Letters to the Editor

Letter to the Editor: Over-development no good for Ballard

bryanz — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 21:20:44 +0000

Dear Editor,

In the story "In Ballard, a wave of townhouses densifying the neighborhood,"Mr. Valdez is attempting to mask his greed with feel good thoughts on density and affordability.

Where does Mr. Valdez live? What does he consider affordable?

Density brings higher crime and conflict, which I think Ballard is beginning to see.

How about aesthetics? How about less green space? What happens when the backyards are filled with housing which looks like so many stacks of boxes? What happens when skinny houses take up the majority of the property footprint and the neighborly activities of gardening and chatting disappear? People will cocoon and not know their neighbors -- they will cease watching out for each other.

What happens when you have an area of Ballard dominated by rentals and transient populations? What happens when this is just another community indistinguishable from so many others?

Does Mr. Valdez think ahead beyond a month, year, or his own lifespan? Or his own pocket book? Will people travel to Ballard to "ooh" and "ahh" over the architecture? A community filled with cute cottages is sinking into history.

Too bad. Money talks.

Thank you, Carla Madrigal

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Letter to the Editor: No time to punish students, vote 'Yes' on school levies

bryanz — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 16:59:08 +0000

Dear Editor,

As a high school student in the Seattle Public School district, I was amazed at the gall of the author of the Op-Ed piece, “Vote ‘No’ on school levies.” The Operations Levy that is being voted on provides over a quarter of the operating budget of Seattle Public Schools, and the use of it as a political tool is unacceptable.

While there are merits to the argument brought up, mainly the low voter turnout expected in this election, it is a message that needs to be expressed in a different way, not through the defunding of public schools.

This levy funds sixth period in high schools all across Seattle. I don’t believe, and I am sure many agree with me, that we should cut our students’ education by a sixth just for a cheap political trick. There is a time and a place for the argument that these levies should be voted on in the general election, just as there is a time and a place for the argument that we should fund schools through the state budget, not levies.

That time, however, is not now, and that place is not this election, with the futures of Seattle students on the line. If the state legislature refuses to work out their differences and fund our schools, we must put aside small grievances and take action to secure funding for our schools, so that our students can look forward to a bright future. This is why I urge the author to reconsider his stance and join me in voting Yes on the school levies.

Benjamin Lennon, Ballard High School Senior

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Letter to the editor: Coal trains = Jobs rolling away

bryanz — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 17:17:24 +0000

To the editor:

Zachariah Bryan’s photo and articles on the thousands at the last “scoping meeting” on the Bellingham coal terminal proposal (“No surprises; coal opponents overwhelm…” and “Mayor announces study…” in the 21 Dec. Ballard News-Tribune) were thankfully more reality-reflective than those of the Seattle Times. No doubt most Ballard area residents also object to daily snakes of open cars grinding through Golden Gardens and Carkeek while flooding all around with poisons. However, decrying the destruction of our rail corridor neighborhoods will not win popular opinion against the expensive propaganda being pumped out by Peabody Coal, Goldman Sachs, and their cohorts.

Now that we are in the limbo of the Army Corps’ EIR preparation –before expected public hearings in 2014– we need to address the one false claim on which the coal exporters depend: that terminals in Pacific Coast bays, rivers, and sounds will “create employment”.

We must ask why China is building one coal plant a week and now the largest ships in the world (to carry Montana’s coal). We must ask which energy-intensive industries (automobiles, aircraft, aluminum?) Beijing still desires to dominate. We must ask how much of this region’s container and commuter rail traffic will be edged out by coal transport. We must ask how much of the Sound’s aquatic life will be decimated, along with its dependents. We must ask how much the pollution arriving via the jet stream will stunt forests and deform babies. And finally, we must ask how many occupations and incomes will be cumulatively destroyed by this century-long scheme to benefit Wall Street and the Forbidden City.

- Jeff Jordan

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Letters to the Editor: Reconsider location of Urban Rest Stop

bryanz — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 04:49:52 +0000

Dear Editor

I am writing in response to your front page article in the December 14,2012 edition of the Ballard News-Tribune

The concept of the Urban Rest Stop makes a great deal of sense to me. As a resident of NW 57 Street in Ballard, while I support the concept, the location does not make sense to me. The article barely mentions the concerns of the residents. The concern that is mentioned, that of insufficient space, is brushed away by an assertion that this is not an issue at the other two locations. This gets me to my point that Ballard is very different from the other locations.

The Urban Rest Stop:

1) It is very close to the Public Library which is full of children of all ages.

2) It is a half block away from the children's park at Ballard Commons. Mothers push strollers down the residential sidewalk, which is half as wide as the downtown sidewalks . Despite assurances to the contrary, we are sure, at times, the sidewalks will be congested with people waiting for appointments or waiting for their friends using the rest stop or who hang out in the area.

3) Many elderly, who live in this same building or live in other senior housing further down on 57th Street, some of whom use walkers, will be intimidated working there way through the groups on the sidewalk as they go for their shopping at the drug store or the market down the street.

4) Compass House, one block over on NW 56th Street has 80 apartments for the formerly homeless and rehab facilities on the first two floors. I will be staffed 24/7 and provide many services.

5) In addition, St. Luke's Episcopal Church, on the corner of NW 57 Street and 22nd Avenue NW, provides a SHARE shelter and the Neighborhood Ballard Homeless Medical Clinic.

Within a two block area, the Ballard community, which is primarily residential with many young families, already supports a number of facilities to provide for the needs of the homeless and disadvantaged. Any time of the day, the library is a gathering place, both inside and our for the homeless, as is the park diagonally across the street. At night the street holds many cars and vans where the homeless reside.

