Weekly Update: 06/01/2020

This Week

It’s all very hush hush. Totally on the QT. Or is it on the down low? OK, maybe it’s just a slow week. So why not give me a call? (206) 878-0578.

Last Week

Tuesday: Port Of Seattle General Meeting. This is a biggee in that the Commission voted to proceed with their long-term plan ‘Century Agenda’ which is their long term blueprint for growth. What I asked them to consider is that they hold off since there is no reasonable way to plan for either air or cruise travel until the dust settles. (The same was true after 9/11–it took Sea-Tac Airport nearly a decade to return to 2001 levels of operations–even with a shiny new third runway.)

Wednesday: Highline Forum. I want to give a shout out to Councilmember Nancy Tosta of Burien and SeaTac City Manager Carl Cole for bringing up that same issue: Why all the hurry to press on with construction when the ‘demand’ will be low for the foreseeable future? Is there a way to maintain at least some of the current lower levels of noise and pollution? My hope is that electeds from all the airport communities will embrace this notion and work together. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity.

Thursday: 30th Legislative District Call with Senator Claire Wilson, Rep. Mike Pellicciotti and Rep. Jesse Johnson. These are phone calls that any elected can get in on and they are generally just these three providing updates on what they’re doing and asking questions. I’m there mostly to listen and occasionally lobby. And I bring that up because a lot of what I do is lobbying–providing information for someone higher up the food chain about something in Des Moines. I’m not expecting them to ‘do’ anything in the moment because, as legislators, they’re in the same boat as I am–they can’t ‘do’ anything on their own. But if I bring up an issue and a bunch of other people bring up the same issue, then they can start to build a consensus. It’s a long game and it involves a ton of bowing and scraping, which I discuss in one of my fave rants How To Get What You Want From Elected Officials.

Thursday: City Council General Meeting (see recap below). (Agenda) (Video).

Friday: UW DEOHS Meeting. We’re having ongoing discussions on how to better monitor the air quality and noise around Sea-Tac Airport. I’ll keep repeating this because it’s always just unbelievable to so many people: There is no proper air quality monitoring around Sea-Tac Airport. Coming from Detroit as I did, and being used to working around factories where ‘monitoring’ is just standard operating procedure, this is just outrageous to me. Sea-Tac Airport is, by any measure, one of the worst polluters in the State of Washington. And what makes me speechless is the fact that so few electeds seem to care. In other words, because there is no ‘smokestack’ people seem to think it’s somehow ‘safer’. But Sea-Tac Airport generates noise and pollution just like any other factory and should be monitored just like any other factory.

Council Meeting Recap

We all gave ten second ‘congratulations’ speeches to graduating High School Seniors. Councilmember Buxton’s was especially good, IMO.

I also want to applaud Councilmember Bangs’ comments.

My new hero

In my comments, I kinda/sorta made two motions. The second was a finishing up of my motion to bring back city manager reports from our last meeting. It is 100% needed but will never pass with the current majority.

So… moving on to that first item. 😀 I gave a shout out to a resident I met at the Senior Center for lunch out back at the patio tables.

Background: ‘Mr. H.’ called me out for not practicing proper social distancing. He was 100% correct! And then, after I left, he got one of the workers to help him mark the tables so as to encourage proper distancing. Is this guy a great activist or what? But then, he went next level and called me to ask for additional patio tables (a long-standing request) to make up for the fact that we can now only safely have half as many people at each table. This is a man after my own heart!

So I asked from the dais to get the center more patio tables. And was politely shot down by our Mayor. He rightly pointed out that such requests should normally be handled as any other budget item.

However, like Mr. H. I also am an activist. And I’m also a fan of (occasionally) using petty cash to expedite the odd good deed. Mr. H. did a very good deed–he had the courage to mention social distancing (something we all should do) and then advocate for what he wanted. He deserved a favor. So I advocated for the guy. Shoot me. The Senior Center needs those tables. And a few hundred bucks ain’t gonna break the city.

Let’s be clear: that isn’t anyone’s ‘fault’. It’s just that a City has a gazillion things to do, so small items like this often just have to wait. Can’t be helped; even in the most efficient organization imaginable. So occasionally it’s good to stop for a sec and get one small thing taken care of. Not to make a habit of ‘budgeting from the dais’. It just makes people feel better about government writ large when they can actually see their efforts rewarded once in a while.

SR-509

I also made a totally pointless ‘no’ vote on the SR-509 expansion item. This vote was considered so ‘routine’ that it was placed on the Consent Agenda. But even though my protest was pointless, this is one of the most significant votes I will ever take.

SR-509 has been sold as a way to improve traffic through the area (the constant mess on Des Moines Memorial Drive, for example). But what it’s really about, what it has always been about is to make it easier for Sea-Tac Airport to move cargo onto I-5 and 167. That means more trucks on the road, but more significantly, it enables the airport to run waaaaaay more cargo flights–which primarily operate at night.

