City Hall
Afternoon Jolt: The Tunnel EIS
Winner: Mayor Mike McGinn.
Peter Hahn, director of the city's department of transportation called PubliCola this afternoon to get the word out that he has signed the final environmental impact statement on the proposed downtown deep-bore tunnel, a major hurdle for the project to move forward.
The move could signify that McGinn's administration has decided to back off (for now, anyway) from its single-minded opposition to the controversial project. The McGinn administration, mindful perhaps of polling that has linked his bad numbers to his nonstop focus on the tunnel, has been notably quiet about the tunnel these days. This even-keeled move will definitely draw applause from McGinn's establishment opponents who consider him an obstructionist.
Hahn says that his biggest concern about the EIS---the fact that it did not include information from a study showing that tolling would create an incentive for drivers to use alternate routes, diverting thousands of cars away from the tunnel---has been addressed in the latest version. "I feel more comfortable putting my name on" the EIS now that it includes the results of the study , which the city commissioned from consultants Nelson/Nygaard earlier this year, Hahn says.
"The mayor wanted me to continue working with [the state department of transportation] to make sure the EIS was as informative as possible."
Hahn says the entire EIS could be posted online by July 7. Seattle residents will have a chance to vote "yes" or "no" on a portion of three agreements between the city and state on the tunnel---a vote that will serve as a proxy vote on the tunnel itself.
Peter Hahn, director of the city's department of transportation called PubliCola this afternoon to get the word out that he has signed the final environmental impact statement on the proposed downtown deep-bore tunnel, a major hurdle for the project to move forward.
The move could signify that McGinn's administration has decided to back off (for now, anyway) from its single-minded opposition to the controversial project. The McGinn administration, mindful perhaps of polling that has linked his bad numbers to his nonstop focus on the tunnel, has been notably quiet about the tunnel these days. This even-keeled move will definitely draw applause from McGinn's establishment opponents who consider him an obstructionist.
Hahn says that his biggest concern about the EIS---the fact that it did not include information from a study showing that tolling would create an incentive for drivers to use alternate routes, diverting thousands of cars away from the tunnel---has been addressed in the latest version. "I feel more comfortable putting my name on" the EIS now that it includes the results of the study , which the city commissioned from consultants Nelson/Nygaard earlier this year, Hahn says.
"The mayor wanted me to continue working with [the state department of transportation] to make sure the EIS was as informative as possible."
Hahn says the entire EIS could be posted online by July 7. Seattle residents will have a chance to vote "yes" or "no" on a portion of three agreements between the city and state on the tunnel---a vote that will serve as a proxy vote on the tunnel itself.
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