The Ballard Food Bank on Leary Way, south of Market Street, which is on a bus line, is in a commercial area. It would be a much more natural location for the Urban Rest Stop, rather than concentrating even more services for the homeless in an already accommodating residential neighborhood.

In the five years we have lived here, we have found Ballardites to be very tolerant of and concerned about our homeless population. Forcing an Urban Rest Stop on such a busy residential community will create nothing but ill will and resentment. We would advocate that the Urban Rest Stop be placed in a more commercial area where the impact would not be so great.

Sincerely,

Brian and Liz Cunningham

To the editor:

In response to Elizabeth Wang's article on Dec. 14, I would say that the Urban rest stop is a great idea for Ballard, but is the proposed location across from the water park and library the best fit for everyone in the community?

Claire Strong

To the Editor,

I appreciate the need for the facility, and I fully support the Urban Rest Stop project. Yet, there must be a more appropriate location for this service. The proposed site is crowded already with kids and strollers and impossible parking. What about a spot closer to Leary that is more commercial, more parking, more space. I would hate to see all this time and money being invested into a great cause that would only lead to tension in the community. I would urge the leaders of this project to seek a more appropriate spot for the Rest Stop.

Thank you for your time,
Nicole C.

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Letter to the Editor: Kohl-Welles not 'stripped' of chair, necessarily

bryanz — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 04:13:07 +0000

By Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles

To the editor:

While I very much appreciate your efforts to provide context for what’s happening in the state Senate (“Carlyle, Tarleton get on board with important committees; Kohl-Welles stripped of hers,” Dec. 14), and that the details in the article are accurate, I am concerned that the headline confuses the facts.

I have not been stripped of my committee chairmanship or other committee membership (which sounds punitive) —- at least for now. Democrats have proposed that I continue to chair the Senate Labor, Commerce & Consumer Protection Committee, while Republicans have proposed installing a different majority, the “Senate Majority Coalition Caucus,” even though 26 Democrats have been elected as the majority (out of a 49-member Senate). In this model, two conservative Democrats would organize with all 23 Republicans. All Democratic chairs of top-tier committees would be replaced with Republicans. We have made a counterproposal of installing co-chairs on all committees and co-leaders in the Senate. In any case, whatever plays out cannot take place until Jan. 14th, when the Senate convenes and is able to amend the Senate Joint Rules which would have to be achieved to change our committee structure and leadership positions. Until that occurs, whether I continue as chair, co-chair or ranking minority member is at best a matter of pure speculation.

In the meantime, I am hopeful but not optimistic that our counterproposal to structure all committees with co-chairs will succeed. It is the option that would genuinely establish the bipartisanship and collaboration that the Republicans claim they hope to achieve.

Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles
36th Legislative District

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Letter to the Editor: Join other citizens in opposing proposed coal terminal

bryanz — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 18:02:53 +0000

By Liz Talley

In Ballard we are changing our image from quiet coffee drinkers to community activists and are working to stop proposed coal trains from entering our area.

It all started small just north of here in Bellingham, WA, with concerns about environmental damage if coal companies and SSA Marine were allowed to build a proposed coal exporting facility. Their concerns became ours, as information was passed along and folks in Ballard heard what the impacts would be to our unique area.

Since then, we've been holding neighborhood meetings, getting politicians to speak up, collecting signatures on petitions and posting "Power Past Coal" yard signs throughout the area.

The City Council and Mayor are in agreement with us, and the Council passed a resolution against coal trains, as did many other communities along the tracks throughout Washington State.

There are many reasons for this anti-coal train effort.

First off, the trains are uncovered, so coal dust blows off the open bed cars as they travel across our State. Right now about three trains come through a day on their way up to Canada, for the coal to be shipped to China.

Secondly, there are traffic concerns for the towns and cities along the route. It impacts Ballard, where 18 trains would be added daily. But it really impacts Spokane, WA, where a proposed 60 trains would be added daily.

Our Ballard neighborhood sits right on Puget Sound and the proposed coal trains would be rumbling along our waterfront blowing coal dust onto the beaches of Golden Gardens and Carkeek Park. I worry about the health impacts associated with coal dust and diesel particulate matter that comes from the trains, such as asthma, respiratory problems and even lung cancer.

I'm concerned that heavy trains create an increase in land slides in residential areas along the tracks, due to the weight and vibrations of heavier cargo on the rails.

There is also concern about delays for emergency vehicles having access across the tracks with so many extra trains. Extra traffic may amount to over an additional two hours daily of closed access to our streets that cross the tracks.

Finally the proposed export terminal up at Cherry Point near Bellingham, WA, has been rejected by the Lummi Indian Nation which holds that location as sacred. They have told the coal companies and SSA Marine that under no circumstances will they ever be allowed to destroy their legacy and build there.

Many locals here in Ballard have made a choice to live in this community for the clean air and water. It's a place where many choose to bicycle to work to keep their carbon footprints smaller. It's a place where we compost and recycle. It's a place that would never, ever, under any circumstances agree to become the new coal exporter for coal going to China.

If you're of the same opinion, I hope to see you at the Environmental Review Meeting on Thursday, Dec. 13 at 4:00 p.m. at the Washington State Convention Center, where the EPA and Department of Ecology will be collecting citizen feedback and concerns about this proposal.

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Letter to the editor: BNSF Railway disappointed with factual errors found in 'Taking a Stance on Coal'

bryanz — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 14:32:06 +0000

Dear Editor,

We read the Sept. 26 piece, “Taking a stance on coal,” and are disappointed that the reporter did not contact BNSF to fact check some details.

I want to point out a few items that we believe are important for your readers to know.

The reporter stated at the end of his story that taxpayers are responsible for railroad maintenance and upgrades. This is factually incorrect. Railroads are privately funded and pay for their own maintenance and expansion.

