Some bits of business…
Future Agendas is the closest thing the City currently has to a calendar of upcoming City Council topics. It’s not dynamic, ie. you have to click it every time you want to see a new version. And it’s not always accurate. But until we develop a genuine calendar, this can be very useful if there is a particular issue you don’t want to miss.
Important change: City Manager Caffrey has adopted a new format. Good news? Much more colourful! Bad news? Super short-term, ie. it has zip past February. This is hopefully temporary. All governments have a broad notion of where various items will fit into the year.
As of this writing, three things seem to be in my future, none of which I’m thrilled about: a review of the Council Rules of Procedure – which was terrible two years ago. A review of using One-Time Money for general fund expenses – not great financial practice. And an airport committee at exactly the wrong time. I keep waiting for the good things to show up. 🙂
City Manager Stuff
City Manager’s Report January 17, 2025 This week’s recipe involves a fancy event potatoes and duck fat recipe – apparently from her husband’s people in ‘the big town’ (Dublin). Sound delish. However, I just priced duck fat. I guess I’ll be stickin’ with cál ceannann. 🙁 (As tasty as it looks, let me tell ya. 😀 )
Save Redondo Pier Petition
I wandered around Redondo this weekend and noticed a sign ‘Save Our Pier’. The Council has also received inquiries from our State reps who helped provide prox. $2.5M grants to help the rebuild several years ago – and understandably want to know what’s holding up progress. 😀
My advice to all concerned residents is, as always: Public. Planning. Commission. I dunno how many times to SCREAM this because at this point, it’s not the City that isn’t listening. It’s you. Every time you get upset about a Woodmont Recovery Clinic, Masonic Home, Van Gasken House, bad apartment complex, Des Moines Creek West, Marina Hotel, Marina Steps, Redondo Fishing Pier, Downtown, etc., etc., etc… you’re really screaming about a lack of overall public strategy. And the longer we go without a planning commission, the longer the City Council will keep making ad hoc decisions. This is not a difficult concept to understand. If you don’t have a ‘public plan’, there are no controls. Instead of waiting until the next emergency, just insist on re-instating the planning commission we had in 2012.
On Thursday, we’ll vote for a re-design. The packet says that it’s already funded. OK, fine. But it’s also an extra $200k to re-design the project to account for the increased overall costs. Just like the Marina Steps, we’re paying more to figure out how to build something less than what the Council originally voted for.
At our February 13 meeting, the Council will consider those Marina Steps. And one of the options mentioned on January 13 was, indeed, to pull the bond money allocated for Redondo over to plug the cost overrun in the Marina Steps. Or? It could go the other way – move money from the Steps to Redondo. Without a plan; without a planning commission, these are both possibilities.
But here’s the thing: either choice is yet another ad hoc decision, a response to immediate events, rather than following an actual plan.
One of the trust building issues I have with our new staff, has been what seems to be a private support for a planning commission. Every other city has one of course. Great! But no one has mentioned it publicly and I’ve been asked to be patient. So, it’s quite possible that the City Council will move forward with all the worst possibilities re. the Marina, Redondo, etc. And then set up a planning commission. Ta da!
That’s the lived experience people have had here. It’s why people have become so cynical.
To end on a hopeful note: I’ve seen the Council change direction many times. But only when the public gets angry. Said it before, say it again, and the rest of the Council hates to hear it, but the very few times the public shows it actually means business? The impossible instantly becomes very possible.
So, WRT ‘Redondo’, the fishing pier is in play not only because there’s no ‘plan’. It’s also up in the air because the Council sees no consensus among residents.
In my opinion, the area should be a vibrant community space. More than one venue like Salty’s should be humming and there should be beach amenities to serve the hundreds of families who live in the south end of town. But tracking people who actually show up at City Council meetings? The only message we hear is “we want quiet!” 😀 I don’t know what to do with the mixed messages.
To my mind, the waterfront blessings we’ve been given must be exploited for the full benefit of all Des Moines residents. If that’s really going to be our ‘mission’ it’s the right policy and the right finance. Average people need places to enjoy the entirety of our waterfront and spend money doing so.
So, if there is a constituency that wants to Save The Pier? Very cool. Hope to see you on Thursday! That at least tells me there is a constituency that values more activity in Redondo; something I strongly support.
This Week
Monday: Martin Luther King Day at Northwest African American Museum. I always try to recommend a book and this year it’s Death of a King, the best short volume on MLK’s real philosophy; not the made-up ‘saint’ he has seemed to become.
Tuesday: Burien Airport Committee (agenda) Our City Council seems hell bent on re-creating a new airport committee here. I encourage interested residents to show up for the BAC to see what such a thing can (and cannot) do for us. I favour creating a joint committee; rather than separate groups, because frankly, we’re strongly as a shared voice.
Wednesday: ZEV Car Share Ribbon Cutting. There’s been this green electric car near the Harbormaster’s building for several months. It’s an electric car you can take for a few hours up to a week using a phone app. You sign up for a membership you get a fairly low rate. Zev Co-Op. Here is a coupon for your first ride.
