Skyscrapers in cities rob people of sunlight and put human health, well-being and sustainability at risk

These charges would do little to curb automobile usage in the Seattle area. But they would make Seattle less accessible, more inequitable and a less appealing place to live, work, shop, visit, and be entertained. It’s just another example of our City leaders chasing new revenue sources without considering the damage it would cause to our vibrant downtown.

Governor Inslee please veto HB1923 and say no to developer special interests. The bill weakens SEPA and takes away the public's right to comment. "It would be especially disappointing to see the most pro-environment presidential candidate sign a bill prioritizing special interests over the public’s ability to seek redress under his state’s signature environmental policy."

Finally, SDCI is requesting the First Light Applicant [2000 3rd Ave.] to address most of what we’ve been asking for years. The Correction Notice states in part “Please also indicate the expected frequency of commercial deliveries and of residential move-ins/move-outs. As the project will provide three loading bays, please provide turning movement diagrams demonstrating that each bay can be accessed when other bays are occupied. Please also indicate whether and to what extent trucks using the loading bays will extend into the alley when ramps or lift gates are deployed….

I went over to the alley behind Escala to take a look at a big truck sticking out of their loading dock and blocking all alley traffic. And sure enough, a picture of this truck belongs right at the top of any list showing why a downtown alley code amendment is absolutely necessary here in Seattle; and why none of these new pending high-rise projects downtown should be approved without demonstrating that large trucks such as this one will fit completely in their loading berth(s) and not extend out into the alley right-of-way.

The Puget Sound Regional Council (PSRC) is calling for public input on the draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) statement for Vision 2050. Deadline is next Monday, April 29. We've embraced density by choosing to live downtown.  We've had the opportunity to see where current transportation, infrastructure and development policies are failing to deliver a healthy and livable quality of life.  These issues need to be addressed in the new EIS.

“By my grading [2016], Seattle scores six out of 11, at best”, said Westneat. "At my kid’s middle school, this would prompt an after-school retake.”  So how has this changed since 2016, for the better, or for the worse? We went through the same list again this week, and we could only give Seattle a four out of 11, at best. "Whether it’s poor leadership, misplaced priorities or just a temporary struggle with too much runaway success, something’s not quite right.”

The Lorax is the story of Thneedville, the city where greed for the exotic Thneed truffle raw material at the top of the trees caused all the trees to be cut down, and Thneedville became just a “plastic” city....

Wake up Jenny! You need to quit running from one carefully orchestrated photo-op to the next playing City Cheerleader and proclaiming Seattle is thriving, when Bartells says “No more stores downtown. It’s too dangerous.” What we need is a tough problem-solving Mayor, one who is serious about dealing with the life-threatening, livelihood-threatening, and livability-threatening issues we have in Downtown and elsewhere.

You would think that with all the missteps they have made and continue to make; and with this year being a local election year, that they would at least be feigning interest in what their constituents have to say. Evidently not!

I try to give people the benefit of the doubt, but you really blew it on Tuesday when you were asked about your response to the KOMO News feature, “Seattle Is Dying”; and you said that the show was not representative of Seattle, that most of the city is thriving. How can you be so out of touch with reality? And show no compassion for the people suffering and dying on the streets?

It's a harsh title...I'll admit to you that I wrestled with the name for some time. Too dramatic, I wondered? Too dark? In the end I went with it because I believe it to be true. I believe that Seattle is dying. Rotting from within.

-Eric Johnson, KOMO News

If the developers and city can’t profit and expand the tax base with responsible development, the costs of density will overwhelm any benefits.

When will this human madness end? As I walk different alleys to try to find a safe place for my family and me, I just find more of the same. The proposed tower at 2nd & Virginia [#3033067] will hold 1,000 people in condos, hotel rooms, restaurants and offices yet it has no working loading berths and no space for trash collection on the alley.  It will share the alley with two other recent developments with no loading facilities. Between the trucks that line the alley and drivers trying to access 461 parking stalls, a worker on the block calls this alley a "nightmare.” 

As I walk the alleys of Seattle every day, I see more and more evidence of why an alley code amendment is long overdue. When I heard that the design team for the high-rise proposal at 1516-2nd Ave [#3032531] said they wanted to make the already busy alley behind the tower the "front door" of the building, I meowed under my breath “you cannot be serious!!!” 

If you've ever wondered how City leaders can claim big initiatives you've never heard of have broad public support, they likely spring from forums like the Imagine Downtown Open House happening this Thursday at City Hall from 6-8:30 pm.   By summer this public/private consortium will have collected feedback to "refine, combine and compile Big Ideas" into a vision plan for the future of downtown. Don’t be left out. Please attend this Thursday's forum on Transportation or send your ideas via email.

As the City Council gets closer to passing the Citywide Mandatory Housing affordability bill, I believe that the results downtown should give them pause. The City has used downtown as the “canary in the coal mine”. And the canary died.

My dad, Dac*, started this series of posts three years ago. Now that he’s retired, I have decided to come out of the shadows to continue his good work and share with you what I see today walking the downtown alleys. And I’m afraid it’s not pretty. If the Mayor and City Council don’t “see the light” and make some meaningful improvements to Alley Code, you’re going to see some real “cat fights” in these alleys (See what we need and why we need it at the end of this post).    --*Downtown Alley Cat

The original TENW Traffic Study for First Light #3026416 at 2000-3rd Ave. and its Update of 1/3/19 (posted 1/16/19) are incomplete and misleading. The foundation of the study’s projection of future traffic volumes (and cumulative impact) is completely invalid having excluded the project’s closest tower neighbors .

Nothing has really changed on the 5th & Stewart [Altitude] plans. The tower's loading and waste design will cause major back-ups in its alley and surrounding streets. None of its berths will fit the trucks for which they're intended.  There is no space on the alley for garbage collection. It’s a disaster waiting to happen. If you agree, please express your concerns to PRC@Seattle.gov.

The Applicant ignored all substantive design guidance from EDG1: loading design, turn radius study, alley circulation, waste storage niche --only to focus on ribbons, colors, palette, etc. That’s like saying "The patient is terribly sick and may die...but is wearing a lovely color of hospital gown.” And what did the Board do in response? They passed the project on to the Recommendation Meeting phase. Unbelievable! If you agree, please voice your displeasure by writing to prc@seattle.gov.

Seattle’s new mega towers are being designed without sufficient thought about functionality, and are seeking approval with substandard designs for loading and delivery, waste facilities, and parking ingress and egress.

City Council is scheduled to vote on CB119398 this coming Monday, January 14, at 2 PM. Exempting downtown towers from transportation mitigations required for smaller developments outside the city core is the biggest adverse impact and mystery in CB119398. While we understand and applaud the goal of bringing alternative transportation options to the SOV into greater usage, Transportation Performance [i.e. travel time] should be our primary measure of success or failure, not just a fuzzy feel good SOV reduction standard.