Since 2000, BNSF has invested more than $36.5 billion to strengthen and maintain its infrastructure. This year alone, BNSF is investing a record $3.9 billion. Since 1996, we have added more than 1,000 miles of 2nd, 3rd and 4th main track (not including sidings) to our system to accommodate growing freight volumes on our network. All of those dollars came from BNSF, not taxpayers.

BNSF regularly invests more than $100 million to preserve, maintain and grow freight rail capacity in Washington state alone. This year, that number is $106 million.

In regard to train traffic, as many as 70 trains a day pass through the heart of Seattle today. Some of these are coal trains that have been moving through the Seattle area for decades on the way to Canada. Until the recent interest in coal exports, we are not aware of a single complaint raised about coal trains.

Gateway Pacific Terminal is being permitted to handle 1 to 9 loaded trains per day. At maximum capacity, the terminal could handle 9 loaded trains a day and 9 empty trains a day, not the 20 you state in your article.

It’s also important to note that these trains may or may not go through the Seattle area or Ballard. BNSF has three main east-west routes through Washington state. Today, we do move some empty coal trains via Steven’s Pass. This means some empty coal trains are heading east at Everett and do not go through Ballard at all.

We believe the inaccurate information in this story needs to be corrected. We appreciate your consideration and effort to ensure your readers have the correct information.

Sincerely,

BNSF Railway

Letter to the editor: Responses to B&GC CEO's letter

bryanz — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 18:47:48 +0000

Editor's note: Last week, Boys and Girls Club of King County President/CEO Calvin Lyons gave the order to transfer longtime Ballard B&GC director Mark Hendricks to Federal Way. The decision spurred confusion, frustration and sadness in the community. After being out of office for a few days, Calvin Lyons sent out a letter apologizing for missteps in communication and clarifying why he made the decision. Below are a few responses to that letter, from three community members who have been heavily involved in the Ballard Boys and Girls Club and who have been organizing the community reaction, including a rally and a petition.

Dear editor,

It is obvious that had Mr. Lyons engaged with us prior to all of this, had he engaged with Mark and Shelley prior to all of this, things would look a lot different.

I still have questions. I still have different opinions. But, I can admit this email is a good first step after miles of missteps.

And I can tell you that our positivity has sent a loud and clear message. The corporate office has had nothing poor to say about our community. All they can say is 'look how Ballard reacted' and have it be the most awe-inspiring message of community, love and positivity. Our actions are a reflection of who we are, not of who they are.

So I will choose to continue to react the way that I have been, the way that we have been -- with positivity, passion, and compassion. By doing so, we are proving that we are great leaders of great character and that is what the Boys and Girls Club stands for. That is what Mark Hendricks stands for.

Noelle Olmstead

Dear Editor,

Our compassion and love for this community and for our kids is what will help us move forward. Our pursuit for answers has paid off, and we have made a step forward! There is still work to be done and our thoughts to be heard. We all know what is correct and false in the two letters. But I do believe this is a step forward and has now given us some information to elaborate on. As a community and family we will take time to collect our thoughts, gather details, and wait to express our feelings at the parent and community meeting next Tuesday. I know that Mark Hendricks will make a huge difference no matter where he goes, because he is a true mentor and an honorable man. Let’s take this time to teach our kids some valid life lessons. Stand up for what you believe in, don’t be afraid to speak your mind, and treat others how you would like to be treated.

Katrina Sigurdson

Dear editor,

This community showed Mr.Lyons the values and characteristics of what a true leader SHOULD do. We became a voice for those who had been told not to speak under fear of retribution, we stood up against those in positions of "power" with dignity and unwavering resolve. We should always continue to show the next generations to come, that they CAN and SHOULD hold their "leaders" accountable for poor decisions and choices. We must continue to speak out on behalf of children to ensure they are entitled to grow up in a world that Mark Hendricks and the Ballard Boys and Girls Club has given to all of us over the last 25 years. And SHOW our children what qualities make a great leader, as Mark Hendricks has done for all of us.

Stephen Howey

Letter to the editor: Now is the time to stop coal trains

bryanz — Fri, 31 Aug 2012 17:28:00 +0000

Dear editor,

Ballard has an opportunity to protest proposed coal trains from coming through our community and the time to take action is now. Now, before SSA Marine is able to get permits to construct a coal-exporting plant at the Cherry Point terminal near Bellingham. Now, before Peabody Coal continues to negotiate terms to ship coal across our state. Now, before the public relations ad campaign is repeated on paid TV spots talking about happy communities and more jobs, while hardly mentioning where those would supposedly come from. If there was ever a time to let the City of Seattle officials and our state’s political leaders know how you see the coal trains impacting your community, this is the time to do so.

With the ever-growing number of open bed coal cars passing through, a number of communities across the state are looking at train tracks as a threat to the environment. It is very different from shipping other commodities along the tracks. Some of the biggest issues are as follows:

1) Coal dust is toxic and unhealthy. It is possibly linked to lung cancer and asthma and is a byproduct of shipping coal in open bed trains.

2) Traffic on the rail lines impacts our cities and transportation flow, especially when increased train traffic is being proposed.

3) Coal is a dirty source of energy. Our turning a blind eye on the use of our state to export to China says we are fine playing a role in further pollution of the global environment.

As I look at the railroad tracks in Ballard and reflect on why it’s so great to live along Puget Sound, I am frustrated at watching coal being shipped across our community to be sold to China. I feel that it is important to share information about this with my neighbors. We are the ones who will foot the bill with increased train traffic, and we are the ones who will pay the cost of environmental pollution from having heavy trains with four or more engines per train spewing particulate matter into our air as they pull up to 125 open bed cars full of coal past our pristine Golden Gardens Park and through our neighborhoods. The way I see it, now is the time to weigh in with our political leaders about what we are about to give up if this challenge goes unmet.

