Monday, January 12, 2009

The only public works project more idiotic than the Bridge/Loot Rail? The Alaskan Way... Tunnel?


You know, I'm FROM Seattle. And every day, in every way, Seattle becomes an increasingly greater place to be FROM.

The problem here is that in this instance of insanity, we can neither afford this nonsense nor is it necessary. In those respects, the situation in Seattle is not unlike the situation we face here: the unneeded and unwanted, as well as indecently expensive replacement of the I-5 Bridge for purposes of bringing loot rail into Vancouver.

I vividly remember the pro-gas tax campaign not too long ago: we were repeatedly (and wrongfully) told that if we voted the gas tax down, the Alaskan Way Viaduct would collapse, killing millions and that the world would end as we knew it.

They were lying, of course... but our state supreme court has approved the process of campaign lies, so the messaging continued. The result? The people spoke. We were, as I pointed out, lied to... and the project list underwent a massive (30% or so) cut (all another part of our government lying to us) 60 seconds or so (figuratively speaking) after the vote passed.

The Alaskan Way Viaduct would be replaced by a tunnel under an agreement reached between the state, King County.

So now, instead of doing the right thing... instead of repairing and/or upgrading the Viaduct (much like we should be considering when it comes to the I-5 Bridge, but an unacceptable option to the downtown Mafia who demand loot rail at any price) the idiots running our government want the most expensive possible option: tearing down the viaduct and putting in a tunnel.

Think "Big Dig," and what an utter, complete disaster that was and is. Think in terms of $4.25 billion only being the opening charge. Think in terms of additional, unspoken billions and tax increases to pay for it. Think in terms of special interests blowing holes in our collective wallets.

Think in terms of the same kind of government arrogance displayed by the City Council of Vancouver.

I know I am.
 
Originally published January 12, 2009 at 11:53 AM Page modified January 12, 2009 at 3:03 PM

City, county, state agree to replace viaduct with tunnel

The Alaskan Way Viaduct would be replaced by a tunnel under an agreement reached between the state, King County and the city of Seattle.

By Andrew Garber, Mike Lindblom and Emily Heffter
Seattle Times staff reporters



OLYMPIA — The state and local governments have agreed to replace the Alaskan Way Viaduct with a tunnel under downtown Seattle, Mayor Greg Nickels and Metropolitan King County Councilmember Dow Constantine confirmed today.

The agreement between the state, King County, the city of Seattle, and the Port of Seattle is expected to be formally announced Tuesday.

The state would cover the cost of the two-mile tunnel, with the city and county picking up the tab for surface-street and transit improvements. The port would be involved as well, but details are still sketchy.

The total cost is expected to be around $4.25 billion, with the state's share totaling $2.8 billion, according to a source close to Gov. Chris Gregoire. The city's part of the deal would be just less than $1 billion, Nickels said. It would cover repairs to the sea wall, street improvements and possibly a streetcar line, he said.

"The burden is going to be on the city and county to provide some of the other surface and transit improvements needed to make local transportation work," said Constantine, D-West Seattle. "The big questions will be, how quickly can the tunnel get built, how long can the viaduct reasonably last and is there a gap between those two dates?"

The tunnel would be bored beneath the western edge of downtown, under First Avenue, which might allow the current viaduct to remain in use during tunnel construction.

Nickels said the city's share of the money would come from a variety of sources, including a local taxing district. He also said he hopes the federal stimulus package expected from Congress would include some money for the project.

Constantine said counties also have a local car-tab tax at their disposal.

The county was already searching for new money to replace stagnant sales taxes that threaten to cripple King County Metro Transit. He said he hopes state and local governments can figure out how to take care of that revenue shortfall and the viaduct replacement at the same time.

Nickels has supported a tunnel for some time.

"My goal has been to open up the waterfront," he said, "and this will do that."

The agreement reached between the state and local governments calls for a four-lane tunnel that would start at Royal Brougham on the south end, travel under First Avenue and emerge near Thomas north of the Battery Street tunnel.

In December, the state, city and county came up with two finalists for viaduct replacement: another elevated highway like the existing viaduct and a surface "couplet" in which southbound traffic would run on Alaskan Way and northbound traffic on Western Avenue.
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