges, might the answer lie in tapping union pension funds? It certainly doesn't look like taxpayers are going to do much more. The Legislature is getting more tax averse and Eyman-minded. Bucking the costs down to a regional level, as in the defeated Proposition 1, doesn't seem to work either, as the local politicians load up any proposals with Christmas tree goodies. So if self-discipline won't tame the problem of too many claimants on too little money, maybe an infusion of money will do the trick? Enter America's second-biggest union federation, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), as well as an idea from super-dense Hong Kong.

Tear down a viaduct, and then the wars really begin

Crosscut — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 15:29:01 PST

We sometimes think that Seattle alone has "the Seattle malaise," meaning long-drawn-out disputes over development that often end in stalemate or ugly compromises. We are not alone. Consider this story from San Francsisco's Octavia Boulevard, as reported by John King of the San Francisco Chronicle. It's a cautionary tale for Seattle because it involves development of an area where once loomed an elevated freeway. Tear it down and you get, well, a street fight.

National perspective: Shifting campaign pledges, cold local transpo politics

Crosscut — Sat, 16 Feb 2008 12:53:01 PST

Back from a cold and snowy week in Minnesota, still hustling my new book, Seattle seems downright tropical. My first act on return was to turn down my thermostat; it seemed unseasonably warm here.

Several weeks in other towns have given me a chance to observe other places and, also, to see my home place in better perspective. Here are observations for this long weekend.

Shaky assumption: An Alaskan Way Viaduct myth is dispelled

Crosscut — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 14:55:01 PST

More movement this week on the Alaskan Way Viaduct – literal, not political. State engineers said yesterday, Jan. 23, that the elevated waterfront freeway has sunk another one-eight of an inch since the last check six months ago. In all, it's settled more than 5 inches since they started measuring shortly after the 2001 Nisqually earthquake.

Transportation: Can't we all just get along?

Crosscut — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 05:00:01 PST

An opponent of Proposition 1 opens the bidding, in hopes of finding a middle ground in the transportation wars. The peace treaty: a little more rail, no new highways, some highway fixes, unclogging arterials, tolls, and no more cute trolleys.