Sincerely,
Liz Talley, Ballard resident

Letter to the editor: Do Kickin' Boot owners care about the community?

bryanz — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 14:35:47 +0000

Dear editor,

The owners of Matador, the new Kickin' Boot Whiskey Kitchen and third a soon-to-be seafood restaurant on Ballard Ave are making a point of destroying part of the historic Ballard neighborhood for their own financial gain.

Their new mega restaurant/bar venture, Kickin' Boot Whiskey Kitchen, is spewing toxic burnt wood smoke fumes into the Old Historic Ballard neighborhood. They have decided to ignore the pleas of nearby residents such as myself and continue to burn firewood in their giant meat smokers and mesquite grill day and night, 7 days a week. The smoke is so overpowering and pervasive in the immediate vicinity of the restaurant that we cannot open any windows or exterior doors without having our dwellings permeated by and reeking of burnt wood smoke. You could equate the degree of smoke exhaust and resulting smoke permeation and penetration into our residences to someone burning a wood campfire outside your bedroom/living room window.

The health and environmental impact upon us (nearby residents, workers and business/property owners) is acute and extreme. Instead of the pleasant smell of saltwater from the canal, we are being subjected to the intense odor of burnt wood exhaust and rained upon by its toxic residue 7 days a week. Breathing in these toxins on a daily basis can be a severe health issue. Over time, the nearby buildings, trees, rain water and soil in Old Ballard will be covered and infiltrated by toxic burnt wood residue.

I personally made the owners of the restaurant aware of their intense smoke exhaust and its impact over a month and a half ago. Their response to me was, ”Thank you for making us aware, but it's possible nothing will be done.” The owners are continuing to proceed with their daily wood burning and there is no remedy or solution to the acknowledged exhaust problem in sight.

Is this the type of business and business owners we want to support in our community of Ballard? The Kickin' Boot owners have no concern for their fellow Ballard neighbors and property owners. They are opening another restaurant exactly like this one in a residential neighborhood in Portland. It is becoming quite clear that they are not part of our community, nor do they wish to participate with us in being a good and responsible Ballard neighbor.

Wayne K., Longtime Ballard Resident

Letter to the editor: Senior citizens need to stand up for health care rights

bryanz — Mon, 09 Jul 2012 05:34:52 +0000

Dear Ballard News-Tribune:

Billions of dollars in savings and added benefits for Medicare beneficiaries were preserved thanks to the Supreme Court ruling that upheld the Affordable Care Act. However, now I hear that the ACA is in jeopardy once again because the Speaker of the House, John Boehner, has decided to hold a vote on July 11th to repeal the entire law.

Apparently, some in Congress would like to take away our benefits such as closing the Medicare Part D prescription drug doughnut hole, annual wellness visits to the doctor and free disease screenings for cancer and diabetes patients. The truth is, the health care law has improved coverage and has cut out-of-pocket costs for millions of older Americans and their families.

Seniors need to call their local Representative and ask them to vote against any legislation that would repeal the Affordable Care Act. Members of Congress have the power to revoke the ACA, but they should remember that seniors have the power to revoke their time in Washington, DC in November.

Sincerely,
Matt Courter

Letter to the editor: Tar Sands – Why do we need extreme fuels in Washington’s future?

amrook — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 13:52:50 +0000

We should not be complacent about the impending crisis posed by the increasing expansion of tar sands fuel extraction in Alberta. James Hansen, chief climatologist for NASA, recently stated that it will be “game over for the environment” if the Keystone XL pipeline is approved and these dirty fuels are released into our atmosphere. I say “dirty” not only because they produce 15 to 40 percent more greenhouse gases than conventional oil – but also because of the environmental pillage required to extract them. Tar sands extraction is extremely inefficient, requiring one barrel of energy to harvest every three.
National Geographic describes the process:

“To extract each barrel of oil from a surface mine, the industry must first cut down the forest, then remove an average of two tons of peat and dirt that lie above the oil sands layer, then two tons of the sand itself.”

Every day tar sands blended crude oil gets pumped to the West Coast of British Columbia where it is then shipped by tankers to five oil refineries in Washington State. There it gets blended with conventional oil, making up between 5-7% of the total mix. Over 100 of these oil tankers carry their toxic loads into Puget Sound every year, and unlike conventional oil, tar sands oil sinks quickly to the bottom – making cleanup of a potential spill a difficult, if not impossible task. The Washington Department of Ecology estimates a major spill could cost our economy $10 billion and 165,000 jobs. Since 1989, there have been 225 oil spills of various sizes in Puget Sound.

The oil companies assume we will quietly comply to their plans to further degrade our environment – a case of the powerful few profiting at the expense of our Washington State environment and those of us who live here. Tar sands oil production is incredibly toxic and puts Washington State communities and wildlife populations at risk, while setting us back from our goal of transitioning to clean, renewable energy sources.

The City of Seattle should follow the example of the Bellingham City Council, which has voted to avoid using tar sands fuel for its municipal fleet of vehicles. That’s a place to start. We can also support gas stations that commit to pumping tar sands free petroleum, and purchase products/services from companies that have agreed publicly to move towards zero tar sands oil usage – Avon, Chiquita, FedEx, Gap, Levi Strauss, Walgreens, Trader Joe’s, Whole Foods, Liz Claiborne, Bed Bath & Beyond, Quiksilver, American Eagle Outfitters, and Timberland. Just say no to extreme fuels!