Wednesday 2:30pm Highline Forum (at Sea-Tac Airport)
Thursday: Olympia I will be testifying in support of HB1303-2024
HB1303, aka the CURB Act is the most important piece of environmental legislation you haven’t heard of. When/if passed into law, it will require developers of mega-projects (like Sea-Tac Airport) to provide an enhanced environmental impact statement – specifically to address community impacts. It’s exactly what was missing in the SAMP Draft EA.
Please Sign in pro to support HB1303 before Thursday January 23, 2025 8:00AM for HB1303-2025 (CURB act)
Thursday 4:00pm Municipal Facilities Committee – 23 Jan 2025 – Agenda Their first meeting of the year, so mainly planning calendar.
Thursday 5:00pm Economic Development – 23 Jan 2025 – Agenda Their first meeting of the year, so mainly planning calendar.
Thursday 6:00pm City Council Regular Meeting – 23 Jan 2025 – Agenda Highlights:
-
- Transportation Impact Fee Reduction For Early Learning Facilities. I will vote no. It’s simply a developer discount. Does nothing to help parents or children.
- City Logo Discussion. In the toughest budget environment in years, we’ve already wast… er… invested 10 Gs on a Mission Statement. So why wouldn’t we do the same on a new logo. Newsflash: I think our current flag is just fine. 🙂
- Redondo Fishing Pier Replacement Project. See above.
As is often the case, what’s a little weird are the items on Consent, including the award of the L,M,N dock replacement. That warrants mention because (apparently) the low responsive bid came in under budget, which means that at least one aspect of Marina Redevelopment we can all agree on will be able to start this year.
And then there are three City Manager presentations
-
- Middle Housing Open House Update (see above)
- Animal Control Update (life post-Burien Cares contract?)
- Legislative Issue Update
The legislative update will likely include a homelessness protection bill by Mia Gregerson. Frankly, these are the kinds of things drive me nuts; on both sides. Everyone tends to freak out, establish a hard position, and then get nowhere. Rep. Gregerson is rarely seen in Des Moines, which is a shame. Before going to the State House she was Mayor in SeaTac. She knows a lot about the airport, has seniority in the House, and we could sure use everyone’s help on many issues. But unfortunately, this bill does go too far and I wish she’d consulted with us beforehand.
But… just being real here girlfriend. I could say exactly the same for many State and Federal legislators. If you feel unheard by your electeds? The line forms at the rear. 😀
Last Week
Tuesday: Meeting with UWDEOHS. They did a paper last autumn that improves on the work they’ve done, not only to demonstrate the dangers of ultrafine particles, but also to show that they can distinguish between the source of those UFPs. Normally I provide links to papers like this, but this one is pretty dry (unless you enjoy reading about the improvements in Positive Matrix Factorisation V5, versus PFM V4.)
This is the easy part: In 2025 Des Moines has a chance to obtain the first fixed-site air quality monitor in the area – something we’ve needed for decades. That will go a long way to closing the remaining gaps in the science – and make regulation of aviation pollution possible. That’s the part you care about.
Tuesday: Port of Seattle Commission. Their first meeting of the year. Unlike us, the agenda is fairly light. The only thing of potential interest to us is a renewal of their 30-year agreement with Midway Sewer. Said before, say it again, everything that runs off the plateau, water, sewer, storm water, is something the City of Des Moines needs to keep an occasional eye on.
Wednesday: Regional Transit Committee. First meeting of the year. RTC’s job is to provide recommendations to the full King County Council which governs Metro. A lot of the discussion concerned the death of bus driver Sean Yim. Safety is a big deal in every meeting. As a big user and proponent of transit, this puts me in an awkward position.
Unlike most people who will read this, I actually use local transit. From where I live, getting to Seattle and Tacoma is safe, friendly, inexpensive, and the only major problem is that not enough people use it.
So at these meetings, it’s hard to pivot from the sad but extremely rare “Services for Mr. Kim will be…” to mundane topics such as “How do we get more Orca Cards into the hands of Des Moines residents?” But that’s the challenge.
I’m part of this because as great as Metro is for me in the north central neighbourhood, that’s how much it sucks in other areas of Des Moines. Obtaining ‘last mile’ service for the rest of Des Moines – particularly the south end and Highline College is pretty important. What good is having a Light Rail if people can’t get to/from it in Des Moines?
Wednesday: Middle Housing Community meeting 5:30 – 7:30pm Senior Activity Center 2045 216th St.
The staff conducts these open houses and there is always a certain amount of ‘process frustration’. The people who show up are interested in immediate changes to zoning. But the meeting is really a listening session. The people who should be at these meetings, the people who need middle housing never show up. I don’t know what to do about it other than to attempt to be a proxy for residents who call me all the time looking for affordable places to live.
Thursday: I met with Director of Public Works Mike Slevin and Surface Water Manager Tyler Beekley to ask a couple of questions re. the Environment Committee – 09 Jan 2025 the Council reviewed last week.
When I saw the rendering for the proposed public replacement, it reminded me of a previous set of design ideas from 2008. Interesting, no?
More on this next week.