But the facts on SR-509 are that we are paying the State for the privilege of letting them run a road thru Des Moines that will bring us a small amount of one one-time money and a lot more noise and pollution forever. And if you really listen to the arguments it was all about how we are helping ‘the region’… not Des Moines. As if it’s our patriotic duty to help the rest of King County while we take it in the neck. There are no good arguments on the long term merits of this for Des Moines.

I will never vote for any legislation that enables more flights at Sea-Tac Airport. Any short term benefits just pale when compared to the ongoing damages to health and quality of life.

Get vaccinated! Yeah I know you’d like to forget about it, but there are new variants and the infection rate is climbing. Fortunately, there is an effective booster, which is recommended for people 65 and older and those who are immuno-compromised. It is available now, effective, free and you can get your appointment today here and here , including walk-Ins at SAFEWAY, Walgreen’s, Rite-Aid, SeaMar and Healthpoint.

Sign up for the King County Code Red Alert program. When you sign up for Code Red you’ll be notified immediately when there is a possible health threat. After the recent ‘Boil Water Notice’ I received just a few grouses that ‘it did not work’. I’m 99% certain that the problem is that you have to actually sign up for an account. Do It! There is this ‘guest’ option which is stupid and should not even be an option. Everyone who had an account in their system was notified. If you’re like me and signed up ten years ago (after the last notification), go to the site immediately and verify your account. Ten years is a long time for any computer system.
Check out the 223rd Green Street Project web site and take the 223rd Green Street Survey before December 11th!
Check out the Des Moines Marina Steps web site and take the Marina Steps Survey.
If you’re interested in any of our Kids or Senior activities, you can sign up here.
Learn more about our Comprehensive Plan and take the Housing Action Plan Survey.
Take the City Communication and Engagement Survey
Give blood! Schedule an appointment today. There is a CODE RED emergency shortage.
Masonic Home! There is a petition for those who are interested in historic preservation of the property. If you have questions, don’t contact me. Contact Barbara McMichael and Lloyd Lytle Jr
Community Service Officer Tonya Seaberry wants to hear from neighborhood groups interested in establishing block watch programs: Tseaberry@desmoineswa.gov or 206-878-3301.
City Of Des Moines Minor Home Repair Program: Low to moderate income households can get grants to do all sorts of necessary repairs. Email Tina Hickey (206) 870-6535.
Every home should have a Carbon Monoxide Detector–especially during the colder months! Full stop. If you need one but money is tight, South King County Fire And Rescue will get you one. Just call their Community Affairs Office at 253-946-7347.
And last, but not least: If your home has Port Package (sound insulation system) that is having issues, please go to SeatacNoise.Info

How to attend meetings and provide Public Comment

City Council Meetings are scheduled for Thursdays at 6:00PM at City Hall 21630 11th Avenue S., Suite #C Des Moines WA 98198. They can also be viewed live on Comcast Channel 21/321 or on the City’s YouTube channel. Committee Meetings are either at 4:00PM or 5:00PM, also on Thursdays.

You do not have to sign in to attend a meeting!
The sign-in sheet is only for people wishing to make a Public Comment.

There are three ways to provide Public Comment:

In person: Show up a few minutes before the meeting and sign the sheet. Public Comment is usually conducted at the beginning of the meeting.
By e-mail: All e-mails sent to citycouncil@desmoineswa.gov are considered public comment. They are instantly available to all members of the City Council and the City Clerk who includes them into the record of public comments at the next meeting.
By US Mail: Attn: City Clerk Office, 21630 11th Avenue S., Des Moines WA 98198 no later than 4:00 p.m. day of the meeting. Please provide us with your first and last name and the city in which you live.

All letters or e-mails requesting a specific action are referred by the City Clerk to the appropriate City department.

If you would like a follow up from me, personally please indicate that or call me (206) 878-0578.

The Clerk does not read e-mails to the Council in full; only the subject line. However, we do see them as soon as you send them. Your comments are added to the Agenda Packet available on the City web site following each meeting.

How to view public comments, correspondence and meeting materials

The City publishes a meeting agenda on the Friday (six days) before city council meetings. On the day after the meeting (Friday) the City updates that same file with all the slide presentations, the correspondence, and a list of the people who signed up to give public comment at the meeting. Currently, there is no button on the web site that says Show me the meeting comments for xx/xx/xxxx. You just have to know that this is the procedure. Below is a recipe to get you there.

Go to www.desmoineswa.gov
Once there, hover over Your Government and then click Council Meeting Center. (Or, you can skip Step #1 and just click on Council Meeting Center.)
Select the meeting date you’re interested in from the Schedule Of Meetings calendar.
Click on Regular Meeting for the meeting date you want. In this case, December 1, 2022.
Click the Agenda Packet link under “Print Verson”.
You can also select a meeting using the list near the top. You can also use the left and right arrows to select older meetings.
Once the agenda packet loads, there are two links we’re interested in:
- Correspondence to view all e-mails received by the City Council since the last meeting.
- Comments From The Public to view a list of the people who spoke in-person at the meeting.

This Week

Last Week

Council Meeting Recap

My new hero

SR-509

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