Bruce Wolcott
Seattle

Opinion: Keep American Families Together

amrook — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 16:23:32 +0000

Ballard News-Tribune:

Last Friday, President Obama took a small, but important, first step in eliminating the painful separation of American families because of twisted immigration laws. Right now, the spouse of a U.S. citizen cannot apply for a green card in the U.S. if they originally entered without proper inspection by an immigration officer. To obtain lawful status the immigrant must leave the U.S. and apply for a visa at a U.S. embassy in
their home country.
However, this sets up a Catch-22 because once the immigrant leaves the U.S. he or she is barred from returning for up to 10 years unless he or she is granted a waiver proving the U.S. citizen or legal resident spouse will suffer extreme hardship as a result of this forced and extended separation.

This waiver, known as an unlawful presence waiver, can take months, even years to process because of bureaucratic backlogs. In the meantime the family is separated, the foreign spouse may be stuck in a dangerous place - like Ciudad Juarez, Mexico where many immigrants have lost their lives - and there is no way of predicting if or when the family will ever be reunited. Under this new rule, families will be able to stay together while the waiver is being processed. This is exactly what Americans support - the protection of American families and honoring that bond.
Although the new rule as proposed isn't perfect, it's an important step forward keeping families together and fixing our broken immigration system.

Justice,

Paul Soreff

Letter to the editor: Battle for the Capitol

amrook — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 05:37:44 +0000

Dear Editor,

I read "Ballard Big Picture: Battle for the Capitol with interest since I was there.
With so many people at the capitol building it was nothing short of, "reindeer luck" that allowed reporter Greg McMorkle to find anyone from Ballard. I thought the article was well written, and considering
the chaos, he did a good job of getting a story related to this area.
Unfortunately, with all that was going on, he only got one side of the controversy surrounding the
closures of the RHCs (Resident's Rehabitation Centers). Our state has people of many abilities, and varied talents. We have a spectrum from Bill Gates Jr., to a newborn child. Within that spectrum, we have people of varied abilities and talents within the Developmentally Delayed population. Kyle Matheson is obviously well
suited to speaking to his end of the issue. His arguments make sense for people like him, who fit into the community were well.
There are others who can live in the community with a little help, and at the far other end, people with the abilities of a small child, who has not yet learned language, and cannot care of itself. We have adults in the same situation. They cannot speak, cannot learn to read or write, or work, or often lift their head. It is just as heartless to send these people out into the community as it would be to send out the babies.
Our state constitution states, in part, "ARTICLE XIII, State Institutions SECTION 1 Educational, Reformatory, and Penal Institutions Educational, Reformatory, and Penal Institutions; those for the benefit of youth who are blind or deaf or otherwise disabled; for persons who are mentally ill or developmentally disabled; and such other institutions as the public good may require, shall be fostered and supported by the state, subject to such regulations as may be provided by law."
I say, let those who can live safely in the community do so, and those who need the protection of the RHC's live there.

Linde Knighton

A School Board farewell and Thank You letter from Peter Maier

amrook — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 23:07:58 +0000

By Peter Maier

The election in the District One of the Seattle School Board is over: Sharon Peaslee won by 1903 votes out of a total of 152,000 votes– a margin of 1-1/4% . I congratulate Sharon on the victory. She has already been sworn in as a member of the Board and has begun the hard work of helping the School District give our students the education they need and deserve.

The election outcome is a disappointment to me personally and to the many, many citizens who helped out in the campaign and with whom I have worked over the past four years. The final outcome was not what I expected given that on Election Night I had a 3,000 vote lead – about 4% -- of the 67,000 votes returned as of November 8. But as additional ballots were counted over the next week my lead slowly eroded and eventually Sharon took the lead. In the end the total number of ballots in the District One race far exceeded the total number of votes cast in 2007 – an increase of about 25,000 votes. This large and late surge of ballots favored Sharon Peaslee.

I worked hard on the campaign, as did many of you who helped me. Together we rang about 10,000 door bells, put out over 500 signs on private property, raised funds for an advertisement on cable TV and a mailer, and attended many community events. I thank your for your efforts on my behalf. Your support made the election close, but it was not enough to hold off the late surge for Sharon Peaslee. This was perhaps a reflection of the extensive media coverage of the Silas Potter fraud indictment and eventual arrest during the final week before Election Day.

I am proud of my work on the School Board and believe that I leave the Seattle School District in a stronger and more effective condition than when I joined the Board in 2007. Together with my fellow Board members we instituted a new Student Assignment Plan that builds communities and reduces transportation costs; we achieved innovative and stronger collective bargaining contracts with the teacher and principal unions; we fired the former Superintendent and hired Interim Superintendent Susan Enfield who has had a very promising start in her new position. Meanwhile, enrollment is growing after years of decline, and new schools have opened -- paid for with the levy funds that I championed. And perhaps most important, student achievement has increased and academic programs are stronger. Much more remains to be accomplished, but the path forward is now clear.

With my evenings and days no longer consumed by School Board meetings and duties, I now have more time and energy for my friends and family. I also can work on revitalizing my private law practice, which focuses on representing consumers and small businesses and on real estate and wills/estates.

I plan to continue to serve our public schools. There are many ways to help our schools, and I will seek how best to continue the work I have undertaken for the past two decades.

Again, thank you for the honor of serving on the School Board and for your support.

Woodland Park Zoo continues unethical elephant breeding

amrook — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 20:52:31 +0000

By Friends of the Woodland Park Zoo Elephants

Woodland Park Zoo (WPZ) artificially inseminated Chai, a female Asian elephant, for the 59th time on December 5, 2011. The previous 58 artificial inseminations over 20 years have all failed to produce a live birth.

Hansa, the only calf born at WPZ, was conceived when Chai was shipped to Missouri to be bred with a bull. Hansa died of Endotheliotropic Herpes Virus (EEHV) which is almost always fatal to young Asian elephants and horrifically painful. The zoo industry's own expert, Dr. Laura Richman, a pathologist with the Smithsonian National Zoo, said that Hansa would have gotten it from one of the zoo's other elephants and that Chai could transmit the virus through the birthing process. There is no cure for EEHV and WPZ has no infection control in place.

Elephants have evolved over 40 million years to become the animal they are today: highly intelligent, highly social, and genetically wired to move great distances. WPZ's elephant display, designed in 1986, is woefully inadequate resulting in the elephants' worsening physical and psychological conditions. The elephants are locked in a 2,500 sq. ft. barn for 16-17 hours every day for about 7 months of the year. Incompatilbility forces one of them to be in solitary confinement. The tiny, 1 acre yard is subdivided into 5 pens in order to keep the incompatible elephants separated.

WPZ claims having a calf aids the conservation of elephants. No calf born at WPZ will ever be released into the wild—the accepted measure of ex-situ wildlife conservation.

Furthermore, if a fraction of the $400,000.00 it costs to keep elephants in Seattle each year was used to fund anti-poaching teams or fund organizations working to control habitat loss, real elephant conservation would be advanced.

Friends of Woodland Park Zoo Elephants continues to appeal to WPZ and the Seattle City Council to allow the elephants retire to the 2,700 acre Elephant Sanctuary in TN; it's a win all the way around:

- Seattle gets out of a law suit.
- WPZ saves about $400,000.000 annually.
- Our children learn a valuable lesson in science and compassion.
- Chai, Bamboo, and Watoto can heal from the traumas of zoo captivity.

Letter: Say NO to Tim Eyman & Say YES to Prop 1

amrook — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 22:06:19 +0000

Dear Anne-Marije,

Many of us will sit down this weekend and fill out our ballots - remember, next Tuesday is Election Day! We have to work together for transportation choices for all who walk, bike, drive and ride transit. Tim Eyman's initiatives and our economic situation leave us the choice of raising funds or cutting vital services to millions of people in Washington.

I'm asking for your vote for Seattle's Proposition 1 for faster, more reliable transit and safer streets.

20% of Seattle commuters arrive on transit, and 10,000 bicyclists load their bikes onto Metro buses each day. Prop 1 will make improvements that help priority buses move through traffic between Seattle neighborhoods up to 20% faster so they arrive on time. Prop 1 will also repave miles more city streets every year, fix potholes, build and repair sidewalks, and help to catch up on a deep backlog of maintenance projects in our city.

And Proposition 1 will raise $14 million for bike safety to help us build innovative solutions. These include cycletracks that separate riders from traffic, and miles of Neighborhood Greenways that create safe routes to school for children and alternative bicycle routes away from busy streets. Please vote YES if you would like bicycling to be accessible to more people in our city, of all ages and abilities.

Around our state, we also face another destructive Tim Eyman initiative, I-1125. Please vote NO on Initiative 1125, which would jeopardize major projects around our state and make them 18% more expensive. I-1125 would kill East Link light rail and create a funding gap for the new 520 bridge.

If you would like a 21st-century transportation system, say NO to Tim Eyman's I-1125 and YES to Proposition 1 in the Seattle Transportation Benefit District.

Cascade Bicycle Club endorses candidates and ballot measures this time of year because these decisions affect our safety and the quality of our communities. I encourage you to view all of our endorsements and our policies at cascade.org/elections. Please "bike your vote" as we work together in creating better communities through bicycling.

Thank you,

Chuck Ayers
Executive Director
Cascade Bicycle Club

Sustainable Ballard invites you to join the Occupy Seattle protests

amrook — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 15:21:36 +0000

By Sustainable Ballard

Hello Neighbors,

By now, you've surely heard about the Occupy Wall Street movement and accompanying protests, including Occupy Seattle which continues this week at Westlake Center.

"Occupy Wall Street is a people-powered movement that began on September 17, 2011 in Liberty Square in Manhattan’s Financial District, and has spread to over 100 cities in the United States and actions in over 1,500 cities globally. #OWS is fighting back against the corrosive power of major banks and multinational corporations over the democratic process, and the role of Wall Street in creating an economic collapse that has caused the greatest recession in generations. The movement is inspired by popular uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia, and aims to expose how the richest 1% of people are writing the rules of an unfair global economy that is foreclosing on our future."

As part of the 99% you may want to join the protest downtown, but there are many other ways to show your support for the movement as well.

Probably the biggest impact you can make as an individual is to shift your money out of corporate mega-banks into a community development bank or credit union. Just four banks: JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, Citibank and Wells Fargo control a huge majority of assets and continue to consume smaller banks through mergers and with the help of the federal government. If you want to "break-up with your mega-bank," a great resource is Green America's Community Investing Guide.

Letter: Yes on Prop 1

amrook — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 14:10:54 +0000

You've probably all heard about Proposition 1, which proposes raising the Vehicle License Fee by $60. If it passes, this will be a critical source of revenue to fix streets and sidewalks, improve transit and improve safety for cyclists and pedestrians.
Passing this will give the city the funds to commit to building a network of neighborhood greenways. If it fails, each community group will be slowly trying to raise money for one greenway at a time and a cohesive network will be many years in the future.

Please vote yes for Prop 1 and visit Streets for All for information and volunteering opportunities to make Seattle the city it can be.

Regards,
Jennifer Litowski
Ballard Greenways

Letter: Hometown Heroes Raffle Kicks-off Statewide

amrook — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 21:22:41 +0000

Written by Bill Hanson, director of Washington’s Lottery; John Lee, director of the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs; and state Sen. Steve Conway represents the 29th legislative district.

When the danger has passed and the homecoming celebration is complete, Washington military members often face enormous transitions coming home. These men and women return from long deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan to find that they may need civilian career training, specialized medical care and financial support as they navigate how to establish routine and stability back home with their families.

In tackling these challenges, many of our state’s veterans don’t know where to turn for help. Recognizing this need, the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs (WDVA) established the Veterans Innovations Program (VIP) to provide solutions to the unique challenges facing veterans and their families today. With services ranging from education and transportation assistance and career training to providing childcare and basic health care costs, VIP has changed the lives of more than 800 National Guard, Reserve and active service veterans and their families since 2006.

This year – through dedicated efforts led by the Veterans Legislative Coalition and the Washington Legislature, along with the support of Gov. Gregoire – Washington’s Lottery has created the Hometown Heroes Raffle to help fund the Veterans Innovations Program to continue supporting our brave Washington men and women. As a response to a lack of funding for the VIP through 2012, the annual raffle is now a dedicated funding source for the program.

In almost every community around our great state, there is a post 9/11 veteran who put his or her own family and personal plans on hold to protect us abroad. The Veterans Innovations Program aims to provide a bridge of support upon their return, providing grants to veterans in communities across Washington. Recipients of VIP grants include single parents, husbands, wives, former construction workers and new college students.

The Hometown Heroes Raffle is just one of the many ways we can serve those who served us so bravely and recognize their service and sacrifice. To build and strengthen the resolve around our state’s veterans, Washington’s Lottery has also created a Hometown Heroes Inspiration Wall on its Facebook page, enabling the public to share personal stories and experiences, either as a veteran or as someone who supports veterans. This year, the raffle has 24 top $50,000 prizes, 240 $250 prizes, and 3,000 $50 prizes with overall odds of 1 in 92.

While Lottery proceeds will continue to support higher education, early childhood programs and its other beneficiaries, the Hometown Heroes Raffle provides an incremental and unique opportunity for partnership across state agencies. We encourage everyone to support our veterans through the Hometown Heroes Raffle, which kicked off on Labor Day and will conclude on Veterans Day with a drawing for the winning tickets. You can purchase a Hometown Heroes Raffle ticket at any Lottery retailer.

Whether it’s a winning ticket or a safe home, we’ve got a lot to feel lucky about here in Washington, and we owe some of that gratitude to our veteran community.

Opinion: Boycott Ringling Bros. Circus Circus Animals Routinely Abused, Neglected and Confined

amrook — Thu, 01 Sep 2011 14:17:26 +0000

Note: PAWS (Lynnwood, WA), Pasado's Safe Haven, Friends of Woodland Park Zoo Elephants (FOWPZE), a Northwest Animal Rights Network (NARN) campaign, and the Sound Animal Rights Alliance (SARA) are joining animal welfare agencies in California to call for a public boycott of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus. They cite the abusive and neglectful treatment of the circus animals and the inhumane living conditions they must endure. Ringling Bros. is scheduled to perform in Kent (September 1-5) and in Everett (September 8-11).

Washington State animal welfare groups agree that using animals to perform in circuses is an outdated and inhumane practice. Handlers routinely use tools such as whips, bullhooks and electric prods to force the animals to perform unnatural tricks and confine them in chains and cages when they are not on stage. Baby elephants are cruelly separated from their mothers for training in what the circus itself has referred to as "breaking" the baby elephant. Covert videos and photos have surfaced showing Ringling trainers brutally beating elephants with bullhooks and electric prods.

Transported in cattle cars or trucks in extremes of weather, Ringling's animals must keep a grueling schedule and perform even when they are exhausted or sick. The circus has often failed to provide appropriate veterinary care. Recently, the U.S. Department of Agriculture cited the circus for failing to treat an elephant named Sarah who had a serious infection. Sarah collapsed after she was forced to perform despite being ill. Severe neurotic behaviors caused by mistreatment and confinement are also ignored. Sadly, the circus presents this horrific animal suffering to our children as entertainment.

Anti-cruelty laws are often inadequate and poorly enforced for circus animals and so their suffering continues. We believe it is time for the public to send a clear message to Ringling Bros. Circus that the cruel exploitation of animals should end. Tigers don't jump through flaming hoops because they want to, nor do elephants pirouette like oversized ballerinas in nature. We urge the public to support cruelty-free entertainment instead, such as the Cirque du Soleil.

Sylvia Moss
PAWS

Amber Chenoweth
Pasado's Safe Haven

Alyne Fortgang
Friends of Woodland Park Zoo Elephants/NARN

Nancy Farnam
Sound Animal Rights Alliance (SARA)

Letter: Reject a bad plan for Seattle

amrook — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 19:33:51 +0000

Dear Anne-Marije,

Ballots are in the mail for this year’s primary election. Cascade Bicycle Club encourages you to reject Seattle Referendum 1 because we have serious concerns about the deep-bore tunnel.

If you read the tunnel campaign’s misleading ballot statement or see their bike and bus logo you should be skeptical – it falsely says that “bicycle interests” among other groups recommended the tunnel.

I want you to have some background on why I and Cascade Bicycle Club believe this is a bad project for bicyclists. In 2008, I served on the Alaskan Way Viaduct Stakeholder Advisory Committee that looked at a number of possibilities for replacing the aging viaduct.

At the end of this process, I signed a letter saying we should study a deep-bore tunnel further AND an option that included better transit, improvements to local streets and I-5. We didn’t know much about the unstudied tunnel at the time. Now we’ve seen the numbers and they are not good.

The risky tunnel plan spends billions of dollars but pushes thousands more cars onto city streets - without enough money to provide the transit and safe bike facilities we asked for. In fact, they did not include a bike and transit-friendly solution in their study. They even changed the purpose of the project to exclude other kinds of transportation.

You may ask, why does a bike club care about a highway tunnel? First, the project is so expensive that it puts our other priorities, from transportation to education and public safety, at risk.

The tunnel does not serve a stunning two-thirds of people who use the Alaskan Way Viaduct today. Unless we invest in more transit options and safe bike and pedestrian facilities, tens of thousands more cars will make Seattle streets a worse place for bicycling.

I encourage you to cast your ballot to Reject Referendum 1. We can do better for our city and make it a better and safer place for bicycling, not worse. Please cast your vote to send a strong message to our elected officials that we need a better plan for transportation in Seattle.

Thank you,

Chuck Ayers
Executive Director
Cascade Bicycle Club

Letter to the editor: Reject the tunnel

amrook — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 15:57:54 +0000

I am writing this letter to urge the voters to reject the tunnel and refurbish the viaduct. The Mayor and City Council have the duty to look after the people of the City of Seattle. After all, it’s our City and the citizens have a right and duty to see that they do that. Personally as a resident of West Seattle I enjoy using the viaduct and the Broad St. tunnel both as a highway thru town and as an access to town on its ramps. I also enjoy the view of Seattle’s harbor from the viaduct. It’s a neat way to avoid the freeway and it makes our city unique. It also bypasses all the ferry traffic from across the sound. Stick to your guns Mayor McGinn and the voters are watching your Mr. City Council.
I am urging the voters to reject the tunnel again as you voted on this subject previously. With the tunnel the Seattleites are getting a bum deal. The following are my reasons to refurbish and keep the viaduct:
The tunnel allows no access to downtown Seattle from State Highway 99. This is a bum deal for downtown businesses and shoppers.
The viaduct and Battery Street tunnel are still the best solution for access and route for highway 99 and the City.
A prominent and experienced civil engineer named Victor Gray has publicly commented that the existing waterfront viaduct can feasibly be strengthened to withstand seismic activity.
The new Tunnel will have tolls that will cause cars to divert to city streets causing more congestion.
The proposed tunnel is likely to have cost overruns due to the nature of the glacial soil and the likely of tunneling machinery getting stuck.
The act of tunneling may cause damage to buildings and utilities above it.
The 200 cars from each of two ferries coming into the waterfront hourly will congest streets already crowded by cars trying to avoid the tunnel tolls.
The West Seattle cars (trying to avoid tunnel tolls) eastbound on the Spokane St. viaduct will try to get on I-5 on single file merged ramp to go north on I-5. This ramp is inadequate and backup cars on the Spokane St. viaduct making it a parking lot.
Finally, maybe it would be a good idea to double-deck I-5 downtown if we have to have a tunnel. That way we could tear down the Convention Center and become famous. If we tore down the Kingdome, the Viaduct and the Convention Center would we be famous?

Calvin F. Bannon PE (ret)

It's final - no new jail in Interbay!

amrook — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 22:31:10 +0000

Dear Ms. Rook,

I wish to share great news with you. Today King County and the City of Seattle announced a long-term agreement for use of the King County Jail as the primary provider of bed space for the City's misdemeanor inmates over the next two decades. This agreement ends—with certainty—proposals to build a new jail in Interbay.

I have been pleased to partner with many community organizations in Interbay, Magnolia, Queen Anne, and Ballard since 2008 in opposing any new jail in Interbay. Because some time has passed, I wish to provide some background on this issue.

As you may know, most cities in King County, including Seattle, contract with King County for jail beds to house misdemeanant offenders. A few years ago, due to projected growth in the number of felon inmates, then-King County Executive Ron Sims stated that cities would not be able to contract with the county past 2012 and should begin planning to house misdemeanants themselves. In response, north and east cities, including Seattle and Shoreline, formed the North/East Cities Municipal Jail Planning Project, which identified six sites for a full evaluation—one of those sites was 1600 West Armory Way in Interbay.

In June 2008, I wrote the attached letter to then-Mayor Greg Nickels urging him to reconsider siting any jail facility in Interbay. Among other concerns, I cited Interbay's location between several established family neighborhoods, its strategic location for further urban growth, and noted that a jail would further diminish the small amount of existing industrial-zoned land within our City limits.

At the same time, I had concerns about the Executive's decision to end contracts with cities in 2012, and hoped there would be a way for King County to continue to provide regional jail services for cities. In July 2008, my King County colleagues and I directed the Executive to reopen discussion between King County and cities about our current contracts for jail services, and to engage in a wider discussion about the possibility of King County continuing to provide regional jail services, alleviating the need for Seattle, Shoreline and other local cities to build new jails. In the summer of 2009, then-Executive Kurt Triplett released the great news that a tentative agreement had been reached between the county and cities on extending the current contracts through 2015, providing at least three more years to assess and evaluate the need for a new jail.

Today's announcement of an "agreement in principle" between King County and the City of Seattle includes a commitment by King County to provide jail space for Seattle inmates through 2030, reasonable and predictable fees for services that financially benefit both the City and County, and a commitment to work together on jail diversion programs, alternatives to incarceration such as home-detention and treatment programs, and jail population forecasting. This agreement ends the need for Seattle and other cities to build a new jail.

Please join me in celebrating this victory. This agreement provides for cost savings for taxpayers, operational efficiencies, inter-governmental partnership, and importantly, closes the book on the proposal to build a jail in Interbay.

Congratulations and thanks for your interest and advocacy! I appreciate the opportunity to share this good news with you.

Sincerely,

Larry Phillips, Councilmember
Metropolitan King County Council, District Four